Look for his homework assignment next week! However, in case you want to start early, I thought I'd give you the chance to put on your thinking caps:) I would love to have these by December 9th.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Coming Events!
Family Unit
FAMILY CELEBRATION
Save the Date: December 16th for our Family Day Celebration! (This is also School Spirit Pajama Day, a fun combination:) We will have a "mix and mingle" at 7:45 and the gathering will officially begin at approximately 8:00 in the morning and last until 8:45 (Student Arrival.) You will be receiving more detailed information about the event, volunteering to provide food, drinks etc. over the coming weeks.
TURKEY TROT
November 23rd
Please remember to send your child to school in sneakers and comfy clothing! The Thoreau tradition has always been to have an all-school assembly in the gymnasium prior to the actual event. That's also the "take-off" point. Children "cross the finish line" at the gate to the upper playground. We will gather as a class at a predetermined location such as the big tree near the garden. I will be taking attendance, so please do not take your child with you. We will be heading into the classroom for a refreshing fruit snack. You are welcome to sign out your child at the classroom door if you choose. Otherwise they will be doing their typical Wednesday dismissal. Thank you in advance for attending to the safety of our children:)
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
EXTRA CLOTHES!
Hello everyone!
It seems I have been remiss in reminding families to send in extra clothing. It is important (and extremely helpful) if your child has seasonally-appropriate backup clothing in case of spills, snow, mud, and other weather and kindergarten-related "events." We do have outdoor recess every day barring extreme cold or uncooperative weather, so please dress your child appropriately! I do have children wear whatever was sent from home (in other words, I tell children : "Clothes are a 'family choice' and we respect that at school.") If there is a change in the weather, we might allow children to shed a layer when we get outside and remind them it is their responsibility to remember to bring their items back in with them; although, truth be told, we always check and make sure they do! It's a learning curve for them;) It would be terrific to have the spare clothes as soon as possible: extra pants, shirt, socks, undies in a labelled, gallon-sized ziplock bag is recommended for ease of storage and identification.
A word about quiet time items: Please let your child know that we keep these in lockers. It seems that some of them are eager to take them home everyday! This makes for bulging backpacks which will be particularly tricky during winter time.
And, since we have already had snow....
Families sometimes ask if they can have their child keep a pair of snow pants at school. That's absolutely fine, but kindly send in a note letting me know. Otherwise, they will come home everyday!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
A Glimpse of Our Classroom Curriculum
THE SCIENCE OF HERMIT CRABS:
BRINGING OUR NATURE NOOK TO LIFE
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| OUR CLASSROOM "CRABITAT" We read a selection of nonfiction books as well as fictional stories (yes, including the beloved Eric Carle's Is This A House for Hermit Crab.) I learned some new information, and the children are enraptured. I previewed a video that may be of interest to you and your child at home. It provides some basic information about "crab anatomy." I think the kids will latch right onto to the vocabulary. Did you know hermit crabs are decapods? |
A CLASS OF READERS AND WRITERS!!
