Have a wonderful Holiday Break!

Saying Goodbye!

We took our fish babies to Meldrum Bar Park in Gladstone last week. Each student scooped out a few smolt (there were a lot of them!) and helped them into the river. It turned out to be a great day for letting them go... it wasn't raining!!

 The waiting in between was the hardest part... but the kids were so good!

Everything was going "swimmingly" (haha!!) until a boat went by. The waves created by the boat were a bit rough for our little fish! Some of them got swished back up on to the rocks... however, we were able to get most of them back into the water quickly. Whew!

Can you see the little guy?

Some couldn't decide what to do... we figured they were in a bit of shock! They huddled together whenever they found a buddy. It was a fun - if quick - field trip. Next time we'll have to take our lunches and have a picnic. (If the weather is warmer, that is!!)

I know I’ve said this before, but it’s true! This year has flown by! How in the world is it already the end of November? I’m going to have to start training myself to write 2012 before I know it!

There was such an overwhelming response to the Dental Sealant Program this year, that they ran out of time to see all of the students. They will be returning to Linwood on December 5th.

We will be heading out to Bar Park to release our fish babies. It has been so exciting to watch them grow... they are beginning to lose their yolk sac and are swimming more freely. Remember to send back your permission slip so we can all go along on such a fun field trip! (We’ll be back by lunch time!)

The Cafe program is having a canned food drive this week and next. If you are able, please send cans or   non-perishable food items to school so we might help families that can use a little extra help this season.

Odd and Even Numbers

We are quickly becoming experts in the study of odd and even numbers. We know that ODD numbers have a 1, 3, 5, 7, or 9 in the ones place. The EVEN numbers have 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 in the ones place. We discovered that the hundreds chart in our room has an even/odd pattern... all of the even numbers are red!

Here's a look at our Odd & Even neighborhood. What do you notice about the houses?

A New Playground!

We've been watching them build the new playground since September... since it's so close to our classroom, the kids were pretty sure that the playground was all for them...but, don't worry, we'll share! :) We couldn't wait to get out there and try everything out. The best part? There's enough swings for a ton of people! (The old playground, that we still use, only has 4 swings!)

 

Safety and a Special Guest

Last week we read the story, "Officer Buckle and Gloria". (I love this story... it's one of my favorites!) It's a fun book about a police officer who teaches safety tips like, never put anything in your ear and never stand on a swivel chair!

Throughout the week we talked about ways we can be safe doing our favorite activities:

And the ways we can be safe in the different places we might go:

To wrap up our little unit on safety, we had a very special guest stop by... Meet Mr. Hoyer! (Better known as Mr. Aiden's dad.) He works at Clackamas County Sheriff's Department and he came by our classroom to talk to us about the many different ways we can be safe.

Then... the most exciting part... we got see Officer Hoyer's car! Each kid got a turn sitting in the (very uncomfortable!) back seat. What a treat! He also turned on the lights and gave a couple of hits on the siren. I heard a couple of the kids say, "This was the best day ever!"

What a fun experience! Thank you Officer Hoyer, for sharing your safety tips! (And, the cool car, of course!)