Author: Anna Williamson

December 1, 2023 Class News

We had another fantastic week together in kindergarten. We are getting ready for Advent and thanking God for all we have! Your children are progressing tremendously in so many ways. They are growing into confident learners!

This weeks Star Student was Harrison. Next week will be Holly.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: at and be. Next week will be this and have.

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we reviewed the letters /l/ /k/ /j/ and /w/.  We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with l, k, j, and w.

Literacy centers: We continued with our reading groups, sight word center, independent library center, and iPad center. At the phonics center, students created sight words using sight word baskets, and using letter apple cards to create the word. In reading groups, we continue to make predictions using word clues and picture clues, using our reading finger to track words, sound out words and identify sight words. We also continue to work in our Explode the Code books which help students with handwriting, letter sounds, CVC words, and more!

Writer’s Workshop/Social Studies: We learned all about elves this week! We brainstormed ‘adjectives’ – words that describe elves. A few we came up with are: happy, sneaky, and small! We used a writer’s workshop skill to label the parts of an elf, and noticed patterns and trends of clothing we often see Elves wearing – hats, belts and pointy shoes. We exercised our creative writing skills this week by writing two different stories – pretending an elf came and visited us, and what we would do if we were an elf! One person wrote they would feed the reindeer, and someone else wrote they would help make the toys! On Friday, we had fun making our own sneaky, helpful and adorable elves to display in our classroom!

Math: We continue our investigation of the 100s chart! We are practicing to become 100 chart experts. We learned a new game called, Race to 120. I sent home a copy in their Friday folders, they can teach you how to play! All you need is a dice and two kinds of player pieces.

Second Step: This week we continued our unit on Emotion Management and learned that sometimes we can feel sad. We know that everyone can feel sad sometimes! Students talked about times when they have felt sad, and what they can do to help themselves or others feel better! 

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can count to 100 by ones and tens.
• I can count forward beginning with a given number within the known sequence (instead of starting at 1)
• Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can tell how the words and pictures go together in stories.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can help my class learn about a subject and then write about it.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.

Important Dates:

• Thursday, December 7^th – Christmas Concert! Egan Hall, 6:15pm
• Wednesday, December 13^th – Field trip to the Children’s Museum! Please do not order hot lunch for this day. More information to come!
• Friday, December 15^th – Noon Dismissal, Christmas Break
• Tuesday, January 2^nd – Classes Resume

November 17, 2023 Class News

We had another wonderful week in Kindergarten! We have been working hard, having fun and learning new things!

This weeks Star Student was Frances. After Thanksgiving Break, it will be Harrison.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: they and I. Next week, due to the short week, we will not be introducing any new sight words. We will of course keep reviewing the ones we have learned! The students continue to use their sense of sight and hearing to spot sight words everywhere!

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned the letters /j/ /w/ and /q/.  We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with j, w, and q.

Writers Workshop: In celebration of the upcoming holiday, we discussed what it means to be thankful for something – to feel happy and pleased that you have something or someone in your life. We first brainstormed as a class about things we are thankful for (mom, dad, the Earth, life, sunshine, teachers, and Jesus!). Then, we then took those ideas and wrote them on a placemat that we will decorate for Thanksgiving!

Literacy centers: We continued reading groups, sight word center, phonics center, independent library center, and iPad center. At the phonics center, students wrote the room, finding and recording Thanksgiving themed words. In reading groups, we continue to work on letter sounds, sounding out CVC words, and reading our blue decodable books!

Math: Our essential question for chapter 3 is “How can I show numbers beyond 10 (10-20)?” We are showing numbers 10-20 on tens frames to help us grow our number sense and understand the place value of teen numbers (group of ten and how many more?). Students are learning to explain how they can count a number…can you count by 5’s to get to the number? Can you count on from 10?

Students created “decomposing turkeys” where they chose two numbers to create a larger number! They used feathers and numbers to show their thinking. Students are also learning to explain how they can count a number…can you count by 5’s to get to the number? Can you count on from 10?

