Math Targets

Here are the learning targets for Unit 4 which we are working on now.

• I can count by 1s up to 50.
• I can write numbers 0 – 20.
• I know that adding is putting together.
• I know the + symbol means to add.
• I know that subtracting is taking apart or taking from.
• I know the – symbol means to subtract.
• I can find the sum of two dice rolls.
• I can identify and describe basic shapes.

For those of you using ixl math online, here are some connections to what we are learning.

Numbers and counting up to 20
• D.11 Count forward and backward – up to 20
Addition
• I.7 Add two numbers – sums up to 10
• I.8 Addition sentences – sums up to 10
Subtraction
• J.1 Subtract with pictures – numbers up to 5
Measurement
• Q.2 Tall and short
Issaquah

Perry's Polar Express

Look for this coming home in your child's folder today...

Polar Express and Pajamas!

All aboard! The Polar Express is coming to kindergarten!

Use the attached golden ticket to board Perry’s Polar Express next Wednesday. Please send your child to school with their favorite pajamas and favorite book. I will be reading the Polar Express to the kids and then we will be having a read-in. Hot cocoa and sugar cookies will be served. (If your child has special dietary needs, please send in an alternate snack)

Newsletter

Thank you to everyone who took time from their day to come visit with me during conferences. It is so helpful to talk with you and hear your perspective. We had 100% participation in conferences which may be a first for me in all 17 years! THANK YOU!!

Winter Break
As we approach winter break, please remember to build in time during your day to read with your child. It is so important to keep up this habit. For some kids we are really making headway and I would hate for them to lose all of their progress over the break.

Also, don't forget to logon to ixl.com for some math practice. It's fun for me to get the weekly reports to see which kids are using the site. Hopefully it provides some fun and engaging extra math practice for them.

Writing
We are now entering the last section of our first unit in writing. The kids are learning how to write TRUE stories. Here is the process they are following:

1. think of something that happened or that you did
2. with pictures and words tell

• who was there
• where you were
• what happened

    3. use speech bubbles

It's simply amazing the progress these kids are making in such a short amount of time!

Caring for Sharing
A big thank you to everyone who donated items for Caring Through Sharing! Hopefully we will make someone's Christmas a little brighter!

After School Movie
Another After School Movie is coming on Dec. 18th. More info. to follow!

Popcorn Friday
We are doing a make-up popcorn day this Friday Dec. 13th. Remember to send your child with just ONE quarter. They are not allowed to buy for another or give their quarters away. Thank you!

Scholastic Book Order

The December book order has been placed. I apologize for those of you who have been waiting. Scholastic had a problem with our order and well, after MANY phone calls to their customer service, we got it straightened out. Hopefully it should be here before break.

IXL Math Website

I wanted to remind you of our new math practice website called IXL. Earlier this year I sent home a purple piece of paper with your username and password.

www.ixl.com/signin/issaquah


Each week I get a report of which students are accessing the website and how long they stay on the sight. I also get a report of what skills they are learning. It's exciting to see some of the students taking advantage of this web site.

Please let me know if you need a reminder of your username and password. This would be great math practice for the Thanksgiving weekend!

~Mrs. Perry

Game Day!

In our math curriculum, we have projects at the end of each unit. We are at the end of Unit 3 now and the project is GAMES!

On Wednesday we will be having game day. We will spend the morning playing all types of games. Feel free to send in a game (board or card) with your child. Please label your game clearly and send the game in a paper or plastic bag. It will also be helpful if you lightly tape the box closed so the top doesn't come off in transport.

The games will be sent back home for you to enjoy over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Thanks for your help!
~Mrs. Perry

Newsletter

Here’s what we’ve been up to in kindergarten!

Harvest Party: A BIG thank you to those who helped contribute and plan the Harvest party. The kids had so much fun and it was the perfect amount celebration for a school day. I will send some pictures via email when I get a chance.

Literacy: All of my assessments are now completed and we are on to our typical literacy rotations. I am so thankful that we have so many parents who volunteer to be in the classroom during this time. It really makes a difference and allows me to fully focus on my guided reading groups. I meet with guided reading groups twice a week. This is a time where I can meet with your child in a small group and target my instruction by choosing leveled books and I really get a chance to listen carefully to your child. We have introduced the strategy of “Eagle Eye” this week. Basically, this means that readers should look at the picture to help them decode unfamiliar words.

Writing: We have now successfully launched our writer’s workshop! We are now onto learning to write informational text by creating teaching books. Look for these books to come home soon!

Math: Subtraction and measurement have been our focus in math. Many of our activities are completed in class and are on a conceptual level. We just completed a review of the numbers and that packet will be coming home soon.

Handwriting: Lowercase letters are just around the corner! We are finishing up our last few uppercase letters. It’s amazing to see the progress in each child’s writing!

Bucket Filler Assembly: We had a very engaging assembly on Friday about how to be a ‘bucket filler’. There is a children’s book that I have read to the students to go along with the learning. Being a bucket filler means you are kind to people.

