Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today during morning meeting we began talking about our classroom jobs (weather helper, line leader, line caboose, schedule helper, and calendar helper. Each week we will be rotating the jobs so that everyone can have a turn. We will begin our jobs on Monday.
2.) Today we had a special trip to the fire station! It was so much fun. We met firefighters, explored the trucks and even had a turn to sit in the driver’s seat!
3.) This afternoon we made our own fire trucks using markers, scissors and glue.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Ms. Jen from Speech came to our class today. She read us a chapter of Frog and Toad. Afterwards, we played a fishing game with sentences.
2.) In Language Arts, we started our sight word rings. We will add to them daily!
3.) Today was yummy pizza lunch day! Have a great weekend!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today during math we played a fun game that required students to make prediction and use tally marks to record results. Using a plastic cup we recorded how many times out of ten trials the cup landed on its side, upright, or upside down. We then made predictions of what we thought might happen if we tried it for a second time.
2.) We made a rice crispy treats with Ms. Lynn's class to take to the firehouse to thank all the Firefighters for the hard work they do protecting our community.
3.) During Morning Meeting we counted all the way to 60 on our number chart and discovered that we have had just as many sunny days as we have had cloudy days in the month of September!
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Social Skills, Ms. Kate introduced the theme, “Think before Acting”, and our class learned (1) to pause, (2) think about what is really happening during a situation/conflict—“gather all the facts”, (3) reflect-- “ think about all the facts” and (4) then take appropriate action. Through a series of prompted skits (role play), and with the help of props, students learned to clarify a situation, understanding their own, and other’s actions/emotions, and be able to ask questions that are not emotion-laden. Students learned they can then resolve a potential conflict without individuals experiencing bruised feelings.
2.) In Science, Ms. Patrice read Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, which was followed by the class performing a storm-related experiment. Students’ enjoyed the accompanying craft project, making awesome storm clouds with individual flair.
3.) During Math class our students cut out construction paper representations of stop lights, roads (straight and curved) and landmarks, as we continued our study of map making. As discussion of dimensions, spacing, sequencing, memory work, (straight vs. curved road on route to the Post Office). We as well learned that many things in life (math or writing or moving around) take many steps to accomplish the final produce. We went over the steps involved in making a map. Step 1: Driving to the Post Office to discover the exact route. Step 2: Cutting out the parts of the map needed (brainstorming process). The following steps will be completed next week. Step 3: Building the map using the parts we cut out (drawing process). Step 4: Testing the final product by having Ms. Jillian drive to the Post Office using only our map!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) Today we played a bean bag game in OT to help us with directionality.
2.) In music we played instruments to “Play That Funky Music” and then sang from our songbooks.
3.) We did a reader’s theater of Double Trouble in Walla Walla.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Thursday, September 17th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today during math we talked about nearest and farthest. We played a bean bag toss game and talked about where the bean bags landed.
2.) During Drama with Mr. Jim we played lots of games using our imagination. We pretended to ride a train and make several stops, one of the stops was a pretend library.
3.) We continued to work on our “All About Me” books today, and everyone shared pictures of their families.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We started working on our community! We each picked a building in a town to create and started painting our boxes.
2.) We had drama with Mr. Jim and played lots of fun games like, “The Magic Suitcase.”
3.) We read the third chapter of our Frog and Toad novel. It was about eating lots of cookies and we learned the meaning of “willpower.”
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In math we completed a chapter review and practiced patterns using foam sticker and dot markers.
2.) We had Drama with Mr. Jim and the students enjoyed such activities as “The Magic Suitcase” and “Night at the Museum.”
3.) We wrote thank you cards for the firefighters at the station next door and read several books on firefighters. Tomorrow we will be delivering our cards to the fire house with a special treat!
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Fine motor work was the order of the day. A warm-up arrival activity included learning to tie knots, and then knots at several spaced intervals along a line of string. This was followed by sequencing activities and identifying ordinal numbers, which included a great deal of scissor cutting, and printing practice.
2.) Today we created our Post Office word wall by pairing post office-related words with pictures on poster board. Students worked in groups, demonstrated understanding of the art of compromise, and furthered their understanding of the group process, as they sorted through the material together.
3.) Ms. Kathy led a wonderful O.T. class where students utilized gross motor skills. Incorporated during the session was: listening/attentional work, accurate processing of directions, “Form a circle please,” directionality (left-right, up-down, turn around) body awareness, teamwork, and timing/rhythm, combined with very lively sets of music. A “rock star” game served to strengthen the upper body and “cross mid-line” awareness.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) Today we played some very funny drama games with Mr. Jim.
2.) We wrote a story to picture prompts.
3.) We started working on a 3-D map of Maryland.
IMPORTANT DATES:
· Pizza Lunch TOMORROW – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
· The following forms are due Friday, September 24th:
o T-Shirt Order (all sizes are adult sizes and NOT kids sizes)
o TaeKwonDo Registration
o After School Social Club Registration
· The School Counseling Group is presenting a Parent’s Lecture, September 30th, 2009 @ 9:30AM to discuss guidelines and ideas when considering schools after Diener and the general admissions process to other schools in the area. More information to follow. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to lois@thedienerschool.org.
1.) Today during math we talked about nearest and farthest. We played a bean bag toss game and talked about where the bean bags landed.
2.) During Drama with Mr. Jim we played lots of games using our imagination. We pretended to ride a train and make several stops, one of the stops was a pretend library.
