It's Winter Break! Woohoo!

Hello First Grade Families,

I'm writing today to wish you all a happy, healthy, joyful Winter Break, and to pass along wishes for the happiest holidays. I will send along a weekly update at the beginning of January with classroom information for the first week of the new year.

I'd also like to offer my sincerest thanks for the treats and gift cards so many of you sent! I am humbled by your kindness and generosity :)

Enjoy the time off with family! May you rest, recharge, and relax...I know I will be! I already scheduled a massage for the first day of break! I hope you are all able to connect with family and loved ones. I will be heading back to Pennsylvania to enjoy the holidays with my family.

Many blessings!

P.S. Our class used Santa Tracker during Computer Lab time yesterday and they absolutely loved it! Here is the link so students may enjoy at home! Santa Tracker

One last thing...the third grade classes of Pinebrook are collecting plastic bottle caps for a recycling project. If you have any plastic caps or lids throughout the holidays, please save them and send them in with your class when we return from break. The third grade class will be collecting until May.

Weekly Update

Hello Everyone! Happy Friday!

The anticipation for Winter Break is in the air, everyone is in a festive mood, and we just can't hold in our excitement any longer! We have some fun events planned next week to celebrate the holiday season and we will begin some new academic units as well.

Holiday Shop:
We previewed the items for sale at the Pinebrook Holiday Shop this morning. Students will be coming home with an envelope and a list of items they took interest in purchasing as gifts for family and friends today. Students may purchase items on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. If your child is purchasing Holiday Shop items, please kindly use the envelope sent home to send in his/her money on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday. Students who bring in money may shop during our recess time. Please remember, there is no obligation to buy. If you would like to shop with your child, the Holiday Shop will be open tomorrow, Saturday, December 9th from 9-11:30am. The 5th Grade will be hosting their annual Pancake Breakfast fundraiser, so come for breakfast too! :)

Interim Progress Reports:
Interim progress reports (commonly known as "interims") will be sent out to parents on Wednesday, December 13th. A friendly reminder that I do not send home an interim for every child. If I send one for your student, you will receive it via email at the email address on file in your ParentVue account.

Holiday Craft:
On Tuesday, December 12th our first grade class will be creating a holiday craft for families. Currently, I have three wonderful volunteers who have offered to help out our students to create their crafts. If you would be interested in helping out on Tuesday from 9:15-10:30am, please let me know. Thank you! :)

Winter Break Activities:
I will be sending home a Winter Break activity packet for your child to work on during the winter break. It will be going home with your child on Thursday, December 14th. Please be on the lookout for this packet in your child's Homework folder on Thursday. If you have any questions about what students are to do, please let me know.

Holiday Travel:
If you are traveling for the holidays and your child will be absent from school, please kindly notify the school in advance. You can send a message or a note to me, which I will then forward to the office. You may also submit your notification to the office directly by using the "online absence excuse," found on the Pinebrook website homepage. The link to the Pinebrook homepage is HERE

Focus Areas for Next Week:

• Reading-We will practice reading strategies to increase our accuracy of reading words correctly and integrating sources of information to decode unknown words.
• Math-We will begin our addition unit, which teaches multiple strategies to solve addition facts
• Writing-We will begin a How to Build a snowman writing activity.
• Science/Social Studies- We will continue our economics unit by learning about wants/needs, goods/services, and consumers/producers. We will also talk about Holiday traditions around the world with our annual Holidays Around the World on Thursday morning. During the time, the first grade teachers take turns rotating through the other first grade classrooms to teach students about a holiday tradition from a different country or culture. 

I CAN'T WAIT!!!! The Mercer Middle School Band and Chorus will be here on Wednesday morning for a special holiday concert for our students and on Friday, the entire school will pile into the gym for our annual Holiday Sing Along. We sing Holiday songs from many faith and cultural traditions represented at Pinebrook while the teachers and staff all take turns learning the songs. 

Have a great weekend! I am looking forward to time with friends, wrapping gifts, and some cookie baking, all the while (hopefully) watching a little snow fall. There is much to do and prepare for the holiday season still! 

WE DID IT!

Room 3 is officially Word Detectives!! I am so proud of all the hard work our first grade class has used to solve tricky words in their books! Keep up all the super work word detectives! :)

Weekly Update

Hello Parents!

I hope everyone had a super week! It has been difficult getting back into a full week routine after having a few days off. The kiddos are getting very excited about the upcoming winter break, so we are all trying to stay focused to keep on learning more and more each day! :)

Timeline Projects due December 6th:
Your child's "Look At Me Now" timeline project is due Wednesday, December 6th. Please send your child's project to school with him/her on or before Wednesday. The kids will love to share their projects and I'm excited to see their creativity on display!

Inclusive Schools Week:
Next week is Inclusive Schools Week, which is a time to celebrate our public schools as environments in which all students are invited to learn, regardless of educational, emotional, or behavioral challenges. We will welcome a guest reader, who will share a story and lead a discussion about the importance of including everyone in our learning environment.

