A Royal Room

Pinata, Pinata!

2011-12-13T14:39:00.000-08:00

Here is our pinata before we smacked it. Lots of starch, paper, tissue and love made it a sight to behold!

An awesome time was had by all at our fabulous holiday party today!

The children were thrilled with breaking the pinata. A huge shout out to the super generous parents of our class -- you out did yourselves with the goodies you sent in for this occasion. Thanks for making this a memorable experience not only for your child, but the entire class.

Kristian and Mom

Grayson and Mom

Macy, Mom and sister, Molly

Jack and his entourage, Tata, Mom and Violet

Yummy in our tummy snacks - Thanks to our Homeroom moms, Miss Sandra and Miss Marry for providing tasty and wholesome treats!

Sad pinata, happy us!

Nutcracker Play

2011-12-13T14:18:00.000-08:00


Jesse, one of the former Royal subjects, played the lead.

Our fourth and fifth graders put on the Nutcracker play today. They did a fabulous job with their songs, lines and dances. Ashlyn's brother, Tyler, did a great job singing so well, that Ashlyn knew all the words too! Bravo to our upper grades for being such great role models!

Grayson's cousin, Dawn was one of the Sugar Plum Fairies!

Ole! Christmas in Mexico

2011-12-12T13:20:00.000-08:00

Today we read the Caldecott award winning book, Nine Days til Christmas. It was about a little girl named Cici who celebrates her first posada (party) with her first pinata. It fit right in with our party and pinata making. We also made sombreros and shawls and wore them while we danced the Mexican Hat Dance. We are in a festive mood these days! Bravo!!

We're Going to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo!

2011-12-03T06:59:00.000-08:00

Checking out the rhinos

We had an awesome day on Thursday at the zoo! We walked around and counted all the different types of animals we could see. Some were keeping themselves warm on this chilly day, but we were excited to see the ones who came out! After lunch we went to the educational center (zoo school) and had a great opportunity to learn about some unusual animals and touch them! Of course, we were the best behaved class ever!

And the leopard

Then the giraffes.

Having fun with the elephant statue.

The gorilla poses for us!

And we pose with the gorilla!

Now we're in the Florida exhibit checking out the alligators.

After lunch we headed to zoo school -- even Macy's mom and sister came to school

Getting ready for our zoo teacher.

Petting the fancy chicken

Now the snake!! Eeek!

Some of us were even brave enough to touch it!

Then the bearded dragon, a lizard!

Junior Achievement

2011-11-21T15:15:00.000-08:00

On Friday we had a special guest from Chase Bank, Miss Tricia. She was a volunteer with Junior Achievement, an organization to teach and promote busisness practices to children. She taught us lots of things about money -- what is looks like, how to make money, how we spend money and most importantly how to save money!

She read lots of stories and brought some cool activities, like scratch cards to identify money and stickers. Then she spoiled us rotten with our own piggy banks, snacks and good job certificates! Thanks for taking the day off and spending it with us. You were awesome, Miss Tricia!

First Grade Readers

2011-11-21T15:09:00.000-08:00

Here are some of the Queen's favorite bookworms from first grade. Thanks to Doria, Evan and Chelsea for showing off their reading talents to us on Thursday!

Where Do Royal Subjects Like to Read?

2011-11-10T14:16:00.000-08:00

Here or there or anywhere!

They like to read in a tub or on a pillow, in a rocking chair or under a table, in the throne or wherever they're comfortable.

The Royal Subjects began some of their most important work of the year. Doing what we call Read to Self. And the question is why would they read by themselves? To quote their exact words: "to get smarter, to learn more, to get better and better, they like it, they love it, and it's FUN!"

Here's them doing all of that!

I'm Going to Eat You Up!

2011-11-10T14:14:00.000-08:00

"Trip, trap, trip, trap!" went Jasmine (the little billy goat gruff)

Check out our class reenacting the Three Billy Goats Gruff story.

"Who's that trip trapping over my bridge?' said the mean old troll. (really Jack)

"Trip, trap" went the middle billy goat (Maya) across the bridge.

And then came the great big billy goat gruff. (Trenton)

"I'm going to eat you up!" didn't work with the big billy goat gruff.

Then everyone gets their turn acting out the story.

A fun way to remember the details of the story, don't you think?

In the Gym for My Gym!

2011-11-06T14:52:00.000-08:00

Warming up for My Gym

Everyone went through the obstacle course. Here's the stepping stones.

Last the trampoline.

And somewhere inbetween the balance board.

The hardest part was the balance handles.

Coach Jordan plays a listening game.

Chasing bubbles with all of our body parts!!

Coach Mike and Coach Jordan with a happy gym class -- ours!

Go Away, Big Green Monster

2011-10-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love these monsters?? Come by our room to see them and make your fears disappear!

One Little Jack O' Lantern

2011-10-28T08:24:00.000-07:00

Carving a jack o' lantern is a lot of fun. First we had to decide between a happy face or a scary face. Then we cut off the top and put our hands inside to get out the pumpkin goo. (I love this phrasing from Jack!) Next we cut out the face. And finally Queen Hicks put in a light and told a scary story. (with a not scary ending!)
One lucky student got their name drawn to take "ol jack home.

We choose the scary jack o' lantern face for carving.

And our beautiful assistant, Sweet T (Mrs. Teuschel) did the carving.

The winner of the jack o'lantern! -- Kristian!

Reading Celebration Rhythms

2011-10-26T12:56:00.000-07:00

The Reading Celebration was awesome with the "Ohm Glocken" band getting us into the swing of reading. Then just for fun we followed up with our own percussion music the next day.

