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February
2008 Journal
*
HUGS * KISSES * LOTS OF LOVE *
It's a leap year!
Will that Ground Hog see his shadow?
(YES!) Will we EVER see snow? (yes, finally...on Feb.
12th and again on the 22nd!)
Will Mommy & Daddy ever get the website updated before a
month is over? (Probably NOT!)
We are busy people and/or at times just lazy!
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Week #22
~ Kindergarten News
February 1 , 2008 |
We have read
many stories and discussed the aspects of the farm. We talked
about food too and our favorite breakfast foods and how the
ingredients came from a farm and then we had a special surprise
treat....we made waffles together in class! Yummy!
We are going to be starting our first science unit - All About
Myself and Others! I can't wait, my teacher said she has a lot
of fun activities and even homework planned.
Added some new wall words to our list: NOT and IN. Daddy
and I have been practicing all my wall words every night before bed!
Our new centers are going to be Valentine themed. We will be
practicing writing about things that we love, making a love bug,
rhyming, making a calendar, matching higher numbers and pictures and
graphing.
We have exciting events coming up this month! Our 100th day of
school and all of the kindergarten classes are going to try and
collect 100 canned goods for the local food bank! I have to
collect 100 things to share too...hmmmm, what will I bring?
Also, we will be having our Valentine's Day party. I guess I
better get started on my cards and treats for my friends!
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Happy Ground Hog
Day!
February 2 , 2008 |
Well, we tried
to watch the Ground Hog prediction this morning but we must have
been on the wrong news channel...they just told us what he said and
didn't take us there "live". Oh well...we got the official
forecast and that is all that really matters. I was hopeful
for a longer winter! I still haven't seen any significant
snowman building, snowball making, sled riding worthy snow to make
me satisfied. Mommy agrees with me on this. We want just
one or maybe two fun snow days! Daddy...well, if you know
him...you KNOW what he's saying!
Here is Phil's forecast brought to you from the friendly people of
GroundHog.org
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
On Gobbler's Knob on this fabulous Groundhog Day, February 2nd ,2008
Punxsutawney Phil, the Seer of Seers, Prognosticator of all
Prognosticators,
Rose to the call and proclaimed:
"As I look around me, a bright sky I see, and a shadow beside me.
Six more weeks of winter it will be!"
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I don't know
what sunny skies Phil was seeing because there sure weren't any
around here! Okay Phil, we hear you...now come Mother Nature
and bring on the SNOW!
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Basketball Game #5
February 2 , 2008 |
Well...this was
not my best played game. My head just wasn't in it. I
was not paying attention - kind of just standing looking around and
chewing on my lips. Hmmm. Mom and Dad weren't sure what
was going on....having an "off" day or maybe I was nervous because
the Hartley's came to watch me play. Who knows.
I didn't get in "trouble" but we did have a nice family discussion
about being part of a team. I said that I only like playing
defense and that I did a good job at that. I guess I kind of
understand what they are saying.
The reality of it is that I do rather enjoy sitting at home playing
my video games, playing with Lego's and/or drawing. All of
which are really great talents of mine but Dad and Mom said I have
to get my body up and moving around too! I suppose they are
right.
Guess I will try and do better next week. I'm not allowed any
time on my DS (Nintendo handheld game system) until after I show
good "effort" (this is the key word that has been discussed in my
house) at my game.
We won! (I never know if we won or not but Daddy keeps track
and doesn't tell me)
GO DARK GREEN!
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The Antique Auto
Museum in Hershey (link)
February 2 , 2008 |
After my game,
the Hartley's came back to the house. We were visiting and
then thought we should do something. It just so happened that
Hershey was having a "Community Days Weekend" and all of their
attractions were FREE admission! We love the word free!
We have driven past the antique auto museum but had never stopped,
we always thought about it but just never made it. We weren't
sure if we would like it, so a better opportunity wasn't going to
come along, we packed ourselves up and off we went. We got
there kind of close to closing time but the place was crowded but
people seemed to have been filtering out.
The place was really nice. We aren't sure that we would have
like to have "paid" to go there but it was fun seeing all the old
cars. Some of them were really huge. I would have liked
to have gone for a ride in some of them. We tried to take some
pictures but they had weird lighting going on in there that our
camera just did not like. It is definitely the place to visit
if you enjoy seeing and reading about antique cars. Mommy said
they had an El Camino there that was just like her grandfathers.
