Hello Students and Families!
Please remember to check Ogden's website for regular updates from the school.
5/21/12
Just a friendly reminder that tomorrow is our trip to the Shedd Aquarium. We will be leaving shortly after school begins, so please make sure your child is on time for school.Do not forget to send your child with a lunch and a drink in a disposable bag(no thermoses or lunchboxes). Please write your child's name and room number on the outside of the bag to avoid confusion. Finally, please make sure your child is in comfortable shoes as we will be walking around the museum all day. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.
Fourth quarter progress reports are going home tomorrow. Please sign and return the second page of your child's report by Tuesday, May 29. If you have any questions about your child's progress report, please let me know.
All library books must be returned on Wednesday. The students will not be able to check out any more books this year as our library prepares to close for the summer.
We are learning about plant and animal life cycles as a part of our PYP unit. Next week we will learn about how people change as they grow. To help with this project, please send in 3 pictures of your child: one from when he/she was a baby, one from when he/she was a toddler (2-4 years), and one current picture. Please send all pictures by Friday.
Also, please remember that Friday is an early dismissal. All students will be dismissed at 12:00. There is no school on Monday in observance of Memorial Day.
Finally, please mark your calendars for the afternoon of Tuesday, June 5. We will be having a small end-of-Kindergarten celebration from 2:00 - 3:00. Kindergarten "diplomas" will be handed out at this celebration. More information will be coming home this week.
5/8/12
A few quick notes:
- The May snack calendar was sent home last week. However, no one has brought in snack on their assigned day so far! We areverylow on snack, so please check the calendar and send it in on your assigned day. This will most likely be the last snack calendar. We will just have "left overs" the last week of school. If anything changes I will let you know.
- As a reminder, all money for our trip to the Shedd Aquarium is due on Friday. This trip will be on Tuesday, May 22. You will need to send a lunch in a disposable bag with your child on that day.
- Our school is celebrating International Day on Friday and we will be participating in a parade within the building. To help us show our cultural backgrounds, please have your child make or bring in a flag representing his/her heritage on Friday. If you have any traditional clothing from another country, your child is encouraged to wear it on Friday.
- This Friday (May 11) is a half day. All students will be dismissed at 12:00.
- Next Wednesday, May 16 Mr. Nott will be holding our Spring Concert at 2:00 pm in the East Campus Gym. Kindergarten will be performing three songs, so we hope you can stop by! (They've been working very hard!)
- Please mark your calendars for Ms. Cabrera's "Round the Owl Art Fair" on Friday, June 1. This fundraiser is always a lot of fun with cool carnival games and delicious food. Also, if you purchased any Square 1 Art, it will be available for pick up at the fair. Please plan on attending to help support our wonderful Art Program.
4/24/12
Here are my weekly notes and updates for you!
- Thursday is our field trip to see "Barrio Girl". Please make sure your child is on time for school. If you are chaperoning this trip, please be at school at 9:15. We will be back by 12:00. We will eat lunch at school, so please send your child with a lunch as usual. Hot lunch will be available in the cafeteria as usual.
- Friday is an early dismissal. Students will be dismissed at 12:00. The PTA is having an afterschool movie on Friday from 12:00 - 2:30.
- Our used book drive is still going on. Please have your child bring in any used books, magazines, or DVDs that you have at home. The last day for donations is May 4. Thank you for your generosity!
- Please mark your calendars for the Ogden Soiree, Sunday, May 6. This is a wonderful event that greatly benefits our school. In addition to the many silent auction items that are available, I will be auctioning myself for a "playdate" to the Lincoln Park Zoo. I will take 2 students on the playdate, along with Ms. Hochman and 2 students from her classroom. I hope you can make it to the soiree and bid on this exciting teacher experience! I promise an afternoon of fun for the winners!!!
4/13/12
Just a few quick notes:
- Our class is participating in a fundraiser sponsored by UNICEF. We are asking that each student contribute $1.00 to this fundraiser. Once all money is collected, we will be able to choose a type of aid that our donation will go towards (i.e. sanitation of drinking water, insecticide treated mosquito nets, or measles vaccinations). Our class will then receive a T-shirt from threadless to symbolize the type of aid our class has chosen. We will each sign the shirt and post it outside our classroom. Thank you to those families who have already supported this school-wide fundraiser!
