Sweet September

It is amazing to me that almost a month has already passed by! I feel like it was just yesterday that I was meeting you all for the first time at Open House. I guess the old saying proves true once again: ..."time flies when you're having fun!"

We have definitely been having fun over the past few weeks, getting to know one another, reading new books, learning new games, stretching our brains to new lengths. So if you have asked your child "What did you do in school today?" and you get the response of "Oh...not much...had lunch...went to recess..." have no fear, for here is a look at what we've really been up to. ENJOY! 

Team Building with Mrs. Matthews on the 1st Day 

Can your entire team get over the rope at the same time?? 

When's Recess?? 

12:45-1:15

GO JERSEY!!

 In case you missed Back to School Night...I let out a little secret...that I am a "mis-placed southerner." I am originally from New Jersey. So my heart melted when Jayden came in sporting his Save the Shore shirt!! Our hearts go out to all the families who lost during Hurricane Sandy and again with the recent Boardwalk fire. 

 Writing in the Arts

Friday Writing with Mrs. Vozzolo 

-Postcard Writing- 

Students "visited" faraway places by studying different landscapes. 

They then illustrated their own postcards and wrote letters to friends and family at home. 

 Buddy Reading our Scholastic News! 

Fun in the Computer Lab!!

Math is All Fun and Games 

Playing School Bus Bump to help up practice our skip counting...

                       

...working together with friends from Ms. Kensinger's class to: 

1. Order the cups from least to greatest 

2. Build a pyramid keeping the cups in order 

3. Record the number pattern from the cups

4. Determine what the number pattern/skip counting rule is for that set of cups 

5. Repeat with the next set in the rotation 

  

Skip Counting Cup Towers
The kids had a BLAST!

...and working with partners to answer challenging ordinal questions in a "Walk the Room" excercise! 

 

Our First Socratic "Chat" with Mrs. Lott

Mrs. Lott, our wonderful Gifted and Talented teacher, and I have been collaborating for two years now. She comes in for the afternoons on Thursdays and works with us in Reading, Math, and Social Studies/Science from time to time. On this first visit, she read aloud the book "The Crayon Box That Talked" and followed it with discussion questions that got us all thinking outside of the proverbial "crayon" box. We talked about teamwork, getting along, and expectations that we have for our students. 

We've got spirit, yes we do! 

We've got spirit, how 'bout you?!

FRIDAYS ARE SPIRIT DAYS! 

Show your SPIRIT and 

Wear a HAT or your HCES Spirit Shirt 

Our Annual Fundraiser Kickoff!! 

Information went home with your child on Friday. 

Check your child's FISH Binder for a purple OPT-OUT form 

if you would rather donate money to the school. 

...like I said, it's been a FUN and BUSY month!! I can't wait to see what October brings! :) 

Happy New School Year!

Dear Henry Clay Tiger Cubs,
 
We are anxiously awaiting your return for the 2013-2014 school year!  We hope everyone has enjoyed their summer and are looking forward to the new school year. Please join us in welcoming our new staff members to our Henry Clay family. Miss Hulsey will be joining our first grade team and Mrs. Beard will assume a new role as our Instructional Assessment Resource teacher.  Mr. Weaver, previously, from Chesterfield County will be HCES new assistant principal.
 

August 29:

- 9:00 a.m.            HPI Orientation

- 11:00 a.m.           Kindergarten Orientation

- 1:00-3:00 p.m.    Open House for Grades 1-2

Parents will be able to pay school fees:
Art Fee - $ 4.00
Scholastic Magazine (second grade only) - $5.00
Lunch money may also be deposited into students’ accounts.

Optional fees
*Birthday Book - $10.00
*PTA Membership - $5.00

The school nurse will be available to receive physical /immunization forms, medications, and medication authorization forms (signed by the parent and doctor, if applicable). All kindergarten students must have a physical dated September 3, 2012 or after in order to receive their teacher assignment. Also, please notify the nurse if your child has any chronic medical conditions (such as food allergies, diabetes, asthma, seizures, etc.).                                                                                                                                                  
For those who are unable to attend the Open House, classroom teachers will personally contact you prior to the first day of school, Tuesday, September 3, 2013.

