Thank you for a wonderful year!

I cannot say enough how very much I have enjoyed working with your children this year. They are one of the best groups I have ever had, and I will miss them next year.

There are just a couple of final things to pass along:

1. A note went home today from the PTA regarding HISD's budget plan for next year and its potential impact on Sinclair. In short, the school would lose about $145,000 from its budget over the next 2 years. If you are concerned about this, please contact the Board of Education and Superintendent Grier. You can read about the proposal here: HISD Magnet Budget Proposal
2. It probably goes without saying, but please make sure your children read over the summer. A note went home today with information about the summer reading program HISD and Sinclair are sponsoring. They can also use TTM over the summer. If they have forgotten their login information, just email me and I will send it to you. A little bit of reading and math, say, a couple hours a week each, will keep them from losing the skills they have worked so hard to acquire this year.
3. Finally, I encourage you to get out and explore some of the city's wonderful museums and performing arts groups. Many of the museums in the Museum District have free days once a week. Miller Outdoor Theater has a great array of free performances going on all summer. My personal favorite thing to do in summer is to go to Padre Island National Seashore to watch a hatchling sea turtle release. The Kemp's Ridley sea turtle is highly endangered, so when nests are found, the eggs are collected and incubated until the turtles hatch. When they are ready, National Park Service scientists release them on the beach at sunrise. I have found that if you leave Houston at 2am, you can be at the release site by 6:15 or so, even if you stop for donuts. You may prefer to stay overnight in a hotel in Corpus Christi which would leave you with just a 30-40 minute drive to the release. Park admission is waived if you are attending the release. Read all about it here: Padre Island National Seashore sea turtle releases

Baby sea turtles crawl across the beach at Padre Island Nat'l Seashore





Nearly there...

Thank you parents for coming to our awards ceremony today. I am extremely proud of all of your children and the progress they have made this year.

Tomorrow they will empty their desks, so please make sure they have sufficient bag space to take home all of their things.

Don't forget Thursday is the last day for students. We will have our celebration after lunch.

If anyone made a video of our song from this morning that you can send me, I'd really appreciate it. Thank you.

Thank you for coming to GT Expo

Here is a link to the first performance of "The Rainbow Connection" from today. I will post the send take when I get a chance.

Rainbow Connection, Take 1

The End is Near!

The end of the school year is fast approaching. Here are some dates etc.to keep in mind for the next couple of weeks.
1. I am canceling all homework for the week with the exception of the reading log. So there will be no math or spelling, but there will be a reading log, due Monday the 25th.
2. GT Expo will be this Tuesday, the 20th from 1:30 to 2:30.
3. Third grade field day will be the 21st. Students need to come dressed to play outside. That means sneakers and a hat. A water bottle would also be a good idea.
4. Monday the 26th is a school day. This will make up for the second ice day we had back in February.
5. Our awards ceremony will be the 27th at 8:30. Students may wear "Sunday best" clothes or their regular school uniform.
6. On the 28th students will take all of their belongings home. Please make sure your child has a bag sufficient size to take everything away.
7. This Wednesday I will send home a note regarding the last day party.

It has been a great year and I thank you all for the support you've given me and the class.