Religion: This week in our Circle of Grace lesson we learned that towns and cities have traffic signals which keep people safe and protected. God has given each of us our own kind of signal to keep us safe and protected! We thought of different scenarios that were green (definitely safe: being kind, telling the truth, helping others, etc.), yellow (be careful: if you can’t tell if a situation is safe or not) and red (stop: lying, hitting, fighting, etc.). If we are unsure about a situation, we always will find a trusted adult to help us!

Art: With Thanksgiving coming up, we began to focus on and discuss as a class things that we are thankful for. Students created turkeys with 6 feathers, on each feather, students wrote something they were thankful for! Students brainstormed things like family, friends, school and food. Ask your child what they wrote on their turkey and the things they are thankful for in their life! We will continue this discussion throughout the month of November and will continue to discuss and add things in our lives that we are thankful for!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can count to 100 by ones and tens.
• I can count forward beginning with a given number within the known sequence (instead of starting at 1)
• Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching and counting strategies.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can tell how the words and pictures go together in stories.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can help my class learn about a subject and then write about it.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.

Important Dates:

• Monday, November 20^th – Dress Uniform, Thanksgiving Mass
• Tuesday, November 21^st – Dress Uniform, Grandparents Day for 3^rd-5^th Grade/No Hot Lunch this day
• Wednesday November 22^nd – Friday, November 24^th – No School, Thanksgiving Holiday
• Wednesday, December 13^th – Field trip to the Children’s Museum! Please do not order hot lunch for this day. More information to come!
• Friday, December 15^th – Noon Dismissal, Christmas Break
• Tuesday, January 2^nd – Classes Resume

November 11, 2023 Class News

We had a fun week together in Kindergarten! I had a such a nice time conferencing and sharing your child’s successes with you last week. I treasure being able to partner with such wonderful families. Your children are excited, kind and happy learners!

Next weeks Star Student will be Frances.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: with and his.

Phonics: Our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week was /l/ and /k/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with l and k. We love to come up with new words that begin with our letters of the week!

Handwriting: This week we focused on writing letters l and k. We also worked hard in our Handwriting Without Tears workbook!

Literacy centers: This week we continued reading groups, sight word center, independent library center, and iPad center. At the phonics center, students used Thanksgiving cards to put them in order to make Thanksgiving sentences! In reading groups, we continue to observe picture clues and word clues to make predictions about what the story will be about. We are stretching out words slowly like to hear every letter in the word. We continue to practice reading CVC words and sight words in our reading group books.

Thank you for all our parent volunteers who have been able to sign up!

Writers Workshop: We continue to write sentences and stories in our writing journals! We are trying to add the words “and” and “because” to create more thoughtful and descriptive sentences. If you want to write with your child at home, ask them what a finger space between words is and how to stretch out the word they are sounding out!  

Math: This week we learned what an ordinal number is (up to 5)! Ask your child about first, second, third, fourth, and fifth! We continue to work hard in our math journals and use manipulatives to explain our thinking! Next week we will begin Chapter 3: Numbers Beyond 10.

This week we also learned how to play the card game, War! If you have a deck of cards at home, I encourage you to play with your child and challenge them to teach you how to play!

Social Studies: We read a mini-book about Veteran’s Day and drew a picture of why we are thankful to be free – to go to school, to vote, to have food, and more!

Religion: This week we introduced “Circle of Grace,” our new safety curriculum. Students are learning the area around their body (similar to personal space) is their “circle of Grace!” God is always with us in our circle of grace and only wants good things for us in our lives.

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can count and divide words into syllables.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can tell how the words and pictures go together in stories.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can help my class learn about a subject and then write about it.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can count up to 10 to tell how many things are in a group.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)
• Monday, November 20^th – Dress Uniform, Thanksgiving Mass
• Tuesday, November 21^st – Dress Uniform, Grandparents Day for 3^rd-5^th Grade/No Hot Lunch this day
• Wednesday November 22^nd – Friday, November 24^th – No School, Thanksgiving Holiday
• Wednesday, December 13^th – Field trip to the Children’s Museum! Please do not order hot lunch for this day. More information to come!

