News

Dear Carpenter Families,

It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to tell you that I will not be returning to Carpenter this school year.  With my recent marriage, I have had to relocate and continuing to teach in Ann Arbor would mean quite a commute for both my husband and myself.  I have been offered a new position and have accepted in the best interest of my family.

These past four years at Carpenter have been and will always be some of the most meaningful years of my teaching career.  Each day, I would look around my classroom and think about how grateful I am to teach the students of Carpenter.  Leaving this community has been a very difficult decision, and I will dearly miss the staff, students, and families.

I will be thinking of you often and hope that we can keep in touch.  I would love to get pictures and updates from you, letting me know how your family is doing.  Here is a link to some of my wedding photos from this July:  Click here!

Please feel free to contact me via my personal email address: csangeorzan@gmail.com.  I wish you all the best in everything you do!

Happy Summer Vacation!

We had a great last day of school!  Your child took home a number of items over the last week that demonstrate his/her hard work over the school year, including a handwriting journal, literacy journal, and math journal.  Review these together at home to celebrate!
The literacy journal is full of shared reading texts that we learned over the school year.  Your child can practice reading from this with a reading finger over the summer.  You may also choose to give your child math journal prompts over the summer.  I will be posting more learning ideas and resources soon!

THANK YOU to all families for a great school year.  And thank you for all the donations and volunteers over the last week - you really made our end of the school year fun!

We enjoyed some yummy popsicles on the last day:

Beach Day!

Wow we had a lot of fun today!  Here are some pictures from the day:

Beach Day Picnic

Base Ten Beach

Beach Bingo with teen numbers

Cool hats!

Beach Ball Relay

Roll, Add, & Cover with shells

Decorating hats

Beach Volley

Snacks

Making a list of things at the beach

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell Re-Telling

We had an absolutely wonderful classroom volunteer this year:  Miss K.  Ours Ks absolutely adore her and she has been a great help in our classroom this year.  Today, Miss K. brought in a special treat for the kids.  Take a look:

Tomorrow is our last day together!  Remember, it is a half-day so dismissal is at 11:51 AM.  There is not after-school childcare, so your child will either need to ride the bus or be picked up at 11:51 AM.  See you then!

3.5 Days!

Wow, only 3 and a half days left summer vacation!  Speaking of half, school dismisses at 11:51 AM on Friday.  If for some reason your child will not be at school on Friday, please let me know ahead of time so that we can make sure he/she has all his/her items.
Thank you!

End of School Year Events

Wow, about one week left of Kindergarten!

It's time to celebrate how we have grown together and all that we have learned! :)

I apologize for not getting this out to you earlier; but here are the planned events for next week:

* Wednesday, June 11th at 2:30 PM:  Classroom Certificate Ceremony!
Families are welcome in our classroom for a presentation of certificates.

* Thursday, June 12th:  Beach Day!
We will have fun, beach-themed activities all day long.  Parent volunteers are welcome and encouraged to manage activities in both the morning and afternoon.  Please contact me if you can help out.

On this day, your child can:
- Bring a beach towel
- Wear beach gear (flip flops, shorts & tanks, sunglasses, etc.). Bathing suits are not necessary.

*Friday, June 13th: Last day of school and half day!


SUPPLIES
We are in need of many supplies for next week.  I will be sending a note home tomorrow with things we need.  Please fill it out over the weekend with the item(s) you wish to send in and return it to school on Monday.  I will return the note to you on Monday, so that we don't have doubles and we can get all needs met.  Thank you!

There are a few specific and special items I am hoping a few families might be able take care of for the class.  These require a bit more work.  If you would like to help out with any of the follow items, please contact me and I will let you know what I had in mind.  Thank you!
1.  Certificate Ceremony treat (for Wednesday)
2.  Beach Day Treat (for Thursday)
3. Buy colored, foam visors for kiddos to decorate.  Click here for an example. We need 15.  I think they are available at Michaels or Target.
4.  Di-Cut Numbers (2014): For this task, I need a volunteer to come into school tomorrow, Monday, or Tuesday to use our di-cut machines to make these numbers.

Thank you for anything that you may be able to do to help!

Book Package Due Tomorrow!

Just a reminder that book packages are due tomorrow!

