2014_08_29 Friday

From Elise's former teacher, who subbed today: I was so lucky to have 4 great helpers from Ms. H's class today.  Elise helped X work on writing her name.  X  showed X how to make the bottom of your block structure big so you can build higher.  X loved singing "Bought Me A Cat" in music with kids who knew ALL the words and ALL the motions!  X did a fantastic job naming the colors in German.  During center time X and X stayed in one center the whole time so they could finish the (30pc)  kitty puzzle.  On top of all that we got to celebrate X's birthday!  She brought beautiful flower cookies for everyone.  Have a great long weekend!

2014_08_28 Wednesday

From Elise's class: Hello, Today we talked about careers and community helpers. We discussed what officers, teachers, dentists, doctors, farmers, mail carriers, bus drivers, veterinarians do. They shared stories about going to the zoo when we were talking about farm animals. We made police hats and badges for art. We worked on finding the letter Aa. I read Max's Checkup and At The Firehouse. They had Italian today.  

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Elise- I would like to be a teacher when I grow up because I want to be a teacher who teaches people. 

From Elise's Reading Club: Hello, On Monday, we worked on the sight words me, can. We wrote and illustrated the sentence I can______. On Tuesday, we worked on the words is, like. We also read a sheet with short sentences focusing on the word like. Have your child read this at home for you! On Wednesday, we worked on the color word black. We went over flash cards and letter sounds. We added the word black to our 2 coloring sheets. On Thursday, we worked on the word the. We listened to the vowel song that is the tune of If You're Happy and you know it. We went over flash cards. We rolled some dice and wrote the number that it landed
on for some math number writing practice.

2014_08_27 Wednesday

From Elise's school: Hello, Today we talked about being responsible for our own belongings such as backpacks. We made school supplies out of different shapes for art. They had French today. For Science, we learned about magnets. We all got to experiment with magnets and test out objects that repel or attract to the magnet. We discussed north and south pole. We talked about compasses. Each student walked around the classroom and found something that did not stick to their magnetic stick and one thing that did. They did a great job finding small things that were magnetic such as my clipboard or a table leg. 

What is one thing your magnetic stick attracted to in our classroom?

Elise- I sticked my magnet to your paper holder (my clipboard (: ) 

2014_08_26 Tuesday

Today was Fancy Clothes Day for Elise: Good afternoon, Today we discussed taking care of our teeth, brushing our hair, and getting clean and dressed. We talked about going to the dentist and how they help us take care of our teeth. We discussed what cavities and plaque are. We talked about gums and flossing. We discussed good foods vs bad foods. We brushed a pair of lips with toothbrushes to practice brushing. We also counted out 20 beans to represent their 20 teeth they have. We talked about how adults have 32 teeth. We also worked on the AB pattern and making patterns. 

They had Spanish today. 

What is something you learned about teeth today?

Elise- brush your teeth so you don't get cavities 

I was a panelist again on Ebola today. 

2014_08_25 Monday

From Elise's school: Hello, Today we talked about the word responsibility and cleaning up after ourselves. We talked about littering and why we should not do it and why we should clean up after ourselves.  We talked and practiced pushing in our chairs after we get up during lunch or in the classroom. We talked about our 5 senses and made a book. We went over letters A and B. I read the book Please Play Safe Penguin's guide to playground safety. I also read There's A Big Beautiful World Out There. 

They had Mandarin today. 

Elise- because if you throw trash on the ground that's called littering 

I had a meeting today with the Assistant Principal at Jonathan's school to chat about security issues and grant opportunities. So funny that we were all so afraid of the asst/principals as kids; they're lovely people now!

2014_08_23 Saturday

We walked up to our local breakfast joint, only to find out that our 'favorite' waiter is moving to NYC and today was his last day serving! bummer. Reminds me of losing the old ladies at our diner in Maplewood.

just don't see this THAT often. 

Dave is doing dad/man fantasy football thing today, so we are flying solo. He's hardly got anything with him this year, so hopefully nothing goes missing again.

