Newsletter Updates for the Week of February 1st

DATES TO REMEMBER:

-Monday, February 1st—NWEA Testing for Math

-Tuesday, February 2nd—Groundhog Day

-Friday, February 5th—Smokey the Bear Visits

-Wednesday, February 10th—Student Count Day

-Thursday, February 11th—Valentine’s Party (pm)

-Friday, February 12th—No School

-Monday, February 15th—No School

LIBRARY BOOKS:  

Students will be bringing home their library books, this Thursday, for the first time!  Please help your child find a safe place to keep their library book at home.  We have library every 2 weeks, but I have a tub in the classroom for students to put their books, for safe keeping, until our next visit to the  library.  Students must return their book in order to check out a new one.  If you’d prefer for your child to keep their library book at school in their book box, please let me know via email or note, and I won’t send it home with them. :)

AND THE PACE QUICKENS: 

Hopefully you’ve had a chance to look over your child’s report card and assessments.  Overall, I’m very pleased with the students’ progress.  We’ve established some great routines and foundational skills; however, now the pace quickens a bit.  We will still be adding 2 new sightwords each week, and instead of 1 letter a week, we will be focusing on 2 letters a week.  Now that the students have so many strategies in their toolbox for reading, I will SOON begin sending home reading folders for them to read ‘good-fit books’ at home, as well as give you access to Raz-Kids at home.  I think you’ll be excited to watch them grow in their reading!

READING: 

With having 2 snow days last week, we will be spending a couple of days this week finishing up the Letter E.  Then we will begin the Letters F & R and introduce the sightwords with & he.

WRITING: 

This week we will complete a couple of journals about a groundhog and what we like to do on a snow day.  We will also wrap up our pattern books that have a surprise ending by editing, conferencing with a peer, and creating a wow cover!  Students are enjoying reading their books to the class during Author’s Chair.  This is my favorite time of year because the students’ abilities and confidence for writing just seem to blossom!  It is so exciting to see them begin to be more independent as they apply what they know and have learned—sounding out words & using sightwords.

MATH:  

This week we will be learning different ways to make teen numbers using our fingers, double ten frames, & base 10 blocks,  We will also introduce the 3D solid shape—the cylinder.

SCIENCE/SOCIAL STUDIES:  

We will begin our week by learning about Groundhog’s Day; we will check in with Punxsutawney Phil to see if he did OR did not see his shadow and what that means for the upcoming weather forecast.

ALLERGIES:  

In addition to our severe peanut, peanut butter, egg, & milk allergy, we also have a student recently diagnosed with a severe latex allergy.  Therefore, we will try to minimize the exposure in the classroom by eliminating items that contain latex, including latex balloons, rubber bands, etc.  Please be thoughtful of this as you send in things for Valentine’s Day & Birthdays.  Their parents don’t want to inconvenience others and are very diligent about providing separate snacks and going through their child’s treats to ensure they are safe, I just want to make you aware:)

Please be sure to return your child’s January Book-it Calendar and send in their cereal box ASAP so we have time to decorate them. :)

Class List for Valentines - Updated

Here is an updated list for Valentines - please note that Benito was not on the first list that I shared. I'll be sending home a new printed one, but for those who have begun their Valentines, please be sure to include Benito on your list:)

Also, as you think about Valentines, please remember our peanut/peanut butter allergy if you purchase Valentine's that include candy. :)

Girls                           Boys

Isabelle                    Connor

Adriauna                 Andrew H.

Tessa                         Camlar

Kimberly                   Blaine

Allisson                      Andrew M.

Shelby                      Ben

Caelyn                     Eli

Aylah                       Reese

                                  Tristin

Alan

Brendan

David

*Benito

*Here is our class list for Valentines J

Please Send In . . .

Please send in an empty cereal box for your child to make their Valentine's Boxes out of at school.  We will probably start on them next week as it will be here before we know it:)
Thanks so much!

Sledding Party Photos

Newsletter Updates for the Week of January 25th

DATES TO REMEMBER:

-Friday, January 29th—Report Cards Home

-Friday, January 29th—Homecoming Game

-Thursday, February 11th—Valentine’s Party (pm)

-Friday, February 12th—No School

-Monday, February 15th—No School

REPORT CARDS & ASSESSMENTS: 

We’ve been diligently working on assessing the students for upcoming report cards. Special thanks to my faithful parent/grandparent volunteers who helped me complete many of these assessments—it is a time consuming task! Report Cards will be coming home with students this Friday, you will also be receiving your child’s Dibel’s Report and copies of their classroom assessments.  I’m not certain if I’ll have the Aimsweb Data back in time to send home or not and we are in the middle of our NWEA testing, so that information will be shared with you a little later.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding your child’s progress, please feel free to contact me.

VALENTINE’S DAY:  

I’ve attached the sign-up for our Valentine’s Day Party, as a reminder of who volunteered to bring what:) I’ve also attached a class list. As part of our Valentine’s party, students will be able to exchange valentines. Filling out valentines is a great opportunity to practice handwriting. :)

READING: 

This week our class will be reading stories about how living things, such as trees, change as they grow. Your child will learn to name the parts of a tree, such as the trunk, bark, branches, leaves, and roots.

Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the skills we will be practicing.

· Vocabulary—develop, amazing—Draw a picture of a tree. Encourage your child to tell facts about trees. Write the facts on the picture of the tree.

· High-Frequency Words—are & had— Write the words on paper. Then have your child practice writing the words Have your child think of a sentence using these words. Write it down and ask your child to circle the word.

