Dear Families, I can't believe it's May already! This sure has been a fast year, and I am trying not to think about how sad I am that I only have three more weeks with this super special class. I am so very proud of each and every one of your children- they have worked so hard this year and have shown a tremendous amount of growth! Plus... they are just amazing little humans. I love them so! Vocabulary Parade and Yates Café tomorrow- May 6 I'm so proud of our class for completing their Paws for Reading book log. A whole year of reading 100 minutes a week! Ordering Special Field Day T-Shirts (Field Day is Wednesday, May 22) I would like to order personalized Field Day t-shirts for everyone in our class, if that is OK with all of you. I did this the last two years and it was so special! I will have the design printed on blue cotton t-shirts (first grade's assigned color). If you are willing, please Venmo me the cost of your child's t-shirt at your earliest convenience-- I will put in the order tomorrow and the shirts are guaranteed to be delivered by May 17. My Venmo handle is @ heather-borowski-1 and the last 4 digits of my phone number are 6816. The cost per shirt with tax, etc., is $26.00. Parent Teacher Conferences Thank you for signing up for a conference slot! I've shared our schedule with all of the reading teachers as well as the SLP's working with our class. We are looking forward to meeting with all of you! Enjoy the photo slideshow!
Important Dates: May 6- Vocabulary Parade at 8:15 AM and Yates Café on Upper Field (please join us if you can!) May 7- K/1st Musical Performance at 2:00 PM May 10- First Grade Field Day (our team captain is Tommy) Wear ALLLL THE RED! We are the Red Ketchups! May 16-17- Parent-Teacher Conferences (no school for students) May 19- Tommy’s birthday (celebrating on May 20) May 21- Tristan's birthday celebration May 21- Chorus Performance at 2:00 PM May 22- Field Day (whole school) May 24- Moving On Ceremony in our classroom at 9:30 AM followed by the Launch Party on the Lower Playground Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather
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Dear Families, It's possible that our field trip to Zoo Atlanta was the BEST DAY EVER! We started the morning with a guided tour with a docent from the zoo's education department, and then we had lots of time to explore ourselves. We walked nearly 8,000 steps and at least two of my friends fell asleep on the bus ride home! It was a nearly perfect day (except that our sweet Smith was absent). Enjoy the photos! Book Swap and Art for Heart this week So much is happening before the end of the year... and this week there are two whole-school events:
Photo Slideshow
Homework We only have homework for one more week! Be sure all slots of the Reading Log are filled in- this needs to happen before Yates Café on May 6. This week students have math homework, Show and Tell, and card-making for Tommy. Here is the link to this week's homework. List of Important Dates for your calendar April 22-26- K-3 Book Swap (bring gently used books to trade) April 22-26- “Art for the Heart” Community Service Project (please donate art supplies for CHOA and Camp Twin Lakes) April 25- Talent Show at 1:00 PM (new date) April 26- Pause and Draw- wear your favorite color head to toe! (To celebrate the end of “Art for the Heart” community service project) April 26- Screen on the Green at 8:00 PM (Elemental) Tickets for sale! April 29- 1st/2nd grade Spelling Bee at 8:30 AM (Smith and Tristan are repping us) May 6- Vocabulary Parade at 8:15 AM and Yates Café May 7- K/1st Musical Performance at 2:00 PM May 10- Tentative 1st Grade Field Day (our team captain is Tommy) May 16-17- Parent-Teacher Conferences (I will send out a Sign-up Genius soon!) May 19- Tommy’s birthday May 21- Chorus Performance at 2:00 PM May 22- Field Day (whole school) May 24- Moving On Ceremony in our classroom at 9:30 AM followed by the Launch Party on the Lower Playground Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, It sounded like everyone had wonderful spring holidays and spent some great family time together during the long weekend. I headed down to Sarasota to visit my parents- they are "snowbirds" in Sarasota until mid-May when they head home to the Philadelphia area. It was a wonderful visit, and I think those years of COVID isolation make spending time with grandparents and family all the more special. Can you believe we only have 35 or so more school days together? I adore this class and we are having a special year indeed. Some important news and dates for your calendar (PHEW!!) April 17- Field Trip to Zoo Atlanta (wear Wardlaw blue shirt) April 19- Alice’s birthday April 19- Teacher Workday (No School) April 22- Talent Show Rehearsal April 25- Talent Show at 1:00 PM (new date!) April 22-26- K-3 Book Swap (bring gently used books to trade) April 22-26- Art for the Heart Community Service Project (art supplies for CHOA and Camp Twin Lakes) April 26- Screen on the Green at 8:00 PM (Elemental) April 29- 1st/2nd grade Spelling Bee at 8:30 AM May 6- Vocabulary Parade and Yates Café (new date!) May 7- K/1st Musical Performance at 2:00 PM May 10- Tentative 1st Grade Field Day (our team captain is Tommy) May 16-17- Parent-Teacher Conferences May 19- Tommy’s birthday May 21- Chorus Performance at 2:00 PM May 22- Field Day (whole school) May 24- Moving On Ceremony in our classroom at 9:30 AM followed by the Launch Party on the Lower Playground Homework Click here to view the cover page for this week's homework. Note the link to the Pebble Go article about Parts of a Plant for brainstorming before filling out the Show and Tell sheet. Enjoy the photo slideshow below. You will see photos of:
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, Stanford Testing I am so proud how hard the students are working on their tests. Standardized testing is never easy.... whether you're taking the Stanford in first grade or taking the SAT in high school- they all stink! I know the students are trying their best and they seem to even be enjoying it! That may be because of all the gum, mints and snacks! :-) I also believe in first graders being as comfortable as possible during testing, so the students are setting up their own "offices" with cardboard privacy shields and reading rugs. A MILLION THANKS PARENTS for sending in snacks, gum and TicTacs. We'll receive the results in several weeks - probably early May. I'll let you all know when the scores arrive from the publisher and we can talk about them at our conference in May. Tomorrow- Friday, March 22 we will celebrate filling up the Compliment Jar again. Please allow your first grader to wear pajamas to school and bring their favorite stuffed animal. Sunday, March 24 Language and Literacy Gala (Delta Flight Museum) I am looking forward to seeing many parents at the party on Sunday, March 24 and introducing you to Mr. Corny! The Gala is always so much fun! “Priceless” Experiences– see the online Silent Auction FYI- the Gala organizers requested that the teachers offer an experience to help with the fundraiser. I have two Auction items for you to consider, and hopefully they will indeed be "Priceless!"
