Field Trip Coming Soon!

I am very happy to announce that we will be going on our first field study on November 12, 2009! We will be going to see Slim Goodbody's presention of Bodyology! We are so excited to learn more about our small bodies in a fun and interactive way! The field trip forms were sent home today. The cost is $7.00. After the presention, we will be going to Spruce Creek Park in Port Orange, Florida. There, we will eat lunch and go on a nature walk. The money is due by October 13, 2009. It is important we have all slips and money at this time so we can reserve our seats. Scholarships are available -see Mrs. Comardo or Ms. Conrad! We do not need any chaperones for this adventure. If you would like to drive your own car, you can purchase a ticket here: http://www.slimgoodbody.com/

This image is intended for the wonderful parents! I am so blessed to have great parental support. You help make my job easier. You are always willing to help, volunteer your time, or donate to our classroom. For that, I am truly greatful! Most importantly, I want to thank you for sharing your AMAZING children with me! What a great group of students!

Writing with Shaving Cream

Who said handwriting couldn't be fun? It is certainly not the students in Mr. Gibbs' kindergarten class! We began learning how to properly write the letter Bb today. In an attempt to master the correct letter formation, Mrs. Shannon and I pulled out the shaving cream! It was amazing to see the reactions of each child as I got my hands all "gooey" and "messy." Each child individually smeared shaving cream all over their table. We then practiced writing capital B and then the smaller b. Children had a blast doing this quick activity It took more time to clean up than the actual activity itself). See - learning CAN be fun!

I sent home several important papers today with your child. It is important to read through the information. We are starting to blend and spell basic CVC words. This week, your child will have their first spelling test - your child is so excited. Please practice these. Your child know them; however, he/she still needs the encouragement. Remind them that they know their sounds - therefore, they can spell! Enjoy the short video below from our handwriting activity!

Physical Education and Update

Michelle Coats took pictures of the children last week. Because of the rain, P.E. was held in the classroom. Below is a short video clip of our little children having fun - getting their wiggles out! Enjoy!



Next week we will be working with the letter Oo on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday we will be working with Ff. Please practice these along with all the letters and sounds with your child. Your child should also be able to blend basic CVC words. We have been doing this in class every morning and they are great at it! Remember we will continue book-in-a-bag. Remember to practice all words inside the book. We have also started formal handwriting instruction. Your child will now make the transition from unlined paper to lined paper. We have already sent home a letter formation handout so you can practice letter formation with your child. If you have lost it (or need an extra) let me know - I have plenty!

I am excited that next week is fire safety week. We will learn about fire prevention and even have a visit with a fireman and his truck! It will be another exciting fun learning week in Mr. G's class! I hope your child is just as anxious as I am!

Happy Birthday Johnny Appleseed!

Look at Lane! Lane has been named our Terrific Kid this week! Lane has shown so much growth and progress. I am so proud of Lane. Lane has changed his behavior in ways I didn't see possible. Lane comes to class prepared and ready to learn. Lane understands the difference between right and wrong. Lane also continues to do his personal best while making the right choices. Lane was so excited hearing his name over the announcements. I was so happy to see his excitement.

Terrific Kid will continue throughout the year. When your child is selected he/she will receive a bumper sticker, a gift certificate for McDonalds, and their name called over the announcements. Lane said, "I am so happy." Lane we are so proud of you - continue to do your personal best.

Today, we celebrated Johnny Appleseed's Birthday! Once the doors to our classroom opened, the students knew they were in for a very fun learning day! I dressed up as Johnny Appleseed. I wore clothes that resembles him in pictures, wore a bag across my shoulders, used a walking stick, and even had a pot on my head as a hat! In the morning, we read the story of Johnny Appleseed, made celebration hats, and even began adding ingrediants for our applesauce. We had a blast this morning getting everything in gear for the day ahead.


When the time was right (in the early afternoon) we decided that the apples were soft and ready to me "mashed." We mashed the apples as best as we could. The smell (or aroma, as Oliva calls it) was amazing! We could hardly wait to dig in! The children and I enjoyed mashing the apples.

In the afternoon, we finished our workshops related to apples. We continued to make apples using construction paper and paper plates and even completed our apple painting. These crafts will be sent home next week and would be great to place on the fridge! After workshops, it was time to celebrate. The children was each given a 'taste.' If they liked it, they would be allowed to get more. Although a few declined, many attempted and tried it. It was simply amazing! It was great. Most of the children loved it. Most importantly, we made it together - and that is what was so special about it. We all sat back ate our applesauce and drank our apple juice and reflected on the day.

"I really liked the apple juice. I like wearing the hats," Sawyer said at the end of the day. Jermey said, "I liked the apple sauce. I liked apple stamping." Another student said, "This was a very fun learning day!" Seeing the joy of the faces of these children almost brought tears to my eyes. This is why I am a teacher! I love PLAYING, LEARNING, and GROWING together. I can't wait for the many more fun celebrations that are yet to come. Below are some pictures that I made into a video. I hope you enjoy.



