Welcome 2017!

A very warm "Happy New Year" to you each! I hope you enjoyed a restful and refreshing time with your family and friends over the holidays. Based on what the children shared with me, it sounds like most everyone had a really great time and I'm so glad. 

My holiday was just wonderful, as I went home to Florida to visit my parents and sister, Julie. (Unfortunately, I didn't get to see my brother, Peter, and sister-in-law, Melissa, but we were able to Skype as a family on Christmas morning, at least.) 

After landing in Miami on Friday, Dec. 16, my family picked me up from the Miami Airport and then we checked into the lovely and retro Miami Beach Hilton. The next morning, we set off for a week-long cruise to the Western Caribbean and Central America, visiting Mexico, Honduras, Belize, and Grand Cayman. We had a fantastic time and our days were spent swimming, scuba diving, resting, reading, eating, sight-seeing, and so much more. I even got a haircut while at sea, which was a first. 

We returned home on Dec. 24 a little bit rounder, a little bit tanner (even with sunscreen), and a little bit concerned about who was going to be cooking our dinners now that we were on land again.  (It's all too easy to get spoiled on a cruise and come home completely lazy.)

It was nice to still have another week at home and I spent it seeing friends, walking the dogs (and burning up all of those extra cruise calories), going to the beach, more diving, and enjoying many long chats around the Christmas tree with our dogs surrounding us. It was all so lovely and I feel thankful that I was able to go home. As a bonus, on my return flight, I was upgraded to first class on Qatar Airways, so even though it was a quick 50-min. jaunt to Dubai from Doha, I was one happy camper. In fact, I think it was the first time I actually wanted to stay in the air longer! 

The children seemed to be very happy to return to school, though they seemed just about as tired as I was on Monday, our first day back. (Was it just me or did that alarm sound louder than usual?) It was a very calm, quiet, and easy-going day as we spent time sharing our happy news, holiday highlights, and getting back into the general swing of things. 

As the week is progressing, their energy seems to be return and things are getting back to normal in our classroom. I just posted the latest Assignment Sheet and News, so please avail yourself of that, so you are in loop of what your darling will be learning for the next two weeks. 

I want to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you for the generous Christmas gift you gave me as a class. The Arabic tea set is just beautiful and will be a treasured and practical cultural memory for many years to come.  I will also greatly enjoy the large box of Patchi chocolates, although I may share some with my colleagues, so I don't end up carrying around the chocolate permanently. (I'm still working on individual thank you notes for those of you who shared personal gifts with me.) I feel so grateful for your kindness and generosity and I sincerely thank you each. You really blessed me and it feels good to be appreciated. 

Lastly, I wanted to add that I have some pictures to share from our December fun; however, I'll post those this weekend, as jet-lag has made my eyes so heavy. (I know many of you can relate.) 

I think that's it for now. Thanks for all of your wonderful support and I hope to see you soon. :) 

Looking forward to a fantastic 2017! 

Happy 2016!

A very Happy New Year to you each! I hope you had a lovely holiday, whether you were able to travel or have a "staycation" here in Dubai. 

I had a wonderful time at home with my family and friends in Florida and feel so grateful for my time there! My brother, Peter, and sister-in-law, Melissa, were able to come down from Pittsburgh for about 10 days, so we were all together as a family. 

We had fun swimming, shopping, diving, baking, playing board games, watching cheesy Hallmark movies (and Star Wars), playing mini-golf, resting, walking the dogs at sunrise and sunset, going to the beach, and so much more. Everything was just perfect and my cup of happiness is definitely full. 

On that note, it is my sincere hope that this next year of life will be one of your happiest and healthiest ones yet. I look forward to seeing you sometime soon!  


PS. Here are some pictures of my holiday, if you're interested. 

Our Christmas Eve candlelight service is a special and meaningful tradition. 

Being with family is the best gift of all. xoxo

I just couldn't resist adding some holiday flair to our Golden Retriever, Keebler. Isn't she regal? 

My mom taught me how to bake an apple and pecan pie on Christmas morning, all before opening presents! Yum. 

Star Wars with the family...VIP style. It was first time enjoying a luxury theater and I'm now spoiled! 

Mini-golf as a family is one of our favorite things to do. I actually got 2 hole-in-ones! :)

New Year Wishes and News

I braved/welcomed 2015 down at the amazing
Burj Khalifa. It was definitely worth all the effort!  

A very warm "Happy New Year" to you each! I hope you enjoyed a restful and refreshing time with your family and friends over the holidays. Based on what the children shared with me, it sounds like most everyone had a really great time and I'm so glad. 

My holiday was very reflective as I had quality time to think, pray, and make some important decisions that will affect my future. And, though my family was 7,000 miles away, I enjoyed a "virtual Christmas" via Google Hangouts with them, which was just wonderful. I'm so very thankful for technology, which allowed me to feel like I was right there in my living room at home, opening gifts right along with them. Receiving the presents by mail, which I already opened virtually, will also be a fun, second Christmas for me. I'm expecting them by February...maybe. ha! 

