Mahalo for your help and cooperation which helps to ensure that your child has success in school.
This is my wish for you: peace of mind, prosperity through the year, happiness that multiplies, health for you and yours, fun around every corner, energy to chase your dreams, joy to fill your holidays! -- D.M. Dellinger
We were so excited on Tuesday when we heard a ringing sound from our computer. That was Mrs. Langston and her 1st grade class from Ohio calling us through Skype. They asked us several questions and we had a few for them. We wondered what it looked like outside since the weather was much colder than Hawaii. They were all dressed in long sleeve shirts, long pants, and even scarves. We showed them our t-shirts and shorts. There was a huge evergreen tree and a few other trees with bare branches right outside of their class window. When it snows, they have fun sledding. We wondered what it was like riding a sled down a hill. Next time we'll ask them.
We shared some of our class work with each other. They worked on really nice Santas and we showed our decorated paper plate Christmas trees.
They asked if we saw sharks in the water. Most of us raised our hands. Because of some problems, Mrs. Lee couldn't take any photos of their class because they would be too blurry. When we Skype with Mrs. Langston and her class next time, we'll take a few pictures of them.
On Wednesday we Skyped with Mrs. Poulin and her Kindergarten class from Massachusetts. We both shared songs, artwork and questions. Our homes don't have chimneys so Santa probably walk through our door to deliver presents, but most of Mrs. Poulin's students said they have chimneys for Santa to come through.
Our Kindergarten friends are really hard workers. They illustrated and wrote about a winter adventure they'd like to have with us. We will treasure this book! We sent them a Christmas Book Aloha Bear and they sent us the picture book Owl Moon. They also sent us Maple Candy which was so ono.
Skype is a great way to talk to other students in different places around the world. We are excited to learn how we are the same and different.
Santa has the best job in the whole world! Sometimes things get too busy and he is a little late. Muckle, one of Santa's elves, decides to invent the 'Deliverator', who will deliver all the presents on time. That left Santa without a job! You'll need to read the story to discover the surprise ending.
We cut and pasted paper to create elves and wrote about their job with Santa.
Your children were so excited and proud today when you attended their Winter Program and Family Craft Activity. They were all smiles and full of life. They performed well under the direction of Mrs. Ellis and Saito Sensei. We are very grateful to those two Resource teachers who are so passionate about their teaching.
Book Shares are a wonderful opportunity for your child to bring a picture book and show their classmates an illustration from the story that is appealing to them. Some students have shared a book for the month of December. The other students have until Thursday, December 15th for their turn to share with their peers. Please help them to practice at home.
On Friday, December 16th the students will play holiday games in the class and goodie bags will be distributed in the recyclable bag. If your child wishes to share any goodie bags, please bring them in by Thursday,December 15th. Kindly remember dismissal is at 11:30am.
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart. Wishing you happiness.
-- Helen Keller
Today was a wonderful day. We sang very well at the Winter Program. Everyone clapped really loudly at the end of our performance.
Having our parents work with us on the Snowman frame was fantastic. I think they enjoyed the time with us a whole lot too. Thank you for coming!
We listened to a wonderful story called How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. The Grinch is a creature with a heart two sizes too small. He lives on a high mountain just north of Whoville, which is the home of merry and kind Whos. The Grinch hears all the noisy Christmas festivities from Whoville. Very annoyed, he enters a home through the chimney and removes their Christmas presents, roast 'beast', and decorations, preventing Christmas from coming. However, he learns that although he 'stole' the Christmas presents and decorations from the Whos, Christmas comes just the same. He realizes Christmas is more than just gifts. Because of this, his heart grows three times larger. He returns all the presents and trimmings. The community of Whos welcomes him wholeheartedly.
After listening to this story we wrote how we could make the Grinch smile. How would you the Grinch smile?
What is Christmas? It means so many things to us. Besides receiving gifts, decorating the tree, and dreaming of Santa, we know that our family and friends enjoy receiving love from us. Christmas is also a time to share and be nice to everyone.
The holidays are upon us and the keiki are excited!!! The next few weeks will be filled with Literature and Math lessons as well as seasonal activities. However, please continue to encourage your children to read as it is part of the foundation needed to help them through life.