Jack, Kristian and Khalil are ready to jam for reading!

Musicians in motion (or did the Queen not focus?)

The jam session

The didjeridu, an Australian instrument. It sounded pretty freaky.

Our own jam session

Macy, Khalil and Rithika get in the groove.

Ring a ling for Grayson, David and Daniel, but lots of chicka chicka for Maya

The Oh, So FUN RUN!!!

2011-10-20T13:21:00.000-07:00

Getting pysched up!

We ran and we ran until we couldn't run any more. Then we walked. But believe it or not many of us get a second burst of energy and ran some more! Thanks to our awesome PTA for thinking of this fabulous fund raiser! We hope they raised a ton of moola, which they'll put to good use for our children. They also provided us with cute runner tags for our shoes and water for the after-run celebration. Also, thank you to the parents who were able to come and cheer us on: Jack's whole family, David's mom and brother, Rithika's parents and brother and Dorien's Dad and brother. You were such good sports!

Coach Dudjak, our PE teacher, and director for the Fun Run.

Briell and Macy warm up.

Even Mrs. Kornblum, our principal, gets in on the action!

Sarah and Jasmine are good to go.

And we're off! There go Jack and his Dad. Go, Jack, go!

Here come the rest of us, including Rithika and her mom and Dorien, Dad and brother!

Way to hoof it, Sarah!

David makes it look like a breeze!

BFFs stop for a photoshot -- Grayson and Rithika

And then there's Ashlyn!

Xhovani and Kristian take a break with the Queen.

Here's the answer to was it really fun??

Aunt Amanda Comes to Read

2011-10-05T09:34:00.000-07:00

It must be because we're bookworms, but people seem to love to come and read to our class. Our latest visitor is Jack's Aunt Amanda, who read us the funny, funny story, Olivia.
Aunt Amanda also happens to be a first grade teacher in North Carolina. She thinks we act just like her class of first graders. Whoo Hoo!

Down on the Farm

2011-10-04T15:41:00.000-07:00

We had a fabulous time and there was so much to see and do:

the corn maze, the hayride, the farm animals, the corn box, the corn popper, the pumpkins and sunflowers were all awesome! According to our class this was the best field trip ever. (Hee! Hee!)

It is Time for Reader's Workshop!

2011-10-01T09:11:00.000-07:00

Reader's Workhop is the time during the day where the children work individually and in small groups on reading skills. As of this week they have 4 stations they have to complete within 2 days. Those stations are Art Work, Word Work, ABC Work and Listen to Reading. At each station they have several choices of how and what they want to work on for those skills. These choices are a great way to meet their different learning abilities and preferences. I love to see how they take ownership of their learning. Check out the work we are doing so far.

Kristian is reading an Alphabet big book, one of our choices at ABC Work.

Macy is retelling the story, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, with magnetic letters.
Retelling stories with props is another ABC Work choice.

Trenton is doing a fabulous job rereading Mary Wore Her Red Dress at ABC Work.

Dorien is making the mouse from our story, Mouse Mess, at Art Work . Doesn't it look great?

What will David's mouse decide to eat? Will it be cheese, crackers, cookies, pickles? Mouse likes all of these!

Khalil and Briell are matching pictures to color words and reading them at the pocket chart choice from Word Work.

Ashlyn is writing words from the Word Wall on a dry erase board at Word Work.

Science with Mr. Felix

2011-09-21T14:53:00.000-07:00

Today we welcomed Mr. Felix, an FSCJ student and former Extended Day worker to our room to teach us a little bit about air. He read a great story about air and wind and then demonstrated and allowed us to experiment with how air makes things move. Fabulous lesson, Mr. Felix! And a big thanks for providing us with our own balloons to take home to experiment with as well.

On your mark,

Get set,

Goooooo!!!!!

Listen to Reading

2011-09-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

One of our station choices at Reader's Workshop is Listen to Reading.

When you ask a kindergartener why it's important to listen to books here are some answers you may get:

* to be a better reader * to listen to the teacher * to get smarter * to know the story * to know the words and story * so you don't get behind other kids * and best of all because it's FUN!

Now to find a good spot to read! We like to call it our bubblespace.

So, where do we like to read in our room?

Trenton likes to read in a tub!

Rithika likes to read on a rug!

Daniel likes to read on a bench!

Khalil likes to read under a table!

Briell and Grayson like to read side by side!

Ashlyn is in a tub too!

Reading is doggone good!

2011-09-13T13:47:00.000-07:00

Thanks to our former kindergarten (now first grade!) student, Bella, who came to class today and read the hilarious book, Bark George! We giggled and laughed all the way through. Fantastic job and great book, Bella!

I Saw a Purple Cow

2011-09-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

Have you every seen a purple cow? We did today and ate him! Check out this poem on our Poem section of the blog.
We made a purple cow (with ice cream and grape juice) and then ate him!! All agreed he was yummy!

Reading Celebration Kick Off

2011-09-09T13:33:00.000-07:00

Today we had our first school wide flag raising for the year. It was a very patriotic time.

We ended up with our Reading Celebration complete with football players and cheerleaders from Wolfson High School.
Go, good readers, go!!

Meet the Royal Subjects!

2011-08-30T18:45:00.000-07:00

Dorien

David

Briell

Ashlyn

Grayson

Macy

Trenton

Kristian

Daniel

Sarah

Xhovani

Maya

Jasmine

Rithika

Khalil

Jack

Ryan

This is the best class EVER!!

Run, Run as Fast as You Can!

