Weekly Updates
Week of February 26 - March 2nd 2018:
Important information:
-Specials for this Week:
Monday: PE Tuesday: ART Wednesday: MEDIA Thursday: MUSIC Friday: PE
-Wednesday and Thursday (2/28-3/1) We will have our book fair preview and buy day. On Wednesday students will be able to pick out favorite books marked with price. They will bring home the form. As a family you can discuss and send in money for books agreed upon for purchase. Thursday students will go in and buy books. Let me know if you would like to help. Wednesday we will be previewing at 1pm and Thursday we will be purchasing at 2pm. (30 minute blocks each)
-Friday 3/2 will be an early release day. Dismissal will begin at 1:10pm
This week we will also have a couple of themed days in celebration for Dr. Seuss Birthday.
Wednesday: Hat Day
Thursday: Silly Sock Day
Friday: Pajama Day
Have a great week!!!!
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Week of February 5-9th
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Art , Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~We had our 2nd in house field trip on February 2nd. It was called Traveling Tortoise. The caterpillars learned about animals and their habitats. They loved being able to see the reptiles and touching the turtles and snakes. Please check out our classroom twitter account for all the amazing pictures. @CaterpillarsPUE
~We will have an Early Release Day this Friday February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I sent out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th at 1:45pm. Please see the sign up genius if you would like to volunteer or donate for the occasion.
Important Dates:
~2/9– Early Release. Dismissal at 1:10pm
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
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Week of January 29th - February 2nd 2018th
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – PE , Tues – ART, Wed – MEDIA, Thurs – MUSIC, Fri – PE
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~Report cards went home last Friday. Please sign and return the envelope ASAP. You may keep the report card..
~We will had our first in house Weather Wizards field trip last week. Please check our classroom twitter for pictures.
~We will also have our other in house field trip on February 2nd. This is called Traveling Tortoise. We will be learning about animals and their habitats.
~Our next Early Release Day will be February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I will also be sending out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th at 1:45pm. Please see the sign up genius if you would like to volunteer or donate for the occasion.
Important Dates:
~2/2– Traveling Tortoise field trip (in school)
~2/9– Early Release. Dismissal at 1:10pm
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
Reading News:
Our third quarter reading objectives are as follows:
Math News:
Our third quarter math goals are as follows:
Science News:
This week we will switch back to science as we begin our unit on Properties. This week will be an introduction to properties: what are properties, how do we find them, how can knowing properties help us? We will begin by looking at the properties of leaves. We will observe and explore our leaves and list the properties we see. We will then explore the properties of shells. We will look for ways to sort our shells accordingly by the properties they have. Finally, we will compare leaves and shells using the properties that we have learned that they have. Some properties we’ll be exploring are; soft, hard, spotted, lined, colors, pointy, smooth, spiky, has holes, and more!
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
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Week of January 22-26th
Happy New Year 2018!!
Welcome back to the new year caterpillars! I can’t wait to see everyone tomorrow!
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Music , Tues – PE, Wed – Art, Thurs – Media, Fri – Music
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~Report cards go home this Friday. Please sign and return the envelope ASAP. You may keep the report card..
~ A HUGE thank you to everyone who joined us for our gingerbread houses and who all who donated! We had such a good time.
~We will have our first in house Weather Wizards field trip this Wednesday. This is a field trip here at school so we do not need chaperones or green shirts for this one. We will be learning all about weather.
~We will also have our other in house field trip on February 2nd. This is called Traveling Tortoise. We will be learning about animals and their habitats.
~Our next Early Release Day will be February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I will also be sending out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th. If I have volunteers who would like to host a learning experience for themed crafts centers and activities please email if you are interested.
Important Dates:
~1/24– Weather Wizards (in house field trip)
~1/26- Report Cards go home
~2/2– Traveling Tortoise field trip (in school)
~2/9– Early Release
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
Reading News:
Our third quarter reading objectives are as follows:
Math News:
Our third quarter math goals are as follows:
Science News:
This week we will switch back to science as we begin our unit on Properties. This week will be an introduction to properties: what are properties, how do we find them, how can knowing properties help us? We will begin by looking at the properties of leaves. We will observe and explore our leaves and list the properties we see. We will then explore the properties of shells. We will look for ways to sort our shells accordingly by the properties they have. Finally, we will compare leaves and shells using the properties that we have learned that they have. Some properties we’ll be exploring are; soft, hard, spotted, lined, colors, pointy, smooth, spiky, has holes, and more!