3.) We continued to work on our “All About Me” books today, and everyone shared pictures of their families.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We started working on our community! We each picked a building in a town to create and started painting our boxes.
2.) We had drama with Mr. Jim and played lots of fun games like, “The Magic Suitcase.”
3.) We read the third chapter of our Frog and Toad novel. It was about eating lots of cookies and we learned the meaning of “willpower.”
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In math we completed a chapter review and practiced patterns using foam sticker and dot markers.
2.) We had Drama with Mr. Jim and the students enjoyed such activities as “The Magic Suitcase” and “Night at the Museum.”
3.) We wrote thank you cards for the firefighters at the station next door and read several books on firefighters. Tomorrow we will be delivering our cards to the fire house with a special treat!
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Fine motor work was the order of the day. A warm-up arrival activity included learning to tie knots, and then knots at several spaced intervals along a line of string. This was followed by sequencing activities and identifying ordinal numbers, which included a great deal of scissor cutting, and printing practice.
2.) Today we created our Post Office word wall by pairing post office-related words with pictures on poster board. Students worked in groups, demonstrated understanding of the art of compromise, and furthered their understanding of the group process, as they sorted through the material together.
3.) Ms. Kathy led a wonderful O.T. class where students utilized gross motor skills. Incorporated during the session was: listening/attentional work, accurate processing of directions, “Form a circle please,” directionality (left-right, up-down, turn around) body awareness, teamwork, and timing/rhythm, combined with very lively sets of music. A “rock star” game served to strengthen the upper body and “cross mid-line” awareness.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) Today we played some very funny drama games with Mr. Jim.
2.) We wrote a story to picture prompts.
3.) We started working on a 3-D map of Maryland.
IMPORTANT DATES:
· Pizza Lunch TOMORROW – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
· The following forms are due Friday, September 24th:
o T-Shirt Order (all sizes are adult sizes and NOT kids sizes)
o TaeKwonDo Registration
o After School Social Club Registration
· The School Counseling Group is presenting a Parent’s Lecture, September 30th, 2009 @ 9:30AM to discuss guidelines and ideas when considering schools after Diener and the general admissions process to other schools in the area. More information to follow. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to lois@thedienerschool.org.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Wednesday, September 16th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today we played “Hide & Seek” with Mr. Aaron. We were learning the rules, cooperation, and had a terrific time in the process.
2.) We went on a Bear Hunt with Ms. Deanna during music.
3.) Ask your curious caterpillar to show you how to “Stop, Drop & Roll.”
4.) During science we read, The Snowy Day, and made a snowman
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) In science today we finished our weather mobiles. Don’t forget to hang them up!
2.) We read Frog & Toad. Ask your child, “Why was Toad upset about the garden?”
3.) We also started learning how to write in journals.
4.) In Social Studies, we are continuing our discussion about community helpers and getting ready for our walk to the firehouse Friday!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) We began building our Diener School Community today. Each child chose a type of building that is important in our community and then began painting their boxes. Tomorrow we will be adding windows, doors and other distinguishing objects to our buildings. Some ideas the students came up with were a movie theater, doctors office and a swimming pool!
2.) During math we continued practicing our ABAB, AABAAB, ABBABBA, and ABC patterns. Everyone did a great job completing these patterns without visual prompts!
3.) All the students are doing a great job in their Language Arts groups. Today as a large group we worked on sorting words by word families -at, -an, -ed, and –et.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Language Art groups began today. Each Monday you will receive e-mails from your child’s Language Arts teacher, which will include specifics concerning group goals for the week. This is separate from the daily update (paper form in daily folder will not include LA Group information) as it will only come via e-mail. LA group homework will come home Mondays, and is generated by the LA Group teacher.
2.) In Math we continued the direction lesson and geometric shapes, (following yesterdays visual-rich driving experience to the Potomac Post Office), by learning specific written directions for driving from the Diener School to the Potomac Post Office. We incorporated our knowledge of shapes, rectangles and triangles as we created a large map. Once our map is finished we will put accuracy to the test by having Ms. Jillian drive us to the Post Office, using only our map to help her get there!
3.) Our fine motor skills were further honed today. We used modeling clay to mold a representation of the front of a properly addressed envelope. Different colors denoted the outside shape, the stamp, and the address lines.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) Today we started our language arts groups.
2.) In social group we talked about expected and unexpected behaviors.3.) In math we answered word problems that involve place value.
IMPORTANT DATES:
· Pizza Lunch this Friday – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
· The following are due Friday, September 24th:
o T-Shirt Order Form (all sizes are adult sizes and NOT kids sizes)
o TaeKwonDo Registration
o After School Social Club Registration
· The School Counseling Group is Presenting a Parent’s Lecture, September 30th, 2009 @ 9:30AM to discuss guidelines and ideas when considering schools after Diener and the general admissions process to other schools in the area
1.) Today we played “Hide & Seek” with Mr. Aaron. We were learning the rules, cooperation, and had a terrific time in the process.
2.) We went on a Bear Hunt with Ms. Deanna during music.
3.) Ask your curious caterpillar to show you how to “Stop, Drop & Roll.”
4.) During science we read, The Snowy Day, and made a snowman
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) In science today we finished our weather mobiles. Don’t forget to hang them up!
2.) We read Frog & Toad. Ask your child, “Why was Toad upset about the garden?”
3.) We also started learning how to write in journals.