2014_08_22 Friday

From Elise's class: Hello! Today we talked about taking turns and sharing. We played hot potato and took turns passing a beanie bag. I read Llama Llama Time to Share. We created a big mural picture and each person contributed something to it by waiting their turn and drawing on it one at a time. We made the letter B with play-doh today and then created other objects. No German today. 

Why is sharing and taking turns important?

Elise- sharing is nice...because it's nice and respectful 

Next Tuesday is Fancy Day!

From Elise's Reading Club: Hello On Monday, we worked on the word blue.  We also talked about rhyming words. We drew a picture on yellow paper and then filled in the blank for the sentence.. I go to the ____. On Tuesday, we worked on the word up. We used 'up' in a sentence. On Wednesday, we worked on the words red, go. On Thursday, we worked on distinguishing between vowels and consonants. We discussed which ones are vowels and how the rest are consonants. We also worked on beginning sounds. There is a game where they put picture cards in little tubs that start with that letter. The girls started to sort out some picture cards. Also, everyday we went over flash cards for the sight words we've talked about so far. We do this one-on-one. We are practicing finding color words by sight on worksheets and coloring that part of the picture and adding color tissue. Once we learn all the colors, you will see the papers they have done. 

2014_08_21 Thursday

I just got to be a panelist on a call about...Ebola. That seems to be my (work) life these days!

From Elise's school: Hello, We had calendar time in the morning. We go over the date, days of the week, our shapes, and letter of the week. Today we talked about respecting the Earth. We talked about taking care of our planet. We talked about the 3 R's. We discussed the types of things we recycle and the types of these we can reuse such as water bottles and grocery bags. We talked about biodegrading items and air pollution. We made a flower using recycled things. Some were left at school to dry. I read the book Take Care of the Earth Every Day. They had Italian today. We blew up the balloons X brought during recess and launched them in the air. We also blew bubbles with X's wand. 

Show and tell shares (letter B): 

Elise- For my show and tell, I brought a bunny and his name is Velveteen. I brought a bee, and purple bows, sparkly beads, and I brought a book (Press Here) Great book! They loved it! 

I also went to (and helped plan) Back to School Night at Jonathan's school. I got to hang out with his teacher, learn about her style, see his desk, and write him a note. I saw a lot of familiar faces in his class, which was fun. He's off to a great start, but I think it's going to be a challenging year for him!!! He's got a lot of reading to do, but she seems less interested in assigning lots of homework (we'll keep that a secret for now!). Last year, parents could come in as Mystery Readers; this year, she'd like parents to volunteer for experiments in science class! I think that's pretty cool.

2014_08_20 Wednesday

Happy First Day of School, Cousin Shawn!!!!

From Elise's school: Good afternoon, Today we talked about being kind to others. We acted out short skits about how we should treat people. We played with Play-doh and made cool molds. We worked on the number 2. We worked on writing the letter Bb. We also played a game where we used our sense of touch to guess an object in a mystery cup without looking at what it is. I read the book It's Okay to Be Different. They had French today. 

Name a word that rhymes with bat:

elise- rat

Dave and I had date night; we went to the#1 rated bar in ATL. I tried a vegan gyro -- ehh. But, it's an American brewpub of Belgian persuasion. Opa would like it! I also had a coffee stout and a non-coffee stout; preferred the former....but was wide awake!

2014_08_19 Tuesday

ooh wheeeee. I am having a rough day. I really have no time for idiots or for people who intentionally erect hurdles to goals or complainers: work colleagues -- communicate clearly and stay in your sandbox. librarians -- if you put books on hold for me, know where they are. school parents -- volunteer to fix it rather than complain and respect school policies. ebola -- go away already. grrr.

From Elise's school: Hello, Today we talked about taking care of toys and sharing toys with friends. We also talked about taking care of pets. Our little class pet is our stuffed owl/blanket named Pinky! We made a chart about how to take care of pets. Then we all drew pictures of pets or of an owl. We also played Pet Charades and everyone acted out an animal and the rest of class guessed what they were doing. We practiced sorting buttons and putting animals from smallest to largest. I also read the book Don't Tease Tootsie, Please. It was about being mean to pets and what we should do instead. We worked in our journals on writing the letter Bb. They had Spanish today. 