Link to the Silent Auction site Field Trip- Wednesday, April 17 We are looking forward to our field trip to Zoo Atlanta in April! The program will be "Amazing Animal Adaptations". Please return the field trip permission slip that is in your child's Go Home folder today. Photo Slideshow Enjoy the photos:
Dates for your calendar: March 24 Language and Literacy Gala (Delta Flight Museum) March 28 Professional Learning Day (No School for students) March 29 and April 1 Spring Long Weekend (No School for students) April 17- Field Trip to Zoo Atlanta (wear blue Wardlaw shirts) Homework is due Wednesday, March 27 before the long weekend. Here's a link to the cover sheet. Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather
Dear Families,
It sounded like everyone had a wonderful Spring Break! I'm so happy that all my ten students returned to me safe and sound. Additionally, our penguin Puffball spent the week in Costa Rica with Tommy's family. What a lucky bird! Stanford Testing Students will take the Stanford standardized test of achievement next week. We have talked about trying our best, but we’re not supposed to know all the answers! Some of the questions might be difficult, but we’re just going to make our best choice for each question. I try to talk about it in a positive light to minimize test anxiety. Please note that testing will be Monday-Thursday mornings. You may wonder how you can help with testing. The most important things you can do are:
This week's Homework Thanks for helping your first grader with the math review this week- they may need your guidance reading the directions. Also, please note that homework is not due until FRIDAY this week. Here's the link to this week's homework and important notes and dates. March 24 Language and Literacy Gala (Delta Flight Museum) I am looking forward to seeing many of you at the party on Sunday, March 24 and introducing you to Mr. Corny too. So fun! FYI- the Gala organizers requested that the teachers offer an experience to help with the fundraiser. I have two Auction items for you to consider, and hopefully they will indeed be "Priceless!"
Have a great rest of your week! Thank you for sharing your children with me. Warmly, Heather Photos in the Slideshow:
Dear Families, I can hardly believe it's almost Spring Break! This year is FLYING and your children are just about ready for 2nd grade! I am so proud of their progress so far. March, April and May will zoom by in a flash. I sure am lucky to be their teacher. Black History Month We have extended and enriched our study of George Washington Carver by delving deep into his life and accomplishments. It is our job to teach the rest of the students and teachers about George Washington Carver, so we created a display of our research as well as our final product.. Enjoy the photos of our George Washington Carver display in the hallway- especially the fact in speech bubbles for each GWC paper bag puppet. Our school-wide Black History Month celebration is FRIDAY, 3/1. I have a BHM t-shirt for each student- we will put them on at school. FYI- the t-shirts are PURPLE if that is important in outfit planning. The shirts read "The Power of My Voice" on the front. Photos Please enjoy the photo slideshow:
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, Valentine's Day Thank you all so much for a wonderful Valentine's Day! The students loved giving and receiving Valentines and they were so excited to read and open notes and treats from their friends! A special thanks for also including our 5th grade Book Buddies. Our two classes sure have a special bond. The first grade Valentine's Day party was another amazing celebration! This was our final all-grade level holiday party and it was so fun! The weather was delightful on February 14 so we held the party outside in the Mimosa Garden. There were parents who contributed decorations, food and drinks as well as a several parents who were able to help out with our snack station-- HUGE THANKS! We had three parties with all four first grade classes (Halloween, Winter Holidays, Valentine's Day) and they were all so special. You made core memories for the students for sure! Enjoy the photos of our Valentine's Day celebration below. Blizzards We are wrapping up our weather science unit by researching severe weather. Each class is becoming experts on a severe weather (tornado, hurricane, tsunami and blizzard). Our class will present all we know about blizzards to the other first grades next week. We'll perform an experiment for the other students and teach them all we know about blizzards. My niece attends Colby College in Maine and she FaceTimed with us on Friday from her snowy campus! The students asked some super questions of Charlotte about what she does to stay safe during a blizzard. Homework This week's homework includes another graphing/data analysis activity and requires a lot of reading. Thank you for reading the math pages to your first grader! Click here to access the Homework Cover Sheet Dates for your calendar February 21: Wells’ Birthday February 21: Parent Education “Everything Reading” 9:00-10:00 AM in the Boardroom February 25: Smith’s Birthday March 4-8: Spring Break Enjoy the photos!
