Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Fluency Folders

This is a video from last school year. It's a little goofy, but gives you the idea behind how the Fluency Folders work.

 Basically, you will set the timer to count up for the Fry Instant Word List. Record how long it takes your child to read all 100 words. Then you will set the timer for one minute as your child reads the assigned Fluency Passage. This time the counter will count down. He or she will read for one minute, three separate times, trying to improve with fluency and words read per minute each time.

I hope this video is helpful. As always, please let me know if you need ANYTHING. I don't mind sitting down with you to explain the Fluency Folders in greater detail, if they still seem a bit confusing. I hope that you will see what our parents began seeing last year in regards to their child's reading fluency. It made a TREMENDOUS difference. If your child wants extra practice, please encourage it... the more, the better! Remember to make the Fluency Folder fun by turning it into a game/competition. Encourage your child to "beat" his or her previous times! Good luck and thanks for all you do at home to build on what we are learning and practicing each day at school! You're support and encouragement is valued greatly. :)
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Friday, August 17, 2012

"Owl" About Me Sacks


Today, I learned lots of interesting things about each of my students. I learned about their hobbies, interests, and favorites, such as foods, colors, and sports. The "Owl" About Me Sacks were a great tool for learning more about these sweet kiddos! They did an awesome job speaking in front of the class as well. I was quite impressed.

I found out that Gavin is an Alabama fan. Bless his heart. He will learn one day. Go Vols!

I learned that Tarah loves Barbies. Here, she is holding a sweet picture of her family.

Anah shared her makeup and hair brushes. She talked with such enthusiasm!

Nathan helps his dad work on cars. He has his own drill. Pretty cool, huh?
Thanks for sharing guys!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

First Day



Our first day was busy, busy, busy. We read First Day Jitters and talked a lot about our school rule. We visited Art and took a few pictures outside. Our day was mostly spent going over classroom procedures and rules. We will discuss them again tomorrow, so that expectations are clear. I hope everyone enjoyed their first day back to school as much as I did!

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Welcome Back Scholars!

Hello everyone! It was very nice meeting all of you during registration. I can already tell that I am going to have a wonderful group of kids and parents to work with this year, and I'm thrilled. In fact, I've never been so eager to get a school year started as I am now. I guess that happens when school is delayed, right?

I hope you will check our class blog often for updates and pictures of what's going on in our classroom. If you would like to enter your email address (somewhere on the right side of this page) you will automatically receive an email when updates and pictures are posted. It's pretty convenient!

I guess for now, I'll post some pictures from my summer vacation. I am patiently waiting for school to begin!  Enjoy those last few days of summer. -Mrs. Hester

On my summer vacation, my family went to Chattanooga and visited Rock City. It was our first time there, and we absolutely LOVED it! Will rock climbed, Henry watched for deer, and Eric and I enjoyed the scenery. Rock City in Chattanooga was a great start to our summer vacation!


Will, my seven year old found a new love... LEGOS! He had gotten some for Christmas, but I stuffed them way up high in his closet until I thought he was good and ready for the challenge of putting them together. Well, HE decided that HE was ready when he received MORE Legos for his birthday, in June.This prompted a shopping spree for Legos funded by his Tooth Fairy money. So basically all summer, Will worked on Legos, Legos, and more Legos. He calls it an addiction. I agree, and it's quite an expensive one too! He will need to lose about seven more teeth to continue funding it. Bless his heart! 

My boys and I spent a LOT of time with our "summer buddies" AKA the second grade teachers and their kids/grandkids. We scheduled several little trips for the summer. In the picture below, we are at Lost River Cave in Bowling Green, Kentucky. We also went to the flea market, Russel Simms Water Park, Chaney's Dairy Barn, and many many pool days at Mrs. Black's house. Can I say FUN? It sure was... tons of it. We had a blast spending quality time with our "summer buddies"!

Fortunately, I also spent some much needed time with family. Below is a picture of my cousin Lauren and her sweet baby John Erik. While I've been missing my Dad and brother Ben (working the pipeline out of state) I am thankful for the extra time spent with other family members. We had lots of yummy family cookouts and get togethers.


This summer was also spent wrapping up my last few classes for my Masters in Education. My cohort finished strong after a long, hard, and rewarding thirteen months together. We graduated in Jackson, TN in late July at a church near Union University's quiet campus. Somehow, I cut off a few girls from my picture, but you can see that we all were very close and loved one another. While I'll miss seeing these girls every Saturday, bright and early for class, I sure will enjoy sipping coffee on my front porch while watching my rowdy boys run and play, knowing that my Saturdays are mine once again. Ahhhhh, what a great feeling! Now, it's time to bring what I learned from this amazing experience back to my classroom, and I can't wait for that!!!!