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
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Week of October 23rd 2017
WELCOME BACK FAMILIES!!!! I HOPE YOU ALL HAD A WONDERFUL TRACK OUT!!! REMINDER IF WE HAVE OUR FIRST FIELD TRIP ON 10/26/2017.
We will be going to 3 Bears Acres farm. We will plan to leave PUE at 9:30am and return around 1:30pm. Students will ride the bus and parents will be able to join us at the farm. Chaperones are free. You must be registered as a volunteer to chaperone (if you are planning to chaperone we do ask that siblings not attend the field trip). Parents are more than welcome to take student's home from the field trip site. They will need to check in with myself or Ms. LaHurd to sign a form before leaving and not returning back to school for the day. Students will still be marked as attending a full school day. If you have not done so please pay online at http://pleasantuniones.wcpss.net/ We will plan to picnic at the farm. If you did not mark for a cafeteria lunch please send in a BAG lunch from home.
--Parents who have signed up to volunteer:
*Lincoln Hayes
*Austin Blair
*Timmy Frey
*Luke Yarbrough
*Rohan Thomas
We will also be doing a trick or treating parade in collaboration with the PREK class on Tuesday 10/31. We ask that families send in treats (at least 11) to participate in the parade. Per Wake County Policy, students are required to dress as "book characters." Students can wear their costume over regular clothes or bring a change in clothes in their back pack. Please let me know if you have any further questions. Thank you
Reading News:
Our second quarter reading objectives are as follows:
Math News:
Our second quarter math goals are as follows:
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 4th-SEPTEMBER 8TH, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – no school, Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~Our next Early Release is September 29. I know this is a month away but it’s always nice to have a heads up. It will also be our last day before track out
~Please sign and return your child’s interim ASAP.
~Picture day is Sept 14! Please fill out the form and send in your payment by Sept 14 if you are getting Fall pictures. FYI – we will have another picture day in the Spring.
~This Thursday, we will have our kick-off assembly for our school fundraiser: Read-a-Thon! Track 4 will be participating in the Read-a-Thon during the weeks of Sept 18-Sept 30. More information will be coming home regarding how to sign up and raise funds for our school. This fundraiser will take the place of Boosterthon as our major fundraising event of the year.
~Our theme this week is: Pete the Cat
Important Dates:
~ 9/7 – Read-a-thon kick off assembly
~9/14 – Picture day
~9/18-9/30 Read a thon Fundraiser
~9/29 – Early Release
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
Focus Centers:
Letterland:
This week we will be focusing on Quarrelsome Queen, Red Robot, Sammy Snake, Talking Tess
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
Social Studies News:
This week in Social Studies we will continue learning about being good citizens, rules, expectations, and responsibility. Mrs. Cooper, our guidance counselor, will be coming to teach a lesson about bullying and being a good friend. We will also brainstorm ways to help some fictional students that are not being great citizens. Finally, we will make posters to share one way we are a good citizen at home, school, or in the community. HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
Week of August 28th, 2017
~Specials for the week: Mon – Art, Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~Please continue to work on your child’s number. This is extremely important for them to learn. Let me know when your child has mastered their number and I will check them on it. Once they have mastered it, they get a trip to the treasure box!
~Our next Early Release is September 29. I know this is a month away but it’s always nice to have a heads up.~Our first interims go home on Tuesday. This is a progress report on how your child is doing on this quarter’s objectives.
~School will be closed this coming Monday, Sept 4 for Labor day. I hope everyone enjoys the long weekend!
~This Tuesday we will have dental screenings. It is a program that is through Wake county and all Kindergarten students are screened. Below is a note from our hygienist:
Parent Screening Notice for School or Classroom Newsletter:
Annually, Our School Health Dental Hygienist looks for healthy smiles by providing kindergarten dental screenings. Good dental health is important to a student’s overall well-being. Hygienists use a flashlight to provide a quick screening of the student’s teeth. A letter with the results of the screening will be sent home with your student. If you have any questions, please contact the school’s dental hygienist Marla Jasperse at 919-621-2480.
~Our theme this week is: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Important Dates:
~ 8/29- Interims go home
~9/4- No School for Labor Day holiday
~9/29 – Early Release last day for Track Out
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
Social Studies News: This week in Social Studies we will continue learning about being good citizens, rules, expectations, and responsibility. We will talk about community helpers and their important roles. We will also brainstorm ways to help some fictional students that are not being great citizens.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
Week of August 21st, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – PE, Tues – Art, Wed – Media, Thurs – Music, Fri – PE
~Please return towels each Monday cleaned.
