Service Learning

Thank you so much to GCSS Board Member Sammy Smith for organizing a visit from the Truelove family and their dairy cow "Rosie." This special visit was planned after hearing about our second graders raising money to purchase a dairy cow from World Vision to help a family in need this holiday season. To say that the children were excited is an understatement. After the teachers took turns milking the cow, the students were highly grossed out when they realized that the milk they drink everyday comes from cows just like Rosie. HILARIOUS! In addition to such a wonderful experience for the children, we were presented with a check to ensure that we would reach our goal. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this worth while cause. I loved seeing the children's giving hearts and concern for others through this service learning project.  

Meet Rosie! She certainly spread a lot of holiday cheer!

The kids meeting Rosie. Thank you Trueloves for providing this great experience!

The kids LOVED seeing me milk the cow.

Mark your calendar for Centennial's 2nd grade performance of
Twinkle and Shine!
Where? CAA Gym
When? Wednesday, December 17th
Time? 8:00am

Unit 4 Spelling Words

Week of December 8th:
knew, know, knee, kneel, climb, thumb, comb, wrong, wreck, wrap, write, right, knife, wrist, gnaw

Week of January 5th:
teach, taught, catch, caught, bring, brought, think, thought, buy, bought, straight, listen, light, high, hustle

Week of January 12th:
feather, weather, meant, breath, already, instead, healthy, heavy, breakfast, break, steak, great, cold, kind, thread

Week of January 19th:
tough, rough, laugh, elephant, telephone, alphabet, photograph, sure, picture, adventure, nature, television, solution, attention, information

Week of January 26th:
Study spelling words from the previous 4 weeks for the unit test this week. Ten random words will be chosen.

So much to be THANKFUL for!

I am blessed to spend each day with this sweet group of kids. I am in awe of how much they learn and grow over the course of one school year. I have included a few photos from our Thanksgiving readers theater performance and our Charlie Brown Feast! I think the buttered toast was by far the favorite! To quote what one of the children said to my mom (who was in charge of toasting and buttering,) "You are the best cook Mrs. Johnson!" It's the simple things like butter and toast and my sweet crew of 21 that bring such joy to my heart.❤️

December Book Fair Volunteers Needed

 

We're using VolunteerSpot (the leading online signup and reminder tool) to organize our upcoming signups.

Here's how it works in 3 easy steps:

1) Click this link to see our Sign-Up on VolunteerSpot: http://vols.pt/FYWidN
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
3) Sign up! It's Easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on VolunteerSpot.

Note: VolunteerSpot does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually. always. It's really a lot of fun and a great way to get involved with the school. If you know someone who might want to volunteer please send this link on to your friends.​

Learning about the Cherokee

Our students were so lucky to experience a fabulous presentation about the Cherokee from Elachee Nature and Science Center yesterday. Each group was assigned a different clan name and job. The children had so much fun and learned a lot. I must admit I was SLIGHTLY proud when they were already able to identify the regions of Georgia and answer several of the presenters questions!

Our Spooktacular day!

I know I'm a little late, but I just had to share our SPOOKTACULAR Halloween! We started our day designing a haunted fact family town. The kids also enjoyed a spooky treat, and designed their very own book character pumpkin.

Our sweet high school mentor made these adorable Frankenstein treat bags for the class!

Skippy Jon Jones, The Lorax, Horton, Clifford, and the Grinch!

Each student had to fill out this book character information sheet before designing their pumpkin. A special thank you to my sweet neighbor Pam Clark for donating the pumpkins, as well as all of the families who donated items and their time to make this day so much fun!

Unit 3 Spelling Words

Week of Nov. 3rd
annoy, again, alive, alone, apart, among, afraid, begin, between, because, behind, beside, toy, spoil, join.

Week of Nov. 10th
window, follow, yellow, tomorrow, allow, flower, flour, thousand, house, mouse, our, hour, couch, frown, sour.

Week of Nov. 17th
to, two, too, blue, blew, one, won, four, for, buy, by, good-bye, stood, broom, noon.

Week of Dec. 1st
city, circle, excellent, decide, pencil, excited, large, danger, change, strange, imagine, huge, center, race, stage.

Week of Dec. 8th
Unit test- Study all words from the past 4 weeks.

Adventures at Legoland!

My sweet class!

