Talent Show & Rodgers Park

Reminder:

Talent Show:

Wednesday, May 25th at 1:30pm in the Keystone gym.  Second and third graders will be performing talents.  There are a few first graders that are part of these groups.  If you're wondering why your child wants to practice a talent, it is because everyone is so excited to go to the talent show that we're going to have "Talent Time" in our classroom on Thursday.  :)  

Rodgers Park:

We are headed to Rodgers Park, near Vinton, on Thursday, May 26th.  We'll leave Thursday morning and come back shortly after lunch if the weather holds out.  Please send your child with a sack lunch, sunscreen, and a hat.  They also need to wear appropriate shoes.  No sandals, please.  

Last Day:

Our final day of school is Friday.  It is a 1:00 dismiss.  

Updates, Reminders, & I Can... Statements

The last few weeks of school always seem to fly.  This year isn't any different!  Please check out the information below about different happenings at Keystone Elementary this week and next.

Tuesday, May 17th - EOY conferences
Wednesday, May 18th - 1:00 Dismiss
Firday, May 20th - Step Up Day
Wednesday, May 25th - Keystone Elementary Talent Show
Thursday, May 26th - K-2 Rodgers Park trip - SACK LUNCH
Friday, May 27th - Last day of school - 1:00 dismiss  


Benton's 50th Anniversary:

We've been interviewing Bobcats past and present.  I will roll out the videos for these soon!  Keep asking your child about his or her role in our interview process!  It has been so much fun for all of us to learn about Benton's history.

Rodgers Park:

Kindergarten, first, and second grade students will be going to Rodgers Park on Thursday, May 26th.  We hope to leave Keystone Elementary around 8:50am and will return around 1:30pm.  Your child will need a sack lunch on this day.  Please also make sure your child has an extra bottle of water and sunscreen.  A hat is also recommended for this trip.  It looks like summer is going to arrive next week; right in time for our trip!

Step-Up Day:

On Friday, your child will go to his or her 2nd grade classroom for about two hours.  Each student will spend some time getting to know their 2nd grade teacher and getting familiar with their new classmates.  


Maker Challenges:

We've been participating in a number of different maker challenges.  Be sure to follow our challenges on Instagram at BCFirst and on Twitter at #keyrocks and #bcmakers.  

Here are our "I can..." statements for this week:

I can...

• read and write compound words
• correctly spell first grade sight words
• summarize a text by describing the main idea and key details
• subtract groups of ten from a two-digit number
• identify coins
• count money

Today's Maker Challenges - Jenga & Jix

We ran out of time for yesterday's maker challenge, so we made up for it today with TWO challenges!  Today was all about building, considering features like strength and design.  

This morning, we build a tower with Jenga blocks.  Then, we found out how much weight in books the tower would hold.  I heard great conversations about the differences between low, broad towers and tall, narrow towers.  I also enjoyed hearing students count!  A few made it into the hundreds!

Our second challenge today was a team activity.  Students used JIX to build.  The challenge was to build the tallest structure.  The bigger challenge was to be able to communicate and work as a team.  Students reflected on the challenge when we were finished.  They all said that things went much better when they listened to each other.  This was a WIN for us all, especially students!  One of my favorite parts of these challenges is that students are learning things like team work, collaboration, and communication skills at six and seven years-old.  

I Can... Statements for the Week of May 9th & Reminders

I feel like a lot of important papers have gone home in the past few days.   Please be sure to check your child's folder each night. 

Some of the important notes include:

• fundraiser shirt order for Onnah Dvorak
• soccer registration
• Benton 50 years shirt order

I look forward to talking to so many of you tomorrow night as we kick off end-of-year conferences.  I'm excited to chat about how much your child has grown this year and next steps to keep them on the road to success.  

Even though we are winding up the school year, we are still busy learning as much as we can to prepare for 2nd grade and life!  Here is what we're working on this week.

I can...

• read and write first grade sight words
• read fluently
• draw conclusions from text
• subtract two-digit numbers using base-ten blocks
• subtract two-digit numbers using a hundreds chart
• write and ask interview questions
• read and write compound words

Here are a few pictures from our day.  We had fun with a maker challenge and a Kahoot pre-assessment on compound words.

Happy Mother's Day!

I'm guessing most of my students couldn't wait to give you your Mother's Day gift.  They all worked so hard on their pillows.  When I decided to add sewing to our list of maker challenges, I thought I had officially lost my mind.  Sewing with 20 6-year-olds?!?!  Say that out loud.  It sounds crazy.  I called in reinforcements.  My grandparents returned from wintering in the sunshine state and my grandma came in the next day to sew with us.  Mrs. Andresen and Mrs. Anderson also rolled up their sleeves to help.   It went GREAT!  From creating the design to threading the needle, your child did it all!  In the beginning, we heard a lot of "This is hard!" and "I can't do this!"  By the end, students were asking to create another! 

At the end of the day, we were able to talk about working hard on this project just like moms work hard for us every day.  Thanks for being great moms to work with!  I hope you all enjoy your day.  

Take a minute to watch this tear jerker from Kid President.  I know all of your children want you to hear this message.  You are loved!

Trip Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is our field trip to Twisters Gymnastics.  We will arrive around 9:30.  Around 10:30, we will leave Twisters and head to Cherry Hill Park.  At 12:20, we will leave Cherry Hill Park and go on an hour long tour of Frey Pet Hospital.

Please be sure your child brings a SACK LUNCH.  Also, it is going to be HOT.  Please consider putting sunscreen on your child.

Let me know if you have any questions.

We've had a busy week so far.  In case you miss our pictures on Twitter or Instagram, I've included them below.