- Report Card Pick Up will be held on Thursday, April 19 from 2pm-6pm. This quarter, I will not be scheduling specific appointment times. Instead, please come to our classroom at a time that is convenient for you. There will be a sign up sheet outside our classroom door. Please add your name to the list and I will take parents in a first come, first served fashion. Each "mini-conference" will be about 5 minutes long. If you feel that more time is needed, we can always schedule a longer conference for before or after school one day. If you are unable to attend Report Card Pick Up, pease let me know. Remember, there is no school for students on Thursday, April 19.
- Many of you may have noticed the upcoming field trip to the theater to see "Barrio Girl" that is planned for April 26. Permission slips will be going home for this trip today. I am also looking for chaperones. We will leave school at 9:15 and return by 12:00. If you are interested in chaperoning, please let me know. Chaperones will need to pay the field trip fee as well. All fees are due by April 20.
3/22/12
Just a few notes/reminders:
- Friday we have a field trip to the Apollo Theater to see "Snow White". Please make sure your child is on time for school as we will be leaving soon after the day begins. We will eat lunch at school when we return from our trip, so students can eat their lunch box lunch or a lunch from the cafeteria as usual.
- With the warm weather that we have, the air conditioning is now on in our classroom. Some days it can be a bit chilly in here. If possible, please send a sweater or sweatshirt that your child can keep in his/her locker. That way, if they're cold one day, they will have something to wear.
- The PTA is hosting a Reptile Show fund raiser on March 27 in the gym. Concessions will be sold after school from 3:15 - 4:15 in the cafeteria.
- Finally, a friendly reminder that next Thursday, March 28 is an early dismissal. There is no school on Friday, March 30 for the beginning of our Spring Break. School will resume on Tuesday, April 10. I hope everyone has a safe and fun Spring Break!
03/06/12
A few quick notes and reminders:
- Third Quarter Progress Reports are coming home today. Please look over your child's progress report, as well as the other information I have attached to it. Please sign and return the second page of the progress report only. The other pages are yours to keep. Our next formal parent-teacher conferences will be held on Thursday, April 19. However, if you'd like to meet to discuss your child's progress before then, I am always available. Please contact me if you'd like to schedule a conference.
- Also coming home today is a note about an optional homework project. To coincide with our current unit on fairy tales and folklore, we will be learning about the Irish tradition and myth of the leprechaun. Students are invited to design and build a leprechaun trap at home. The students can then bring their traps to school where we will set them and try to catch a leprechaun. Please read through the information that I am sending home today and let me know if you have any questions. All information, as well as pictures of previous projects and links to informative leprechaun-catching websites, can be found on our class web page under the "Leprechaun Trap" tab. I hope that your child will be excited about this project!
- We will be taking a field trip to see "The Lorax" on Thursday. Please remember that your child will be eating lunch at school as usual, just a bit later than normal. We will be leaving school at 9:15, so please make sure your child is on time on Thursday. Chaperones are asked to be here around 9:00. We should return to school by 12:00. If you have any questions about the show, please let me know.
- Don't forget! Daylight savings time begins Sunday, March 11. Spring forward one hour!
- Spanish classes are starting this week for those students who registered. We are just finalizing the schedule and hoping to start the first class tomorrow or Thursday.
- The Ogden International Cheerleaders will be hosting a 3-day cheer clinic for grades K-6 at the East Campus on March 19, 20, and 21. Participants will learn a cheer and dance routine. The cost is $30 with all proceeds benefiting our OIHS Cheer Squad. Please pick up a registration form at the Main Office if your child is interested in attending.
2/10/12
I just wanted to send you a few quick updates and reminders from Room 109.
- Yesterday we were visited by the Department of Transportation's Safe Walk Ambassadors. They taught us all about how to safely cross the street and how to identify a good "walking buddy". They will return in mid-March to take us on an actual walking trip around the neighborhood where we can practice safe street-crossing procedures!
- We met with our 3rd grade buddies today. They helped us complete a math activity using Valentine's Day candy hearts. It was a lot of fun!
- Please remember there is no school on Monday, February 13 for Professional Development Day. There is also no school on Monday, February 20 for President's Day.
