Lights-Hallway-Sparkle

We've been so busy teaching and learning with students that our hallway got forgotten. Thanks you to some kindergarten parents for using their creative talents to make our hallway sparkle.  Thank you to Kristi & Chuck Carroll and Kathy Ingram for making it light up!

They did a great job making our hallway "light up"!

Yearbook Ordering

CARPENTER HILL YEARBOOK

Order Deadline – January 17th!

Dear Parents,

          It is now time to order your Carpenter Hill Yearbook!!  The yearbook will be filled cover to cover with photographs of friends, teachers, classes, special events and activities that occurred throughout the school year!! Kindergarten will even have self portraits!  Every child will receive an order packet in the next couple of days… please be on the lookout for this information.

          The 2013-2014 Yearbook will have a hard cover, and ALL PAGES WILL BE IN COLOR!!!!  You must order now to be guaranteed a yearbook in the Spring!  From now through January 17, 2014, yearbooks are $22.00.  Because yearbooks will be delivered in May 2014, the publisher requires that all orders be final by January 17th. No order extensions this year!!   This year, there are three ways to order:

1.     Order online at www.smart-pay.com and enter customer # listed on the order form

2.    Order by mail by filling out the form in the order packet and submitting with payment, or

3.    Order by phone by calling 1-800-853-1337

No money will be collected at school!  I will leave extra order forms in the front office.  If you wish to have your child’s name personalized on the yearbook cover, it will cost an additional $4.00 (up to 20 characters), for a total of $26.00.  This is optional and can all be added online or by mail

Again, the deadline for ordering Yearbooks is January 17th!!   Only students that place orders by January 17th will be guaranteed a yearbook.  Only a few additional copies of the yearbook can be ordered, and once they run out, the yearbooks are gone!  No additional yearbooks can be ordered in the Spring

We also want your photos.  Upload the photos you take at CHES throughout the year to:

images.balfour.com  (no "www" in the front).

Our project number is: 421368  (skip the password).

In the caption information box please put: grade, event, student name.  This uploading process is easy and quick...!  Photos can be uploaded from now until March 15, 2014.

If you have any questions concerning orders, please contact Ann-Marie Sheely at amsheely@yahoo.com.   Thank you!   The Yearbook Committee.

Caring for the Cranes... shop for a cause

Caring for the Cranes

Make a Difference with Style!

The Kindergarten teachers from Carpenter Hill Elementary School have joined together to help support the Crane family. We recently heard a story about the Crane Family that lives in Kyle.  They have three children and two of them are extremely sick and fighting for their lives.  Can you imagine?  One sick child is enough, but two?  We were so touched by their story and feel the need to help them, and with your help, we can help the Cranes…here’s how:

You’re invited to Shop for a Cause!

SHOP: The holidays are here! Make your list and check it twice! You can help the Cranes by shopping for a cause with Silpada’s Sterling Silver Jewelry. 

PLACE YOUR ORDER: Silpada carries items for women, little girls and men. Order online or fill out an order form (see any Kindergarten Teacher). Can’t decide? Gift certificates are available for $25, $50, and $100. 

Order here:

http://sild.es/kUz

ORDER DEADLINE: November 26^th

DELIVERY: Jewelry will be delivered to your home in 3-5 days after the fundraiser orders are closed.

5 Senses Song

Red Ribbon Week Dress Up Days

Red Ribbon Week is a week to celebrate and show support for living a Drug Free Life!

Monday, October 21st

I’m a JEAN-ius and don’t do drugs

Wear jeans and a red shirt

Tuesday, October 22nd

I’m smarter than drugs

Wear your favorite college shirt

Wednesday, October 23rd

Say “Howdy” to a drug free future

Western Wednesday

Thursday, October 24th

Sock it to drugs

Crazy sock Day

Friday, October 25th

Double-Up against drugs

Twin Day

Pete the Cat

While learning how to read and recognize color words we use Pete the Cat! He's groovy! We created these Pete's which required following directions, cutting skills and using only dots of glue.