2011-08-26T15:16:00.000-07:00

You won't believe this, but when we got back from lunch and looked in the oven to get our gingerbread men we had decorated that morning, they were gone!!
We ran and ran around the school looking for the them. And here's picture proof:

We looked in the clinic.
No gingerbread men.

We looked in the office and asked Mrs. Kornblum and Mrs.West.
No gingerbread men.

We asked Mrs. Laymon, the music teacher and she said look in the multi-purpose room.
No gingerbread men.

We looked in the library and asked Mrs. Hartnett.
No gingerbread men.

Oops! But they HAD come in quietly to look for their book. Remember you have to be quiet in the library!

And finally they went they way of all good gingerbread men in our mouths and tummies.
Snip, snap, snout this tale's told out! A great way to end reading The Gingerbread Man!!

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

2011-08-25T14:27:00.000-07:00

No one in our class. That's for sure! As a matter of fact this was our favorite character from the story, Red Riding Hood. Here we are putting on our play and getting to act out the part.

My oh my, boys and girls, what big teeth you have!

Hooray! Hooray! We're on our Way!

2011-08-23T05:00:00.000-07:00

Starting kindergarten is such a wonderful thing if you are five! Check out our first day of school pictures.

I Am So Excited to Start Kindergarten With You!!!

2011-08-21T16:38:00.000-07:00

Ready Confetti

The night before school is exciting and fun.

There are always so many things to be done.

Your clothes are ready, your backpack is too.

Your classroom is full of fun things to do.

There are so many questions that go through your mind,

All types of thoughts of every kind.

But sometimes we all get the jitters down deep

And that makes it hard to fall fast asleep.

So I’ve made you some magic confetti, it’s cool.

It will help you be rested and ready for school.

Just sprinkle the confetti under your pillow in bed.

On the night before school starts when you lay down your head.

The confetti will help you sleep through the night

And you will wake up in the morning feeling fresh and bright.

I’ll sprinkle the confetti under my pillow, too

And remember I just can’t wait to see you!!

Queen Hicks

And to Finish Up a Busy April...

2011-05-22T08:40:00.000-07:00

We had our annual Play Day on april 27. Thanks to Coach Scott, Coach Dudjak

and DJ RunsAlot (aka Mr. Music Man, aka Mr. Gonzalez) for another fabulous day of play and sports.

Egg Hunt

2011-05-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

On April 21 we had one of our favorite activities -- our Spring Egg Hunt. I love it just because the Royal Subjects are looking their most adorable! Check out these Spring Fashion plates hopping to our fun hunt.

April Showered Us with many Fun Events

2011-05-21T07:50:00.000-07:00

On April 12 we went to the JCA to see a unique version of Curious George. We got to sing, dance move and groove with the actors. Thanks to our volunteers for helping out.

Chelsea and Grandma

Miss Brany and Brayden

Mr. John and Evan

Miss Sandy and Bella and Belle

Flying through the Year!

2011-05-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

We began the month of April and our bird unit by making binoculars and going bird watching.

Next.......

2011-05-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

Cultural Arts Day! To finish up before Spring Break our fabulous PTA hosted their annual Cultural Arts day and once again provided some cool experiences for our school!
Our PTA rocks!!

We started off our day with a Reading Celebration parade.

Here comes Mrs. Kornblum, our principal.

Miss Burns our fabulous Teacher of the Year
(Of course! because she teaches Kindergarten, the best age EVER!)

And finally J.J., our school mascot.

We've got the beat!

Then we did some marching of our own to the Navy bands patriotic music

We saw a really funny storyteller and musician.

Then we headed off to see the magnificent Frisbee dog show. (I love that these are all rescued dogs!)

Next some rapping and dancing about keeping our bodies healthy.

Then a nice picnic break.

And finally the super cool BMX bike show!

Look out Mrs. Kornblum!

Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

2011-05-01T09:35:00.000-07:00

The Queen must have been having fun because it's been a while since she's updated the going-ons of the Royal Subject.
Here goes our lesson in history then.
First, from March 17 and the leprechaun invasion!

They invaded Queen Griffin's room too!

Gabby and Evan are astounded by the leprechaun's naughtiness.

Did they really give everyone a ticket???? Tsk. tsk.

Even the bathroom?

Thank goodness those leprechauns only come once a year. Whew!

The Royal Subjects on the Go!

2011-03-20T15:36:00.000-07:00

We wrapped up our transportation unit last week.

Monday was water day.

We painted submarines.

We made a tugboat collage.

And cut out sailboats that we could sail!!

Then we were off to things that could fly later on in the week after we read about airplanes and helicopters.

We made styrofoam airplanes that really flew!

And whirlybirds that turned around exactly like a helicopter's rotors.

This is what we call active learning! :)

Is Writing Fun?

2011-03-13T10:24:00.000-07:00

You bet!!!
Check out how much fun we had doing procedural ("How to..") writing these past weeks. We wrote how to read, go down a slide, blow your nose, make chocolate milk, and eat cereal. Then finally, we wrote about how to find buried treasure during our Pirate Week!! Makes you wish you were in kindergarten doesn't it? Lucky us!

First we poured the milk. Then Hunny Bunny adds the chocolate to the milk.

Next we stir the chocolate in the milk. And last we drank the milk!! Mmmmm. :)

You can't find treasure without some mates to help you.

And they need to wear the right garb, so we know they're pirates.

These are some scurvy dogs!

Aaahrr!! I hope these guys know where the treasure is.

Pirates may not have any manners to boot, but they're intent on finding that treasure.

Is the treasure here?

Happy to be digging for the gold.

Ye must follow the map exactly.

My crew and favorite scurvy dogs!!