- We will celebrate Valentine's Day on Tuesday. Please send your child to school with valentines to share with his/her classmates. (We have 26 students). Please remember to put your child's name on the card, but do not address them to specific students. That will make our distribution process much easier!
- Our 100th Day project is also due on Tuesday in preparation for our 100th day of school! You can see an explanation of the project, as well as some samples, under the 100th Day Project page of this site.
- Finally, if you have still not returned the Emergency Contact Form that was sent home with your child's second quarter report card,please do so by Tuesday. It is important that we receive a new form, even if your information has not changed, in order to keep our school in compliance with the Board of Education.
As always, thank you for your support. If you have any questions about Valentine's Day or 100th Day activities, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a wonderful long weekend!
2/1/12
Second quarter report cards went home today. Please check your child's folder for his/her report card. I attached a blue note with some general information to the report cards. After reading through your child's report card, please sign and return the bottom portion of the blue note by Friday. Our next formal parent-teacher conferences are not until April, but if you'd like to meet before then to discuss your child's progress, I am always available. Please email to schedule a conference if you would like.
Also attached to your child's report card was a note from Mr. Staral and a second copy of the Emergency Information Form. We must have all parents complete this form twice a year to ensure that all of its information is up-to-date. Even if your emergency contact info, doctor info, and address have not changed, please complete the form again and return it to school by Friday. This will help our school stay in compliance with state and city practices. Thank you for your cooperation.
1/30/12
Just a few quick notes from our classroom:
- We had a great time learning about penguins this week. We investigated how a penguin stays warm in the cold water using our "blubber glove" and wrote non-fiction papers about penguins. It is one of my favorite units to teach! I hope your child loved it as much as I did.
- Representatives from ING Direct came to Kindergarten Friday to teach our students about financial literacy. We learned to save, spend, and share our money! The representative brought workbooks and folders for each child. Those came home today. The workbook is a bit advanced for our Kinders, so maybe it can be saved for later on! :)
- I sent home a note about our 100th Day of School Projects on Wednesday. The information, along with examples of past projects, are on my website on the "100th Day Project" page. Please let me know if you have any questions or did not receive the note I sent home. If you did get the note, please return the bottom portion, just so I can be sure everyone has heard about the project. I don't want anyone to be left out! While our actual 100th day is Feb. 16, we are asking that all projects be turned in on Feb.14 in preparation.
-Speaking of February 14, many of you may be thinking ahead to Valentine's Day. On Valentine's Day we will be having a special celebration with our 3rd grade buddies. There will also be time for students to exchange valentines to each other in the classroom. I am asking that you do not send candy or other sweets for the class on this day. It just becomes too much sugar if everyone in the classroom sends something in. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
- Just a reminder that all permission slips and fees for our field trip were due today. If for some reason you did not send in your child's money, it must be in by tomorrow (Tuesday). I have filled all of our chaperone slots, so thank you to those who volunteered!
- Second quarter report cards will be coming home on February 1. I will attach a note for you to sign and return stating that you have received your child's report card. While our next formal parent-teacher conferences are not until March or April, I am always available to meet should you have any questions or concerns. Please let me know if you'd like to schedule a conference.
1/25/12
It is hard to believe your Kindergartener is almost 100 days smarter! That's right, our 100th Day of School is almost here. To celebrate, we have two special activities that we need your help with: the 100th Day Project and snack for our 100th day of school. For more information on these activities, please refer to the note I sent home today. You can also find all of the information for these projects, as well as pictures of projects from previous years, on the 100th Day Project link on the left side of this web page. Please send in your child's project and their contribution to our snack by Tuesday, February 14th in preparation for our 100th day of school. If you have any questions along the way, please let me know.
1/23/12
A note went home on Friday about our next field trip. We will be going to see "Sleeping Beauty" at the Emerald City Theater on Friday, March 23. We saw "The Wizard of Oz" there last year and it was really great. I'm hoping for the same quality performance this time around. We will leave at 8:45 for our trip, and we will return to school for a late lunch at about 12:00. The cost of the trip is $10 per student. Please send in your child's signed permission slip and money by Monday, January 30. If I do not receive your child's permission slip and money by January 30, I cannot guarantee that a seat will be available for him/her.
