We Made it!

We made it to Winter Break!!! I am in the mists of packing my family up to fly up North for Christmas so this will be a quick update!

The children and I had a blast this last week!

I am sure you have heard by now that we came in 2nd place for the sock drive- we did a great job! We raised 241 pairs of socks for the needy. The 1st place class brought in 251 pairs so it was a close race! As a school we raised 2,694 pairs of socks!!!

While we did not come in first place, I am extremely proud of our class for their efforts, enthusiasm and kind hearts during the sock drive. I have been approached by a parent in our class and we have decided that we are going to throw our own party for the students to show them how wonderful they did! If you would like to help or contribute please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email!

Now on with the pictures!

We were invited to watch Carver High School's choir and orchestra play at our school!

We even had front row seats!

AND Santa was there playing the guitar!

We practiced telling time to the hour and 1/2 hour.

On Polar Express Day we practiced our addition with marshmallows!

Everyone in our class can write their names-- and we all LOVE hot cocoa!

Polar Express Patterns

We each created our own tickets to board the Polar Express!

Kinder students also worked on their subtraction with marshmallows. They loved when they took away all of their marshmallows by eating them :)

We learned that there are 5 basic things that we NEED to live.

and that there are many things that we want!

Friday we finished wrapping up our presents for our parents- we hope you like them!

 As always I hope you enjoyed your peak into our classroom. Enjoy your time this holiday season with your little ones! I am going to miss each and everyone and can't wait to see you again next year!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from The Richardson Family!

 (P.S.- Thank you for all of your thoughtful cards and gifts!)

One more week to go!

(This post has been sitting on the blog as a draft for over a week!! Oops! I published it today so you can finally view it!)

We have been counting down the days until Christmas Break in room #12. While counting down we have been enjoying all of our Christmas themed activities too!

We have been reading different versions of "The Gingerbread Man". Below are two links to ginger bread activities that you can enjoy at home!

Star Fall.com Gingerbread Man Game 

Star Fall.com Gingerbread Man Story 

After reading several stories about Gingerbread men we decided to create our own! Mrs. McCray helped us to mix cinnamon and applesauce to create our own! (There is also a touch of glue mixed in so please to not try to eat them!)

Here is a link to the recipe if you'd like to make some at home!

Kindergarten students decorated our tree by creating strings of lights while practicing how to spell their spelling words and sight words!

This week we also were lucky enough to have the dentist come to our school for a visit! She said that we have been doing a great job at brushing our teeth- but to remember the magic word! Ask your little one what they are supposed to drink after they eat or drink any thing else!

 Here are some pictures of us hard at work!

After a long hard week Pre-K went on their very first field trip!

We walked to Houston Academy and enjoyed their performance!

 Santa was there and enjoyed it too!

I am very excited for the upcoming week! We will be having our Polar Express Day on Tuesday.

Please remember to send your little ones in their pajamas! Students may wear slippers too- but please send slippers in backpacks and wear "real" shoes to school!

Friday is our Christmas Party! The students and I will be creating some crafts, playing a few games and enjoying a Christmas movie while we eat.

If you would like to send any party snacks for Friday please feel free! Anything is allowed for the party as long as it is store bought (Aldine ISD policy). Friday is the day that our stocking will come home as well!

Also remember that Friday is the last day of our sock drive. We are in first place but another classroom is right behind us! For more information visit our last update on Sock Update!

Please continue to send your little ones in appropriate outer wear. Unless it is raining we will be going outside everyday to burn off some of our extra energy! 

Also please make sure that EVERYTHING is labeled!!! All black  gloves look alike to 4 year olds! 

I have seen several families (including me for my little Marilyn) use these stickers to label anything that goes to school and needs to come back! They are laundry (dishwasher and microwave) safe. Once you put them on they stay on until you remove them by hand.

Here is the Website where you can get them!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and see you tomorrow!

-Mrs. Richardson

Sock Update!

We have done an AMAZING job for the 1st week of the sock drive! 

So far Reece Academy has collected........1,222 new pairs of socks!!!

And it gets even better.......room #12 has brought the most! We have collected 142 pairs of sock in our room alone!

Our original goal in our class was to collect 100 pairs. We beat our goal halfway through the first week!

 Our new goal is 150 pairs. I hope that we can beat that on Monday and create one last goal to reach by the end of Friday.

I have really been trying to explain to the children that we have helped over 100 people keep their feet warm.....but being 4 and 5 year olds they want to win the prize!

We are currently in first place with 142 pairs of socks.....however the second place classroom is right behind us with 138 pairs! 

I went shopping again this weekend to buy some more socks for us. Please consider looking for some good deals for socks while you are out this weekend! 

A few of our students in our class used money from their piggy banks to purchase some socks- I am so proud of their generosity!

Again thank you for the amazing support you have given us so far! Remember Friday is the last day to donate!

-Mrs. Richardson

Better Late Than Never :) December Calendars

Rotation Calendar-   December Rotation Calendar

Snack Calendar- December Snack Calendar

Christmas Party Letter: Thank you to everyone that has already sent in their money!-Party Letter

Reece Academy Sock Drive-Please Donate NEW Socks :)

I am excited to announce that Reece Academy and Carver High School will be teaming together to have a Sock Drive for "Hannah's Socks"!

I am proud to say that this wonderful charity stared in my home state of Ohio- right by the college I attended! 

 

Please help us collect as many pairs of new socks as we can! 

 

 Baby Socks,

Kid's socks,

Woman's socks,

and Men's socks, we are collecting them all!

Below is the story that inspired the creation of Hannah's Socks.

On a chilly Thanksgiving Day in 2004, 4-year-old Hannah Turner was helping serve dinner to the needy at Toledo's Cherry Street Mission.

In the middle of the hustle and bustle of doing her part to fill plates, she tugged on her mother Doris' sweater.

"Mommy, won't his feet be cold?"

Hannah had focused on a man in line wearing shoes that had split open to reveal he had no socks on, and her small face reflected concern.

Doris tried to reassure her: "His shoes will keep his toes warm." She didn't know how they could help with all staff focused on the meal, and she didn't want her daughter carrying a burden.

Hannah — too smart, too big of heart — was unconvinced.

"Mommy, he can have my socks," she said.

That next day, Doris took Hannah to purchase and distribute socks to local shelters. They were able to collect and donate over 100 pairs around Toledo. Over two more years, and with amazing support from friends and family, they distributed nearly 10,000 total pairs of socks to partner shelters.

Doris and husband Vic quickly discovered that of all the materials donated to shelters, new socks and undergarments are given the least and needed the most. They created Hannah's Socks with the goal of addressing that problem, and they need your help.

http://www.hannahssocks.org/hannahs-story