We Celebrate Winter Holidays!
Students brought home a "We Celebrate Winter Holidays!" activity yesterday in their homework folder. I am hoping that each child completes this small activity so we can learn about holidays that we each celebrate during the winter season and display these in the classroom. I am asking that each student please bring this back by Friday, December 10th. Thank you for your help!

Sight Word Homework:
While reviewing sight word homework that students complete at home, I've noticed that they are not using the writing skills learned in the classroom. Please remind your child to use their very best handwriting to write their words/sentences. Also, students should be checking that they are using two thumbs up sentences (begins with a capital letter and ends with a period). Students have all week to complete this small homework assignment, so I expect them to do their very best work as they would in the classroom, and not just rush to complete the assignment quickly. We should all be encouraging our children to use what they learn in the classroom outside of the classroom as well so they become lifelong learners.

WANTED: Magazines!
Our word detectives reading unit is coming to a wrap and to showcase what students have learned during this unit, they will be completing a small in-class project of using old magazines to find snap (sight) words. If you have any old magazines at home ready for recycling, our students could really use them to complete their project. :)

Holiday Craft Helpers:
Our class will be completing a Holiday craft on Tuesday, December 12th and I am looking for some parents to help! Our class, along with Miss Angelucci's first grade class will be making a special holiday craft for students to give to parents for the holiday season. We would love for a parent helpers to come in and help us complete the craft. Please let me know if you are available on Tuesday, December 12th from 9:15am-10:30am. THANK YOU!! (We will make sure to have you NOT help your child, so that it can stay a surprise!)

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading-We will be finishing our Word Detectives unit and reviewing reading skills to be effective readers and understand what we are reading
• Writing- We will be practicing handwriting, practicing a new word study sort, and starting a winter writing assignment
• Math- We will complete our short Sorting unit by looking at attributes to sort different materials, including buttons!
• Social Studies- We will continue to learn about economics: wants and needs, goods and services, consumers and producers. 

Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, or feedback. 

I hope you all enjoy the weekend!!

We Celebrate Winter Holidays!

Happy Thursday!

Going home with your child in their Homework folder tonight is a We Celebrate Winter Holidays! paper. I am asking that you complete this with your child and bring back to school by Friday, December 8th. I am very excited for our students to share some of the holidays that they celebrate during the winter season!!

Thank you!

Book Fair Week!

Hello Parents!

I hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing Thanksgiving break! I was very excited to see all of your children this morning! We have lots to do before our long winer break in December!

A friendly reminder that it's Book Fair Week! The students previewed the Book Fair on Tuesday right before break and students who bring in money to shop at the Book Fair during recess this week. If you are sending  in money for your child to shop, please send it in a sealed envelope labeled with your child's name, my name (Miss Drumheller), and the words "Book Fair" on it. If you prefer to shop with your child, the family shopping event is Wednesday from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Dreambox and Raz-Kids!

Hello!

I just wanted to send out a friendly reminder to be using the Dreambox and Raz-Kids programs with your children. Both of these programs do have apps, so they are great resources to use during your holiday travels! Information regarding both of these programs and student log-in information went home two weeks ago. If you are having difficulty accessing these, please let me know.

Have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Weekly Update

Hi Everyone,

Many thanks to those who were able to attend our ABC's of Thanksgiving yesterday. The kids love having you visit the classroom and I appreciate the time you take from your busy schedule to validate their efforts by attending our programs.

We have a short week coming up and then 5 wonderful days to spend with family and food! Here's what you need to know for next week's short week and the week after...

Quarter 1 Report Cards:
A friendly reminder that Quarter 1 report cards were issued on Wednesday. If you've not yet done so, please log into your ParentVue account to view your child's report card.

Thanksgiving Travel:
If your child will be absent next week, and/or will be leaving early on Tuesday, please kindly both the office and me in advance. For absences, you may use the online absence excuse found on the Pinebrook homepage, or by clicking HERE. For early dismissal, you may use the early dismissal found on the Pinebrook homepage, or by clicking HERE.

School Picture Retakes:
School Picture Retakes will be on Monday, November 20th. Picture retakes are for those students who were absent on picture day, or students who paid for a picture package and would like to have the photos redone. If you believe of these apply to you, your child can have their picture taken on Monday. **Information about this is in an earlier post in my blog.

No Sight Word Homework Next Week:
There will be no sight word homework next week due to it being a short week. PLEASE READ! Remember...reading isn't just homework...reading is life! :)

Scholastic Book Fair:
The Scholastic Book Fair will be held at school the week of November 27th. Students will preview the Book Fair on Tuesday. Students who bring money may shop at the Book Fair during recess the week of November 27th-December 1st. (Please do NOT send money on Tuesday...this is only a preview day for students to browse.) If your child plans to bring money for the Book Fair, please send money in a sealed envelope marked with your child's name, my name, and "Book Fair" on the outside of the envelope. If you would like to attend the Book Fair to shop with your child, our Family Shopping Night will be Wednesday, November 29th from 3:00pm-6:00pm.