4.) In Social Studies, we are continuing our discussion about community helpers and getting ready for our walk to the firehouse Friday!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) We began building our Diener School Community today. Each child chose a type of building that is important in our community and then began painting their boxes. Tomorrow we will be adding windows, doors and other distinguishing objects to our buildings. Some ideas the students came up with were a movie theater, doctors office and a swimming pool!
2.) During math we continued practicing our ABAB, AABAAB, ABBABBA, and ABC patterns. Everyone did a great job completing these patterns without visual prompts!
3.) All the students are doing a great job in their Language Arts groups. Today as a large group we worked on sorting words by word families -at, -an, -ed, and –et.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Language Art groups began today. Each Monday you will receive e-mails from your child’s Language Arts teacher, which will include specifics concerning group goals for the week. This is separate from the daily update (paper form in daily folder will not include LA Group information) as it will only come via e-mail. LA group homework will come home Mondays, and is generated by the LA Group teacher.
2.) In Math we continued the direction lesson and geometric shapes, (following yesterdays visual-rich driving experience to the Potomac Post Office), by learning specific written directions for driving from the Diener School to the Potomac Post Office. We incorporated our knowledge of shapes, rectangles and triangles as we created a large map. Once our map is finished we will put accuracy to the test by having Ms. Jillian drive us to the Post Office, using only our map to help her get there!
3.) Our fine motor skills were further honed today. We used modeling clay to mold a representation of the front of a properly addressed envelope. Different colors denoted the outside shape, the stamp, and the address lines.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) Today we started our language arts groups.
2.) In social group we talked about expected and unexpected behaviors.3.) In math we answered word problems that involve place value.
IMPORTANT DATES:
· Pizza Lunch this Friday – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
· The following are due Friday, September 24th:
o T-Shirt Order Form (all sizes are adult sizes and NOT kids sizes)
o TaeKwonDo Registration
o After School Social Club Registration
· The School Counseling Group is Presenting a Parent’s Lecture, September 30th, 2009 @ 9:30AM to discuss guidelines and ideas when considering schools after Diener and the general admissions process to other schools in the area
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Tuesday, September 15th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today we played fun games with Ms. Brook. We played a movement game putting our bean bag on our head, shoulders and elbows. We also played a bean bag passing game.2.) During Language Arts we read a poem about Firefighters and went on a letter hunt for the letter “S” and a word hunt for the word “fire.” 3.) During Math we talked about the concept of “thick.” We then played a game finding the “thick” fire hose, fire hydrant and ladder.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today in math we sorted pasta while working on groupings of 2, 4, and 6.
2.) Fitness continued from yesterday working on eye hand coordination, catching and moving at the same time.
3.) In Social Studies, we discussed how police officers help our community and what their roles are.
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) We continued our community helpers theme talking today about police officers and firefighters. In speech, Ms. Sarabeth read us a story about community helpers and then we played a matching memory game. In the afternoon we read a story about police officers and completed a page in our Community Helpers Book.
2.) Today in science the students were introduced to the water cycle and made ‘Water Cycle Bags’ to see how water turns into water vapor.3.) In math we reviewed sorting and classifying object into categories such as size, shape, color and function.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Language Arts we read the book We Need Directions, which gave us a variety of ways to find locations using basic directional terms; left, right, north, south, east, west, turn, and straight. The students then made maps of their own about any place they wanted.
2.) In the afternoon, to continue our LA lesson, we piled in the Diener van to map out the route from the Diener School to the Potomac Post Office. The students had to direct Ms. Kate by telling her to “turn right”, or “go straight”. Upon returning to school, we started to draw out our map of the route. Throughout the week, as we learn more about maps, we will add to our Diener School to Potomac Post Office map by adding street names, landmarks, a key/legend, and the compass rose.
3.) During Math, we continued our lesson on geometric shapes. In small groups, we reviewed that triangles have 3 angles and 3 sides and squares have 4 angles and 4 sides. Today, we expanded on yesterday’s information by learning that squares have 4 equal sides! A shape that looks a lot like a square is called a rectangle, but we examined the two and learned that rectangles have 4 angles, and 4 sides, but the sides are NOT equal. To end the activity we all cut out different triangles, squares and rectangles and created collages of shapes!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) In math we continued to work with place value.2.) In language arts we learned about the idioms and discussed "straight from the horse's mouth".3.) In our study of Maryland we learned about landforms.
FROM THE OFFICE:
IMPORTANT DATES:
* Pizza Lunch this Friday – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
* Primary Field Trip to Fire Station: Friday, September 18, 2009
* Ms. Emily, Ms. Jenni, Ms. Lynn & Ms. Kate’s class Field Trip to Rose Manor: Friday, September 25, 2009
* No School – Jewish Holiday: Monday, September 28, 2009
* Ms. Barbara’s Uppers Field Trip to State House: Tuesday, September 29, 2009
1.) Today we played fun games with Ms. Brook. We played a movement game putting our bean bag on our head, shoulders and elbows. We also played a bean bag passing game.2.) During Language Arts we read a poem about Firefighters and went on a letter hunt for the letter “S” and a word hunt for the word “fire.” 3.) During Math we talked about the concept of “thick.” We then played a game finding the “thick” fire hose, fire hydrant and ladder.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today in math we sorted pasta while working on groupings of 2, 4, and 6.
2.) Fitness continued from yesterday working on eye hand coordination, catching and moving at the same time.