Dates to remember:
Monday, December 5th - Foster Garden Walking Field Trip form due.
Wednesday, December 7th - Please have your child bring in an 8" square piece of Christmas wrapping paper on or before Wednesday, December 7th for a holiday project .
Friday, December 9th - Winter Program, Social Hall, 8:30am. Please refer to the handout ( on yellow copy paper distributed on Friday in their Homework Folders) for more information. A parent - child craft activity will follow in K-1.
We have so many things to appreciate in our world. These pictures show things we liked and the best part was we took the pictures with Mrs. Lee's camera.
Aloha Parents,
Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your ohana. There is so much to be thankful for especially as we watch your children grow.
Mahalo nui loa for your generous canned goods contributions. The needy will definitely appreciate your kindness.
Arigato for all the empty Campbell Soup cans. There is a sufficient amount of cans for our upcoming activity.
All the students are really jazzed about the Symbaloo webmix because they can view all the tiles at a glance. This allows them to simply click and play educational games. Please continue to assist and encourage them to read. As mentioned in our Parent-Teacher Conference, they have the opportunity to read on a personalized level through myON Reader as this educational reading site will help improve their writing, creativity, critical thinking skills, etc.
Dates to remember:
Monday, November 28th - Foster Garden Walking Field Trip Consent Form distributed. Due date - December 5th.
Wednesday, November 30th - Book Share due
Friday, December 2 - Bodhi Day Service, 9:00am. Please dress your child appropriately for this Temple service.
It must be remembered that the purpose of education is not to fill the minds of students with facts... it is to teach them to think, if that is possible, and always to think for themselves.
-- Robert Hutchins
Life for the Pilgrims was not easy. They really wanted to leave England and find another place to live so they could be free. These are some things we learned about them.
Aloha Parents,
Just wanted to inform you of the following:
Monday, November 21st - Scholastic Book orders due
Tuesday, November 22nd - Canned goods donation due
Wednesday, November 23rd - Thanksgiving Service at the Temple. Please dress your child appropriately (Girls - dresses or pants outfit, boys - collared shirt and long pants)
Thursday and Friday, November 24th, 25th - Thanksgiving Break
Wednesday, November 30th - Book Share due. Each child should bring a book he/she read and share their favorite part to the class. Students will receive a Pizza Hut coupon, good for 1 personal pan pizza as a token for their hard work. Please note, Pizza Hut coupons are valid for one month from date of issue.
Wednesday, November 30th - Campbell Soup can due (10 3/4 oz can, without label)
This week we Skyped with our friends from Southampton, Massachusetts. There were a few problems as Mrs. Lee couldn't connect with them. But we finally were able to see smiling faces sitting on the carpet across from us. They asked us questions about what we do in our gym and if we had a cafeteria. Mrs. Poulin's students and our class agreed that pizza was the best lunch. We wondered what the weather was like over there because they were all wearing long sleeved shirts and long pants. A thick jacket was also something they needed. We all normally wear t-shirts and shorts because it is so warm.
They shared two poems, 'Five Little Indians' and 'I am a Little Indian' with us. They were very loud and clear. We read 'Thanksgiving Colors', a poem, to them. They are having an 'Apple Pie and Craft Fair' very soon at their school. There are people who will be selling pretty Christmas ornaments. We wish we could go to that fair since it sounds fun.
It'll be fun to Skype with Mrs. Poulin and her class next month. We'll learn more about their class and maybe we'll sing songs together.
Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for the many people who love and care of us. Making our paper turkeys were fun, but the best part was sharing our thoughts with everyone.
Parent-Teacher Conferences - Friday, November 18th. Your child may attend the conference.
Thanskgiving Service - Wednesday, November 23rd. Kindergarten students are asked to donate canned goods in lieu of flowers. Students can bring in their donation before Tuesday, November 22nd. Temple attire suggested. (Boys - collared shirt and long pants. Girls - dresses or pants outfit)
Book Share - The keiki enjoyed sharing a favorite part of a book and receiving the Pizza Hut coupon last month. They will be doing another Book Share before Wednesday, November 30th.