October 27, 2023 Class News

We had a terrific week learning together in kindergarten! Your children are working hard and having fun! Take a peek at all we did this week.

This weeks Star Student was Elijah. Next week we will not have one due to parent/teacher conferences.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: are and as. Next week we will learn with and his.

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned the letters /d/ and /f/.  We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with d and f. We are working on our “best guess” spelling, meaning they write whatever letters they hear! Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder.

Literacy Centers: This week we continued reading groups, sight word center, independent library center, and iPad center. In our phonics group, students “wrote the room.” They carried clipboards as they wrote different Halloween words around the room. In reading groups, we continue to observe picture clues and word clues to make predictions about what the story will be about. We are also practicing reading and writing CVC words and sight words in our reading group books.

Writers Workshop: We reviewed the four seasons and discussed the things we see and do during the fall. We learned about the parts of a leaf and why some leaves change color in the fall. We went read the book We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt and went on our own leaf hunt around our campus! We then described our leaves using our five senses. They came up with some great descriptive words!

On Wednesday, we spent time writing about why we are excited for Halloween! Students were so excited to share about costumes and festivities. We continue to work on finger spaces, writing with lowercase letters, and using punctuation at the end of our sentence.

Math: Students were excited to practice estimating with candy corn! We had one large class jar of candy corn, students estimated how many were in the jar and put their estimation on our poster. We then counted as a class to find out how many there really were! We continue to focus on “one more” when counting numbers 1-10. We are also working hard on problem solving in our math journals. Students love to critically think about questions, solve them independently, and share with the class under the document camera!

Science: We used our five senses to observe our class pumpkins. The class came up with terrific describing words using our five senses to guide our thinking. As scientists do, we had a fun pumpkin investigation lab, where we got to measure the parts of a pumpkin with unifix cubes, count the lines, and we even investigated whether our pumpkins float or sink in water! These investigations led to other questions and wonders so we got to experiment a bit further based on the kid’s own questions!

STEM: This week we challenged ourselves with our first STEM project! Students were given candy pumpkins and toothpicks and tried to make a haunted house. The goal was to have the house stand up and to fit a “ghost” inside. Ask your child if their haunted house was a success!

Second Step: This week we began unit 2, “Emotion Management.” In this unit students will learn how to identify emotions in themselves and others. They will learn strategies to manage their emotions! Lesson One focused on “happy!” Through certain social cues (smiling, calm body, etc.) students could identify that a person was happy. We talked about different times we have been happy and what our “happy face” looks like!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Tuesday, October 31^st – Happy Halloween! Students may wear their Halloween Costume on this day!
• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)
• Monday, November 20^th – Dress Uniform, Thanksgiving Mass
• Tuesday, November 21^st – Dress Uniform, Grandparents Day for 3^rd-5^th Grade/No Hot Lunch this day
• Wednesday November 22^nd – Friday, November 24^th – No School, Thanksgiving Holiday
• Wednesday, December 13^th – Field trip to the Children’s Museum! Please do not order hot lunch for this day. More information to come!

October 20, 2023 Class News

We had another great week together in kindergarten! We were busy spending time with our buddies and participating in the Great Shake Out! Check out what else we’ve been up to!

This weeks Star Student was Caroline. Next week will be Elijah.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: for and on. Next week we will learn are and as. Are you working on these at home? A good way to practice sight words is to keep a bundle of sight words (simple flashcards you can make with notecards) in your purse or bag and pull them out whenever you have an extra minute to spare – waiting for an appointment, quickly before you go out the door, etc.

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned all about the letters /c/ and /h/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /c/ and /h/, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with c and h. Some words they came up with were ‘Halloween, hat, cake, and carrot.’ Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder. If you choose to do homework at home, practicing lowercase letter formation is a good skill to practice with parent guidance! You might choose to brainstorm words that start and end with c and h while you’re driving, going for a walk or eating dinner.