The entire second grade had a great time at Legoland thanks to the financial support of our fabulous PTA.  The excitement started to build as the children began to ooh and aww over the tall buildings as we neared Phipps Plaza. As they traveled up the escalators and neared the entrance to Legoland they could hardly contain their excitement!

The Georgia Dome!

The girls having fun with the karaoke corner. 

My students had a fabulous time learning about force, gravity, aerodynamics, and teamwork while building their very own race car! We also saw some amazing landmarks all built out of Legos! I was so proud when the children made a connection between the exhibits and our study of the Piedmont Region in social studies. Overall a great time was had by all. Thank you to all of the people who made this trip possible! Enjoy a few pictures from our trip below.


Stone Mountain

Georgia State Capital Building

I think it is safe to say they had fun!

We've got Georgia on our mind!

We have just started our study of Georgia's regions and rivers. The kids were VERY excited when I got out THE PAINT!! They are busy designing their Live Oak trees. This unit is full of new vocabulary. I am so impressed at how hard they are working to make up their own motions to help remember key information from each region! I will be posting a video soon!

Kevin Henkes Author Study

We have enjoyed reading several of Kevin Henkes books over the past few weeks. We have been working specifically on the following skills:

• Identifying character traits
• Identifying beginning, middle, and end
• Using the text to support our answers
• Re-stating the question when writing
• Text-to-text, text-to-self, text-to-world connections
• Inferences

Check out some of their great work below! 

Red Ribbon Week

We are excited for Red Ribbon Week! Let's help the kids commit to being drug-free and celebrate with the following days: 

Thursday 10/23: Wear 2 different shoes - "Kick drugs to the curb!"

Friday 10/24: Neon day - "My future's too bright to do drugs!"

Monday 10/27: Messy hair/hat day: "Don't let drugs mess you up!"

Tuesday 10/28: Dress for picture day: "Dress for success-no time for drugs!"

(School picture day!)

Wednesday 10/29: GHS (elephant, stomp) spirit wear: "Stomp out drugs!" 

(Field Trip today!)

Thursday 10/30: Favorite sports team wear: "I have better things to do than drugs!" 

Spelling words for the week of 10/13

1. almost
2. also
3. always
4. fault
5. awful
6. fault
7. awful
8. salt
9. walk
10. talk
11. done
12. give
13. saw
14. yawn
15. wall
16. claw
17. lawn
18. small
19. almost
20. always

Spelling words for week of 10/6

1. worst
2. regular
3. work
4. learn
5. worm
6. heard
7. sugar
8. early
9. worry
10. dollar
11. earth
12. word

Spelling words for the week of 9/29

1. first
2. bird
3. third
4. thirst
5. turn
6. return
7. during
8. surprise
9. mother
10. father
11. sister
12. brother
13. start
14. sports
15. forget
16. art
17. smart
18. shark
19. corn
20. forest

Spelling Words for week of 9/22

1. is
2. as
3. his
4. has
5. does
6. was
7. because
8. busy
9. cozy
10. close
11. dozen
12. doesn't
13. miss
14. toss
15. fuzz
16. mess
17.dress
18. press
19.class
20. pass
21. fuss
22. muss
23. fizz
24. buzz

Let's talk about the Daily 5!

Many of you may be wondering what exactly your child is referring to when they talk about "The Daily Five." I hope this post will shed some light on what it is all about!

The Daily Five is a way of structuring the reading block so every student is independently engaged in meaningful literacy tasks. These research based tasks are ones that will have the biggest impact on student reading and writing achievement, as well as help foster children who love to read and write. Students receive explicit whole group instruction in comprehension, accuracy, fluency, and expanding vocabulary. We refer to this as “CAFÉ” time in our classroom. Then they are given independent practice time to read and write independently while I provide focused, intense instruction to individuals and small groups of students.

            When it is up and running smoothly, students will be engaged in the Daily Five, which are comprised of:

Read to Self

Work on Writing

Read to Someone

Listen to Reading

Word Work

There are very specific behavior expectations that go with each Daily 5 component.  We have spent our first several weeks working intensely on building our reading and writing stamina, learning the behaviors of the Daily 5, and fostering our classroom community.  

Check out the video and pictures below of the kids engaged in the Daily 5!