Conferences: If you have not signed up for conferences, please do so here: http://www.mrsperryslittlehoots.blogspot.com/2013/09/conference-sign-up.html

Veteran Stars

Coming home in today's take home folder is a star. This star will be a part of our Endeavour's Veteran Wall of Fame.

1.  Write the name(s) of any family member(s) that have served our country in the Armed Forces on the star
2. Write the branch of service of the family member(s) as well
3. Return the star to school by or before Monday, November 7th

Ms. Jane Lessons and Resources

Today we had another visit from our wonderful counselor Ms. Jane. Please take a look at her website. She has so many wonderful resources ranging from how to parent effectively to what to do about homework.

Ms. Jane's Website

Newsletter 10/17/13

Well, the weeks are really flying by now! Here’s an update on what we’ve been up to!

Literacy: I am continuing to assess students to gain knowledge on their strengths and weakness in reading. Hopefully I will have this all wrapped up by the end of the month.

During our literacy block in the morning we are working on making connections and being able to answer questions about a story. For many, this is still challenging. I am doing a lot of modeling how to do this. When reading at home with your child, it would be helpful if you too would model the connections you make while reading. For example, when reading a story about a pumpkin patch you might say, “Oh! I remember when I was young, I went to a pumpkin patch too. It was a lot of fun and I ran around in the corn maze just like the character in the book!”

We are beginning to learn the 25 sight words that are required for kindergarteners to know. This week’s word is: is

Math: Our learning target for math has been “I can identify and read numbers 1-10”. This week we have been learning about number stories (story problems). The kids have practiced orally with a partner telling and solving number stories with the use of manipulatives.

Handwriting: We are almost finished with the uppercase letters. I see improvement in many student’s neatness and their ability to write the letters in the correct direction.

Writing: We continue our writer’s workshop lessons on writing about topics they know a lot about. Students are encouraged to sound out and write at least the first letter of a word. For those that know all of their letters in the alphabet, I encourage them to write all the sounds they hear. For those kids who know how to spell words phonetically easily, I encourage them to write at least two sentences about their topic. Students are also prompted to label the items in their pictures.

Harvest Party: On Thursday October 31^st, we will be having our Harvest Party here in the classroom. Please, no costumes or partial costumes that day. I encourage kids to wear black and orange or holiday themed clothing, but no costumes (or crazy hair, or funny teeth, or make up, etc.)

Report Cards: As we continue on in our school year, our attention turns away from “adjusting” to the school environment toward “thriving” in the school environment. In the next month or so, I will begin assessing students on their progress during this first trimester of kindergarten. Please take a moment to look over the kindergarten assessment scoring guide http://www.issaquah.wednet.edu/documents/curriculum/fieldtest/Kscoring13new.pdf

I find that sometimes, parents have an idea of how their child is doing in school based on what their child tells them and also on their prior experience in preschool.  Kindergarten is quite different than preschool and the expectations for academics and behavior are higher. Being informed about what your child is being assessed on will help us partner together to bring out the best in your child!

Have a wonderful rest of the week!

~Mrs. Perry

Picture Day

Picture day was today. If you forgot to send in your picture envelope, you can send it in tomorrow only. Picture retakes are Nov. 13th.

Week #3 Newsletter

Thank you to all who order from the Scholastic Book Club! Thanks to you, our class earned 815 bonus points that I can use to buy books for our classroom!

The next book order is Due Friday October 11th.

Shop Online: scholastic.com/readingclub
One-Time Class Activation Code: HY7YX

Dear Families,

Please remember to place your Reading Club orders by October 11!

You can shop and submit your order online or return the printed order form with payment directly to me. No matter how you order, every purchase you make earns FREE Books and educational supplies for our classroom.

The arrival of the book box is always a highlight-thanks for making it happen!

Happy reading,


Ordering online is fast and easy:

•  REGISTER at scholastic.com/readingclub
•  ENTER the Class Activation Code at the top of this letter
•  CHOOSE from thousands of print titles, value packs, and Storia eBooks
•  SUBMIT the order to me by the due date at the top of this letter
•  EARN FREE Books for our classroom too!

__________________________________________________________________________________

WALKATHON: Tomorrow is the walkathon! Kids are encouraged to wear spirit wear tomorrow to school. If you are participating in the walkathon, please meet us on the sand field. We will be lined up in front of the #5. Remember that in order for your child to participate, they must have an adult present and you must have registered.

Auction Item: During the walkathon, there is a silent auction. Up for bid by me is an afternoon of snowflakes, hot cocoa and gingerbread house building. Bid on this item to spend the afternoon with me!

Literacy: This week we have been practicing visualizing. The students are learning to pay attention to the little movie that plays in their mind when they are reading. This helps them makes connections with the literature and deepens their understanding.

In writer's workshop, we are learning how to sound out words and also how to revise and add more detail to our writing.

We have just finished all of our "Frog Jump" capital letters in handwriting. It has been challenging for the kids to remember to start their letters at the top but today we listened to a fun song that will help them remember!

Math: Counting has been the focus this week. We are focusing on learning to count in a variety of ways. We also revisited an earlier concept of "longer than" and "shorter than".

