Newsletter From Room 208

February 12, 2010

Dear Parents,

Razan Suleiman was "In the Spotlight" this week. She brought in her favorite family pictures, stuffed dog, toys and her favorite book, If the Dinosaurs Came Back! Razan likes to go to the mall, eat ice cream, play with her dad, go to school, and she loves to be helpful!

How exciting to see the creative 100's Day Projects! The children shared their project, and they are on display around the room. Thank you for your help!

We are learning how to write a formal letter, and we wrote our first letter to our pen pals! My best friend teaches first grade in Northfield, and we exchanged names so the children can write each other letters. We will write three letters to get to know each other, and then they will be coming to our school for lunch in May!

Another yummy (and healthy) week! The children sampled carrots, broccoli, celery, sweet snap peas, and cherry tomatoes, accompanied by "THE MAGIC SAUCE" (Ranch dressing) for dipping. Many children were pleasantly surprised at how "adventurous" they could be and came back for seconds. Then we wrote and drew in our Nutrition Journals about the importance of the vegetable group. We had an outstanding Valentine's Day party, with a few delicious and nutritious treats, and we exchanged Valentines. The children did a fun craft project, provided by the PTA, played freeze dance and played Valentine Bingo. A HUGE THANK YOU to Mrs. Dimitrijevic, our room mom, and all the parent helpers. In the morning, we did several fun Valentine activities and we practiced our letter writing skills by making a pop-up Valentine! In addition, we learned about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The children answered several comprehension questions after hearing The Giant Jam Sandwich. Ask your child how the villagers got rid of the wasps and why! During Making Meaning the children worked with their reading partner to practice the wondering/questioning and visualizing comprehension reading strategies after I read Down the Road, by Alice Schertle. Then as I read a section of the story, they drew their visualization.

In writing workshop, we are working on publishing our first story. The children especially enjoy reading their stories to their friends in class.

In math, we learned about equivalent names with name collection boxes, fact families and continued with fact power. We continue to review time, money and mental math.

Have a super, relaxing weekend!!!

Sincerely,

Cheryl Trilling