Timeline Project:
I sent home your child's "Look At Me Now" Timeline Project in yesterday's Thursday folder. Please review the information in the letter and let me know if you have any questions. Timeline projects will be due no later than, Wednesday, December 6th. If your child has his/her Timeline project completed before that date, feel free to send it in early.

Focus Areas for the Coming Short Week (11/20-11/21) AND the Week of 11/27-12/1:

• Reading- We will continue to work on our Word Detective Unit. 
• Writing-We will continue our Thanksgiving writing and finish up with handwriting lessons
• Math-We will continue to learn how to recognize and create patterns. We will also be finishing up our Patterns Unit. 
• Social Studies- We will finish our Long Ago and Today unit. We will begin our Economics unit. We will explore the concepts of wants and needs, goods and services, and consumers and producers. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! I am very excited to travel back to Pennsylvania for a few days to see all of my family! I wish you all safe travels! Enjoy!

Wild West Book Fair!

Join us in sharing a love of reading with your child at our Scholastic Book Fair November 27-December 1. The hours of operation are November 27-30 from 8:30am-3:00pm and Friday, December 1 from 8:00am-12:00pm. The Book Fair closes at NOON on Friday! Be sure to mark your calendar for our Book Fair Family Event on Wednesday, November 29th from 3:00pm-6:30pm. This is a wonderful opportunity for your family to shop together. :)

Our first grade class will be visiting the book fair on Tuesday for a Book Fair Browse, so I'm sure some of your children will be coming home excited to share the wonderful stories they discovered that day and may be interested in purchasing.

Picture Make-Up Day

Picture Make-up Day will be on Monday, November 20th. Make-up pictures are for those students who were absent on the first picture day, who are new to school, or would like to have their picture retaken.
All students wanting to retake their photo MUST bring back the original picture packet to return to the photographer. 
If you need a retake, please let me know ASAP and I can send home a retake form with your child. Your child must bring back the original picture packet or a picture envelope with a payment inside or online payment information to have their picture retaken. You can pay online, but the photographer still needs the payment envelope to know which background to use. 

If you have any questions about photo retake, please let me know.

Button Donations!

Hello Families!

In our first grade classroom we will be learning about sorting! As part of our sorting unit, we will be doing an activity that includes students sorting buttons! We are looking for any donations that you may have of buttons that our first grade classroom could use!

Thank you!

Box Tops!

Reminder: Box Tops will be due again on Friday! If your child has been working hard to collect box tops, please remember to send them to school with your child by Friday. Whichever class raises the most box tops at the end of the year earns an ice cream party! YAY!

Weekly Update and Important Report Card Information

Good Morning!

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT REPORT CARDS:
Quarter 1 report cards will go home on Wednesday, November 15th. Please note this important change to our report card delivery system: Paper report cards will NOT be issued. Your child's report card will be available for electronic viewing by logging into your ParentVUE account.

Last week, Mr. Thiessen sent an extremely detailed email about this change to the entire Pinebrook community. This email outlines all the directions needed to access your student's report card. If you do NOT have a ParentVUE account, you MUST contact Mrs. Sciortino in our school office at 703-957-4325 to obtain and authorization key. I apologize in advance, but I am not able to help you with obtaining or accessing your ParentVUE account. You must go through Mrs. Sciortino.

American Education Week:
I hope you will join us in our classroom on Thursday, November 16th from 9:45-10:30am to celebrate American Education Week. Students will present the ABC's of Thanksgiving. Our recess is immediately following the ABC's of Thanksgiving, so please be prepared to say goodbye at 10:30am. I sent home information about American Education Week, last week. I expect each of your children to be practicing their lines at home. We are also practicing this at school to be prepared for the presentation on Thursday.

Focus Areas this Week:
Reading-We are continuing our Word Deceives unit. Students earned their word detective badges last week and are excited to continue the hard work of being a word detective and solving unknown words.
Writing- Students are practicing handwriting and we will begin a Thanksgiving writing project
Math-Students are continuing to build and represent patterns.
Social Studies- We will begin our Long Ago and Today unit as we make our final preparations for American Education Week and the ABC's of Thanksgiving.

We have officially survived the first quarter and I thank you all for your continued support at home! Please be sure your child is using Dreambox and Raz-Kids at home :)

Thank you!

Friday Update

Happy Friday!

First, I want to thank all of the wonderful families who helped plan and came to support students at our Fall Party on Tuesday! The students had a blast and it was a HUGE success! THANK YOU!