Star Students

2011-03-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

Being five is the best age ever and our Star Students in February showed us why!

You guys rule!

Gabby is our growing up girl!! She's been a great role model -- that everyone who works hard makes great changes!

Jacob shows just good old fashioned kindness to others. That's a fantastic part of our personality that we need to hold onto throughout life!

The Kindness Queen!

2011-02-27T14:09:00.000-08:00

There's another Queen in town!! And she has a special message she is spreading to school children. Hopefully your child came home last week talking about this special visitor and the big word she taught us - noblesse oblige. The Kindness Queen came to teach about how to behave like Kings and Queens. She taught us that very big word means to behave honorably, generously and responsibly. I'm sure our Royal Subjects will continue to do all three throughout their lives. Thanks to Doria and her mom for inviting the Kindness Queen to our room.

You can check out her website at http//kindnesskingdom.wikispaces.com

Love is in the Air

2011-02-14T15:54:00.000-08:00

What's sweeter than candy on Valentine's Day?
This class!!!

Kindergarteners are blessed with an abundance of love as witnessed by the thank yous, hugs and smiles on this very special day.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-12T13:03:00.000-08:00

We've been busy sharing the love we feel for each other and our families. Here's Gabby and Bella making some cool paintings using magnetic balls for their family Valentine cards.
Don't forget to send in your Valentine cards on Monday. The Queen has hers made and ready!

Crazy Hair Day

2011-02-12T12:58:00.001-08:00

Yes, there are some wild and crazy kids in our class. Check out Jacob, Lyzaiah, Rose, Gabby, Jakai and Sanaa sporting some funky do's for the Student Council Crazy Hair Day.

Thank goodness it's just their hair that's crazy today!!

Star Students!

2011-02-05T06:53:00.000-08:00

What did these fellows do to be our Star Students of the Week?

January 28 - Ja'Kori is getting smarter every day by trying his best! He has become our resident Word Wizard!!

February 4 - Derrick is "Mr. Compassion." He always shows love and kindness for others in our room!

You guys rock with your positive attitudes! Keep it up!

100 Days of School is so Cool!

2011-02-05T06:42:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday we reached that special day of school -- 100!

We counted to 100. We exercised to 100. We were so excited for Zero the Hero to introduce us to 100!

We ate 100 snacks.

We drew ourselves at 100.

We wished for 100 things.

We turned the number 100 into something else, like a bike or a car.

And just think -- only 95 more years to go until we reach the age of 100!!

Fun Run Lives Up To Its Name!

2011-01-29T19:18:00.000-08:00

We ran, we walked, we posed for pictures and raised a little money for our favorite place -- our school! Thanks to Ms. Brandy, Brayden's mom, for providing fabulous pictures of this event.

What Goes Up Must Come Down!

2011-01-21T15:41:00.000-08:00

We had an awesome time learning that concept in science this week. No matter how high, far or what direction we tried with that silly ball, it always landed on the ground. That's what we call gravity!

Jacob bounces it.

Doria throws it.

Doria and Jacob get ready to throw it up and out.

Ramira rolls it.

Evan throws it REALLY high!

Stars in our Eyes!

2011-01-17T06:24:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to our latest two Star Students, Chelsea and Sanaa! They are both sweet and helpful young ladies. As well as being on their way to Brainville!

Chelsea, Star Student on January 7

Sanaa, Star Student on January 14

Writing Fun

2011-01-17T06:19:00.000-08:00

January begins our month of report writing. To make it real in kindergarten Hunny Bunny, our favorite volunteer, brought in her rabbit, Little Bunny Foo Foo. The children were enthralled and Foo Foo had a most enjoyable morning with us. The results were wonderfully detailed pictures of rabbits and rabbit facts for our report writing on --- what else? Rabbits!

Pajama Day and the Polar Express

2010-12-29T15:29:00.000-08:00

We ended the 2010 part of our school year with our traditional pajama day and a reading of the Polar Express by our principal, Mrs. Kornblum. The entire kindergarten gathered in the multi-purpose room wearing p.j.s and reindeer ears for the reading. Then followed up with a variety of fun and lively holiday songs. It was an adorable occasion!

2010-12-16T17:12:00.000-08:00

The Royal subjects celebrated the holidays and upcoming winter season by making and breaking their own pinata. Many, many thanks to our fabulous parents for generously sending it toys and candies. The pinatas were filled to the brim! Couldn't you tell by the bag of goodies they brought home?

Who are these happy people and do you know them by their shoes?

Oh no, party crashers! That's right even the parents can't resist the fun of hitting the pinata!

Excellent stress relief!

Mrs. Donnelley, is that a hit or a miss?

Do you know who this is? (Hint, hint, one of our favorite people in our room!)

Queen Hicks gives instruction to this parent about proper pinata etiquette.

Even Sarah, our class mascot, gets in the swing of things!

Crash!!!!!!!

Big, Bigger, Biggest

2010-11-30T04:10:00.000-08:00

Trip trap, trip trap, trip trap! Who's that trip trapping over my bridge???

Why it's us! The royal subjects. We've read the story, The Three Billy Goats Gruff and now we're diving into the story with some good ol' role play.

Who's Cute and Sweet and Smart All Over?

2010-11-14T19:16:00.000-08:00

Why Bella, of course! She was Star Student last week on November 5. We just love, love, love you Bella!

A Good Role Model

2010-11-13T15:47:00.000-08:00

Rose's brother, Gabe, came to speak to our class about what it's like to be in Fifth Grade. He also happens to be a former Royal Subject himself. We were so impressed. Way to go, Gabe!

Pumpkins Time!