Empty Campbell Soup Can(s) (10 3/4 oz size,without the label) are needed for a holiday project. Please bring them in by Wednesday, November 30th. If I don't have enough soup cans for all the students, my husband and I will have to drink alot of soup to make up the difference.
The Wampanoag (People of the First Light) People lived all over North America before the Pilgrims arrived many centuries ago. The children were very important to them because they were a gift of life. We have been studying how the Wampanoag children helped their parents and a little about their lives.
Our class created this story on Storybird.com. It was fun trying to pick the art work since there was so many nice pictures to choose from. Thinking of a story was a little difficult since we all had good ideas. Hope you enjoy reading Keoki and His Dream as much as we had writing it.
Mahalo nui loa to everyone who shared Halloween treats with their classmates. It was enjoyed and brought smiles to all.
HMS is going greener. Plastic bottle caps are now being collected so please save them for us. It has been found to be the most common beach trash item. The caps might be left by beachgoers or float through the street run-off to the ocean. Plastic doesn't completely dissolve and plastic bits and microplastics are now harming our marine life worldwide. You can drop off bottle caps in the Office, Library, or K-1.
We are celebrating Veterans Day, an annual United States holiday honoring military veterans on November 11th.
We have been learning our sounds, reading short stories, and counting to 100. Besides schoolwork, there has been many exciting activities. Some of them were the Halloween parade, the games in the gym, and our performance at Kuakini Hale Pulama Mau. We had lots of fun!
What is Symbaloo? This is a great site which allows me to create a page with links to educational sites so your child can have the opportunity to review, practice and enrich their skills. All they need to do is click on the tile and play. Hope they enjoy the HMS K-1 Symbaloo (Please click on the bold text to be taken directly to Symbaloo.)
FYI, rather than list different "Websites for the Keiki" on the left side of the blog, there is just one "Symbaloo" listed for easier navigation.
Friday, October 28 - Kuakini Hale Pulama Mau field trip consent form and the Fire Safety Booklets (last page signed and dated) due.
Friday, October 28 - Halloween Parade, 8:30am on the blacktop. If you are planning to attend, you are welcome to assist your child to change into school clothes and take their costumes home after the parade.
Monday, October 31 - Book Share due
Monday, October 31 - Black and orange attire, Kindergarten Rotational Party, Goodie bags distributed in recyclable bags. (please return empty recyclable bags by November 1 as they will be reused for other occasions)
Monday, October 31 - Student Council Halloween games in the gym. Space is VERY limited for parents to watch, as faculty and students will be there. Families may join after the event. Thank you in advance for your understanding.
Tuesday, November 1 - Snack and Dinner Pack orders for Movie Night due
Friday, November 4 -Silent Reading and Movie Night, 6:00pm in the Social Hall.
October is the month to observe pumpkins and count the number of seeds. There was our class pumpkin, a bright orange one which weighed more than 10 pounds. Each of us had the chance to predict the number of seeds inside. We guessed between 50 -1 million seeds.
After recess, our 3rd grade buddies, along with Mrs. Conley came to K-1 to help us with our pumpkin seed counting activity.After the top of the pumpkin was cut off, there was a strange odor. Now we were ready to start the messy work. Our hands went into the pumpkin to pull out the pulp with the seeds. Yuck, it sure felt squishy, mushy, and slimy. Our job, with the 3rd grade buddies was to separate the pulp from the seeds.What a mess and that strange smell didn't even bother us since we wer having fun working to pile up the seeds.
After the seeds were washed and dried, we glued them on paper. There was a total of about 625 seeds. Wow, that's a whole lot of seeds.
Our lessons learned from counting seeds were teamwork, counting, and hard work!!!
All the students are excited with Mathletics and myON Reader. Your involvement with them using these two online programs has many positive effects on their development. Please continue to use these learning programs.
Please advise if you would like to chaperone the Kindergarten walking field trip to Hale Pulama Mau on Firday, November 4th from 9:30-11:00.