3.) In Social Studies, we discussed how police officers help our community and what their roles are.
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) We continued our community helpers theme talking today about police officers and firefighters. In speech, Ms. Sarabeth read us a story about community helpers and then we played a matching memory game. In the afternoon we read a story about police officers and completed a page in our Community Helpers Book.
2.) Today in science the students were introduced to the water cycle and made ‘Water Cycle Bags’ to see how water turns into water vapor.3.) In math we reviewed sorting and classifying object into categories such as size, shape, color and function.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Language Arts we read the book We Need Directions, which gave us a variety of ways to find locations using basic directional terms; left, right, north, south, east, west, turn, and straight. The students then made maps of their own about any place they wanted.
2.) In the afternoon, to continue our LA lesson, we piled in the Diener van to map out the route from the Diener School to the Potomac Post Office. The students had to direct Ms. Kate by telling her to “turn right”, or “go straight”. Upon returning to school, we started to draw out our map of the route. Throughout the week, as we learn more about maps, we will add to our Diener School to Potomac Post Office map by adding street names, landmarks, a key/legend, and the compass rose.
3.) During Math, we continued our lesson on geometric shapes. In small groups, we reviewed that triangles have 3 angles and 3 sides and squares have 4 angles and 4 sides. Today, we expanded on yesterday’s information by learning that squares have 4 equal sides! A shape that looks a lot like a square is called a rectangle, but we examined the two and learned that rectangles have 4 angles, and 4 sides, but the sides are NOT equal. To end the activity we all cut out different triangles, squares and rectangles and created collages of shapes!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) In math we continued to work with place value.2.) In language arts we learned about the idioms and discussed "straight from the horse's mouth".3.) In our study of Maryland we learned about landforms.
FROM THE OFFICE:
IMPORTANT DATES:
* Pizza Lunch this Friday – Please send your child in with their snack and drink for the day.
* Primary Field Trip to Fire Station: Friday, September 18, 2009
* Ms. Emily, Ms. Jenni, Ms. Lynn & Ms. Kate’s class Field Trip to Rose Manor: Friday, September 25, 2009
* No School – Jewish Holiday: Monday, September 28, 2009
* Ms. Barbara’s Uppers Field Trip to State House: Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Ms. Emily’s Primary:
During Fitness this morning we met Ms. Julie. We put together a puzzle while climbing through an obstacle course. It was so much fun!
We began talking about our visit to the Fire Station this coming Friday. We painted a big box red, that we will be turning into our own classroom fire truck.
Ms. Sara came in and red a story about Fire men and other community workers. Then we colored fun pictures of fire trucks, hoses, and fire hydrants.
Ms. Lynn’s Inters:
Today we had Ms. Kathy work with us on handwriting. She will be here every Monday.
We had our first art class with Ms. Gay. We learned about contrast using black and white paper. Please see Ms. Gay’s description attached.
We are learning about helpers in our community in social studies.
Ms. Jenni’s Inters:
In Language Arts today we split up between Ms. Jenni & Ms. Lynn's class for our reading groups. Everyone did a great job working on their new books for the week!
In math we worked on creating our own patterns when given an ABAB or a ABBA prompt.
We are talking about people in our community throughout the next two weeks. Today we focused on Teachers. We talk about the many ways a teacher helps us and read a story about what a teacher's day is like.
Ms. Kate’s Uppers:
During our Math Meeting we discussed, and located, four major items that can be found on a calendar: day, month, date and year. Weather words and their partner sensory words were reviewed. (i.e. The weather looks rainy, cloudy, sunny or snowy, therefore…it feels (temperature) cold or hot, warm or cool.) Students voted on the type weather we experienced today. Using our hundreds board, as a class, we added the numbers 1-30. After each student added a number to the hundreds board, we counted forwards from 1-30 and backwards from 30-1. We ended our math meeting by using a place value pocket chart to record the numbers of days we have been in school.
Language Arts began with a reading of Stone Soup. Students then began to produce their own version of a stone soup, identifying various vegetables, coloring, cutting, and gluing colorful paper equivalents to those ingredients found in the story. A student-led discussion followed, as classmates exchanged ideas about the true meaning of the story and the implications of a generous act.
A Post Office follow-up activity occurred during Spelling. It included a brainstorming session which elicited 16 Post Office terms. Students chose a word, wrote it, and drew a picture representing a definition of the word. Tomorrow the class will follow with actual written definitions – found on the computer – and a post board activity completion with visual/written definitions. A “book dictionary” activity will complete the process.
Mr. Barbara’s Uppers:
We did a binder check to ensure all our papers were filed in the correct subject areas. We will continue to do this every Monday during Organization time.
We learned about place value up to the millions. We practiced writing numbers in standard form and expanded form.
In social studies we used Google Maps to locate The Diener School. We found its location in Maryland, its location in Potomac, and its street location.
FROM THE OFFICE:
This Friday will be our first pizza lunch. We have ordered cheese and cheeseless pizzas from sienas pizza. Please have your student bring a snack and a drink.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Friday, September 11th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today, we painted the body tracing projects that we’ve been working on.
2.) During cooking, we made edible stop lights using red, yellow, and green apples.
3.) In dance, Mr. Aaron showed us some fancy floor spins and we played freeze dance.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today we talked about feelings. We read a very silly book called, Today I Feel Silly. We laughed a lot at the story.
