An Early Biweekly Update

Hello 2-3 Families,

I know it isn't the end of the week, but there are so many fabulous things going on at Dryden that I wanted to give you an update a little early.

WEBSITE PHOTOS
As some of you may have noticed, our photos in the Mystery Reader section and Star Student section have not been updated recently and I have finally been able to solve the tech issue I was having.  It involved some handy work of deleting accounts and reconfiguring new ones, but this has allowed me to fix the problem I was having adding the photos to our website.  I am going to work this week to have both sections updated by next Tuesday.  Thank you for your patience and understanding!!  Technology can be both a blessing and a curse....ha!

END OF YEAR THOUGHTS
Today marks 11 days left of school.  Today we created a paper chain filled with our favorite 2nd grade memories.  Each day left 2 friends will each rip off a link in the chain to read their favorite memory.  By our last day of school, our final friend and I will read our favorite 2-3 memory of the 2012-2013 school year.  Each day I will post a photo of the friend and their memory. The first 4 will get posted tomorrow.  Stay tuned!!

FOOD DRIVE
We are working on our final school food drive of the year for the WHEELING PANTRY.  This week we will be collecting soups, macaroni and cheese, and potato products.  We would love to help stock the pantry shelves FULL before summer break. Any donations are greatly appreciated!!

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS LANDMARK PROJECT
Please take some time to see the incredible work your children did on their Arlington Heights Landmark Project.  Thank you Mrs. Powers for putting this video together and to Ms. Vankova, and Mrs. Schneider for helping with this project.

2-3's Landmark Project

BUTTERFLIES

Last week we wrapped up our Life Cycles unit with the release of our butterflies.  We were thrilled to be able to release them back into their natural habitats and hope they are enjoying this spring weather.  Check out our photo gallery below.

GERTRUDE

On Mother's Day, our beloved Gertrude became a mom to 10 ducklings!!  After a brief stay in the courtyard during the week, Gertrude was ready to escort her babies out of Dryden.  Check out this adorable video that Mrs. Breaux put together.....you may need Kleenex!!

BABY SHOWER

Where do I start?  Last week I was so overwhelmed by the surprise baby shower for our little man.  You are a very sneaky crew to get this one past me.  Thank you to Mrs. Colias, Mrs. Woodland, and Mrs. Washco for organizing such a fun afternoon with such thoughtful gifts.  Mrs. Woodland was kind enough to take photos and I am posting some of them below.  Thank you for making me and Baby Porte feel so special.

ALOHA!

We have our final spirit day on Thursday and we will be having a Hawaiian/Beach Day celebration.  Please remember our school dress policy must still be upheld while dressing for this spirit day.  No open-toed shoes, flip flops, bathing suits, etc.  Go wild with Hawaiian gear, bright colors, sunglasses, etc.  What a fun way to wrap-up our spirit days for 2013.

Just a friendly reminder that there is NO SCHOOL this FRIDAY 5/24 AND MONDAY 5/27.  I hope you all have a safe and fun Memorial Day weekend.  Let's hope Mother Nature cooperates with nice weather.

- Danielle Porte