Field Trip:
Our field trip to Claude Moore Park and Heritage Farm Museum is on Wednesday, November 8th. We'll enjoy a nature walk through the park while we observe seasonal changes and learn how animals prepare for winter. We'll attend the apples program at the museum to learn about different types of apples, play some apple games, and press some apple cider. Your child should bring a disposable lunch on the field trip. Please watch the weather to decide what to wear; layers are best as the temperature fluctuates while we move in and out of the sun in the park. Children should wear sneakers; no sandals please.

Turkey of the Year:
Turkey of the Year voting is continuing. Sad to say that I am no longer in the competition after today's voting :( A lot of our students were disappointed. However, please encourage your child to still read so they can continue to vote for the other staff members who are still in the competition!

American Education Week:
Please mark your calendar for American Education Week celebration on Thursday, November 16th. Time TBA. Our celebration event will be in our classroom (Room 3) in the morning. Students will present the ABC's of Thanksgiving.

Pine brook Veteran's Day Program!
Please read the following message from the Pinebrook office regarding our Veteran's Day Program:

Calling All Veterans!

You are invited to participate in Pinebrook's Veteran's Day Celebration

At Pinebrook Elementary, we love to celebrate and honor our families, especially those who have served or are currently active in the military. We would be honored to have you join us and share your stories with two classrooms of students (parents and extended family military members welcome) for our Veteran's Day Celebration to be held on Friday, November 10th from 8:00am-10:15am. 

Schedule of Events:

8:00-8:25 Veteran's Check-in at the front desk and proceed to the library 

8:30-9:10 Program Begins/ Veteran's share their story with two different groups of students

8:30-8:50 Session 1

8:50-9:10 Session 2

9:15-9:30 Photos of Veterans with their students 

9:30-9:45 Pinebrook Veterans Day Parade

9:45-10:15 Juice, Coffee, Bagels for Veterans

Focus Area for the Upcoming Week:

• Reading- Students are continuing to work on our Word Detectives unit to learn how to solve tricky words
• Writing- Students are continuing handwriting practice and letter formation
• Word Study-Students will begin a new word sort on Thursday
• Math-Students will continue their Patterns unit by learning about different types of patterns and creating patterns
• Social Studies-We will learn about Veterans Day and begin preparing for American Education Week

Students will not have Sight Word Homework November 8th-November 10th due to the short week. Students are still expected to read every night. 

I will see some of you on Monday for Parent/Teacher Conferences! Remember Monday and Tuesday are student holidays and students will return on Wednesday, November 8th. 

Enjoy the nice long weekend! :) 

Week of October 24th-27th

Hello Families!

Last week was an exciting week for our first grade class! We had fifth grade visit our classroom on Friday to help our class with pumpkin investigations and on Friday we all decorated our pumpkins! They look awesome!

Field Trip:
Our 1st grade field trip to Claude Moore Park and Heritage Farm Museum will be Wednesday, November 8th. Information letters and permission forms went home in Thursday folders last week. Please kindly return the permission form and payment as soon as possible. Thank you to everyone who already has! Please contact me with any questions. Chaperones will be determined this week. 

Fall Party:
Please mark your calendar for our Fall party on Tuesday, October 31st from 12:15-2:00 pm in our classroom. All families are welcome to attend! (NO costumes, please). You received a permission form in Thursday folders a few weeks ago. Some students still have not returned their permission form. They are due tomorrow. Your child must return this permission form to participate and to eat any party food. Our amazing Room Moms and I thank you for your help! 

Check out our 1st Grade Symbaloo Page!

Our Instructional Facilitator of Technology, Mrs. Clark, compiled a Symbaloo page for us! Symbaloo is a visual bookmarking tool that makes it simple and fun to organize multiple websites.  Our 1st Grade Symbaloo has links to a variety of sites that cover multiple disciplines...everything from Mouse Skills (check out "Bees and Honey"), to science, to math, and holidays.  Our Symbaloo sites are a perfect "something more" to supplement your child's weekly homework. You can access the Symbaloo by clicking HERE.  You can access it by going to the Pinebrook Homepage.  Once there, click "First Grade" under the "Classrooms" tab.  Look to the left under the heading "First Grade".  At the bottom of that list, you'll see "First Grade Symbaloo." 

Focus Areas for the Week

• Reading: We will be working on retelling our stories using character names, setting, problem and solution. We will also we working on connections to self and other texts. 
• Writing: We will continue to work on handwriting skills and word study sorts
• Math: We will finish our Number Sense unit and take a short test. Then, we will begin our Patterns unit.
• Science: We will continue learning about pumpkin life cycles and day and night.

Library will be on Thursday this week. 

I hope everyone has a fantastic week!

Friday the 13th! :)

Hello Everyone!

It has been a short but very busy week as always!