2.) Ms. Jen, from Speech, spent the morning with us. She will spend every Friday in our classroom. We look forward to working with her!
3.) Mr. Aaron also danced the day away with us. It was a great start to the weekend!
ENJOY THE WEEKEND!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In Language Arts we read a book about emotions and practiced showing various emotions with our faces and with body language.
2.) During indoor recess, we worked cooperatively to complete several large floor puzzles. The most difficult puzzle was the Prehistoric one.
3.) We painted self portraits in the afternoon. We each had a mirror and painted a picture of ourselves.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Science class with Ms. Patrice we read the story The Wind Blew. It described all the things the wind can blow. We made comparisons between windy weather and calm weather, created wind socks, and hung them in front of a fan, in order to replicate windy weather. Streamers on the socks assisted us with a conversation of directionality, and wind’s role in the change of seasons and falling leaves was discussed.
2.) Language Arts-Social Studies – we studied our maps closely, determined geographical locations of grandparent homes, and placed tacks in appropriate places. We spoke of the variety of names we use for our individual grandmothers and grandfathers, sharing a lesson in our rich, cultural diversity. (i.e. Italian for grandma is “Nonna”, grandpa in German is “Opa”, grandparents in Spanish are abuela/o, and other derivations of grandparent, from granny to granddaddy were talked about.
3.) Post Office trip—each student addressed his/her (grandparent) envelopes and we headed to the Post Office! Once we arrived our students went to the counter and purchased stamps. We learned that a stamp for a letter costs 44 cents. We put our stamp in the right corner of our envelope and gave our letters to the postal worker to be mailed off!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) We filled out a K-W-L chart about Maryland. We listed what we knew about Maryland and then made a list of questions about Maryland that we would like to investigate.
2.) We completed a time telling puzzle that matched clocks with the time written in words.
3.) In science we reviewed our bubble experiment and studied the water cycle.4.) We had a fantastic time in music with Ms. Deanna singing a variety of fun songs.
1.) Today, we painted the body tracing projects that we’ve been working on.
2.) During cooking, we made edible stop lights using red, yellow, and green apples.
3.) In dance, Mr. Aaron showed us some fancy floor spins and we played freeze dance.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today we talked about feelings. We read a very silly book called, Today I Feel Silly. We laughed a lot at the story.
2.) Ms. Jen, from Speech, spent the morning with us. She will spend every Friday in our classroom. We look forward to working with her!
3.) Mr. Aaron also danced the day away with us. It was a great start to the weekend!
ENJOY THE WEEKEND!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In Language Arts we read a book about emotions and practiced showing various emotions with our faces and with body language.
2.) During indoor recess, we worked cooperatively to complete several large floor puzzles. The most difficult puzzle was the Prehistoric one.
3.) We painted self portraits in the afternoon. We each had a mirror and painted a picture of ourselves.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Science class with Ms. Patrice we read the story The Wind Blew. It described all the things the wind can blow. We made comparisons between windy weather and calm weather, created wind socks, and hung them in front of a fan, in order to replicate windy weather. Streamers on the socks assisted us with a conversation of directionality, and wind’s role in the change of seasons and falling leaves was discussed.
2.) Language Arts-Social Studies – we studied our maps closely, determined geographical locations of grandparent homes, and placed tacks in appropriate places. We spoke of the variety of names we use for our individual grandmothers and grandfathers, sharing a lesson in our rich, cultural diversity. (i.e. Italian for grandma is “Nonna”, grandpa in German is “Opa”, grandparents in Spanish are abuela/o, and other derivations of grandparent, from granny to granddaddy were talked about.
3.) Post Office trip—each student addressed his/her (grandparent) envelopes and we headed to the Post Office! Once we arrived our students went to the counter and purchased stamps. We learned that a stamp for a letter costs 44 cents. We put our stamp in the right corner of our envelope and gave our letters to the postal worker to be mailed off!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) We filled out a K-W-L chart about Maryland. We listed what we knew about Maryland and then made a list of questions about Maryland that we would like to investigate.
2.) We completed a time telling puzzle that matched clocks with the time written in words.
3.) In science we reviewed our bubble experiment and studied the water cycle.4.) We had a fantastic time in music with Ms. Deanna singing a variety of fun songs.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Thursday, September 10th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) Today we met Mr. Jim during Drama. He had a magic suitcase and pulled out lots of toys for us.
2.) During gym with Mr. Aaron we ran through an obstacle course and knocked down bowling pins with balls.
3.) We traced our bodies for our "All About Me" projects. We will be decorating them soon. :)
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today we read the story, “Jack’s Talent,” by Maryann Cocca Leffler.
2.) We talked about our special talents as well as some of our favorite things.
3.) We had fitness with Mr. Aaron & Drama with Mr. Jim. Mr. Aaron made a special tunnel for us today. It was fun!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In Language Arts we read a story called Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and talked about the items in the story that were Lilly's favorite. We then discussed some of our favorite things (many of which were shared in the Personality Bags) and completed an activity in which we colored, cut, glued and wrote our favorite fruit/vegetable, sport, color and type of weather.
2.) In math we practiced ABAB, ABBA, and ABC patterns and identified patterns going from left to right and up to down.
