Summer Fun

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Mrs. Black made this smilebox to show what us teachers have been up to this summer. Sadly, Mrs. Box didn't get to come with us on any of our excursions, but she's been enjoying her precious newborn baby, Norah Caroline! Maybe we will have pictures of her on here soon! Thanks Mrs. Black for the smilebox video!

Summer Practice

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer break! If any of my kiddos from last year have been visiting the blog to play educational games, I'd like you to pat yourself on the back! I'm so proud of you! I want everyone to relax, play, and enjoy vacation time during the summer, but I also hope that my former students are spending a little time preparing for third grade.

I can't wait to see which ones of you have worked on multiplication. When I taught third grade, 1s, 2s, 3s, 5s, 7s, 10s, and 11s were the ones I introduced first. Hopefully, you've been practicing! Imagine how impressed your third grade teacher will be when you show off what you know!

Remember, if you bring in your summer packets that I gave you to work on, I have a treat for you! I'm missing all of you, and can't wait to see how much you all have grown during summer break. I'm sure many of you are taller than me now! That's not so hard to do, huh?

I'll see you guys on registration day or shortly after. Enjoy your last few weeks of summer!

Summer Excitement

Today, I spent some time working in my classroom. I painted some bookshelves and parts of the floor on accident (Shhhh, don't tell Mr. Wix). I have so much fun decorating and arranging my room each summer.

Last year, my second graders helped me pick a new theme for this school year. Since I've been teaching, my classroom has been called "Hester's Herd", which was a cowboy theme. I realized last year, it was time for a change, so I consulted those who knew best, my students. They are the only ones who know which theme I picked, and I bet they're not telling! I'll post some pictures soon, so you can see it for yourselves.

I can't wait to meet my new second grade students!

Field Trip to Lost River Cave

Mrs. Black, Mrs. Vinson, our kiddos, and I went on a field trip to Lost River Cave. We went on a cave tour and then visited the butterfly habitat. Afterwards, we went for ice cream at Chaney's Dairy Barn. It was so nice spending some quality time with our buddies.

Mrs. Hester Goes Back to School!

I am not only a teacher, but also a student. That's right! I recently decided to return to school and get my Masters Degree in Education. Here I am with my cohort group from Union University. I am learning so much and can't wait to apply lots of new strategies in my classroom this year!

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Field Day 2011

Field Day was so exciting! Our team worked so hard and gave everything they had. I was so proud of each and every one of them.

J.W. Wiseman Talent Show

J.W. Wiseman's Talent Show is always the best! Three of my girls performed at this year's talent show. They are future STARS! Watch the video below to see their performances.

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Happy Mother's Day from Mrs. Hester's Class

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Our Spring Field Trip

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Our second grade, spring, field trip was amazing! We saw the movie African Cats at NCG Theater in Gallatin. We learned so much from two different kinds of African cat families and how they compete for space, food, and power. After the movie, we headed to the Gallatin Fire Department to learn a little about their work and service they provide us. We had so much fun there. Last, we went to the park to eat and have some fun! Our field trip was a huge success!

Butterfly Release

Well... our butterfly release didn't go quite as planned. Those guys were good at getting out of their cages, because one escaped almost everyday last week. Students would be working hard, and all of a sudden a butterfly would get loose. It was quite exciting to watch as each one flew straight to our window. Here's Kolbe with an escape butterfly. As soon as it got outside, the butterfly decided to land on Kolbe to say his goodbyes.

Little Chefs

During reading groups today, we made icing for our Easter Cookies. After we mixed the ingredients together, we added food coloring and then used them at our party to decorate the cookies. It was YUMMY!!!!!!!!

Easter Fun

Popsicles with Friends

Party Time!

Good Looking Cookies

They look ready to hunt eggs and candy!

The Egg Hunt

Thank you for sending in supplies and candy for our Easter Party. We had so much fun partying with classmates and hunting eggs!

We Have Butterflies

That's right! This morning, we had two beautiful butterflies emerge from their chrysalis during our math lesson. You should've seen the excitement in this classroom. Everyone watched with amazement. The rest of the chrysalises are waiting for their turn to enter their world as butterflies!

Uncle Chip Visits

This morning, Uncle Chip surprised us with another visit. In the picture, Uncle Chip is telling his story of how his finger got cut off, for at least the tenth time. This time it's the truth! Or is it? Who knows! He has a different story each time he comes.

He picked the book Stella Luna to read to us. We love it when Uncle Chip comes. His energy and enthusiasm is amazing!

High School Visitors

This morning, during our math lesson, we were surprised by high school speech team members. They entertained us with fairy tales that they told and acted out. What a nice surprise. Thank you Stephanie, Cheyenne, Hannah, Hailey, and Alex.

Rock Stars

We will, we will, rock this test! We rocked the J.W.W. TCAP Pep Rally with our song and crazy dress! It was a blast for everyone!

Power Pals Perform

The Power Pals, or Title 1 students, in Mrs. Vinson's class and my class did a performance together today. They got to show off their excellent reading and acting skills. We loved the performance and entertainment they provided us. The Power Pals group did an excellent job!

Rock Star Day

We've got some very well known rock stars in our classroom today. They know how to work the cameras as well!

Today is dress like a rock star day. We are supporting our third through fifth graders as they get ready for TCAP. We want them to "Rock the test!" TCAP is a time to "show off" everything that they've learned so far in school. We wish them the very best luck, and we know they will do an awesome job!

Caterpillars

Last week, we received baby caterpillars to raise in our classroom. We named them and put them in a safe container where they could eat and begin their transformation from caterpillar to butterfly. Today, some of the caterpillars were positioned in their J shape, while others had started to make a chrysalis. We are learning so much by watching their life cycles unfold right in front of our eyes. Soon, we will have seven beautiful butterflies to release into the world.