~https://www.smore.com/t6mkq (PANTHERS PRINCIPAL WEEKLY MESSAGE)
~Our first interims go home next Tuesday. This is a progress report on how your child is doing on this quarter’s objectives.
~Our theme this week is Pete the Cat!
Important Dates:
~ 8/29- Interims go home
~9/4- No School for Labor Day holiday
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
In Letterland, we will finish our Fast Track unit. This week we will meet the rest of our letterlanders: Jumping Jim, Kicking King, Lucy Lamp Light, Munching Mike, Noisy Nick
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Week of August 14th, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Music, Tues – PE, Wed – Art, Thurs – Media, Fri – Music
~We had a great first week together! I know it is a hard transition for our little ones, but they are having a blast in the classroom :)
~Friday will be an EARLY RELEASE DAY! Students will be dismissed at 1:10pm
~Please wash towels and return them on Monday.
~Make sure to send in snack each day with your child.
Important Dates:
~8/18- Early Release Day
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
~Work on Writing: Letters in my name Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
~Reading Groups: Continue to work on letters, sounds, and print concepts depending on your child’s needs.
Letterland:
In Letterland, we will continue our Fast Track unit. This week we will meet Firefighter Fred, Golden Girl, Harry Hat Man, Impy Ink, Jumping Jim. Please talk with your child at home about our letterlanders!
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
This week:
~ Count and circle “how many” school supplies
~ Graphing how many students are in the classroom (Hair Color, Boys vs Girls)
~ We will continue to work on recognizing, writing, and counting to answer “how many” with numbers from 0-5. We will begin our Numbers Book and learning how to write each number correctly and represent each number with drawings. Finally, we will have our first “check in” (assessment) on numbers to 5 this Friday!
Writing News:
This week we will continue to work on writing our letters correctly.
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August 6th 2017:
Dear Parents,
This is our classroom blog. Here is where you will find all information regarding the happenings in room 205. I will update the blog weekly, unless we are tracked out or there is no need (short week, etc…). The first couple of weeks we will be focusing on school rules, classroom expectations, and getting to know you activities. It may seem like a slow start at first, but these expectations are vital to making sure we have a wonderful year. I’m looking forward to working with you and your wonderful children this year!
Thank you to all the families who attended Open House on Thursday. For those families that missed, all information will be provided to you in your child's book bag on Monday. Please Return all forms that need to be filled out ASAP. Thank you
Make sure to look at the weblinks tab on our website. Make sure to sign up for the principals message, remember to purchase your track 4 green field trip shirt, and view our track 4 specials schedule.
Thank you to the families who took donation items: Some items still needed are gift cards (Amazon and target), sand toys, games, and velcro.
On August 29th, we will have our annual dental screenings:
Parent Screening Notice for School or Classroom Newsletter:
Annually, Our School Health Dental Hygienist looks for healthy smiles by providing kindergarten dental screenings. Good dental health is important to a student’s overall well-being.
Hygienists use a flashlight to provide a quick screening of the student’s teeth.
A letter with the results of the screening will be sent home with your student.
If you have any questions, please contact the school’s dental hygienist Marla Jasperse at
919-621-2480.
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
For the first several weeks of reading, we will learn all about centers and how they work. We will learn our expectations during reading time and spend some time modeling and practicing. At this time, our groups will be focusing on upper and lowercase letters, letter sounds, and print concepts. These groups will be formed based on the academic needs of your child. For example, if your child already knows all of his/her letters, they will be placed in a group that will work on sounds.
Letterland:
“Letterland is a unique, phonics-based approach to teaching reading, writing and spelling. The Letterland characters transform plain black letter shapes into child-friendly pictograms and they all live in an imaginary place called Letterland.” This week in Letterland, we will start our Fast Track unit. This is when I introduce Letterland and quickly introduce each letterlander. We will learn about 2 letterlanders a day. This week we will learn all about Annie Apple, Bouncy Ben, Clever Cat, Dippy Duck, and Eddie Elephant. Please talk with your child at home about our letterlanders!
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
During math, I teach concepts in small groups. It is very similar to the way we run reading groups.
This week in math, we will also graph the letters in our names using the book Chrysanthemum.
Writing News:Before we begin our writing curriculum, we will work on writing our letters correctly. We will also work on the very important skill of spacing between letters or words in a sentence. We will use the handwriting without tears curriculum to help with fine motor and formation of letters.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!