1st Annual CHES Reading Fair

1^st Annual CHES Reading Fair

Carpenter Hill is hosting a Reading Fair.  All students in grades K-5 are invited to create a storyboard display on a favorite fiction title.  A winner will be chosen from each grade level.                                      

The guidelines are as follows:

1.       Storyboards should be on a standard poster board sized 22”X28”.

2.       Fiction entries must include:

1.       Title

2.       Author

3.       Publisher and publication date (found on verso or back of title page)

4.       Main characters – characters important to the story

5.       Setting – where the story happens

6.       Tone/mood – how does the story make you feel

7.       Author’s purpose – why the author wrote the book

8.       Plot summary – brief description of the order of events

9.       Problem – the conflict in the story

10.   Solution – resolution the problem

Judges will look at the following:

1.       Are all parts included?

2.       Is it accurate?

3.       Is it neat?

4.       Is it eye-catching or appealing?

5.       Does it have correct grammar and spelling?

Please put your name and teacher’s name neatly on the back of the project on the top right-hand corner.  No names on the front please.

Projects are due on Monday, October 7.    The winners will be announced on Wednesday, October 9.                               

Popcorn Words

I
like
see
to
the


Read, Write and Spell

Letters we are Learning

L l
O o
G g
H h
T t
P p

Please review with your child the sounds the make how to write and identify by name.

Class T Shirts...

If you have not selected your child's size for the class T-Shirt please do. We are ordering on September 20th.

Colors

We use colors to start the reading process. Students are encouraged to wear the same color as the day.
Tuesday: red
Wednesday: yellow
Thursday: blue
Friday: green

Back to School Night Success

We had so much fun meeting our new students on Back to School Night. I hope you enjoyed visiting your classrooms. Thank you for filling out the forms about transportation and checking the information sheets from the office. Make sure to open your special treat on Sunday Night before going to sleep to ensure Sweet Dreams!

Welcome Mr. Mika

We would like to welcome Mr. Mika to the Carpenter Hill Kindergarten Team. He joins us from Negley Elementary. He volunteered to move to our school on Back to School Night. Within hours his room at Negley was boxed and being reassembled and made ready by a team of  four CHES parents, Mrs. Leonard, the kindergarten team and his very sweet mom. 

As a means to answer the question at the end of our hallway asking "Arrgh you ready for Kindergarten" Mr. Mika answered using props from the Back to School Night photo booth. 

Arrgh you ready?

We look forward to meeting all our new students. Back to School Night is Thursday. We will get a chance to meet all our new students and families. Please bring your supplies which you will get to place in your new cubby. Parents be sure to bring something to take a picture so you can take one of a kind photos.

Class Lists

Class lists are scheduled to be posted on Wednesday. We know you are anxious as parents because as your child's teacher we can hardly wait as well to see the names of children we will teach and learn with this year.

Summer Prep

Have you ever wondered what your teacher does during the summer? Many think we spend the entire time at the pool to ourselves doing as we choose but we spend a lot of time thinking about the upcoming school year.

Ms. Collins attended a writing training. Ms. Crawford has been reading professional books and creating. Mrs. Marek has been gathering and organizing books. Mrs. Williams has been making interactive SmartBoard files and organizing paper files.

The entire CHES Kindergarten team came together to make plans and begin putting things in place to meet our new students in August.

Last Day of School

We had an amazing year teaching your children. Best of luck to you all in the future. You may be moving on to 1st grade, but please know we will be here for you in years to come.

Love, 

The CHES Kindergarten Teachers

Field Day is Coming

On your mark get set... Go!

Field day is May 24th watch folders for more information coming.

Super Kindergarten

The amazing PTA treated the teachers at Carpenter Hill this week with a superhero theme fro Teacher Appreciation. Here are the kindergarten teachers sporting their capes and masks.

Super Collins, Super Marek, Super Crawford, Super Williams
Thank You Super CHES PTA!

Ocean Hallway

We created and showed off our new knowledge about the ocean in a hallway transformation!

Kicking It Kinder Style at SeaWorld

Wow we did it. We took 80 students to Sea World and had a blast. This was a great way to finish off learning about the ocean habitat and animal adaptation. We loved the education emphasis on conservation.

Ms. Crawford, Mrs. Williams, Mrs. Marek, Mrs. Collins

Sea World

Students are have learned a lot about marine animals. We will have a visit from a Marine Biologist the the day prior to our visit to SeaWorld. Classes have had special ocean snacks. We have also transformed our hallway into a healthy habitat. We have made connections to literature, learned facts about animal adaptations and ecosystems.

Earth Week sponsored by PTA (late to not conflict with STAAR test)

Hello Carpenter Hill Parents, Teachers and Students!


Friday, April 26th- Movie Night from 7-9 p.m. in the Colt Cafe, featuring The Lorax!

