Classroom News

This week we learned about bats.  We did an art project, wrote poems, and read about bats.  

Halloween-Next week we will do Halloween activities.  We will have a Halloween party on Friday during our center time (9:20-10:50).  Parents are welcome!  If you plan to come in, please send me an email and let me know so I can plan appropriately.  I would like for one of the activities to be decorating a Halloween cookie.  We need plain circle shaped sugar cookies, orange frosting, sprinkles, and candy corn for this activity.  If you are willing to do at any of these items, please let me know.  

Trick or Treat Festival-Remember to register for the Legacy Elementary Trick or Treat Festival.  It is on Friday, October 30 from 6:00-7:30.  Go to https://stvrain.revtrak.net/tek9.asp?pg=rw_program_reg. to register.  The cost is $7.50.  I highly recommend this event!  I will be here passing out candy and look forward to seeing you!

Halloween candy- after you have enjoyed the Halloween candy your children collect, if there are any left overs, bring them to school.  Just before winter break, we will use the candy to decorate "Gingerbread" houses as a culminating activity to our Gingerbread Man unit.  Thank you!

Picture re-take day is Friday, October 30.  

Late Start-The next late start day is Wednesday, November 4.  School will start at 11:30 and will dismiss at 3:40.  Friday, October 6 will be a normal 1/2 day in the morning.  

On Wednesday, we met with our 4th grade buddies from Mrs. Melaney's class.  The children worked together to write a story about bats.  We did not complete our stories, so we will meet again soon to finish them.    Here are a few pictures!

Wacky Wednesday

Our day started with centers.  The children practiced handwriting, journal writing, and small reading groups.  They also did experiments to see which fruits, vegetables, and household items would sink or float.  After centers, we finally got a chance to go to the library!  The kids were able to check out books if they had returned their book from last time.  

After lunch we worked on the iPads on the Lexia program.  We also did math centers for the second time this week.  We visited the music room for specials time.  While in the music room, the school practiced a fire drill.  The kids did a great job!  It was very loud and, for some, a little scary, but they exited the building quietly and calmly.  

We will not be at school on Friday, October 16.  It is a conference compensation day.  We will be back at school on Monday, October 19.  

Paper books

Today the children brought home the paper books we used during small group reading instruction. These books do not count towards the Take-Home Reading Program.  However, the kids should be able to read the books to you.  Each week we will use a different book for small group instruction.  Keep an eye out for them and ask your child to read it to you.  

Next week is a short week.  There is no school on Friday, October 16.  It is a conference compensation day.  

Don't forget to register for the Legact Trick or Treat Festival..

Late start Wednesday

As always, there's a lot going on in kindergarten.  After lunch, we worked on the iPads on Lexia.  We talked about Firefighters and made a chart that listed things firefighters have, what they can do and words that describe firefighters.  

At the end of the day, our 4th grade buddies came in (Mrs. Melany's students). We made predictions about how many seeds we might find in an apple, then counted the seeds in apples.  Afterwards, we experimented with whether seeds float or sink.  We recorded our results with the help of our buddies.  We look forward to visiting with them again in a couple of weeks.  

A Marvelous Monday!

This week we are learning about Fire Fighters.  At centers today we made a construction paper fire truck.  On Friday, we will write about the fire trucks.  We wrote in our journals and took the first math test of the year.  This afternoon we worked on the iPad's with the Lexia program.  Remember that I sent home the log in information for Lexia so you can use it at home, too!  We learned to do dot-to-dots and to make the number 6 during math.  After a short recess, we went to Art and finished the day reading Lily's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes.  

Wednesday is a late start day so school will start at 11:30.  The kids will come in the door and go straight to lunch.  We will work at centers in the afternoon and will meet with our new 4th grade buddies for a science experiment!  It will be an exciting day!

Fabulous Friday!

Today was another busy day in kindergarten!  The kids wrote in their journals, practiced the letter F, made patterns using community hats (fireman hats, Cowboys hats, police hats, etc.), and did Write the Room for the first time.  The kids went on a search around the room to find cards with fall pictures on them.  They counted the shapes and recorded it on their paper.  It was a challenge, but the kids did a great job.  We also read Ten Apples Up On Top by Dr. Seuss and listened for rhyming words.  

Wednesday, October 7 is a Late Start day.  School will start at 11:30 and dismiss at the regular time (3:40).  The kids will eat lunch as soon as they arrive.

There will be no school on Friday, October 16.  It is a conference compensation day.  

Picture retake day is Friday, October 30.