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July 31st 2017:
1. Welcome to the 2017-2018 Track 4 CCK class at Pleasant Union Elementary! We are the Hungry Caterpillars! I look forward to working with all of you this year as we nurture and support your child throughout their first year in school! Please check out our blog to find out more about me, some helpful websites, and the school supply list for this year (our list is a little different than the regular K list.) We will have an Open House/Meet the teacher night on Thursday August 3rd at 6pm. I look forward to seeing you all then! In the meantime, if you have any questions or need to contact me, you can reach me at [email protected].
Important Dates:
July31-Aug 3rd: Staggered Entry
Augst 3rd: Open House at 6pm
Augst 4th: No students
Augst 7th: All students begin normal schedule
Important information:
-Specials for this Week:
Monday: PE Tuesday: ART Wednesday: MEDIA Thursday: MUSIC Friday: PE
-Wednesday and Thursday (2/28-3/1) We will have our book fair preview and buy day. On Wednesday students will be able to pick out favorite books marked with price. They will bring home the form. As a family you can discuss and send in money for books agreed upon for purchase. Thursday students will go in and buy books. Let me know if you would like to help. Wednesday we will be previewing at 1pm and Thursday we will be purchasing at 2pm. (30 minute blocks each)
-Friday 3/2 will be an early release day. Dismissal will begin at 1:10pm
This week we will also have a couple of themed days in celebration for Dr. Seuss Birthday.
Wednesday: Hat Day
Thursday: Silly Sock Day
Friday: Pajama Day
Have a great week!!!!
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Week of February 5-9th
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Art , Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~We had our 2nd in house field trip on February 2nd. It was called Traveling Tortoise. The caterpillars learned about animals and their habitats. They loved being able to see the reptiles and touching the turtles and snakes. Please check out our classroom twitter account for all the amazing pictures. @CaterpillarsPUE
~We will have an Early Release Day this Friday February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I sent out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th at 1:45pm. Please see the sign up genius if you would like to volunteer or donate for the occasion.
Important Dates:
~2/9– Early Release. Dismissal at 1:10pm
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
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Week of January 29th - February 2nd 2018th
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – PE , Tues – ART, Wed – MEDIA, Thurs – MUSIC, Fri – PE
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~Report cards went home last Friday. Please sign and return the envelope ASAP. You may keep the report card..
~We will had our first in house Weather Wizards field trip last week. Please check our classroom twitter for pictures.
~We will also have our other in house field trip on February 2nd. This is called Traveling Tortoise. We will be learning about animals and their habitats.
~Our next Early Release Day will be February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I will also be sending out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th at 1:45pm. Please see the sign up genius if you would like to volunteer or donate for the occasion.
Important Dates:
~2/2– Traveling Tortoise field trip (in school)
~2/9– Early Release. Dismissal at 1:10pm
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
Reading News:
Our third quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Blend and segment CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words. (i.e. him, cat, pig, bed)
- Isolate and identify the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in CVC words
- Spell simple words phonetically
- Describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g. what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts)
- Identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a non fiction text
- Identify when a text is fiction/non-fiction
- Identify the main topic and retell the key details
- Read 20 common high frequency words (wall words)
- Read emergent reader texts, level C, with purpose and understanding
- Ask and answer questions about key details, setting, characters, and major events in a story
- Recognize and name ending punctuation
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose informative and explanatory text (how-to books)
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose informative and explanatory text (all about books)
- Capitalize the first word in a sentence and the pronoun I consistently when writing
Math News:
Our third quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 70 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count forward beginning with a given number that is not a teen number.
- Use positional words to describe where things are (below, above, beside, in front of, behind, next to)
- Correctly name 2D and 3D shapes regardless of size and orientation
- Compare 2D and 3D shapes and name their similarities and differences using attributes
- Identify and describe the attributes of 3D shapes
- Compose simple shapes to form larger shapes (i.e. 6 triangles make a hexagon)
- Represent addition and subtraction problems with fingers, drawings, objects, etc…
- Solve addition and subtraction word problems with the answer being equal to or less than 5
- Decompose numbers less than or equal to 5 into pairs in more than one way (i.e. 5=2+3 and 4+1)
- For any given number from 1 to 4, find the number that makes 5 when added to the given number
Science News:
This week we will switch back to science as we begin our unit on Properties. This week will be an introduction to properties: what are properties, how do we find them, how can knowing properties help us? We will begin by looking at the properties of leaves. We will observe and explore our leaves and list the properties we see. We will then explore the properties of shells. We will look for ways to sort our shells accordingly by the properties they have. Finally, we will compare leaves and shells using the properties that we have learned that they have. Some properties we’ll be exploring are; soft, hard, spotted, lined, colors, pointy, smooth, spiky, has holes, and more!
