Valentine's Day is around the corner...

We will have our Valentine's Day party on Thursday, February 14th from 2:15-3:20.  All are welcome to attend our party even if you are not part of the Valentine's Party Committee:)  Plan to stop by for 5 minutes or stay the whole time!

We have 23 friends in our class as well as myself and Mrs. Malewitz, so that makes 25 friends!  Please send in 25 addressed or unaddressed valentines on Monday, Feb. 11th.  If your child's valentines are unaddressed, please be sure he/she signs his/her name in the "from" spot:) We will pass out valentines during our Work Board time on Feb. 11th and Feb.12th.  I will send home a list of classmates in your child's Friday Folder.

The 100th Day of School is Feb. 13th!

We will celebrate the 100th Day of school on Wednesday, Feb. 13th!  Please send in 100 items in a ziploc bag.  Some suggestions are as follows: 100 paperclips, 100 Cheerios, 100 uncooked noodles, 100 small marshmallows, 100 Legos, 100 pennies, 100 buttons, etc.  I would like the 100 items to be 100 of the same thing not 100 different things.  Please send your 100 items in a ziploc on or before Feb. 13th.  Please let me know if you have any questions!

Valentine's Day Mail Holder

Please send in 1 EMPTY cereal box, tissue box, or shoe box by Monday, Feb. 4th.  Each child will use his/her box as their mailbox for their valentines they receive from classmates.  We will be painting them and decorating them very soon so...please have your empty box to school by Monday, Feb. 4th.  Thank you!

Pancake and Pajama Day is TOMORROW!

Pancake and Pajama Day is TOMORROW!  Our kindergarten friends will wear his/her pajamas to school and do pajama and pancake related activities.  We will also enjoy pancakes during morning snack time.  Your child may also bring a stuffed animal or pillow pet to enjoy while at school.  I do ask that each child only brings one item:)

Book Orders are due tomorrow!

Be sure to turn in your Scholastic book order tomorrow or place your order online.  There are some great choices this month!

Some books I would recommend are the following:

Red Sled by Lita Judge

Big Hugs, Little Hugs by Felicia Bond

No Two Alike by Keith Baker

Ready, Set, 100th Day by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Snowmen All Year by Caralyn Buehner

These are just a few titles that would be great read alouds for your kindergartner:)

Kids' Food Basket

We made Breakfast Bundles for children in the Grand Rapids area this morning.

Thank you for your donation of individual cereal boxes.  Due to everyone's generosity, 

Lakeside School was able to make 1,200 Breakfast Bundles!!! 

 We are working hard to fill our bags to make sure each bundle has one box of cereal, 

one Pop-Tart, one fruit snack, and one drink box.  

Kids' Food Basket came to Lakeside to assist us with the Breakfast Bundles.

We CAN Make a Difference!

We are waiting for the assembly to begin.

 Mother Teresa was one of the many people who made a difference in our world.  

We remembered the compassion that Mother Teresa showed toward others...

We celebrated the many people who have worked hard to make this world a better place through song and through our words.  After singing some songs, one of our kindergarten friends looked at me and said "Mrs. Grin, that was so beautiful, I think I could cry" and I agreed that it was, indeed, beautiful!  We also heard Dr. King's I Have a Dream speech not only through a recording of Dr. King but also from our 5th graders who recited it.

Monday Cooking!

A BIG thank you goes to Luke's dad for coming to our classroom today for cooking.  Our cooking friends made Tracks in the Snow for all of us to enjoy:)  The children thought that they might make some tracks in the snow later today!  We LOVE our cooking volunteers!

Friday Cooking

A BIG thank you goes to Gray's mom for coming to our classroom today for cooking.  Our cooking friends made Snowmen Sticks for all of us to enjoy:)  The children thought that our Snowmen Sticks might help us get some SNOW so we can make a REAL snowman outside!  We LOVE our cooking volunteers!

Pancake and Pajama Day is Good to Go!

Thank you everyone for your generous donations for our Pancake Party!

6 bottles of Shake 'n Pour Pancake Mix: Anthony (1), Petra (1), Jada (1), Mollie (2), Brooklyn (1)

4 sticks of butter: Petra
30 heavy duty paper plates: Zac
Napkins: Zac
6 plastic knives: Anthony
30 forks: Anthony
2 bottles of syrup: Luke (1) and Max (1)
3 electric griddles: Lauren, Reagan, and Brooklyn
4 parents to cook, butter, and serve the pancakes (10:15-11:30):  
                   ~Amy T., Tammy F., Dave K., and Kim W.

Please drop off your donated item(s) on or before Tuesday, Jan. 29th.

Lakeside Carnival is February 1st!

