Ms. Baldwin’s 3rd graders wrapped up their Classic Tales literacy unit with a special tea party and a viewing of Alice in Wonderland! 🎩🐇☕️
Throughout the unit, students worked hard to strengthen some important reading skills:
📖 Answering questions about a text and finding evidence to support their thinking
📖 Identifying and explaining main story elements
📖 Using context clues to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words
We are so proud of the learning and GROWTH these students showed throughout their first literacy unit! 🌱 What a great way to kick off a year of growing as readers, thinkers, and learners!
Way to go, Ms. Baldwin’s class! ❤️🐾
#WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
Our 2nd graders are working toward their end-of-year oral reading fluency goal of 100 words per minute! Students are building their reading skills by choosing books from our classroom library and getting down to the important work of decoding, fluency, and comprehension.
Each student has a personal book box for their current selections, and they were especially excited to “shop” the new collection of October books! 🎃📖
We’re also making our GROWTH visible! 🌱 Fluency check ins help us monitor progress, and students will track their own reading growth throughout the year using their personal data trackers.
We love seeing our readers take ownership of their learning and celebrate every bit of progress along the way! ❤️📚
Readers are leaders! 🐾
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🎾 Tennis Skills in Action! 🎾
Our students are stepping onto the court this week as they explore the exciting world of tennis using Net Generation tennis equipment!
Through 10 fun, skill-building stations, students are practicing how to strike a ball with control while strengthening hand-eye coordination, tracking, balance, and proper striking techniques.
They’re building on skills they’ve already learned, challenging themselves to GROW, and having lots of fun along the way! 🎾🐾
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🔎 Comprehension Detectives at Work! 🕵️♀️📚
Mrs. Keene’s and Mrs. Fuller’s 3rd Grade Extension Group has been putting their reading skills to the test during WIN time!
Last week, our detectives dug into passages to prove their answers with text evidence. This week, they became Context Clue Code Breakers, using clues from the text to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words. 🔐📖 We’ve also been practicing testing strategies that help us slow down, think carefully, and show what we know!
WIN = What I Need 🌱
Each grade level has dedicated WIN time to give students what they need—whether that’s reviewing essential skills and standards or extending their learning with an extra challenge.
No matter what we need, we are ALL learning and GROWING during WIN time! 🌱🐾
#WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
While it might look like just a game, Mahjong is packed with serious academics. Students are putting their critical thinking to the test as they analyze patterns on their scoring cards, calculate mathematical probabilities, and map out long-term strategies with every tile they draw.
This hands-on activity directly reflects our core commitments:
🌱 Growth & Excellence: Students are tackling a complex new challenge, sharpening their logic, and pushing their analytical thinking to the next level.
🎯 Preparation & Safety: Working together at the table builds essential collaboration, decision-making, and communication skills in a supportive, fun environment where everyone feels safe to take intellectual risks.
So proud of the focus, strategy, and teamwork on display today.
#WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
Mrs. Whitley’s kindergarteners put their subitizing skills to work! Students practiced quickly recognizing how many objects were in a group without counting each one and then compared their set with a classmate’s.
They took their math thinking one step further by using words like equal, same, more, less, greater, and fewer in complete sentences to explain their comparisons! 🌟
Building number sense + using strong math vocabulary = GROWING mathematicians! 🌱➕🐾
#WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
Our 4th-grade students are the Perrin Penny Bankers, and they are working hard to count pennies with our classes and help students cash them in for fun rewards.
The best part? Every grown up in our building has pennies, and they are on the lookout for students making positive choices!
Today, our bankers stopped by Kindergarten to count and celebrate their hard-earned pennies!
We love watching our students learn that positive choices add up!
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🎯 First official round of centers in Mrs. Blaylock's 1st grade class!
Students practiced math and literacy skills through games, word puzzles, Write the Room, and IXL—all while building independence, confidence, and teamwork!
Centers are a great way to put our district values into action: working safely and respectfully, growing through practice and problem-solving, striving for excellence, and building skills that prepare students for what comes next! 🐾📚➕
#WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
Ms. Barton’s 1st grade class got to meet their buddy class, Mrs. Jackson’s 4th grade class! Each of our 1st graders has a 4th grade buddy (or two) who will help them grow, build confidence, and learn throughout the year.
For our first meeting, students practiced communication and relationship-building by introducing themselves and getting to know their buddies through fun questions like, “What is your dream vacation?” and “What is your favorite subject in school?” 🗣️📚
We are so excited to watch these relationships grow and see our students learn from one another! This is such a great way to support Safety, Growth, Excellence, and Preparation while giving students meaningful opportunities to learn and grow together.
Our 1st graders are already asking when they get to see their buddies again! We can’t wait for our next adventure together! 💙
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Mrs. Thornton’s 2nd graders have been building their reading fluency through partner reading with their Cat Bandit stories!
Fluent readers do more than read the words correctly—they think about the story as they read. Students are practicing reading accurately, smoothly, and with expression, changing the tone of their voices to show their understanding.
