Denali Montessori ~ Room 177

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Congratulations to our Battle of the Books participants Adriana, Brianna, and Marcus! They represented Room 177 with grace and courtesy Tuesday morning. The students all worked hard for several months reading the books on the list, memorizing the authors and book titles, and practicing sample questions. Brianna was part of a team that will go on to the District Battle at West High School representing Denali Montessori next week! We are proud of all our battlers.

We will be going to the Performing Arts Center on Monday, February 1 to see Alaska Junior Theater’s production of “Alice in Wonderland”. We will leave the school at 9:30 and return about noon. This should be a fun musical performance. I had sent home permission slips in last week’s folder. They are due tomorrow. Our school has to make payment on all the Junior Theater programs over a month in advance. We need payments as soon as possible so our field trip funds for the school don’t run dry. Thank you.

Our next scheduled field trips are Friday, February 12, Friday, February 26 and the Monday after Spring Break on March 21. We will be taking a bus to West High on Friday, February 12 to see West High’s musical production of “The Little Mermaid” We will leave the school at about 9:20 and return at about noon. On Friday, February 26 we will walk to the Alaska Public Lands Information Office on 4^th Avenue and do a scavenger hunt and watch a film on Alaska animals. Afterward we will watch the start of the Fur Rondy Sled Dog Championship race on 4^th Avenue. We will leave at about 9:30 and return at about 12:30. On Monday, March 21 we will be walking to the Performing Arts Center to see Junior Theater’s “Dino –Light: A Glow-In-The-Dark Adventure”. We will leave the school at about 11:15 and should return by about 1:30. I will send permission slips home as these trips approach.

Conferences are scheduled for Wednesday, February 17 and Thursday, February 18. I will also offer conferences the week before on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday mornings of that week from 7:15 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. The conference scheduler will be available for you to schedule conferences on Zangle beginning on Wednesday, February 3. If you are going on vacation and would like to schedule your conference before you leave, send me an email of the time you would like to meet and I can put it into the system before February 3. I love conference time and talking about your children and all the wonderful things they are doing.

This week the students have been studying measurement in math, learning about Martin Luther King, Jr., prefixes, practicing math facts, reading, writing friendly letters, learning about interjections (Yippee!), journaling, geometry, reading comprehension and activities, researching for biography reports and more. It has been a busy and wonderful week!

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org of call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, January 14, 2016

Dear Parents,

Our next scheduled field trips are Friday, February 26 and the Monday after Spring Break on March 21. On Friday, February 26 we will walk to the Alaska Public Lands Information Office on 4^th Avenue and do a scavenger hunt and watch a film on Alaska animals. Afterward we will watch the start of the Fur Rondy Sled Dog Championship race on 4^th Avenue. We will leave at about 9:30 and return at about 12:30. On Monday, March 21 we will be walking to the Performing Arts Center to see Junior Theater’s “Dino –Light: A Glow-In-The-Dark Adventure”. We will leave the school at about 11:15 and should return by about 1:30. I will send permission slips home as these trips approach.

This week the students have been studying problem solving in math, learning about Martin Luther King, Jr., using apostrophes in contractions, practicing math facts, reading, writing friendly letters, learning about conjunctions, journaling, putting worms in their new environment in science, geometry, reading comprehension and activities, and more. It has been a busy and wonderful week!

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org of call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, January 7, 2016

Dear Parents,

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a healthy and happy holiday season. The students seem eager to be back and are resuming their working routines. I’m looking forward to a great second semester.

I have sent second quarter report cards home in today’s folder. Please take a few moments to talk with your child to celebrate his or her accomplishments and discuss some areas he or she needs to improve. Teaching your children how to set goals is an important tool and gift that you can give them.

As you probably already noticed, I also sent home the first homework of 2016 on Monday. I know this is not our usual time frame, but I wanted the students to get back into the swing of things. This homework will be tested this Friday. I have sent next week’s homework in today’s folder. If your child couldn’t finish the homework by Friday, please send it in when it is finished.

This week the students have been studying problem solving in math, using apostrophes in contractions, practicing math facts, reading, writing friendly letters, journaling, observing our worms in science, geometry, reading comprehension and activities, and more. It is great to be back working with your children!

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org of call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Dear Parents,

Denali Holiday Night is Friday, December 11 at 6:30 p.m. The students have been working on a presentation piece with the choir during their music class. I hope you can join us for a night of music, food, holiday stories and more!

On Wednesday afternoon, December 16, we will be making and decorating gingerbread houses. I have included a list of items that the students chose to bring to help decorate the houses. This is always a fun activity for the students. We will begin at about 1:05. Parents are welcome to join us if they would like.

On Thursday, December 17 Ms. Ashleigh and I are planning to have a sledding party here at school. We will sled from 10:15 to 11:10 and then come in for hot chocolate and a movie. We would like students to bring their own sleds that day. I will bring some as well. I know you’re saying, “Mr. Moyer are you crazy? There’s not enough snow to have a sledding party.” I hear you and I have it taken care of. If it doesn’t snow by next Wednesday, I am planning to do my famous “Snow Dance”. I am very cautious of when I do my snow dance, because the last time I did it was on March 17, 2002. That was the year of the famous St. Patrick’s Day snowfall of 29 inches in 24 hours. It’s hard to control the “Snow Dance” powers, so I hope it doesn’t come to that. Think snow!

I have decided that there will be no homework for the remainder of the year. We will resume homework in January when we return from the break. You can still take time to read every night, relax and enjoy some family time.

The students have had a great week working on capitalization, spelling, math operations, problem solving, writing thank you notes to Mr. Hickel, math facts, reading comprehension, penmanship, the backstroke, reading, writing letters, adverbs, learning about momentum and problem solving with Hot Wheels cars and racetracks, and more.

