Our Field Day on Friday was a great success with fun water activities. The first graders behaved wonderfully! Thank you so much, Hannah Sullivant and Susan Sellers, for helping at this event.

This coming week we have several things to remember:
      May 21, Tuesday evening - the End-of-School Programs (first graders should arrive by 6:15 and report to the music room for warm-ups). Program begins at 6:30 pm. Ms. Boyd has asked that all children wear a white shirt/blouse (with no print on them, please), and khaki bottoms (pants, shorts and skirts). Please invite friends and family to show what CCS students are all about!
      May 23, Thursday 10am - First graders will visit the Fish Bowl, a unique pet store featuring fish as well as interesting reptiles. Let me know on the field trip permission slip if you are available to transport students around the corner to this store (at the corner of 5th and Adams). We will be there only until 11:15, because the children don't want to miss their Art class at 11:30.
      May 24, Friday 10:30am - The Zoo-Man will visit our school and bring "his friends" to delight us even more.

The Stanford Test results are due back on campus this coming week, so if you would like help interpreting them or want an additional conference time, please notify me. If there is something we both feel your student needs to brush up on during the summer, I will send you an email with some suggestions. For the most part, however, I regard these results as a baseline with which to compare future yearly tests, rather than as a comparison of your child with other students.

FINAL SPELLING LIST FOR THE YEAR:
 face, place, space, cage, page, stage, May, blouse, mouse, house, glove, shove

FINAL SYNONYM PAIRS LIST: (Review Quiz over 9 synonym pairs on Wed, May 29)  
   reply….answer        lucky……fortunate         try……sample

Blessings, 
Mrs. E

Please remember that the projects for the Science Fair are due on TUESDAY Morning, MAY 14. Mrs. Shaw will be at the entrance of the school receiving the materials for the displays. The judges will spend the next two days reviewing the projects which will be presented at the special Science and Latin Night on Thursday evening, May 16. All participants of the Science Fair will be recognized for their hard work. Please invite friends and family to enjoy the evening with us!

Tomorrow, Monday, May 13, the Kindergarten and First grade classes will be going to the Cameron Park Zoo in Waco. Students may wear their school t-shirts with jeans/shorts and comfortable shoes. We will have a wonderful relaxing day exploring the habitats.

On Friday, May 17, Leslie Pipes will lead our CCS Field Day, and she would appreciate any parents to help coordinate the various stations. Please contact her during this week if you are able to help. This event will only be during the morning hours, so hopefully everything will be concluded before the heat of the day begins.

Spelling Words for the Week:
live, eight, old, hold, write, bloom, broom, good, stood, book, shook, took

Synonym Pairs:
intersect....cross               lightening bugs.....fireflies             explore....investigate   

Happy Mother's Day,
Mrs. E

A new chick was born on Wednesday of last week to the first grade class! Her name is Sophia, and the students are overwhelmingly in love with her. We opened the remainder of the eggs that were left in the incubator on Friday, (I was carefully watching the students' reactions so as not to traumatize anyone), and surprisingly most of the eggs were not even fertilized. Nevertheless, our "Oviparous" unit has been a huge success. We are still observing the tadpoles (several have their hind legs already), and the ant lion larvae are getting fat on the juicy ants we feed them every week. By the end of the school year, we will have a group of very observant naturalists!

Muffins for Moms will be celebrated Friday morning. Please join us on that day, so that we may honor you. The students would love to show you all the critters we have in our classroom, too!

Spelling words for the week:
April, once, done, growl, flower, cowboy, town, brown, below, snow, yellow, rainbow  

Synonym Pairs: 
evaporation - drying up            birds - fowl                alone - solitary

Blessings,
Mrs. E

Only five more weeks of school are left! I told the students that right after the last day is over, they will be SECOND GRADERS! And then…tomorrow…they will be graduating from high school… The years sometime feel to move that fast. The students have grown up so much since last August when we met for the first time. I will cherish these last few weeks that I have with them.

On May 13th (a Monday) a field trip is scheduled to Cameron Park Zoo in Waco. Please check your calendars and sign up to help transport students on this outing. I would appreciate as many helpers as possible, so that I can enjoy the zoo as well (instead of having to count to nine about a hundred times during the day!) When you sign the permission slip for that field trip, please indicate whether or not you are able to accompany us and how many people your vehicle can accommodate (for students - back seats only). The children enjoy your presence very much, and I am so grateful for your help.

On Friday of this coming week, May 3rd, we will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo, (the fifth of May) which is the anniversary of a famous battle in Mexican history (fought against the French) in 1882. Here at CCS we will enjoy a performance of folklorico dancing at 9 a.m., and everyone is invited to wear festive and colorful clothing on that day. VIVA MEXICO !

These spelling words and synonyms are the same from last week (because of  Stanford testing.)