I am also in need of a few volunteers to accompany us to the theater for this trip. You would need to be at school at about 8:45 am and you could leave when we return from the trip. If you are interested in chaperoning, there is a $10 fee for you as well to cover the ticket and bus costs. If you'd like to chaperone, please let me know ASAP as space is very limited.
1/10/12
Welcome back! I know many of you are excited to have the children back in school; I just hope they're excited about it too. It is always difficult to get back into the routines after a long break, but we're managing! :)
I just wanted to remind you that our Snow Animals project is due on Friday. We are going to present these projects to the class and display them in the hallway, so please make sure your child turns his/hers in. Also, please remember that there were two parts to the project: a written "report" and a collage of the animal's pictures. If you have any questions about the project, please let me know.
This Friday, (January 13) is a half day. Students will be dismissed at 12:00. This Monday (January 16) there is no school in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
12/22/11
Hi parents,
One last message from me and then you won't have to hear from me until next year!
Thank you to all of the parents who were able to come to our Winter Assembly yesterday. I know the students were so excited to see you all there! I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. (And I may be a little partial, but I think Kindergarten kind of stole the show!)
I sent home two important packets yesterday. First, there was a green homework packet. While the completion of this packet is optional, I would strongly encourage you to work with your child on it over Winter Break. If you tackle a little bit each night, you will help your child stay in the routine of completing nightly homework. When we return from break, the Kindergarten curriculum and homework will get more challenging, so this packet is good preparation for that. In addition, I encourage you to work on the basic counting and phonics skills that I mentioned in my previous email. Also, don't forget to read with your child every night! :)
The second thing that went home yesterday was a pink letter. This is the Snow Animals project that I mentioned. Your child has a snow animal assigned to him/her. Please help your child research this animal, complete the report, and create a collage on construction paper or white printer paper. Please return this project by Friday, January 13.
I will be checking my email regularly over Winter Break. If you have any questions about the homework packet or Snow Animal Project, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Have a wonderful holiday and a safe new year!
12/6/11
Just a few reminders:
- Scholastic Book Orders are due online or to me tomorrow. I will be placing our order after school to ensure that our books arrive before Winter Break. If you've purchased books for your child as a surprise gift, please let me know. I can put them in a bag and give them to you at pick up rather than sending them home with your child.
- Last week, a note went home about the Learner Profile Art Contest. As a part of our IB program, we teach the students different characteristics and attributes that we hope they will have as a lifelong learner. Each month the students study a different profile. Our yearbook staff would like to feature these profiles in the yearbook this year. They are asking that each child choose one profile and illustrate it. They will then choose one piece of artwork for each profile and feature it in the yearbook. Please take some time to discuss with your child the four profiles we have learned about so far: Caring, Communicator, Open Minded, and Balanced. Help them choose and illustrate their chosen profile; don't forget to put the name of the profile on the art work somewhere. Here are some ideas of what your child can draw for each profile. Hope they help!
- Caring: Playing with someone at recess, being nice to someone who is sad/hurt, taking care of a pet at home, helping with chores, younger siblings at home...
- Open Minded: Trying something new (sushi, skiing, etc), being friends with people of different backgrounds, ages, cultures....
- Communicator: Traveling to another country to learn a different language or experience a different culture, speaking a different language at home, communicating in sign language...
- Balanced: Making healthy eating choices, getting adequate physical activity (by participating in gymnastics, soccer, ballet), participating in after school activities...
Hope these ideas can help you. We greatly appreciate your support in this school-wide contest.
- Also, there were a few families who did not turn in the Family Tradition Project. If your child has not brought his/hers back, please send that in as soon as possible. We are taking turns presenting them to the class and discussing the winter traditions that our families practice. Please remember that these do not only have to be religious traditions; your child can also share memories of sledding, building snowmen, attending zoo lights, etc.
As always, if you have any questions about any of the projects or classroom activities, please let me know.
11/17/11
It is so hard to believe that Thanksgiving is almost here! Please remember that there is no school next week for Thanksgiving Break. I am sending home a packet of homework that I ask you to complete with your child to help him/her stay in the routine of daily skills practice. While I understand that the holiday will be busy with travel and family, I strongly encourage you to have your child complete just a page or two a day to maintain their studying routines. Please return the packet when school resumes on Monday, November 28.