The children seemed to be very happy to return to school, though they seemed just about as tired as I was on Sunday, our first day back. (Was it just me or did that alarm sound louder than usual? Lol.) It was a very calm, quiet, and easy-going day as we spent time sharing our happy news, holiday highlights, and getting back into the general swing of things. 

As the week has progressed, their energy seemed to be return and things are getting back to normal in our classroom. They have been working diligently to finish their informational/nonfiction books in writing and they have selected a biography book for our next reading unit, which will begin on Sunday. In math, we have begun Chapter 5, which covers place value and will include decimals and fractions. We will be skipping a few irrelevant lessons (4, 5, 6, 10, 12) and will spend more time on those lessons, which are typically challenging for students. We also begin an exciting unit in Social Studies about the Bedouins and Emiratis. It's always one of my favorites. 

You should have all received the news that we will be going on a field trip on Sunday. We are all greatly anticipating a wonderful time learning more about local culture as we visit the Dubai Museum and the Sheikh Mohamed Center for Cultural Understanding in the historical district near the creek. Last year, the children thoroughly benefited from this outing, so I expect this year will be no different. Kindly return the yellow permission slip and AED 65 by Thursday. 

In addition to this, there were some forms that went home today regarding Track and Field Day T-shirts. If you would like to order one, please also return that form and the money by Thursday, as well. 

I want to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you for the generous Christmas gift you gave me as a class. The Tips and Toes Gift Certificate for a manicure, pedicure, and hot lava rock massage was an amazing and apropos way to show your appreciation and love. THANK YOU!!! 

One last item. I just uploaded all of our class pictures from November and December. Please enjoy! 

I think that's it for now. Thanks for all of your wonderful support and I hope to see you soon. :) 

Looking forward to a fantastic 2015! 

The Nossal "Great Room," where I was virtually sitting with my family (including the dogs) on Christmas morning. My brother, Peter, and sister-in-law, Melissa, were also able to join us virtually from Pittsburgh, PA. We spent about 2 hours opening gifts, laughing, talking, and being "together."

My sister, Julie, was not exactly expecting this quick screenshot, but it gives you an idea of what a virtual Christmas looks like. See Peter on the lower right of the screen...and me, also. :)
If you don't use Google Hangouts, it's another great option in addition to Skype. 

My friends and I had a great time enjoying the fireworks downtown and I was particularly happy to see my dear friend and former colleague, Marcy (far left), who was visiting from the UK.  Happy 2015!! 

New Year, New Units!

Be sure to check out the latest edition of the Assignment Sheet and News to see more info. about the units we are starting in Reading and Writing. We will begin Unit 6 (Geometry) in Math next Tuesday and will start a new unit in Social Studies in two weeks. I'm already looking forward to seeing your child's eyes brighten in excitement. :)

PS. So are you left-brained or right-brained? Take this fun, short test to find out. (I'm not sure how reliable it really is, but it's interesting nonetheless.) And, here is another, slightly more comprehensive one. 

*Welcome 2014*

And so, another new year is upon us. Amazing how the time flies, isn't it? It only seems like yesterday that we were celebrating the turn of the millennium in 2000 and that was thirteen years ago. Incredible. 

Well, in any case, I hope you each enjoyed a restful, happy and fun holiday with your family and friends. I was especially thankful to have my parents, Julie (sister), Peter (brother) and Melissa (sister-in-law) here with me for the last two and a half weeks. I gave them a grand whirlwind tour of Dubai, then we explored Jordan for three days, although it seemed more like a week as each day was packed full of activities. Every bit of it was just wonderful and such a blessing. 

As we get back into the swing of things this week, I wanted to reaffirm my commitment to love, teach, train and nurture your sweetie. I'm excited about the great learning that lies ahead and the start of a new trimester. I always love this very quiet, settled time of the year when the class family climate has been well established and things run especially smoothly without interruptions. It's often when some of the best learning gains occur, actually. 

Know that while I am sad to see my beloved family leave, I feel truly content to be able to see our classroom family bright and early tomorrow morning. {insert heart here} :) 

As I close this first greeting of the new year, I hope you'll enjoy this inspirational advice and a few family holiday photos. 

All the best to you each in 2014! 

Back to School Night Power Point

For those who were able, thank you for coming to our Back to School Night. I really enjoyed meeting a few new faces and also sharing a little about what we do here everyday. 

If you were unable to attend, know that we missed you, but we understand that it's not always easy to get out at night, especially with other siblings, absent spouses or other responsibilities. 

To help you feel more in the loop, I would like to invite you to view the Power Point I created. I hope it will serve to clarify any questions or simply give you a good overview. 

Looking forward to a great year ahead!