Reminders:
Monday, October 24 - Mathletic activities due
Tuesday, October 25 - Halloween party item due
Thursday, October 27 - Fall retake pictures
Friday, October 28 - Halloween parade, Fire Booklets due (Sign and date the last page), Hale Pulama Mau walking field trip consent form due
Monday, October 31 - Book Share due
Monday, October 31 - Black and orange attire, Student Council games, Kindergarten Rotational Party, Halloween Goodie bags distributed
It was a sunny Friday when we visited Sea Life Park. There was the Reef Tank where pufferfish, humuhumunukunukuapua'a, stingrays, and other sea life swam together and showed us their beautiful colors. Three dolphins were jumping in the air and swimming in the deep tank in the Dolphin Show at the Ocean Theater. At the Sea Lion Show, 2 sea lions competed in the Miss Sea Lion Beauty Contest. Ms. Kanayama bought us cups of lettuce so we fed the honu at the Sea Turtle Lagoon. Did you know that the male turtles have longer and skinnier tails compared to the female turtles? At the Hawaiian Monk Seal Center, three monk seals were swimming around. They looked they were having fun since everyone was looking at them.
Most of us liked the Dolphin Show the best. Maybe we'll be able to go again with our families.
HMS Halloween Parade is planned for Friday, October 28th, starting at 8:30am. Everyone is invited to watch faculty, staff, and keiki in Halloween attire parade around the blacktop. Please bring your child dressed in costume to school.( No gore, violence or weapons, please) At 8:20, K-1 will be led to the blacktop and seated on a blue tarp. Parents are encouraged to find a spot around the parade route for Kodak moments. After the parade, it would be really helpful to assist your child to change into school clothes and take all Halloween costumes home. Classes will resume, as normal, for the remainder of the day.
On Friday, November 4th, the Kindergarten keiki will be walking to Kauakini Health System to bring cheer, smiles, and to sing Japanese songs to older adults who are cared for at their comprehensive facility called Hale Pulama Mau (House of Cherishing Care). We'll be leaving school at 9:30am, and returning by 11:00am. I would like to have 2 parents to help chaperone this walking event. Please advise if you are available.
Reminders:
Friday, October 21 - Sea Life Park field trip
Monday, October 24 - Mathletic activities due
Tuesday, October 25 - Halloween party item due
Thursday, October 27 - Fall retake pictures
Friday, October 28 - Halloween parade, Fire Booklets due (Sign and date the last page), Hale Pulama Mau walking field trip consent form due
Monday, October 31 - Book Share due
Monday, October 31 - Black and orange attire, Student Council games, Kindergarten Rotational Party, Halloween Goodie bags distributed
On Tuesday, we Skyped with Mrs. Poulin and her Kindergarten class from Southampton, Massachusetts. Their live so far away from us! We also saw their school, William E. Norris Elementary School on Google maps. There are lots of trees all around their school.
They talked about:
A pumpkin patch they visited that day. They could pick a pumpkin no bigger than their head. Two boys showed us their prize pumpkin.
Leaves on the trees were turning colors of red, orange, and yellow.
They sang a song about apples way up high really nicely.
We also had a chance to share:
Pictures we drew from some of our class books
A song 'Eia Makou' (Here We Are)
Both classes had fun sharing what we would be dressed as for Halloween. The costumes were similar to ours.
They have a pet hamster in their class and named it 'Aloha'. Pictures of their hamster was on their blog. What a nice name for a cute hamster!
It is fun to Skype with another Kindergarten class and hear about their lives. We can compare how we are alike and different.
Our Sea Life Park field trip is on Friday. We're anxious to see the dolphins, honu, penguins, and other sea animals up close because we've been learning about these creatures in class. The honu is the most interesting animal so we made our own turtles and wrote facts about them.
Did you know that:
The mother honu uses it's front flippers to dig the sand before laying eggs?
The baby honu has a egg tooth to break their shell?
It takes about 3-7 days for the baby honu to crawl from under the sand and then run quickly to the water?
The honu rests on seaweed while in the water?
I'll be happy to share other things we have learned about the honu with you.
Each child has their login information for myON reader and completed the Interest Inventory. They are eager to select books of their choice and begin reading online. However, they need assistance from you. I hope your child takes advantage of this literacy program and all it has to offer.
