Sunday, October 16, 2016

October 17th - 21st

It was so nice to see many of you at Harvest Moon!  Thank you to those who attended and to those who worked to make it a success!  What a fun night!

We are very happy to have Mrs. Lowe as our new kindergarten teacher.  She was able to come in and spend Thursday and Friday in our room.  She fit right in and the kids loved her.  I have no doubt that she will do wonderful things with the students and you will be very happy!  She begins her adventure tomorrow.  I will be sure to join the kinders in many of their activities!  

Religion

This week the students will be learning about Noah's Ark.  They have a book to make and an activity to put together.  
Math

  We are workinng  on numbers 6-10.  They do have to know how to write the numbers correctly.  We have been having a lot of fun working in our math centers, too.  

Guided Reading

Each student should have brought home a few sight words to practice on Friday.  Please practice these each night and leave them in their backpacks so we have them at school.  A sight word means they know the word just by looking at it and they don't have to sound it out.  Everyone will have a different set of words to practice depending on how well they do.  I do not take words away, so they can practice the words they already know, too.  They will begin bringing home a book bag with their guided reading book inside.  These will come home with some specific instructions on how to use them. 

Science/Social Studies

The students will be talking about animals and choosing an animal to write about.  They will also be learning their address.  Kindergarteners are expected to know their address and phone numbers this year.


I have truly enjoyed each and every one of the students in kindergarten.  I appreciate all of your support through these first two months.  I will miss being in the room all day, but I promise I will still be a big part of their lives.  I will watch them continue to grow throughout this year. 

If you have questions or comments, please let Pam know.  Her email address is plowe@stedwardk5.org


Renee Cowart

Calendar


October:
21st - Mass at 8:15am and adoration to follow
26th - Mass at 8:15am
28th - No School
31st - Halloween - party in afternoon

Sunday, October 2, 2016

October 3rd - 7th

How can it be October already?  We have been in school for a whole month and that is so hard to believe!  The students know the routines and what is expected of them.  I am going to work hard this month to help them learn how to not interrupt and to raise our hands when we need something.  This is hard for this age, but this group is ready for it.  They are such a wonderful little class!

I want to keep you up to date on what is happening through this transition period.  The kindergarten position has been posted to Wecan, which is a website for educators to find jobs, both in private and public schools.  There have been a few applications already and I hope to start interviews near the end of the week.  I promise to be very picky and only pick the person I feel will fit with this group of students.  If these applicants don't meet my expectations, I will continue to look.  Your children are my top priority right now.

We had a wonderful time at Mulberry Lane Farms.  Thank you to Mrs. Geneisse, Mrs. Bonnet, Mr. Hawley, Mrs. Wunderlich, Mrs. Neubert, and Mrs. Hofacker for chaperoning!  We were so lucky to be the only school at the Farm!  Each student was to pick a pumpkin the size of their own head.  As you can see by the size of the pumpkins they brought home, many thought their heads were pretty big!

We also made applesauce with the first grade class.  This was so much fun and very delicious!

Religion

This week we will still be learning about Adam and Eve.  We will watch a short video about the Bible story and finish the book we are making about them.   We will then start learning about the rosary.

Math

We took our first math test last week.  I read the directions and the children then follow the direction.  We do these tests as a class so they do not have to figure out the directions on their own.  Most did a wonderful job on this test!    Our next unit works on numbers 6-10.  They do have to know how to write the numbers correctly.  We have been having a lot of fun working in our math centers, too.  


Fundations

Fundations is our phonics and handwriting program.   So far we have learned: t, b, c, o,  f, m,  i, u, and n.  We will also work on sentences and using a capital letter and period.
Guided Reading

Each student should have brought home a few sight words to practice on Friday.  Please practice these each night and leave them in their backpacks so we have them at school.  A sight word means they know the word just by looking at it and they don't have to sound it out.  Everyone will have a different set of words to practice depending on how well they do.  I do not take words away, so they can practice the words they already know, too. This week they will begin bringing home a book bag with their guided reading book inside.  These will come home with some specific instructions on how to use them. 

Science/Social Studies
We will be learning about autumn and leaves in Social Studies.  In Science we will talk about Christopher Columbus.  


If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.  rcowart@stedwardk5.org
Enjoy your week!

Renee Cowart


Calendar


October:
3rd - Home and School Meeting at 8pm
4th - Pet Blessing at 2:15pm
7th-Mass at 8:15am
14th - Mass 8:15am
15th- Harvest Moon Festival
21st - Mass at 8:15am and adoration to follow
26th - Mass at 8:15am
28th - No School















Sunday, September 25, 2016

September 26th-30th

It was great to see so many of you at Back to School Night!  The children love to show you the classroom and what their favorite part of the day is.  This is such a wonderful class!  Every day they leave me in amazement at how innocent and bright they are!

