Mobile Lab Fun!

The kids are loving our mobile lab time on Tuesdays and Thursdays! 

Weekly news

Hi first grade families! I sent two emails out today. One about collecting toilet paper rolls for art class Wednesday and another with pizza Friday details. Tomorrow the students will turn in their folders with their homework. The folders will go home again on Friday with their completed class work from the week. Please return the empty folder on Mondays. I am also sending home Scholastic book order catalogs tomorrow. There are some great deals in them. For ordering, please follow the instructions on the home page of this blog, we have a class code. Finally, ask your student about their phonograms, we have learned the first group this week! Check out phonogrampage.com. It's a great resource. Your children make me smile everyday. This year will rock!

Sharing our planet

Hi families,
We are off and running with our first full week! I am so impressed with your fantastic students! I wanted to let you know our first IB unit of study is "sharing our planet." We will be discussing how communities work together for the common good. It'll be a fun unit. Please note that Wednesday is picture day! Students can turn in their orders that day or they can bring it Tuesday and I'll give it back to them on Wednesday. Homework was distributed today. In order to get full credit, students must do 3 things: record 20 min of reading per evening on Road to Success, complete the math pages (3-4 a week) and do the language sheet. Folders and completed work are due on Fridays. I will be making a volunteer schedule soon and will keep you posted. Have a great week!

First Day!

The kids have officially completed their first day of first grade! We learned each other's names, worked on our procedures and rules, and had our first lunch AT SCHOOL (this was a big relief to many of them!!). Your children are wonderful and I have high hopes for this school year. Please keep working on their ID numbers if they are a student who will be buying hot lunch. A few parents have asked me if milk is available for purchase. It is 30 cents a day and the student can use their lunch account.

Road to Success

I have posted the Road to Success info on the RTS section at the top of the blog. Happy Reading! Please note our class log in code is 15490.

Back to School Night on Monday!

Hello Families,
     The first day of school is fast approaching and I cannot wait to meet you and your student! Back to School Night is Monday evening at 6:00. In the meantime, please contact me if you have any questions or concerns. My email will be leslie.steele@hawthornacademy.org but currently it is leslie.allnatt@hawthornacademy.org. I got married one month ago and am in the process of changing my name so I didn't want to confuse you. We will have a GREAT year. Here's a sneak peek of our classroom.
Smiles,
Mrs. Steele :)

Meet Mrs. Steele

My name is Leslie Steele and I am thrilled to start here at Hawthorn. I am from Sandy, Utah and I am a proud Gonzaga University graduate (Go ZAGS!), and majored in History and English while there. During college, I worked as a Montessori Preschool aid in Spokane. There I discovered my passion for teaching and upon graduating from Gonzaga, was admitted to a Masters in Elementary Education program through Valparaiso University in Indiana.

        I taught for two years on Chicago’s South side as part of my graduate program (1^st grade for a year and then a multigrade classroom of 1^st and 2^nd graders). I loved working with a diverse population and enjoyed my time living in the heart of the city. I received my Masters in Elementary Education in May of 2011. 

        When I’m not teaching, I like to lesson plan at Starbucks, go for hikes, travel, spend time with friends and family, and bake.  I just got married this summer and my husband, AJ, is a 9^th grade teacher. We love education! J