Hello families! We hope all of you had a wonderful and relaxing spring break! We cannot believe how quickly the end of the school year is approaching! It is time to make the final push to get our students ready for Kindergarten! We can do it! Thank you to our families who continue to spend a few minutes each day on Hatch Ignite! Keep it up! We encourage you to continue to work on Kindergarten readiness skills at home. You can practice identifying letters, letter sounds, rhyming, rote counting, counting objects, sorting objects, identifying numbers, and writing your name! We have completed our tree study and are now doing an investigation/study about Gardening. If you have planted anything at your house, food or plants, please send us pictures! During our garden study, students will learn how to plan and care for a garden, how a garden grows, who helps gardens grow, and how gardens help people and the environment! We have a few dates to mark down on your calendar!

• Field trip to Lowes Food (Rouzzo May 9th, Sulloway May 10th)
• Field day for pre-k is May 19.
• Parent conferences begin May 22.
• Pre-k promotion ceremony 12:00 June 6
• Last day of school for pre-k June 8

In reading we have been reviewing how to retell fiction stories using story elements. Students have been writing/drawing about the problem and solution of the story. Students have also been completing a story map using drawings and words to retell the story. In Math we finished Module 5 and began Module 6 Place Value Foundations - This began working with teen numbers, describing teen numbers as a group of 10 and __ ones (ex: 14 is a group of 10 and 4 ones) and ordering numbers 1-20. In Fundations we are starting Unit 5: Students will continue to practice tapping out the sounds to read and spell basic Vowel-Consonant-Vowel (CVC) words. We will begin practicing reading and writing a dictated sentence (ex: The rat had a nap.). Students will also continue learning “trick words” of, have, for, or, from, by, my, do, one. Review “trick words” from Units 3 & 4: the, a, and, are, to, is, his, as, has, was, we, she, he, be, me, I, you & they.

First graders are gearing up for the end of the year. We are happy to have Miss Korfas and Miss Marion join us in first grade! , We will be working on strengthening our fiction skills, learning how to add different suffixes to one-syllable words and creating two-syllable words, writing our opinions about things, solving 2 digit addition and subtraction word problems, and learning about how people interact with the environment around us. With many important and FUN things planned for the end of the year, we hope to see everyone in school every day!

We can’t believe it’s May! Second grade has been working hard to prepare for the upcoming reading and math assessments! Please ensure your child is reading daily and getting plenty of sleep to prepare them for the end-of-the-year testing. We thank you for your continued support and look forward to another great month.

In reading, we are continuing our nonfiction unit and have begun working on biographies. The students have enjoyed learning and researching famous historical figures. We look forward to beginning our animal research and writing our books.

In science, we are looking forward to getting our butterflies and observing them go through the four separate stages in the life cycle.

In math, we have been working on adding and subtracting 3-digit numbers using various strategies. We are currently working on counting money and solving word problems. We will begin our unit in measurement using inches and feet in the upcoming days. In the final weeks of May, we will begin Module 6 Foundation of Multiplication and Division.

In June, we look forward to Field Day and our end-of-the-year celebration! More information to come.

Third grade is working hard to wrap up the end of the year. We are excited to have some FUN activities to review math during the month of May. Students will have "passports" that are stamped when they visit a special math location and complete the activities for that destination. Some of these areas include: Multiplication Mountain, Division Desert, Measurement Meadow, Place Value Paradise and many more!

In Reading students have been working on reviewing all reading standards and test taking strategies. We are finishing up The Wild Robot Escapes (the 2nd book in the series). The 3rd book in the series releases this Fall!

In Math students are finishing Module 5: Decimals (Tenths and Hundredths, comparing decimals, adding decimals, decimal measurements). We will then start our last Module which is Geometry! We are also reviewing concepts from the beginning of the year and are looking at test taking tips and tricks that will help students on the EOGs.

In Science students are working through our Rocks and Minerals Unit and then we will begin our Animal Adaptations Unit.