2010-11-13T15:42:00.000-08:00

Carving our fall pumpkin with Hunny Bunny!

Going to the Zoo! Zoo! Zoo!

2010-10-31T16:38:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday was our first field trip. We had an awesome time going to the Jacksonville Zoo. The weather was warm and the animals wild. Check out our tour and our visit to the Educational Center.

Star Student - October 12

2010-10-17T19:34:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves Lyzaiah! Why?

She works hard, tries her best, is kind to others and is a friend to all! She's an excellent role model for us all. Way to go, Lyzaiah!

The Royal T-shirts

2010-10-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday Miss Brandy (Brayden's mom) and Hunny Bunny (our volunteer) worked with the royal subjects to make our class t-shirts. We'll wear them out for the first time on our field trip to the Jacksonville Zoo on Tuesday, October 26. However, we might just be tempted to wear them before then because they are so fabulous!

Star Student of the Week - October 8

2010-10-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

Evan is such a gentleman -- He's courteous, polite and thoughtful. That's the stuff that star students are made of!

"It is Time for Reader's Workshop"

2010-10-11T10:13:00.000-07:00

That's how we begin our song to start Reader's Workshop. Last week we began making our own choices at Reader's Workshop. The children love having these choices and taking ownership of their learning! (Don't we all love having some control over our lives?) They can choose from Word Work, Work on Writing, Listen to Reading, ABC Work, Computer, and Art Work throughout the week, but they do have to do all of them each week. Then at least once a week they meet with the Queen for Guided Reading to work on those "Read the Word" skills. (and I love reading with them!). Check out last week's action at Reader's Workshop below:

Robert is matching capital and lowercase letters at ABC Work.

Doria is working on letter skills at Computer.

Jacob is writing names at Word Work.

Chelsea is practiing pointing to words and reading at ABC Work.

Rose and Bella are practicing the "look at the picture" strategy at Guided Reading with the Queen.

2010-10-10T08:28:00.000-07:00

Star Student of the Week

October 1

No surprise Rose was our Star Student last week. She is kind, helpful and always tries her best. Way to go, Rose!!!

Word's Out!!

2010-10-08T11:04:00.000-07:00

Guess who found out the awesome job we're doing with building our stamina in reading? That's right, our principal, Mrs. Kornblum! She came down this past Monday to check it out for herself. She even got in the groove by reading her own book.

Come see us during Read to Self -- We'll be the ones with our nose stuck in a book!

We Like to Read! We Do! We Do!

2010-09-26T08:55:00.000-07:00

We can read in a chair or in a tub. We can read under a table or on a pillow. We can read anywhere!

Last week we began some of our most important work for the year. It's called Read to Self. Why do kindergartners want to read to themselves? Well, they know that to be a good reader the most important thing to do is to practice reading! They also want to get smarter and build big brain muscles.

And best of all, it's FUN!

We can read 3 ways -- by reading the pictures, by retelling a familiar story and by reading the words.

Check out our fabulous readers doing Read to Self.

Brayden is rocking to read in the rocking chair.

Robert is excellent at retelling Little Red Riding Hood.

Rub a Dub Dub, Rose and Ja"Kori read in a tub!

Evan is under the table. We call it the cave!

Sanaa chills out by her pillow.

Jakai is on the road with his reading.

Bella relaxes on the reading bench.

Lyzaiah is swamped with reading in the alligator chair.

Doria definitely knows how to hibernate with a good book.

Colby is running away with reading the Gingerbread Baby story.

Gabby has her brain in motion with her Alphamotion book.

Jacob is showing big attitude toward reading while under Little Daddy.

Ramira is in position to read Alphamotion.

And how do we celebrate our best work in reading? By dancing the Tooty Ta, of course!

Woof! Woof! for Reading

2010-09-12T10:00:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday we kicked off our path to reading with a parade! The Reading Celebration was a winner with all of kindergarten thinking big about reading -- Big as in Clifford the Big Red Dog!

Check out those ears and everyone wearing red. Thanks to moms and dads for 100% participation.

Run, Run As Fast As You Can - We Went Looking for our Gingerbread Men!

2010-08-29T16:08:00.000-07:00

We looked in Mrs. Brown's first grade class - no gingerbread!We asked Mrs. Adams, a kindergarten teacher - no gingerbread

We asked Mrs. Wright, a fifth grade teacher - no gingerbread!

We went in Mrs. Ryan and Ross' room, 2 fourth grade teachers - no gingerbread!

We asked Mrs. Kephart, a third grade teacher - no gingerbread!

We checked in the offce with Mrs. Kornblum, our principal - no gingerbread!

Mrs. Donnelly, a fourth grade teacher was SHOCKED to find out there were unruly gingerbread at Beauclerc!

Finally, Bella spotted them in the place they love best - the library!

Last week we read the story, The Gingerbread Man. To give the story a real live feel we decorated some of our own gingerbread cookies. Then, OH NO! The story came to life as unfortunately our gingerbread men ran away just like in the story! We looked (and sniffed) all over the school until we finally found them in the media center! Then they went the way of all gingerbread men -- we ate them.

Meet the Royal Stars for 2010 - 2011

2010-08-23T16:53:00.000-07:00

GabbyBella

BraydenRoseJakaiBella C.DoriaJa'KoriChelseaJacobLaurenDerrickLyzaiahRamiraEvanColby

And soon to come.... Robert and Jayden!

Belle and Brian in Albania

2010-05-31T05:56:00.000-07:00

Wow! We have the international jet set in our room this year. Here is a letter and slide from Brian on their trip to Albania. Loving it!!!!