September 3 - First Day of School

Kindergarten students will be escorted to their classrooms. First and second grade students should report directly to the cafeteria where their teachers will meet them.
           
Busses will unload at 7:45 a.m.
Tardy bell will ring at 8:05 a.m.  
Dismissal will begin at 2:30 p.m.
 
There is a new traffic pattern for students using our curbside service in the afternoon. Parents should drive up South James Street past the front entrance and staff members will escort students to the cars from the A1 entrance.

September 19 - 6:00 p.m. - Back to School Night

All parents should precede directly to the gym for an overview of the evening.
 

Our new school theme is H.A.T.S. - Helping All to Succeed

Spirit Days will be every Friday! All students and staff will show their school pride by wearing spirit shirts and hats!
 

Looking forward to seeing everyone soon!

Mrs. Cox

ABC Countdown

What better way to count down the last 26 days of the year than by using the alphabet to do a special activity each day until the last day of school?! It's hard to believe we are already at this time in the school year. We have had so much fun learning, I guess the saying is true - "Time flies when you're having fun!"

Take a look at what we have been up to so far...

A - Apple
Students decorated APPLES of APPRECIATION for teachers throughout the school. Many were given to the students' previous teachers. It warmed their hearts to receive notes from old students!

B - Beach Day
It was great to see everyone in their shades and some even in bathing suits!! I brought in Ann Catherine's sound machine, so we could relax to the calming sounds of ocean waves,  and I downloaded the Beach Boys' Greatest Hits to play throughout the day. This is one of my favorite days and I grew up near the beach and it always has its way of putting everyone in a good mood :) !

Beach Towels Make the Best Capes! 

 Playing in the "SAND" with our Beach Buckets

Having Fun with Beach Balls

Are we tan yet? 

Beach Babes

Mrs. Cox's Private Study Island

C - Creative Cats
Mrs. Smith (long term substitute for Mrs. Scott) and I joined forces on this one. We gave the students some free time with contraction paper, scissors, glue, crayons, colored pencils, and markers. They were given no guidelines other than they were allowed to have complete creative freedom! From paper airplanes to mothers' day cards, it's safe to say they were VERY creative!

D - Dance Party
Sometimes, you just need to let loose a little bit! Unfortunately, I was unable to get any pictures of this, as I was playing DJ, but I'm sure you can imagine it! From conga lines to kung fu, they definitely enjoyed "letting their hair down" for a few.

E - Experiment
To go along with our science unit on Life Cycles, we "planted" lima bean seeds in our own Ziplock bag terrariums and taped them to the window. So far we have had two beans sprout roots. I know we are all looking forward to see what has sprouted over the weekend!

F - Favorite Book
Students brought in their favorite books to share with the class and to spend some time reading during our designated DEAR: Drop Everything and Read time. It was great to see some new titles I had never seen before and to hear why they had each chosen their particular books.

G - Gum and Games
Mrs. Smith and I joined forces once again, as we handed out gum balls and gave the students a chance to play their boardgames while enjoying the beautiful weather (finally!).

H - Hat Day
It was a great day to wear your hat, as the bright sun continued to beat down on us during recess on Friday! Let's hope the nice weather is here to stay!!

We also had a special visitor on Friday. As we continued on with our life cycles unit, we discussed the importance of the word METAMORPHASIS  during the butterfly and frog life cycles. Mrs. Wright, student aid in Mrs. Smith's room, brought in her pet tree frog that she rescued from the halls of Henry Clay! The students enjoyed a quick visit with Senior Froggie!

Stay tuned for more updates as we continue on our ABC COUNTDOWN to the end of the year!! Only 18 more days!!