In Math, we found the volume of three dimensional figures, specifically rectangular prisms and cubes. We also began plotting and identifying points on a coordinate grid. In Science, we have been learning about Weather and Climate. We worked on the Water Cycle and started learning about Air Masses and Fronts. Weather is our last unit and then we will begin reviewing for our fifth grade Science EOG. We also had a fun and engaging on site field trip where we learned about science concepts related to Weather/Climate through hands-on activities. In Literacy, we continued to read various texts and answer text based questions using strategies we have learned throughout the year.

K-1

Learned to mix colors directly on the paper and explore brush mark

making. We then took the painted papers and cut them into strips

which the students wove in patterns. Students learned to draw using

shapes to begin... keep a lookout for triangle headed foxes and

square headed bears! We are starting a unit on environmental studies

and using our creative mind set; where anything is possible,

students designed fanciful windmills to power their homes in the

future! We referenced the work of NC folk artist Vollis Simpson who

makes fanciful whirly gigs and has an entire park displaying his

windmill works in Wilson, NC.

G2 Second grade students started the Design for Change unit where

they are learning about global warming and what we can do as

artists/designers to design a more sustainable future. Students

learned the basics of solar, wind, and water power. They also learned

that maybe the cave people had the right idea covering their homes

with grass. Students are currently working on an energy efficient

home design using the different systems for energy in their new

EarthCraft home.

G3

Students are exploring the characteristics of chalk pastels while creating a

landscape with depth. . They are using pastels to create depth of field or

Space in the landscape. Students viewed the British Artist John Constable

artworks. Constable is remembered for his beautiful sky using scale and

value. Scale= size, Value = how light or how dark. Horizon Line . Third

grade will also be finishing up their collaged self portraits where they

learned to mix their own skin color and collage papers to create and

interesting artwork.

G4

Grade 4 is learning about symmetry and drawing what they see. They are

drawing the other half of an animal portrait using contour outline and then

vale to match the photograph. We may even turn out rendered animal

portrait into a hybrid figure by adding a coat and hat to Sir Poodle Doodle !

G5

Fifth grade students have selected one of the five biomes they learned

about in science to create a landscape sunset image. Students were

guided in applying an ombre technique using the materials of their choice.

These sunset images are a blaze with color! Fifth grade will also be

finishing up their collaged self portraits where they learned to mix their own

skin color and collage papers to create an interesting artwork.

Thank you for supporting the PTA and all their fundraising efforts! With your fundraising dollars, the PTA was able to purchase 4 picnic tables. These tables can be used as a space for outdoor dinning during lunch as well as an outdoor classroom.

Look at the smiles on the faces of Mrs. Stamm's 3rd grade class as they enjoyed their lunch outside on a beautiful Monday. Thank you for supporting the PTA!!

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Volunteers are our partners in education. They take an active role to support and enhance the development of our students. Every day, family and community member volunteers bring enthusiasm and skill into our schools while assisting staff, teachers and students. All volunteers are required to obtain volunteer training annually.

If you would like to move forward with volunteering at Castle Hayne Elementary School these are the following steps you will need to complete:

1. View the volunteer orientation presentation/Spanish and volunteer handbook/Spanish.

2. Submit the Volunteer Application Form/Spanish to Danielle Metty, danielle.metty@nhcs.net via email or send a printed copy to school with your student labeled with Danielle Metty, Family Liaison.

3. Complete the Volunteer Orientation Assessment with a score of 80% or higher.

4. To become a level 2 volunteer, complete a background check application ($20 until October 1 then the cost will be $22.50). You will receive a verification email and card from the Background Investigation Bureau upon approval.

Notify Danielle Metty, danielle.metty@nhcs.net when you have completed steps 1-4.

If you are interested in volunteering or chaperoning a field trip at Castle Hayne you MUST complete the Volunteer Training, please contact Danielle Metty at danielle.metty@nhcs.net.

The "Hurricane Forecast" is a monthly digital newsletter that contains information regarding all things happening at Castle Hayne Elementary School. We hope you find this communication helpful!