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
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Week of January 22-26th
Happy New Year 2018!!
Welcome back to the new year caterpillars! I can’t wait to see everyone tomorrow!
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Music , Tues – PE, Wed – Art, Thurs – Media, Fri – Music
~ Sight Word Song: Practice this song with sheet in Purple folder each night. Have your child sing and read a long with the words on the sheet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpVWGhuckcQ&list=PLVxrIyECarOMFXzVL3wDlHouPVXTkZEcZ&index=33
~Report cards go home this Friday. Please sign and return the envelope ASAP. You may keep the report card..
~ A HUGE thank you to everyone who joined us for our gingerbread houses and who all who donated! We had such a good time.
~We will have our first in house Weather Wizards field trip this Wednesday. This is a field trip here at school so we do not need chaperones or green shirts for this one. We will be learning all about weather.
~We will also have our other in house field trip on February 2nd. This is called Traveling Tortoise. We will be learning about animals and their habitats.
~Our next Early Release Day will be February 9th. Dismissal will be at 1:10pm
~Our 100th Day of School is fast approaching (February 12th). On this day we do a fun 100th day snack, 100th day themed centers, and students get to wear a 100th day t-shirt that they decorated in class. We are asking that parents provide a plain
t-shirt (any color). Please have it in no later than Friday February 2nd. I will also be sending out a sign up genius for donations for snacks and activities.
~Valentine's Day is Wednesday February 14th. If I have volunteers who would like to host a learning experience for themed crafts centers and activities please email if you are interested.
Important Dates:
~1/24– Weather Wizards (in house field trip)
~1/26- Report Cards go home
~2/2– Traveling Tortoise field trip (in school)
~2/9– Early Release
~2/12- 100th day of school
~2/14- Valentine's Day Learning Experience
Reading News:
Our third quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Blend and segment CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words. (i.e. him, cat, pig, bed)
- Isolate and identify the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in CVC words
- Spell simple words phonetically
- Describe the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear (e.g. what person, place, thing, or idea in the text an illustration depicts)
- Identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a non fiction text
- Identify when a text is fiction/non-fiction
- Identify the main topic and retell the key details
- Read 20 common high frequency words (wall words)
- Read emergent reader texts, level C, with purpose and understanding
- Ask and answer questions about key details, setting, characters, and major events in a story
- Recognize and name ending punctuation
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose informative and explanatory text (how-to books)
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose informative and explanatory text (all about books)
- Capitalize the first word in a sentence and the pronoun I consistently when writing
Math News:
Our third quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 70 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count forward beginning with a given number that is not a teen number.
- Use positional words to describe where things are (below, above, beside, in front of, behind, next to)
- Correctly name 2D and 3D shapes regardless of size and orientation
- Compare 2D and 3D shapes and name their similarities and differences using attributes
- Identify and describe the attributes of 3D shapes
- Compose simple shapes to form larger shapes (i.e. 6 triangles make a hexagon)
- Represent addition and subtraction problems with fingers, drawings, objects, etc…
- Solve addition and subtraction word problems with the answer being equal to or less than 5
- Decompose numbers less than or equal to 5 into pairs in more than one way (i.e. 5=2+3 and 4+1)
- For any given number from 1 to 4, find the number that makes 5 when added to the given number
Science News:
This week we will switch back to science as we begin our unit on Properties. This week will be an introduction to properties: what are properties, how do we find them, how can knowing properties help us? We will begin by looking at the properties of leaves. We will observe and explore our leaves and list the properties we see. We will then explore the properties of shells. We will look for ways to sort our shells accordingly by the properties they have. Finally, we will compare leaves and shells using the properties that we have learned that they have. Some properties we’ll be exploring are; soft, hard, spotted, lined, colors, pointy, smooth, spiky, has holes, and more!
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
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Week of October 23rd 2017
WELCOME BACK FAMILIES!!!! I HOPE YOU ALL HAD A WONDERFUL TRACK OUT!!! REMINDER IF WE HAVE OUR FIRST FIELD TRIP ON 10/26/2017.
We will be going to 3 Bears Acres farm. We will plan to leave PUE at 9:30am and return around 1:30pm. Students will ride the bus and parents will be able to join us at the farm. Chaperones are free. You must be registered as a volunteer to chaperone (if you are planning to chaperone we do ask that siblings not attend the field trip). Parents are more than welcome to take student's home from the field trip site. They will need to check in with myself or Ms. LaHurd to sign a form before leaving and not returning back to school for the day. Students will still be marked as attending a full school day. If you have not done so please pay online at http://pleasantuniones.wcpss.net/ We will plan to picnic at the farm. If you did not mark for a cafeteria lunch please send in a BAG lunch from home.