Dear Queen Hicks,
Albania is cool. I am having so much fun in Albania. I am sharing some of the pictures that I took during last few days. I have created a slide show that I would like to be posted on the Royal Rom and share with my friends. I will send other slide shows when I take more pictures.

I miss all of you.

Love Brian.

Beau and Vanshika in India

2010-05-16T15:26:00.000-07:00

Beau (our class mascot bunny) is having a fabulous time with Vanshika in India. They went on a rickshaw ride, a train ride, to the local produce shop and visited some friends. We can't wait to see more of their next adventures! Here's a note from the family:

Dear Queen Hicks and Royal Room,
Sorry for the delayed response as we were busy in settling down and initial jet lags.
Here is few of Vanshika's pics with Beau. We all reached safely and missing you all and the Royal Room.
Vanshika is happy and Beau is enjoying India and its hot weather :)
Thanks for sending Beau to India.We are having lots of fun....here ..
Please pass Vanshika's love to all of her friends.

-Regards,
Vanshika,Beau,Naman,Daddy & Mommy

Check out the pictures in the slide show below!

Play Day

2010-04-22T15:47:00.000-07:00

Was Play Day fun this year? Absolutely!!
Thanks to Coach Cutie (Coach Scott), Coach Dude (Coach Dudjak) and Mr. Music Man (Mr. Gonzalez) for making this one of the best Play Days ever.
And believe it or not, no one complained of being bored or tired!
Plus Queen loved that there wasn't a poor sport in sight.
I think we might have even won!!

Student of the Week

2010-04-22T04:03:00.000-07:00

Check out our Student of the Week for April 12 - 16. It's Ethan! Doesn't he look like a happy guy?

What could be cuter than a bunny?

2010-04-02T16:59:00.000-07:00

Why,our kindergarten students dressed up for our annual Spring Egg Hunt!

Don't they look adorable? Check out your favorite chicks in these photos from our egg hunt last Tuesday.

Thanks to our generous parents for providing the goodies to go in the eggs. And a special thank you to the "Parent Bunnies" (our homeroom moms) for hiding the eggs in special spots.

The Luck of the Irish

2010-03-17T19:08:00.000-07:00

When we got back from lunch today we found our door was locked and that the leprechauns had been in our room. What had they done? Why, created a mess, of course. Those tricky creatures pulled down the letter people, sprinkled green glitter on the floor and just created a general ruckus. Naturally, we tried to sneak up on them and catch them, but to no avail. However, they couldn't have been too naughty. They left us leprechaun cookies for all our troubles. However, we're determined to try to trap them and catch them next year!

Ahrrrr Maties!

2010-03-15T17:04:00.000-07:00

Last Friday was Pirate Day and the scurvey dogs in the class drew maps and wrote directions about finding treasure. Then they took their peglegs and proceeded to look for the buried treasure. Did they fine it? You'll have to ask them!

Roger That! We're Ready for Take Off!

2010-03-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

On Thursday the Royal Subjects took off with flying lessons! They flew these awesomely cool airplanes they made during the week. This was the highlight of our transportation discussion on flying. Over and out!

Ross and Ryan Rock!

2010-03-09T14:35:00.000-08:00

Who are Ross and Ryan? Two of our fabulous fourth grade teachers. Last week our class and Mrs. Arey's first grade wished them well on the FCAT for this week. We went to their class on Friday and sang them a song we made up just for them called, "You Rock!" Then we treated them to some cosmic brownies. We know they're going to rock the FCAT!

Row, row, row your boat

2010-03-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

It wasn't quite rowing, but we did sail boats we made for our transportation unit last Wednesday. Thankfully there was only a gentle breeze and no gale winds.

Andrew, obviously a true sailor, decided to continue his sailing adventures at home and shared them with his younger sister, Gabby!

Royal Subjects Love to Listen to Stories

2010-02-28T08:50:00.000-08:00

Gabe Lewis, a fourth grade student and former Royal Subject, came to our class to read the story, Soggy Saturday this past Wednesday. The moment he walked in the door it was as if he waved a magic wand. The students were intent and enthralled as he read his story in a calm, yet exciting voice. At the end Gabe checked their listening by asking a variety of questions. They all wanted to be called on to answer by this nice young man! The Queen loves seeing Royal Subjects as they are growing up so sharply. Thanks for coming to read, Gabe!

Star Student

2010-02-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

The students love being Star Student and they work hard to get the honor.

Jaidyn has rocked our class with her awesome hard work in writing. She pays attention when the Queen is teaching and applies all of that knowledge to her work. She is a wonderful role model for perserverance. Kudos to you, Jaidyn!

Laptops and Five Year Olds?

2010-02-20T11:09:00.000-08:00

The Queen had her doubts about laptops in kindergarten, but the Royal Subjects proved that those doubts were fruitless. Once the laptops were booted up and logged in, the Royal Subjects took off with their computer prowess. They breezed through reading, math and science websites. They helped each other navigate through new games and activities. It was a fabulous leaning experience. Finally, after over an hour, time had to come to an end.

However, laptop time will come again every two weeks!

Star Student

2010-02-15T15:55:00.000-08:00

What's awesome in kindergarten?

When students work hard at doing their best to get smarter

and "do unto otters," like our book of the month suggests.

That's why Andrew was Star Student this week -- hard work and good manners!

I don't like this. I love it!!!

You rock, Andrew!

The Most Wonderful Day of the Year!

2010-02-13T09:23:00.001-08:00

Valentine's Day brings out the best in five year olds.

They were so excited to pass out their cards.

What a delightful way to learn to spread love in the world.

