Gecko Gazette

This month, we’ll be celebrating self-love and kindness as we learn ways to care for ourselves and show care for others. We will also begin our Exercise Study, where children will explore how movement, healthy foods, and dental care help keep our bodies strong and healthy.

Students are welcome to bring Valentine cards to share with their classmates on February 11th.

Reminder- no preschool on February 12th, as it is a district half day.

Happy February! This month is full of excitement for kindergarten as we not only dig deeper into our learning, but celebrate several fun holidays.

• Reading: Now that all letters have been learned, students will practice reading CVC words daily in text as well as begin learning about letters that work together in consonant blends (st, sl, nd, etc.) During read-alouds, students will engage in informational texts that explore what makes America special, from its symbols to its presidents to its traditions.

• Writing: Students will understand the importance of details and telling events in order as they create their own how-to texts about how to play their favorite game.

• Social Studies: Students will use videos, pictures, books, and more to learn about two famous presidents: George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

• Math: The exploration of teen numbers begins! Students will count, read, and write numbers 11-20. They will also practice counting within 100 daily.

• Science: The great chick-hatching experiment continues! The eggs are in their incubators; as students wait for them to hatch, they will learn about the life cycle of the chicken. The chicks should hatch within the month so students can observe and hold them.

• Misc: We will celebrate Lunar New Year (the year of the horse!) in style with a fun, performance-filled evening event on February 19th and a dragon parade with 6th grade buddies on February 20th! Valentine’s Day will be celebrated with a class card exchange on February 13th.

Thank you again for your continued support of your students in their academic journeys. We look forward to showing off all your kids have learned at student-led parent teacher conferences the week of February 9th!

February will be a busy and exciting month in 1st grade! Students will enjoy a field trip, celebrate Lunar New Year, participate in a Valentine’s celebration, and take part in student-led conferences. Along with all the fun, we’ll be doing lots of learning too!

• Math: Adding and subtracting tens.

• Science: Studying earth materials and exploring animal habitats!

• Reading: Describing characters, settings, and events in a story.

• Writing: Publishing a personal narrative final draft.

This month is a very busy and exciting one for our third graders! Students are working hard to prepare for several important events, including the Opinion Writing District Assessment, the Lunar New Year Performance, and student-led parent-teacher conferences. They are also eagerly looking forward to their final field trip of the year to the Wildlife World Zoo.We look forward to meeting with you during conferences (February 9th-13th) to discuss and celebrate your child’s growth so far this school year. Please be sure to sign up for a conference time.Please remember that 2/12 and 2/13 are half days! If you have any questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out to your child’s teacher.

Learning Highlights for This Month:

• Math: Students will begin their first exploration of fractions.

• Science: Learning how internal and external structures help plants survive.

• Mandarin: Busy preparing for the Lunar New Year performance and the Mandarin Speech Competition.

• Writing: Completing the Opinion Writing District Assessment and beginning a research essay on animals and their special abilities to survive in extreme hot or cold environments.

• Reading: Continuing with informational texts, focusing on text structure, text and graphic features, main ideas, and figurative language.

• Social Studies: Continuing our study of Arizona Statehood.

February is a busy and exciting month for our 4th graders! Students will be participating in several district assessments, celebrating Lunar New Year, and taking part in student-led conferences. Our character focus for the month is respect. Students will be working on showing respect toward others and recognizing what respectful behavior looks like when it is shown to them.

Student-led conferences will take place during the week of February 9. Please be sure to sign up for a conference time and plan to bring your 4th grader with you, as they will be leading the conference and sharing their learning.

Our 6th grade students are working hard on slideshow presentations for their student led conferences, which will take place during the week of February 9. During these conferences, students will share their goals for each subject and highlight work they are especially proud of.

Families are also invited to join us as we celebrate Lunar New Year, the Year of the Horse. On February 19, we will host a Lunar New Year event open to all families, followed by our Lunar New Year Parade on February 20 featuring our kindergarten and 6th grade Mandarin students. We cannot wait to celebrate together and cheer on our students as they share their learning and shine.

February is an exciting month!

• Art is working on projects to be displayed at the Gecko Gala in March.

• Band members will perform at the Suns game on February 11. The Suns will be playing the Oklahoma Thunder.

• Select Band members will be participating in the Honor Band on February 18

• General Music classes K-3 are working on songs for their concerts in April.

• Chorus continues working on songs for their Spring Concert and has auditions for the Gecko Gala on Fri. Feb 13th before school.

• PE is learning some of the games for Field Day in April.