Welcome to 2015/16 School Year!

I am very much looking forward to getting to know you and your children this school year!  We have an exciting year planned at Bear Creek!  Here are a few highlights coming soon:

No Excuses University

This year Bear Creek is piloting a national program called No Excuses University (NEU).  NEU is a program where schools develop the mindset in all students to have a PLAN for their success in life.  We know this is already happening at home and even at school, but NEU is structured in a way that this message is loud, clear and consistent in all corners of our campus. Every classroom has adopted a different college campus from across our country to connect with.  Our classroom has University of Colorado at Boulder (Go Buffs!) We will be connecting with an Outreach Program at CU and learning all about their exciting campus!  

GCISD Book Challenge (25 or 100 books)

Last year GCISD had a 25 Book Reading Challenge for Grades 3 and above.  This year they are adding grades K-2 to the Book Challenge.  Early readers are challenged to read 100 picture books this year, and books they read with me can be included!  If your child is already reading chapter books, the 25 Book Challenge would be a better fit for them!  You can ask the librarian, Kara Johnson, if you have any questions.  More information will be coming home soon!

International Dot Day - September 15th

This special day is all about encouragement, acceptance and bringing out the creativity in each of us!  It is centered around the book The Dot by Peter Reynolds and has become a fantastic way to start the school year and connect with others globally!  

Global Read Aloud

This is one of First Grade's favorite time of year when we get to be a part of the 6 week global event known as the Global Read Aloud.  It won't begin until early October, but we will keep you posted in the 1st Grade Newsletter!  

Well, that was just a few highlights of things that will be happening this fall! I will TRY and post tidbits here on this blog about my classroom!  When things get busy, I don't do so well with the blog, but I promise to try my best!  

Looking forward to a fantastic 2015-16 School Year!  GO BUFFS!

Moving thru March!

March 4th was "World Read Aloud Day"' a global day set aside to celebrate all things having to do with reading.  It is always in conjunction with the birthday of Dr. Seuss and it is a great Twitter and Skype event as well.  We celebrated by reading Dr. Seuss books and had an author visit us at our BCE library (Polly Holyoke).  First Graders also Skyped with author Erin Downing Soderberg.  The authors talked about how they do research to write nonfiction books and learned how daydreaming and downtime can be inspirations for fictional stories! Since we are working to improve not only our reading, but writing skills at this time of the year, hearing from real authors was great for the students to learn how both reading and writing are so interconnected!!

We also spent time (in between snow days!) learning how to research an animal from Texas -- the American Alligator. Students have many parts of our research to share with you at the rescheduled Parent Night/Open House on Thursday, March 26th. 

We also had fun doing a Reader's Theater on the Friday before Spring Break.  Here it is in a short iMovie! Have a fun Spring Break!

January & February 2015

January arrived and we were grateful for the wonderful winter break.  We also hoped and wished for a little snow as we studied the season of winter, changes in matter and other science topics.  (We are still hoping!)  But we did get to see snow via a video from our Skype friends in New Jersey.  We regularly Skype with Ms. Levine's 1st Graders and share and compare our learning.  We made a Texas winter video for them also, which I have included below for you to enjoy!

Also in January, we loved visiting and being a part of "Around the World at Bear Creek".  First Grade created a presentation about America for this yearly event!

...warms the heart on these (not so cold) winter days, doesn't it?  I love how the students are growing in their citizenship and understanding of our great country!

February arrived, we worked very hard on all areas, especially Math and Reading.   It got harder to concentrate as Valentine's Day loomed in the near future!   When it finally arrived, we  LOVED  our fantastic Valentine's Day party, all wonderfully planned by our Homeroom Mom, Stacey Yearian!  Thank you to her and all the parents who contributed to the fun day for our kiddos!

It has been a busy winter so far!  We are still hoping for a little show of snow!  Please mark your calendars for Thursday, March 5th.  This is Parent Night/Open House at Bear Creek!  Come by and visit our classroom and all the other places your child learns here at school!  Your child will love to give you a tour of their day!  Happy Winter!