If your child wishes to share Halloween goodie bags with his/her classmates, they can be brought in before or on Monday, October 31.
Dates to Remember:
Thursday, October 20 - Flu shots in the Library
Friday, October 21 - Sea Life Park Field Trip. Ms. Kanayama, Mrs. Miyamoto, and Mrs. Yoshikawa offered to chaperone. Wear HMS t-shirts , shorts, and sport shoes. Come to school by 7:40am. Bus will depart from school at 8:00am.
Friday, October 28 - Fire Safety Booklets due. Please use the booklet as a reference. The children should discuss the procedures on what to do in the event of fire. Kindly remember to sign and date the last page of the booklet.
Miss Spider's Tea Party was a funny book that was read to us. It was about Miss Spider who invited ants, ladybugs, and other insects that flew by to her tea party. They didn't want to share tea and cakes with her because they thought she would eat them. However, she saved a moth who was unable to fly because his wings were too wet. When the moth was able to fly away, he told everyone how nice Miss Spider was. Many insects finally joined Miss Spider for tea. She ate the flowers and drank just tea.
There were two things we learned from this story. The first thing we learned was to always be kind to people. The second lesson was to practice counting from 1-11.
Saito Sensei has been teaching us many Japanese songs the past few months so we could sing them to our grandparents at the Grandparent's Day Celebration. Today was our big day to honor them! We sang onstage in front of parents and our loving obaachan and ojiichan. These are some of our thoughts about the show:
JI - I liked the singing.
EK - I had fun because we got to sing.
AU - I was happy because my grandmother and cousin came.
DB - I felt scared onstage.
RY - I liked to dance.
ML - I wished my grandparents came but they don't live here.
MM - I liked to sing and my 2 grandmas came.
DB - I liked when my grandprents took pictures.
TH - I liked the dancing.
SM - I was happy because my grandparents and mom came.
What an exciting morning for us when we invited our parents for our first Presentation of Learning. We have been studying about apples and shared our learning with moms, dads, and grandparents. Do you think they knew as much as we did about this fruit?
Mahalo family members for coming to this event!!!!!
September, October and November are 'National Apple Months. Our weather is too warm to grow apples, but we still enjoy eating them. We have been studying all about apples and want to share some of our work.
Reminders:
Tuesday, October 11 - Presentation of Learning, K-1 classroom, 8:30-9:30am Please bring a knife that will be used to cut an apple. (Apples will be supplied)
Friday, October 14 - Grandparent's Day Celebration, Social Hall, 9:00-9:45am
Farmers make scarecrows and put them in their fields to scare away birds, like the crows that would feed on their crops. These are our funny, scary, and cool scarecrows.
Spirit Week was super! There were so many things planned. We learned all about Australia when we brought in pictures to put on our front board. There was also a big picture of Mrs. Walsh and Prep N, a Kindergarten class who are our epals. They are a really nice class and they email us letters often.
On Friday, our 3-13 buddies came to our classroom to have a 'Trail Mix' party. All our snacks were mixed together and we got to eat it. It was good!
We started to Skype with a Kindergarten class from Virginia. That meant we saw and talked to another group of children far, far away using our computer and IWB. A snowflake, which is a microphone and a webcam, which helped them see all us was used. This is what we thought about it:
TH - They were nice children.
DB - They go home without their Moms and Dads.
SM - The children were singing nicely and loudly.
ML- I liked the class.
RY - The children stood up straight when he or she spoke to us.
DSB - I liked their song.
AU - I liked it.
JI - Their teacher was nice.
EK - I liked their singing.
JK - They were sitting nicely.
MM - I liked when they sang their song.
KL - They said their name loudly and nicely.
Mrs. Lee said we will be Skyping again with our new group of friends soon. It was great!
Parent Reminders:
Monday, October 3rd - Please bring in one apple (Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, or Granny Smith). An apple graphing activity is scheduled for Monday.
Thursday - October 6th - Sea Life Park Field Trip Consent Forms due with payment.
Friday - October 7th - RSVP for the Presentation of Learning
Tuesday - October 11th - Presentation of Learning, K-1 classroom from 8:30-9:30
We showed we can write numbers 0-7 and add dots on craft sticks. Using Playdough as a base, we put the sticks in order. Check out our crazy hair, which was part of our Spirit Week activities.