They also had a lot of interesting facts posted around the
museum...did you know a woman invented the wind shield wiper?
We headed back home and had some pizza and subs for dinner! It
was a fun day with friends. Grey is getting so grown-up.
He will be one soon. Plus, he is on the move, it was much
harder for me to stay away from him...heehee.
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Zoo
America
February 3 , 2008 |
Since Hershey
was having Community Days - this morning we got up and headed to the
zoo. The weather was very mild for being the middle of winter
so it was nice being outside.
It's nice going to the zoo in the winter, the animals are very
active. The lady working there also said one of the best times
to come is when it snows, the animals love it...plus the zoo would
probably not be very crowded on that day!
We got there at the right time, it was busy but not at all crowded.
They had some stations set up throughout the zoo, talking mostly
about groundhogs and teaching who their predators were and who were
classified as being in their "family".
I would have to admit, I was not wanting to be there, kept bugging
my parents to leave, they just ignored me! I did like watching
the otters, they were out swimming all over the place. The
wolves were neat and boy, they are big animals! I would not
want to see one of those coming my way in the woods! The
porcupine was high up in a tree branch - I didn't know they climbed
trees! My all time favorite part and favorite thing to do
since I was very little...feeding the ducks! Daddy and I threw
the corn out as far as we could!
Time to go home...right?
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(Glow) Bowling
Fun!
February 3 , 2008 |
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NOPE! I
wanted to go home...Daddy said when we were leaving the zoo..."you
are going home and going to your room!" Then I heard Mommy
saying something to Daddy about "that is what he wants to do,
we want to go bowling, that is what we are going to do!"
Grumble, grumble......
Next thing I
know we are at the bowling alley...."hey, this isn't home!"
Grumble...grumble.....
Ooh, it's
dark in here....we had gotten to the bowling alley later than we
normally do on a Sunday so the glow bowling was "turned on" (so to
speak) but they were still only charging for the "family time"
hours! BONUS! What a fun time we had...why was I being
such a grouch?! I did really good but I still have not gotten
a strike! I get so close and robbed so many times!
So, I gave into the good time even though I didn't get my way - oh,
and Mommy kicked Daddy's butt....AGAIN!
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2nd
Report Card Period
February 4 , 2008 |
I brought home
my second report card today! I did pretty good. This
time I was evaluated in 30 different areas. Again, I am right
down the middle with my number of checks and plus's - having 15 of
each. I did manage to turn 2 of my checks around but then two of
my plus's turned to checks. We are hoping there isn't a
negative reason for this...my teacher didn't say.
I will add the new areas and marks in another color...hmm, I pick
orange!
Social Development
and work habits:
Works well
independently - + -
check
Follows classroom
routines - + -
check
Demonstrates self-control – check -
check
Organizes/cares for
personal property – check -
check
Interacts cooperatively
with peers - + -
+
Completes work neatly –
check -
check
Remains on task, completes work in a timely manner – check -
check
Pays attention in
multiple settings – check -
check
Follows school rules,
well-mannered – check -
+
Proper pencil and
crayon grip - + -
+
Uses scissors correctly
- + -
+
Listening/Speaking:
Listens attentively –
check -
check
Follows oral directions
– check -
check
Waits turn to speak –
check -
+
Orally expresses ideas - check (Cole does not like to talk)
Identifies rhyming words -
+
Reading:
Identifies uppercase
letters in random order - + -
+
Identifies lowercase
letters in random order - + -
+
Knows sounds of consonant letters - check
Written Communication:
Prints name properly -
+ -
+
Forms written letters neatly -
check
Uses drawing with details to represent ideas -
+
Writes using:
left to right directionality -
+
letters to represent sounds in words - check
a sense of sentence - check
Mathematics:
Identifies numeral in random order (0 thru 10) - + -
+
Writes numerals neatly -
+
Understands math concepts -
+
Problem solving skills (not all math related issues) - check
Interprets charts and graphs -
+
Looking
good! His teacher gives us another report on how he does
with identifying his letters (lower and upper case), wall words,
sounds, and numbers. He did quite well, mixing up a few
but probably at the time he was tested. We practice them
at home a lot and he knows them. We are kind of struggling
with vowel sounds. He knows all of his 24 wall words and
all numbers up to 11, she will test up to 21 next time.