3.) In fitness we played a bowling game with Mr. Aaron and worked our upper and lower body muscles on the scooters.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Language Arts students wrote letters to their grandparents. Letter content included information each student gathered during an interview process with a class friend, using the K-W-L graphic organizer. Tomorrow we will learn how to address the envelopes and mail them. 2.) As an OT activity with Ms. Kathy we made birthday cards for Mr. Jim, our returning drama teacher. Mr. Jim received the wonderful cards during our first drama class, in the afternoon. Students used several different mediums, with a variety of colors, textures and shapes, to complete the project. This exercise continues to build upon the concept of contrast taught by Ms. Feinberg, during art class, on Tuesday.
3.) During drama class Mr. Jim had us play a game where we had to introduce ourselves! He also introduced our new classmate to some last year classic drama games, such as Fruit Salad, Statues and the Magic Suitcase!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) In drama we played drama games such as Taxi Driver and Magic Ball.
2.) We finished reading "Monster Manor Frankie Rocks the House," by Paul Martin.
3.) We learned a song to easily remember the 7's table. We sing it to the tune of "Happy Birthday".
1.) Today we met Mr. Jim during Drama. He had a magic suitcase and pulled out lots of toys for us.
2.) During gym with Mr. Aaron we ran through an obstacle course and knocked down bowling pins with balls.
3.) We traced our bodies for our "All About Me" projects. We will be decorating them soon. :)
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) Today we read the story, “Jack’s Talent,” by Maryann Cocca Leffler.
2.) We talked about our special talents as well as some of our favorite things.
3.) We had fitness with Mr. Aaron & Drama with Mr. Jim. Mr. Aaron made a special tunnel for us today. It was fun!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) In Language Arts we read a story called Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and talked about the items in the story that were Lilly's favorite. We then discussed some of our favorite things (many of which were shared in the Personality Bags) and completed an activity in which we colored, cut, glued and wrote our favorite fruit/vegetable, sport, color and type of weather.
2.) In math we practiced ABAB, ABBA, and ABC patterns and identified patterns going from left to right and up to down.
3.) In fitness we played a bowling game with Mr. Aaron and worked our upper and lower body muscles on the scooters.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) During Language Arts students wrote letters to their grandparents. Letter content included information each student gathered during an interview process with a class friend, using the K-W-L graphic organizer. Tomorrow we will learn how to address the envelopes and mail them. 2.) As an OT activity with Ms. Kathy we made birthday cards for Mr. Jim, our returning drama teacher. Mr. Jim received the wonderful cards during our first drama class, in the afternoon. Students used several different mediums, with a variety of colors, textures and shapes, to complete the project. This exercise continues to build upon the concept of contrast taught by Ms. Feinberg, during art class, on Tuesday.
3.) During drama class Mr. Jim had us play a game where we had to introduce ourselves! He also introduced our new classmate to some last year classic drama games, such as Fruit Salad, Statues and the Magic Suitcase!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) In drama we played drama games such as Taxi Driver and Magic Ball.
2.) We finished reading "Monster Manor Frankie Rocks the House," by Paul Martin.
3.) We learned a song to easily remember the 7's table. We sing it to the tune of "Happy Birthday".
Friday, September 4, 2009
Friday, September 4th, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) During Dance today with Mr. Aaron, we found a partner and made a bridge together while our friends climbed under.
2.) We had a special tour of the playground and explored all the different toys outside (houses, bicycles, race cars, jungle gym, fire truck, music center, and sandbox). Later we talked about which one we like the best.
3.) During cooking, we make pancake faces. We warmed up pancakes, and then added blueberry eyes, a raspberry nose, and chocolate chip lips. YUM!
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We had our first dance class with Mr. Aaron. We did our name dance and it was a lot of fun! 2.) In math we built towers with Unifex cubes following special patterns.
3.) We earned 3 Diener Gold coins for our 1st week and had a party with Ms. Jenni’s class!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today we read the book, “Jack’s Talent” and then made our own classroom talent book.
2.) We talked about our last classroom rule: Be Your Best. The students drew pictures of ways they could be their best such as trying your hardest and being ready to learn.
3.) We had a popcorn party for doing such a great job following the classroom rules this week!
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
Three cheers to Ms. Kate’s Uppers, who came into class greeting others, put daily folders and homework in proper places, and immediately began their work!
1.) During Language Arts our students made a “classroom chain of talents.” Students brainstormed, and then listed personal talents, wrote them on individual chains, connected them to form a chain, and each reach out his/her own to foster positive sense of self, class strengths, and a sense of unity.
2.) Students continued to put their creativity to use and practiced social skills during a small group, team-based activity. They continued to work on their alien planets/creatures. Impressively, they remembered their alien-language greetings/gestures, employing the salutations as they learned more about each other.
3.)During Math small group activity the class worked with time lines using their birth month and birth year, utilizing the concepts of older/younger, ordinal numbers.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) The students each wrote a letter to their parents for back to school night.
2.) They practiced multiplication facts by playing Prehistoric Times.
3.) This afternoon they will finish a two day bubble experiment with their science teacher, Ms. Patrice.
1.) During Dance today with Mr. Aaron, we found a partner and made a bridge together while our friends climbed under.
2.) We had a special tour of the playground and explored all the different toys outside (houses, bicycles, race cars, jungle gym, fire truck, music center, and sandbox). Later we talked about which one we like the best.
3.) During cooking, we make pancake faces. We warmed up pancakes, and then added blueberry eyes, a raspberry nose, and chocolate chip lips. YUM!
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We had our first dance class with Mr. Aaron. We did our name dance and it was a lot of fun! 2.) In math we built towers with Unifex cubes following special patterns.
