We are off to a great start in Kindergarten this year! It has been a busy few weeks as children make new friends, learn classroom routines and expectations, and curriculum material. I want students to expect school to be a dynamic and safe place to learn, and an objective that is realized immediately by involvement in purposeful and meaningful action. The first four weeks of school are always tiring and challenging for kindergarten students. I am amazed at the progress each child has made as they transitioned from the summer months to the full and rigorous days of school.
In math, the children have been participating in classification activities that allow them to analyze and observe their world and articulate their observations. “These balloons are exactly the same” and “These are the same but a different size” are examples of the type of language they have been using. The students are recognizing numbers as yet one more lens for classification. Language such as “I put a pencil, a book, and an eraser, 3 things, in my backpack for school" or " I put 5 toys in the closet to keep home” would be examples of this type of classification. From the moment students enter school, they practice the counting sequence so that when counting a set of objects, their attention can be on matching one count to one object, rather than on retrieving the number words. My goal is for children to realize that math is EVERYWHERE in the world around them, but it takes a mathematician to notice it.
From day one, the children have learned that they are readers and writers. The most foundational lesson when teaching a child to read is that there are three ways to read a book. These ways are reading the pictures, reading the words, and re-telling the story. So you know when you walk past your child's room and they have a book in their lap and are talking to themselves? Well, they are actually reading the pictures, which is the first step to reading! The children's stamina for read-to-self is 6 minutes! Of course, they need to make sure they stay in one spot, read the whole time, and not talk to anyone, which are certainly learned skills and will build over time.
As young writers, the students are learning that they think of something that they know about and use pictures and words to put their ideas on paper. Writer's workshop is one of their most favorite parts of the day. The children have also been busy exploring our garden. They have collected nature and made their self portraits, participated in a letter scavenger hunt, measured different vegetable plants and flowers using cubes and blocks, painted with vegetables, and so much more! The children are also fascinated with the toads and insects that roam the gardens, which I can foresee being a curriculum focus and interest among all the children.
Below: Evan is using his sense of hearing to observe the world around him. Rook is painting with vegetables! The children loved seeing the different shapes vegetables made. Isaac is measuring out in the garden using nonstandard units--- linking cubes!
Here are a few beginning of the year reminders and updates:
1. Please make sure that your child's snack is in a different place other than their lunch box. It takes them a lot of time to get their lunch box out and choose their snack. Often, they do not know which food is their snack, or they are taking more out then necessary. I would also encourage to provide your child with a healthy snack, for nutrition is a big part of our daily curriculum.
2. On Wednesday, I sent home an important form explaining a new text messaging service I am applying this year as a new way to communicate with parents. It is called "Remind 101" and is a completely closed system, which means your phone number remains private and I cannot respond to any messages that are sent. I will be using this service to notify you of any school closings or delays, class or school events, materials needed for the classroom, and much more! If you need another form, please let me know and I would be happy to send home another one.
3. The blog will be updated every week. I will notify you when the blog is updated via remind 101 (the text message application that was introduced to you on Wednesday.) The blog can be used to prompt your child about what is happening in school. They love seeing their pictures on the computer!
4. The blue take home folder should be returned everyday. If you have a note for me, you may put the note in the folder, for I check all folders in the morning.
5. Library is on Wednesday! Please double check that your child's book is sent back so that he or she may check out another book.
I can't even begin to tell you how happy I am to be teaching your children. How lucky am I to have a job that I can't wait to get to every morning? I hope you have fun watching your child soar this year! I appreciate and welcome all comments, concerns, and questions regarding your child's education and success.
Pictures below: Sophia and Lucia are busy exploring the different features of their faces. The faces they made were then hung around "Our Class Rules" chart. Gabriel is focused on practicing his letters at the light table.
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