This year I have been asked to lead the Community Service Teacher Team. Our first large-scale project is a cold weather clothing drive called "Warm Hands, Warm Hearts". An informational flyer went home today with your child. From now until December 15, our school will be collecting new, matching hat and glove sets and new (or gently used) children's winter coats sizes 6 and up. All donations will be taken to The Cabrini-Green Tutoring Program, a local organization that helps economically-challenged students succeed in the elementary classroom. In addition to educational resources and support, they provide their students with a coat, hat, and gloves every winter. However this year, they are in great need of donations. I know that the tight economy affects all of us, and that there are many wonderful charities soliciting your donations, especially around the holidays. However, if you could find the time and the resources to support us in this cause, I would greatly appreciate it. As I mentioned, they are also accepting gently used winter coats for children. If there are any coats that no longer fit your child, please consider sending those in. If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you in advance for your help and support.
11/16/11
A note went home with your child about our family holiday project yesterday. To coincide with our PYP unit and to celebrate and share all of our unique traditions, we are asking that each child create a small collage. Attached to the note that was sent home yesterday there should have been a white square of cardstock paper. Please cover this paper with pictures and words displaying the holiday traditions that your family celebrates. Try to cover as much of the paper as you can and leave no white space (kind of like a scrapbook page). Please return your child's project by Friday, December 2 so we can display them in the hallway together. If you have any questions or would like to see an example I have from a former student, please let me know.
11/14/11
I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. Report cards will be going home with your child on Wednesday, November 16. Please look over your child's report card and the attached note. Sign and return the bottom portion of the note so I can be sure your child's report card made it home safely. :) If you have any questions regarding the report card or if you'd like to arrange a time for us to discuss your child's progress, please let me know. Please remember that Friday, November 18 is a half day of school. Students will be dismissed at 12:00. There is no school next week for Thanksgiving Break. Have a wonderful holiday!
10/31/11
Just wanted to let everyone know that the CPS email system will be down from Tuesday evening until Wednesday evening. During this time, I may not have access to my email account. If you need to contact me, please send me a link through our classroom website by following the "Email Me!" link on the left side of this page. The message will be sent to my personal email account and I can respond to your question.
Also, to celebrate our study of Day and Night this week, we will be having a Pajama Day on Friday, November 4. Your child can wear pajamas on this day, but please send them in shoes and socks as we will still be going to recess.
10/27/11
Hello families! We had a wonderful time at the museum today. I think the students really enjoyed the play and the exhibits. Thank you to all of the parents and family members who volunteered to chaperone our trip! If you took pictures of the students at the museum, please email them to me. My camera died right when we got there, and I'd love to display some pictures on the board outside our classroom door.
I sent an email yesterday regarding Halloween. If you did not receive it, please let me know. Here is the information I sent:
- A note went home Monday informing you of the PTA's annual Halloween parade. The parade will start at 1:45. We will travel out of the building, around the school, through the park, and return to the building for "trick-or-treating". Please feel free to come by for the parade and lots of fun! I anticipate that the parade will take about 30 minutes.
- With regards to Halloween costumes, please remember that this is still a full day of school. Your child can dress in his/her Halloween costume, but I ask that they keep the accessories to their costume in their locker until the parade begins. It may also be a good idea to send a change of clothes to school with your child on Halloween in case he/she is uncomfortable in their costume all day.
Also, I just found out that McGraw-Hill, the publisher of our Everyday Math curriculum, is offering 5 of its EM Games apps for FREE until tomorrow for iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches. You can download the apps via the iTunes app store. Out of the available apps, I would recommend "Monster Squeeze" and "Addition Top It" (for more challenging activities). I also like "Math Ahoy" for students who are ready to practice addition facts, although this app is not free currently. To learn more about the games and apps, you can visit the Mc-Graw Hill web site.
10/18/11
I just sent an email to parents outlining a few things that are going on in the classroom. The information is also posted below. If you didn't get the email, please let me know so I can add/edit your email address.