Spelling Words for the Week:
warm, walk, give, cloud, loud, proud, found, ground, sound, mouth, south, out


Review Week for Synonym Pairs (Quiz on Friday, May 3rd):
brisk-quick   story-yarn     food-chuck    egg laying-oviparous    stop-terminate     
change-transformation      climb-ascend      climb down-descend      clean-tidy     run-flee   
end-conclusion       weatherman-meteorologist

Blessings,
Mrs. E

Last week was a difficult week for our nation. The Boston Marathon bombing and the West explosion gave me a brief feeling of despair. Fred Rogers, a personal hero of mine for the last 50 years, encouraged me this week with his wise words "...look to all the helpers...(in a disaster)."  The first responders and brave individuals who put others before their own safety give us hope and encouragement. My prayer is that if/when we are called on to do the same, there will be no hesitation on our part. It is true that tribulation brings us closer to God and to each other, and it makes us feel stronger to face troubles in our lives. I deliberately chose not to mention the disasters of the week in our classroom, but I asked God to show me how, under heaven, I could make this a positive experience for my first graders. He answered me this morning in our worship service.  

Brady is a kindergarten student in West, Texas. He is being raised by his grandparents who were watching a fertilizer plant fire with him from a large window in their home. The subsequent explosion has sent them all to the hospital with possible vision loss. Brady was sent to a hospital in Dallas where he has been accompanied by his kindergarten teacher and her husband (members of my church) for the last week. I will ask my first graders to write cards and draw pictures of encouragement to Brady as he courageously faces what few people his age ever have to. So Monday morning, our first graders will be invited to help take part in making the world a better place.  

If you need any help organizing your research for the science fair project, please contact Tenille Shaw. She is ready to give information that will help you understand the scientific method which scientists use to test ideas. (First graders will only be responsible for a part of the scientific method.) Right now is the time to enlist her help. Please do not wait until right before the fair to ask for information from her.

Spelling Words for the Week:
warm, walk, give, cloud, loud, proud, found, ground, sound, mouth, south, out

Review Week for these 12 Synonym Pairs: (Quiz on Friday, April 26th):
brisk-quick              story-yarn           food-chuck         oviparous - egg-laying        stop-terminate  
 change-transformation             climb-ascend              climb down-descend            clean-tidy
run-flee              end-conclusion               weatherman-meteorologist   

Blessings, 
Mrs. E.

This week first graders are completing science units on "Vertebrates vs. Invertebrates" and "Who is Oviparous?" For the remainder of April, we will focus on weather patterns and the unique properties of water. As you check weather forecasts to plan your daily activities, allow your students to hear what the meteorologists are predicting, and then together you can see if the weather is usually or usually not what is expected.

Thank you, Grandparents and beloved family members, for coming to our Grandparents Day celebration on Friday. The children did a superb job on their program! They also enjoyed sharing what they have learned in the classroom very much. You made the day very special for us as well.

This week we will review test-taking skills to prepare for the Stanford Tests next week (April 23-25.) First graders have been doing several SuperKids language tests throughout the year, so there should not be any trouble transferring those skills to the Stanford. Please be diligent to make sure your student gets enough rest each night and that he/she eats a protein rich breakfast, especially on test days. These tests are not timed, and so we will give each student the sufficient time required to complete each part. A protein breakfast will give them stamina and help them focus. I will do my part to help keep them relaxed and gently motivated with frequent breaks and little "surprises" throughout the mornings. (Test taking can even be fun, as students get to show off what they know.) I am very proud of everyone, and I know they will all do their very best!

Spelling Words for the Week:
collar, dollar, forward, word, world, worm, actor, early, earn, earth, caterpillar, calendar

Synonym Pairs:
run…….....flee                    end…….conclusion              weatherman…………meteorologist

Please do not forget to return the signed permission slip this week for our field trip to Walker Park on Monday, April 22.

Blessings, 
Mrs. E

What a refreshing week of cool weather we had last week! The children enjoyed play time outside so much. Their observations of the natural world have stepped up to a whole new level as we have carefully watched various organisms in our classroom go through their spring transformations. It is  wonderful to see students use knowledge they already have acquired to ask questions about new things.

Friday we enjoyed a special concert by David Holt. It was a very fitting way to close our western unit. Mr. Holt shared folk music and stories for an hour and the students hardly blinked. We learned how to play the "spoons," so you should be hearing beautiful percussion music at home as a result.

The first graders made chili for lunch, and it was delicious. You will find this recipe in the Texas Book, since it is the Texas State Dish!

Spelling Words for the week:
right, wash, light, joint, point, toyshop, softly, sadly, sleepily, happily, carefully, cheerfully

Synonym Pairs:
Climb (up)…..ascend           climb down…….descend           clean……tidy

Blessings,
Mrs. E