Carnival Information from your PTA:

The Lakeside Carnival is on Friday, Feb.1st from 5:30-8:30

1. A volunteer flier and beauty shop permission slip (upper L only) are coming home in the Friday Folders TODAY! Students must return/bring with them to Carnival/have a signed permission slip before having any beauty services. The Beauty Shop will be staffed by the Aveda Institute. There will be service choices for both boys and girls!

2. We need volunteers to run all areas of the Carnival! A sign-up genius link makes online sign-up fast and easy. The link is http://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0E4FAAA928A46-carnival. 
*An easy click live link is also available in the Blast.

3. We are having a classic Cakewalk and Baked Good Bingo. Yummy baked goods are needed! Treats can be dropped off anytime Feb 1st to the teacher's lounge. The grade with the highest student participation rate wins a pizza party! Remind parents to label treats with correct grade for tally.

4. Tickets will be sold in $5 & $10 bags. Two tables will be set up for ticket sales (front door/3rd grade door). Tickets can also be purchased outside the office after school until 4pm on Feb 1st.

5. Have an older brother or sister? Carnival is looking for EGR middle and high school students to help run carnival games! MS/HS students can volunteer on sign-up genius too.

Good-bye Miss Kenzie

We will be saying good-bye to our high school cadet teacher, Miss Kenzie, tomorrow:(  We will have a little party for her tomorrow afternoon and we will give her the thank you/good-bye cards the children worked hard making for her.  The children have enjoyed having Miss Kenzie in our class this semester!

Mark your calendars!

Mark your calendars for some special kindergarten activities coming up...

Our Kindergarten Art Gala will be on March 5th.  It will be at the Performing Arts Center at our high school from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.  Our gala will be an open house style format.  Parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, friends, and neighbors are encouraged to come to our gala.

Our Poetry Party will be on May 23rd in our classroom from 2:30-3:25.  We will be writing poetry during the month of May and each child will celebrate his/her learning by reading a poem that he/she wrote to everyone at our party.  We will also share our poetry books with you at this time.  After all of the children have shared their poems and books, we will have ice cream in our courtyard.  Parents, grandparents, siblings, relatives, and friends are invited to attend.  It is my hope that each child has at least one person in attendance.

More details will follow as the dates get closer!

Pancake and Pajama Day is Jan. 29th!

The kindergarten is having a special day on Tuesday, Jan. 29th!  We are having Pancake and Pajama Day!  We will wear our pajamas to school and do pajama and pancake related activities.  We will also enjoy pancakes during morning snack time.  Your child may also bring a stuffed animal or pillow pet to enjoy while at school.  I do ask that each child only brings one item:)

I will need parents to help with our pajama day.  If you are able to help with any of the below listed items, please send me an email and I will reply and post our completed list.  Please have your item brought to school on or before Tuesday, Jan. 29th.  Thank you for your help!

One item, in particular, that is VERY helpful when making pancakes in our classroom is Bisquick: Shake 'n  Pour Buttermilk Pancake Mix.  I even have a picture for you so you know exactly what I would like to use:)

6 bottles of Shake 'n Pour Pancake Mix
4 sticks of butter
30 heavy duty paper plates
Napkins
6 plastic knives
30 forks
2 bottles of syrup
2 griddles
2 parents to cook the pancakes (10:15-11:25)

Thank you!

Day 80 has come and gone...

We celebrated our 80th day of school this past Monday!  Can you believe it?  The children once again enjoyed a story, songs, and a zero treat with our beloved, Zero the Hero!

Friday Cooking

A BIG thank you goes to Petra's mom for coming to our classroom today for cooking.  Our cooking friends made Snowy Trail Mix for all of us to enjoy:)  The children thought that our Snowy Trail Mix looked like we were eating twigs, berries, and snow!  We LOVE our cooking volunteers!

Kids' Food Basket Donations are due by Jan. 18th

Please be sure to send in your food donation for Kids' Food Basket by January 18th.  Kindergarten is collecting single-serving cereal boxes.  Please help by sending in your food donation so we are able to make plenty of Breakfast Bundles for hungry children in our Grand Rapids area on January 21st.  Please let me know if you have any questions.  Thank you for your support!

No School on January 24th and 25th

There will be no school for students on January 24 and January 25 due to report cards and professional development meetings for teachers.  This is semester break for students in grades Y5-12.

January Sharing Homework

Homework for the week of January 14-18:     Mystery Letter!  Choose any letter of the alphabet and choose an object that begins with that letter. Write 3 clues about your object to share with the class. For example: Starts with the letter B. You can bounce it. It is round. Answer: BALL!  Place your object in a bag so your friends cannot see it.

Homework for the week of January 21-23:          Create a winter story problem using pictures and numbers.  For example: Draw 3 snowflakes + 4 hats = 7 and then write 3 + 4= 7.  Bring story problem to share with the class.

Due to the short week ~ If your sharing day is Thursday, choose a different day to share.

Homework for the week of January 28- Feb. 1^st:   Sharing of your own choosing.