Chemicals, Volcanoes and Easter Eggs

Ms. Manqueros' students and Mrs. Jewell's students got together to dye eggs using a chemical reaction. They used a baking soda paste and vinegar dye. The 4th graders taught the kindergarten students what type of volcanic reaction the egg dying was based on.

Conservation Banquet

Three fourth grade students were recent winners in art contest sponsored by a local conservation group. Congratulation to Nakalyn Harris, Julianna Woolridge and Kaylie McCarty for representing the Bulldog Nation.

The Harralson Blog

I hope you and your family had a great Easter! This week we built words with gummies and wrote the words on paper to practice our handwriting.  At Target, there are gummies that have letters on them ($1.77 a box).  The kids loved this activity and ate the gummies in the end.  If you have a younger child, this is a great activity to practice letter recognition and sounds.
We had a sensory egg dying center to work on our motor skills this week.  We rolled eggs in shaving cream and food color.  It was amazing to see our marbled eggs in the end! 
If your child has not told you yet, we are loving a book series called "Fly Guy".  There is a whole series at the library.  I want to encourage you to visit the library.  There are many Dr. Suess books there that your child can read, along with Mo Willems books, Eric Carle books, and many others.  I would be happy to point you in the right direction, just let me know :).
I will be sending home the computer programs, along with passwords and logins on Monday in your child's folder. Spring Break would be a great time to utilize these programs at home.

Choir Night

Here is the YouTube video of Fine Arts Festival Choir night. Mrs. Eitienne and her students absolutely killed it!
Estes Choir starts at approximately the 37:40 mark.

Creepy, Crawly, Wormy!

ELA learned about meal worms this week and how they were different from Earth worms. They live in totally different habitats, eat differentl foods, one has legs and undergoes metamorphosis, and one does not.
Aiden was our class worm expert and showed his peers where the earthworms were hiding in our terrarium.  Using a flashlight we were able to see the tunnels they were digging. We used tweezers to place the meal worms in their oatmeal habitat.
And finally on Friday we hunted Easter eggs!!

The Cinderella Chronicles

What a beautiful partnership it was last week between the RiverPark Center and Estes Elementary. Our students were lucky enough to stage a performance of The Cinderella Chronicles. Take a look at this video of the production.

Johnson's, Jewell's and JA

Mrs. Jewell's class was working on projects about the Earth's layers.  They were able to extend their public speaking skills by sharing their knowledge with Mrs. Johnson's class.   
Mrs. Jewell's students asked engaging questions, had models, pictures, and props to keep students' attention.
During a JA in a Day session, students discussed communities, families, money and wants and  needs.  There were lots of hands on activities and interactions that kept student wanting to learn more.

ELA Goes to College

ELA went to Kentucky Wesleyan College Friday to see a performance of Alice in Wonderland. The kids loved the play and demonstrated awesome behavior representing Estes very well!!! Next, we took pictures with the characters and finally took a tour of the campus. We saw the dorm rooms, the gym, and the athletic department. Thank you KWC for your hospitality and allowing us to come visit :)

The Harralson Blog

For St. Patrick's Day, we made lemon lime play dough with koolaid and used magnets to build words.  We have been working on beginning and ending blends.  Here is the recipe we used in case you want to experiment at home.  We LOVE working with play dough!
http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/kool-aid-play-dough-148569.aspx
If you are looking for an activity at home, boil some spaghetti noodles and let them cool down.  If you want to get creative add some food coloring to your water.  Your child will love it!  You can build words with noodles using beginning blends.  For instance; bl (black), cl, fl, gl, br, cr, dr, etc.  This could be another way to build sight words.
Don't forget about Math Night this Thursday from 5:30pm to 6:30pm.  I hope to see you there!
In Science, we are learning about gravity.  I'd love to know what your child tells you - ask them to explain what gravity is and how it is different on the moon.  You will be amazed at their answers.  We are really enjoying our new Science curriculum.
Be on the lookout for a brown paper bag coming home on Monday.  We are working on adjectives and we have a fun activity that we are doing as a group.  A note will be attached to the bag to explain the directions.  Thank you for your help!Reminder:  Spring Break is April 4th - April 8th

Trapping Some Leprechauns

For St. Patrick's Day students in Mrs. McCarty's class had to synergize and get creative to make a leprechaun trap! Then, students presented  their finished products to their peers and participated in a class vote. Ms. Candace, our WKU student, participated as well!

It's a Breakfact Picnic

Last week, Mrs. Millay decided to have a picnic for her students who did not have a dad come for Donuts for Dad. It looks like they had a great time!

Ms. Layson's Crew

Here is CJ with State Trooper White... CJ earned lunch with him for good behavior and hard work....
Here are the boys at the River Park Center for the juggling show. ...
And finally Jaden and Gabriel helping Ms. Ellis' class find a leprechaun.