On Monday, we stacked Oreo cookies with grades 1-10 and 3-13. We all counted the number of Oreos as they were stacked. This is what we thought about the activity:
JK - It was fun because we got to stack them.
JI - We got to make them as high as we could.
AU - I liked to stack them.
ML - I got a headache because the counting was too loud.
TH - I got to stack them and it fell. We got to restack them.
EK - I liked it because I loved stacking them.
MM - We got to eat them.
SM - I liked to stack them and make them tall.
DSB - We got to eat the Oreos after we were done.
DB - We got to stack, count, and stack them again. We got to eat them.
RY - I saw it tipping.
KL - I wish I was at school I was sick.
Friday morning was loads of fun since we had our Spirit Week Rally. Everyone giggled, wiggled, and followed the exercises as the Mickey Mouse Mousercise CD was played.
Now, we can't wait for all of the Spirit Week class and buddy activities which starts on Monday!!!!
GO DOLPHINS!
Monday, September 26th - Dress Alike with a K-1 friend/s. Pictures of Australia (food, places of interest, people, etc) are due.
Tuesday, September 27th - Bring a hat made from recycled material.
Wednesday, September 28th - Canned goods can be brought to school for the Hawaii Food Bank. Purple attire and crazy hair styles day.
Thursday, September 29th - Australian style clothing or accessories can be worn.
Friday, September 30th - Bring in a sandwich size baggie of snack food or cereal for our Trail Mix. This will be a buddy activity with Mrs. Conley's 3-13 class. Mix and match your clothing day.
Friday, September 30th - Grandparent's Day confirmation form due. Scholastic Book Orders due.
Monday - October 3rd - Each child should bring in one apple (Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, or Granny Smith) for our class graph, apple investigation and apple tasting activity. (Hopefully there will be a variety of apples.)
Please refer to the newsletter sent home on September 16th explaining the Spirit Week activities in detail.
Johnny Appleseed's birthday will be celebrated on September 26th. To remember and get to know about him, we will be studying all about apples in the coming weeks. We listened to The Story of Johnny Appleseed by Aliki. We learned he was a real person by the name of Jonathan Chapman. He lived a long time ago. Johnny Appleseed gave people bags of apple seeds and planted apple trees all across America. After we listened to the story, we shared thoughts about Johnny Appleseed through this Wordle.
Please remember:
Monday, September 26th - Dress Alike with a K-1 friend/s. Pictures of Australia (food, places of interest, or people) are due.
Tuesday, September 27th - Bring a hat made from recycled material.
Wednesday, September 28th- Canned goods can be brought to school. Purple attire and crazy hair styles day.
Thursday, September 29th - Australian style clothing or accessories can be worn.
Friday, September 30th - Bring in a sandwich size baggie of snack food or cereal for the Trail Mix. This will be a buddy activity with Mrs. Conley's 3-13 class. Mix and match your clothing day.
Friday, September 30th - Grandparent's Day confirmation form due.
Friday, September 30th - Scholastic Book Orders due.
Monday, October 3rd - Each child is requested to bring in one apple (red, green, or yellow) for our class apple graph and apple tasting activity. (Hopefully there will be a variety of apples)
Today is 'National Dot Day'. To celebrate this occasion, Mrs. Okamura, our school Librarian, read us the story The Dot by Peter Reynolds. It is about a little girl, named Vashti who thinks she can't draw. But later in the story she realizes she is a 'really great artist'.
We tried our hand in creating dot pictures using just paint and cotton swabs. We realized we were also ' really great artists'! Don't you agree?
The first field trip of the year was so exciting. Our initial stop was at our beautiful State Capital Building. We walked around to look at the mosaic, which shows the changing colors and patterns of the sea around Hawaii on the ground floor and the offices on the second floor. Tenney Theater was where we watched Honolulu Theater for Youth's 'Anime Momotaro'. The Peach Boy taught us the lesson of showing compassion to others and bullying was not acceptable.
