I was back at school today but am still very hoarse. Students read their mini books to three others and then colored them. In science, students measured the height of their sunflower plants. We learned the importance of bees to plants and flowers. We would not have apples, almonds, or pumpkins without bees. Students made bees out of toilet paper tubes and "flew" them at the end of the day.

There was an assembly this morning about "morning walk," which will begin on Monday. Students who arrive before 8:05 (before any staff members are on duty) are to line up as usual. When a staff member arrives, students will begin walking in the same direction around the edges of the blacktop part of the playground. When the bell rings at 8:15, they are to finish their last lap, and then go to their line. I'm sure it will only take a few days to get the hang of it.

You will get a May lunch menu in your Monday envelope, but I thought I could at least let you know what's for lunch on Monday. It will be Cheesy Nachos, Corn Dog, or Beef Ravioli. Heads up: no school next Friday, May 7th. Have a great weekend.

Since I haven't been in class for a couple of days, I haven't tuned in to Rusty's social skills videos. A teacher friend, who also shows Rusty's videos to her class, let me know that Rusty did a "shout out" to our class on Tuesday's message. I have attached a link to the right so you can hear it.

We had a surprise visit from Mrs. Swan today. After doing her Junior Field experience in our room, Mrs. Swan student taught in a first grade classroom at Newman Elementary. She is almost finished and ready to graduate. Congratulations!! Students were each given a picture this morning and had to find a partner with a matching picture of a home and something that might live in that home. For example, one student had a picture of a foot and one had a picture of a shoe. At journal time, both partners wrote a sentence about their matched pair. Ex: "A shoe is a house for a foot."

By the end of the day, I had almost completely lost my voice. I have a headache from straining so hard to get any sound out, so just in case I'm not better by tomorrow, I left notes for a substitute. If your child is in sign club, it will still take place in my room, business as usual.

This week's newsletter has been posted to the class web site. I'm napping, drinking tea with honey, and taking vitamin C, hoping that I can kill this icky feeling in my throat. We mowed the lawn yesterday, so I'm thinking it stirred up all kinds of allergens.

Due to the wet weather. the student council's tree planting ceremony was moved to Monday. Our class toy exchange was a huge hit! Thanks to everyone who sent toys and books to school and a huge thanks to our organizers/helpers Elizabeth R., Diane M-H, Kim D., and Jennifer E.!!! Each student went home today with one new toy and one new book. The helpers stayed to make sure each child had their new book read to them. At journal time, students wrote about what they got. It seemed like all the students were happy with their choices. Have a great weekend, everyone!

What a busy day! We had our class picture taken in the morning, along with individual pictures. I thought they would individually photograph only the students who purchased packets, but they photographed everyone! The students were very well behaved while waiting in line. Mrs. Hanson took my class in the afternoon so I could help get things set up for our Earth Day assembly. The two kindergarten classes performed an Earth Day ABC poem in sign language, the second graders rapped a poem while playing instruments made of recycled materials, the sign club performed several songs, and fourth grade put on a play. It was all very good, but the kids got tired of sitting--it lasted an hour!

Dont' forget that tomorrow is the toy and book exchange. Please bring 2 books and 2 toys. The exchange will take place right after lunch.

Check out the Voice Thread again. It's no longer just Courtney's poem. I will be adding more poems. Ian is reading his Haiku about sharks.