As you know, we are studying nutrition and healthy eating habits in class this week. Yesterday we brainstormed a list of healthy food, and today we worked on putting those food items together to create healthy meals on our Smart Board. To extend this activity, we are asking for your help. In your child's folder, you will find instructions for our class project, "A Diary of a Healthy Kid". With your child, please recall one meal that you have eaten in the past week. Help your child sort the food items into their appropriate food groups. (For example, if you had chicken, rice, green beans, apple sauce, and milk for dinner, you would help your child determine what food group each food item belongs in. Chicken would go into Protein, rice into Grains, green beans into Veggies, apple sauce into Fruit, and milk into Dairy.) Then have your child draw each food in the appropriate space on their "diary" and label it. Please complete this activity with your child and return it by Friday so we can share them with the class.
I am waiting on word from the PTA/administration regarding Halloween festivities. They generally have some kind of parade around the building where all the students wear their Halloween costumes. I will keep you updated as I hear more regarding the parade. I am also in the process of planning some afternoon activities for Halloween, but I need your help. If you can volunteer to come into the classroom to assist with our Halloween activities (e.g. art project, making a special snack, pumpkin science experiments), please let me know. I would need volunteers from about 12:30 - 3:00. I am also looking for 5 families to volunteer to purchase and bring in a pumpkin for these activities. Please let me know if your family can do this. If your child will not be participating in the Halloween festivities due to religious or other reasons, please let me know. Thank you!
10/13/11
Hello everyone! Our October/November Scholastic Book orders went home this week. If you would like to order books, please remember that ordering online helps us earn free books for our classroom. Plus, you can check out my recommendations and wish list online. All orders need to be submitted online or to me by October 26. The next order will go out mid-November so we can get our books in before the winter holidays.
Next week we will be taking a break from spiders and bats to learn about Nutrition (just in time for Halloween!). We will be learning about the 4 main food groups and working on classifying foods and planning healthy meals. To help us with a few of these projects, please send your child with a food flyer (advertisement) from a grocery store next Tuesday, October 18. We will be using them to cut out pictures of foods and classify the food into food groups. If you are able to grab more than one flyer while at the store, that would be great! Thank you!
10/3/11
Hello! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I have a lot of important messages, so please read below:
- Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 4 is School Picture Day. If you would like to purchase pictures, please return the form that went home last week and the necessary fees to purchase your chosen package.
- We also have our Walking Trip to the Fire Station tomorrow. Please make sure that your child is wearing comfortable shoes as we will be walking there and back. If you are chaperoning the trip, please arrive at school around 9:30 as we are leaving at 9:40. We should return to school by 10:45.
- Friday, October 7 is Parent Teacher Conferences. During our 15-minute conference, I will go over your child's mid-quarter progress report and answer any questions you have. Please keep in mind that these conferences are only 15 minutes. If at the end of our meeting you feel you need more time to discuss your child's progress with me, I would be happy to schedule a conference and continue our conversation at a later date.
- The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to Ogden. Our class will have an opportunity to visit the fair on Thursday, October 6. The Book Fair will be open for parents to visit during conferences on Friday, October 7. A flyer highlighting the books that will be available at the fair will go home tomorrow. As always, donations to our classroom library are welcomed. You can visit the Book Fair for a "wish list".
- A snack calendar for the month of October will be going home this week. Please note that not all students are listed on the calendar. If your child's name is not on the October calendar, you will be asked to bring a snack in November. I will do my best to ensure that all families are asked to bring in snacks an equal amount of times. Please remember that we are trying to teach students to establish good eating habits. Cookies and sweets are not an acceptable snack. I greatly appreciate your cooperation in this matter. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.
9/28/11
We are still in need of chaperones for our trip to the Museum of Science and Industry on Thursday, October 27. When going to large museums, I like to keep a low adult to student ratio for the safety of the children. In order to do this, I really need 3 or 4 more chaperones. If you can make it, please let me know. If you are unable, please think of other responsible adults who may be able to come with your child (i.e. a grandparent, aunt, uncle, or nanny). Please remember that all fees and signed permission slips are due by Friday. Thank you!
9/26/11
This week we will be learning about apples. There are so many fun things that we have planned for this week. Please send your child with his/her favorite apple variety on Wednesday. Your child will be eating this as their snack. We will also graph the class' favorite apple flavors. On Thursday, we will be making an apple pie and sharing it for snack. If you have any questions or do not want your child to participate in this activity, please let me know. Thank you!