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org or call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer


Mr. Hickel answers questions about his gingerbread village at the Captain Cook Hotel.

Thursday, December 3, 2015

Dear Parents,

Tomorrow is our trip to the Captain Cook Hotel to see the gingerbread village. Then we will walk to the Anchorage Museum to eat lunch, explore the Discovery Center, Spark Lab and any other areas we would like to see. We will leave the school at about 11:00 and return about 2:30. Chaperones please meet in Room 177 by 10:45.

On Tuesday, December 8 we will celebrate a successful first semester with a pool party at West High Pool. We will drive to West High Pool at 1:30 and return at 3:30. We will have use of the slide and the entire pool. Don’t worry if your child is not a good swimmer. All students will be required to wear a life jacket unless they choose to take a swim test and pass it. No one should feel embarrassed if they can’t swim. I am not the greatest swimmer and will be wearing a life jacket. No one will make fun of you if you are wearing a life jacket. This is a fun time to enjoy the slide and water fun!

The students have had a great week working on capitalization, spelling, math operations, problem solving, writing, math facts, reading comprehension, poetry, reading, writing letters, learning about momentum with Hot Wheels cars and racetracks, and more.

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org or call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Gavin's Teacher of the Day Experience!

Sarah's Mom reads during our Read-In.

Getting comfortable with a good book!

Reading fun!

Gavin shares his fossils, rocks and other treasures.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Dear Parents,

Tonight, Thursday, November 19 is Denali’s Literature Night! Please join us from 6:30-8:00. There will be games, art, food, and more in this great community event!

Please help us with our Denali Montessori Food Drive. We are collecting all the pieces to make great holiday meals for our Denali families in need. Each class is contributing a specific item and ours is a can of corn. If you could bring in a can of corn for those in need, it would be much appreciated!

Our class is going to have a Thanksgiving potluck on Wednesday, November 25 from 12:30-1:30 with Mr. Harjehausen’s class. Students will be making placemats, cooking, and preparing for our guests. In addition to the items we make, students may bring an item to share. So we don’t have 24 Jell-O molds, we will have first graders bring fruit or a salad or a Jell-O mold, second graders a dessert, and third graders a main dish item. Parents are welcome to join us for the feast. This should be a fun event to get to know our neighbors and celebrate our blessings.

Our next scheduled field trip is Thursday, December 3. We will walk to the Performing Arts Center to see Junior Theater’s production of “Madeline and the Bad Hat”. We will leave school at about 9:30 and return at about 11:45. On Friday, December 4 we will be walking to the Captain Cook Hotel to see the gingerbread village created by master chef, Mr. Hickel. He will talk to us and answer questions about how he created the village. Afterwards, we will walk to the museum, eat lunch and explore any areas we wish. We will walk to the hotel at about 10:30 and return about 2:30. On Tuesday, December 8 we will be driving to West High Pool for an end of the semester swimming celebration! We will leave school at about 1:30 and return by 3:30. Permission slips are in today’s folder.

It has been a fabulous week with the students working on biome research, spelling, science experiments, math operations and facts, adverbs, writing, compound words, capitalization, reading, geometry, penmanship, vocabulary, fractions, and more.

There is no homework for next week. Please enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday with health and happiness!

The cupboards are bare in Room 177. If you could help replenish the snack cupboard, the students that have hot lunch or forget their snack would really appreciate it. Thank you!

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org or call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Dear Parents,

It is with a sad heart, but well wishes that we are saying goodbye to second grader, Gavin, and his wonderful family next week. We will have a Farewell and Good Luck Ceremony next Thursday. I also asked Gavin what would be one thing he would like to do before he left and he immediately said, “A Read-In!” So, next Tuesday, November 17 we will have a class Read-In. We will start the day with waffles and juice. Students may bring their favorite books, a pillow, and a stuffed animal. The students will read, be read to, and participate in other reading activities. If you would like to bring in your favorite picture book and read it to the class, please let me know. There are no specialists that day, so morning or afternoon times are available to share your book with the class. This should be a fun way to celebrate all we have gained by having Gavin as part of our Room 177 family!

Thursday, November 19 is Denali’s Literature Night! Please join us from 6:30-8:30. There will be games, art, food, and more in this great community event!

Our class is going to have a Thanksgiving potluck on Wednesday, November 25 from 12:05-1:30 with Mr. Harjehausen’s class. Students will be making placemats, cooking, and preparing for our guests. In addition to the items we make, students may bring an item to share. So we don’t have 24 Jell-O molds, we will have first graders bring fruit or a salad or a Jell-O mold, second graders a dessert, and third graders a main dish item. Parents are welcome to join us for the feast. This should be a fun event to get to know our neighbors and celebrate our blessings.

Our next scheduled field trip is Thursday, December 3. We will walk to the Performing Arts Center to see Junior Theater’s production of “Madeline and the Bad Hat”. We will leave school at about 9:30 and return at about 11:45. On Friday, December 4 we will be walking to the Captain Cook Hotel to see the gingerbread village created by master chef, Mr. Hickel. He will talk to us and answer questions about how he created the village. I have scheduled a visit to the museum to follow, but have not heard back as of yet from the museum. We would walk to the hotel at about 10:20 and return about 1:45 if we get into the museum. On Tuesday, December 8 we will be driving to West High Pool for an end of the semester swimming celebration! We will leave school at about 1:30 and return by 3:30. I will send out all the permission slips in next week’s folder.

It has been a very productive week with the students working on biome research, spelling, math operations and facts, adverbs, writing, compound words, capitalization, reading, geometry, penmanship, vocabulary, fractions, and more.

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org or call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer