Ms. Concannon's Kindergarten: Read Across America Week

A look at our learning...

Fundations: we are beginning a new unit next week. We will continue to work on tricky spelling words, please cut out and utilize the flash cards that are in the Friday Folder this week. Your child should be able to read and write these words with ease over the next few weeks. They will be added to our word wall as we learn them in the classroom. We will also be focusing more on words with digraphs (wh, ch, th, ck, sh). We are learning that diagraphs are two letters that make one sound. Please check out the Fundations papers in the Friday Folder to help extend their learning at home.

Shared Reading: our new spelling words this week were look and was. To help us practice these words we read the big books Bananas Sometimes (a super silly book they loved) and I was with. We are learning more strategies to try when we come to an unknown word in a book: look at the picture, get your mouth ready for the first sound, tap it out/sound it out, think about what would make sense and re-reading. When you are reading with your child at home, prompt them to use these strategies before just telling them a word. If they try at least 3 strategies and are still stuck, then it is OK to tell them the word.

Daily 5: it was so nice to FINALLY have a full 5 day week and get reading groups going regularly again. During reading groups children are given books that are "just right" for them. Every group has anywhere from 3-6 students who are at the same reading level. Every group is reading a new book every day that they meet, working on the skills mentioned above during Shared Reading. We also work on retelling/discussing the books we read. When group is over they are able to keep these books in their book boxes to practice reading independently during our daily Read to Self time.

While I am working with reading groups, the other children are working with a partner at their Daily 5 literacy centers.

Writing Workshop: we continue our non-fiction/informational writing unit. We have written 1 or 2 books about hedgehogs (which I enjoyed sharing with you at conferences) and are now learning and writing about guinea pigs.

We are learning how to put spaces between our words when writing. Ask your child to tell you about their spaceman sticks. Ask your child how many fingers they use to put spaces between their words at home when they don't have a spaceman stick to use (the answer is 2 fingers). Putting spaces between our words makes it easier to read.

Math: this week we worked on basic shapes, counting a set number of objects and accurately recording it on a recording sheet, measurement and surveys and graphs. Check your child's Friday Folder for ways to extend math at home and for some of the work they did this week at school.

Science: we continue to learn about the weather and record in our weather journals. Please continue to send at least a light jacket with your child to school every day. Many times we look at the high temperature of the day, not realizing that Kindergarten has lunch recess at 10:40 and it is still very chilly. We require students to wear a light jacket if the temperature is 45-59*. If the temperature is below 45* they must have a big coat. A hoodie or fleece is not enough if the temperature at 10:40 is below 45*

Many times our lunch recess is still below 45* and we have some cold children!Thanks for understanding and helping us with this.

Craft: to celebrate National Read Across America Week all grade levels at Beulah Ralph chose an author to learn about. Kindergarten chose David Shannon. Every bulletin board in our hallway is decorated with a David Shannon book. Our class chose to make pirates from the books How I became a pirate and Pirates don't change diapers! Today we took a tour of all the hallways to see what author the other grade levels learned about.