Opening cards and thanking each other for nice thoughts created an exciting buzz in the room.

The children were so sweet and kind to each other.

What a beautiful lesson in building friendships!

It's my favorite holiday with the Royal Subjects!

Star Student

2010-02-07T08:45:00.000-08:00

Bravos to to Skylar for being the Star Student this week. She has worked hard on making changes and it shows in her awesome attitude! Her kindness and friendliness have made her a popular classmate.

100 days in the Royal Room!

2010-02-07T08:21:00.001-08:00

Friday we made it to 100 days of kindergarten.

We celebrated with counting, eating and drawing lots of 100 day activities!

Check them out below.

Now the sad news -- there's only 80 more days left in the Royal Room.

Counting 10 pieces of 10 different kinds of food to make a bag of 100th day hash!

Miss Angela, Lance's mom, volunteers as snack manager.

How will we look if we live to be 100 years old?

Andrew, Jordan and Anaya get imaginative!

Lance and Isabella concentrate on that 100 year old look.

Eliza and Marnie, volunteers from the Gottlieb school, are helping Irving, Brian and Aliana at the 100 year old table.

However, that snack table sure can be a distraction -- such temptation!

Brian and Jaidyn definitely know what they wish they had 100 of!

Irving and Aliana definitely know what they DON'T wish they had 100 of!

Cameron and Skylar discover counting 100 things takes a while!

Miss Latoya, Jordan's mom, helps Janari and Vanshika count their 100 pictures, stickers and stamps.

Building with 100 lego pieces is excellent fun!

Monya, another Gottlieb student, enjoys the lego building too.

Star Student

2010-01-31T16:27:00.001-08:00

Kalvin has to be one of the most careful workers in our class. Everything he touches is neat and precise. He balances that work ethic with a fun attitude. Bravo Kalvin!

Three Little Kittens

2010-01-31T16:20:00.000-08:00

Who could be more adorable than these 19 little kittens?
The Royal Subjects were the best at meowing and purring their way through our version of The Three Little Kittens story. It was a wonderful way to wrap up this week's story.

The First Annual Fun Run

2010-01-31T09:40:00.000-08:00

Our first annual Fun Run sponsored by our awesome PTA was a runaway success!
The Royal Subjects started off with warm-ups by Coach Cutie (Coach Scott) and Coach Dude (Coach Dujak).
Then DJ Runzalot (aka Mr. Music Man aka Mr. Gonzalez) entertained the athletes with some jammin' music. We walked, ran and skipped through a really fun 30 minutes.
Then, once again, the fabulous PTA provided everyone with bottled water and raisins after the run.

Thanks to the many families and friends who supported our athletes by being their fans and raising a lot of money for our school! Having fun rocks!

DJ Runzalot with his new 'do.

Get Ready!

We're off to a good start!

Check out Mrs. Kornblum. She looks fit, doesn't she?

Even Gage, Lance's brother, gets in the Fun Run mode.

Enjoying our water and raisins after the big event.

The Royal Subjects and the Queen thought Fun Run was the coolest event yet!

The Queen enjoyed a nice quiet afternoon with the tuckered out Royal Subjects.

We've Got the Boogie Fever!

2010-01-23T16:02:00.000-08:00

Jack Hartmann, the children's favorite musician came to our school, Thursday, January 21. It was an awesome concert. He makes learning fantastically fun through his music and songs.

Check out our Jack Hartmann fans. They're the ones stylin' in their shades.

Andrew and his mom stop to pose for a paparazzi moment.

Who makes us stomp our feet and move and groove? Jack Hartmann, of course!

Getting down to the hiphop "Tooty Ta!"

The Three Billy Goats Gruff

2010-01-17T16:37:00.000-08:00

That's right! Your favorite stars are acting together again in another fun rendition of one of our favorite books -- The Three Billy Goats Gruff. Check out these animated performances!

Once upon a time there were Three Billy Goats whose name was Gruff. They wanted to go to hillside to eat the green, green grass and make themselves fat. However, they had to cross over a bridge under which lived a troll, who had eyes as big as saucers and a nose as long as a poker. They sent the littlest billy goat first.

"Who's that TRIP TRAPPING over my bridge?"

"It's I, the Little Billy Goat Gruff!"

"I'm going to eat you up."

"Oh no, wait for my brother, Big Billy Goat Gruff . He's much bigger than I am. "

"Okay, be off with you."

"Who's that TRIP TRAPPING over my bridge?"
"It's I, the Big Billy Goat Gruff!"
"I'm going to eat you up."
"Oh no, wait for my brother, Great Big Billy Goat Gruff . He's much bigger than I am. "
"Okay, be off with you."

"Who's that TRIP TRAPPING over my bridge?"

"It's I, the Great Big Billy Goat Gruff!"

"I'm going to eat you up."

"Try if you can"

And the Great Big Billy Goat Gruff butted the troll where he fell into the river and scrambled away.

And the Three Billy Goats Gruff stayed on the hillside and ate the green, green grass.

The poor troll was so sad to get pushed off the bridge and have to leave.

The Mitten

2010-01-17T16:07:00.000-08:00

What's better than reading in the Royal Room?

Why, acting out the stories we've heard!
Check out these Golden Globe stars last week reenacting the story, The Mitten by Jan Brett. They were truly award winning.
And naturally we had more than one encore performance!

Andrew and Isabella keep us on track turning the big book pages and reading the words, in case we forget!

Skylar goes into the mitten. Jhi'Davien goes into the mitten.

Brian goes into the mitten.

Jordan goes into the mitten.

Aliana goes into the mitten.

Isabella goes into the mitten. (She really hops into her part!)