So far and as far as we can tell...school is a positive
experience for him. His favorite special classes are Gym
(which shocks both Mark and I) and Art!
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Science Unit -
Myself and Others
February 4th
- 15th , 2008 |
We have started
our very first science unit in school! YAY! I love "sciencey"
stuff.
We talked all about our bodies and how we look and how others look
as well. I had some fun homework assignments. One was
drawing someone at home that I love and writing why. I drew
Daddy. I drew him twice...funny story...Mommy and I were
working on it and I decided to give Daddy some angry eyes.
Heehee...I thought that was so funny, then I made a thought bubble
and wrote, "No Cole!" inside of it...heehee....laughing. Mommy
was helping me to write my sentence and then I decided to scratch
out the words and draw little designs. Mommy asked me why I
did this and I told her I made a mistake. (Note from Mommy:
I had no problem allowing Cole to send his picture to school with
Mark angry...people do get mad. However, Cole's designs
reminded of those used by cartoonist to express not very pretty
language, so I convinced Cole to start over, which much to my
surprise, he whole heartedly agreed). So, Mommy made me a new
paper and I drew a much happier Dad and wrote "Someone special at
home is my Dad because he plays video games with me."
Another assignment was to draw a picture of me and someone at home
and then I had to write 3 things about how we are alike and 3 ways
we are different. I decided to draw Mom, no angry eyes this
time! Alike: We have blue eyes, We like to draw, We have
dimples. Different: We both have different hair, Mom is
a girl, I like video games and Mom does not.
Another fun activity we did with this unit was to bring in a baby
picture and then we played "Guess the Baby" with my classmates.
Everyone guessed it was me! Guess I am just still as cute as a
button!
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Basketball Game #6
February 9 , 2008 |
Wow! Six
basketball games already! We played the orange team today and
whoa, what a game it was. Dad and Mom said it was the most
interesting game they have seen yet! One reason....I GOT MY
FIRST REBOUND!! And the crowd and my coaches went nuts!
It was exciting to hear everyone cheering and I got all kinds of
compliments after the game!
This game was interesting in other ways because the "A" team
(orange) were soo fast, they dribbled fast, they ran fast, they
passed the ball fast, they took shots at the basket fast! My
"A" teammates were almost at a loss as what to do...but they didn't
give up and kept up the best they could. Now, quarter whistle
blows and it's the "B" teams turn....the other team was the complete
extreme opposite of the their "A" team....all beginners of course,
they would dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble,
dribble.....well, you get the idea. It got to the point where
the coach told us to get more aggressive and TAKE THE BALL! We
were able to catch up on the scores against us on my quarters of
play! - it was a good thing the game ends with the "B" team!
It was a fun game! Oh, and Mom and Dad had bribed me with $1 for
every rebound - I need to go collect! Woo-hoo!
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100th Day of
School!
February 12 , 2008 |
Today marked the
100th Day of School! It sure is going fast!
We read a book about 100 days of school. We all shared our 100
items. I took 100 Hershey's Hugs and Kisses! I even
shared some with my teacher :)
We had to practice counting to 100...and counting our 100 items too.
We had to put them into groups, first into groups of 5 and then
groups of 10.
We were also supposed to bring in canned food items for a local food
bank, the 2nd grade had challenged us to try and collect at least
100 cans. My class, both morning and afternoon, collected 79
cans! We put those together with the other kindergarten class
and we went well over our goal!
It was a fun day!
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Happy
Valentine's Day! xoxo
February 14 , 2008 |
Happy
Valentine's Day!
Mommy and me made cut-out, iced with sprinkles, heart cookies to
take for my friends for our party at school today! You should
know that I practically made them all by myself...I helped to
measure and mix the dough AND rolled/cut every single one of them
all by myself! Mommy did the baking and then I helped to ice
and add the sprinkles! We did get a few extras that I was able
to sample and boy they were yummy!
