Important Reminders

The kids did great on their DIBELS test! You will be getting their scores this week.
If you have not sent your child's report card back, please do so as soon as possible!
Please remember that car riders are finished at 3:05. We have teachers that take children out to car riders, but they also have bus duty starting at 3:05. Please make every effort to be on time to pick up your child.

Please make sure your child has a snack or snack money every day. Children also need a seasonally appropriate change of clothes for their cubbies.

With flu season here and going strong, please keep an eye on your child. If you suspect they may have it or they have any symptoms of it, take them to a doctor right away. We are doing our best to keep our classrooms as germ free as possible! Thank you for your help with this!

Our classroom is running low on the following supplies: Lysol spray, Clorox wipes, Baby wipes, and Paper towels. If you are able to help out with any of the supplies it is greatly appreciated! Thank you for all that you do for us!
I hope you all have a great week!

Red Ribbon Week

Monday, October 22:

• Red Ribbon Day: Wear red and get a red ribbon

Tuesday, October 23

• Sock It To Drugs: Wear silly socks
• Follow Your Dreams: Wear pajamas

Wednesday, October 24

• It's A Jungle Out There: Wear camouflage or animal prints
• Spot Me Being Drug Free: Wear polka dots

Thursday, October 25

• Team Up Against Drugs: Wear your CES, SEHS, or team shirts
• Drugs Make You Blue: Wear blue jeans
• Pep Rally in the gym at 1:30

Friday, October 26

• Costume Parade at 8:15: Dress in age appropriate costume
• Fall Festival Party in your classroom after the parade

Wednesday, October 31

• Pink Out! Wear pink! No costumes!

Last Week's Community Helpers

Last week we had a blast enjoying all of our special guests. We had a nurse, firefighter, Coosada Police Department, and librarian come speak to the students. We thoroughly enjoyed hearing from each of them and can't thank them enough for taking time out of their day to talk to us.
This week we will be focusing on pumpkins. We will also have the pumpkin patch on Wednesday starting at 9:30 along with shaved ice for $1.50 cash in P.E.
I encourage everyone that is able to stop by our classroom to check out our pink pumpkin for Relay for Life. The pumpkin that has the most coins wins a popsicle party for their class.
I hope everyone has a GREAT week!
Sincerely,
Ms. Johnston

Parent Conferences

I had a great time meeting with each and everyone of you during parent conferences. I am extremely proud of the growth the students have shown already. They continue to work hard and do their best on a daily basis. Please continue to work with your children on counting to 100, their high frequency words, and writing their name correctly.
This week we have had a great time learning about the letter Tt. We made Tillie the Turtle, ate tootsie rolls, and made T's out of playdough. Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of their lives! They are all a blessing to me!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email, call, or stop by for a conference.
Thank you,
Joan Johnston

A Great Start to the School Year

We had an AMAZING first week of school! Thank you parents for your continued support and sweet notes of encouragement. The children are doing such a good job remembering procedures and their morning routines. I am VERY PROUD of everything they have done so far. I can already tell that we are going to have a GREAT year!

Here are just a few reminders:

• $24 Classroom fees are due
• Please remember to return your child's bus/van/car tags daily
• Check folders daily for notes or reports
• Please include a phone number on your check if it isn't already listed
• Help your child memorize their lunch number
• Parents please do NOT park in the BUS AREA
• Check the calendar in the folders and initial daily

If you have any questions or concerns please email, call, or text me. I look forward to working with you and your children. I am so blessed to have this opportunity and I pray that I am able to leave a positive impact on you and your child's life.

Sincerely,
Ms. Johnston

Welcome to Ms. Johnston's Kindergarten Class

I enjoyed talking with some of you today and something that thrilled me was to hear you say, "It was so nice to talk to you! We look forward to a GREAT YEAR!" I am working on getting out my letters to each of you sometime this week and hopefully a postcard to your precious children. I can't wait until Open House (August 16th from 12-6) where I finally get to put a face with your voice and name. Thank you so much for the opportunity to teach your child! We are going to have a FANTASTIC year!
Sincerely,
Ms. Johnston

Dr. Seuss Week

We had a blast this past week celebrating Dr. Seuss! The kids had so much fun wearing their pajamas, silly socks, green, and dressing up for the parade. They LOVED making green eggs and ham and their very own truffela tree. I'm not sure who had more fun the kids or myself. :-) Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your child's life. They are very precious and dear to me!

Read Across America

We had a great time yesterday wearing our pajamas to school and having a guest read "Llama, Llama Red Pajama!" to us. The students were so excited to come to school dressed in their pajamas. Thank you for everyone that participated, we had a blast! Don't forget that we are out of school on Monday and Tuesday for Fall Break! I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend.
Ms. Johnston

Kindergarten GOTCHA Dance Party

We had a blast dancing this afternoon at the GOTCHA party. Thank you to all of my students who worked hard on getting three GOTCHAS. You all have done great and EVERYONE was able to go to the party today! I am so proud of each of you! Keep up the AWESOME work!

