Look at us!

The days are busy and full!

It was a beautiful afternoon to walk to the pool. We had a great group of 4th grade buddies with us. When we returned to the classroom we had pizza! We are all hungry after swimming. On Wednesdays, our first Essential teacher comes to our classroom to meet us and spend time with us. We need that chance to rest and eat after all that exertion at the pool.

This Friday our Fun Club activity will be the schoolwide FUN RUN. We will walk over to the high school track and run our laps.

Our theme in the classroom this week is APPLES. With real red and green apples we have been counting, making patterns, and joining sets. We followed a recipe to make blender applesauce and sampled apple slices with toppings. Our reading and writing has been based on apples. This will carry over into next week, and then we will turn to other fall themes.

I walked the class to the library for essential class this afternoon. Mrs. Millington, our librarian had the children all sit on the "grass" (the green shag carpet) under the "tree" that she had painted on the wall. They were all listening well to the story she was reading when I left to go back to the room to get my camera. When I returned 15 minutes later, they had finished the story and activity and were all engaged either on the computer or with a book.

I think that everyone took a great picture this morning. We had the special star on our schedules to alert us that something different was happening today. We read a social story about having our picture taken. Smile!

Popcorn and Reading

This afternoon is Creekside's first popcorn and D.E.A.R. time for this school year. Fourth grade buddies came to our room to eat and read with us. Wonderful!!!!

Ocean in a Bottle

This afternoon in Friday Fun Club we made an ocean in a bottle. Students followed picture directions to accurately count out, "5 shells, 4 rocks, 3 sea animals, 2 seaweed, and 1 red heart. " They measured out 3/4 cups of oil and poured it in the bottle using a funnel. Last they added the blue water. I used the gluegun to (hopefully!) securely keep the caps on. Students were very engaged, talking about the objects in their blue ocean. They are coming home in backpacks today.

We also practiced our first schoolwide fire drill today. We all did very well. I'm proud of us!

Using Sign in the Classroom

One of our new favorite songs is the ABC's with sign language. We sing it each morning during "Talk Time." You can view it here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMQHdlUBkeI

This link make not work - Please try to search youtube with this term:
ABC Song/ASL alphabet - american version

We use some sign in the classroom, not to become proficient at communication with sign language, but rather to support our language. For example, when describing something that is yellow, I can use the sign for yellow to support my words. With the ABC's , we can use the sign to cue a student when we are writing a sound we hear. A sign is visual and the brain processes visual information more quickly than it does auditory information.

........and your children love it!

Mrs. Chapman, our Speech therapist, spends time with us each day. She is always excited when we share our stories about the good things we observe about the children at lunch and recess. "This student did this! Another student did that! And did you see the interaction at the slides?!!" She is brainstorming even more ideas to support all students in their communication with peer buddies at the lunch table and on the playground. We are fortunate to have a great team at Creekside.

Your child may already know his/her right or left hand. We are reinforcing this learning with a hand rhyme that goes like this:

"This is my RIGHT hand,
I raise it up high.
This is my LEFT hand,
I touch the sky.
RIGHT hand, LEFT hand,
Roll them around,
RIGHT hand, LEFT hand,
Touch the ground."

See if they will say this with you!

We practice walking on the right side of the hallway on our way through the building.

4th grade buddies will join us for swimming tomorrow.

Our principal, Mrs. Sahouri, stopped by our classroom just before lunch today. One of our students took her picture.

Each afternoon at the end of the school day students answer my musical question, "What did you do today? Oh what did you do today? Hey, ho, what do you know, what did you do today?" by circling the pictures in their home/school communication folders. "I went to music today, I went to music today, Hey, ho, what do you know, I went to music today!"

I imagine that you all sit with your children at some point in the evening and review that page with them, talking about what activities they did at school. When you finish, it would be great if your child (with your support) could wipe off the circles. This demonstrates that the school day is over, and a fresh one happens tomorrow. (and it saves me from wiping 8 books off.......!) Thanks so much!


Our Essential teachers, from top to bottom: Music, Gym, Library, and Art. They are wonderful! In addition to teaching children in these speciality areas, they also greet our children each morning in our classroom and support them to make their schedule, take the folder to the office, pick up the cones in the parking lot, and more. These special people make a difference in our day!

Fun Club Friday - Walk to Ore Creek

We took Chocolate Snacks with us to Ore Creek to see our friend Jake this afternoon. We had a choice of chocolate milk, a brownie, or m&m's. Mrs. Kelly, the teacher there, invited us to come back another time when we could stay longer. We will plan that on a Friday Fun Club in October.

Our Daily Schedule

There is a big thunderstorm outside right now! Children are just finishing the Essential classes for today (Gym and Music) and will be coming back to the classroom for recess. We'll be having recess in our classroom today!

Our daily schedule looks like this:

Arrival - independently (working toward) take off coat and hang up, open backpack and take out folder and lunch, make own schedule to match classroom schedule. Then different students are going to classrooms, doing jobs out of the classroom and going to sensory.

Talk Time - Language ! Language! and More Language! Signing, saying, using the voice output device, karaoke and more!

Academic work time

Peppy Club - our version of "Brain Gym" Lively Movement!

Calendar time - this is where each child has a chance to to read their "Last Night at Home" note

Choice time

Lunch and Recess with buddies

Afternoon Activity-

Monday - Post Office
Tuesday - Cook
Wednesday - Swim
Thursday - Book Club with Speech/OT/SSW
Friday - Fun Club

Tomorrow for Fun Club we will walk to Ore Creek to see our friend Jake and share a snack. Next Friday's Fun Club is to Epley Park.

Today at the pool