This week is our field trip to Mulberry Lane Farms.  I am hoping the weather changes, but be sure to dress your child in warm clothes.  Right now the high is only supposed to be 58 degrees with possible showers.  Each child needs to bring a disposable lunch and a pillowcase labeled with their name to bring their pumpkin home.  If you volunteered to chaperone, please be at school before 9am.  The bus leaves at 9am.

We were able to get together with our reading buddies this week.  We are paired up with Ms. Ploederl's fourth graders.  I posted some pictures to follow this blog.

A huge thank you to Toni Jo Hofacker for her help in our room.  There will be a sign up form coming home in the Wednesday folders if any one else would like to come help in our room.

 Religion

This week we will be learning about Adam and Eve.  We will read the Bible story and create a couple of fun projects that go along with the story.  

Math

We have almost finished our first unit in math.  We have learned to write our numbers 1-5 and can relate the numbers to that many items.  We also learned about circles, squares, and rectangles.   Our next unit works on numbers 6-10.  We have been having a lot of fun working in our math centers, too.  There are pictures of us working hard and having fun!!

Fundations

Fundations is our phonics and handwriting program.  We will be learning the letters c and o this week.  So far we have learned: t, b, f, m, i, u, and n.  We will also work on sentences and what a sentence has to have.

Guided Reading

We are almost ready to begin our guided reading.   We will begin taking home a few sight words to practice each week.  Please practice these each night and send them back when they know the words without having to sound them out.   Everyone will have a different set of words to practice depending on how well they do.  I do not take words away, so they can practice the words they already know, too. They will also soon begin bringing home a book bag with their guided reading book inside.  These will come home with some specific instructions on how to use them. 

Science/Social Studies

This week we will make applesauce to end our apple unit.  We will then begin studying the season of autumn and learning about why leaves change color.

If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.  rcowart@stedwardk5.org
Enjoy your week!

Renee Cowart


Calendar


September:
27th - Field Trip to Mulberry Farms
30th - Mass at 8:15am

October:
2nd- Catholic School Mass at the 8:45am Mass
7th-Mass at 8:15am
14th - Mass 8:15am
15th- Harvest Moon Festival
21st - Mass at 8:15am and adoration to follow
26th - Mass at 8:15am
28th - No School



 



Popsicle tongues!!




Sunday, September 18, 2016

September 19th - 23rd


What a fabulous weekend to end summer!!  I hope you all found a way to enjoy it!

We had a great week last week!  We wrote with dry erase markers on our desk to practice adding.  Then we used shaving cream to write our numbers in and clean off our desks.  Check out the pictures to follow this blog and see our fun!  We also tasted four different kinds of apples and charted which apple we liked the best.  The honey crisp apple won the taste test!

There are still a few students who do not have a change of clothes or a paint smock in their locker.  An old t-shirt makes a great paint smock. If we do a painting project those who do not have a paint smock will only be able to use crayons.   A change of clothes is important not only for accidents, but also in case of a spill.  Thank you!

Our field trip to Mulberry Lane Farms is fast approaching.  Please send in your permission slips as soon as possible.  We need to know how many chaperones we have so we can plan accordingly.  The students will need a disposable lunch and a pillowcase with their name on it to bring their pumpkin home in.

Religion

We are still learning about Creation this week.  We will take a look at what God made each day.  We will watch a short video about Creation this week.

Math

In math we will be working on writing our numbers correctly and being able to match our numbers to the correct number of items.

Fundations

Fundations is our phonics and handwriting program.  We will be learning the u and i this week.  So far we have learned: t, b, f, m, and n.

Guided Reading

We are almost ready to begin our guided reading.  I have tested all of the students on their letters and sounds.  I am happy to report that they are doing very well with these.   We will begin taking home a few sight words to practice each week.  This will happen either this week or next.  Everyone will have a different set of words to practice depending on how well they do.  They will also soon begin bringing home a book bag with their guided reading book inside.  These will come home with some specific instructions on how to use them. 

Science/Social Studies

This week we continue talking about apples.  We will be doing a number of activities relating to apples.  We will explore the inside of an apple and the seeds, too.

If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.  rcowart@stedwardk5.org
Enjoy your week!