In honor of Fire Safety Week, a parent from Mrs. Lomardo's class is a firefighter and came to speak to all the first graders about fire safety today. We are so thankful for his willingness to come speak with us! Please ask your child about our visit with Mr. Zumwalt today! :)

Pumpkins:
We will complete an in-class pumpkin investigation on Thursday, October 19th. Each child will need his/her own small pumpkin. I sent a note home about this last week. Please send your child's pumpkin to school by Thursday. Also, please write your child's name on the bottom of the pumpkin.
Fifth grade students from Mrs. Noel's class will be supporting our students in the pumpkin investigation and creating videos on the iPads to upload to our school's Loudoun Creates YouTube channel! SO EXCITING!

Next Week is Spirit Week:
We will have a Spirit Week next week (October 16-20) to raise awareness for bully prevention. Themes each day are:

• Monday- Mismatch Day
• Tuesday- Dress Like a Superhero Day
• Wednesday- Inside Out Day
• Thursday- Wear 2 Different Shoes Day
• Friday- Pinebrook Colors or Spirit Wear Day

Fall Conferences:

Thank you to those of you who have signed up for a Parent/Teacher Conference. If you have not yet signed up, please do so at your earliest convenience.

Fall Party:

Please mark your calendar for our Fall Party on Tuesday, October 31st from 12:15-2:00 p.m. in our classroom (Room 3). All families are welcome to attend! (NO costumes please) A food permission form went home with your child yesterday. Your child must have written permission to eat any party food. Our awesome Room Moms and I thank you for your donations. 

Extra Clothes:

Since first graders are still prone to bathroom accidents and playground slips, please consider tucking an extra set of clothing (including underclothes) into your child's backpack. I will not collect and store the clothes in our classroom. The extra set of clothing will simply sit at the bottom of your child's backpack until it may be needed. Thanks!

Water Bottles:

If you are not already doing so, please begin to send a water bottle to school each day with your child. We do NOT have an in-class water fountain. The kids get tired and thirsty over the course of a long morning and water goes a long way toward helping them stay energetic and attentive.

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading- We will talk about making predictions and using what we know from the cover of a book to think about what a story may be about
• Writing- We continuing to work on handwriting, as well as, talk about how to add details to our stories.
• Math- We will be finishing up our first unit (Number Sense) and students will have their first math test the following week. Our next unit will be Patterns.
• Science- We will learn the parts and life cycles of both apples and pumpkins!

Have a SUPER weekend!

Conferences, Fall Party, and Pumpkins...Oh My!

Hello Everyone!

This post is full of important information, so please read through the end!

Please Sign-Up for a Conference!
Parent/Teacher conferences will be held at the end of the first quarter. I am using Sign Up Genius to schedule conferences. You can sign-up for a conference time by clicking HERE. If you are unable to attend a conference on one of the dates/times listed, please send me an email to make alternate arrangements.

Important Information about Homework:
Starting on Monday, October 10th, your child will be coming home with a weekly sight word homework assignment. The assignment will be given at the beginning of each week and will be due each FRIDAY.  Your student will be receiving a list of five sight words that they are to practice writing throughout the week. Sight words for each week will also be listed in your child's agenda book. Several students are also still not completing their nightly reading homework. I cannot stress enough how important it is for your child to be reading at least 15 minutes each night. I also request that you list what was read, number of minutes, and signature each night so I am aware whether or not your child read.

Fall Party:
Our Fall Party will be held on Tuesday, October 31st. All parents are welcome to join in on the fun...but you will probably be put to work :)

If you are able to come, please come in 30 minutes prior to the party start time to help set up.

Pumpkins:
The paper was sent home yesterday about our upcoming Pumpkin Investigation. I am asking that each child bring in one small pumpkin by Thursday, October 19th.  We will be observing, measuring, and decorating our pumpkins!

Focus Area for the Upcoming Week:

• Reading: We will be learning how a reading partner can help us with identifying unknown words and learning skills to decode unknown/difficult words.
• Writing: We will continue to work on our nice neat handwriting and correctly forming our letters. 
• Math: We will work on our number sense unit.
• Social Studies: We will finish up with seasons and discuss fire safety.

I hope you all enjoy the long weekend! :)

Hillary 

Word Study/Homework

One quick reminder...

I have noticed last week that several students are not completing their daily homework. It is an expectation that each child read for 15 minutes each night. This daily reading requirement is to promote your child to be using the reading skills learned in the classroom in real world experiences outside of the classroom. I want them to be practicing these skills and building their reading life, so they know that reading can take place everywhere! :)
Remember to:
Write what your child read
How many minutes read
Signature
(Optional) A quick note about your child's reading

I am so grateful for those who have been adding little comments about their child's reading. This helps me to know what skills to be working on with your child in small groups as we become more in-depth with our learning.

Word Study:
Your child will be coming home with a set of word study words/pictures tonight. Every Monday, students will receive their new set of words/pictures and every Friday will be their assessment. Your child does not have Word Study homework, but I thought it would be helpful if you would like your child to practice at home...doesn't hurt!
Suggestions for Word Study:

• Sort words/pictures in groups
• Spell words
• Play memory/matching game with words

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Classroom Updates Week of September 25-29

Happy Monday!

