Kindergarten December News

Grant Elementary

December Reading Goal:  Writes consonant-vowel-consonant words (i.e., cat, pig, fan)

December Math Goal: Counts on from any number between 0 and 30

Thank You

Thank you to everyone who donated food to make our feast a fun and rewarding experience.  Thank you especially to parent (and grandparent) volunteers who make the feast day possible by cooking, serving and cleaning.  Additionally, thanks to Grant staff who joined in to help:  Mrs. Sens, Ms. Sax, Ms. MacCready and Mrs. Galli.  We appreciate your support of our learning experiences!

Please make sure that your child arrives at school with shoes that are tied each day.  Double knots work best!  Please also work on learning to tie your own shoes!

Important Information

Attendance Challenge We did not win the November attendance challenge.  One easy way to increase our attendance rate is to arrive at school on time.  Tardies count against our class record, so we need everyone at school on time.  School begins at 8:10am.  Students should be in line on the playground no later than 8:05am. Another important reason to be on time is that your child is better able to succeed in school if they are part of our morning routines.  The first 15 minutes are critical to setting the tone for the entire day.  We get organized, have morning meeting to welcome each other, share our thoughts, solve problems and build character.  We get warmed up with phonics activities and build important reading and math skills.  This time is SO important.  Don’t miss it!  Recess during Winter Months We continue to enjoy recess during the winter months.  We go outside daily as long as the temperature is at or above 10 degrees.  Kindergartners should be able to zip coats, pull on boots, get snowpants on, pull on mittens and put on hats or hoods.  The goal is get all gear on in less than 3 minutes (2 minutes is even better!).  We cannot keep children in for recess due to minor illnesses or preference.  All students must go outside on days that the weather permits.

Words Their Way

Words Their Way is a word study program that individualizes the way students learn to spell words. It is a hands-on approach to practice spelling patterns in words. It allows students to manipulate words and/or pictures into different categories. This sorting process helps students analyze and examine, compare and contrast, and differentiate the patterns in words. This hands-on approach not only motivates students to practice spelling words but it also helps students internalize the spelling patterns in words for the future. At the beginning of the school year, students completed a spelling inventory that helped determine which spelling stage the students were performing. From there, they were placed into small groups of students to which developmentally appropriate lessons and word lists are administered.  Through Words Their Way, Kindergartners learn how words are formed from patterns and familiar word parts. 

Visualization

Readers construct mental images as they read a text. By using prior knowledge and background experiences, readers connect the author's writing with a personal picture. Through guided visualization, students learn how to create mental pictures as they read.

Follow these few simple steps to provide practice developing students' mental images:

•   Begin reading. Pause after a few sentences or paragraphs that contain good descriptive information.

•   Share the image you've created in your mind, and talk about which words from the book helped you "draw" your picture. Your picture can relate to the setting, the characters, or the actions. By doing this, you are modeling the kind of picture making you want your child to do.

•   Talk about how these pictures help you understand what's happening in the story.

•   Continue reading. Pause again and share the new image you created. Then ask your child to share what he sees, hears, tastes, smells and feels. Ask what words helped him create the mental image and emotions. By doing this, you are providing your child with practice with this new skill.

•   Are your images identical? Probably not! This is a great time to talk about why your images might be different. Perhaps your child had an experience at school that changed the way he/she created the picture in his/her mind. Perhaps experiences you've had as an adult influenced what you "drew." These differences are important to understand and respect.

•   Read a longer portion of text and continue the sharing process.

Once this is a familiar skill, encourage your child to use mental imagery when she is reading by herself. You can feel confident that these mental pictures will help your child understand the text in an important way.

Creating mental images while reading can improve comprehension.

December Kindergarten Dates to Know

Nov 28 Library – Mrs, Caya -ip Word Family: dip, lip, sip, hip…	Nov 29 All Month:  review letters sounds, especially a, e, i, o, u (short vowels)	Nov 30 Library – Mrs. Conran Guided Reading Books Sent Home New Homework and Book Logs Sent Home	Dec 1 Return GR book! Last day to turn in November homework and Book-It reading logs!	2 This week, we will be learning about the history and traditions of several winter holidays.
5 Library – Mrs, Caya -ig Word Family: big, dig, pig… Kindergartners visit the Christmas Shoppe this week.  Send money in the envelope if you want your child to shop for gifts.	6 Family Night – Ornament Making 5:30pm Pre-registration was required. By this date, all Kindergartners should be able to name and describe: circle, square, triangle, rectangle and hexagon.	7 Guided Reading Books & Progress Reports Sent Home Library – Mrs. Conran Mid-term progress reports will be sent home.	8 Return GR book! OPT Meeting 6:00pm New sight words: said, play, he, are	9 This week, we will learn about the decorations and lights for various holidays.
12 Library – Mrs, Caya New sight words: what, now, find -ig Word Family: did, hid, kid, lid…	13 Review all sight words this week.  You child should know at least 25 sight words at this time.  Check the list in your folder.	14 Guided Reading Books Sent Home Library – Mrs. Conran	15 Return GR book! Words Their Way Chat and Chew at Stocker Elementary.  More information coming…	16 This week, we will learn about food, music and gift giving. No parent volunteers this week.  We will be making surprises!
19 Library – Mrs, Caya New sight words: how, you, this, make	20  No Guided Reading books will be sent home during Winter Break.  Please be sure all Guided Reading and overdue library books have been returned.	21 Kinder PJ Day Wear school appropriate PJs (no slippers; we will still have outdoor recess, so dress accordingly).  This is Kindergarten only!	22 –Jan 2 Have a safe, relaxing and fun winter break! Happy Holidays! School resumes on Jan 3.