--Parents who have signed up to volunteer:
*Lincoln Hayes
*Austin Blair
*Timmy Frey
*Luke Yarbrough
*Rohan Thomas
We will also be doing a trick or treating parade in collaboration with the PREK class on Tuesday 10/31. We ask that families send in treats (at least 11) to participate in the parade. Per Wake County Policy, students are required to dress as "book characters." Students can wear their costume over regular clothes or bring a change in clothes in their back pack. Please let me know if you have any further questions. Thank you
Reading News:
Our second quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and say all upper and lower case letter sounds
- Know 19/19 Print Concepts
- Recognize and produce rhyming words
- Count, pronounce, blend, and segment syllables
- Blend and segment CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words. (i.e. him, cat, pig, bed)
- Isolate and identify the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in CVC words
- Read 15 common high frequency words (wall words)
- Read emergent reader texts, level C, with purpose and understanding.
- Ask and answer questions about key details, setting, characters, and major events in a story.
- Recognize and name ending punctuation
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose opinion pieces that state their opinion about a topic (pattern book with an opinion)
- In writing, student is able to use a combination of drawings and 2-3 sentences to compose informative and explanatory text (how-to books)
Math News:
Our second quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 50 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count forward beginning with a given number that is not 1
- Write numbers to 20
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 20. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects up to 20 using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to with numbers up to 20.
- Compare two numbers between 1 and 10 when written, without the use of objects
- Compose and decompose numbers from 11-19 into tens and some further ones (18=10+8) understanding that these numbers are composed of a ten and 1, ten and 2, ten and 3, ten and 4, etc…
- Use positional words to describe where things are (below, above, beside, in front of, behind, next to)
- Correctly name shapes regardless of size and orientation
- Identify shapes as 2-D or 3-D and compare these shapes using math language (sides, vertices, flat, solid)
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 4th-SEPTEMBER 8TH, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – no school, Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~Our next Early Release is September 29. I know this is a month away but it’s always nice to have a heads up. It will also be our last day before track out
~Please sign and return your child’s interim ASAP.
~Picture day is Sept 14! Please fill out the form and send in your payment by Sept 14 if you are getting Fall pictures. FYI – we will have another picture day in the Spring.
~This Thursday, we will have our kick-off assembly for our school fundraiser: Read-a-Thon! Track 4 will be participating in the Read-a-Thon during the weeks of Sept 18-Sept 30. More information will be coming home regarding how to sign up and raise funds for our school. This fundraiser will take the place of Boosterthon as our major fundraising event of the year.
~Our theme this week is: Pete the Cat
Important Dates:
~ 9/7 – Read-a-thon kick off assembly
~9/14 – Picture day
~9/18-9/30 Read a thon Fundraiser
~9/29 – Early Release
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and name all upper and lower case letters
- Know 13/19 Print Concepts
- Understand that words are separated by spaces in print
- Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Recognize common types of texts (storybooks, poems, etc)
- Name the author/illustrator and define their role
- Actively engage in group reading and answer questions about the text
- Draw a picture of a small moment (true story) and label the beginning sounds
- Print many upper and lower case letters
Focus Centers:
Letterland:
This week we will be focusing on Quarrelsome Queen, Red Robot, Sammy Snake, Talking Tess
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 20 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count on from a given number (start at 5 and count)
- Write numbers from 0-10. Represent a group of objects with a written numeral.
- Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities up to 10. (4 cubes = 4)
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 10. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to.
Social Studies News:
This week in Social Studies we will continue learning about being good citizens, rules, expectations, and responsibility. Mrs. Cooper, our guidance counselor, will be coming to teach a lesson about bullying and being a good friend. We will also brainstorm ways to help some fictional students that are not being great citizens. Finally, we will make posters to share one way we are a good citizen at home, school, or in the community. HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!
Week of August 28th, 2017
~Specials for the week: Mon – Art, Tues – Media, Wed – Music, Thurs – PE, Fri – Art
~Please continue to work on your child’s number. This is extremely important for them to learn. Let me know when your child has mastered their number and I will check them on it. Once they have mastered it, they get a trip to the treasure box!
~Our next Early Release is September 29. I know this is a month away but it’s always nice to have a heads up.~Our first interims go home on Tuesday. This is a progress report on how your child is doing on this quarter’s objectives.