Hi Everyone!

We've come to the end of a long week.  We had a few challenges this week with ready, responsible, and respectful choices during lunch and during our transition times.  The kids are becoming more comfortable with each other, so it can be easier for them to exhibit off-task behaviors.  I am hopeful that next week will be smooth sailing as we continue to discuss how to be ready, responsible, and respectful 1st graders.  

Important Information About School Pictures:

Fall pictures will be taken this coming Tuesday, September 26th.  I sent home information about pictures in yesterday's folder.  This will be a day for individual pictures only; a whole-class picture will be taken in the Spring.  Following are some guidelines to help facilitate your picture order / purchase:

• If possible, please order your child's pictures online.  It's the fastest, easiest, and most convenient way to order your child's pictures.  If you order online, you do not need to send anything to school with your child on Picture Day!
• If you are not ordering online, please fill out the payment envelope, enclose your payment, and send it to school on picture day.  Your payment envelope must include your child's name, my name, your "look" (or background) selection, your package selection, and your payment.
• Picture purchase is optional.

 Fall Literacy Testing:

Our Fall literacy screenings are underway as I have begun administering both the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) and the Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA).  I look forward to discussing the results of your child's assessments at our Fall Conference in November.

RAZ-Kids, Dreambox Learning, and Reflex Math:

RAZ-Kids, and Dreambox Learning are web-based programs that allow your child to practice reading (RAZ-Kids), math skills (Dreambox Learning).  I will send home your child's log-on information for these learning tools as soon as I have them.  Most have an app you can download too.  Please allow your child to explore these fun and valuable learning tools!

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will talk about good reader habits. We will talk about retelling stories and making connections when we read.  I will continue administering the Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA) to determine your child's current independent reading level.
• Writing:  We will begin learning the routines and procedures of Writer's Workshop as we talk about habits of good writers.
• Math:  We will continue learning the routines and procedures of Math Workshop as we explore number sense and counting.  We will talk about different ways to show a number (using digits, dots, a ten-frame, tallies, etc.)
• Science:  We will talk about the 5 senses, 4 seasons, and the relationship between the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
• Social Studies:  We will talk about John Chapman, also known as "Johnny Appleseed", and why we remember him.

Have a wonderful week!

Classroom News

Hello!

I think the kids are settling into the year.  On the whole, I am pleased with how quickly they're picking up on classroom routines and procedures.  Staying focused during the afternoon has been a bit difficult, but I am hopeful that as the kids build stamina for a full school day, they will have an easier time staying on task.

Here's your update for the week:


 Snack Reminder:
Snack time has been going great! We eat snack around 9:30am each day...and surprisingly we are down to about a 12 minute snack time! :) WOO!  Thank you for sending your child with an easy "grab and go" item. Please remember to pack a HEALTHY snack though!

Specials Reminder:
Please remember to send your child with sneakers for P.E. on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  Library books are due back each Monday. 

Scholastic News Reminder:
Please remember to send your child to school with $6 for our classroom to purchase Scholastic News. I can't stress enough the importance of exposing our children to nonfiction news. Thank you to those who have already supported your child in sending in the scholastic news order. 

Homework Reminder:
Students are to be reading each night for 15 minutes Monday-Thursday (Awesome if you read on the weekend too!) Some students have been coming into school with uncompleted reading logs in their student agenda. Students should write the title of book, number or minutes, and have a parent signature each night. Thank you so much!!

Water Bottle Reminder:
Please remember to send your child to school with an easy open water bottle. We no longer have water fountains in our classroom and I cannot allow students to walk down the hallway by themselves to get a drink of water. I think it would be best if each child had a water bottle at their desk. 

Also, its not too late to order books from Scholastic. Remember to enter our classroom code PB4G4 to have your child's books shipped free to school!

Our first Box Tops for Education collection was today, but your child can continue to send in box tops throughout the year to add to our classroom collection envelope. 

Important Dates:

September:

• Saturday, September 30th:  Fall Festival at 4:00 pm at school

October:

• Monday, October 2nd:  PTA Believe Kids Fundraiser ends

• Tuesday, October 3rd:  WatchDOG Dad kickoff at 6:00 pm at school
• Wednesday, October 4th:  Walk to school day at 7:20 am (meet at the Kirkpatrick Farms clubhouse)
• Monday, October 9th:  No school due to Columbus Day
• Saturday, October 14th:  Fall Festival Rain Date
• Monday, October 16th:  PTA Meeting at 4:00 pm in the library at school
• Monday, October 23rd:  No school for students due to Teacher Work Day

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will continue Book Shopping, which is the process of choosing just right books for our book bags. We will also work on good reader habits like using a smooth voice and rereading to see more in our books.
• Writing:  We will practice Handwriting, emphasizing proper letter formation, and starting our letters at the top.
• Math:  We will learn how to use our "Rise and Shine" morning work binders to show the month, day, and number of school days in various ways. We will also be working with number recognition to 20 including some graphing to compare numbers.
• Science / Social Studies:  We will talk about what it means to be a scientist, and what scientists do.
• Word Study: Students are completing a practice word study sort to prepare for their word study groups and assessments. Students will be placed into their groups on Monday, September 25th and will have their first word study assessment on Friday, September 29th. Students will also come home with a copy of their word study words each week. Please encourage your child to sort their words at home and practice spelling the words. 

