Kindergarten learning

Fundations: we learned the name, sound and correct letter formation for lowercase a and g.  We learned that there is a "funny a" and "funny g"  that we sometimes see in books, and the regular a and g that we write.  

Please use the following verbal prompts:

a-over, around, down (NOT circle and a stick)

g-over, around, dow....n, curve up

If you haven't already, check out the video I posted on our class Facebook page earlier this week about how to properly do the handwriting work that comes home in your child's Friday Folder. 

Shared Reading & Science: we have incorporated science into our Shared Reading time.  We have learned the following:

*Parts of a book (cover, back cover, spine, author, illustrator, title page, page numbers)

*Readers ask questions as they read/listen: Who, What, When, Where, Why, How, I wonder?

*Readers point to words when they read

*Monitoring on known words in text (for example: when we see our word wall words see, a and I in books we should be able to point to those words and read them accurately)

*Counting words in sentences and noticing how there are spaces between words

*Living things need water, food and/or soil, air, space, sunlight

*Life cycle of a pumpkin

*Parts of a pumpkin

Ask your child about some of our fun Fall and pumpkin poems we have learned.  They may even sing them to you!  The leaves are falling, Who Stole the Pumpkin from the Pumpkin Patch and Pumpkins are three poems we have learned.  

I hope you were impressed with their reading when they brought home their Shared Reading Book Pumpkin Life Cycle earlier this week. If they didn't read it to you, ask them to this week and count it on their reading log!

Daily 5 Workstations: this week we began Daily 5 workstations.  This is a time when students will rotate through centers with a partner.  I like to call them workstations, rather than centers, because it reinforces that they are working and learning and not just playing.  During this time they will work on literacy activities to reinforce reading and writing skills learned in the classroom.  Right now the workstations are pretty simple as our goal right now is to stay at our center and use a whisper voice.  We will eventually work our way up to going to 3 workstations a day.  Once routines are in place and the children can work independently I will start pulling guided reading groups and teaching the students how to read during this time.  It takes time to build these routines and make sure the children can work at their workstations without my support and help, that way I can teach reading groups uninterrupted. 

Ask your child what literacy workstation they went to this week!

Spelling Check: the class was so excited to start our spelling/word wall words this week!  I made a big deal about how this is such a big kid thing to do and how it will help them become readers and writers!  We practice our words in various ways at school, but I encourage you to practice at home as well.  Please check their folder for their test to see how they did and a detailed note explaining the scoring process.  I want to reinforce to you, the parents, what I reinforce to the students.  It is okay if they make a mistake or miss one or more!  I will NEVER be upset with them and mistakes help us learn.  I tell them that it helps me see what words we need to practice more in the classroom and it helps them and their parents know what words they need to practice at home.  This is not and should not be stressful, but rather turning them into readers and writers, as mentioned above.  Make it fun when practicing at home so that it isn't a thing of worry or stress for them, but rather a learning experience. 

Next week's new spelling word will come home on Tuesday, since the students don't have school on Monday.  The new word of the week will be am if you want to get a head start on practicing. The spelling check will still be on Friday. 

Writing Workshop: we continue to work on telling stories through pictures.  We have gotten really good at drawing people using shapes and have moved onto learning about settings.  A setting is where the story takes place.  They were able to choose a character card to glue in their writing notebooks and draw a setting that matched that character. As you can see below, one child chose a pirate character card, so drew a pirate ship in the ocean around it.  Another child chose a princess.  Next, we will transfer this knowledge over to writing about ourselves and including a setting based on what WE did.  

Math: we began unit 2 this week.  Check your child's Friday Folder for more information about what they will learn and how to support at home.  This week we learned two new math games: Memory Match and Top It.  Instructions on how to play and playing cards are in your child's Friday Folder.  These are for you to play at home as a family.  I hope you will use them!  Your child knows how to play, so have them teach you! 

A reminder that reading is required homework at Beulah Ralph, grades K-5.  Please make sure you are reading to your child (or them reading to you when it's appropriate) for at 15 minutes at least 4 nights a week and recording on their monthly reading log.  The logs need to be turned in at the end of every month. 

BEU Circus:  a note from Jason Gatz, our room parent for this year:

"We're good to go with the class basket for Flash's Circus.  We had a bunch of local businesses step up and donate, so please shop local at these places if you can.  Total value is over $300, and all donated. Also, props to Nick Parks and Level up, they donated a bowling party that we took out of the basket and put into the silent auction due to its value. 

Sparky's $20, D Rowes $25 Logboat $20 and swag Tellers $20 Addisons/Sophia's $25 Level Up $15 Andy's $15 Belly Markey $25 44 Canteen/Stone $25 Tiger Bounce $25 and teddy bear CoMo Rocks Day Pass $30 Flat Branch $25 Plume Cupcake tasting for 6 ($30 value) Booches T-shirt"

Thank you Jason!  Typically, parents have to purchase and donate items for the class basket, so I think I speak for everyone when I say how grateful we are that you secured these items all through donations!  

Fun pictures from the week

Cards we made for our custodians on Custodian's Day