September Lunch Menu

Click on the link below for September's lunch menu. :-)

September Lunch Menu

Superhero Acrostic Name Poems...CUTENESS OVERLOAD!

My second grade superheroes are off to a great start! Check out these adorable superheroes and their acrostic poems. 

Mark your calendar! PTA on Thursday 8/21

PTA Co-presidents would like to invite you to join them for a PTA meet and greet Thursday 8/21 at 6:00 p.m. in the Media Center at CAA.  This will be a great opportunity for you to meet other CAA parents, as well as find out what exciting events they have planned for the children, and how you can get involved. 

What's for lunch?

Click on the link below for this months lunch menu. :-)
August Lunch Menu

Check out www.wegivebooks.org

I just found an amazing free resource and I wanted to pass it on to all of you. We Give Books is a free online library of children’s books that enables your kids to help other children around the world while they’re reading. The best part is, your reading will directly impact the great work of non-profit organizations around the world! Their tagline says it all, “combining the joy of reading with the power of giving.” It’s the perfect tool for parents, teachers, caregivers, and anyone who loves children’s books!

When you go to www.wegivebooks.org, you’ll be able to read a special selection of books without a We Give Books account, but you have to sign up to access their full library. It’s definitely worth it, though. It’s just a quick form, and once you’re signed up, you’ll have access to over 150 quality children’s books! There are a lot of familiar classic titles, and even more new ones for us to discover. You can sort the books by age level, genre, author, and seasonal selections in the “Featured” section, so everyone can find something they like.

On the Causes page you can learn more about where your donated books are going. This fall, We Give Books is focusing on early childhood literacy across the United States and supporting great causes like Jumpstart for young children. In the winter, you’ll be able to read to support global literacy and give books to non-profits like Room to Read. They also give you the option to donate to help your book donations reach even more children.

A message from our new PTA Co-Presidents

Dear Centennial Arts Academy families,

Welcome back to all returning families and a special welcome to the Kindergarten parents as well as new families to our community.  It is through the support of our families that we are so successful in our mission to promote educational success at CAA. 

Our PTA board is made up of many volunteers that have a vision to bridge the gap between school and home!  We want you to always feel informed and have a direct link to get involved with your child’s school.  Our mission is to encourage and support a positive school environment with our students, staff, families and community as we strive to be advocates for programs and policies that nurture youth and education.  We do this by sponsoring and funding programs, recruiting and mentoring volunteers, and working in collaboration with the CAA administration, staff and teachers. 

As we start the year, we wanted to share a few thoughts with you.  We are hopeful that with continued focus on our purpose to promote education and a positive environment for our children, we will be able to continue the many programs that make CAA unique, as well as building new ones to make an exceptional experience for our children.    In order to be successful, we know that the support and involvement of the parents of our students, the faculty and staff at CAA will be of utmost importance.  Your first opportunity to show your support will be to become a member of the PTA.  We encourage each of you to show your commitment by joining. 

The second way to show your support will be to participate in the numerous events and programs that we have planned throughout the year.  Your participation might be that of a committee member, volunteer, or merely as an attendee.  Whatever level of participation you select, your time and involvement will certainly be appreciated. 

You can also show your support by providing us your comments regarding our PTA efforts or suggestions or ideas for other potential PTA initiatives.  To facilitate this, please feel free to contact us directly. 

We believe that it is of ultimate importance that we do everything we can to enhance the learning environment of our children as they truly are our future.  It will take all of us working together to ensure that this happens. 

We would like to invite you to join us for a PTA meet and greet next Thursday 8/21 at 6:00 p.m. in the Media Center at CAA.  This will be a great opportunity for you to meet other CAA parents as well as find out what exciting events we have planned for our children and how you can get involved. 

We look forward to working with all of you this year!  Thank you so much for your support! 

Kim Kiesel & Cindy Barrett

Co-Presidents CAA PTA

Kimkiesel@yahoo.com                          Gregandcindyb@aol.com

Open House!

I can't believe open house is almost here! I can't wait to meet my little superheroes on Tuesday, August 5th from 8:30-11:30am!

2014-2015 School Supply List

1 box 24 count crayons

1 package of glue sticks

1 package of end cap erasers for pencils

1 pack of washable markers

2 boxes of Kleenex

3 spiral notebooks (wide-ruled, 70 pages)

3 pocket folders (1 yellow, 1 blue, 1 red)