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| "THE BIG SORT" Thank you all for the guidance you provided in helping your child select words for our word jar. Much like Donavan of Donavan's Word Jar, our jar was filled to overflowing last week! After having read a large selection of words, made up silly sentences by arranging certain words, and spent lots of center time searching the room for words to copy, we were ready to do something with those words! The children considered the best way to organize the words. They did some terrific problem-solving around how to sort the words. Ultimately, sorting them by first letter into bags with the letters attached (26 letters in the alphabet, an exciting discovery for many. As one child stated: "That's a lot of letters! That must be why we have so many words in our jar!") This activity has quite a few intentionally imbedded skills including recognizing environmental print which leads to a cache of sight words, working within the alphabetic principle, letter sound recognition for automaticity, never mind the collaboration and language required to accomplish such a task! Next step: our class dictionary! |
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| ALPHABETIZING It was delightful watching the children chatting excitedly, as they whirled around the room in search of letter bags. "Has anyone seen the 'A' bag? " Yeah, it's over on the green team table near the b...or the d...I'm not really sure, but I put my word in anyway. It was 'bog' or 'dog'. Either way, Mrs.Silven will understand!"Well, after that explanation, I'm crystal clear! It seemed in due order, so we next worked in small groups to double check our accuracy:) |
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| READING WORKSHOP The following strategies and skills have been introduced: "touch reading" whereby the child touches each word for 1:1 correspondence; referencing the illustration for textual cues (teacher model, not yet practiced independently) and taking a picture walk to activate prior knowledge and infer information regarding the characters, setting and plot. These are lofty skills that we will work on over the next month. |
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| MATH CHALLENGE Measuring, counting and comparing... Check out this week's homework! |
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| "MAX'S WORDS" HUNT Suffice it to say, there is a heavy emphasis on literacy and numeracy immersion in the classroom right now. Thank you all for sending your children to me so well-prepared to learn! This is an amazing group of learners. Keep your child "hooked" on reading by looking for letters or words around your home or when you're out and about. Remember to give your child authentic praise as the developing reader he is! |
Sunday, October 16, 2011
CONFERENCE SCHEDULE!
PLEASE CHECK THE TIMES/DATE BELOW!
If you need to reschedule or if you have not yet scheduled an appointment with me, please email me a few times that are convenient for you. Thank you!
Recent notices
Gross Motor/Fine Motor
Last Week's Sight Words
Our First School Spirit Day is this Friday. Send your child in RED!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Coming Soon!
It was wonderful to see all of you on Back-To-School Night! It was difficult to fit everything in, so I have posted some salient, time-sensitive information below. Monday is our 5 senses field trip to Land's Sake Farm! Remember to send your child to school in comfortable shoes and weather-appropriate outdoor "gear." It is always a wonderful trip!
Thursday Afternoons: Untangling Confusions
Assessment Sessions
September/October
January
May/June
During this time and during some time during the typical class time, your child will participate in the following: math assessments, alphabet recognition and letter/sound automaticity (rapid, automatic naming); writing the alphabet; writing numbers; reading sight words: DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills); and phonemic awareness. Additional assessments may be used to establish your child's skill level and her/his application of those skills to classwork. This data allows us to engage and challenge students at the "edge," or most appropriate level, of their development in each given area. Please note that we do not assess all of these areas at once. We do certain assessments at certain times during the year with goal of guiding all children to meet kindergarten benchmarks by the end of the school year. It is important to note that "assessment" and analysis of your child's skills occurs anecdotally and informally all the time as your child engages in the curriculum.
4-6 Week Afternoon Sessions
These sessions will be scheduled for logical periods of time during the calendar year so as to provide as much consistency as possible for the students in the group. Each group will have no more than 4-6 students at at time. The district's intention behind this unique, enviable program design is to provide targeted, well-informed early intervention for students during this critical period of language and literacy development and mathematical understanding. Additionally, there may be opportunities to provide enrichment for students displaying advanced skills. If I feel your child would benefit from the focus area of a given session, I will extend an invitation for your child to attend at least one week in advance.
The Social Curriculum
As you know from the letter I sent home last Friday, Open Circle has begun! This year, I am co-teaching the lessons with Dr. Mary Schaefer, the school psychologist. Mary and I have been working together for years, and we often consult around the topic of establishing a positive, productive and caring classroom culture. We are currently on Lesson #4, nonnegotiable rules. The class established the following "nonnegotiables" or rules that never change: Raise your hand~one voice at a time; don't talk when others are talking; Safe bodies. Impressively, the children have already begun using this language with each other and applying it to all class meetings. If you ever happen by during an Open Circle lesson, you are more than welcome to join us. There is always an "open chair" waiting to be filled!
Monday, September 26, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
Back-To-School Night!
Hello everyone and welcome to the start of the 2011-2012 school year! I hope to see everyone on Wednesday evening, September 21st at 6:30. Kindly refer to Mrs. Clough's agenda for more specific information. It will be a wonderful evening!
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