Renee Cowart


Calendar


September:
22nd- Picture Day
         - Back to School Night at 5:15pm
         - Evelyn Vosters Birthday
23rd - Mass at 8:15am
27th - Field Trip to Mulberry Farms
30th - Mass at 8:15am

October:
2nd- Catholic School Mass at the 8:45am Mass
7th-Mass at 8:15







Sunday, September 11, 2016

September 12th - 16th

 Cool weather yesterday and Packer football today made it feel like autumn.  It will be nice to have it a little cooler in our classroom.  

Thank you to everyone for having gym shoes at school every day.  Also, thank you for getting your child to school on time.  Just a reminder, if your child rides the Freedom bus they are not tardy.  However, if they are normally bus riders but do not ride a certain day, they need to be to school by 7:45am or they are tardy.  We had a great week of being on time.

There are still a few students who do not have a change of clothes or a paint smock in their locker.  An old t-shirt makes a great paint smock.  A change of clothes is important not only for accidents, but also in case of a spill.  Thank you!


Religion

This week in religion we are going to be learning about Creation.  We will take a look at what God made each day.  

Math

In math we are going to start learning simple addition and subtraction.  We will use manipulatives to help us.  They will work in centers to play games and do activities that will help with these concepts.

Fundations

Fundations is our phonics and handwriting program.  We will be learning three more lowercase letters  and learning how to write them correctly. 

Guided Reading

We won't begin guided reading for a couple of weeks.  I will need to test the students on their letter sounds.   I will also see if any of them know any sight words yet.  Don't worry if your child doesn't know these.  They will learn them as we go.

Science/Social Studies

This week we will begin talking about apples.  We will look at the life cycle of the apple.  We will be doing a number of activities relating to apples.  In the end we will be eating different kinds of apples and finding out what kind we like best.

If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.  rcowart@stedwardk5.org
Enjoy your week!

Renee Cowart


Calendar


September:
14th - Early Release at 12:30pm.
16th - Mass at 8:15am with adoration after
       - Kid's Fun Run at the Fox Cities Stadium at 4pm
22nd- Picture Day
         - Back to School Night at 5:15pm
         - Evelyn Vosters Birthday
23rd - Mass at 8:15am
27th - Field Trip to Mulberry Farms
30th - Mass at 8:15am











Monday, September 5, 2016

September 6th - 9th

Hope everyone enjoyed their Labor Day and had time to get outside.  It was a beautiful weekend!

We had a super first week of school.  The students are so well behaved and eager to learn.  We danced, giggled, and even learned a few things already.  I have put some pictures of our first few days at the end of this blog.

I want to remind everyone about our dress code.  Girls can wear sleeveless dresses and tank tops as long as the strap is at least 2 inches.  Every student should be wearing only gym shoes to school.  Crocs and sandals are not allowed during the school day.  Sandals with a strap can be worn to church, but must be changed when we get back.  Please also remember that students are not to wear shorts to church.  They can change into other clothes when we get back.  If you have any questions please let me know.

Getting to school on time is so important at this age.  They have a hard time coming in to prayer when they know they are late.  Our tardy bell rings at 7:45am.  Please try hard to get your child to school on time.  Freedom bus riders are an exception and will join us when the bus arrives.

There are a number of students who do not have a change of clothes or a paint smock in their locker.  An old t-shirt makes a great paint smock.  A change of clothes is important not only for accidents, but also in case of a spill.  Thank you!


Religion

This week in religion we are going to be learning about important things that happen during Mass.  We will talk about the Sign of the Cross, kneeling, shaking hands, and holy water.

Math

In math we are going to learn number 1-5 and being able to find the number, the word, and the correct number of items that go with that number.  They will work in centers to play games and do activities that will help with these concepts.

Fundations

Fundations is our phonics and handwriting program.  We will be learning the lowercase letters t, b, and f and learning how to write them correctly.

Guided Reading

We won't begin guided reading for a couple of weeks.  I will need to test the students on their letters and sounds.  I will also see if any of them know any sight words yet.  Don't worry if your child doesn't know these.  They will learn them as we go.

Science/Social Studies

This week we will be talking about All About Me.  We will talk about the importance of learning our addresses and phone numbers.  We will also talk about the parts of our body.

If you have any questions or concerns please let me know.  rcowart@stedwardk5.org
Enjoy your week!

Renee Cowart


Calendar


September:
8th - Fr. Walter's Birthday
9th - Mass at 8:15am
14th - Early Release at 12:30pm.
16th - Mass at 8:15am
       - Kid's Fun Run at the Fox Cities Stadium at 4pm
22nd- Picture Day
         - Back to School Night at 5:15pm
         - Evelyn Vosters Birthday
23rd - Mass at 8:15am
27th - Field Trip to Mulberry Farms
30th - Mass at 8:15am