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!

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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

The Night Before Kindergarten Story

Gather your child near as I read them a story the night before kindergarten!

Jessica By Kevin Henkes

Meet Little Hoot!

Hi Kids! This is Little Hoot. He's our classroom owl. I will be holding him when you get off the bus. When you see me holding him, come stand in line right behind me. We will stand in line until all of the kids in the class are with us. Then you will walking in a straight and quiet line behind me as we walk together down to our classroom.

I am so excited to start school tomorrow! I hope you are too.
~Mrs. Perry

Scholastic Book Clubs

Class Activation Code: HY7YX

September 4, 2013

Dear Parents,
This month’s book club is filled with great books! Your orders are due by Friday, September 20^th if you choose to order books for your child. Now it's easier than ever to find the right books for your child — and help us earn FREE books for our classroom library at the same time! With new online ordering from Scholastic Book Clubs, you can choose from a much wider selection of books than in the printed flyer. Plus, you can send your orders directly to me online and use your credit card. Best of all, our class earns a FREE book every time a parent places their order online.

It's so simple! Here's how it works:

• SIGN UP at www.scholastic.com/bookclubs. On the parent page, click the "Don't have a User Name and Password?" link, then register for your own username and password. When prompted, enter the one-time Class Activation Code shown above. This code ensures that your order is sent to me.

• SELECT the books you'd like to order from over 500 titles available online...and take advantage of online-only specials and discounts.

• SEND your order to me online by the due date. Books will be delivered directly to our classroom, as always.

Of course, you can still order using the form from the printed flyer instead if you wish.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me!

Thanks so much,

Jennifer Perry

Volunteer Sign Up

Please click on the link to access the volunteer sign up sheet. Please remember that in order to volunteer in the classroom, the Washington State background check paperwork needs to be turned into the office.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AkoxwCNd4EWFdDh5X2w2YzRwbEsyX3VaX3I3YUZpeXc&usp=sharing