I hope that all of you had a pleasant Easter break. I know how nice it is to be able to spend time as a family. I hope that was possible for all of you. Now that we are back in school, we are in for a long stretch before we get our summer vacation. I have a few things planned so hopefully the children will not mind it. If you have any units or thoughts about a neat activity, let me know. I will explore it and see if it works out for our class.
This week we will be reading the story Five Little Ducks by Pamela Paparone. Along with this, we will be working with the letter Q. I also am including the words ‘one, two, and three’ for the children to add to their stack of sight words. Continue to work with these words. It really is beneficial for the children. In math, we will concentrate on nickels and counting by fives. During our circle time, we will talk about bugs. Boy, this is a favorite unit! We hope to catch a few of them and learn more about these small creatures that help and annoy us. Our Bible lessons will be “David Is Kind to Saul” and “Saul Dies, and David Becomes King.” >From these lessons we will learn that out of love for God, we neither try to get even with others nor are happy when others have troubles.
Our third quarter has ended and I want to send home report cards some time this week. I know by Friday I will have them out. If you have comments or questions, please come and talk to me. I want to address you concerns and help you with any questions that you have. During our fourth quarter, I will ask your child to start memorizing a Bible passage. We will work on it all week, but on Friday, I will ask the children to say the passage. This week the passage will be Ephesians 4:32. Be kind to one another, forgiving each other.
We have a special treat on Friday of this week. A parent has arranged for us to have a presentation given by a bee keeper. Bees are fascinating creatures and I am delighted to have this man come in to tell us more about them. I guess we will be able to sample honey too. I hope your child enjoys this.
Our next singing opportunity will be April 20 in the early service. Please mark that on your calendars and plan to join us for worship.
I believe that is all. Have a great week!

I saw many of you at Easter for Kids and I hope that you and your child had a good time. We certainly enjoy doing children’s programs here at Apostles and we are happy that so many of you participate. Thank you for coming.
This week we will be reading the story Listen Buddy by Lynn Munsinger. Along with this story, we will be working with the letter V. This letter is sometimes confused with the letter F. I will be spending time with listening exercises to help the children with this. In math, we will be working with nickels and counting by fives. During our circle time, we will finish our unit on plants. We will also use some of the time to talk about Holy Week and what happened to Jesus during this week. Our Bible lessons will be “David and Goliath” and “David is Loved and Hated.” From these lessons, we will learn that by faith we trust God’s help and establish true friendships.
As I have said, it is Holy Week. On Friday, the children will be singing in a special service at 2:00 pm. Since we expect all of the children in the school to participate, we will provide childcare from 11:45 until 2:00 at no charge to you. If you should pick up your child at 11:45, please have him or her back here by 1:45. At that time, I will prepare the children for the service. We will sit as a class for this service. Once the service is over, you will be able to pick up your child at the classroom. Again we will walk quietly back to the classrooms, so please do not disturb the children during the recessional. You are welcome to come to this service. Since so many people attend this service, I would suggest that you come at least by 1:45 to get a seat. In addition, I would ask that you dress your child for a church service on that day. We will take it easy on the playground so don’t worry about them. Thank you.
On Tuesday, we will be finger painting. Please dress accordingly. I try very hard to keep everyone clean, but accidents do happen. I just want to warn you about what we will be doing.
After the service on Friday, we will be on Easter vacation until March 31. Please note that there will be no school or childcare during that time.
I hope and pray that all of you have a most blessed Easter. Enjoy the break.

Dear Parents,

I hope that all of you had a nice weekend. As we get closer to Easter, activities will increase here at Apostles. One of the things that the children will enjoy will be the ‘Easter for Kids’ day on March 15. Pastor Kronebusch has already started the planning and preparations for this important day. If you will be coming, please sign up in advance. It helps us out when we know how many will be coming.

This week we will be reading the story Jump into the Jungle by Theresa Volpe. We will also be working with the letter J. For this unit, I am adding three new sight words to the stack of word cards. They are ‘do,’ ‘not,’ and ‘what.’ Please keep going over these words with your child. Next year the new words will come at a much greater pace so we need to see how your child handles this task. In math, we will continue working with measurement. Along with that, we will work with the numbers one through twenty. During our circle time, we will be working with the plants again. I am enjoying this unit and I think your child is too. The class as a whole doesn’t like to get dirty, but when you work with plants, it happens. Our Bible lessons will be “God Speaks to Samuel,” “God Chooses to be King,” and “Saul Takes Sin Lightly.” >From these lessons we will learn how the humble Christian can serve God well, while the proud person who takes sin lightly cannot.

This Friday we have a collaboration day. All of the students will be dismissing at noon. There will be child care, but no hot lunch.

I am sending home a new how lunch form. They indicated on the old schedule that there was no school for March 21. That is incorrect. We will definitely have school and there will be hot lunch.

Please note that this is our last week of Lent. Next week, we will go into Holy Week many services will be offered here at Apostles. The service that will be of concern to you will be on Friday, March 21. The children in all of the classes are expected to be here to sing. Your child is welcome to use the child care services. (You will not be charged until 3:00 that day.) I will pick up the children at 1:45 to get them ready for sitting in church. After the service, your child is free to go with you. This is a beautiful and very touching service. We can never take for granted what Jesus did for us to make sure that we could live with him in heaven. I hope you will be able to join us for this special service.

Have a great week!

Dear Parents,
I hope that all of you had a nice weekend. We are finally getting some better weather, but with that come the allergies. If your child suffers from them or asthma, please let me know. I will try to watch how much they run or exert themselves on the playground if that is a problem.
This week we will be reading the story Shoes Like Miss Alice’s by Angela Johnson. Along with this story we will be working with the letter W. Also, please keep working with the word lists. We are having more difficulty as we add words to the sight word list. Practice really does help. I certainly appreciate your help and notice the work that you do. In math, we will work with numbers one through twenty. We will also start measuring length. During our circle time, we will continue our unit on plants. We had a lot of fun planting the flowers in the church planter. Please check them out. The children did a great job and thank you Mrs. Gilligan for arranging it. Our Bible lessons will be “Ruth Believes in God” and “God Blesses Ruth.” From these lessons we will learn how God graciously blesses faith that forsakes all for him.
As you all know, we had spirit week last week. It was a fun and wonderful week. The children did a fine job of participating and you parents were very creative in coming up with the outfits. I enjoyed the week and your work very much.
Many of you have received the head lice notices. Please keep vigilant about checking your child. I have cleaned the room thoroughly and for now that is about all I can do. This too will pass. I will continue to watch so that no coats or hats come into contact with one another.
If you want to enter a car in the pine car derby, please bring your application to school. The Pioneer leaders like to get working on them as soon as possible. Thanks.
I mentioned in one of the last notes that I need empty egg cartons. If you have one to spare, please bring it to school. I like to do various projects with egg cartons so I will recycle them. Thank you.
On Saturday, March 1, we had an open house. If any of you know of people who are interested in finding a school for the kindergarten child, please mention Apostles. We have opening in almost all grades and we would love to have the opportunity to serve the families in our area.
I believe that is all for this week. Have a great week.