Monday, April 29th- "Make Your Mark" Monday! Bring your sidewalk chalk to school today and help beautify the courtyard during recess. Draw pictures related to the environment and nature (trees, flowers, birds, butterflies, the Earth, the sun, etc.) You could even draw a self-portrait! If you want to write words, keep them related to Earth Week and the environment (like reduce-reuse-recycle, compost, plant trees, save the Earth, etc.) All words must follow Colt Guidelines. Deep colored, bright and neon chalk will stand out the most. You can draw on the courtyard concrete everyday at recess during Earth Week if you like. We will get a "before" picture and then we will take an "after" picture. We can't wait to see you "make your mark!"

A Rain Harvester Talk will take place with all 2nd and 3rd grade students from 8 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. We will hear about how our rain harvesters work and why they are important. Young readers can check out the newly donated book, Jeremy Jackrabbit Harvests the Rain, by Sasha and Rodney Glassman from our CHES Library.

We also challenge Carpenter Hill staff and students to not use plastic water bottles this week. Try to use a reusable drink container. They can show off your personality, and best of all they help the environment! :)

Tuesday, April 30th- Tennis Shoe Tuesday! Bring us your old worn-out tennis shoes, of any brand for our Nike Reuse-a-Shoe Drive. Toss them in the wire bin in the front entry. We will collect tennis shoes all week. Shoes caked with mud are unacceptable. No dress shoes, cleats, flip-flops or sandals. Only tennis shoes. These shoes will be taken to Nike to be recycled and used to make track and play surfaces and also make Nike Grind products. To learn more, visit www.nikereuseashoe.com

Wednesday, May 1st- Recycled Art Sculptures due! Turn in your recycled art sculpture to an Environmental Committee Member at the front door of the library from 7:20 a.m.-7:40 a.m. and from 2:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m. All sculptures must be presented with a completed entry form. Entry form and rules can be found below. Copies will also be available in the front entry in the mail slots next to the display case. Look for the green paper. This is one of our favorite activities of the year. Students, you are so creative! If you need inspiration or ideas, check out the newly donated book, Craftcycle, by Heidi Boyd.

Thursday, May 2nd- "Throw it in the Composter" Thursday! Help fill our new composter! Waste from class snacks that is appropriate for the composter will be collected on this day. Try to pack a snack like oranges, bananas, hard-boiled eggs or strawberries with leaves and stems still attached. Peels, stems/leaves and shells are great for the composter. If you are celebrating a birthday and you are serving cupcakes, we could use the paper liners. If teachers are making coffee or tea at school, we can use the used coffee grounds and filters/tea bags. Paper sacks will be provided to the classrooms for collection purposes and will then be collected on each floor at the end of the day(look for the gray tubs at the top and bottom of the stairs.) Teachers, paper sacks will be in your mailboxes next week. This is going to make a great natural fertilizer for our gardens! Young readers can check out the newly donated book, Compost Stew, by Mary McKenna Siddals to get more ideas of what can go into a composter. Older CHES students can find more information on composting in the newly donated book, Save the Planet: Compost It, by David Barker.

Friday, May 3rd- WEAR GREEN today to show your support for environmental stewardship. RECYCLED ART SCULPTURE WINNERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED TODAY!

Please join us in celebrating all we can do to improve our children's quality of life and the world around us! We welcome and appreciate your support. If you have any questions, please contact Kim Klocke at kklocke@austin.rr.com

Colt Carnival is Coming

Our PTA Colt Carnival will be held on April 13th. http://www.carpenterhillpta.com/
Thank you to all the families that donated items to the Kindergarten Baskets.

CHES carnival writstband4 3-13 from reallyjilly

Easter Egg Hunt

Kindergarten students hunted for eggs with their names. Thank you to families who came to help or sent items for fun snacks.

Newsletter March 25-29

3 22 texas news from reallyjilly

Spring Break March 11-15

Enjoy and have fun. All the Kindergarten Teachers look forward to seeing you upon your return.

Writing about USA symbols

We learned, created, talked and wrote about USA symbols.

                                     

Newsletter March 4-8

3 1 usa news2 from reallyjilly

Newsletter February 25- March 1

2 22 usa news from reallyjilly

Estimation Station Prep

The Kindergarten Estimation Station starts tomorrow. Volunteer moms came and decorated the display case with the jars and boxes for guess tickets. Kinder teachers and student teachers counted the donated goodies earlier this week.

We hope to raise enough money to pay for charter buses needed for our Sea World Trip.