· Category Words—tree parts—Have your child draw a picture of a tree. Help your child label the tree parts, such as trunk, bark, branch, leaves, ,and roots.

· Phonics—Ee—Have your child think of words that include the letter e, such as egg. Draw pictures of these words, then label each picture, having your child underline the letter e in each word.

· Beanie Baby Strategies—This week we will use Chunky Monkey to read and write words with the en, ell, ed, & et word families & use Flippy the Dolphin to read and write words with the short & long e sounds. We will introduce Helpful Kangaroo who reminds us that if we are trying to figure out a tricky word, it’s okay to ask for help, after we’ve tried all of our strategies.

· Raz-Kids—The students will learn how to use Raz Kids this week to read ‘good-fit books’ on their ipads.  Our Reading Buddies will be helping us this week.  I’ll be sending information home soon so that you can help your child access Raz Kids at home on a computer, or hand-held device. 

WRITING: 

This week we will complete a journal about hibernating animals and work on editing our January Journals, which will be coming home with their Report Cards.  We will also begin a new pattern book this week that has a ‘surprise ending.’

MATH:  

This week we will work on graphing—collecting data and interpreting it on various graphs. We will also be working on ten frames, building teen numbers, and introduce the ‘cone.’

SCIENCE/SOCIAL STUDIES:  

We will continue our study of Winter this week—as we read some narrative and informational texts related to Polar Animals.  Smokey the Bear will be making his annual visit soon to teach us about Fire Safety and Prevention.

Valentine's Day Party

*Here is our class list for Valentines J  

Girls                       Boys

Isabelle                 Connor

Adriauna              Andrew H.

Tessa                     Camlar

Kimberly                Blaine

Allisson                  Andrew M.

Shelby                   Ben

Caelyn                  Eli

Aylah                    Reese

                              Tristin

Alan

Brendan

David
*Benito

Sledding Tomorrow

Just a reminder that tomorrow is our Sledding Party.  We will start our day in the computer lab taking the Reading portion of our NWEA assessment.  Then reward ourselves by enjoying some time outside sledding with friends.  We will sled from 10:45-11:15 and then come inside for hot chocolate before being dismissed @ 11:55.  Please be sure to send your child has everything they need to stay warm and dry outside:)

Newsletter Updates for the Week of January 18th

DATES TO REMEMBER:

-Thurs., January 21st—1/2 Day—Dismissal @ 11:55

-Fri., January 22nd—1/2 Day—Dismissal @ 11:55

-Friday, January 29th—Report Cards Home

-Friday, January 29th—Homecoming Game

STUDENT OF THE WEEK:  

Our student of the week is Shelby Simmons.  Shelby enjoys singing and dancing. She likes to eat shrimp and her favorite movie is Rapunzel. Shelby aspires to learn to downhill ski, roller skate, and ride a bike, which I’m sure she will master in no time! Congratulations to Shelby on being Student of the Week!

SLEDDING PARTY:  

We are planning our annual sledding party for this Friday, January 22nd.  We will go outside around 10:45, sled for a half hour with the other Kindergarten classes, and then come back inside for hot chocolate before going home @ 11:55.  So far, I have Mr. Carpenter, Mr. Thomas, & Mrs. Peterson planning to come in and help out.  Parent volunteers should plan to arrive around 10:30.  If anyone else is interested in coming in to join in the fun, please let me know—you are more than welcome!:)

READING: 

This week our class will be focusing on plants and what they need in order to grow, such as water, food, and air. Children will read stories about gardens.

Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the skills we will be practicing.

· Vocabulary - require, plant - Help your child understand that plants need water, food, air, and sunlight to grow.

· High-Frequency Words—my & at— Encourage your child to say sentences using the words my & at. Record the sentences on paper and leave a blank where the words should be. Then have your child write the words in each space.

· Category Words - size words—Play a game called “Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down.” For example, say a true or false statement. Have your child do a thumbs-up gesture if the statement is true. If it is not true, have your child show a thumbs-down gesture.

· Phonics—Hh—Play a rhyming game. Say, What word starts with h and rhymes with pen? (hen) If your child cannot think of the word, provide a clue. Continue the activity with other words.

· Comprehension - character, setting, events—Have your child think of a favorite story. Then ask questions about the main characters, where the story takes place, and what events happen at the beginning, middle, and end.

· Beanie Baby Strategies—This week we will introduce a new Comprehension Strategy—Repair Bear.  Repair Bear reminds us to stop while we are reading and check to see if we are understanding what we are reading, if not, we need to go back and reread.

· This week is also exciting because the students will begin shopping for their own ‘good-fit books’ to add to their book boxes. They will learn what a ‘good-fit book’ is, as well as how to shop for/select ‘good-fit books.’ Students will then practice building their stamina and using their accuracy strategies while reading during Read to Self time.

WRITING: 

This week we will take some time to write about something in the world that we would like to change (I have a dream), and wrap up our I Can pattern books about things we can do in the Winter time in Michigan, by editing, adding a ’wow cover, conferencing with Mrs. Brinks, and finally sharing them with the class during Author’s Chair.

MATH:  

This week we will play roll and record using 2 dice, graph our results, and discuss the data together. The students will also be reassessed on AIMSWEB to monitor their progress in math.

SCIENCE/SOCIAL STUDIES: 

We will continue our study of Winter this week—as we learn about the different things animals do during the Winter months. We will also take some time to learn about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his commitment to promote equality, fairness, & justice—values we embrace today!