Week 4: August 27- August31

Happy Sunday KB families! We have another warm week coming up. Please be sure to send your child with a water bottle each day. I will be submitting our Scholastic Book order on Tuesday morning. If you have not ordered yet and you would like to just visit www.scholastic.com/bookclubs and use our class code QDR6N.

Here's a look at this coming week:

Spalding: This week we will continue to work on clock letters  o, s, qu,and add two line letters, b, e. As a reminder, students should be working with their phonogram cards each night. Please continue to support your child during homework by ensuring they are using the correct pencil grip and making sure they are forming their phonograms correctly. 

Sight Words: in, is, you, that, it. A blue sight word card will be sent home with your child on Friday. Please use this to practice at home. 

Literature: We will explore Little Red Riding Hood this week. Students will work on recalling the story and working on story elements: Title, Setting, Characters, Problem, Solution. We will read a Chinese and Cajun version of the story then compare them to the original. Our poem for the week is A Dillar, A Dollar.

Math: We will begin to introduce numbers 1-5.  Students will count to five and recognize the numbers. They will be asked to recognize the number and also count out items for a specific number. 

Science: This week  we will begin a unit on the Five Senses. Students will learn about and explore their 5 senses; sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing. This week we will talk in depth about the senses of sight, sound, and touch. Students will play games that promote them to isolate various senses and they will create a craft to depict different textures we can touch.

Thanks to all the community helpers that visited our class this week!

Week 3 - August 20- August 24

Happy Sunday Families! I hope your enjoying time with family this weekend. A couple quick things, a Scholastic Book order form went home in your child's green folder Friday. This is a great way to fill your child's library with affordable books. Please order online at https://clubs.scholastic.com/ using our class code: QDR6N. 

 

Next Wednesday 08/22 from 6:00-7:30 is our Curriculum Night. This is a great opportunity to get acquainted with what your child will be learning this year. We will do a demo Spalding and Math lesson so that you will have the right tools to support your child at home. I look forward to seeing you all there! 

Here's a look at what we'll be learning next week:

Spalding: This week we will start introducing our Spalding single letter phonograms.  We will introduce the clock letters  “a, c, d, f, g.” Note some of these phonograms have multiple sounds, refer to your child’s homework for the sounds of each . For help on how to pronounce and write phonograms please visit the following link (scroll down the page): http://archwayveritas.greatheartsacademies.org/academics/curriculum/

Sight Words: This year will be introducing five sight words each week. Once we have taught ten words we will send home a list to practice. Our goal is that students will have memorized 100 sight words by the end of the school year. Our words this week are: the, of, and, a, to

Literature: We will be reading The Three Little Pigs this week. We will sequence the events, talk about the fiction vs. non-fiction and even read a story from the point of view of the big bad wolf. Our poem for the week will be Star Light, Star Bright.

Math: This we will continue to classify objects by attribute and identify objects that do not belong to a particular set. Students will also match items by their function by saying when two objects are used together. There will be math homework Monday-Thursday, please check your child’s work for accuracy. 

Science and History: This week we will be learning all about Community Helpers. We will discuss who they are, how they contribute to our communities, and why they are important. Students will get to decorate their own police badge, label a fireman, and seal a picture in an envelope. We are looking forward to having a few of our very own parents come in to class and share about their careers as a community helper!

Curriculum Night

Next Wednesday, August 22nd we will hold our Curriculum Night from 6-7:30pm.  This is a Parent Only event.  This is an important night to learn about our Kindergarten procedures, routines, guidelines, and curriculum.  We will be holding sample lessons on Spalding and Singapore Math. 

The schedule will be as follows:

6-6:25pm in the Gym with Administration

6:30-6:45pm Procedures, routines, guidelines, curriculum map

6:45- 7:25pm Demo Lessons for Spalding and Singapore Math

7:30pm Conclude Curriculum Night

If there are any specific questions you would like answered the night of Curriculum Night, please email me in advance.  We will do our best to answer them either individually or as a group that night.

See you then!

Proper Pencil Grip

We will continue to work on our "clock" letters.  Each letter starts at "2 on the clock" goes up to the midpoint, down to the baseline, and back up.  Students will be familiar hearing those words while writing.  Please be sure that you are watching your child hold their pencil and help them use this grip. Make sure students are starting at "2" and touching the baseline.  Persistent practice of this will ensure that they continue this rhythm throughout the year. Also please help your child ensure that they are holding their pencil the correct way. I will attach a picture for reference. Again if you have questions please do not hesitate to ask!

Start with the thumb on the bottom and the middle finger just above. These two fingers should form a "C" shape where the paint stops on the pencil.

The pointer finger then gently rests on the pencil. This takes some getting used to but with continually practice it becomes second nature.

Homework Packets

This is our first official week of using our kindergarten homework packets. Each Monday your child will receive a math packet and a Spalding homework packet. These packets are to be completed and submitted on  Friday of each week. If your child is in Athenaeum or study hall please make sure their homework is in their green folders every day. Good practice would be to complete one page of each subject per night. However, we know sports and outside activities can sometimes make certain week nights more hectic so we hope the packet can alleviate some of that. If you feel overwhelmed with home-life one night, then you can double up on homework the next night. Please be sure to read 15 minutes each night with your child as part of their homework as well. For many students, this looks like you reading a story to them at bedtime. For others, your child may be able to read to you! As always, please reach out to me with any questions 

Week 2- August 13- August 17

Happy Saturday! I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend so far. Our first week in kindergarten was a great success! Our classroom family is full of fun personalities and kind hearts. See below for some fun pictures from our week. Remember to send your child with a water bottle each day and a morning and afternoon snack if they're full day. Please remember to return your "birthday book" insert on Monday as well! Here's a look at what we will be learning about in week 2!

Spalding: This week we will continue to work on feature formations of Spalding. This is a circle (clock), short line, tall line, line that goes below the baseline, diagonal line and short line above the midpoint.  Short letters stay under the midpoint and tall letters go just below the top line. By taking the time to do this practice it will help build muscle memory and help students are forming each letter correctly. 

Literature: Our story this week will be the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  We will compare and contrast different versions of the story, sequences the events,  and even try some porriage. We will do a listening and following directions activity with the students.  This is a good opportunity to work on listening carefully and following directions.   

Math:

This week we will begin to use our math textbooks.  Our first unit will be exploring sets.  Students will identify objects as being the same, identical, different, or not the same (using those words).  Students will be shown two objects that are exactly the same and asked what makes them exactly the same (size, color, shape, etc.)

Science: We will continue to learn all about how to keep a healthy body this week. We will discuss what germs are and students will get to do an experiment to see how quickly these germs can spread. We will talk about proper hand washing as well as how to sneeze in our “pockets.” Our scholars will learn the names of all the major organs in our bodies and we will talk in depth about the importance of keeping our heart healthy through exercise. Finally, we will discuss one of our favorite things to do; sleep!