Planting with Paige's Grammy!

Paige's Grammy came in to teach us all about the life cycle of a plant and all the kids got to take home a flower and a spider plant! The kids even got a yummy treat after all their planting. Thank you to Grammy and the Ribault Garden Club for providing all of the materials!

Juel was our Star Student for the week of December 12th. Juel is so sweet and loves to play with everyone on the playground. Juel also loves reading. Thank you to her Mom and Grandmother for bringing in popcorn and raisins and for joining us for lunch!

Holiday Party 2011

The class had a lot of fun at our Holiday Craft Party! They made a variety of crafts and enjoyed donuts. A BIG THANK YOU to all parents who volunteered to help make the crafts.

Holiday Concert!

All of Alimacani's 1st graders performed a special Holiday Concert this evening before the Cinema Under the Stars event. The kids were all dressed up in their holiday best and so excited to perform. They worked so hard learning all of the songs and even sign language to go along with "Silent Night." Great job everyone!

Star Student: Jadon!

Jadon was our star student this week and shared his photos and a special treat with the class. Jadon is such a great helper and loves school. He always tries his best in class and is a sweet friend. Thanks to Jadon's Poppa for the yummy snacks and for joining us for lunch!

Star Student: Macy!

Macy was our star student last week and shared her pictures and all about herself on Friday. Macy's mom joined us and brought the class yummy rice krispy treats! Macy is such a sweet friend to everyone in class and loves to read. Thanks again Macy and Mrs. Wells!

MOSH Fieldtrip

The students all enjoyed our November field study to the MOSH. They were able to see a variety of interactive science stations such as movement & sound, under the sea, and the human body. We also watched the Sun and Stars show in the planetarium.

Math Investigations: Roll and Record

Today, we played the Math game Roll and Record. Students played in pairs with dice and took turns rolling the dice and adding up the total. They then recorded their total onto the Roll and Record record sheet. We focused on whether or not students were able to add up and keep track of their totals and if students were able to write their numbers correctly. Please play this game at home with your child over the Thanksgiving break!

Peyton's Nana reads to us!

We were so lucky to have Peyton's Nana come in and read to us today! She is a former teacher and the kids were completely captivated by her! It is so fun to have special people read to us. Thanks again Nana!

Real Men Read!

Mr. Fell joined us last week to read to the class. He read Philippe in Monet's Gardens and the kids loved it! They also loved asking questions about Mr. Fell. Thanks again Mr. Fell!

Ms McAvoy Is Getting Married!

We wanted to share the exciting news that Ms. McAvoy is engaged! The students were very happy and excited to hear Ms. McAvoy is getting married. Congrats to Ms. McAvoy & Mr. Pugh!!

Real Men Read!

Emma's grandpa came in to read to the class today for Real Men Read week. Mr. Sikes served our country as a helicopter pilot in the Army for 14 years and then served working for the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for 22 years. The kids had lots of questions for him about his service and wanted to learn all about his favorite books and things he likes to do! He also taught us about the Pledge of Allegiance. Thanks again Mr. Sikes- what a special treat!

Real Men Read!

Mr. Paxton came into our class to read "Dogs and Boots" today. The kids just loved listening to Mr. Paxton and asking him questions after. Thanks again Mr. Paxton!

Veteran's Day with Mr. Bodkin

On Thursday, Mr. Bodkin joined us for flag raising and read a story to the class because he is a Marine Veteran. Mr. Bodkin read "My Sailor Dad" and answered questions about serving our country. He also kicked off our Real Men Read week. ATTENTION MEN! Dads and Grandpas, etc.- if you are available to come in and read a story to the class this week, let us know! We'd love to have you read a story to the class- you can bring a favorite or we can pick one out for you. Perhaps you'd like to join us before lunch around 10:30ish and stay for lunch with your child (11:15-11:45) or another time that works. Thanks again to Mr. Bodkin for serving our country and for reading to us and teaching us all about what it means to be a Veteran. :)

Celebrating Veteran's Day with HSL-48

In honor of Veteran's Day, we had a special Flag Raising ceremony on Thursday morning. This flag raising was so special because of the helicopter fly over by HSL-48 through the service! The helicopter landed on the field and every Alimacani student was able to get in it and talk to the guys who fly it. Our kids were so very excited to meet them and see a helicopter in real life. We are truly thankful to live in a country where we have freedom that is defended on a daily basis by men and women who serve and have served our country. Yay HSL-48!

HSL-48 - photo slideshow

Star Student: Vincent!

Vincent was our Star Student last week and shared lots of yummy snacks and pictures with the class. Vincent's dad came in to join the class, as well. Vincent is a very sweet boy who is well known around the school because he is a friend to everyone. He always tries his best in class and is a great helper. Thanks for the yummy snacks Vincent and Mr. Do!

I Care Language!

