Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Cub Scouts and Tiger Cubs

Please see the below information that is from the Harlan Cub Scout Pack Leaders:


For all incoming first grade boys at Harlan -

Come join the Cub Scouts as a Tiger Cub!

Important Dates to watch for:

August 24th - Camp Paddington

  • Camp Paddington welcomes all prospective and current Cub Scouts for a day filled with fun activities for boys.  An email will be sent in advance as soon as the date has been finalized.
September - Cub Scout Roundup
  • Our major recruiting night will be held at Harlan shortly after school has started.  It will be a great opportunity for you to meet the Cub Scout leadership of Pack 1034, hear about the activities that your son can participate in, and there will also be activities for the whole family!
We're looking forward to meeting you and making the 2013/2014 Scouting Year the best yet!



Please let me know if you are interested, and I can forward your information to the Pack Leaders.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Scholastic Reading Competition

Your child brought home an envelope today with information regarding a summer reading competition.  This is sponsored by Scholastic.  Each child has their own user names and passwords.  I wish I could take credit for the very creative user names and passwords, but they came from Scholastic.

Anyone who logs 600 minutes this summer will be invited to a pizza party when we resume school in the fall!  If you have any questions, please let me know.

Good luck, readers!

Last Day of School

This is a gentle reminder that tomorrow, June 14, is our last day of kindergarten.  We will be completing one last project, as well as attending the end-of-the-year assembly presented by Ms. Thompson.  I can't wait to see everyone for our last day!

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Student Medication

If your child has medications in the office, please remember that they must be picked up from the office by a parent.  If you have any questions, please let me know.

Summer Learning Opportunties

Below are links to a few wonderful online learning opportunity for your incoming first grader to use as practice over the summer.  Please take advantage of these programs as it helps to keep your children using the skills they have learned over the year, as well as keep them prepared for the transition into first grade.

Raz-Kids

Everyone in our classroom has an account with this reading website.  Please follow the link (which is also on the left side of our classroom blog) and select your child's name.  Their password is their first initial and last name.  Example: skefgen

Here you will find books for your child to read at their own level, as well as comprehension questions that follow each book.  If your child has read all of the books at their level and you feel that they are able to red and understand the books, please contact me for additional books to be released on their account.  have fun reading this summer!

http://www.raz-kids.com/main/Login


Citizen Science Project 2013

This summer, we invite you to join us on an exciting learning adventure!  We will be using Loree Griffin Burns’ book, Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard, as the summer read for the Harlan community. There will be 20 copies of Citizen Scientists available to borrow at Harlan’s front entrance throughout the summer.  You may also order your own copy of Harlan’s summer read, Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery From Your Own Backyard.   We would like all Harlan families to enjoy reading Citizen Scientists together, choose a topic to explore further (perhaps by joining a citizen science organization), and share their learning at our Citizen Science Expo in the fall.   

For more information, please visit http://blogs.birmingham.k12.mi.us/harlancitizenscience

Be sure to have your child show you his/her Citizen Science Notebook and bookmark which have been created to guide your family’s citizen science exploration this summer.  These were sent home a few weeks ago.  Questions can be sent to harlancitizenscience@gmail.com or answered in person during our summer “check-in” days in our outdoor classroom from 2-3pm on June 25th,  July 17th, and August 15th.  


Compass Learning

This is an amazing site that is differentiated to your child's needs based on their assessment results on the NWEA math and reading assessments that we took earlier this month.  I really encourage you and your child to explore this site as much as possible to avoid summer slide.  Please use the following link to visit the site (which is also listed on the left side of our classroom blog):

https://www.thelearningodyssey.com/

The children's passwords are their birthdays.  For example, May 27, 1981 would be typed as 5271981.  Your child's user names are as follows;

Semaya    sdb2
Julian     jab14
Dominique     dec2
Elizabeth      ege1
Kyle    krg3
Grace    gaj2
Brendan     boj1
Alexander      adj3
Elena     esj2
Mary    mek3
Hailey      hhl1
Ryan        rlp2  
Rachel      rer5
Molly      mls7
Mia      mmt4
Andrei       adv2

Sean, Helen and Alejandro are all signed up, but I am waiting on confirmation on user names.


Writing

I plan on writing letters to the kids to this summer.  I would love to receive stories or letters telling me what they have been up to this summer!  Please remember that the more they write, the more comfortable they become with their writing skills.

Good luck this summer! 

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Yearbooks

Our 2012-2013 yearbooks have arrived and are on sale in the office for $22.00 each.  If you would like to purchase a yearbook, please visit the office while supplies last.

Gentle Reminders

Please remember that the Kindergarten Picnic will begin at 11:30am tomorrow, Friday, June 7.  Please also remember to bring a blanket for your family to sit on during our picnic lunch.  In addition, please remember to bring lunch for your family to eat.

I look forward to seeing you all there!

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Picnic Times

This Friday, our class will be sharing a few projects we have been working on with our families from 11:30 - 11:50.  At that time, we will be going outside to sing a few songs for our families with Mrs. Singer's and Mrs. Mill's classes.  Following this, we will enjoy a picnic lunch with our families.  Please remember to bring food for your child and family to enjoy at the picnic.  You may also bring blankets to sit on grass.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Also, thank you to those families who ave already let me know that there will be someone from your family attending.  If you have not already done so, please respond to the email confirming your attendance.  Thank you in advance.

Backpack Donations for Homeless Students

A group of junior students from Groves High School are collecting used and new backpacks to distribute to homeless students in Oakland County.  If you are able to donate to this project, please leave your backpack donations in the large box located just outside the main office.  Thank you in advance for your consideration.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Kindergarten Picnic

This is a gentle reminder that this Friday, June 7, is our Kindergarten Picnic.  All friends and families are invited for our end-of-the-year celebration!  A flyer detailing what this entails was sent home earlier, but I wanted to remind families of this upcoming event.

As there are special activities planned with our families (going through class books that we have made, a musical performance by the kindergarteners, lunch with our families), I am asking that any  families that will not have a family member present for the picnic let me know ASAP so that I can create alternative activities for your child.  If possible, please respond to this email so that I know someone from your family will be attending.

Also, please remember to bring lunch for your family and your child to eat together on the playground for our class picnic.  You do not need to provide food for other families.

If you have any questions, please let me know.  Thank you in advance and I hope to see everyone this Friday!

Beach Day

This Thursday, June 6, our class will be having a Beach Day!  On this day, your child can bring towels and sunglasses to school as part oo\f the planned activities!  Please do not send your child to school with a bathing suit.

If you have any questions, please let me know.  Thank you!