Next week will be beginning sounds /f/ and /d/.

Literacy Centers: This week we continued reading groups, sight word center, independent library center, iPad center and phonics center. At the phonics center students used stamps with pictures, they then had to fill in the missing letter to complete the word! In reading groups, we continue to use our “Eagle Eye” to observe picture clues and word clues to make predictions about what the story will be about. We are busy finding and writing sight words from our decodable readers! Keep up the reading practice at home!

Writers Workshop/Science: During writer’s workshop, we compared and contrasted a pumpkin and an apple using a Venn diagram! We used pictures and words to see how they are the same and how they are different! See if your child remembers what the similarities and differences are. We also reviewed the lifecycle of a pumpkin by completing a pumpkin headband! Ask your child if they remember the lifecycle of a pumpkin!

Math: In math groups, we practiced “shake and spill” where students decomposed 5 or 10 on a tens frame. We filled a cup with 10 two-sided math tokens (one side yellow, other red), shook the cup and spilled them. Lastly, we wrote the number of yellow and red tokens to 10!

Religion: We continue to be Christ-centered people who pray with intention and reverence (SLE) by mastering our prayers – Guardian Angel and Prayer Before Meals. We continue to practice being mindful using our high five breathing.

Second Step: This week we reviewed how paying attention looks (eyes watching, ears listening, minds thinking) as well as the kind words we can say to encourage ourselves and others while learning and playing. Students remembered they can say “I can do it!” and “Keep trying!” to themselves and to others!

Art: In honor of Halloween, we created “candy corn mosaics!” Students ripped and glued white, orange and yellow paper to create their own unique mosaic! We also read the book, Spookley, and created our own “Spookley” pumpkins!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)

October 12, 2023 Class News

We had fun discovering, sharing and adventuring together this week in kindergarten!

Next week, our Star Student will be Caroline.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: he and was. Next week we will learn for and on. Are you working on these at home? A good way to practice sight words is to keep a bundle of sight words (simple flashcards you can make with notecards) in your purse or bag and pull them out whenever you have an extra minute to spare – waiting for an appointment, quickly before you go out the door, etc.

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned all about the letters /n/ and /p/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /n/ and /p/, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with n and p. Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder. If you choose to do homework at home, practicing lowercase letter formation is a good skill to practice with parent guidance! You might choose to brainstorm words that start and end with n and p while you’re driving, going for a walk or eating dinner.

Next week will be beginning sounds /c/ and /h/.

Handwriting: This week we practiced forming lowercase and uppercase letters n and p. We finished reviewing our uppercase letter formation in our Handwriting Without Tears workbooks and began with lowercase letters. The first letter we learned is “Magic C!” Students learned you can make many other letters with the magic c, such as o, a, s, and g! We are continuing to use our hat line, belt line, and boot line to make letters and numbers, as well as practicing writing our names with only one uppercase letter!

Literacy Centers: This week we continued reading groups, sight word center, independent library center, iPad center and at the phonics center students used magnets letters to identify the beginning sound in a picture. In reading groups, we continue to observe picture clues and word clues to make predictions about what the story will be about. Some students are working on mastering letter sounds while some are working on sounding out CVC (consonant vowel consonant) words.

Writers Workshop: This week, we started learning all about pumpkins! During writer’s workshop, we reviewed what a ‘label’ is (a word that tells us about a picture) and labeled the parts of a pumpkin.  We also introduced the concept of ‘nonfiction’ books verses ‘fiction’ books. We learned a few clues that can tell us which one it is – real photographs, table of contents, glossary, real true information or, make believe components – not real photographs, talking animals, etc. At home, you can practice this by having your child identify whether the book you are reading is nonfiction or fiction and why.

Math: This week we began chapter two which explores numbers to 10. We continued to focus on “how many more” from 5 on a tens frame. For example, 6 is “one more” than 5. 7 is “two more” than 5. Students continue to practice writing numbers 0-10.

