Back to School

          I am so excited to be back in school! Summer went by so fast and even this school year is off to a quick start. I hope that your families were able to rest, relax, and have lots of fun this past summer. Here is what I did while on break:

• I fostered a German Shepherd/Husky puppy for 3 months (Her name is Willow & she moved to her forever home in Aug.)
• Adopted a Great Dane/Mastiff puppy in July (Her name is Eleanor & she is 3 months old now)
• Spent a weekend in Wilmington, NC with friends and family (caught a shark!)
• Attended some college friends' wedding in South Carolina
• Ate way too much ice cream

     Most of my kiddos from last year's class have transitioned to our older EC class at Courtney, so this may be your first time reading this blog. I like to keep families updated on what our class is doing, let you know if there are any exciting events that are happening, and occasionally share photos of the students (with permission).




    Right now in the first few weeks of school, we like to assess our students and gather data so that we can show their academic growth throughout the year. These first few weeks of school are spent getting to know the students and what their likes/dislikes are. Most of the kiddos in this class have come to Courtney from a different school and this has been a big transition for them all.




  I am very optimistic about this school year and I look forward to all of our adventures together.
Stay tuned for more blog posts soon!




Sincerely,
     Mrs. K


 


  

A Zootastic Field Trip

       After spending the first few weeks of May learning about animals and what their babies are called, Mrs. K's class and Mrs. Mathis' class got to see in person the animals they had been learning about.

 

 

   Zootastic Park is located in Troutman, NC and is a privately owned, interactive, educational zoo. They offered our classes an educational show that included several animals, a wagon ride where we could feed some animals, a lovely picnic area to eat our lunch, and the opportunity to see the various animal exhibits at our leisure.

    

Here is our group before the show began!

 



During the show we were able to learn about several animals. Our classes got to see and pet a baby kangaroo (a joey!). We got to see a corn snake, 2 baby lemurs (pups!), a ferret, a baby tiger (cub!) drinking out of a bottle, a cockatoo, a baby alligator (a hatchling!), a baby kinkajou, and I'm probably missing something, but I think that was it.


After the show we all got on a covered wagon and each child was handed a cup of animal feed. Our tour guide gave us lots of information about each animal as we saw them during the wagon ride.

 

Once we parked the wagon, we took a break for lunch at some picnic tables. After we all finished eating, we took some time to walk around the facilities and got to see lots of really cool animals.

 

A gibbon!

A kangaroo

One of our students feeding some goats.

 

 

Our trip to Zootastic was nothing short of fantastic.

We had so much fun and would love to go back in the future. 

 

Hippity Hoppity, Easter's on it's way!

     Spring has sprung! The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, our cars are covered in pollen, and Easter is almost here. In preparation for the upcoming holiday and to celebrate some well deserved days off of school, our class spent this morning dyeing Easter Eggs and taking pictures with bunny ears on.


   Instead of boiling eggs and dipping them in cups of dye, I found a different, but easier way at Wal-Mart! I found this carton of a dozen, white, cardboard eggs that came with 4 colors of dye and 4 bags for only $1.98. Less messy, eggs that don't break, and quick to dry! It was perfect.

The directions tell you how to mix colors to make turquoise, orange, purple, and red.

     Each student placed an egg (after I wrote their initials on the egg) into a bag. They chose the color they wanted and I put a few drops of the dye into the bag. Then they rolled the egg around inside the bag so that the color spread evenly on the surface. The eggs dried in the same carton they came in (drying only took 5-10 mins.), then they got to add stickers to their eggs.




    After we all finished dyeing and decorating our eggs, each student got a turn wearing the bunny ears and smiling for an adorable Easter picture!

One of our bunnies was resting and another one of our bunnies is home sick today, but it's safe to say that all of the bunnies in Mrs. K's Class are excited for Spring!!

Candy and Cards Galore!

Before the big day on February 14, we did some fun Valentine's Day activities. Here are some pictures of Alex and Rebecca participating in the Conversation Hearts Chart activity. 

  

We also spent time decorating Valentine's Day Boxes so that when the day did finally arrive, the students had a way to keep all of their valentines in one place. 

JJ opening his Valentine's Day box and seeing what kind of goodies he received.

Justin tearing into his V-day box! 

RJ checking out the goods on <3 day. 

Rebecca reading a valentine from a classmate. 

Valentine's Day was a super fun day in our class. Mrs. Mathis' class came over to our room around 1:30 for a party and we had tons of delicious treats to eat. (I forgot to snap some pictures from the party) I did want to give a huge thank you to all of the parents who sent in snacks for our party. Your donations are appreciated so much. 

Now, if I can just get over this sinus infection/ear infection/respiratory infection that has had me home bound for 2 days now!! We have Special Olympics: Basketball tomorrow and I don't want to miss that. 

Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day is just around the corner! Our class has been prepping by making Valentine's boxes this past week. After choosing a red, white, or pink box- students were able to decorate their box with markers and stickers. Now each student has their own box to collect the Valentine's Day cards that they receive from their friends.

I want to post all of the student's names so that when the time comes for you and your kiddo to make Valentines, you are both prepared.

I'll include the students in Mrs. Mathis' class as well, because the students in our class spend a lot of time together. I'll also include the staff member's names because we love getting Valentines too!

Mrs. Mathis

Mrs. Wagoner

Mrs. Richardson

Grayson

Dontae

Nathan

Dustin

James

Mrs. K

Mrs. Hoots

Mrs. Mounce

Justin

JJ

RJ

Alex

Alan

Rebecca

We are going to have a Valentine's Day party on 2/14 along with Mrs. Mathis' class. I will be sending home something next week so that you can volunteer to donate snacks/drinks for our party. 

Stay tuned for pictures after our Valentine's Day celebration! 

65 Degrees in January

 

After lunch on Wednesday our class spent some time outside enjoying the beautiful weather! North Carolina's weather is so unpredictable, we figured we should enjoy the warmth while it lasts.

 

The kiddos loved drawing with sidewalk chalk and playing with bouncy balls during our time outside.

 

We spent about 30 minutes outside and everyone was thirsty when we got back to the classroom. It was nice to get some fresh air and get some exercise outside.

 

Here are some photos from our time outside:

 

R.J. lounging after drawing with sidewalk chalk.

Rebecca and Mrs. K take a selfie after spinning around in circles until they got dizzy.

Alan bouncing a ball and enjoying some sunshine.

 

We hope the warm weather is around to stay, but something tells me we haven't seen the last of the snow.

New Items in Our Classroom

Mrs. K was so excited that Santa brought her some new things for the classroom this past Christmas. 

The kids have loved playing back with some new puzzles, using the tactile flash cards, and drawing on our new whiteboard easel. 

We use this new calendar each morning at group. 

The light filters make such a difference in the atmosphere of our classroom. 

The kids love the new look and less intense light.

If you or someone you know is looking to make a contribution to our class, please feel free to use this link to our classes' Amazon wish list: Mrs. K's Class Wish List

Some items we always need/use include:

-Printer Paper

-Velcro

-Hand Soap

-Snacks (individually wrapped)

-Extra clothes

 (boys sizes 6-14)