Open House - Monday 9/30

Open House will be held at all three schools Monday night from 6:00-7:30. Parking will be limited. Please consider walking if you live close to the school or carpooling if you can. There will be shuttles from the high school to the elementary/middle school every ten minutes. I look forward to seeing you!

Hopes and Dreams

Today students wrote about what they want to learn in Kindergarten. We brainstormed a list last week of things they wanted to do in Kindergarten and then narrowed it down to mostly academic goals. Today students said what they wanted to learn from that narrowed list and drew the pictures to go along with their ideas. We will be finishing them on Monday to share with you at Open House. I believe that each student will reach their goal this year... Please be sure to check out the newsletter that went home today and be sure to join us if you can for Open House on Monday. It is 6:00-7:30. Happy Weekend!

Guidance class

Today our school guidance counselor, Patty Ransom, came to our classroom to introduce herself to the students and to start getting to know them. We played a game of "Hot Potato" and said something that makes us happy. Miss Patty will be coming each Thursday for 30 minutes. Below is a link that she shared with the students to tell them a little about what school counselors do. You will need to copy and paste it into your browser. http://storybird.com/books/what-is-a-school-counselor/

Zero the Hero

He came back yesterday! Students were so excited all day. Some are beginning to understand that every 10 school days, Zero the Hero will appear. Zero read Chicka, Chicka, 1, 2, 3 and to celebrate the 20th day, students made bracelets or counting rods with 20 beads. I have asked students to practice counting to 20 using their beaded product.

P.S. Another Kindergarten birthday... Happy Birthday to Ava! Students are getting very good at making birthday books for their classmates.

Writers' Workshop

Yesterday we started our Writers' Workshop. Each Writers' Workshop begins with a focused lesson. Students then think (come up with something to write about),talk (share what they are going to write about with a partner), write (spend 10-15 writing)and share(tell others their story). All students draw a picture to represent their story. Some students add letters or words if they can. The whole process takes about 50 minutes start to finish. It is incredible to have Kindgarten students engaged in writing for this length of time. Be sure to check out your child's writing folder next Monday at Open House.

Apple taste test and more...

On Friday I was unable to post as I had a family dinner to attend, but if I had, the title would have been, "Best Day Ever". I cannot tell you enough how fortunate I feel to teach your children daily. They surely make my job a most pleasant experience each day! Today we continued our study of apples and Change Over Time by reading the informational text, How Do Apples Grow? After reading, students were able to taste macintosh, yellow delicious, and granny smith apples to determine which kind they preferred. They each colored in an apple to represent their choice. Tomorrow we will make a graph with the colored apples, analyze the data, and complete a predictable text. I will post pictures of the results.

P.S. A very happy birthday to Cooper who turned 6 on Saturday!

Apples!

We had a great time at the apple orchard. Thank you to all the parent chaperones who attended. It was very nice to see you! At the orchard we were able to see how apples were washed and sorted, we each were able to pick two apples, and we took a wagon ride down into the orchard to see the different kinds of trees and apples. Of course a highlight was playing on the awesome playground. Pictures to follow soon.

Number of the Day

We are beginning to look at individual numbers in detail. Today's number was "2". We showed what it looks like as a numeral, a word, on a die, in a 10-frame, as a part of a tally group, what numeral comes before and after... We also talked about what comes in pairs. Although my drawing ability is limited, check out what the students came up with -

eyes, shoes, cleats, twins, arms, legs, hands, feet, ears, mittens, socks, wheels on a motorcyle. We even wrote a number sentence 1+1=2... We are excited for our field trip to the apple orchard tomorrow.

Happy Birthday! and other fun events

Happy Birthday to Haleigh! The question on our morning message this morning was, "Are you 5 or 6?" We now have 2 six-year olds and 15 five-years olds in our midst. We will be tracking this important question throughout the year as we have birthday celebrations. Ask your child about tally marks and how we use them to record the answers to questions. Reminder: Wednesday is picture day and Thursday is our field trip.

Happy Monday!

It was a chilly start to our second full week of school. Students are really into our routine and know what to expect in most situations. I am super-impressed with their abilities! A highlight to our day was having every student sign in. Signing in is a great way to record who is in school as well as to practice handwriting of names. We have been talking a lot about how names begin with an uppercase letter, followed by all lowercase letters. I will be helping students to make this transition if they are using uppercase letters in their names. Students who have mastered writing their first name independently and in the correct manner will be starting to learn their last names as well. Be on the lookout for this all-important skill! P.S. The newsletter did not make it home today. It will be sent on Tuesday this week.

Busy Friday!

Today we had our first fire drill. Students did a great job lining up and staying together. Our goal for next fire drill is to stay super-quiet as well. Also today, we had our first meeting with our 5th grade reading buddies from Mrs. Garol's class. We taught the 5th graders two songs - Let's Go Fishing and Tooty Ta. Students then paired up to read a few picture books together. We are looking forward to our weekly meetings with this awesome group of students. I feel truly blessed to teach your children. Happy Weekend!

Listen, Think, Learn

We attended our first assembly today. Kindergarten students were fabulously attentive and polite. We have been practicing our three school rules (see below) and put them into effect during the assembly. To remember these, we have shortened them for Kindergarteners to Listen, Think, Learn. Ask your child if he/she remembers what they are...

Zero the Hero!

We beat the heat today with a special guest and activity. Zero the Hero came by today for our 10th day of school. He read a story and handed out a special "0" snack. Students were excited to have a "real" superhero in our classroom. We look forward to seeing Zero on the 20th day of school... Also today, we watched two books on the Smartboard - Rainbow Fish and Harry the Dirty Dog. Be sure to check out storylineonline.net for many great children's stories. The only story you may want to skip is Dad, Are You the Tooth Family. Enjoy!

One dot, many dots

Today we started an observation chart during Number Corner. Students had to tell how many dots there were total on a calendar marker, how many of the dots were red, how many were blue, and then make an observation of what they noticed. I am continually amazed by how much the children know and can share with others. We are very much anticipating what the other calendar markers will look like.

Listening Larry

Today we read a book called Whole Body Listening. The main character, Larry, helps students use their whole body for listening - eyes, ears, mouth, hands, feet, body, brain, and heart. We have a poster of Larry hanging in the classroom and will refer back to it during listening times. Check it out below:

Happy Friday!

We had a great week in Kindergarten! We started our letter work, math stations, and Explore centers. We went to the library, art, and P.E. A highlight of our week was having our principal, Mr. Nolan-Watkins, be a guest reader at the end of the day on Friday. Ask your child about the book, Wilson Sat Alone. Happy Weekend!

Welcome!

Welcome to our Kindergarten Blog! I am hoping this blog will keep you informed of the daily and important happenings in our classroom. Please be patient as I work out any kinks. Happy Blogging!