We were busy in the kitchen baking...as Daddy had entered a
ChocolateFest at his work. He made Cheesy Fudge Balls that
were dipped in white chocolate and drizzled with caramel! They
were really good too! Daddy didn't win any prizes but people
enjoyed his treat...although they all seemed to think that Mommy
made them. She helped but Daddy did all the mixing!
Anyway...I had all my valentines ready to take to school and my
little gifts for my teachers!
We had a fun party and ate lots of snacks! I had a fun time
opening and reading all my valentine's that I got from my friends.
At home - mommy made yummy chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast.
I drew a special card for daddy and made him a handprint plague for
his office. Daddy got Mommy some flowers and Dance Dance
Revolution! A game for the Xbox! We had a fun night
together all trying to play that. Whew, it sure can make you
sweat and really make you feel not all that coordinated!
Thank you to everyone who sent me special little cards and treats
for this holiday!
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Week #24
~ Kindergarten News
February 15 , 2008 |
We have been
busy reading and discussing stories about the Presidents, teeth and
Valentines. In science we discussed what we look like, how we
are alike and different from each other, our height, our hands,
eyes, hair, and skin. The science unit, as a mentioned in an
entry earlier, was a lot of fun!
It's official we have learned all 32 wall words. I can read
them all with no help! I still need a lot of practice writing
them.
We have been learning about money and time during our math lesson.
I am enjoying this. We are counting pennies, nickels and
dimes. I also can tell time by the hour now. I am always
counting my money in my wallet! I need to know if I have
enough to buy Lego's!
Our new center are about Presidents and teeth. My teacher gave
us a card that has all of the Presidents on it! Mommy and me
look at it all the time. I think the guys look funny on there.
I think President Andrew Jackson looks like Jack Frost. I know
who is dead and who was shot by someone. I know that our
President now has a dad that was President before. I like
looking at that card.
Talking about our teeth will be fun. We are going to be doing
some fun activities with that like brushing soda stains off of hard
boiled eggs!
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Basketball Game #7
and a Pizza Party!
February 16 , 2008 |
This weeks game
was exciting for a few reasons. First, we played the red team
and on that team are a lot of my friends for the neighborhood and
bus stop! It was fun watching them play PLUS their dad's (who
were also the coaches for their team) cheered me on too! It
was a challenging game this week....it ended in a tie. I need
to practice at getting in the other players faces and trying to
get/block the ball....be more aggressive is the key phrase I keep
hearing about. I did manage a couple rebounds though - yay!
I'm getting it...slowly, but I'm getting it!
After the game the coaches took us all out for pizza! I had a
good time sitting with my friends and talking and laughing, laughing
and talking! We all ate too much pizza and too much soda!
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Bowling Fun
February 17 , 2008 |
We took a
weekend off from bowling but we managed to go today. It was
really busy - a lot of families were out.
I am having fun and getting soo close to a strike! I don't get
aggravated about it, I just keep trying. I have gotten better
at using a back swing to throw my ball, the next is working on my
hand position, I kind of twist it or something...Mommy said she has
no idea how I do it and it doesn't hurt!
I got A LOT of 9's this week!
Oh, and Dad FINALLY beat Mommy...like really skunked her this week!
That time off must have goofed her up!
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Final
Basketball Practice
February 17 , 2008 |
I went into this
practice with a good attitude and did a really good job at practice.
I tried hard at everything the coaches told me. I did get
quite a few rebounds. Daddy took me to McDonald's for dinner
since I did such a good job!
I do have the parents confused, as I will tell you that I don't like
basketball...but it really doesn't show when I am there or when it
comes time to go to a game or practice. Heehee...I just like
to keep them guessing!
This was my last practice for the year - but Daddy mentioned
something about us maybe getting my own hoop for the driveway this
spring and I can practice all summer! It's a hard decision
yet, as our driveway isn't exactly flat.
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***S*N*O*W***DAY!
February 22 , 2008 |
It snowed last
night! YAY! No school for today! We only got
around 2 inches, if that. Mommy spent the better part of the
morning shoveling the driveway and sidewalks and then we made it
outside to do some sledding down the hill in the backyard! We
amazingly both fit on the sled at the same time! My favorite
part was when we fell off...heehee.
The snow wasn't very good for snowballs or snowmen but perfect for
making snow angels.