The Legacy Trick or Treat Festival is on Friday, October 30.  This is a wonderful event!  The kids can trick or treat around the school and do many other activities.  You don't want to miss this!  Please go to http://stvrain.revtrak.net/tek9.asp?pg=rw_program_reg.  Then click on Legacy Enrichment Program, then click on Treat Festival to register.  I look forward to seeing everyone there!

Halloween- Students are not allowed to wear Halloween consumes to school.  Kids have a chance to see their friends in costume at the Trick or Treat Festival.  We will have a Halloween party.  I will post information about any materials we need on the blog.   

Santa Cop applications are available.  If that is a program that would be helpful for you, please contact me or the front office and we can make sure you get the application.  

Have a fun, restful weekend!

What a Wednesday!

Today was a busy day in kindergarten!  We started the day with Centers.  We listened to The Lonely Scarecrow at the Listening Center.  After listening to the story, we drew a picture of a scarecrow and wrote about him.  We also wrote about what the kids would like to be when they grow up.  We have quite a community in our room!  We colored a book about apples and focused on coloring carefully, taking our time, and doing our very best.  This afternoon, we practiced writing the numbers 4 and 5.  The homework this week will include more number writing practice.  Wednesday is our scheduled day in the library, but since the Book Fair is in the library, we were unable to check out books.  Hopefully we can check books out next week.  

I've enjoyed meeting with everyone at conferences!  Thank you for coming in!  

Legacy FUNd Run!

We had a lot of fun at the FUNd Run today!  Thank you to everyone who collected sponsors and pledges for this event.  The money raised today will be used to pay for the school bus for the field trip we will go on in the Spring. 


Next week are Parent-Teacher Conferences.  I sent home sheets with your appointment time on them.  If that time is no longer convenient, please contact me and let me know so we can reschedule.  I look forward to meeting with everyone next week!

Reminder

This is a friendly reminder that we will be participating in the all-school FUNd RUN this Friday, September 25 at 10:00.  This is a fundraiser for the school.  Funds raised in this event will pay for the buses we need for field trip and additional para-professional help at school.  If you have not already sent in your fundraising envelope, please do so on Wednesday.  I'm excited to be part of this event!

Today I sent home Parent-Teacher Conference reminders.  If the date and time on the slip are not going to work, please let me know as soon as possible so we can reschedule.  I look forward to meeting with everyone!

We logged in to Lexia for the first time today. On Friday I will send home information so that you can work on Lexia and MyOn from home.  These programs (websites) do a great job of helping kids build literacy skills.  

Applesauce

Today was a very exciting day!  We made applesauce.  Each child was able to use a safe, handy-dandy tool to peel and cut their own Apple.  We put all the apples in the crock pot with some brown sugar and spices, then let it cook all day.  At the end of the day, we enjoyed eating our culinary triumph!  Ok, it's more like baked apples than the applesauce you purchase at the store, but it is tasty and delicious!  

Unfortunately, in the excitement of eating our applesauce, I forgot to hand out the kids' library books.  😕. My apologies.  I will make sure they bring them home on Friday.  

In case you are interested in the applesauce recipe, here it is:

8 medium apples

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on high for 4-5 hours.  Enjoy the tasty goodness!

Thinking Maps

Many times, after we finish reading a book in class, we will complete a Thinking Map.  Thinking Maps help us organize our thoughts and understanding about the book.  On Friday we read Huggly Goes to School by Tedd Arnold.  We completed a Bubble Map to describe Huggly.  This was difficult for some students who wanted to remember what Huggly did in the story instead of finding words to describe Huggly.  We will continue to work on this as the year goes on.  Today we read The Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein.  After reading the story, we created a Flow Map to show the sequence of events in the story. 

What a week!

It was a short week because of the Labor Day holiday, but we were certainly busy!  On Wednesday we had an assembly and a guest in our classroom.  Today we worked at centers which included a reading skills group.  We also checked books out from the library for the first time.  Our regular library day will be Wednesday.  Please eternal books by Wednesday so your child can check out a new book.  

In today's Friday Folder, you will find the first book order of the year.  You are not obligated to purchase books from the book order, but it is a terrific opportunity to buy books at discounted prices.  Our classroom earns points from each purchase and the points are used to buy books for our classroom.  

The homework this week includes practice writing numbers (please refer to the number writing poems that were handed out at the parent orientation) and names.  There is also a color sheet.  I am interested in seeing students follow directions on the paper and color very carefully.  

Today, my hair was a bit crazy!  This was to help families remember to sign up for the Miner's Day 5K event our PTO is sponsoring.  It also reminds families that later this month we will participate in a FUNd RUN here at school.  Students will be asked to find sponsors that will make a donation for each lap they run during the event.  

Have a great weekend!