Monday, September 19 - No Buddhist Education class
Tuesday, September 20 - Peace Day Temple Service. Please dress appropriately for this occasion. Suggested attire: Boys- collared shirts and girls - dresses or pants outfits.
Thursday, September 22 - Deadline for finishing Mathletics activities.
Listening to stories is one of the things we like best. Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert was a really 'souper' book. It was about a father and little child who planted vegetable seeds, watered, and watched them grow. Afterwards, they cut the vegetables and made a tasty soup. We didn't make any real soup, but we did the next best thing by making our own soup, using construction paper, with vegetables we like to eat.
Reminders for the Parent :
Thursday, September 15th - Picture Taking Day. Please dress your child accordingly and submit payment.
Thursday, September 22nd - All the children have expressed their excitement about Mathletics! Great. Many of the children completed their activities due on September 22nd.
Dr. Riley, our Head of School, visited and surprised us by teaching our class today. She read us Seven Blind Mice, by Ed Young. This book was about seven blind mice who found something strange by their pond. They tried to guess what this 'thing' was. The seventh blind mouse 'saw' the whole picture and realized it was an elephant.
Our job was to trick our friends by showing them only a shape glued on our paper. Then inside of our folded paper, we showed them the shape within our 'whole' picture. Dr. Riley was so much fun. Hopefully she'll return and teach us again.
Please remember:
Monday, Septembr 12th - Flu Consent Forms due.
Wednesday, September 14th - HTY play at Tenney Theater. Mahalo to chaperones Ms. Kanayama and Mrs. Umetsu. HMS t-shirt should be worn.
Thursday, September 15th - Picture Taking Day. All payments for pictures should be submitted by September 15th.
We wanted to share this slideshow of us in action. It was viewed at Open House, but you may want to watch it again here on our blog. So, get some popcorn and drinks while you enjoy this presentation!
All the children were so excited on Tuesday evening when they were given the opportunity to share their classroom and work with you at our first Open House. Mahalo for showing your support.
Students are currently learning about 'Patterns' in Math. They are identifying, copying, extending and creating simple patterns.These concepts have been applied to real life situations. Some activities they've enjoyed are painting patterns using watercolors on their pet style headbands and designing a stripe pattern on dog and cat cards. 'Strike a Pose' was their favorite as they could physically clown around with patterns. They were giggling when 2 students mimicked the clown poses viewed on cards. The rest of the students joined in and extended the AB pattern.
You could ask your child to describe, create, extend, or reproduce patterns they see when you are together. They'll love to show you what they've learned.
K-1 was so enthused to partner with their new buddies from Mrs. Victoria Conley's 3-13 class. Plans for the initial meeting were to have the older students read one-on-one to the little pals which would also improve the 3rd graders' reading skills. The idea worked very well. One glance around the K-1 classroom revealed a friendly interaction, focus, and fun. The Kindergartners thrive on the individual instruction. The academic exercise will also help the Third Grade students develop leadership skills.
Other buddy activities will continue throughout the school year, i.e. Pumpkin Seed Counting, Oreo Stacking, Kuakini Medical Center tour, etc. and shared on the blog. Stay tuned!
Comments from the Kindergartners regarding this activity included:
I felt good because I liked being with them.
I hope we have more activities with our buddies.
It was fun because I like to have a new friend.
I enjoyed having an older buddy.
It was fun because they read a story to me.
Adventures in Reading on PhotoPeach
Reminders:
Monday, August 29th - HTY Parent Consent form and payment due.
Monday, August 29th - Japanese homework folder due
Tuesday, August 30th - P.E.
Tuesday, August 30th - First PTO meeting/Open House, 5:00p.m., Social Hall. K-1 class will be open for you to meet other parents, tour the room, watch a DVD of K-1 in action, and observe students on the IWB (Interactive Whiteboard).
Why do children draw and paint? There are several reasons why art (drawing and painting) is encouraged. Some students find a hidden ability and begin to develop this talent. They need the opportunity to stimulate their imagination and they enjoy creating. It also helps to develop his/her self -esteem and confidence. When a child says "Look what I did!" don't you know your child feels like s/he really accomplished something?
