Click, click, click....whee!

That's right, we have our hands up and are saying "Whee!" during our last two months of kindergarten!

We have been so busy. Take a look below to see what we have been working on. 

Reading

Reading/decoding strategies

-using picture clues

-sounding out words

-using our understanding of long and short vowels to decode words such as cake and time

-using our understanding of diagraphs (sh, ch, th) to decode words

-using our understanding of vowel teams (when 2 vowels go a walking, the first one does the talking) in words like boat, house, and leaf

Comprehension strategies

-re-telling fiction stories (character, setting, problem, and solution) or if there is no problem, re-telling the story in order

-matching the illustrations/photographs to words in a text

-making connections (that part of the books reminds me of....) while reading a text

In writing, we have moved onto creating true life stories (narrative writing) all about our fabulous kiddos! This is one of the kids' favorite writing genres, as they get to write and draw stories about themselves. Ask your kiddo what 3 things make an AWESOME true story (actions, feelings, and talking). Then ask your child to share with you their amazing writing skills.

Math

We are still working with our addition and subtraction stories, however we have also added representing the stories with equations to our goals. So in addition to drawing/using manipulatives to just solve math problems, students have been representing the problems to represent the math story and solution (4 + 2 = 6). 

Thank You

-Thank you to everyone who raised money for our Fun Run this year! Our class exceeded our goal of $420 and the best part is that 100% of the profits go to our school.

-Thank you to all of the parents who came in for our student led conferences. I hope you were able to get a glimpse of what your child mastered during the third quarter and how much they have grown academically in the past few months.

-Thank you to Michael and Melissa Sommerlad for donating pizza during our make up day on Saturday. The kiddos LOVED it, and it was the cherry on top to our pizza themed day.

-Last, but not least, thank you for all of the thoughtful teacher appreciation gifts this past week. The cards, flowers, gifts, and kinds words have really warmed my heart! Thank you for entrusting your children to me each and everyday. 

Upcoming Events

-Letterland is coming to Pullen Park! That's right, Clever Cat, Quarrelsome Queen, and all of your child's favorite Letterland characters will be there THIS SATURDAY, MAY 17th. Please click on the link in the email for more info.

-We will be participating in some fun activities the last week of school. Keep your eye out for a sign up genius email with more details. 

-Save the date! Thursday, June 26th, we will have an end of year celebration for our kiddos and their parents. More details are forthcoming. 

What a way to end quarter 3

The kiddos enjoyed their extra recess and ice cream that they earned from reaching the $300 and $350 mark for the in Run. In fact, "This is the BEST day ever!" was uttered more than once. And a big thank you to Meg Yancey for donating the ice cream sandwiches:-)

And just a few quick FYIs......

-Due to the inclement weather this quarter, report cards are delayed and will go home Thursday, April 24th.

-Daily folders did not go home today, but please check your child's back pack for other  papers/information.

-Thank you to everyone who has already signed up for the student led conferences. The kiddos are SO excited to show you what they have learned about is quarter. If you have not already signed up for a conference, please go to www.signupgenius.com. Click on 'find a sign up' and put in my email address. Please note that there will be no teacher/parent conference at this time. Should you want a teacher/parent conference, please email me and we can determine another day/time that works for you. 

Last, but not least, have a safe and happy track out! 

Our in house field trip....

Scientist Joe from 'Science Fun for Everyone' came to our school today to share some fun ways to learn about weather. First we learned a fun dance to remember the water cycle....

Ask your child to show you the stages of the water cycle with the fun dance they learned (collection, evaporation, condensation, and evaporation).

We also learned that clouds are made from water and air. And we even got to feel what a cloud feels like. Some of us even tasted a cloud....

We learned that meteorologists use a thermometer to observe the weather. We then used thermometers to see the temperature of the air in our classroom. We then used the thermometers to compare the temperature of our thumbs and the temperature of air in the classroom.

We then used thermometers to measure the temperature of water

We then talked about the 4 seasons. The kids picked out items from the 'Mystery Box' and placed the items with the corresponding season....

We made different types of weather including tornados and snow! We even got to bring home some of the snow. 

We even earned Science Certificates recognizing us for our outstanding work as scientists! 

      

Quarter 3 is almost down in the books...

That's right, the end of quarter 3 is almost here. Only 1 more quarter and your babies will be first graders....sniff, sniff. Time really does goes by so quickly!

Make Up Days (new)

Our make up days have been announced and we will have school

-Saturday, March 22nd

-Saturday, March 29th

This does not include our make up days in April and May.

Picture Day

Due to Tuesday's school cancellation, picture day will be rescheduled. I will let you know when the make up dates are announced.

Fun Run

Thank you to everyone who has brought in pledges for our Fun Run. We had 2 students today who were able to get a prize from our PTA grab bag for bringing in their first pledges. We are soooo close to achieving our first class goal of $50, so keep the pledges coming. The kids are so excited knowing they only have to raise a few more dollars in order to have crazy hair day.

