Merry Christmas!

As I stepped into school this morning, I could feel the electricity in the air!   The big day we have all been waiting for finally arrived!   What a great day we had today!   Here is a run down of our fun filled day.  I have photos of some portions, but will describe our day so that you feel like you were there.

Our day started out as it normally does.  We did Xtra Math (the teacher in me HAD to do it just one more time for 2012) along with our free reading/book basket time.   Next were calendar activities.  We then finished up our class books incorporating various shapes.  These books turned out amazing!   They are a hit in our classroom library as well.  

Then, we celebrated Isaac's birthday and the start of our Christmas festivities with his cupcake treat (thanks Mrs. Warnock!) and juice boxes.  Believe me, we did not need any more sugar treats on top of that today!

Next, we finally got to open our wrapped books from each other!   What a neat experience it was to see the excitement on their faces when they received a new book from a classmate.   See the excited faces below:

Next, each child received a gift from Mrs. Ferrell.   A spiral notebook, box of crayons and box of markers kept them busy for 20+ minutes of free coloring!

Our next activity was a craft.  The kids made red/green macaroni necklaces with a Christmas tree in the middle.   Fortunately we had indoor recess today, because several kids needed the extra time to finish their craft.

After recess and lunch, we had our Friday Show and Tell time, and made a Student of the Week booklet for our friend Carter, who will not be returning in January.   Since he had not had the opportunity to be Student of the Week yet, we made his book for him as a special memory of our class.

We then had a little more than an HOUR of laptop computer time!   The kids have had the opportunity to play some nifty holiday games on the Cool Math 4 Kids website, but craved more time.  Since we watched our holiday movie yesterday, and the laptops were available, we grabbed the chance to play on them!   If you have a bored first grader over vacation, Cool Math 4 Kids will keep him or her busy for an hour or more easily!   

While we were playing computers, we had a surprise visitor!   MR. FERRELL came in to visit and brought Christmas cookies for everyone!   It is always a big hit when he visits (did you know he came in to make turkeys with us in November???)  and the kids not only enjoyed the cookies, they also got to show off their computer skills as well.

The final part of our day was Christmas caroling time in the gym with the entire school!   

After Christmas caroling, Mrs. Klomparens announced the winners of the hot lunch bike drawing.  Each time a child ate hot lunch this week, a ticket with his/her name went into a bucket.  Today, one boy and one girl name were drawn out of the bucket!   The winning boy was none other than Isaac!   It was also Isaac's 7th birthday today, so he really had a fantastic day of celebration!

Isaac's reaction upon hearing HIS name announced as the winner!

What a birthday!   I think I know someone who will be outside even in cold weather!

Thank you parents for the opportunity to partner with you in your child's academic, social and emotional growth this year!   It is truly a gift I am thankful for each and every day!   I am blessed beyond words with these precious children.   Have a wonderful break from school and enjoy your family this holiday season.  Don't forget to do a little reading, math flashcard work, visit Xtra Math on your computer, and come back to school in 2013 well rested and ready to buckle down to business!  We have a lot of fun and learning to do in the new year.   I can't wait to get started (well, maybe I can wait just a couple of weeks).   

Merry Christmas to everyone, and a blessed New Year!   See you in 2013!

Jodie Ferrell