This week we are celebrating our friend Lily as the Student of the Week!
Lily is a sweet friend that gets along well with everyone! She likes pasta, running, and playing with her dog Cocoa. She likes going to New York, her friend's house, and she really wants to go to Disneyland. When Lily grows up she wants to be a veterinarian to take care of people's pets (but no icky, slimy things like snakes).
Thank you for being a positive member of our classroom, Lily!!
This week we are celebrating our friend Emazing. He is a fun guy with a lot of ambitious desires. He also has very diverse interests. His favorite food is pizza with Mac & Cheese. His favorite sports are baseball and soccer. His favorite pets are dogs, turtles, and fish. He likes Star Wars a lot! When Emazing grows up he wants to be either a doctor, police officer, FBI Agent, or pro ball player. He's definitely not afraid to set the bar high for himself!
Thank you for sharing about yourself Emazing, and keep reaching for the stars!!
Please sign up to help us with this yearly feast as we bring all of the Kindergarten students and families together to break bread and share a meal. It's a lot of fun and a terrific way to get to know the families that your child will be growing up with at Cordelia Hills. Use the link to sign up for a volunteer slot &/or food dish. Thanks and see you next week!!
This week we are celebrating our friend Alyssa. She is a sweet girl that gets along with everyone. She has been working so hard in class and always follows the school rules. She likes fried chicken, soccer, Sleeping Beauty, and fish. She enjoys visiting Disneyland, water parks, and the Philippines. When Alyssa grows up she wants to be a teacher and work with little kids. Thank you for sharing your interests with us, Alyssa!!
Please use this link to schedule a conference time during the week of November 14-18th. Please only sign up for one slot (unless you get prior approval from me). I want to make sure that every family has an opportunity to schedule a conference time for their child. Thanks!
This past week we celebrated our friend Charlie. She is a sweet, hardworking, and friendly child that gives her best effort everyday in class. She loves her family and friends, Elsa and Anna (Frozen) books, Mac & Cheese, kittens, and gymnastics. In fact, she wants to be a gymnast when she grows up!! She likes playing with her mommy, getting tickled by her daddy, and playing Minecraft with her brothers Porter and Mason.
Thanks for being a terrific Line Leader this week Charlie, and for being such a great student in our class!!
I did an "Awesome Apples" project last year and it was a big hit. So I'm bringing it back!
This is our last week learning about apples, and we are going to do apples 3 ways on Friday (raw with Mrs. Baker, cooked with Ms. Spence, and baked with me), but it is always fun to let them engage in their learning at home with all of you. Check out some cookbooks, or cheat like I do and check Pinterest or other easy recipe places online, and pick a fun and easy apple recipe that your child can help you make. Have a family member record the process on a smartphone or other device. Then use one of the many editing apps to turn your cooking adventure into a short video that you can send in and share with the class. I will share the videos throughout the week as they come in to get the class excited about our cooking party on Friday! Here is the video my son Skylar and I made last year. We will definitely make a new one again this year for all of you. Hope you like it, and can't wait to see what tasty "apple-icious" treats you make!
This week we celebrated our friend Connor. Connor also comes from a large family (Mom, Dad, 3 sisters, and a brother). Connor and his family love visiting Disneyland and Hawaii. He enjoys hiking, swimming, and basketball. When Connor grows up he wants to play for the Golden State Warriors!!
Last week we celebrated our friend Alexia as the Student of the Week! Alexia comes from a big family with Mom, Dad, 3 sisters, and 2 brothers. She really enjoys Halloween and playing with her dog. Her favorite food is Salmon and Rice. She likes playing softball and reading Curious George books. When she grows up she wants to be a vet and work at a pet hospital. Thanks for letting us learn more about you Alexia, and keep up the great work in school!!
Parents, you may want to dress your child in old clothes tomorrow that you don't mind getting dirty. Also, if your child has eyes that are easily irritated, I would suggest glasses or goggles to help keep the color powder out. It will be a lot of fun, but we want them to be safe. Remember, have them wear tennis shoes tomorrow (no sandals). Also, we run at 12 noon if you want to come out and get some pictures. Help your child get some last minute pledges, get a good night's sleep, and eat a healthy breakfast so that they are energized and ready to run tomorrow! (Packing an extra water bottle for tomorrow wouldn't hurt either!!)