We continue using our counting collections to practice our one to one counting correspondence. We are even starting to counting bigger bags of items! Take a peak in your child’s Friday Folder to see the item they counted, how many they counted, and how they showed their number!

Science: We began our unit all about pumpkins! This week, we learned the parts of a pumpkin. Ask your child to name the parts of a pumpkin! We learned the life cycle of a pumpkin, too. Ask your child to retell you the life cycle of a pumpkin!

Second Step: In this week’s second step lesson, we learned that it is important to practice and keep trying in order to get better at something! Students shared things they are practicing and want to get better at. Some of us want to get better at bike riding and soccer, others want to improve writing and reading!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read emergent level text with purpose and understanding.
• With prompting and support, I can ask and answer questions about key details in text.
• I can spell simple words phonetically.
• I can read CVC words.
• I can speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Friday, October 13^th – No School, Teacher In-service
• Tuesday, October 17^th – Individual Portrait Day
• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)

October 6, 2023 Class News

We had another busy week in kindergarten! We were scientists and investigated our 5 senses. As scientists do, we will use our 5 senses the whole year to observe the world around us! We are active learners! Take a look at what else we were up to this week.

This weeks Star Student was Calder. Next week we will not have one due to the shortened week.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week: that and it. Next week we will learn he and was. Our students are very good at noticing sight words in books we read and in the world around us!

Phonics: during our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned all about the letters /t/ and /g/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /t/ and /g/, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with t and g. Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder.

Next week will be beginning sounds /n/ and /p/.

Handwriting: This week we have focused on uppercase and lowercase t and g and continue to practice writing numbers 1-10! We are also working hard at writing our names with only one capital letter! Ask your child to show you the “hat line, belt line and boot line.” If you choose to do homework, name writing is a great skill to work on at home – using uppercase at the beginning and lowercase for the rest.

Literacy Centers: This week we continued reading groups, independent library center, iPad center, sight word center and phonics center. At the sight word center, with Ms. Wakefield, students practiced not only sight words, but handwriting, writing their sight words in trays of sand. At the phonics center this week, students practiced their fine motor skills by using unifix cubes to create our sight words! In reading groups, some of us are working on letter sounds, and some are working on sounding out CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words! We look forward to parent volunteers starting soon!

Math: We finished up chapter one: Numbers 0-5, and will continue to explore the essential question, how do we show how many? We have been learning to compare numbers using the terms “greater than,” “less than” and “equal to.” In kindergarten, we learn how to use “tools not toys,” in order to help us solve math problems. One tool we added to our “math tool belt” is the tens frame. We will practice using this tool to help us understand numbers and help build our math tower of knowledge. Students explored the term “one more” with numbers to 10. Students were given tens frames and a number, then had to show a number that is one more than the original. This helps us with learning how to “count on” from any number. We will continue to use tens frames to learn how to compose numbers 1-10. We are continuing to practice using complete sentences and showing all our work to explain our math thinking.

• Key math words: Count, equal to, greater than, less than, number, zero, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten

Science: We learned all about our 5 senses this week – sight, hear, smell, taste and touch. We read poems, played games, and created class charts to show that we understand each of the senses. When we learned about sight, we made a chart to see the different eye color in our class then discussed patterns we saw in the charted information. When we learned about hearing, we listened to different sounds and students drew what they heard (for instance, dogs barking, cars honking, rain falling). We also made a class chart of our favorite foods when discovering more about taste! When we discussed touch, students felt objects in a paper bag and had to guess what the objects were! Ask your child if they guessed correctly! Our last sense was smell. We had four cups of four different smells: lemon, mint, vanilla, and coffee. Students smelled was what was in the cup and made predictions of what was in the cup! We use our senses to help understand the world around us!

Religion: We continue to be Christ-centered people who pray with intention and reverence (SLE) by mastering our prayers – Guardian Angel, Prayer Before Meals and Prayer After Meals. We continue to practice being mindful and calming down when necessary using our high five breathing. We continue to practice sharing God’s love by using compliments and kind words through a variety of games, role-play and mindfulness breathing.