~School will be closed this coming Monday, Sept 4 for Labor day. I hope everyone enjoys the long weekend!
~This Tuesday we will have dental screenings. It is a program that is through Wake county and all Kindergarten students are screened. Below is a note from our hygienist:
Parent Screening Notice for School or Classroom Newsletter:
Annually, Our School Health Dental Hygienist looks for healthy smiles by providing kindergarten dental screenings. Good dental health is important to a student’s overall well-being. Hygienists use a flashlight to provide a quick screening of the student’s teeth. A letter with the results of the screening will be sent home with your student. If you have any questions, please contact the school’s dental hygienist Marla Jasperse at 919-621-2480.
~Our theme this week is: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Important Dates:
~ 8/29- Interims go home
~9/4- No School for Labor Day holiday
~9/29 – Early Release last day for Track Out
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and name all upper and lower case letters
- Know 13/19 Print Concepts
- Understand that words are separated by spaces in print
- Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Recognize common types of texts (storybooks, poems, etc)
- Name the author/illustrator and define their role
- Actively engage in group reading and answer questions about the text
- Draw a picture of a small moment (true story) and label the beginning sounds
- Print many upper and lower case letter
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 20 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count on from a given number (start at 5 and count)
- Write numbers from 0-10. Represent a group of objects with a written numeral.
- Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities up to 10. (4 cubes = 4)
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 10. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to.
Social Studies News: This week in Social Studies we will continue learning about being good citizens, rules, expectations, and responsibility. We will talk about community helpers and their important roles. We will also brainstorm ways to help some fictional students that are not being great citizens.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
Week of August 21st, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – PE, Tues – Art, Wed – Media, Thurs – Music, Fri – PE
~Please return towels each Monday cleaned.
~https://www.smore.com/t6mkq (PANTHERS PRINCIPAL WEEKLY MESSAGE)
~Our first interims go home next Tuesday. This is a progress report on how your child is doing on this quarter’s objectives.
~Our theme this week is Pete the Cat!
Important Dates:
~ 8/29- Interims go home
~9/4- No School for Labor Day holiday
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and name all upper and lower case letters
- Know 13/19 Print Concepts
- Understand that words are separated by spaces in print
- Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Recognize common types of texts (storybooks, poems, etc)
- Name the author/illustrator and define their role
- Actively engage in group reading and answer questions about the text
- Draw a picture of a small moment (true story) and label the beginning sounds
- Print many upper and lower case letters
In Letterland, we will finish our Fast Track unit. This week we will meet the rest of our letterlanders: Jumping Jim, Kicking King, Lucy Lamp Light, Munching Mike, Noisy Nick
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 20 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count on from a given number (start at 5 and count)
- Write numbers from 0-10. Represent a group of objects with a written numeral.
- Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities up to 10. (4 cubes = 4)
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 10. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!!!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Week of August 14th, 2017
Important Information:
~Specials for the week: Mon – Music, Tues – PE, Wed – Art, Thurs – Media, Fri – Music
~We had a great first week together! I know it is a hard transition for our little ones, but they are having a blast in the classroom :)
~Friday will be an EARLY RELEASE DAY! Students will be dismissed at 1:10pm
~Please wash towels and return them on Monday.
~Make sure to send in snack each day with your child.
Important Dates:
~8/18- Early Release Day
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and name all upper and lower case letters
- Know 13/19 Print Concepts
- Understand that words are separated by spaces in print
- Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Recognize common types of texts (storybooks, poems, etc)
- Name the author/illustrator and define their role
- Actively engage in group reading and answer questions about the text
- Draw a picture of a small moment (true story) and label the beginning sounds
- Print many upper and lower case letters
~Work on Writing: Letters in my name Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
~Reading Groups: Continue to work on letters, sounds, and print concepts depending on your child’s needs.
Letterland:
In Letterland, we will continue our Fast Track unit. This week we will meet Firefighter Fred, Golden Girl, Harry Hat Man, Impy Ink, Jumping Jim. Please talk with your child at home about our letterlanders!
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 20 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count on from a given number (start at 5 and count)
- Write numbers from 0-10. Represent a group of objects with a written numeral.
- Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities up to 10. (4 cubes = 4)
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 10. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to.
This week:
~ Count and circle “how many” school supplies
~ Graphing how many students are in the classroom (Hair Color, Boys vs Girls)
~ We will continue to work on recognizing, writing, and counting to answer “how many” with numbers from 0-5. We will begin our Numbers Book and learning how to write each number correctly and represent each number with drawings. Finally, we will have our first “check in” (assessment) on numbers to 5 this Friday!