Last week we celebrated Jon W. He is a great student that works well with everyone and really enjoys school. When he grows up he wants to be a teacher. His likes include pizza, soccer, reading Curious George books, and his fish. He also enjoys jumping on trampolines, playing Minecraft, and going to Disneyland. Thank you for being a Superstar Student, Jon!!
We are getting ready to start our next thematic unit: Apples! These amazing fruits are an important part of a healthy diet, and one of the most diverse fruits on Earth, with over 7,500 varieties. Watch this informative video to learn more about How Apples Grow!!
So this week we are doing Child News Reporters as the optional At-Home Project.
The kids are supposed to "report" on happenings in their community using the words "HE" and "SHE" to describe what's going on around them. I am excited to see what gets turned in to me, but to get the parents excited, I thought I would share this funny Kid Snippet's News Video. If you are unfamiliar with Kid Snippets, they record conversations between kids, then have adults recreate the conversation in funny little vignettes. This one doesn't have the learning focus of he/she, but I think you will still enjoy it!!
This is the best video I have found that explains how bees make honey.
It's an advanced video for Kindergarten, but very thorough and filled with
interesting facts. Check it out and tell me you didn't learn something new!
So this video briefly talks about how the bees make honey, but it primarily focuses on how humans take and manufacture the honey for distribution. We won't spend a lot of time on this in class, but it is still a cool video clip for those interested in knowing how honey gets from the beehive to our kitchens.
So next week we will be learning about How Bees Make Honey.
Today one of the kids told me that their dad said the "Boy" bees are the worker bees.
We have already learned this to be untrue, but if you do not believe me, please watch
these videos that explain about the various jobs of the "boy" and "girl" bees, as well as
how these fascinating creatures make this delicious substance.
Using dry pasta shells to model the Life Cycle of the Butterfly.
A colorful Butterfly Life Cycle where the wings show the 4 stages.
Here are just a few examples of creative displays that I found online to help with this OPTIONAL project.
Students can choose their favorite insect (or just one they are interested in learning about) and research it's life cycle. A simple Google or YouTube search should help you find what you need. Most insects go through 4 stages: egg, larva (or nymph), pupa, and adult. Some insects have different, or multiple stages, but you can choose how simple/complex you want yours to be. Give your children some crafts and let them get creative in making a poster or diagram that they would like to bring in and share with the class.
If you want to stray away from bees and butterflies, might I suggest the mosquito or dragonfly. They actually spend part of their life cycle under water. Your children might be very surprised to learn this!! Have fun and I can't wait to see what amazing works your little scientists bring in!!
Watch the video, then talk with your parents about what you learned.
Would you like to put on a bee suit and learn more about bees firsthand?
Where could we go to see bees at work?
If your family is up for it, go on a family trip to a local bee/honey farm to ask questions and learn more about these amazing insects!
Some local venues to check out include:
https://www.marshallshoney.com/ (American Canyon)
https://www.lockewoodacres.com/ (Vacaville)
http://www.bayareabeecompany.com/ (Vallejo)
You might also be able to check out some of the local ranches here in the Cordelia/Green Valley area to learn about where they get their bees, and how the bees help their businesses!!
Write in the comments about your experience and what you learned about these fascinating insects!!
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Here is the Link to my Back to School Night Presentation in case any of you would like to look at it again!
-Mr. Linnet
My name is Nic Linnet, and I will so excited to meet you all this week! This is my 14th year teaching in FSUSD (12th year in Kindergarten). We have a fun and busy classroom, and expect to try out some new things this year as we become 21st Century Learners. I am very approachable and will provide many options for you to engage with me (emails, messages, etc.) and the class (Class Dojo, SeeSaw, in class volunteering, etc.). This class is OUR class. Please feel free to pop in and join us whenever it fits into your schedule. Kindergarten Rocks!!