Second Step: In this week’s lesson, we learned that mistakes are a natural part of the learning process. We learned that we can encourage our classmates through using kind words, and we can also encourage ourselves through kind self-talk! We brainstormed kind phrases which may include, “You got this”, “Keep trying”, and “I know you can do it”. We will practice kind self-talk when encouraging our classmates, along with ourselves when we make mistakes.

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Friday, October 13^th – No School, Teacher In-service
• Tuesday, October 17^th – Individual Portrait Day
• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)

Important Notes:

Meet Mrs. McCarthy –

Many of you know Mrs. McCarthy as the reading specialist for the primary grades. But, did you know that she also provides other services? Running small reading support groups is how Mrs. McCarthy spends most of her day, however, she also consults with teachers to help support all the learners in kindergarten through second grade. She might observe in the classroom and make recommendations to help support learners. In addition, she teaches a spelling group in second grade and provides in-class writing support in grades one and two. While kindergarten in-class support is not part of her regular schedule, she tries to get into the kindergarten classrooms as often as possible to get to know all of the students and provide support in the classroom setting.

September 29, 2023 Class News

We had another fantastic week together in kindergarten! We were busy writing stories, celebrating our families, identifying feelings and noticing signs of fall.

This weeks Star Student was Bernadette. Next week will be Calder.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week words: is and you. We will continue to learn two sight words per week. Next week we will learn that and it. Our students are very good at noticing sight words all around our classroom! When you read with your child at home, try looking for sight words together!

Phonics: During our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we reviewed the letters /b/ /m/ /r/ and /s/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /b/ /m/ /r/ and /s/, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with b, m, r and s. Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder.

Next week will be beginning sounds /t/ and /g/.

Handwriting: This week we reviewed lowercase and uppercase letters b, m, r and s as well as numbers 1-9! We are also reviewing our uppercase letters in our Handwriting Without Tears workbook. If your family chooses to do homework, letter and number formation is a great skill to practice at home! Ask your child to show you the “hat line, belt line and boot line.”

Literacy Centers: We worked hard in our literacy centers this week! In ability-based groups of 5 students, we rotated through iPad center, independent reading center, sight word center, phonics center (this week students used various colored beads to thread them onto pipe cleaner for extra fine motor practice) and guided reading group with me!

Writers Workshop: This week, we answered the prompt, “I like fall because…” Ask your child about why they like fall! Ask them about “compliments” and “noticings” during writer’s workshop share time.

Math: We are working towards articulating our ideas clearly by using complete sentences to explain our math thinking during morning calendar. We continue to grow as mathematicians in differentiated groups by counting, writing, and showing numbers 0-10. We love working in math groups and extending our learning through “dessert” games!

This week we learned about equal to. Ask your child to show you a group of objects that are equal. We are practicing using complete sentences to explain our math thinking.

• Key math words: Count, equal to, greater than, number, zero, one, two, three, four, and five.

Science: This week we observed signs of fall! Some students noticed coldness, leaves changing colors, flowers drooping, animals searching for warmth and more clouds in the sky. We are empowered disciples!

We did a craft to accompany our learning and observations about Fall. We traced our hands and arms on our skin color, and ripped Fall colored tissue paper to create leaves.

Second Step: This week we learned two reasons to pay attention: to learn, and to stay safe. We want to learn and pay attention in school, as well as paying attention in places like the kitchen, and when crossing the street!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can recognize and make rhyming words.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Wednesday, October 4th – All School Mass, Dress Uniform
• Friday, October 13^th – No School, Teacher In-service
• Tuesday, October 17^th – Individual Portrait Day
• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)

Important Reminder:

• Classroom families, we need your input for Partners in the Gospel, the
  Archdiocesan multi-year consultative process to renew and reinvigorate parish
  life. As we have already informed you, this plan calls for two or three
  parishes to be grouped into a family beginning July 2024 with one pastor and
  one or more parochial vicars. Between 2024 and 2027, the pastor, parish leaders
  and parishioners will determine how best they will operate together to carry
  out the mission of the church as one canonical parish. This past weekend, the
  initial draft families were announced in all the parishes. Fr. Crispin announced our proposed family – St. John, St. Alphonsus, and St. Benedict. Although the focus is not on the schools, schools are the biggest ministry of the parishes.
• As a member of the school community, you are a member of the parish community. Your input in this process is valuable. At the listening sessions next week, you have the opportunity to voice your hopes and concerns and ask questions.
• Fr. Crispin asks everyone to share their thoughts. Please join us on Monday, October 2 at 7pm OR Sunday, October 8 at 11:45am in Egan Hall. Sign up at Partners in the Gospel Listening Sessions to participate in this important endeavor. Let your thoughts be heard.
• If you cannot attend in person, send your feedback via the online survey.

September 22, 2023 Class News

We have had a busy week in kindergarten! Your children are asking questions and are excited to learn. Check out what we have been up to this week!

This weeks Star Student was Audrey. Next week will be Bernadette.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week were in and to. We will continue to learn two sight words per week. Next week we will learn is and you. Our students are very good at noticing sight words all around us!

Phonics: during our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned all about the letters /r/ and /s/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /r/ and /s/, glued them on a graphic organizer and lastly drew and spelled our own words that begin with r and s. Take a look at your child’s spelling coming home in their Friday folder.

Next week we will review beginning sounds /b/ /m/ /r/ and /s/.

Handwriting: This week we have focused on lowercase and uppercase r and s. We are also continuing to practice numbers 1-5! If your family chooses to do homework, letter and number formation is a great skill to practice at home! Refer to resources in Friday folder for guidance. Ask your child to show you the “hat line, belt line and boot line.”

Literacy Centers: We worked hard in our literacy centers this week! In ability-based groups of 4-5 students, we rotated through independent reading “library” center, sight word center, phonics center, and guided reading group with me! Literacy centers are one of many examples of how are students are Active Learners who work independently and collaboratively (SLE).

Writers Workshop: Writer’s Workshop has already become a favorite time of day for many kiddos! I feel blessed to have the privilege of guiding our class of young writers. We practiced using three steps to write a story – think of a story and picture it in your mind, draw the pictures, then write the words. Ask your child what ‘best guess spelling’ is and see if they can show you how to write all the sounds they hear in a word.

We were also introduced to our new writing curriculum’s “All Write Club!” There are four characters that will help us learn how to write complete sentences. They are: B.Z. Beaver (organization), Neema Gecko (ideas), Finn Puffin (style/”the word bird”) and Jenny Ant (CUPS: Capitalization, Usage, Punctuation, Spelling). These four friends will assist us this year as well as in first and second grade!

Math: Kindergarten math is all about number sense! We played with our “math dessert choice” games this week. Students have the chance to use hands-on manipulatives (dice, dominoes, unifix cubes, etc.), in order to play their “dessert game.”

• Key math words: Number, counting, zero, one, two, three, four, and five.

This week we also began counting collections! Counting collections are when students get fun, hands-on items to count. These items range from dinosaurs to gold coins. Once students have counted all the items in their bag, they have to record the number of items on their recording sheet. Counting collections strengthens students’ one-to-one counting, as well as their recording skills. We will continue counting collections throughout the school year to help us become better counters!

Religion: We continue to show we are Christ-centered people by making the sign of the cross before and after every prayer. We are mastering our prayers – Guardian Angel, Prayer Before Meals and Prayer After Meals.

We also took a tour of the church this week. We learned all the parts of the church and what there purposes are for.

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can read the words in a book in the right order.
• I can recognize and make rhyming words.
• I can say the most common sound for each consonant in the alphabet.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.
• I can understand that the last thing I count tells the number of things in a group.
• I can name the number for each thing in a group as I count them.