Language Arts

In language arts this week, we continue to work on 

-sounding out CVC words (cat, dog, mat, log, pit)

-matching the illustrations and words in a text 

-identifying/sharing the main topic and details of non fiction books

-using our sight word mastery to read level C books. Students are expected to know at least 25 sight words by the end of quarter 3. 

-using strategies such as sounding out unknown words and using the first letter of a word/picture to determine unknown words in books

In writing, we continue to read non fiction texts so we can write an 'All About' book. By the end of this week, the kiddos will have written their second 'All About' book. This one will be all about chickens, complete with a table of contents and subheadings (text features commonly found in non fiction texts). As always, we continue to work on letter formation, end punctuation, capitalizing the first letter of a sentence, using mosltly lowercase letters, and sounding out unknown words. 

In math, we continue to work on sharing and solving take away stories. Ask your child to share with you their favorite strategy to share/solve take away stories

-acting it out?

-drawing a picture?

-using manipulatives?

Last week I mentioned that we are not yet using equations with our math stories, but this week, we have started to use expressions ( 5 -1, with no equal sign). So for example, today we worked on using an expression such as 5-2 and coming up with a math story to share based on it. For example, for 5-2, you could say, "There were 5 frogs sitting on a log. 2 frogs decided to jump in the pond". 

The intention behind creating a story with the expression is for the kiddos to understand how the math story relates to the order of the numbers in the expression. Once they have this under their belt, we can introduce the equal sign and difference/total. 

Fun Run, Here We Come!

Fun Run

Today was our Fun Run kick off and what a way to start one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. There was dancing, singing, and even the Chick-fil-A cow!

 For those of you who are new to the 'Fun Run', students earn pledges from family and friends (either a flat pledge or a certain dollar amount per lap). Students earn individual prizes for their pledges and classes earn group prizes as they make their way towards their class goal (our class goal is $420 or $20 per student). The top 3 earning classes will get to choose from an icecream party, subs and chips from Jersey Mike's, or a pajama/popcorn/movie. The culmination will be the 'Fun Run' itself on 4/27 (parents are welcome to attend) where students will participate and wear the tie-dye t-shirts they will make in Art. 

A 'Fun Run' envelope went home in your child's daily folder this afternoon. You can enlist neighbors, grandparents, even businesses to support our school! 

Language Arts

In reading this week, we are continuing to work on identifying/retelling the main topic and details when reading non-fiction text. Ask your child to share with you the gestures for 'main topic' and 'detail'. We  are also revisiting fiction and retelling the story by stating the characters, setting, problem/solution (or stating events sequentially). As always, we continue to work on our decoding skills such as using first letter/picture clues and sounding out to determine unknown words.

Has your child identified any digraphs 'sh', 'ch', 'ng'  and/or the 'magic e' in words? If yes, then make sure you sing their praises! Being able to recognize and apply these sounds in words will help your child decode words to help them master a level C (or higher) book. 

Sight words of the week: down

In writing, we are continuing to work on creating our 'All About' books. We first start off by thinking about what we know about the main topic (giraffes). Next, we create a list of questions we want to find out about the topic. This week, the kiddos wanted to find out the following questions about giraffes:

-Where do they live?

-What do they look like up close?

-How do they eat/drink?

-How long are their tongues?

-How do they protect their babies?

-How do they protect themselves from lions? 

-What shape are their paws? 

Although all of our questions weren't answered with the book we read, some of our questions were answered (ask your kiddo how long a giraffe's tongue is...you are not going to believe the answer).  We used the questions/answers from our book and the kiddos created their very own 'All About Giraffes' book complete with a table of contents and subheadings (two text features that are commonly found in non-fiction/informational books). 

Math

In math this week, we began sharing math 'take away' stories. Just as with the addition stories, the goal right now is for the kiddos to be able to see take away stories in their own life and be able to represent the story with manipulatives, pictures, or acting it out. If they can solve it, even better, but no equations just yet. Want to support this objective at home, encourage your kiddo to see take away stories in everyday situations. For example, there are 8 slices of pizza. We ate 5 slices. How many slices are left? That's right, 8 take away 5 is 3. 

Quarter 3 Conferences

Keep your eye out for a sign up genius invite to quarter 3 conferences. This time, the kiddos will be the ones showing YOU what they have mastered including representing/solving math stories, reading level C books, sight word mastery and MORE! 

What's going on in room 210?

I can't believe it's already Wednesday. Although our early release and subsequent snow day has slowed us down in the curriculum department, we are still chugging along. Below you will find what we are working on (or will be working on) this week.

Language Arts

In reading this week, we have been working on identifying and re-telling the main topic and key details in non-fiction text. The kiddos already know from earlier in the year that we read non-fiction texts to learn about something, as opposed to reading fiction, where we read for fun, to find out about the characters, setting and what problems happen in the story. Today, we re-read a book about koalas (main topic) and learned things such as koalas have two toes and that they eat eucalyptus leaves (details). To support this objective at home, go to the library and let your child check out a book on something they want to know more about (dinosaurs, butterflies, dolphins). Read the book together and talk about the main topic and details. Want to go even further?? Check out an accompanying fiction book, read it, and talk about the differences. For example, you can check out a non-fiction book about dinosaurs and then a fiction book with dinosaurs as the main characters. The kiddos should be able to notice that the fiction book has characters, setting, problem, and solution, whereas the non fiction book gives information about dinosaurs, has a table of contents, and subheadings. 