Daddy stayed inside..."he had to work"! Silly Daddy missing
all the fun!
*This snow make-up day will probably cut into our Spring Break!
Oh well!
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Basketball Game #8 ~ Final
February 23 , 2008 |
We had our very
last basketball game of the season and my team played hard! It
was fun and I was in a great mood. Mommy wondered if I was
watching the game at all from the sidelines, as I was chatting away
with my friends. I played hard when it came my turn to be out
there...my feet were really moving. One of the parents
complimented me on that after the game. I was all over my
defense position! Hands up! Hands out! Move, move,
move! I got 3 rebounds - only 2 counted as one went out of
bounds, and another one I could have had a teammate beat me to it!
We played another orange team from the morning league. They
were pretty good too. They had one little guy on their "B"
team that could dribble and move like a wild man! They gave
him the ball EVERY time and we know why! It was challenging
but my team pulled it out in the end, winning the game 7-3!
After the game, my coach pulled us all out into the hallway.
He called each one of us up and gave us a basketball star ribbon and
a bag of basketball themed treats. He shook my hand, patted my
back and said "TO COLE - THE MOST IMPROVED PLAYER I HAVE SEEN A LONG
TIME!" - everyone clapped for me!
After that we all had a yummy basketball cupcake! It was soo
good!
Mom and Dad said I am playing again next year....I said NO!
Somehow, I don't think I am winning this battle.
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Basketball Game #8 ~ Final
February 23 , 2008 |
We had our very
last basketball game of the season and my team played hard! It
was fun and I was in a great mood. Mommy wondered if I was
watching the game at all from the sidelines, as I was chatting away
with my friends. I played hard when it came my turn to be out
there...my feet were really moving. One of the parents
complimented me on that after the game. I was all over my
defense position! Hands up! Hands out! Move, move,
move! I got 3 rebounds - only 2 counted as one went out of
bounds, and another one I could have had a teammate beat me to it!
We played another orange team from the morning league. They
were pretty good too. They had one little guy on their "B"
team that could dribble and move like a wild man! They gave
him the ball EVERY time and we know why! It was challenging
but my team pulled it out in the end, winning the game 7-3!
After the game, my coach pulled us all out into the hallway.
He called each one of us up and gave us a basketball star ribbon and
a bag of basketball themed treats. He shook my hand, patted my
back and said "TO COLE - THE MOST IMPROVED PLAYER I HAVE SEEN A LONG
TIME!" - everyone clapped for me!
After that we all had a yummy basketball cupcake! It was soo
good!
Mom and Dad said I am playing again next year....I said NO!
Somehow, I don't think I am winning this battle.
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Bowling
Fun - My First Strike!
February 24 , 2008 |
Finally!
Finally! Finally! My first strike! I would not have
gotten it if Mom wouldn't have convinced me that we should bowl
another game. We usually only bowl one, but we had a whole day
with no plans, and I was getting soo close to a strike. We had
a running joke that the 10 pin was my nemesis! He just simply
refused to fall down! I laughed and said someone must have put
some tape under him!
Daddy was on fire! He bowled two really great games.
Mommy said she was just really off...heck, I almost beat her in the
first game! I was close to beating both of them in the
beginning of the second and then they started getting strikes!
Anyway, my first strike! I got it in the first frame of
the second game. Daddy totally missed it! He was at the
snack bar getting me a pretzel! My ball didn't even hit the
bumpers so Mom said it was a REAL one! Woo-Hoo! Even the
couple next to us cheered and cheered for me! I was soo
excited! My second game was just good all around, I even had a
spare! I was ONE PIN from getting a score of 100!
Who knows...maybe I will break 100 next time!
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Week #26
- Kindergarten News!
February 29 , 2008 |
We are still
talking about the Presidents and our teeth. We talked about
what we would ask the President if we would meet him, what jobs a
President has to do. We talked about how to keep our teeth
healthy, we made a story about an animal with a loose tooth and
talked about the tooth fairy.
We learned a new sound: "oo" as in "moo" and "boo".
We finished our chapter on time and money and I got a perfect score
on my chapter test! I am doing well with my math chapters...I
think in all the tests we have had so far this school year, I have
only missed two questions! Mommy is hoping I will have strong
math skills. Our next chapter will be all about measuring!
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