Name one way we can take care of pets:

Elise- let your bunny play in your backyard and play with your toys. 

Did you know that there's a rule for pronouncing thee/thuh?! If the word following the starts with a consonant sound, you pronounce the as "thuh." If the word following the starts with a vowel sound, you pronounce the as "thee." I love order.  

2014_08_18 Monday

Over the weekend....On Saturday, we got a surprise call from friends who offered to take the kids -- along with some other neighborhood kids -- for the afternoon. So, Dave and I went to see Bodies . What a neat exhibit, although not really for kids.

Dave took the kids and Jonathan's friend to Monster Golf on Sunday.

From Elise's school: Today we talked about respect and listening to others without interrupting. We talked about bats and how they cannot see well at night they use their great ears to listen for other animals so they can hunt for food. We discussed that this is echolocation. We painted a bat and put sand on it. We played hide and seek where we took turns being blindfolded and used echolocation to find our friends! They enjoyed this game. We also played a guessing game by closing our eyes and describing the object to a friend. I asked during our discussion how you can guide a friend who is blind and got these responses:

Naveen- you hold their hands and you take them and pull them where they want to go. 

Carson- you can take them where they're supposed to go 

We talked about how people use guide dogs to help them do things. 

They had Mandarin today and met the new teacher. 

What is something you learned about bats or echolocation today?

Elise- I learned that bats use their ears to get food at night. 

2014_08_15 Friday

From Elise's school: Today we talked about table manners and how we should behave at the dinner table. In addition, we also talked about healthy vs unhealthy foods. We made a place-mat with a plate full of food for art. We worked on counting and matching the number with how many objects there were. They had German today. We also had a Music show from Mr Travis today. He will be teaching Music on Fridays from 1-1:30 if you would like to sign your child up- I have forms in my classroom.

Name a healthy food and name an unhealthy food: 

Elise- a bad food is candy, a healthy is garlic 

Elise is also doing reading club after school: This week, we all introduced ourselves and got to know each other. We practiced the sight words a, I. We also worked on the color word purple. Usually each week, we will practice a new sight word or two and a color word. Then after that we will move onto CVC words such as run, big, mat...etc. In Reading club, we will also be practicing fine motor skills such as perfecting writing our first name, learning to cut with scissors. We do some math activities in here as well. But mainly, we focus on learning sight words and then eventually begin reading short sentences or more if the student is up for it! If your child ever wants to bring in a book that he/she knows how to read and would like to read it to the class, they are more than welcome to bring it in. 

Jonathan has arranged a playdate for himself with a boy from our bus stop who is also in his class. Afterward, Dave and Jonathan have a "Zombies Night" at the Braves game that they were just invited to today. 

So, Elise and I will have Ladies Night with the girls. We ordered fancy pizza and stayed up way too late. It was so nice for me to visit with my girlfriend; she's been away all summer.

2014_08_14 Thursday

From Elise's school: Today we learned about how people all over the world say hello. We made a chart with the different words that people use to say hello. Ask your child if they remember a language we talked about and the word for hello! We practiced writing the letter Aa or our names in our journals. We also practiced writing the number 1. We learned how to shake someone's hand. We talked about how we should look at the person when we shake their hand. We sang and danced to our manner songs at the end of the day. 

Why are manners important?

Elise- because if your mouth is open and there's food in your mouth then some people wouldn't hear what you are saying

2014_08_13 Wednesday

From Elise's school: Today was a great day! We had calendar time in the morning. We had show and tell. I read the book My Mom is my Show and Tell. We talked about when to say excuse me and covering our mouth when we sneeze or cough. We can either use a tissue or use our arm.We practiced putting tissue to cover our mouth for art. Before they had French, I read the book Everybody Bonjours. We practiced writing the number 1. We practiced writing the letter Aa. We drew 3 pictures of words that start with letter A in our letter folder-- apple, ant, Alex. 

