Singing

Last week, the kindergarteners had the chance to sing at the assembly! They all did such an amazing job!

Native American Feast

We had lots of fun celebrating today! We had the three sisters (corn, beans, and squash), which were staple foods for the Native Americans. We also had (gummy) fish! Thank you to everyone who helped and donated for our feast!!

Election Day Fun!

Happy Election Day!! We discussed elections in general and read the book Duck for President. We then held a mock election with voter registration cards, ballots, and stickers! Mr Turcotte was pretty pleased with the results!!

Labeling the Teacher

This week we worked on labeling. The students labeled an elephant and a bat then got a chance to label the teachers!! Encourage your child to look for labels in books they are reading!

The Apple Orchard

We had a great trip to the apple orchard last week...except that they didn't have any apples :)  Luckily they had a lot of pumpkins, animals, and fun activities for the students!  Thank you again to all of the parents who came with us!!

Having doughnuts and juice!

Petting the baby goats

Petting the zebu...sort of like a mini-cow

Holding bunnies

Picking out pumpkins

Feeding goats

 Walking through the apple-less orchard

The barn slide!!

Fire Safety!!

Yesterday we had a visit from Fireman Steve! He taught the students all about fire safety, what it is like to be a firefighter and all about his fire truck!

He gave some great tips for all families:
-check your smoke detectors monthly and change the batteries every 6 months
-talk to your family about having a meeting spot outside your house in case of a fire (this could be a mailbox, tree, or neighbors house)
-practice a fire drill at your house so that everyone knows how to get out in case of a fire!

Apples and Pumpkins

We have been learning a lot about apples and pumpkins this week in preparation for our trip to the apple orchard! We described an apple, compared apples and pumpkins, investigated an apple, and graphed our favorite way to eat an apple!!

Workshop!

This week we started workshop! Workshop gives the students a chance to work on the skills they have learned throughout the week in small groups. Here are some pictures from our first workshop:

Comparing sizes

Our Favorite Parts of Kindergarten So Far!

Here is a list of our favorite parts of Kindergarten so far (with the initials of who said it):

• Friends {MB}
• Lunch and recess {CC}
• The slide {KD}
• Recess {HF}
• The colored slide {AG}
• Everything {BG}
• Coloring {MG}
• Art {TH}
• Playing and reading {JJ}
• Writing and recess {LK}
• Playing outside {BK}
• Playground {KL}
• Recess {LL}
• Recess {AM}
• Everything {KM}
• Lunch {MO}
• Snack {EO}
• Lunch {AP}
• Everything {RP}
• Reading books {NSN}
• Recess {AS}
• Math and homework (!) {IS}
• Outside and gym {AV}
• Recess, lunch, and snack {LV}
• Having lunch {IV}
• Playing outside {JV}
• Recess {LW}
• The playground {CZ}

Welcome and all about Mrs. Durham!!

Welcome to our class blog!!  I will use this blog to keep families updated of all the fun happenings in our classroom!!  I will post about once a week, so check back often!!

I wanted to give you all a bit more information about myself!  First, I LOVE teaching Kindergarten!!  I have taught Kindergarten, Young Fives, and First Grade, but Kindergarten is by far my favorite!!

Besides Kindergarten, I have 4 things I love...family, traveling, running, and the University of Michigan!!!  (sorry MSU and OSU fans!!)

My family consists of my husband Joe and our two dogs, Vinny and Lou.  Vinny and Lou are French Bulldogs and are the best dogs!!  Your children will hear lots of Vinny and Lou stories over the year...Vinny might even make an appearance sometime in the classroom!  I have already told the kids that Lou won't be coming...he is a bit wild and might jump on the tables ;)

Vinny

Lou riding on a boat

Joe

My husband and I love to travel!!  We have been all around the world together and hope to continue this for many years to come!!  Recently we traveled to Alaska and the Pacific NW.  Both places were amazing and I would highly recommend them!!  My mother and I were also able to travel to Colorado and Utah to visit my brother who lives in Colorado.

Boating to Sawyer Glacier

Hiking on Baird Glacier 

Learning to paddle board!

 At a Totem Park

 Landing on a glacier near Denali

Hiking the Loveland Pass

Delicate Arch

Balanced Rock

And running!!  I love running!!  I started running about 3 years ago when my cousin signed us up for a half marathon training session and I haven't stopped since!! Last fall I was able to run the Chicago Marathon which was one of the greatest accomplishments!!  Currently, I am training for the Detroit Half Marathon where I will cheer on another Knapp teacher who is running the FULL marathon!  I am very lucky because there are a lot of runners on our staff who I get to run with multiple times each week!

After the 25K with Miss Johnson and Miss Baker!

I won't elaborate on loving U of M, but I did complete my undergrad there and loved my time in Ann Arbor.  My husband I go to a few games each fall!

I am so excited for this year...continue to check the blog for exciting things happening in Kindergarten!!