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
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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 Dear Families, I hope you all had a wonderful MLK weekend! After Zander's school and all the public school systems canceled school for today, I have to admit that I had my fingers crossed that we'd get an email from Comer that Speech School was closed too! Alas, we are having wonderful day and the kids seems happy to be at school (even with indoor recess!) Fernbank- Please Wear Wardlaw Shirt Our first field trip of first grade is January 31! We are so very excited. Please be sure your child wears their BLUE WARDLAW TSHIRT that day-- maybe over a long sleeve shirt or sweatshirt. Thank you! We have ordered lunch from Fernbank that day and the theme for the day is The World Above Us. "What can we see when we observe the sky? Many things fill the world above us; from rain to planes and from stars to things near and far! Journey up, up and away through Earth’s atmosphere and into space to discover the ways objects seen in the sky affect our planet and people." Photo Slideshow Enjoy the photos below!
The 100th Day of School The 100th day of school is almost here! We are excited to celebrate the 100th Day of School on Monday, February 5! We will be doing many activities involving 100 that day- counting, grouping, sorting, graphing, comparing, adding, measuring, and much more. 100th Day Trading Extravaganza on Monday, 2/5/2024 On the 100th day of school our class will participate in a trading extravaganza! To participate in the trading extravaganza, each child should have a bag of 100 items that are the same. They will be trading their items with students in all of the first grade classrooms. By the end of the trading extravaganza your child will have 100 items- but a mixture of all the students' offerings. Please have your child count out their items at home and send a gallon-sized Ziploc bag full of 100 things to trade to school on or before Monday, 2/5/2024. Label the Ziploc bag with your child's name. For your child to participate in the trading extravaganza they will need to fill a Ziploc bag with 100 of the SAME items. Some examples I've seen in the past include:
Thanks for helping to make our 100th day special! Click here to view this week's homework and a list of upcoming important dates. Thank you! Warm regards, Heather Dear Families, THANK YOU SO MUCH for the delicious treats, adorable cards, beautiful sentiments and thoughtful gifts for the holidays! Zack, Zander and I appreciated all the love. Additionally, the class gift of an Amazon gift card and bottle of wine have already been put to good use ;-) ! I hope you all had an amazing Winter Break creating wonderful memories with family and friends. My break was an incredible whirlwind! After school ended Zack and I flew up to PHL to visit with family in DE/PA and then Zander, and I went on an 8 day cruise in the Caribbean! I've included a couple photos of Zack and me with my parents at Longwood Gardens (DE) and a photo of Zander and me on a snorkeling trip in Curaçao. Winter Holiday Celebration An enormous thank you to Leisa Richman and Katie Weber who led our station at the Winter Holiday Celebration! All of first grade had such a wonderful time and it was such a great way to end a fabulous first semester. Enjoy the photos below. Class Pet: Puffball! Finally, the class voted on a name for our WWF adopted Emperor Penguin Chick. Each student offered an idea for a name and the class voted on their favorite. Introducing..... Puffball! We chose a name out of the "Lucky Bucket" and James was the first lucky student to take Puffball home and introduce him to his family and home! Puffball can go anywhere your first grader goes! We'll choose a new student out of the Lucky Bucket to take Puffball home every Monday/Thursday. There are suggestions for things your child can do with Puffball and please be sure to have your child write in the accompanying journal about Puffball's visit to your home. If you'd like to send me a photo of your child with Puffball, I can print it out at school and paste it in the journal . Blog photos:
Again, thank you so much for spoiling me and Happy 2024 to all! I'll look forward to hearing all about the break when students return tomorrow on Wednesday, January 3. I hope you all have a magical time with your family and many wishes for a happy and healthy 2024! Reminder: tomorrow is Pajama Day for the whole school! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, I can hardly believe we are here at the final days of the first semester! I am so proud of your children and how much they've embodied the (life) skills of perseverance, collaboration and communication in our classroom community. I am a lucky teacher, indeed. I so enjoyed talking with all of you during our conferences last Monday and Tuesday. It was exciting to discuss your kiddo's growth and progress since they began first grade in August. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with your child's learning team! Weekend News We spoke with some parents about preemptively working on a topic for "Weekend News" if your first grader would like a boost in what to write about on Mondays during Language. Feel free to print out the form to discuss or even begin drawing the juicy details of a weekend event. Totally optional! I also put a hard copy in everyone's "go home" folder today. Think of Weekend News as a helpful tool to organize thoughts before telling a story or personal narrative in a cohesive way. Winter Celebration- Thursday, 12/14, 1:30-2:30 The students are so excited to celebrate with a Winter Holiday Celebration on Thursday, December 14th with all the first grade classes in Love Auditorium. Thank you to our Room Mom, Anne Louise Yarbrough, for organizing! And thanks so much to the parents who are able to lead our craft station. Students are welcome to dress for the festive occasion if they'd like! It's also WACKY HOLIDAY SPIRIT DAY (CRAY CRAY HOLIDAY) on Friday--- students are encouraged to wear aaaaalllll their crazy holiday attire! Class Pet- Shhhhh.... Coming Soon! I'm so excited to give my holiday gift to the class... please keep it a secret until Thursday, but I "adopted" an emperor penguin chick through World Wildlife Fund in their honor. I also ordered a stuffed penguin (along with a pet carrier) for them to take turns bringing the pet home with them. There will be a journal for the students to write in and paste pictures about what they do with the class pet. I'll take photos on Thursday when I present their class pet to them! Reminders
Photo Slideshow
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather
Dear Families,
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends. I was so excited to see my class today and it sounds like they all had a fantastic week! Also, thank you so much for making me feel so special on my birthday! I adored all the hugs and birthday wishes, sweet cards, donuts for snack, my favorite flowers and thoughtful gifts. I am so thankful to all of you and your sweet kiddos! Parent Conferences We have two days for Parent-Teacher Conferences on Monday and Tuesday. (no school for students). Each conference will be about 45 minutes in length and it will be in the classroom again. We are excited to talk with you about your children's growth and progress! I posted the schedule below and also on this week's Homework cover sheet. Please let me know if you have any questions. Homework due Thursday, November 30
Our photos include some special events before Thanksgiving Break:
Also- be sure to check out the videos from the Musical Performance with Mr. A. posted below. I apologize for my shaky hand while filming! Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dates for your calendar: November 27-December 1: Bring stocking stuffers and books for Atlanta Children’s Shelter November 30: Report cards go home November 30 - December 5: Book Fair December 4-5: Parent Conferences (No School for Students) Tuesday, December 12: Chorus Concert at 2:00 PM Thursday, December 14: First Grade Holiday Party (1:30-2:30) Friday, December 15: Early dismissal (12:00 noon- no lunch) Dear Families, I hope you have the most wonderful Thanksgiving next week and enjoy time with your family and friends. I'll miss my 10 precious kiddos, but I will be excited to see them back at school on Monday, November 27! I am so grateful for all of you and so thankful for my amazing students. First Grade and Kindergarten Musical Performance with Mr. A: TUESDAY, November 14 at 2:00 PM Love Auditorium. Students will be singing selections from American Folk Music- they are excited! Parent Conferences We have two days for Parent-Teacher Conferences on December 4 and 5 (no school for students). Each conference will be about 45 minutes in length and will be in person in our classroom. We are excited to talk with you about your children's growth and progress! Please use the Sign Up Genius below to secure your time slot: Click here to choose your Parent Conference time. Show and Tell homework due this Friday:
Here is the link to our Homework Cover Sheet/Important Dates due Thursday, 11/16. Enjoy the photos below:
Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, We had such a fantastic Halloween celebration yesterday! Our party was with the entire first grade in Love Auditorium. Each classroom's parents were in charge of a station, and the kids filtered through four stations. The kids had SO MUCH FUN! A special thanks to Julie Harrell, Christina Hartley, Katie Vance and Anne Louise Yarbrough for planning an awesome station-- MUMMY WRAPPING! I know the kids will remember the celebration for years to come! Enjoy the photos. Halloween Candy Science Experiment Additionally, in the morning we celebrated the students filling up the Compliment Jar by conducting a super fun science experiment! The students worked in pairs and they followed the scientific method to ask a question, test their hypothesis and analyze their results. They chose four different kinds of Halloween candy and tested whether the candy would SINK or FLOAT with their wrappers ON; and then tested them again with their wrappers OFF. Ask your first grader what they discovered! The "Lab Booklet" came home on Tuesday. Please enjoy photos from the past few days, including Halloween:
Homework is due tomorrow (Thursday, 11/2). We'll have Show and Tell on Friday and the item to describe is "Something that reminds you of FALL". I hate that I have to miss school on Friday and Monday, but a have a scheduled medical procedure as well as my dear sister will be flying in from PHL on Thursday for a visit! I'm sure I will read a glowing report from the substitute on Tuesday when I return. Dates for your calendar: Friday, November 3 and Monday, November 6- Miss Borowski will be absent Thursday, November 9- Turkey Trot Fun Run Tuesday, November 14- K/1st Music Performance Wednesday, November 15- Thanksgiving Feast during lunch Thursday, November 16- 2nd/3rd Music Performance Monday, November 20- Lily’s Birthday November 20-24- No School HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, Doesn't the school look terrific? The Halloween decorations out in front of the school are just wonderful! I know our first graders are excited for Halloween... and our first Show and Tell using the EET (Expanding Expression Tool) to describe our Halloween costume this Friday! The students are growing and learning so much. I continue to be so proud of them! Halloween Party Thank you so much to Julie Harrell, Christina Hartley and Katie Vance for bravely volunteering to run a station at our first grade Halloween party! The students are super excited (so am I!) Just a reminder that Wardlaw students will not be dressing in costumes this Halloween, but themed clothing and accessories are encouraged. I just ordered a "Trick or TEACH" t-shirt to wear that day :-) Enjoy the Slideshow Photos!
Fire Prevention presentation via ZOOM October is Fire Prevention and Fire Safety Month. After having some good discussions following our Scholastic News article last week, I reached out to my dear college friend Jeff Jones who is the Lieutenant Fire Chief out in Breckenridge, Colorado. He and his crew of firefighters did an AWESOME job presenting about fire safety via Zoom. Enjoy the photos and ask your first grader if they were able to ask Lieutenant Jones a question and what he answered! For example, one student asked, "Have you ever saved an animal?" and he told us a story of saving a baby moose! I'd love to send the fire crew a thank you gift from our class. I asked Jeff what their favorite candy was out there in Breckenridge and he said REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS. I've asked the students to save a couple pieces of their Halloween candy for the firefighters and we'll send a package out there after Halloween! Homework due tomorrow (10/26) (click here for a link to the Homework cover page for this week)
Dates for your calendar: Tuesday, October 31- First Grade Halloween Party 1:30-2:30 Wednesday, November 1- Teacher Planning Day (No School for Students) Friday, November 3 and Monday, November 6- Miss Borowski will be absent Thursday, November 9- Turkey Trot Fun Run Wednesday, November 15- Thanksgiving Feast during lunch Monday, November 20- Lily’s Birthday November 20-24- No School (Happy Thanksgiving!) Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather Dear Families, I hope everyone had a beautiful long weekend. We spent lots of time outdoors enjoying this sunny fall weather. I was so happy to see all 10 of my first graders this morning! Enjoy photos from the last week:
Halloween: I wanted to let you know that teachers found out that Wardlaw students will NOT be dressing in costumes this Halloween. However, festive Halloween-themed clothing is totally welcome! Homework and Dates for Your Calendar Here is a link to the Homework due Thursday, October 12. Now through October 13- If You Give a Dog a Treat Service Project Friday, October 13- Team Spirit Day- rep your favorite college or professional team! Friday, October 20- Dyslexia Dash Spirit Day Saturday, October 21- Dyslexia Dash Register here: https://runsignup.com/Race/GA/Atlanta/DyslexiaDash Tuesday, October 31- First Grade Halloween Party Wednesday, November 1- Teacher Planning Day (No School for Students) Thursday, November 9- FUN RUN TURKEY TROT (more info coming soon!) Thank you for sharing your children with me! Warmly, Heather PS- lots of "focus gum" has arrived... and the students are THRILLED! Thank you so much for remembering a pack (or more) as you're in the checkout line! I am so grateful for your support! |
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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