Kindergarteners love painting. When it was first announced the other day that they would be painting, the keiki thought they'd be finger painting. But they were just as happy when they saw the baskets with containers of paint brought out from the cabinet. As they carefully spread out the newspaper on the desks, put on their aprons, and received their piece of paper, all eyes danced with excitement.
View what your child and his/her classmates created. Each individual painting showed personal expression and were special. Don't you agree?
Tidbits for the upcoming week:
In Social Studies, Celebrations will be discussed. Please have you child bring in 1 or 2 photos of special times or events shared with family and friends by Thursday, August 25th. They will be describing the importance of the celebration as well as comparing these special times with their peers.
P.E. resource class is on Tuesdays. HMS t-shirts and shorts should be worn.
Library books can be returned to me after they are read at home.
Environmental print and interesting newspaper photos can be brought in anytime.
Thank you for sending in the clipboards with your child.
What an exciting week for the K-1 keiki. School is now in full swing. The children are getting accustomed to the morning routine of dragging their frog into the pond on the IWB and placing their bags on the hooks. The best part is using an iTouch and selecting a word or math game while sitting on the carpet before the school day officially begins.
You are always welcome to view the children's creative work displayed around the classroom. Your child can share his/her work as they put much effort into it.
Library class started Friday. Mrs. Okamura reviewed how to handle the books carefully and return them on the due date. Hope you and your child have many opportunities to share reading experiences with our Library books.
Mrs. Yoshikawa has volunteered to be a room parent. She requested help from another parent to share in the fun. Please contact me if you are interested.
Tidbits:
1. Blankets were sent home home on Friday. They should be brought back on Monday.
2. Please be sure your child has a snack for first recess so they can better concentrate in school.
3. Show and Tell started today. This activity will be part of the class routine on Wednesdays through Fridays.
4. If your child sees any interesting picture(s) of a local or global event in the newspaper he/she is encouraged to cut it out. The picture(s) can be brought to class and posted on our K-1 Buzz wall.
Bright Vacations is all about some activity the students enjoyed this summer. Detailed and colorful illustrations with captions were glued to the children's 'sun'. Super work from the new Kindergarteners!
Time sure flies by because Summer School has just ended. Everyone had grown physically and academically these past 6 weeks. To add closure to their time together before departing for a few weeks of rest, the keiki offered thoughts of their favorite activity.
Wishing everyone a safe and fun-filled summer vacation! See you all in August!
Jack and the Beanstalk is a timeless folktale loved by children around the world. The K-1 keiki enjoyed listening to the story and seeing the illustrations from the picture book. But, do you wonder what Jack would look like if you cut and glued parts of his body together with construction paper through the eyes of a Kindergartener? The students were so excited as they created, collaborated and shared their version of Jack. They also used their Math skills to measure various parts of his body.
When asked what they liked about this activity, their responses were genuine and spontaneous.
Bastien - Helping my friends doing the things I need to do
Reise - When we measured Jack
Zaffron - When the pants were big and fat
Sydney - When we measured the shirt
Michael - When we had to cut and paste the pieces for Jack
Brooke - Gluing all the pieces to make Jack
Jake K. - Measuring Jack
Ashley - Everything
Mimi - It was fun because I like to make things. Chase - Gluing on the shoes and measuring it Stephanie - Doing the head and gluing the stuff on Courtney - Gluing the pants and arms
Jake L. - Measuring all the pieces Christa - Working together Aidan - Measuring the body
Junie B., First Grader (at Last!) by Barbara Park is our current Literature unit of study. This story has fun plots and bridges the gap between summer school and the new school year that is quickly approaching. Have conversations with your child about their thoughts and feelings of entering first grade.
This week we Skyped with our friends from Southampton, Massachusetts. There were a few problems as Mrs. Lee couldn't connect with them. But we finally were able to see smiling faces sitting on the carpet across from us. They asked us questions about what we do in our gym and if we had a cafeteria. Mrs. Poulin's students and our class agreed that pizza was the best lunch. We wondered what the weather was like over there because they were all wearing long sleeved shirts and long pants. A thick jacket was also something they needed. We all normally wear t-shirts and shorts because it is so warm.