Have a great 3-day weekend!


-Mr. Christopher Gibbs

Digital Navigators Exploring our Senses!

We are so excited about our upcoming digital storybook! The children in my class are working hard taking pictures of various objects. Students will eventually create a writing piece to go along with their picture and will then record it. Our video will be completed in two weeks. Here are our Busy Bees at work!

Kindergarten visits Mrs. Riddle

"Mr. Gibbs', do we get to go there everyday?"
"No, not everyday."
"Almost everyday?"
"No, but we will make several visits throughout the year."
"AWESOME!"

That was a brief conversation I shared with a student today after our first visit to the learning center at Samsula Academy!
The children fell in love with the learning center immediately. This year, Mrs. Johanna Riddle is helping Samsula Academy by combining a library with a technology infused research environment. The children loved the colors, small tables, and even Mrs. Riddle! Mrs. Riddle taught the children how to take good care of the books in the library and even allowed students to select books for further reading (which will be used in our classroom). At the end of our time, Zane (who was hugging his book) walked out the door. As he was walking out, he turned to Mrs. Riddle and said, "Mrs. Riddle, I am starting to love you already!" What a great, joyous experience! This is truly what learning is all about. Mrs. Riddle also introduced children to library camera. Children learned how to properly use the camera. As I stated before, we are currently working on making a digital storybook. Kindergarten is truly going digital, with the help of Mrs. Riddle. Below is a short video, created by Mrs. Riddle of our experience today! I am so happy and proud of each and every child. They behaved so well and are so ready to explore the world of books and technology.



Remember that tomorrow, we will be celebrating Johnny Appleseed! We will be making applesauce in the morning and will be eating it in the afternoon. We will be finishing our apple crafts tomorrow. Your child will also be tested on the next set of Dolch words tomorrow. Remember to continue practicing with our great readers!

Weekly Dolch Words: is, it, jump, look, little
Other Words to Know: the, see, like, go
Weekly Letters/Sounds: Nn and Cc

Remember to check the B.E.E folder daily (Bring Everything Everyday). Please take everything out of the folder before sending it back with your child the next day. The B.E.E folder contains graded work, letters, and sometimes additional practice of skills and strategies. Mrs. Shannon and I have been sending home several small books with your child. These books are in the B.E.E folder and are books your child can read. We are already readers! Wow!

Also, I would like to mention the importance of phonics. I run a very structured phonics rotunine. Research has shown that successful phonics instruction leads to successful readers in later grades. Your child knows how to properly blend words and would be more than willing to show you. It is important to practice blending basic CVC words with your child. I will be posting a video of the routinue so that you know how to best practice with your child. Thanks for all you do!

Special Person's Video

Storybook Parade

Many have been asking about it - so here it is!

I love the celebrations that occur within the fall season - especially the celebrations at Samsula Academy! We truly have a fantastic time celebrating the season with family, friends, and our peers. The most popular event is our "Storybook Parade." Each classroom chooses a theme (a literature based theme) and the designs outfits based on that theme. I had a blast last year and I took it to the extreme! Below is my picture with my first graders.

The theme I choose last year was Curious George. I was the Man-In-The-Yellow-Hat (never given a name in the books) and my children made their own Curious George outfits. We had a fanastic time and my little angels were the talk of the school! I believe is having fun with my students and I always take the time to act silly, goofy, and just play! The theme we have chosen this year is based on Dr. Suess. We will be doing The Cat in the Hat. I will be the main character while the students will be the "things." We will have pairs of Thing 1 and Thing 2. We will be making these outfits in class. Mrs. Shannon will be the mom that is mentioned in the story.

We hope you like this idea. In order to make it successful, we will need supplies and help. One supply that we will need for sure is plain white T-shirts. We will be dying these red for the students. If you have a suggestion as to how we can make the "blue" hair, let me know. I was thinking of making hats with some form of blue on the top. Mrs. Shannon and I are open to all ideas!

Diving into our Senses!

We are learning about the senses in our classroom. We are learning about the five senses. As I said at the beginning of the year, I plan on using a lot of technology in my classroom. I am excited to help students write a story. This story; however, is not going to be written. Were going digital!

Mrs. Riddle and I are teaming up to help students create a digital story about our senses. Next Wednesday, your child will learn how to properly use a camera and the different techniques we will use throughout the project. Students will be taking pictures of an object and will create a story as to how it feels, sounds, tastes, etc... Mrs. Riddle and I are really excited about this. It is going to be great inviting your child into the 21st century of learning.

Johnny Appleseed Day is quickly approaching. Next week, we will be doing all different types of activities involving apples. We will be stamping apples, making apple tress, and we will even be making applesauce next Thursday! Next Thursday will be an eventful day in our classroom. We will be making hats, applesause, and were going to celebrate the upcoming season. To pull this off, we will need lots of apples. If you can please supply some apples, please do so :) Thanks!