3.) We earned 3 Diener Gold coins for our 1st week and had a party with Ms. Jenni’s class!
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today we read the book, “Jack’s Talent” and then made our own classroom talent book.
2.) We talked about our last classroom rule: Be Your Best. The students drew pictures of ways they could be their best such as trying your hardest and being ready to learn.
3.) We had a popcorn party for doing such a great job following the classroom rules this week!
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
Three cheers to Ms. Kate’s Uppers, who came into class greeting others, put daily folders and homework in proper places, and immediately began their work!
1.) During Language Arts our students made a “classroom chain of talents.” Students brainstormed, and then listed personal talents, wrote them on individual chains, connected them to form a chain, and each reach out his/her own to foster positive sense of self, class strengths, and a sense of unity.
2.) Students continued to put their creativity to use and practiced social skills during a small group, team-based activity. They continued to work on their alien planets/creatures. Impressively, they remembered their alien-language greetings/gestures, employing the salutations as they learned more about each other.
3.)During Math small group activity the class worked with time lines using their birth month and birth year, utilizing the concepts of older/younger, ordinal numbers.
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) The students each wrote a letter to their parents for back to school night.
2.) They practiced multiplication facts by playing Prehistoric Times.
3.) This afternoon they will finish a two day bubble experiment with their science teacher, Ms. Patrice.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) In morning meeting we sang hello to each other while taking turns jumping and singing. We also started learning about our calendar and learned about what month it is.
2.) We took a walk to explore a new playground. It was such a beautiful day outside! :)
3.) During math time we read “We're Going on A Bear Hunt” and talked about over, under and through. We all took turns going through a tunnel.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We went on a scavenger hunt to the park with Ms. Jenni’s class.
2.) We talked about how we can be kind to another.
3.) We made a picture of our house and wrote our addresses.
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today we went on a nature walk and completed a scavenger hunt. We searched for bugs, birds and squirrels. We also found sticks and determined if they were short or long, identified colors of flowers and drew the shapes of different rocks we discovered along the way.
2.) We talked about our second classroom rule: Be Kind. Together we brainstormed the ways we can be kind to our teachers and classmates. The children came up with use kind words, share with your friends, keep hands to yourself, and wait your turn.
3.) We created our house by cutting out various shapes and then gluing them on to a piece of paper. Then each child colored the house to look like the one they live in. We then practiced tracing our address and reading it out-loud.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Today during language arts we read a book entitled “I’m Special, I’m Me” with an emphasis on content words/comprehension. This lead our students into a whole-group discussion regarding the types of unique, positive attributes we each possess as human beings. An individual writing task followed as students completed a detailed questionnaire about themselves, and then sealed their responses in a year-long time capsule.
2.) Math class included a two-group rotation, with group 1 exploring directionality, (left-right), using assistive color-coded clues, followed by practice. Group 2…..worked on even and odd numbers and identifying the patterns to help figure out an even or odd number.
3.) During Sensory class, we used our sense of touch today! We participated in an activity called, “What’s in the Bag?” Ten paper bags were set up with one classroom item in each. Everyone walked around and had to reach in the bag, feel it, and guess the object. If they were not sure, each student was wonderful at putting descriptive words of what they felt (i.e. round, hard, sharp, etc). At the end we read off our guesses and then pulled each object out of the bag to see if we got it right!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) The students wrote their goals for the year which will be opened and read again on the last day of school.
2.) They used logic and problem solving skills to identify and correct a problem on the map of the school.
3.) Students used a large beach-ball type globe to identify continents and countries and then make observations about the differences between them.
1.) In morning meeting we sang hello to each other while taking turns jumping and singing. We also started learning about our calendar and learned about what month it is.
2.) We took a walk to explore a new playground. It was such a beautiful day outside! :)
3.) During math time we read “We're Going on A Bear Hunt” and talked about over, under and through. We all took turns going through a tunnel.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We went on a scavenger hunt to the park with Ms. Jenni’s class.
2.) We talked about how we can be kind to another.
3.) We made a picture of our house and wrote our addresses.
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today we went on a nature walk and completed a scavenger hunt. We searched for bugs, birds and squirrels. We also found sticks and determined if they were short or long, identified colors of flowers and drew the shapes of different rocks we discovered along the way.
2.) We talked about our second classroom rule: Be Kind. Together we brainstormed the ways we can be kind to our teachers and classmates. The children came up with use kind words, share with your friends, keep hands to yourself, and wait your turn.
3.) We created our house by cutting out various shapes and then gluing them on to a piece of paper. Then each child colored the house to look like the one they live in. We then practiced tracing our address and reading it out-loud.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
1.) Today during language arts we read a book entitled “I’m Special, I’m Me” with an emphasis on content words/comprehension. This lead our students into a whole-group discussion regarding the types of unique, positive attributes we each possess as human beings. An individual writing task followed as students completed a detailed questionnaire about themselves, and then sealed their responses in a year-long time capsule.
2.) Math class included a two-group rotation, with group 1 exploring directionality, (left-right), using assistive color-coded clues, followed by practice. Group 2…..worked on even and odd numbers and identifying the patterns to help figure out an even or odd number.
