Happy Presidents’ Day!

Last week we enjoyed some fun Valentine’s Day activities. First we played Pin-the-Heart (nose) on the dog. Our 5th-grade buddies came to join us and then stayed for a game of HEART Bingo. Later on in the day, we did a little Valentine’s Day math and graphed all the hearts that we used to play Bingo. The students from Japan visited our classroom during these activities and played a game with the kids. They had several colored squares which were disguising different animals. They sang a song about the square and then asked for guesses from the children. They also gave hints to help. It was a lot of fun!

Jump Rope for Heart on Friday was excellent – tiring, but lots of fun! We got to jump in a group with 1/2 multiage, 3/4 multiage, and 5th-grade students (our buddies!). Each group rotated through different stations – short rope, hoops and twisters, jump bands, long ropes, break, and bathroom/water. After every group went through every station, students were invited to perform skills or routines in front of the school. Kudos to our very own GK, KF, and DJ who bravely shared hula hoop and jump rope skills! It’s too bad we didn’t have a video camera!

On Thursday morning, the preschool and Kindergarten classes are going to Kahala Mall to visit our own preschool and Kindergarten art show. The paintings will be displayed at Kahala Mall through the end of this week. Take your family and enjoy the artistic self-portrait creations of our preschool and Kindergarten students. In the afternoon, we will visit the Starlab from Bishop Museum, which will be set up at our gym.

Our SmartBoard is installed! We christened it with a Magic School Bus – A Space Adventure DVD. Teachers will be exploring websites for the SmartBoard to learn how to best utilize this new technology in our classroom. What a fantastic learning tool! It will be a great way to share space websites with the entire class, too. Thank you to the families who sent website links to us!

Our space inquiry unit is coming to an end. We are finding the elusive answers to those last few questions, and we’ve begun to prepare for an inquiry share with parents. Mark Friday, February 29, 1:00 p.m. on your calendars! (Yes, it’s a leap year.)

If you have any recyclable items we can use in our art center, please send them with your child. Items need to be stored on a shelf in our classroom, so please, no bulky items. Suggested items include paper towel/toilet paper rolls, styrofoam pieces, and fabric/wallpaper squares. Thank you!

Everyone looks forward to the Guest Reader on Friday afternoons. If you are interested in coming into the classroom to read to the children, please contact Sabrina Ako.

Parent volunteers are such a help and blessing to us, especially when projects arise. If you are able to volunteer your time (no skill or experience needed, training provided), please contact Sabrina Ako.

The new set of Family Learning Activities has also been posted. Some items have been removed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t go back to them and complete the activity. Remember, these activities are optional; please enjoy them as your family’s schedule and available time will allow.

This is the second week of our Students-of-the-Week bulletin board! This week’s students are EC and IC. After hearing the students share, it’s fun to see what we have in common with them. Often it’s a common sport or hobby (e.g., soccer, beading), but sometimes it’s a personality trait (e.g., funny). SC is the next student to be showcased; please bring in things you would like to share about yourself. Everything needs to be able to hang on a bulletin board. Parent volunteers or teachers will assemble the board this Wednesday.

The following dates show when the new bulletin boards will be assembled for display. The initials of the Students-of-the-Week are listed after each date.

2/20 – SC (Items may be brought in from 2/13)

2/27 – JD, KF (Items may be brought in from 2/20)

3/12 – AG, ZH (Items may be brought in from 3/5)

4/9 – BH, DJ (Items may be brought in from 4/2)

4/16 – RJ, GK (Items may be brought in from 4/9)

4/23 – JM, TS (Items may be brought in from 4/16)

4/30 – LY, WC (Items may be brought in from 4/23)

Posted on February 19, 2008 9:19 AM | Permalink