The more we practice, the more we GROW as readers! 🌱📖
#WeAreBenton
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We are so proud of this week’s Positive Office Referral recipients! These students were recognized by teachers throughout our school for being wonderful examples of what it means to ROAR at HP—showing kindness, respect, responsibility, and staying on task. ❤️
One student especially impressed a teacher by listening so carefully during science and taking notes—even when it wasn’t required! That’s taking ownership of your learning! 👏
We love seeing our students make the connection: The more they ROAR, the more they LEARN…and the more they GROW! 🌱🐾
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Keep ROARing, HP!
There’s something new happening at lunchtime at Howard Perrin Elementary! Mrs. Lewis, our school counselor, has kicked off Lunch Bunch, giving students a special opportunity to enjoy lunch together while building friendships and important social-emotional skills.
During Lunch Bunch, small groups of students eat lunch with Mrs. Lewis and spend time talking, connecting, and getting to know one another. Through conversation and fun activities, students have opportunities to make new friends, practice positive social skills, and focus on our school’s "Word of the Month".
Most importantly, Lunch Bunch provides a welcoming space for students to enjoy some positive time together and strengthen their connections with others at school.
Mrs. Lewis has already seen lots of smiles, conversations, and new friendships during the first week of Lunch Bunch, and we look forward to seeing these connections continue to GROW throughout the year!
In an effort to make parking less of a headache and more safe on Grandparents Day for our guests this Friday and next, we are providing a shuttle service with Mr. Jeff's bus. Once our HP parking lot is full, we will put out a sign and our volunteer will be directing overflow parking to Highland Heights Baptist Church. Mr. Jeff will take all those who are parked at Highland Heights to HP on his bus. This should alleviate the need to park along Smithers. Thank you to our community partner, Highland Heights Baptist Church for the use of their parking lot. #WeAreBenton #HPistheplacetobe
What's happening in the art room!
Our students are busy creating their Square1 Art projects! This annual fundraiser gives students the opportunity to turn their art into stickers and allows families to order a variety of items featuring their child’s original artwork. But before the creation becomes a keepsake, there is a LOT of learning happening in the art room!
Kindergarten is creating self-portraits while learning about lines, shapes, and colors. They are also continuing to practice spelling and writing their names.
1st grade learned about the Elements of Art and focused on color, creating rainbows while learning to put the colors in the correct order.
2nd grade also reviewed the Elements of Art and extended their understanding of warm and cool colors while creating their fun, expressive sun faces.
3rd grade learned about pop artist Wayne Thiebaud and his colorful paintings of food. They are putting their own creative spin on his work by designing animals and donuts!
4th grade explored artists who have created bird artworks and studied different approaches to drawing birds. They are now using what they learned to create their own original bird compositions.
One of my favorite things about teaching art is watching our students grow as artists from year to year. Each project is intentionally tailored to their age and developmental level, giving them opportunities to build new skills, learn from artists, practice craftsmanship, and develop their own creative voices. We want our students to understand that excellence doesn’t mean being perfect—it means doing your best, taking your time, learning from mistakes, and continuing to grow.
Don't forget to join our HP Specials Facebook page to keep up with all that is happening in Art, PE, Music, Library, and STEM!
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They also connected their learning to previous lessons about firsthand and secondhand accounts, putting their reading skills into practice with an important piece of our nation’s history.
To bring their learning closer to home, students wrote letters to Benton firefighters thanking them for their service to our community. ❤️🚒
What a meaningful way to PREPARE our students to be thoughtful readers, writers, and community members!
Mrs. Campbell’s and Mrs. Johnson’s third grade literacy classes practiced identifying story elements and organizing them into plot diagrams. These important skills will help students better understand the stories they read—and strengthen their own writing—all year long!
Way to learn and GROW together, third grade! 🌱📖
This past week, students in Mrs. Ward's 2nd grade class wrapped up their first CKLA unit with a fun, hands-on experience—making pancakes and butter! As they worked, students recalled the story of Paul Bunyan and connected their learning to the activity.
One of the highlights was watching cream turn into butter as they passed and shook the jar. What a fun way to bring learning to life! ❤️🐾
🔢🌱 Growing Mathematicians in First Grade with Mrs. Neighbors!
Through Counting Collections, our first graders work together to count, organize, and record their mathematical thinking. As collections grow in size and complexity, students build number sense, place value understanding, confidence, and independence.
Along the way, they are living out our core values of Growth, Being Prepared, and Excellence as they communicate their thinking, collaborate with others, persevere through challenges, and strive to do their best.
We love seeing our young mathematicians learn, grow, and take on new challenges! 🌱➕🐾
It is still going to be a packed house, and we love it! Please be patient and plan accordingly for parking. Staff will park at the back of the building and in the farthest parking spots to allow more spots to be available closer to the building for our guests. Please remember, this is for GRANDPARENTS only. Thank you so much for your support! If you can't make it during one of these days, you can always come have lunch with your grandchild any day of the week!
If you have any questions, please email howardperrinupto@gmail.com or kkeene@bentonschools.org.
