Tennessee Wildlife

A couple of weeks ago, our first graders began their unit on animals. Doug Markum, the gentleman in the picture, is from the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) and brought Tennessee animal pelts, teeth, bones, and more to show as he talked about wildlife in our fine state.
Following his visit, the students selected a Tennessee animal to research. They modeled their chosen animals out of clay and built a 3-D habitat to house each of them. I'll try to get pictures of the finished products - pretty impressive, I must say!

70 Ways to Make it Snow

As some of you might have seen, our entire third grade made a human snowflake last week in anticipation for the incoming snow. This picture was featured two different times on Channel 4, much to our delight! In addition to creating the design out on our playground for this great snapshot, the students also compiled a book of writings entitled, 70 Ways to Make it Snow, a compilation of each child's personal snow ritual. For those of us who enjoyed the beautiful white stuff Thursday, Friday and Saturday - wouldn't we agree - it worked!

Shine bright,
JDG

We're B-a-a-a-a-a-a-c-k...

It seems like yesterday we were gearing up for the holidays, anticipating the magic of the season, doing Christmas performances for beloved grandparents on Grandparent's Day - WHICH, by the way, was WONDERFUL! I will post a slideshow soon of the festivities... so much fun! Time, as always, has flown and we're into the new year as if we'd never left the last one. Yesterday I was intrigued by what might be happening on the first day back and wasn't disappointed. We really have the most wonderful students and teachers in the whole, wide world. You do know that, don't you? We invite you to come and see for yourself, if you haven't already. In the meantime, the following is what I discovered and heard about the first school day of 2010. It was a keeper!

**Singing Chapel began with 30 songs of praise in 30 minutes - 20 + 10... Get it? Happy 2010! The kids LOVED it!

**Ms. Collins' Kindergarten enjoyed telling all about their Christmas break adventures and celebrating the recent snow flurries. According to one student, they FINALLY got to mark "snow" on their weather report.

**Ms. Seay's and Ms. Sansom's pre-first group started their unit on the Arctic and Antarctic. They're studying the Eskimo way of life and God's creatures that live in these harsh climates (plus the beautiful Northern Lights). The children are even making Eskimo children to put out in the hallway. You gotta see them!

**Second and third grade classes had very meaningful conversations about resolutions, what it means to have good intentions and follow through. Third graders came to the conclusion that seeing those intentions to the end is not only for the good of moms, dads, and teachers, but they themselves will feel the pride of meeting their personal goals. Curious about their resolutions? Second graders offered such ideas as "work on better handwriting," "be a better friend," and "do homework without being told!” Third grade shared the desire to "get more math objectives," "read more," and "not get in trouble as much!" You gotta love the honesty of children!

Needless to say, it's so easy to come back to such a place where God is front and center and learning is all about. Our DLES family wishes you a super duper New Year! We can't wait to see what God has planned!

Shine Bright,
JDG

Breathe...

It's hard to catch one's breath this time of year, is it not? Everyday for weeks I've been planning to post, but we've had so many daily activities worthy of blogging and capturing in photos, that I keep putting it off until I can gather a few minutes to observe, collect, upload, describe, and... whew! There's just a ton happening within our school's walls, and it's wonderful! Take a look at this list and enjoy the slide show following!

** The week of Thanksgiving we held our annual lunch and served over 750 students and family members. The halls were packed to the gills with the sights and smells of one of our favorite holidays.

** Kindergarten classes had exciting hands-on learning activities during Indian Day. They experienced the life and times of our Native American friends, complete with homemade corn cakes and butter.

** Second Grade topped off their studies of Colonial Times by reliving Colonial Days, as they learned to write with real quill pens, heard tall tales from a visiting storyteller, and welcomed a pioneer friend who shared artifacts and information of the times.

** Following Thanksgiving break, First Grade rode the "Polar Express" to the upper campus and had their own private viewing of the well-loved movie. Donned in their comfy PJs, they capped off the day with hot chocolate!

** To coincide with our Performer Level Green School status, each grade is assigned one of five Green School components to study. Third graders worked hard to organize "Hazardous Waste Day" in conjunction with their assigned area of study, and invited our Lipscomb community and the area to do away with hazardous waste the earthy-friendly way.

** Third Grade also spent some quality time visiting a local nursing home and spreading Christmas cheer. What a service!