Newsletter 10/27

We began a new writing unit this week called Looking Closely.  In this unit, we will learn how to write a nonfiction piece that describes a special item.  We all went outside to collect our first "specimens"- leaves!  We are writing just like scientists.  We learned to use our senses, and our knowledge of sight words, to describe our leaves.  Scientific authors look, record, and label.  They describe colors they see, sizes, textures and shapes. 

We also began a new reading unit: SUPER POWERS!  We are becoming super readers and learning how to activate our super reading powers.  This week we learned about Pointer Power, how it helps us read carefully and recognize words.  We even got plastic pointer fingers to strengthen our powers! 

In math, we did an Exemplar called Anna's Apples.  Ask your child about it.  We had to compare two amounts and describe how we know which is more.  We made manipulative models of the problem with connecting cubes.  Everyone's was unique (see photo).  Then we worked as a team to come up with a diagram that would show our thinking.  We also learned the correct formation for numerals 0-9, so now we can write ANY number!  See the numeral writing practice sheet coming home in back pack mail.  This is not mandatory, but great extra practice.  Correct numeral formation is hard to master.  It's normal to have reversals at this age.  If your child is reversing numerals while writing, please correct him/her, as now we have learned the correct formation.

We learned a bit about syllables in our phonics lessons this week, but most of our focus was on sight words and sentence structure.  We worked on building sentences with word frames, using spaces between the words, beginning with a capital letter and including punctuation (see photo).

We finished our study of severe weather in science this week.  We watched a news cast and learned what a meteorologist is.  What does s/he do and how is s/he helpful?  Then we discussed ways to stay safe in extreme weather and what items we should have on hand.  A meteorologist tells us when the weather is coming, so we should be ready. 

We celebrated our five senses and Halloween by carving pumpkins!  Everyone helped build a Table Teamwork Pumpkin. 

Lastly, we had a super fun race with our 5th Grade Buddies, building skeletons outside!

News and Notes:

• 10/31  HALLOWEEN!  All students should bring costumes in a sturdy bag.  No masks or weapons, please.  Parade outside at 9:45 am.  Everyone's invited!
• 11/3 The Darien Environmental Group will speak to the class about recycling.  
• 11/7  NO SCHOOL
• On 11/9, Kindergarten will be singing for local veterans at the breakfast we have at school.  This is an event for veterans and their family only.  If you have a veteran in your family who would like to attend, please contact the office, and let me know as well.  

Two manipulative models comparing 7 and 10

Looking closely at our leaf specimens

Acting out a math problem with and without graphic organizers

Sight word and sentence structure work in phonics lessons

Showing how we found a math answer with a diagram

Super readers use POINTER POWER!

Carving fun

Newsletter 10/20

We did a lot of celebrating in Kindergarten this week!  We are learning so much!

We finished our Emergent Readers unit in Reading Workshop.  To celebrate, the Kindergarten had a Storybook Parade through the halls of Ox Ridge, with all the older students cheering us on!  We held our favorite storybooks as we walked through the school, celebrating that WE ARE READERS!  Everyone was so proud and supportive of us.  Please see the anchor chart in the photo below to see some of what we learned in this unit.  We also read many sight word books, working on reading accurately while pointing to the words.

We also finished our first unit of Writing Workshop.  We made a decision, just like an author, about which piece to publish, and we put our rough drafts aside.  Then, we learned how to "fix and fancy" (edit and color) our pieces to make them as good as we can.  Lastly, we shared all the we'd learned, hung our work in the hallway for all to see, and celebrated with a toast of bubbly!  WE ARE ALL AUTHORS!  Please see the photo below for some of our writing lessons from this unit.

In math this week, we learned about a tool called a ten frame.  We'll use ten frames all year.  We played a game called "Build It" where we represented various numbers on a ten frame.  We also continued working on numeral formation.  Lastly, we gathered data regarding what Halloween creature is the scariest.  We made a graph and used tally marks to record our results.  Most of us think vampires are the scariest, some think witches, and less of us think Frankenstein is the scariest.

We finished learning how to write the "Frog Jump Letters" in our handwriting lessons.  Please look for a practice sheet coming home.  This sheet is for you to model correct formation and your child to copy. 

We learned about our five senses in our science lessons this week.  We studied a different sense every day.  We played a listening game to exercise our sense of hearing and colored with scented markers to smell.  Everyone made a book of their favorite things to see, hear, smell, touch, and taste.  We also learned how if one sense is weak, other senses become super strong. 

Everyone had a blast at our first Games time today!  Thank you to everyone who volunteered!

News and Notes:

• Look for your child's Book Fair wish list coming home on Monday
• Our pumpkin carving next week is a secret!  
• Halloween parade 10/31, outside at 9:45 am.  Students should NOT wear their costumes to school, but bring them in a sturdy bag.  We will change in/out of costumes at school.

Our Writing Workshop anchor chart

Reading sight word books

"Build It" on ten frames

Our Emergent Storybook anchor chart

CHEERS!