We have started learning about using "I Care Language" when students are having problems with one another. We introduced this by using Happy Hippo and Furious Fox. We shared examples of ways to use this strategy. An example of using "I Care Language" could be: "I don't like how you were laughing at my drawing. That hurt my feelings that you were laughing at it. I want you to please stop laughing at my drawing" - "I am sorry that I hurt your feelings by laughing at your drawing. It won't happen again".
The students role played examples of using "I Care Language" with the puppets. We encourage students to try to solve the more minor issues on their own instead of coming to teachers/adults all the time. The class has begun using "I Care Language" with one another and are enjoying solving these issues by themselves.

Pumpkin Math!

The kids had so much fun with Pumpkin Math last week. We explored the pumpkins describing what they look and feel like outside and inside. We also measured the height, width and length of the stem. We even counted the seeds by tens. It was such a blast! Thanks so much to Ms. Fell, Ms. Bodkin, Ms. Sikes and Ms. Arnold for coming in to help with this fun exploration!

Star Student: Imani!

Imani was our star student last week and shared her pictures and a snack with the class on Friday. Imani's mom even read the class a book! What a special treat! Imani is such a sweet friend to everyone in class and is a great reader and mathematician!

Fall Carnival 2011!

A special thanks to everyone who came out to the Fall Carnival! It was such a blast! Here are some pictures of classmates at the Carnival. Sorry if you came and we didn't get a picture with you. :(

Math Investigations: Ten Turns!

We played a fun math game called Ten turns in class. The kids loved working with partners and playing the game. In ten turns, each player gets a turn to roll the die and add the amount of counters to their 'bank.' Ten turns helps teach the concept of keeping track and counting higher values of numbers. You can play this game at home with the sheets that we sent home.

Star Student: Michael W.!

Michael W. was our star student today. Michael has been working really hard in school and making really good choices. He shared his awesome pictures and shared some delicious popsicles with the class. Thanks Michael and Michael's Mom!

Fire Safety with Captain McAvoy!

Today, Ms. McAvoy's brother Captain McAvoy of the Jacksonville Beach fire department came to our class and taught us all about Fire Safety. Be sure to do your Fire Safety Homework this weekend! Special thanks to Capt. McAvoy for coming in today. :)

Science: Making a Wormery!

All this week we have been learning all about worms and how important they are to the environment. Today, Paige's Grammy joined us to make wormeries with the kids. She is a member of the Ribault Garden Club and they provided all the materials needed for the project.

The kids got a chance to add dirt, sand and newspaper to the wormery and their own worm to observe. After discussing some facts about worms, the kids each got to place their worm into the wormery. We will observe the worms again on Friday to see their tunnels throughout the wormery. Grammy even brought us all a "dirt pudding" snack with a gummy worm! Yum! A special thanks to Grammy and the Jacksonville Garden Club for this awesome opportunity. We can't wait for the next project!

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Author Study: Kevin Henkes

We are beginning our author study on Kevin Henkes this week. Kevin Henkes is a very talented author and illustrator of books like Chrysanthemum, Wemberley Worried, Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse (Ms. McAvoy's personal favorite) and Lilly's Big Day (Mrs. Ridout's favorite!). Kevin Henkes writes books that kids can connect to and easily respond to. Kids can also connect with many of the mouse characters personality traits.

We are so excited to enjoy all of Kevin Henkes books this week. Go check some out at your public library and enjoy reading them with your children.
Click the links below to learn more about Kevin Henkes and his books:
Meet Kevin Henkes
Mouse books
Fun & games

Star Student: Kylie!

Kylie was our star student last week! Kylie is a great helper in class and is a great reader. Her Mom, Dad and brother joined us while Kylie shared her pictures and brought a yummy snack for the class. Yay Kylie!

Star Student: Michael A.!

Michael A. was our Star Student last week. He shared his pictures and shared some special healthy treats with the class. Michael's mom, who is a nurse, taught us some tips to stay healthy like washing our hands and how to sneeze properly. The kids even got a goodie bag to take home! Thanks Michael and family!

Star Student: Brianna

Brianna was our star student today and shared her special pictures and a treat with the class. Her Dad even read to our class- the kids just loved it! They also loved asking her Dad lots of questions about himself. :) Brianna loves to read, Justin Bieber and the color pink. Thank you for the yummy treats! Yay Brianna!

Shadow box

This is a shadow box that Ms. McAvoy's Dad built for items that were donated by a student's father from last year. He was deployed to Afghanistan for most of the year last year. Our class visited with him before he left and while he was gone, our class made cards for him and donated items to make a care package for him with all of his favorite things. We also made a special "thank you" video for him (you can find this video on our blog under the tab for February titled "thank you video").

When he came back in April, he returned to the class and gave us some special mementos from his journey. This shadow box will always remain in our class and serve as a special reminder to appreciate the people who fight and make sacrifices for our freedom.

Star Student: Justin!

On Friday, Justin was our star student! He shared his pictures that were displayed in the hallway and shared some treats with the class. Justin loves fast cars and the colors orange and gray. Thank you to Justin and his mom for the Nilla wafers and goldfish snacks! Yay Justin!