9/23/11 - Part 2
Lots of important info to share today! In your child's folder, you will find a permission slip for our first field trip. We are going to the Museum of Science and Industry to see the play "Jack and the Beanstalk" on Thursday, October 27. We will be spending the day there and will have plenty of time to tour the museum after the show. If you would like your child to come on this trip, please send $10 and a signed permission slip in a sealed envelope with your child's name on the outside. All forms and fees are due by next Friday, September 30 so we can secure tickets. If you would like to chaperone this trip, please complete the bottom portion of the informational flyer and return it with your child's permission slip. Chaperones will need to pay $10 as well. In the event that we have more volunteers than we are able to bring, I will randomly choose 10 chaperones. If you have any questions about the field trip, please let me know.
9/23/11 - Part 1
Happy Friday! A note went home with your child yesterday about our upcoming walking trip to the local fire station (202 E. Chicago) on Tuesday, October 4. We are looking for volunteers to come along on this exciting experience. We will leave Ogden at 9:40 and return to school at about 10:45. If you would like to accompany us, please complete and return the bottom portion of the red paper by Monday so I know how many extra sets of hands to anticipate.
Also, there was a misprint on the previous Walking Trip Permission Form you completed. I attached a new, updated form to the red note that went home yesterday. Please complete it and return it to school ASAP. I cannot bring your child on this walking trip without a new, completed permission slip. I apologize for the confusion.
Lastly, we are in need of old magazines and/or catalogs. If you have any at home, please send them to school with your child by next Wednesday. We will be cutting and finding shapes from the magazines for a math lesson. Please make sure that the magazine is appropriate for Kindergarten students to look through (no Cosmopolitans please!) 
Thank you and have a wonderful weekend!
9/21/11
This week we are learning about community helpers. As a special part of our unit, we will be having various community helpers from the neighborhood visit our school and talk about their jobs on Thursday. Our visitors include a fire fighter, a librarian, a pest control worker, a construction worker, a hair dresser and a police officer. The librarian will be helping us apply for our very own library cards! In order to be eligible, your child must be able to write his/her first name and live within the Chicago city limits. If your child already has a card, please let me know so we don't duplicate the process.
9/19/11
At Back to School Night, many of you had questions about the morning breakfast program and outdoor/indoor recess. I have spoken with the Main Office and administration and gotten some clarification on these points (hopefully). The breakfast program begins at 8:15 and runs until 8:30. This program is for students only and the staff is asking that parents do not sit with their student during this time. This program is supervised beginning at 8:15. When your child is done with breakfast, Ms. Calinan said that she will keep the K students in the cafeteria until it is time to go to the classrooms at 8:37. They are dismissed form the cafeteria into the hallway right across from our room. I will be waiting outside the classroom as all students enter. Those students who do not eat breakfast at school will enter the building from the Plaza through door 11 (the same door that we come out at the end of the day).
Outdoor recess is determined on a daily basis. There is no exact cut-off for temperature as I previously thought. The administration will consider multiple factors of the weather including the temperature, precipitation, and wind conditions before deciding if recess will be outdoor or indoor. In the event of indoor recess, students will either be in the gym, classroom, or cafeteria.
9/15/11
Sight word bags went home with your child for the first time today. Please get into the routine of practicing these words every night. Remember to keep up with them as I will be adding new words at a rate of about 4-5 words/week. Also, please remember to take care of this bag and return it to school with your child daily.
To conclude our study of bears, please send your child to school tomorrow with a teddy bear (or other stuffed animal). We will be sorting them by size (so small bears are great!) and making a graph of what our class brought in. All animals will go home with your child at the end of the day tomorrow.
Finally, if you have not yet returned the forms that we distributed at Back to School Night, please send them back tomorrow. I will be compiling the class roster and organizing a volunteer schedule over the weekend. Thank you!
9/14/11
Thank you to those parents who were able to come to Back to School Night last night. I really appreciate the time you took to come by, and I hope it was very informational. I know that I threw a lot of info at you, so if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. If you were unable to come last night, I sent home a yellow packet of information with your child today. Please complete and return the last three pages of the packet, as well as the code of conduct booklet and media consent form by Friday. If you have any questions, let me know.