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone that came today for Grandparent's Day. I hope you enjoyed our math routine and songs, but most of all I hope you enjoyed eating lunch with your grandchildren. They enjoyed having you and seeing their precious smiles as you entered the classroom made my day! I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!

Grandparent's Day on September 9!

We will be celebrating “Grandparent’s Day” at Coosada on Friday, September 9, 2011. If all possible we would like for your child’s grandparents to come eat lunch with your child at 10:55. Please let your child’s teacher know if their grandparents will be able to attend as soon as possible, but no later than Wednesday, September 7, 2011. That way we can give our lunchroom staff a count of how many visitors to expect! We can not wait to see everyone!

                                                                                                            Red Pod Teachers

Schedule for Parent Conferences

If you do not see your child's name on the schedule it is because I have not received a time from you when you would like to come. Please let me know as soon as possible so I can add you to my schedule. Thanks!

1:00-1:15  Joel W.
1:15-1:30
1:30-1:45
1:45-2:00 Shiann W.
2:00-2:15 Jordan P.
2:15-2:30 Gage K.
2:30-2:45
2:45-3:00
3:00-3:15
3:15-3:30 Kamran A.
3:30-3:45
3:45-4:00 Bailey K.
4:00-4:15 Ciara H.
4:15-5:15 DINNER TIME

5:00-5:15 Donnie A.

5:15-5:30 Fatima E.

5:30-5:45 Camden H.

5:45-6:00 Madison W.

6:00-6:15

6:15-6:30 Damarcus P.

6:30-6:45 Joshua C.

6:45-7:00

A Great Start

Thank you all for such a GREAT start to our Kindergarten Year!! The students are learning their procedures and doing their best to earn a prize from my treasure box. I am proud to say that several of them have earned GOTCHAS and they can't wait until the first GOTCHA party.

A few reminders:

1. Please make sure your child has the proper shoes for P.E.
2. We also need a change of clothes to keep in their cubbies in case they have an accident.
3. Please send in correct change daily for juice and snack.
4. If you have a change in how your child gets home in the afternoons, please send in a note with the change and address where the child will be going.
5. Make sure you are signing their behavior calendars daily.
6. Please return the homework daily in their folders. I check them every day and go over things they do not understand.

I will continue to update my blog weekly. I will try to include pictures of the children doing various activities and important notes that you need to check. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to email me at joan.johnston@elmore.k12.al.us or call me at 285-0273.

Welcome to KINDERGARTEN!

I hope everyone has had a fantastic summer! I cannot wait to see everyone next week! Don't forget your staggered start schedule! Drop off time is 7:15 for the first week of school ONLY!!!! Car riders will be released at 2:35.

I enjoyed meeting everyone at Open House. I can already tell that we are going to have an awesome year! Please do not forget to make sure your child has on the proper shoes for P.E. If they do not have the proper shoes (tennis shoes), then they will not get to participate. This means no flip flops, sandals, or open toe shoes can be worn to P.E. Also, remember to send in a change of clothes and any school supplies that you have not already turned in at Open House.

Kindergarten Orientation!

I am excited to meet and get to know each of you this year. Kindergarten Orientation is on Tuesday, August 9th at 6:00 in my classroom. We will go over a lot of important information that you will need in order to ensure that your child has a successful Kindergarten year. School starts August 15th; however, kindergarten has a different start. We have a staggered start the first three days of school to go over routines and work with students on a small group level. I will mail out a packet filled with a letter introducing things, a supply list, a wish list, an August breakfast/lunch menu, and a postcard. Once I receive the postcard, I will send you a letter with the date that your child will be startingschool. I am looking forward to having a GREAT year!
Sincerely,
Ms. Johnston

Winnie the Pooh Field Trip

We had an awesome day on our field trip today. The students thoroughly enjoyed watching the play, "Winnie the Pooh." After the play was over, we ate lunch and played at Vaughn Road Park. It was so good to see them run and play and just have a good time.

Shapes

This past Thursday the students and I had a blast making shapes out of froot loops. I would model how to make a shape under the document camera and the students would make the shape at their desk. After we had made all of the shapes, the students sorted the froot loops by color. We then counted how many froot loops we had for each color. Last, the students made a pattern with their froot loops and their own necklace. The next day, we made shape faces using graham crackers for the rectangle face, candy corn for the triangle eyes, chex for the square nose, and cheerios for the circle smile. When they finished they ate their shape face. We had a great first full week of kindergarten and I am looking forward to having many more.