Show and tell shares:

Elise- For my show and tell I brought a picture of me and my brother. We are dressed up as superheroes. I also brought seashells that I got from Papap's [Pop Pop's] beach house and found these seashells. 

Dave and I started a new 'tradition' -- we had our first date night in...well...forever. We went to King + Duke. It was great. I had a tomato salad from the chef's home garden. delish. Dave had a customized steak tartare. We also shared a side of cornbreaded okra; I actually really like this veggie when it's not slimy and in gumbo. And, we shared a duck platter. We had to send it back b/c it was too raw for our taste, although it's supposed to be pretty darn raw. The second try was great. They gave us the duck's tag -- a tradition for them, but a bit morbid for me. I think Dave put it on his key chain. 

2014_08_12 Tuesday

Jonathan and I drove to school early today because I had planned on creating a Teachers' Exchange program where they can leave their extra/unwanted supplies and I'd organize a closet for them to store and retrieve whatever they need. They've had 4 days to dump supplies. So, come this AM, there wasn't even a stinking pencil waiting for me. ugh. so deflated.

I got back home in time to get Elise up, and she decided that she wanted to walk to school with me. OK. So we played the rhyming game (cat? hat! day? play!) all the way to school. She also found a feather to show her teacher, who didn't seem to care so much, but there was a lot going on.

From Elise's school: Today we learned about using eye contact when we say sorry to someone. We made prints today of any design we wanted to paint. Some friends drew flowers or themselves. We played a game where we hid an object and used our eyes to help the class find it. We had music time at the end of the day. They had Spanish today with Ms. Sylvia. 

What do you do after school when you go home? 

Elise- I play board games and also I go to the park too. 

2014_08_11 Monday

With all the excitement from the weekend, it sure was tough getting up this morning, so instead of rushing and making life miserable to catch the bus, Jonathan and I walked to school. We actually intercepted his bus at the last stop, and he nearly jumped on. We had a really nice walk and chat.

Dave's a real champ in getting Elise up and ready. So she was getting ready when I got back. We snuggled for a little bit before she went to school too. Today is her first day of after-school Reading Club. I'm curious to see what that does for her.
From Elise's school: Today we talked about manners and using polite words. I read the book Monster Manners. We made manner puppets and we practiced saying nice things to each other. We also practiced our handwriting in our journals. We worked on the letter of the week (Aa). We played Simon Says using 'Please' instead of simon says at recess. We danced and sang at the end of the day during music time. 

When do you use 'please' and 'thank you'? 
Elise- when she (babysitter) lets me watch tv I say "thank you buggy" 

When Jonathan got home today, he flew into my office with good news: he lost another tooth!! It was an eye tooth; this should be it for awhile, I think.

2014_08_10 Sunday

We had such a nice, fun weekend!

On Friday night, we had a planned dinner date fall through so instead had a spontaneous meatball dinner date with the Borses.

On Saturday, Jonathan had a breakfast-themed birthday party to attend that happened to be at his wrestling facility. He totally knew where we were going, and I didn't believe him. We had a great time there. Lots of boys from his 1st and 2nd grade classes, and I got to hang with lots of moms. He was wiped out afterward! Then, Dave and I attended Doug's birthday party. The weather didn't really cooperate (rain storms were pretty bad), but we all hung out at a new bar (for us). Good times; late night.

On Sunday, the highlight of the weekend took place. Jonathan's preschool teacher from KinderGan, Mora Fagie, came to town, and I took the kids to the Botanical Gardens to meet her and her family. We visited for about four hours. It was absolutely wonderful. She is such a special woman, and it made me so happy to spend some time with her.
That afternoon, we saw Guardians of the Galaxy (movie). Probably not entirely appropriate for Elise (maybe not even for J), but it was fun.