WE ARE AUTHORS!

Our favorite storybooks

Our Kindergarten Storybook Parade

Newsletter 10/12

In Reading Workshop this week we read two emergent story books: Leo the Late Bloomer and The Three Bears.  We did picture walks, acted them out, explored the characters feelings and tried to retell them ourselves. In Shared Reading we read Brown Bear, Brown Bear and an apple poem.  We searched for sight words and other words that we know.  We also worked on reading them with fluency.  EVERYONE brought their storybooks back after the first night home!  Way to go!  I was so impressed!  I hope you are enjoying hearing the story that your child has chosen to share with you.  Please continue to send the books and sleeves back daily.

In Writing Workshop we used large popsicle sticks as "spacers" to help us make spaces between words.  Then, we tried to write using connecting words to make our stories flow.  We were inspired by some second grade authors that came to share their finished pieces with us.  We will begin to edit our first piece next week and then publish it!

We continued working on our counting books in math while also working on correct numeral formation.  We played a game called "Roll and Record" with a die and recorded our results.

We learned all about fire safety this week and were surprised by a firetruck visit on Thursday!  Fireman Dan and Dennis (both Ox Ridge dads), gave us a hands on lesson in safety.  The Darien Fire Station is having an Open House this Sunday.  All the students want to go!  

This week's science unit was on SEVERE WEATHER.  We learned what "severe" means, and acted as real scientists as we noticed and wondered about weather extremes.  Each child picked a kind of severe weather to study and we headed down to the Library to do our research.  Last, we shared our findings with our team posters, which are now displayed in our hallway.  Ask your child what s/he studied and noticed.

We met our 5th Grade Buddies on Friday!  We are buddying up with Mr. Latona's friends this year, doing monthly activities.  We got to know our buddies this week, reading books and coloring together.

News & Notes:

• look for your child's Book Fair wishlist coming home on 10/23 in backpack mail
• Kindergarten Halloween Parade 10/31 at 9:45 am (more info soon)

A page in our counting book, representing 5 in various ways

Using a "spacer" in Writing Workshop

Reading firefighter books

Reading familiar texts with a pointer finger (1:1 correspondence)

Team Thunderstorm making their poster

Team Blizzard

Team Hurricane

Team Tornado

Team Thunderstorm doing their research

Team Blizzard recording their findings

Team Hurricane research

Team Tornado

Mrs. Tabaka teaching us how to research in the Library

Building our own firehouses

Fireman Dan and Fireman Dennis show us their gear

Our severe weather team posters in the hallway

Newsletter 10/5

We love our emergent storybooks!  Students are learning to tell the story by looking at the picture, use the exact words the character says, and include connecting words like "Once", "then", "next", and "finally".  We are also searching for sight words that we've learned: the, I , see and a.  Students will be bringing home a chosen storybook to "read" to you next week.

In Writing Workshop, we learned how to "stretch" out words with our pretend rubber bands, hearing as many sounds as we can and then identifying the sound using our letter line and keywords.  Everyone is working so hard to match sounds to letters!  Some students are even using "finger spaces" between words.  We also learned that we can make our stories more than one page long, telling more of our story or teaching more about our topic.  When we make stories longer, we can use the connecting words that we studied in Reading Workshop!

We did our first Exemplar with Miss Coyne in math this week.  We read a story problem about two boys who had toy trucks.  One had 5 and another had 6.  One thinks he has a greater amount than the other.  Does he?  How do you know?  How can you SHOW that you know?  This is a typical Exemplar, challenging students to understand a problem, think and plan about how to solve it and then show their thinking.  There are multiple ways to solve this.  We began with acting it out, then we used manipulatives, then we drew a diagram.  We'll be working on these skills all year.

We used the Chrome Books for the first time this week and logged on to Dreambox.  Please remember that your child should not be using Dreambox at home until further notice.

We did another Second Steps lesson this week and we learned how focus our attention using an "attentiscope".  Focus is the first of our Skills for Learning.  See the sheet sent home on Wednesday for more information.

We began a unit on clouds in our science lessons.  We went outside and tried our best to draw the clouds we observed.  After we made our diagrams we added labels describing the clouds.  Then, when we looked back up at our clouds, they had MOVED!  Woah!  Why?

News & Notes:

• your family's safe meeting place due on 10/12
• field trip bus money due 10/20
• no Scholastic book order in October.  Please visit our Ox Ridge Book Fair instead!
• Kindergarten Halloween parade 10/31 at 9:45 a.m.  More info to come...
• Please remember, no jewelry or accessories in class.  Children are distracted by these items; they end up in their mouths, or lost/broken.  Best to keep special things safe at home.  Thank you.

Highlighting sight words in our Poetry Books

The Robin Hood assembly this week

Young scientists observing clouds

Writers "stretching out" words to hear sounds

Beginning Dreambox

Ms. Coyne helping us to visualize a story problem

Making a manipulative model of the story problem