Important Dates:

• Friday, October 13^th – No School, Teacher In-service
• Tuesday, October 17^th – Individual Portrait Day
• Wednesday, November 1^st – All Saints Day Mass, Dress Uniform
• Wednesday, November 1^st – Noon Dismissal/Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Thursday, November 2^nd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 3^rd – Parent-Teacher Conferences (Students do not attend)
• Friday, November 10^th – No School, Veteran’s Day (observed)

September 15, 2023 Class News

We had another fantastic week together in kindergarten! We were so happy to participate in the Jog-A-Thon on Friday. The kids loved running and seeing how many laps they could do! Thank you to everyone for your participation!

This weeks Star Student was Ali. Next week will be Audrey.

Sight Words: Our two sight words this week were and and a. We will continue to learn two sight words per week. Next week we will learn to and in. We love noticing our sight words in books and around our classroom! They are discovering that sight words are everywhere!

Phonics: during our Words Their Way phonics lesson this week we learned all about the letters /b/ and /m/. We cut our “sort” cards, sorted them by beginning sounds /b/ and /m/, glued them on a graphic organizer and last thought of our own words that began with b and m and drew a picture to match. We even tried our best to spell the words we thought of. We are active learners!

Next week will be beginning sounds /r/ and /s/.

Handwriting: We love learning how to correctly form letters and numbers in kindergarten! This week we have focused on lowercase b and m. We are also practicing numbers 1-5! Ask your child about “hat line, belt line, and boot line.” If your family chooses to do homework, letter and number formation is a great skill to practice at home! Refer to resources in Friday folder for guidance.

Writers Workshop: We began our Writer’s Workshop this week! Twice a week we think of ideas, write and illustrate stories and to follow our school SLE: An active learner who articulates ideas clearly, creatively, and effectively. This week we learned that writing is just telling on paper. We practiced using three steps to write a story – think of a story or something you know a lot about, picture it in your mind, draw the pictures, write the words. We focused on “best guess spelling” and really emphasized to sound out each word phonetically. We even learned to label our illustrations! Ask your child about their own writing journals and what they wrote about!

Literacy Centers: We continued to work on our literacy centers this week! Students are working in small groups focused on fine motor skills. They are working together, sharing, and taking turns!

Math: This week we began our math workbooks! Chapter one focuses on numbers 0-5: How can we show those numbers and how do we form them when writing! We like to warm up by counting “dot cards” and sharing how we counted the dots-did we count by ones? Use patterns? We will continue chapter one through next week!

Social Studies: We continue to talk about how everyone in our class is unique and has different names. Even though we are all different, we are a part of our kindergarten family. This week, we read the story, A My Name is Alice to facilitate our name study. Using the book as inspiration, students created a self-portrait and wrote their names in a sentence with a word that begins with the same letter as their name. For example, “M my name is Miss Williamson and I like marshmallows!” Take a peek in our classroom to find your child’s self-portrait!

To celebrate our names, we also read the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and made our own coconut tree! Each student put all the letters of their name on their own coconut tree. Take a peak at some below!

Second Step: This week we began our unit on Growth Mindset and Goal Setting through our Second Step program. We learned that in order to pay attention, you watch with your eyes, listen with your ears, and think with your brain!

Religion: This week we read the story “How Full is your Bucket?” and learned the difference between bucket filling and bucket dipping. Bucket filling is when we fill others buckets through giving them compliments, asking to play with them, or saying kind words. Bucket dipping is when dip into others buckets by saying unkind words or excluding others from playing. Ask your child other examples of bucket filling and bucket dipping, and how they can be bucket fillers!

Common Core Standards we’re working on:

• I can read common sight words.
• I can draw or write to help me share what I think.
• I can print lots of upper and lowercase letters.
• I can write numbers from 0-20.

Important Dates:

• Sunday, September 25^th– Blessing of the Backpacks Mass
• Friday, October 13^th – No School, Teacher In-Service
• Tuesday, October 17^th – Individual Portrait Day

Reminders:

• Please send a 5×7 or 4×6 photo of your immediate family in the next week (by Thursday, 9/21). We will be using these for a class project. Thank you!