Thank you for your promptness in their return.  All books and the envelope need to be returned.  All papers may be kept at home.
Thank you!

Field Day Successes!

Field Day was a success!  Take a look at this picture slideshow:

Free slideshow generated with Smilebox

We sure had fun! :)


Remember, Book Packages are due back to school this week!  Our Ks have become such great readers! :)  Get some good reading done over the next few days and return the package to school by Thursday.
Make sure to return all books.
You may KEEP the papers (your child's writing work and the informational at home reading papers to continue reading work at home).
Thank you!

Buy One, Get One Free Scholastic Book Fair

ONE DAY ONLY EVENT.  Scholastic Book Fair:  BOGO!  Yes, buy one, get one free!

Date:  Tuesday, June 3

Time:  9-4 during the school day (classrooms will sign up for times to visit and buy)

           4-7  Family shop 

Where:  Carpenter Media Center

Please take this opportunity to stock up on summer reading AND support our library and reading programs at Carpenter.

A flyer is being sent home today, so you may preview books at home. 

Busy Week Ahead!

Here are some more gems from our list writing during Writer's Workshop over the last few sessions:

 A list of birthday party stuff

A list of -at family words

A list of movies

A list of train engines

(I learn something new everyday!)

A list of action words

A list of shapes

A list of robot parts

What GREAT ideas for list writing - generated by none other than the student him/herself! :)

A busy week ahead....

THURSDAY is our Field Trip!

Permission slips and the $4 cost is due tomorrow!  We have all the chaperones we can accommodate; and I will be contacting those family members tomorrow - thank you!

FRIDAY IS FIELD DAY!

We will be doing a variety of fun, athletic and team-building activities.  Most of the events are outdoors.  Kindergarten activities will run from 9:15 am - 11:30 am. 

Your child should wear these items TO school on Friday, to help the day run smoothly:

* Tennis shoes/sneakers

* Sunscreen (please apply BEFORE school)

* Comfortably, moveable, and cool clothing

Media Center Update

All Carpenter library books are due back to school by Friday, June 6th.  If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mrs. Burau (burau@aaps.k12.mi.us).

Field Trip: Health Exploration Station

Next week, we are taking a field trip to the St. Joseph Mercy Health Exploration Station in Canton!  Click here!

When?
Thursday, May 29th 
9:00am - 11:30am

Cost?
$4.00 per student and per chaperone

Permission slips are coming home today.  Please return it to school early next week.

We are in need of a few chaperones.  Space is limited, so it will be a first-come, first-pay, first-serve basis.  I will confirm with chaperones next week.

Remember, NO SCHOOL on Monday - happy Memorial Day!  Have a great weekend!

List Writing

Today, we learned a new genre of writing: List Writing!

We read a story title Bunny Cakes, in which Max and his sister make a cake for their grandma's birthday.  They make a list of things they need at the grocery store to make the cake.
We discussed different reasons people write lists and generated some ideas for list-writing topics.  Then we worked together in partners to write our own lists.  Take a look:

They wrote a list about what they would need to make cupcakes!

They wrote a list of frosting flavors!

They wrote a list of kinds of muffins!

They wrote a list of the months of the year -

 Look at those resourceful Ks using the Calendar to help! :)

Taking your child to the grocery store this week?  Have them help you to write a list! :)

Have a busy weekend ahead?  Make of list of things your family will do with your child! :)

TOMORROW is Carpenter's LAST BAGEL SALE for the school year!  Enjoy them while you can! :)

How-To Authors' Celebration!

Today we celebrated all of our hard work on our How-To writing pieces!  We shared our work with our classmates and had some juice and cookies :)
Take a look:

Here are some examples:

How to make french toast sticks

 How to make a train puff steam

Don't you just love Kindergarten writing?!

We kept one piece for your child's writing portfolio that he/she will take home at the end of the year.  But if your child worked on more than one piece over the unit, I sent those home in folders today.  Don't let those precious little gems of writing pieces slip through your fingers!  Ask your child to read you his/her work at home!

Just a reminder that Carpenter's Multi-Cultural Festival is tomorrow from 6-8pm!  It's a great time to socialize with the school community and to learn about each others' cultures!