Crazy Thankful

A big thanks to you,  parents!  I appreciate your support this year. I am so grateful to work with parents who are involved in their child’s education and our school. Each of your children brought such joy and happiness to our classroom. I was so fortunate to have such a wonderful group of children this past year. I often refer to your children as “my kids” and I treasure each one! They all have touched my life and this school year in very positive and rewarding ways. I hope as the years go by that they keep in touch. 

As we closed out the year, there were many acts of kindness and I appreciate each one. The cards, gifts, and the thoughtful emails were an encouragement. Thank you!

Enjoy your summer. May you linger over meals, enjoy new routines, read a book or two, and take time to play in the sun! 

HUGS!

S'more to Learn

Students ended the school year with a S'more party. It was a fun way to celebrate a successful school year. With the whole summer stretching before them, I wanted to remind students that just because it's summer, learning doesn't stop. There is S'more to learn! 

Since this party needed a celebratory treat, S'more Pops and S'more Brownies added to the fun. 

The entertainment for our year-end party was the Minute-to-Win-It game, Marshmallow Toss.  Players had one minute to throw as many marshmallows as possible to a partner who must catch them in the paper bag campfire. The team with the most marshmallows after one minute wins. 

Congratulations to the 2016 champions, Logan and Ben.  They crushed it!

And congratulations to Room 100 's fifth graders as they head out the door and begin S'more summer fun. I was fortunate to have such a wonderful group of children this past year.  They touched my life in very positive and rewarding ways.  

Have a wonderful summer break! 

Celebrating Readers!

This morning Mrs. Pieper and Mrs. Full hosted an A.R. (Accelerated Reader) party. The party was to celebrate those students who reached their reading goal for the year.  Both teachers were "flippin' over the success of AR readers."

The event was a blast as students learned to flip fluffy, golden pancakes, "Wait for the bubbles!"

After their tummies were full, students created motivational reading posters for the new "batch" of AR readers in the fall.

Parents, as the school year ends, please continue to foster a love of reading during the summer months. Keep your child's skills sharp with this link of suggested reading activities. 

Happy Summer Reading!

Poetry Cafe

Each year the month of April is set aside as National Poetry Month, a time to celebrate poets and their craft. After studying and writing poetry, students in Room 100 chose to celebrate poetry with a slam.

Slam Defined

Poetry slams gained fame in the 1980’s. A poetry slam is a blend of poetry and performance in live competitions. Performers use voice and gestures to score points out of the judges.  

Preparation 

In preparation for our poetry slam, we transformed our classroom into a coffee café. Coffee shops always have something in common – coziness and warmth. Desks were arranged into comfy tables covered with tablecloths and battery-lit candles. Dim lighting set the mood. Chalkboard signs and chalkboard menus added an artistic flare to our café, and friendly baristas were stationed behind the counter ready to serve. Judges were selected from our middle school teaching staff and programs were created.  

The Poetry Café Opens 

The energy and excitement displayed by our students from start to finish was inspiring. Scribble linen tablecloths added to the fun and creating the chalk art helped ease the nervousness before the performance.

The judges opened the slam by reciting individual poems written just for our students. These poems set the tone for a fun, enjoyable competition. 

Center Stage 

Each finalist had his or her turn in the spotlight reciting a poem. Apart from the actual poets, the audience played a major role - they snapped their fingers (which is music to the poet's ears), they laughed, they encouraged, and they let the performer on stage know exactly how they felt by their reactions. Snap! Snap! Snap!

Congratulations to the 2016 Poetry Slam Champions 

Logan Bosh, Judith Jaquez, Paige Thompson, and Chloe Signor were this year's medal winners. In addition to the winners I want to thank each one of our students who inspired me with an amazing performance of poetry.