3.) During Sensory class, we used our sense of touch today! We participated in an activity called, “What’s in the Bag?” Ten paper bags were set up with one classroom item in each. Everyone walked around and had to reach in the bag, feel it, and guess the object. If they were not sure, each student was wonderful at putting descriptive words of what they felt (i.e. round, hard, sharp, etc). At the end we read off our guesses and then pulled each object out of the bag to see if we got it right!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1.) The students wrote their goals for the year which will be opened and read again on the last day of school.
2.) They used logic and problem solving skills to identify and correct a problem on the map of the school.
3.) Students used a large beach-ball type globe to identify continents and countries and then make observations about the differences between them.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009 - The First Day of School!
Primary (Ms. Emily):
1.) We met Mr. Aaron today, and climbed through an obstacle course during fitness.2.) We greeted each other during Morning Meeting with a jumping song.3.) We worked together to create our list of classroom rules. 4.) During art, we finished our “What I Like” posters.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We officially named our class The Diener Owls!
2.) We did an obstacle course of jumping and hoping to music with Mr. Aaron in fitness.3.) We’re working on The “My First Day of School” packet.
4.) We discussed the first of our classroom rules: “Be Safe!”
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today during Math we reviewed the parts of the calendar and practiced saying the date using the month, day, ordinal number, and the year.
2.) We discussed our classroom rules: Be Safe, Be Kind, and Be Your Best. We created a group web to identify 4 different ways we can be safe in the classroom. Together we came up with walk in the classroom and hallways, sit in your chair, keep your hands to yourself and stay with your teachers. The children then created pictures for each safety rule!
3.) During Language Arts we read a story called Summer's End and then shared with the group our favorite summer activity. The students then drew a picture and a sentence about their favorite summer activity.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
Ms. Kate’s class had a wonderful day, starting the year with enthusiasm!
1.) In language arts we voted on a book to read, (The Boy on the Beach), did a book walk, learned to make predictions, anticipated endings, and discussed the book, with comprehension and “use of prior knowledge” as the emphasis.
2.) The summer- themed book segued into an activity called “me too” which used Popsicle sticks as “memory prompts”. Each student shared specific summer events they enjoyed, and introduction of a Venn diagram helped us sort out activities we had in common from those that were unique.
3.) Fitness class with Mr. Aaron was filled with excitement and plenty of movement, as the students demonstrated their large/small motor skills. First, we went over the Fitness room rules, played a freeze game and practiced our balance by running obstacles hopping on two feet or one foot!
4.) Alien Greeting: During our auditory listening class, we traveled to another planet! We discussed how on Earth, when you greet someone, you shake their hand and say, “Hello!” It involves a movement (shaking hands) and a sound (talking voice). On our faraway planet, we had to introduce each other, especially to Ms. Patrice—our new Science teacher! We each went around the circle and introduced ourselves with our own alien greetings!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1. ) Today we worked with Mr. Aaron and had a fantastic time using the parachute in fitness!
2.) We worked as detectives to find information about all our new classmates.”
3.) To learn more about The Diener School, we interviewed staff, and labeled a map of the building.
1.) We met Mr. Aaron today, and climbed through an obstacle course during fitness.2.) We greeted each other during Morning Meeting with a jumping song.3.) We worked together to create our list of classroom rules. 4.) During art, we finished our “What I Like” posters.
Inters (Ms. Lynn):
1.) We officially named our class The Diener Owls!
2.) We did an obstacle course of jumping and hoping to music with Mr. Aaron in fitness.3.) We’re working on The “My First Day of School” packet.
4.) We discussed the first of our classroom rules: “Be Safe!”
Inters (Ms. Jenni):
1.) Today during Math we reviewed the parts of the calendar and practiced saying the date using the month, day, ordinal number, and the year.
2.) We discussed our classroom rules: Be Safe, Be Kind, and Be Your Best. We created a group web to identify 4 different ways we can be safe in the classroom. Together we came up with walk in the classroom and hallways, sit in your chair, keep your hands to yourself and stay with your teachers. The children then created pictures for each safety rule!
3.) During Language Arts we read a story called Summer's End and then shared with the group our favorite summer activity. The students then drew a picture and a sentence about their favorite summer activity.
Uppers (Ms. Kate):
Ms. Kate’s class had a wonderful day, starting the year with enthusiasm!
1.) In language arts we voted on a book to read, (The Boy on the Beach), did a book walk, learned to make predictions, anticipated endings, and discussed the book, with comprehension and “use of prior knowledge” as the emphasis.
2.) The summer- themed book segued into an activity called “me too” which used Popsicle sticks as “memory prompts”. Each student shared specific summer events they enjoyed, and introduction of a Venn diagram helped us sort out activities we had in common from those that were unique.
3.) Fitness class with Mr. Aaron was filled with excitement and plenty of movement, as the students demonstrated their large/small motor skills. First, we went over the Fitness room rules, played a freeze game and practiced our balance by running obstacles hopping on two feet or one foot!
4.) Alien Greeting: During our auditory listening class, we traveled to another planet! We discussed how on Earth, when you greet someone, you shake their hand and say, “Hello!” It involves a movement (shaking hands) and a sound (talking voice). On our faraway planet, we had to introduce each other, especially to Ms. Patrice—our new Science teacher! We each went around the circle and introduced ourselves with our own alien greetings!
Uppers (Ms. Barbara):
1. ) Today we worked with Mr. Aaron and had a fantastic time using the parachute in fitness!
2.) We worked as detectives to find information about all our new classmates.”
3.) To learn more about The Diener School, we interviewed staff, and labeled a map of the building.
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