Kindergarten Goes to the Farm!

Kindergarten Goes to the Farm!

 

 

 

 Mrs. Spath’s class at the play fort

Kindergarten had a great time at Dewberry Farm last week!  We saw baby chicks, ducks, miniature horses, and goats that licked food right out of our hands!!

 

Mrs. Munford’s class watching the baby chicks

 

 

Mrs. Abraham’s class feeding the goats

There were huge jumping pads, bikes to ride and an enormous slide.  A train took us around the entire farm and we were able to see the corn maze and the Christmas tree farm. 

Mrs. Tas’ class going for a ride

 There is so much to do at the farm that we weren’t able get to everything.  If you haven’t been out there, it is definitely worth the drive!

A few of Mrs. Williams’ friends before their ride

 

TWE Aglow by Laurie Haseltine

 

 

On Friday, October 17, Tom Wilson was GLOWING!!  We had an amazing turnout of over 500 people. Everyone was shining bright with all of their glow sticks, necklaces, glasses, wands, and clothing! The event raised over $2,000 for the library in memory of Marty Linder.  This money will be used to purchase more books and continue the murals in the library.  Mrs. Linder's family was also able to attend and participate.  They enjoyed spending some time in the library looking at the beautiful murals. They are very proud of the legacy she has left behind. 

 

Laurie Haseltine and Libby Smith with Read, Deed, Run and Carrie Uberecken with PTA helped organize this event.  Elizabeth Hanson, PTA’s Healthy Lifestyles Chair, received several donated boxes of bananas from HEB.  The PTA and Read, Deed, Run donated the water.  Keith, the manager at Kroger, at FM 1093 and Spring Green donated half of the cupcakes for this event.  We are looking forward to making this an annual family event.  Thanks for all of your support!

 

 

 

Mrs. Linder's family with Mrs. Gilder and Ms. Brown

 

Angler and Conservation Club (AKA Fishing Club) by Fernando Echeverri

For the past three weeks the fishing club has been meeting on Wednesday mornings to learn about our environment and the effects it has in our lives.  Students have learned about safety procedures that we should follow when fishing, such as going with a partner or always being aware of our surroundings.   Members become aware about important laws that the Texas Park and Wildlife have in place to protect all species of fish, such as the daily limits and sizes of fish to catch.  Most importantly the fishing club students are learning that WE are responsible to protect and conserve our environment.

A Visit from the Fire Department by Mrs. Lacey Abraham

Kindergarten had a special visit from a few of our amazing community helpers a few weeks ago...the Willowfork Fire Department Firemen!  We learned about Community helpers and fire safety.  The firemen spoke to us about the importance of knowing what to do in a fire, not to be scared of firemen, and making sure our homes are safe.   They reminded us to make sure our smoke alarms are tested and have new batteries. We toured the fire truck and got first-hand looks at the equipment they use.  The best part was when Mrs. Culbertson became a fireman!  She got to put on the fire-fighting gear to show us what a fireman looks like! We are thankful for great community helpers who are willing to come share their knowledge!

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Choose My Plate by Christy Williams

 

 

 

 

 

"You want us to try what????"

 

 

 

On Wednesday, October 8^th, Katy ISD Food Service department came to TWE to do the Discover My Plate program for second grade.  It is a program provided through the government to teach students about healthy eating.  Second graders learned about the five components of a healthy plate.  Those five components are vegetables, fruits, grains, protein and dairy. 

 

                                                       

Then we got to taste test four different fruits and vegetables.  First, we felt them and then smelled them.

We started with sea beans.  Sea beans?  None of the students or teachers had ever tried them!  They are a bean that grows in the sea.  They are long, pencil thin, cylindrical green stem and a bit salty!

                                                        

 

 

The students then tasted a red and a yellow grape tomato.  We also tasted baby kiwi and strawberries.

                                                             

 

 

What a fun experience to learn about what components are in a healthy plate AND get to try some new things!

 

Student quotes:

“I already feel stronger.”

“My mom is never going to believe that I ate a vegetable!”

“That’s salty!”

“You want me to try what?”

“What is that?”

“That is really good!”

 

Thank you Food Service!

Reflections: Afternoon of Art by PTA

The creative energy was flowing for our Wolfpack Afternoon of Art!  All of our participants enjoyed painting and drawing their vision of what would make our world a better place.  We had wonderful artwork which included cleaner beaches, no bullying, global peace and more.  Everyone had fun sharing ideas, laughing and eating tasty treats.  We want to especially thank all of our volunteers that worked so hard and made this awesome event a success. All artwork will be judged by KVPAC on November 4th. We wish all of you good luck to move on to the next round of judging!

 

Full STEAM Ahead into Reading, Running and “FUN”draising! By Wolfpack Fundraising Committee

The Pack-A-Thon Kick- off was held Tuesday! Thanks to PTA, Mrs. Madrid, our teacher packatheletes and cheerleaders, and the OTHS Cavalettes for a fun time.

 

 

 

 

We are looking forward to our upcoming Pack-A-Thon!  The Pack-A-Thon is our main tool to raise funds to support the programs, events, and donations that the PTA plans to contribute to TWE this school year.  The Pack-A-Thon will be held October 21^st thru October 30^th. 