Special Person's Day

We had an amazing turn out this morning! It was a pleasure having several grandparents, friends, and relatives in our classroom today. We had a blast watching a BrainPopJr video about America and then we continued the fun by making fantastic hats to celebrate our American spirit! I also had the pleasure of introducing my special person - my first grade teacher! Mrs. Christen was my first grade teacher in 1991 at Turie T. Small Elementary School! She inspired me to become a teaching professional. It was an honor having her come and witness my teaching. I had a blast sharing my classroom with Mrs. Christen. Thanks for coming out and supporting me! :)

This is a glimpse of the hats we made today. We wore them around the school grounds. We make hats for every event in my classroom. We love to play, learn, and grow!

Oh, I wanted to let you know how proud I am of your child. Our little kindergarteners are beginning to use their Dolch words and read sentences. This is amazing and it is very powering to watch the children read these sentences in person.

BrainPopJr and KidWriting

We are learning the right way in in Mr. Gibbs' kindergarten classroom. As I have stated at Orientation, it is my goal to guide instruction for the new generation. Therefore, I am using a lot of technology this year. We watched our first BrainPopJr video yesterday and the children enjoyed it! We will be doing a lot witb BrainPopJr this year and we will even be making our own video. The video we watched was about friends and how we can solve conflicts alone without a teacher. There are several resources for different topics. Some resources include an interactive word wall, a quiz, and games.

We have been busy writing in our class this year. I am using a new approach to kindergarten writing called KidWriting. KidWriting is a research-based writing program that encourages students to write using their already known sounds. Students use sounds and sight words to write one (sometimes two) sentences. Students also draw a picture to go with their writing. An adult will the read their work and write the same sentence in adult writing. Children are doing a very good job - as you seen at Open House! I am so proud. Our children are already reading and writing! I am so proud!

Open House

I was so excited to see all the parents tonight at Open House. It was so nice to see you, along with your child work together to complete the classroom scavenger hunt. I felt that his was a very fun and interactive way to show you our classroom.


I would also like to thank Michelle Coats (Olivia's mom). Michelle has been so kind to donate her time taking pictures of our class. The pictures from the slideshow today were all taken by Michelle. The pictures are outstanding!


I would like to remind you that Special Person's day is on Friday. Your child is allowed to bring one special person to school on Friday. That person will be allowed to be in our classroom for thirty minutes. My grandmother will not be able to attend; therefore, I have decided to bring a special guest. My special guest is a surprise to the children. I have recently found my former first grade teacher. It was her strong passion for the profession that helped me choose my career path. My former first grade teacher will be in our classroom on Friday as my Special Person. I am so happy and honored. I was in Mrs. Christen's first grade class at Turie T. Small Elementary School in 1991. I was in her first class that she ever taught. I am seated in the front row of this picture. I am the student with the blonde hair.

Once again, it was a pleasure to meet with you all this evening. You are simply the best!

-Mr. Christopher Gibbs

Thinking our way through Kindergarten!

We just ended another exciting week of kindergarten! The children in Mr. G's classroom are very eager to learn and that makes for a very happy teacher! The children in my classroom have made the transition into 'big' school and are now beginning to learn. We are learning to recognize the letters of the alphabet and their corresponding sounds. We are also learning basic Dolch words. This week we focused on Aa and Mm. The Dolch words this week were: a, and, away, big, and blue. The children in my classroom can also recognize I, can, me, and school. I am so blessed to have a classroom with eager children and fantastic parental support. Remember, you are a vital in the success of our children.

This summer I had the honor of attending several professional development workshops. One of which was focused on Thinking Maps. Thinking Maps are a set of graphic organizer techniques used in K-12 education . There are eight maps that are designed to correspond with eight different fundamental thinking processes. This week, we completed several circle maps. The circle map is one of the eight maps and is used for defining in context. This week, we learned color words. Students had the opportunity to look through magazines and cut out pictures that contained a particular color. Students loved this activity! We made a thinking map for each color learned: yellow, red, blue, green, orange, brown, purple, black and white. These are displayed in our classroom. Please take the time to come in and check out them out. Your children worked very hard and you should be proud. We also made a circle map for the letters Aa and Mm. We put the letter in the middle and the outside circle contained pictures that began with the corresponding sound. We will be doing this for each letter.

Lastly, I am so thankful for your help. Today, your child was tested on his Book-In-A-Bag words. I couldn't be more proud! Your children did an amazing job. Most of them are moving on to the new set of words; however, there are some that will need to revist the words from this past week. The most difficult words for students were: and and away. Remember, just because your student knew these today doesn't mean they will remember them tomorrow. Continue to practice the WHOLE book - even if your child moved on to the new set. Remember to schedule a conference with me so that we can talk about your AMAZING child!

Thanks for everything!

-Mr. Christopher Gibbs