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and enjoys the last bit of summer! :) 

Classroom Updates

Hello Everyone!

I hope you all had an enjoyable Labor Day Weekend! It's hard to believe that we had an extra day because it still went by so quickly.

I just wanted to post about a few changes/updates happening in our classroom.

Behavior Charts
Students were given their behavior charts today. Behavior charts will be kept in the back of their blue Homework folder. Each day students will color in the date box with the color that the ended the day on. Students also started earning their Caught Being Fantastic tickets last week. So, ending the day on green earns them 1 tickets, purple earns 2 tickets, and light blue earns 3 tickets. Like I said, students started earning tickets on Thursday, so you may have heard them coming home and talking about them.

Agendas
Students were also given their agendas today. Our school had to order more agendas, so not every student has one yet, but they should be here by the end of the week. In your child's blue Homework folder, it gives directions on how to use the student agendas. Right now, students are only using their agendas to track their nightly reading. Students are expected to read 15 minutes a night. Please sign and list the title of the book(s) your child read on the right side of the weekly agenda page. You may also leave a note about your child's reading too :)

Box Tops
Pinebrook Elementary collects Box Tops for Education. Box Tops can be found on many items purchased. We have set a goal to collect 1,000 box tops in our classroom this year. There will be five collections throughout the year: September 15th, November 17th, January 12th, March 16th, May 18th. Students can bring in Box Tops any day of the week and we will place them in our class collection envelope. You may send your child's box tops in a baggie or envelope with their name on it so they have the chance to earn individual collection awards as well. If our class collects the most box tops and reaches our goal...we could earn an ice cream party at the end of the school year! Start collecting!

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please let me know via email (hillary.drumheller@lcps.org)

Week Two

Happy Friday!!

I just want to send a friendly reminder to everyone to sign up for the Remind text messaging service to be sent classroom reminders directly to your phone.  If  you have not done so, please take a moment to download the Remind app (look for the white text bubble on a blue background) from the app store and join my class.  After you download the Remind app, you can join my class by texting @grade1dr to 81010. Also, I apologize if I am unable to respond to your messages right away. I know that some have sent messages during the day when our class is extremely busy learning, but I will always try to respond to your message by 8pm that evening. 

Thank you to the parents who have started following my classroom Twitter! It's great to show off what Room 3 and Pinebrook are doing!

We made it through one full week of school! Your children have really opened up their personalties and I have learned so much about them. I hope they are all enjoying first grade as much as I am. This week we focused mostly on following the 3 Rs (Ready, Responsible, and Respectful) and following directions. Your students practiced picking out just right books and created a purpose for reading. In math, we practiced counting to 20 forwards and backwards and created a My Number Book to showcase numbers in written form. 

I am still missing a few forms from students, so please be sure to check that all Back to School forms have been completed. Most forms were to be turned in today. The forms I am collecting include:

• ·         Blue "How Is My Child Getting Home?" Form
• ·         Yellow "Emergency Dismissal" Form
• ·         Pinebrook Handbook Acknowledgement Survey -- This is an online form you should complete and submit via the Pinebrook website.
• ·         Yellow "Student Rights and Responsibilities" Form
• ·         Green "Technology Use" Form 
• ·         Bright colored student information card
• ·         My Great Kid Form
• ·         Class Directory Form

A couple of reminders:

·         Please check for your child’s blue daily communication folder each day. It should travel back and forth daily with your child.

·         Please send in a small healthy snack (one, no more than two items) with your child each day, as well as a spill/leak proof water bottle. Please help your child to know whether his/her lunch box contains a full lunch or just a snack. Some children have been bringing snacks in a lunch box, but they are meant to buy lunch in the cafeteria. This has been a little confusing for some of our little ones.

Please reach out at any time with questions, comments or concerns.  

I hope you and your children enjoy the much needed three day weekend! I can't wait to hear all about the exciting memories they create being with friends and family. I am off to Pennsylvania to visit my parents who still live there...bring on the 4 hour drive tomorrow!

Week One Complete!

Hi Everyone!

Have you signed up for the Remind text messaging service?  If not, please take a moment to download the Remind app (look for the white text bubble on a blue background) from the app store and join my class.  After you download the Remind app, you can join my class by texting @grade1dr to 81010.