Sight Words this week: with

Ask your kiddo about the gesture for this word. At this point in the year, your child should be able to identify at least 25 sight words.

In writing this week, we are introducing informational writing (to coincide with our reading objectives) . We will be immersing ourselves in tons of non-fiction texts, filling out KWL charts (what we KNOW and what we WANT TO KNOW) before we start reading. Then after we finish reading, we will fill out the 'L' of the KWL chart (what we LEARNED). We will then use the what we learned portion to write class books that inform others about a particular animal. As always, we continue to focus on our conventions, using a capital letter at the beginning of each sentence, spacing, sounding out words, using sight words, end punctuation, etc...

In math this week, we are finishing up on finding different ways to make a number. For example, 1+4, 2+2, 3+2, 4+1, 5+0 are all ways to make 5. Your child can show you how to do this with this week's math homework. We will be moving on to addition stories later in the week, with the kiddos using pictures, manipulatives, and acting it out to not just share addition stories, but SOLVE them as well. For example, if I shared a story about seeing 3 blue fish and 2 red fish, your kiddo will represent the story with a picture and be able to say/write how many fish there are altogether. 

PTA Fun Run/T-Shirts

Thank you to everyone who has sent in white t-shirts for our fun run. And an especially big thank you to the parents that donated EXTRA shirts. If you haven't already turned a shirt in, please do so by this Friday. 

And another big thank you to Whitney Tribble, Callie Riggs, Jennifer Norris, and Stacy Kozlowski for signing up to help the kiddos create their tie dye t-shirts for the Fun Run. 

Interims

Interims will be going home this Friday in your child's Daily folder. 

FYI....Upcoming Homework

Part of next week's homework (going home this Friday) will be to make a leprechaun trap. Please know that the intention of this project is to work on the kiddos' problem solving skills in a fun way. It is not intended as a project for you (the parent) to do (at least, not all of it). Talk to your kiddo about leprechauns, their size, and what they would be attracted to (gold, maybe??). Don't worry about it being or looking perfect. At the end of the day, the kiddos should be excited and proud of what they have created :-).

It's Wacky Wednesday.....

Well, it's not really Wacky Wednesday, but we did read Wacky Wednesday by Dr. Seuss today to help celebrate his birthday this week. If you have a chance, check it out from the library. It is a SUPER SILLY book, and the kiddos loved it!

Language Arts

In reading this week, we are focusing on several strategies to help us read our books including:

-sight word mastery (the more words you know, the more books you can read)

-sounding out CVC words (that is 3 letter words with a vowel in the middle)

We have also been learning about digraphs (although the kiddos don't know that word). That is, two letters that, when combined make a one unique sound, such as 'sh', 'ch', and 'th'. Ask your child to tell you what sound these letters make when combined and have them show you the gestures as well. 

Kindergarten students at Banks Road Elementary are expected to be reading on a level C or above by the end of quarter 3 (the end of March). Ms. Cassidy and I, and the rest of our support team are working hard each day to make sure your child will meet these benchmarks. Please help support your child master this goal by having them read to you each night for 10 minutes. Praise your little one anytime he/she uses the following strategies:

-sight word mastery

-sounding out unknown words

-using the picture to determine unknown words

-using understanding of digraphs to sound out words (sh, th, ch)

-flipping the vowel sound when a word doesn't make sense 

Sight Words

Our sight words this week are 'got' and 'have'

Ask your child for the gestures for these words. If your child can identify all the sight words on his/her homework, please email me and I will send home a new list. As always, you can support sight word mastery at home by encouraging your kiddo to identify sight words whenever they see them. Heck, tell them they can earn a penny for every sight word they can identify. However, let me warn you.....you WILL be out of pennies before you know it!

Math

In math this week, are continuing to share math stories. So far, we've learned 3 ways to share math stories including acting it out, drawing a picture, and using manipulatives.

In addition, we have also been working on determining 'partners' for numbers 1-5. For example, 1 and 4 are partners that make 5, 2 and 3 are partners that make 5, and 4 and 1 are partners that are 5. Getting the kiddos to understand the different ways a number can be made is the basis for addition. 

Field Trip

Please make sure you have turned in money AND the field trip form for science field trip. Extra forms for students we do not have forms for went home in today's daily folder. Please email me should you have any questions or concerns.

Early Release Change

Due to the snow days, March 7th is NOW a full day. 

Interim Reports 

Interim reports will be going home next Friday. These reports are intended to inform parents how their child is progressing this quarter. Please know if your child is NOT meeting 3rd quarter benchmarks, your child may be retained. Please email me should you have any questions or concerns.