President's Day

      

We've been talking about presidents the past few weeks, focusing on the 1st one, George Washington, the 16th one, Abraham Lincoln, and our current one, Barack Obama.  The students have shown lots of interest, especially since Kate brought her president flashcards to school and organized a variety of activities with them!  She had the others put the presidents in order by year in office and sorting them into different groups!  They really had fun with her games and I think we all learned more than I had planned as a result of her instruction!  

                                                                 

We had three directed drawing lessons followed by a writing session about that president and our hallway displays our work.  I'm amazed by many of our "artists" and just how much the drawings resemble the presidents! 

Try to make it down our hallway this week so you, too, can be amazed!

I used the photo story program to arrange all the pictures which are then displayed while the band of John Phillip Sousa plays in the background.  In another week or so, the pictures will come down, be bound into a book, and available to the kids for check out.   If you aren't able to read the writing underneath each picture, you'll be able to when your child checks out the presidential books!  Until that time, please enjoy watching this patriotic photo story!!

The Murphy Bag

 

It's time for the kids to start checking out "The Murphy Bag" for a week at a time to enjoy the stories (about golden retrievers, of course!), read the red Murphy notebook, play with the stuffed Murphy and write /draw about the adventures they had this week.  The Murphy bag started last winter and the kids had lots of fun with it.  Each child has a chance to take the entire bag home with them on Monday, having a week to share their life with "Murphy" before returning the bag on Friday.  The child then writes daily about what the two have done.  "Murphy" has gone on short trips, to swimming lessons (watching from the pool deck!) soccer and basketball practice, choir, dance lessons, been read to, cuddled and slept  with, sung to, read to, attended doctor and dentist appointments, and participated in other activities.    When the child brings back the bag on Friday, the writings/drawings/photographs/creations are then shared with the rest of the class.  I've been amazed at the results!  The writing and pictures are good and filled with detail, collars and necklaces have been created, clothes have shown up for Murphy, and most recently, a doghouse was built!!!  Below is a picture of the builder!    

When it is your child's turn to check out the bag, I encourage you all to be creative, have fun, and see what adventures you can share with Murphy!  We can hardly wait to see what you all have done during the week!  Parents, a BIG thank you again for helping you child!!