It’s hard to believe that we are already at the end of week number two of school! The children did a stupendous job with our first few days of full-day Kindergarten! As each day passes, they look more confident as they enter school, and they are becoming accustomed to our daily routines. Our time here has been jam packed with fun, engaging activities related to Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and The Wheels on the Bus. Room #7 is also working on creating a community by learning each other’s names and making new friends. Here are just a few of the highlights from the week!
On Tuesday, Room #7 had its very first Writing lesson! The class and I discussed how oftentimes writing begins with pictures! Before the class began, I wrote an activity that I did this past weekend: walking my two dogs with my husband. As I drew the picture, the cherubs noticed that it was bigger than my hand; I used more than 5 realistic colors (no green hair there!), and I incorporated a background so that readers knew what was happening in my story. We discussed my picture, and then the kiddos picked something that they did over the weekend that they wished to share. I was very impressed with all the details the class chose to include in their very important stories!
On Wednesday, we read I Like Myself! This book is a fabulous portrayal of all the reasons to like oneself, no matter what! The pictures add humor that the Kindergarteners relished! After we finished reading, the boys and girls of Room #7 talked about how everyone is unique! Then, they colored their very first self-portraits of the year using multicultural crayons. The illustrations came out so well; everyone paid very close attention to all the details of their faces and really took their time! Way to go boys and girls!
We created our first class book! We used the familiar repetitive language from Brown Bear, Brown Bear to produce a book featuring each child in our class. This is sure to become a class favorite! The students also participated in their first survey! I asked each student what his/her favorite animal is from the book and then, as a class, we graphed the responses. Everyone was able to see which animal was the most popular by counting how many votes each one received! We chatted about which animal had the least number of votes too. It was fun to compare and contrast our results.
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is all the rage in Room #7! We have been talking about beginning sounds and letters in the students’ names. Many of our Learning Lab Centers focus around the alphabet and learning our letters. Everyone is very excited for the parents to see the bulletin board the students created based on the book!
The students made their very own September calendars. This is an activity our class will do every month to practice writing our numerals. This month, the pictures the students created were bus collages using various shapes to go along with our reading The Wheels on the Bus! We had a whole class discussion about shapes, and everyone pointed out ones they noticed around the room as well as what we see in our everyday lives!
The class has also been busy with Math stations. We do a lot of station work in Kindergarten. The following are the Math stations our class did this week.
· Number Stories - Using up to 10 counting bears and various storyboards (e.g., a picture of an ocean, a tree, a road, etc.), the students made up addition and subtraction stories. They were quite imaginative and enjoyed sharing their stories with classmates.
· Pattern Blocks - Students built patterns and intricate designs.
· Cover the Dots – Given mats with different amounts of black dots on them, students practiced their 1:1 correspondence and counting skills by covering these dots with double-sided counters. This is a skill the Kindergartners will continue to hone for weeks to come!
· Brown Bear Roll and Color – At this engaging, independent center, the boys and girls rolled a die and then colored in the corresponding animal from the beloved book, Brown Bear, Brown Bear. Everyone received practice recognizing the corresponding numeral to the dots on the die!
· Foam Ten Frames – Using our foam ten frames, the cherubs were able to manipulate the pegs to represent a given number. To begin, we chatted about how each ten frame has five spaces on the top and five spaces on the bottom, with a total of 10 spaces. The kiddos and I also discussed how you always start by filling up the top frame first and then move onto the bottom frame for higher numbers. Everyone loved manipulating the foam pegs to show the different numbers! This was definitely a fan favorite!
· Creation Station – At this station, cherubs concentrated on reproducing various items (table, dog, robot, giraffe) using Unifex cubes! I think this was everyone’s preferred station!
The boys and girls did a super job with all the stations and were great at remembering to try different ones!
Our class is full of singers and dancers too! The Kindergarteners in Room #7 have really enjoyed singing throughout the day the many songs they have learned. Ask them about the songs we sing before dismissal! Additionally, one of our much-loved times during the day is Morning Meeting. Every day, the class participates in some sort of movement activity. The favorite of the week is A Tooty Ta. Ask your kiddos to perform the moves !
On Thursday, the class brainstormed a list of rules that we should have for Room #7. After listening to the story of Ridley, a place without any rules, we agreed that rules are very important to communities because they keep people safe and happy. Next, we will make a huge poster of all the rules, and the students will sign their names to show that they agree to follow them!
Every other Thursday (about), we begin the day with All School Meeting. Between 8:55 and 9:25, the entire school gathers in the gym for All School Meeting (ASM). This is a wonderful community experience where classes have the chance to discuss activities they are doing; individual children have opportunities to demonstrate special talents or explain projects they are conducting, and school news is communicated. At some point(s) during the year, our class will share at ASM! I will be sure to let you know in advance so you can attend!
Important Notes:
· Notices: Thank you for returning the many notices sent home over the first few days of school. Please keep them coming! I am collecting the following:
-Parent Permission Forms
-Emergency Contact Forms
-Child Profile Forms
*I would also love to receive any more family pictures and/or pictures of your children doing something they enjoy* Thank you!!
· Curriculum Night: Back to School Night is quickly approaching! It will take place on Thursday, September 18th. Grades K-2 will meet from 6:15-7:00. There will be a welcome in the Gym from 7-7:25 when you will be introduced to Specialist Teachers and other staff members. Grades 3-5 will get together from 7:30-8:15. I look forward to seeing you there!
· School Picture Day: Wednesday, October 2nd. Rain Date: Thursday, October 16th.
· Dismissal: This can be a very confusing time. Please remember to send a note any time your child’s regular dismissal plans change.
· P.E.: Please remember to send your child with sneakers on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
· Please also separate your child’s snack from his/her lunch to avoid any confusion to what he/she should eat at which time. Additionally, if you can go over which bag is which (snack or lunch), this will help avoid any misunderstandings! Thank you!
· Last, but certainly not least, if you pick up your child(ren) at the car lane, it is most helpful to have car seats on the driver’s side. In this manner, the kiddos can get into the car and buckled up quickly! Thank you for considering this request!
Have a wonderful weekend!