This week we get to celebrate our friend Steven. Steven is an energetic and spirited boy that loves nature, his family, and playing with his friends. His favorite food is mac & cheese. He loves dogs and cats. Steven also enjoys coloring, sledding, playing at the park, and visiting Grandma's. When Steven grows up he would like to be a pilot. Steven is a great kid to talk with, and has an extremely sweet heart. We love working with him in class each day, and are excited to have him as our Line Leader this week. Congrats, Steven!!
I converted his Student of the Week Wall into a sketch...How Cool?!
This week we get to celebrate an amazing guy in our class! Luke S. is a wonderful friend, a hardworking student, and just an overall cool kid with a great sense of style. He has waited all year to be our Student of the Week, and was so excited that he brought in SO MANY pictures (15 I think) to share with the class. To match his enthusiasm, I tried some new features on my phone, making his wall into a collage, then converting the large picture into a sketch. It's a little wild, a little crazy, I know...but hey, so am I! Hope you like it Luke!!
So, Luke S. wants to be a construction worker when he grows up, he likes Star Wars, baseball, and cheeseburgers. He enjoys going to the movies, his Grandparents house, and Jump Highway. He loves riding his bike (and from the pics he sent in, it looks like he loves riding DIRT BIKES!!). Thank you for sharing your interests with us dude, and thanks for being such a positive member of our class!
-Mr. Linnet
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Do your children like musicals? Would they like to see local students (including Skylar) perform on the big stage at the Downtown Theater in Fairfield? Well, now is your chance to check out this year's Youth performance from Missouri Street Theater's production of "Willy Wonka".
This is a great event. And if you are interested in getting your child involved in the Arts, they offer Summer sessions to try it out. 9-4pm throughout the summer. Check out the links below, and I hope to see you all at the Theater!! -Mr. Linnet
I have already reached out to the families that I wanted to schedule a conference with, but I also wanted to provide the link in case any of you decide you would also like a conference. Remember that spaces are limited, so please only sign up if there is a compelling issue you need to discuss with me (academics, behavior, social, etc.). Report Cards go home next week to those individuals that I am not conferencing with. Thank you for all of the amazing effort you have been putting in with your child this year!
Yesterday our class planted some vegetable seeds and created terrariums to begin our Plant Projects.
We will record and monitor their growth over the next few weeks, then take them home to see if we can grow some vegetables.
It's that time of year again.
Please login to the link above and sign your child up for a short (less than 30 minutes) assessment to help with the 2nd Trimester Report Cards. Quick assessment on ELA, Math, and Writing skills.
Cordelia Hills will be participating in this event next Wednesday (February 3rd, 2016).
This gives a brief summary of what Global School Play Day is, and why it was started.
Parents are welcome to come in and join us for play day. Have your child bring in their favorite toys or board games to play with their friends. There are only 2 rules to follow:
1) NO BATTERIES, DEVICES, SCREENS. Everything we play and do is not electrical.
2) HAVE FUN!! Challenge a friend to game of checkers. Teach a friend to play Battleship. Build a puzzle. Put on a play. Play catch. Jump Rope. Act out a story using action figures. Build something with Legos. Whatever you want to do...Whatever you want to play...Just PLAY!!
We've not done this before, so it is sure to be an interesting experience. I would love to have a few parents here to join in the play, and a few others to record the events of the day to share with the class through Class Dojo and our Class Blog.
This week we celebrated our friend Furious. He is a cool kid that enjoys pizza, baseball, and his kitten Nomi. Furious loves playing with his action figures (he shared his Captain America and Incredible Hulk Mix-n-Match figures), watching YouTube videos, and getting crazy at places like Jump Highway and The Jungle. His favorite book is "Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein, and when he grows up he wants to "take care of his Mama". How can you not think he is a great kid with a response like that?!
Last week we celebrated our friend Estella. She wants to be a Scientist when she grows up! Estella also brought in her favorite book "Hop on Pop!" by Dr. Seuss, and read the whole book to the class! Check out her board!!
Please use the link below to sign up for a time to have your child come in and test their skills for the 2nd Trimester Progress Report. I wish we didn't have to do it after school, but there simply isn't enough time in the school day for me to meet with 28 students individually to go over all of the skills I need to test. Thank you for your flexibility and understanding as I try to get the best data on your child's academic progress. -Mr. Linnet