Andrew goes into the mitten. (And like a good actor, show us his best side!)

Kalvin goes into the mitten.

Irving goes into the mitten.

Jaidyn goes into the mitten.

Star Student!

2010-01-10T15:45:00.001-08:00

What's not to like about our Star Student, Vanshika? She's sweet and kind and bright. She's a hard worker and always does her best. She never complains and everyone likes her. She's a royal doll!

The Sleepover

2010-01-10T15:36:00.000-08:00

Pajama Day included a sleepover. Thanks to our wonderful parents for providing hot chocolate and a midnight snack. Naturally we had to stay up and watch the late, late movie. The Queen even told her famous scary story "Rap-A-Tap-Tap." It was such a fun day we decided to take the next two weeks off from school.

Pajama Day

2010-01-10T15:32:00.001-08:00

Getting ready to go to the Polar Express reading with Mrs. Kornblum and sing some holiday songs. Can you guess which one is our favorite?

Mr. S is a Superhero and so are we!

2010-01-10T15:20:00.000-08:00

Let the Festivities Begin!

2009-12-14T17:17:00.000-08:00

We're off to a delicious start. Monday we had our class holiday party. We began with a delicious lunch of turkey and cheese sandwiches, apples, carrots, chips and juice. And of course, we had on our delightful manners at the "Castle Restaurant." The Queen will definitely invite these well-behaved students back.

We were also joined by some wonderful parents who helped organize and participate in our festivities. Thanks to Lance's mom, Miss Angela, Skylar's mom, Miss Nickie, Jordan's mom, Miss LaToya, Andrew's mom, Miss Kym, Jaidyn's mom, Miss Karen and Cameron's mom, Miss Charlene for coming. And they were well-behaved too!

Afterwards we swung and swung with all our might to break our very sturdy pinatas. Even the moms and Hunny Bunny took a whack at it.

Please join us on Wednesday for more fun with Pajama Day.

P.S. Any moms with pinata pictures -- can you send a couple to the Queen? I got too busy helping bust those pinatas open!

Star Student

2009-12-14T17:14:00.000-08:00

Even though Brian is a fun loving guy, he also works hard and follows directions superbly! That's why he was selected star student for December 11.

Ole!

2009-12-14T17:00:00.000-08:00

Check out our Mexican Hat Dance moves. After reading the award winning Nine Days until Christmas last week we talked about where Mexico is and how some of their holiday customs have become ours too. Then bueno! we were off and dancing in our shawls and sombreros. Adios!

Reindeer Tryouts

2009-12-13T15:25:00.000-08:00

Now there's Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen and Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen and a few more reindeer on our door for the annual holiday door contest. Stop by to see these lively ones! Santa is sure to pick them all!

And you ask, where's Rudolph? You'll see him Wednesday at the Polar Express.

Star Students!!

2009-12-13T06:28:00.000-08:00

Lance is such a great guy! -- often thinking about others and how to treat them kindly. That's why he was Star Student on December 4.

Birthday Shout Out to Lance for a November 25 birthday!!

Janya, our Star Student, on November 20 is an awesome helper and always tries her best!

Star Student - November 13

2009-11-15T12:59:00.001-08:00

Have you met Jhi'Davien? It's no surprise he's our start student of the week. He's kind to others, listens to the Queen and always tries his best! You should see his art work. Way to go, guy!

Fuzzy Wuzzy Was a Bear

2009-11-15T12:43:00.000-08:00

Friday was Bear Day, as we invited our favorite bear friends to read, count, sing, hunt and picnic with us. All bears were well-behaved as their "people" did a good job making sure they knew the rules in the castle.
Bears write words with Vanshika and Kalvin.

Bears listen to Bear Facts with Brian, Jaidyn and Lance.

Bears work on their letters and sounds with Skylar and Jordan.

Bears works on patterns with Irving, Brian, Aliana and Jaidyn.

Irving shows his bear exactly how to do a pattern border.

Bears love picnics and so do the Royal Subjects! And what do they love best to eat? Bread, butter and of course, HONEY!

The picnic was a scrumptious way to end Bear Day!

Our Families Rock at Family Night!

2009-11-11T15:25:00.000-08:00

The Royal Subjects mingle and eat pizza.

Friends are fun to be with anytime, but especially when you are 5! Jaidyn, Irving, Lance, Skylar and Cameron abandon their parents for together time.

Vanshika -- our sweetheart!

Here's why Vanshika is so sweet! Check out her family.

Skylar's family, minus hardworking dad, but with super cool grandma!

Kalvin and his fun loving family!

Cameron is lucky to have such sweet women in his life!

Irving has one happy family!

Aliana and her entourage!

Lance and the gang!

Hugs for Jordan and family!

Andrew's family is looking good!

Brian and his dad chill out at Family Night!

Jaidyn gets good lovin' from grandma.

Five Little Monkeys? Maybe in the song, but 11 little monkeys performing it. :)

Our families are groovin' as they help us Tooty Ta!

Family Night was awesome!!! Thanks to a group of wonderful parents who helped provide pizza and food, lots of good-natured, legendary entertainment (long live the Tooty Ta!) and a TON of interest in their children and their education. No wonder the Queen and the Royal Subjects are so happy every day!

Hope to see YOU at the next Family Night!!!!!

Star Student - October 30

2009-11-01T14:52:00.001-08:00

Way to go Aliana! You rock with your sweet attitude, hard work and ability to have fun!

Fall Treats

2009-11-01T14:47:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our latest season, Fall (even though it was 80 degrees outside) with some special treats courtesy of our very generous moms and dads. Lots of edible orange items!