Weekly MATH CONTRACTS will be coming home each week on Mondays and are due each Friday or Monday (which ever day works best for your family). Remember this is part of your child weekly homework and I keep track/record contracts as they are turned in.
Lines for our READERS THEATER will be coming home Tuesday or Wednesday this week. Each child will have two sets of lines that will be read at SEPARATE times during the "performance". These ARE NOT FOR MEMORIZING (although some kids will just naturally do this), but are for practicing for reading fluency and expression. Please practice these with your child a few times each week leading up to our performance on Friday, December 18 at the end of our Holiday Party. We will practice them as much as possible as a group here at school, but individual practice at home will HELP GREATLY!! THANK YOU!!!
Field Trip to the Nature Center/Delano Homestead - We will be leaving on Friday, December 4th at 9:15 for our field trip and returning so that we arrive back to school by noon. At this time the weather forecast calls for snow and COLD (wind chills in the teens!) Remember we are outside part of the time so DRESS YOUR CHILD (and yourself if you are joining us) for the weather. (My winter weather gear on this day will include ski pants and snow boots along with handwarmers!) Since we will be joined with Mrs. Konenkamp's class that day, there will only be room for about 3 parents on the bus that day. The remaining parents (there are about 12 total going from our class) will need to carpool and follow the busses to the Nature Center. If you are joining us please arrive by 9:00 so you have time read "Instructions for chaperones" and determine who will ride the bus and who will carpool.
BOOK FAIR WEEK is December 7th Our class will visit the Book Fair in the library on Tuesday afternoon and each child will have the opportunity to make a "wish list" that will go home in their BEE Folder. On Thursday, December 10th students will have the opportunity to purchase books. If your child is bringing money or a check that day please make sure it is sent in an envelope with his/her name on it. WE WILL NOT HAVE LIBRARY the week of Book Fair since the library is full of SCHOLASTIC books.
Field Trip to the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts on December 9th - Ms. East, our Art teacher, will be sending home information soon. No chaperones are needed for this field trip.
First Grade Holiday Workshop - Information about this will be coming home on Monday, November 30th. Contributions ($4.00) for this are due Wednesday, December 9th. Thank you!
Greater Kalamazoo Food Drive Collection - Our calendar indicates that we are collecting jars of Peanut Butter and jars of Jelly/Jam the week of December 7th, but it's actually the week of December 14th. It's fine if you send them anytime the last two weeks before the Holiday Break. Look for a note coming home from Mr. Pung about this community service project soon!
Stocking Stuffer Gift Exchange - Students will be decorating stockings here at school (no need to send one in. I will provide one for each child) and then can bring in 21 SMALL, INEXPENSIVE items to stuff in each of their classmates stockings for our Holiday party. Items should be sent in December 14, 15 or 16th. Please do not send in large items...we need room for all 21 things!! Ideas include...pencils, erasers, a gel pen, individually wrapped candy, etc.
Our Holiday Polar Express Breakfast will be on Friday, December 18th at 9:30. Kids should wear their Pajamas to school. We will have a PANCAKE AND SAUSAGE breakfast. play a game, do a craft and open our stockings. Rachelle Bennecke is the parent who signed up to organize this party. If anyone would like to help her plan please let me know. Parents who volunteered to send things in are Jodee Stanton, Beth TerAvest, Karen Park and Heidi Wakley. Please note...if the weather forecast looks bad for that day (possibility of a snow day) we will switch the party to Thursday, December 17th. This would be decided by the time the kids leave on Wednesday so a note would go home alerting you to the change.
A Few Reminders about Reading Club:
*Decodables always come home on Mondays (or the first day of the school week). These are for your child to keep...forever. Even if your child does not have his or her Reading Club Bag at school their DECODABLES will still be sent home in their BEE FOLDER.
*We try on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday to send home GOOD FIT BOOKS...but sometimes we just run out of time and don't get to it. GOOD FIT BOOKS are only sent home if your child has his or her bag on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. REMEMBER, if your child brings some GOOD FIT BOOKS home please read them that night or the next night and then RETURN THEM TO SCHOOL.
*Your child can read in one sitting/one week, any book two times and have it count for Reading Club. You can write "2x" by the book and Mrs. Simmons, our reading club mom will know to count it twice. That same book can count later (on another sheet), but not more than twice on one sheet. So your child can read again the next week or later again in the month, etc.
* Reading Club sheets are available to print off from the Richland PTO webpage. Just go to "schools" at the Gull Lake Website, click Richland Elementary and then click "For parents" and then the PTO. There you'll find the forms. You can also just write down books your child reads on any paper as long as it has your child's name, my name and the books and number of pages they've read.
A few reminders to give your child to help us all stay healthy:
*Wash your hands often.
*Keep your hands out of your mouth. (Difficult for first graders with loose teeth!)
*Cough/Sneeze on your sleeve, not in your hand.
As parents, remember that if your child is sick to keep him/her home until she or he has been Fever-Free without the use of tylenol, motrin, etc. for 24 hours.
Would like to access your child's lunch account balance any time on line at the school website? Just contact Kris McPherson at kmcpherson@gulllakecs.org and ask her to email you a user ID and password for your child(ren)'s account balance. When you receive your user name and password just go to the Gull Lake website, go to SCHOOL LIFE, then FOOD SERVICE and then to STUDENT BALANCE.
Check out our CALENDAR page.
It's been updated so it has all
of our important DECEMBER DATES.