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, 100th Day I'm a little nervous that the 100th Day.of School may have been THE BEST DAY EVER and there's no way to top it before the end of the school year! Thank you to all for sending in items to trade with the other first graders and ingredients for the 100th Day Trail Mix. The students were full of joy and counting all day long! Thundercake I've also included photos from Wednesday when we joined Ms. Marco's class and Ms. Forrestal and Ms. Dunn made the recipe from a favorite weather-themed book Thundercake. We even took the cake batter down to the teaching lab/apartment in the Hamm Center to bake the cakes! At the end of the day, we enjoyed a slice with sliced strawberries. Ask your first grader about the secret ingredient- TOMATO PASTE! Ms. Forrestal's Baby It's possible that Baby Mac thought that the Thundercake was his BIRTHDAY though because Mrs. Forrestal went into labor on Wednesday night! Baby Mac arrived February 8, a month before his due date, weighing 6 pounds, 14 ounces and 19 inches long. Everyone is happy and healthy! Enjoy the photos!
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, We had a BLAST on our field trip to Fernbank! Our focus was on weather and the world above us and we were all wow'ed by the exhibits, the workshop and the IMAX movie. Some of us even thought that the ride there on the yellow school bus was mind-blowing! (haha!) Robert was in charge of our class pet, so of course Puffball had to come with us. I wonder if all the kids wanted to go to bed early on Wednesday just like their teacher!? Lots of info on the Homework Cover Sheet. Check it out here. Thank you for sharing your children with me! Heather Dear Families, Can you believe it's almost February? We have so much to celebrate in February- Black History Month, the 100th Day of School, Valentine's Day, Presidents' Day and THREE student birthdays! Of course our field trip to Fernbank is Wednesday. Please be sure your child wears their blue Wardlaw shirt (maybe over a long sleeve t-shirt or sweatshirt for warmth?) Mid-Year Check-in Zoom Call I would like to offer a quick check-in Zoom call before Spring Break. If you would like to touch base with me about your first grader, please use the link below to sign up for a 15 minute time slot. The check-in call is not mandatory, but I wanted to offer time to touch base with each of you if you have any questions, comments or concerns. If you feel like all is well with your kiddo and don't really have questions/comments, no problem! If you'd rather email me your questions and converse over email... that's great too! Whatever works for you! Sign Up Genius for Quick Check In Zoom Call This is the Zoom link we'll use (I'll send out again closer to our call): Heather Borowski's Personal Meeting Room https://us05web.zoom.us/j/3837603193?pwd=aE9WUjlYdUwxcjhiaEZMaTYxWTFaQT09 100th Day We will celebrate the 100th Day of School on Monday, February 5. Please remember to send in 100 of the same items for your child to trade. (Some students have already started bringing in their 100 items in a gallon ziploc- super!) I bought 100 little finger flashlights to trade- I think the kids are going to love them. And a little teacher trick... flashlights are fun to use for tracking when reading! Also, thank you to everyone who signed up to send it items for our 100th Day Trail Mix! Looks like we have almost every ingredient covered-- THANK YOU! Click here for 100th Day Trail Mix Puffball the Penguin Please be looking for Puffball to come home again in the next few weeks.... so far, he (she?) has visited with 8 of our 10 First Grade Friends. Thank you so much for all you do to capture Puffball's adventures in our "Class Pet" journal. I wish I could trade places with Puffball- he has had terrific adventures to dinners and birthday parties, enjoyed playdates, sports, BINGO, movies and read alouds, has been skiing in Park City, UT and so much more-- what a lucky penguin! Be sure to include reading and writing in the journal with your child as part of Puffball's visit to your home. And please feel free to throw him into the laundry-- penguins are really good at holding their breath underwater..... PS- huge thanks to the family members who became Puffball's surgeons and saved the day! I heard about two instances... Bebe's mom and Alice's grandmother both have sewn Puffball back together when his seam split! Dates for Your Calendar: February 1: First day of Black History Month February 5: The 100th Day of School! February 14: Valentine’s Day Party (all of first grade 1:30-2:30) February 14: Robert's Birthday February 19: President’s Day (No School) Homework cover sheet includes a reminder about Valentine's Day cards: Click here for a link to our Homework this week. Some great photos from last week:
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather |
AuthorMiss Borowski loves teaching first grade, being a mom to two awesome boys, and living in one of USA's "Top 10 All-American Cities" Decatur, Georgia. Archives
November 2023
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