2014_08_08 Friday

From Elise's school: Good afternoon! We had a fun-filled Friday! Today we discussed giving compliments to friends. We made a mirror and drew ourselves on foil and then shared a compliment about a friend in the class. We played the Very Bad Manners Game where we acted out a bad manner using body movements and the rest of the class had to guess what the bad manner was. They did a great job coming up with bad manners and acting them out! We went over some computer rules. Fridays will be computer time and students will get to play some educational games. We also played with Play-doh and made shapes. We met the German teacher Ms. A today. 

Name a bad manner:

Elise- A bad manner is hitting someone and spitting in their face. 

And, guess who Elise's class parent is!?! oh, yes. you betcha. ME!

2014_08_07 Thursday

From Elise's teacher: Today was a great day. X joined us and we helped him get familiar with the new classroom. We had calendar time in the morning and went over numbers and shapes. We even talked a little about 3D shapes (cube and sphere). We talked about our weather graph. Then we had fun drawing self-portraits and figuring out our eye color and hair color. We also did more yoga. This time we sat on the floor and made an imaginary pizza and added toppings such as mac and cheese, olives, chocolate! :)Then for art, we made friendship bracelets. I read a book called Little Hoot about an owl who wants to sleep earlier. We talked about the golden rule today. X said he has a book at home about it. We went over how we like to be treated (everyone said good) and that we should treat people the same way. At the end of the day, we listened and danced to some songs. 

What is something you liked doing at school today?

Elise- I liked doing art. 

Today Jonathan and Dave have wrestling practice, so Elise and I are going to Girls Night Out (aka a PTO party down the street).

2014_08_06 Wednesday

Today is Elise's first day in 5K (preK)!!! I made her a Tute too, just like Jonathan's. She was so excited to get her own Tute!



From her teacher: Today was a great day!We all got to know each other and the school. Each child stood in front of the class and they told us what their favorite color was, how old they are, if they have any brothers/sisters, and something they did over the summer!They were not shy and each one participated!:) We talked about some rules for our class and I also explained some classroom procedures. 

They completed some drawing worksheets about the first day of school. Then we had story time where I read them Curious George's First Day of School. We also had some yoga/stretching time where we stretched our legs. We met the French teacher Madame N. They danced with her and practiced saying Bonjour and Je m'appelle (their name). 

What is something fun you did over the summer? 

Elise- I snuggled with my parents and also I hugged my mommy. 

We will practice our handwriting in this book throughout the year and you will see how much they will have progressed! 

I put recycled items on there such as paper towel rolls, clean baby food jars, clean egg cartons. if you would like to collect these and bring them in whenever during the year that would be greatly appreciated!!   

Oh, this lady doesn't know who she's talking about! ha, we'll surely keep a steady supply coming.

Last night, I had a big surprise for the kids. We got free vouchers to the premier of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie; it doesn't come out in the theaters until Friday. It was so popular that we were in the front row of a 3D movie! yikes. Good movie, although maybe not quite appropriate for Elise. oh well. Naturally, they weren't in bed until 10pm, but we'll manage. 

2014_08_04 Monday

After a summer sabbatical, we're baaaaaaaaaack!!!!!

Last night, we celebrated being as prepared as we were going to be with dinner out. The kids got their first ever Shirley Temples!!! I had been watching menus for awhile and never saw them listed, but this pizza joint had them. The kids really liked them, and we showed Elise what Shirley Temple looked like as a little girl (neat b/c she's been told MANY times that's who she looks like). I am going to try to get a photo of her posing like ST for comparison.


Today is the first day of school for Jonathan!! He's a second grader! He woke up, popped out of bed, got dressed in his handsomest outfit, and came down for breakfast and a Schuletute. We had a "Sneak Peek" on Friday night to meet his teacher and see who was in his class; Mrs B is very nice, and there are tons of kids who were in his 1st grade class too. Dave and I walked him to the bus stop. We may have been the last folks there, and it was a mad house with tons of parents and many new faces.

[more pix to come]

And, this afternoon was Elise's Meet and Greet too. She has 10 kids in her class, only two are new, so she saw lots of familiar faces. The teacher, Ms H, is very nice too. Elise is going to join her Reading Club (3 days/week) and also do Play Ball after school (1 day/week).