I also have received our dates for the NWEA testing we discussed yesterday. Our students will take the Math test next Wednesday, September 21 and the Reading test next Friday, September 23. Please do not begin studying with your child. I would like this first test to be an accurate measure of where your child is currently. That way we will be most accurate when measuring his/her growth this year. After the Fall test is taken, I will send home information about how you can help your child study and prepare for the Winter and Spring tests. If you have any questions about the NWEA test, please contact me or check their website at www.nwea.org.
9/12/11
Please remember that tomorrow is Back to School Night. Kindergarten will meet in the cafeteria for a brief presentation on the International Baccalaureate program before heading to our classroom for a discussion of Kinder curriculum, classroom management, etc. The evening begins at 6PM and hopefully will conclude by 7:00 or 7:30. The school will be open until 8:00 if you'd like to tour our new facility. I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow!
9/6/11
Tonight is the first night your child will receive homework. We talked about the "Big Kid" homework that we were going to do tonight, so I hope your child is excited about it! Please look inside your child's blue folder for a half-page of white paper with the word "Tuesday" in the top right corner. This is your child's homework. For directions to the nightly homework assignments, please reference your the purple homework calendar stapled into the right side of your child's folder. Please make sure that your child returns his/her homework each day. I will check it in and put a stamp on it if it is complete. If you have any questions about homework, please contact me.
9/3/11
Mark your calendars for Back to School Night on Tuesday, September 13 at 6PM. At Back to School Night I will talk about our curriculum, classroom procedures, classroom management, homework, and volunteering. It is very important that you attend this meeting so I can make sure to address all of your questions and concerns. Back to School Night is for adults only, so please make necessary arrangements to leave your student at home. If you have any questions before then, please do not hesitate to contact me. I look forward to seeing all of you then!
Also, the school is in need of volunteers to help in the cafeteria during lunch. If you can help, please let me know. Our lunch time is from 11:10 - 12:00. Thank you!
8/30/11
Whew! We made it through our first day of Kindergarten! The beginning of the year is very exciting but very tiring for me and the kids! Your child may be very tired coming home, especially if he/she is used to taking a nap. This is fade as the year goes on and their stamina builds. Please make sure that you are practicing the following skills with your child every day. We will focus on these things a lot in the first few weeks of school: name writing (Capital letter at the beginning, lowercase in the rest of the name), color identification, coloring inside the lines, cutting on a large black line (and then moving on to thinner and more curved lines), and letter recognition. Please keep in mind that each child is at his/her own unique level, but these are the basics that we are working on this week.
Also, our class schedule has been posted on the "Classroom Schedule" page of our website so you know what special your child will be having each day. Please remember to send your child in sneakers on Tuesdays as that is the day we have PE.
8/29/11
Today we will be holding a special Meet & Greet for Kindergarten families and students. It will begin at 4:00 in the cafeteria of our East Campus (24 W. Walton). Please plan on attending so that your child can meet me, find their seat, and get a sneak peek at their new classroom. Hopefully this will help alleviate any anxiety that your child is feeling about the first day of school and help his/her transition into Kindergarten. At the Meet and Greet, I will introduce myself and go over the procedures for the first week of school as well as other important information. I will not be going into great detail about the curriculum, homework, or volunteering. These items will be discussed in detail during Back to School Night, which will be sometime in September. I will keep you posted with a date as I get that information. If possible, please bring your child's school supplies today so that I can organize and store them before the first day of school. Please make sure all supplies are in a bag (or two) with your child's name clearly written on it. I want to make sure everyone who brings in supplies gets credit for it! I think that's all for now. I am looking forward to meeting you and your child tonight!
8/8/11
Welcome to the 2011-2012 school year. I am very excited to be your student's teacher this year. Kindergarten is a wonderful time for children and we have lots of fun and educational things planned. Please check this website often as I will update it with important information at least once a week. If you need to contact me for any reason, the best way to do that is via e-mail at gtburns@cps.edu. I check my e-mail about three times a day. You may also send a note to school with your child if that is more convenient for you.
Please take a moment to look at the information I have listed on the site. If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me.