 

Throughout the Pack-A-Thon, students are asked to seek sponsors to support their participation in a one day event.  On the day of the Pack-A-Thon, students complete a variety of physical challenges to exercise their bodies and academic challenges to exercise their minds. Each class will be given a fundraising goal. As students progress towards their goal, their efforts are rewarded by classroom and individual incentives.  YES! Fitness has generously agreed to partner with us in the facilitation of this event.  They will provide sports equipment along with an energetic staff to assist us in encouraging the students to give their all!  Additionally, YES! will donate their time and efforts resulting in our ability to keep 100% of the proceeds! 

 

 

 

Last year, this event raised $62,000, which funded the purchase and installation of  Smart Boards in our classrooms! 

 

SCORE!!!! by Nicki McDonald, Eva Park and Anne Hoette

 

 

 

 

Tom Wilson Elementary Gym has a new addition:  A SCOREBOARD!

Katy Youth Basketball uses our gym for practices and games during their basketball season and as their way of saying thank you, they donate a scoreboard.  A huge thank you to Katy Youth Basketball for this awesome scoreboard!  The students have been excited all week as they come into the gym and see it on the wall.  They will really love it when we use it during our basketball unit too.   Next time you are in the gym, check it out!

 

A = ART in Full STEAM Ahead by Amie Shorter

In kindergarten Art, the students are finishing their "Full Steam Ahead" Choo Choo trains by coloring mixing primary colors to make secondary colors for the "Color  wheels" of their trains –red+blue=purple, blue+yellow=green, etc.  When they finish their trains they can go to various STEAM themed centers that they have been trained how to use.  Ie... foam architecture building blocks, pipe cleaner shapes, mosaic tiles & clay building. Here are some fun pictures of students in action.

 

 

Fourth Grade Visits the Outdoor Learning Center (OLC) by Rachel B. and Mrs. McKinnies

Our Fourth Grade students visited the OLC on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. This was our first field trip of the school year and the students were extremely excited. One the students referred to the trip as “amazing” from the minute we stepped off the bus until we reached the "One Room School House". She said that she now has a clear understanding of what it was like to go to school in the early 1800’s -1900’s. The students got an opportunity to visit and live in the moment of a "One Room School House" by wearing old school house attire. The students were really amused by the clothing compared to how they dress in today’s world. They were totally shocked at the classroom rules as well as the rules that teachers had to follow. Along with hearing so many facts about the "One Room School" house, many thought the Science stations had amazing fossils and they were truly fascinating. The highlight of the trip was to actually touch a real live corn snake and see beautiful butterflies. In the words of my students, “It was the Best Field Trip Ever”! This Field trip was filled with fun and it’s such a memorable learning experience for our students.

 

 

Learning with Technology in Kindergarten by Mrs. Spath's Kindergarten Class

Recently, Mrs. Spath's Kinder students found "shapes" around the school. With the help of Watchdog Dad, Mr. Keepers, students made pic collages of their discoveries. STEAM in action! Fun times!!!!

 

 

 

Focus on Fluency by Katie Schieffer

When our children are in the primary grades, we often encourage them to read aloud. We celebrate their victories and provide support in their struggles. As they move into the intermediate grades, children read aloud less and less. Comprehension is linked heavily to fluency, and one of the best ways to increase comprehension of more complex texts is to increase fluency in these texts as well. As a part of an exercise in fluency, our Wilson 4^th graders have been recording themselves reading picture books to share with the younger grades. This activity benefits not only the fourth graders who are practicing reading with fluency, focusing on rate and expression, but also the younger students who will have model readers sharing a read aloud.

From our 4^th Graders:

I really thought it was fun because we got to use devices and record some of our favorite books! I also think it’s important because these read alouds are going to Kinder, First, and Second. I really enjoyed it!

-Fabiola

I think that it is a good way to show the Kindergarteners the words in the story and what the story is about. If they like the book, they can go into more of those kind of series. Also, this is a good way to teach the Kindergarteners about reading the words and the pictures in the story.

-Sofia

 We look forward to sharing videos with our younger reading budies.

 

The Power of a Teacher by Rhonda Henderson

On Monday,  TWE teachers joined teachers from Hayes and Exley in the morning for a presentation by guest speaker, Adam Saenz. Dr. Saenz is a KISD alumni with a powerful story about how many of our school namesakes made life changing differences in his life. He affirmed and encouraged our teachers and then emphasized the importance of taking care of themselves in order to take care of students each day. Each team spent the afternoon together building team relationships.  Our teachers left the day recharged and ready for a "pawsome" 2nd nine weeks of school! As one teacher put it, "This was just the spark we needed at this time of year!"

4th grade team building

Office Team Building

McTeacher Night by Charlotte Gilder

 

 

 

 

                                                                                Family Fun

 

 

I know you’ve heard the saying, ‘Work hard; play even harder’.  Well, this was evident when many of your families joined us at McDonald’s for spirit night.  We are always happy to see your children at school each day, but seeing them with their families in the community is a special treat for all of us.  We are grateful that Mr. and Mrs. Glaser, owners of McDonald’s, allow us to ‘take over’ their restaurant for one night each school year.  It gives the TWE staff an opportunity to serve each of you as we take orders at the drive- thru, take orders at the front counter, and HOWL for a dollar.  We hope these fun opportunities are one of many that your children will remember.  I know we will!

 

 

                                Ms. Wright, Mr. and Mrs. Glaser, Mrs. Henderson, Ms. Bynum

If you weren’t able to attend McFun Teacher Night this time, we are looking forward to having you join us for future spirit nights.

Mrs. Henderson, Mr. and Mrs. Wilson

               

           Visiting with friends    

Playtime memories