We made it through our first two days!  Expect your little ones to be tired…they have been taking in a lot of information.  Your children are all so sweet and I am enjoying getting to know their personalities. We are going to build a strong community and have great fun this year in Room 3.

Please be sure that you are returning your forms to me (thank you to those of you who have already turned these in). The forms I am collecting include:

• ·         Blue "How Is My Child Getting Home?" Form
• ·         Yellow "Emergency Dismissal" Form
• ·         Pinebrook Handbook Acknowledgement Survey -- This is an online form you should complete and submit via the Pinebrook website.
• ·         Yellow "Student Rights and Responsibilities" Form
• ·         Green "Technology Use" Form 
• ·         Bright colored student information card
• ·         My Great Kid Form
• ·         Class Directory Form

Next week, I will begin to introduce some of our academic routines, such as morning work and morning meeting.  However, in a school environment -- and particularly with younger children -- the most important things I can do in the first few weeks are to establish explicit and reliable routines and procedures, establish specific behavior expectations, and build a solid foundation for relationships in our room. Those things will remain a priority for the next two weeks.

A couple of reminders:

·         Please check for your child’s blue daily communication folder each day. It should travel back and forth daily with your child.

·         Please send in a small healthy snack (one, no more than two items) with your child each day, as well as a spill/leak proof water bottle. Please help your child to know whether his/her lunch box contains a full lunch or just a snack. Some children have been bringing snacks in a lunch box, but they are meant to buy lunch in the cafeteria. This has been a little confusing for some of our little ones.

Please reach out at any time with questions, comments or concerns.  

I know that I am excited to unwind and relax a little from this busy week! I hope you all are getting out to enjoy the beautiful weather with a little relief from the heat!

I hope you all enjoy the weekend. I will look forward to seeing my new first graders back for a full week of school on Monday! 

Tentative Specials Schedule

Monday: Library and P.E.
Tuesday: Art
Wednesday: Music and P.E.
Thursday: Computer Lab, Guidance (A Week) SEARCH (B Week)
Friday: Music and P.E.

Thursday and Friday will be an A Week
Starting on Monday, August 28th will be a B Week
Students will not have their second special on Thursday, Friday, and Monday (first three days of school) so we can start dismissal/pack-up earlier to prepare for the end of the day. Starting on Tuesday, August 29th, students will be on their regular schedule.

Welcome to First Grade!

Hello First Grade!

I hope you all enjoyed Open House today! I am thrilled that I was able to meet many of my enthusiastic first grade students! I can't wait to learn more about all of you on our first day, Thursday, August 24th. :)

Parents:
Please make sure your child has a completed blue How is My Child Going Home form on the first day (if it is already completed and in my classroom...yay!)

First Day packets should also be returned with your child on Thursday.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Thank you!

Miss Drumheller

Changes!

Hello!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous end to summer! As I transition this year to first grade, I wanted to remind everyone to unsubscribe from my blog if you have not done so, so you do not receive further notifications of my blog posts. I am excited for my former fourth graders to become awesome fifth graders/leaders of the school! :)

SIGN-UP for STEAM-tacular CAMP!!!

Surprise Visit!

Look who came to visit Room 41...it's Pete the Puma!!!

Week of March 13-17

Happy Friday!

I wanted to provide you all an update of current happenings in our classroom for the upcoming week. Please take the time to review.

Important Reminders:

• Last week of Williamsburg payments is March 20-24th. If your child is attending the field trip, all permission forms and payments must be DUE on Friday, March 24th. Also, chaperone payments are due on Friday, March 24th, as well.
• SOL Night Thursday, March 16th 6:00 p.m. This will be an informative meeting for parents to learn about the new SOL assessment for students this year. 
• March 23rd will be the Triple Play at John Champe High School...come support the Thiessen Tigers!
• At the end of March, students will be receiving information regarding their Colonial Fair project. This is a requirement for all fourth grade students and will be due at the end of April. 
• March 31st is Career Day! If you or someone you know would be interested in coming in to share your career talent, please contact ASAP.

Shared Reading:

Students will be reading and comprehending a Banana Bread Recipe

Math:

Monday-Review Decimals

Tuesday-Probability

Wednesday-Probability

Thursday-Probability

Friday- Probability Review

Science:

Monday-Historical Contributions to Electricity Review

Tuesday-Electricity and Magnetism Test

Wednesday- Animal Adaptations (Structural)

Thursday- Animal Adaptations (Behavioral)

Friday- Producers, Consumers, and Decomposers

VA Studies:

Monday- Civil War

Tuesday- Civil War

Wednesday-Civil War

Thursday- Civil War

Friday- Civil War Review ( Test will be on Monday, March 20th)

Reading:

Students are continuing reading and researching history pertaining to the Revolutionary War

Writing:

Students are constructing opinion speeches 

If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know! 

Think we'll have any snow days next week?