Writing News:
This week we will continue to work on writing our letters correctly.
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August 6th 2017:
Dear Parents,
This is our classroom blog. Here is where you will find all information regarding the happenings in room 205. I will update the blog weekly, unless we are tracked out or there is no need (short week, etc…). The first couple of weeks we will be focusing on school rules, classroom expectations, and getting to know you activities. It may seem like a slow start at first, but these expectations are vital to making sure we have a wonderful year. I’m looking forward to working with you and your wonderful children this year!
Thank you to all the families who attended Open House on Thursday. For those families that missed, all information will be provided to you in your child's book bag on Monday. Please Return all forms that need to be filled out ASAP. Thank you
Make sure to look at the weblinks tab on our website. Make sure to sign up for the principals message, remember to purchase your track 4 green field trip shirt, and view our track 4 specials schedule.
Thank you to the families who took donation items: Some items still needed are gift cards (Amazon and target), sand toys, games, and velcro.
On August 29th, we will have our annual dental screenings:
Parent Screening Notice for School or Classroom Newsletter:
Annually, Our School Health Dental Hygienist looks for healthy smiles by providing kindergarten dental screenings. Good dental health is important to a student’s overall well-being.
Hygienists use a flashlight to provide a quick screening of the student’s teeth.
A letter with the results of the screening will be sent home with your student.
If you have any questions, please contact the school’s dental hygienist Marla Jasperse at
919-621-2480.
Reading News:
Our first quarter reading objectives are as follows:
- Recognize and name all upper and lower case letters
- Know 13/19 Print Concepts
- Understand that words are separated by spaces in print
- Identify the front cover, back cover, and title page of a book
- Recognize common types of texts (storybooks, poems, etc)
- Name the author/illustrator and define their role
- Actively engage in group reading and answer questions about the text
- Draw a picture of a small moment (true story) and label the beginning sounds
- Print many upper and lower case letters
For the first several weeks of reading, we will learn all about centers and how they work. We will learn our expectations during reading time and spend some time modeling and practicing. At this time, our groups will be focusing on upper and lowercase letters, letter sounds, and print concepts. These groups will be formed based on the academic needs of your child. For example, if your child already knows all of his/her letters, they will be placed in a group that will work on sounds.
Letterland:
“Letterland is a unique, phonics-based approach to teaching reading, writing and spelling. The Letterland characters transform plain black letter shapes into child-friendly pictograms and they all live in an imaginary place called Letterland.” This week in Letterland, we will start our Fast Track unit. This is when I introduce Letterland and quickly introduce each letterlander. We will learn about 2 letterlanders a day. This week we will learn all about Annie Apple, Bouncy Ben, Clever Cat, Dippy Duck, and Eddie Elephant. Please talk with your child at home about our letterlanders!
Math News:
Our first quarter math goals are as follows:
- Count to 20 by ones and tens. (please practice at home, in the car, etc…)
- Count on from a given number (start at 5 and count)
- Write numbers from 0-10. Represent a group of objects with a written numeral.
- Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities up to 10. (4 cubes = 4)
- Count to answer how many for groups of objects up to 10. Groups of objects will be arranged in a line, an array, a circle, or in a scattered arrangement.
- Count groups of objects using one-to-one correspondence (pointing to each object and saying the next number name in the counting sequence)
- Identify greater than, less than, and equal to.
During math, I teach concepts in small groups. It is very similar to the way we run reading groups.
This week in math, we will also graph the letters in our names using the book Chrysanthemum.
Writing News:Before we begin our writing curriculum, we will work on writing our letters correctly. We will also work on the very important skill of spacing between letters or words in a sentence. We will use the handwriting without tears curriculum to help with fine motor and formation of letters.
HAVE A GREAT WEEK!
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July 31st 2017:
1. Welcome to the 2017-2018 Track 4 CCK class at Pleasant Union Elementary! We are the Hungry Caterpillars! I look forward to working with all of you this year as we nurture and support your child throughout their first year in school! Please check out our blog to find out more about me, some helpful websites, and the school supply list for this year (our list is a little different than the regular K list.) We will have an Open House/Meet the teacher night on Thursday August 3rd at 6pm. I look forward to seeing you all then! In the meantime, if you have any questions or need to contact me, you can reach me at [email protected].
Important Dates:
July31-Aug 3rd: Staggered Entry
Augst 3rd: Open House at 6pm
Augst 4th: No students
Augst 7th: All students begin normal schedule