Apples: Please remember to send in one peeled and chopped (small pieces please) apple on Friday. We will be making our apple sauce today. In class today we read the story of Johnny Appleseed. I was surprised to find out no one knew about this tall tale character from our country's history! Did you know that his birthday is tomorrow? Sept. 26th!

Field Trip: Thank you for everyone who sent in their field trip forms. I appreciate the promptness. I am still looking for volunteers to go on the trip with us. I will draw names out of the hat on Friday so if you want to go, please email me before then.

Conferences: If you haven't had a chance to sign up for conferences please do so soon. See a previous blog post for the sign up link.

Have a great week!
~Mrs. Perry

Conference Sign Up

Good afternoon,
Please use this link to sign up for conferences on Wednesday Dec. 4th and Thursday December 5th.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AkoxwCNd4EWFdDhlUFd5ZnIyY1phSlRxVlgwXzNwREE&usp=sharing 

See you then!
~Mrs. Perry

Newsletter #2

We are in the swing of things now in kindergarten. This week we added something new to our day. In the afternoon we are now doing learning centers. There are four centers that the kids rotate throughout the week. The centers are enrichment and/or skills based.. For example, the week the students have been counting dots on a domino and matching it with the correct digits in, Domino Parking Lot. They have been doing a letter identification center called Letters in My Name and ABC Stamps. Finally, the kids are working through a series of skills on the computer.

We also refined our class rule. There are three components to a good classroom; making good decisions, being a problem solver and respecting others. We boil all that down into one phrase: Make good choices that don’t cause a problem for anyone . If we agree to do this as a class, we will have fun, stay safe and learn.

Monday is the last day for walkathon forms to be turned in. Hopefully we will have nice weather next Thursday!

In our literacy block, we have been focusing on letter identification and sounds through working with names. We have made many class books that the kids are enjoying reading. In our comprehension work, students are learning about cause and effect through the book, If You Give A Mouse A Muffin

During our math instructional time, our focus has been on graphing and patterns. We have graphed the letters in our name, the dates of our birthdays and how old we are. We have also explored patterns through multisensory pathways such as sound and movement.

Have a wonderful weekend!

~Mrs. Perry

Week 1 Newsletter

We have arrived at the first full week (almost) of kindergarten. Hooray!! Your kiddos are just so sweet and I have really enjoyed getting to know them. It always amazes me how quickly they adapt to new situations.

Each Wednesday I will post my “newsletter”. I may also give updates throughout the week, but this will be my official newsletter day.

School Is Not Like Home

One big “Ah ha!” I think kids are having this past week is that school is not like home. They are right! Working with and within a system is a new yet very important skill. Many kids are learning that their behaviors that they do at home which may be completely appropriate at home, are not appropriate at school. I am trying to teach them the difference between the two this week. For example, at home, it is okay to talk whenever you have a thought that come to you. At school, it is important to raise your hand until the teacher calls on you. This way, the teacher is able to listen and concentrate on what you are saying.

You can help with this learning at home starting a conversation with your child about the different behaviors that are okay at school, but not at home.

Literacy

This week we have been focusing on our names. We have done some activities relating to learning how to look at the first letter of a name and that helps us read the name.

We have been practicing our fluency by reading a shared reading book about the color red. We sing and read the song every day. Ask your child if they can spell the word red.

The students also completed a pre-writing assessment. They were asked to write about their first day at school. For most, this consisted of a picture. For some, it was writing sentences. I will assess the kids every month and keep their papers. It is so fun to see the growth over the year!

Handwriting

We have just begun our handwriting curriculum. We started by getting familiar with the 4 types of lines we use to make our letters: little line, big line, little curve and big curve. We used wooden blocks in the shapes of the lines and curves to make “Mat Man”. This helped the students become familiar with the different type of lines and also taught them how to draw a person. I would encourage you to have your child practice drawing people at home. We do a lot of drawing in kindergarten to support our learning and it is always so frustrating to those kids who do not know how to draw. Here is what “Mat Man” looks like so you can support their drawing. Remember to use the lines correctly!

Math

During our math time, the kids have participated in learning about measurement. Using the words, “longer, shorter, the same” they compared lengths of strips of papers. They also identified shapes and we discussed what a ‘side’ and a ‘corner’ of a shape was. Finally, the students learned to practice counting by using their sense of touch and hearing.

Walkathon

Walkathon is Thursday September 26th 3-6pm. Online registration is open now www.endeavourptsa.org You need to register if you are going to attend. Registration closes on Tuesday September 17th. You must attend walkathon with your child. You may not drop your child off and pick them up later. I hope you will be able to attend this fun event. I will be there too!

Pumpkin Patch Field Trip

We will be going to Jubilee Farms for our pumpkin patch field trip on Tuesday October 22nd. I will be looking for a couple of parents to volunteer. I will send out more information regarding volunteering as the date approaches. Out of fairness to others, please do not request to volunteer until the notice goes home in October. Thank you for understanding.

That’s it for this week! Loving these sunny days, I hope you are too!

~Mrs. Perry