Kindergarten Newsletter Jan. 16^th – Feb. 3rd 

*Our next PLC day is Tuesday, January 31st. Students will be dismissed at 1:33.

*On Monday January 16^th we will be out of school in honor of Martin Luther King Day.

Wednesday, January 25th will be the100^th day of school (More information is listed below.

Reading Unit #6 Weather for All Seasons

Literature: Mama is it Summer Yet?, Rain, Waiting Out the Storm

Letters: Bb, Ll, ck, and Kk, review Hh, Ee, Ff, Rr, Bb, Ll, Kk

New Sight Words: is, little, she, was

Review sight words: are, he, is, little, my, she, was, with (Need to read and write)

Grammar: Proper nouns, plural nouns by adding s or es

Social Studies: Transportation and Going Places

Math: Teen numbers as tens and ones (Ex: 12 is 1 Ten and 2 more, 13 is 1 Ten and 3 more), Patterns, Attributes, Teen #’s 11 – 20 (identify, count objects, and write #’s), Unit 3 Assessment, Partners of 10 (1+9=10, 2+8=10, etc.)

**We are really working on being good mathematicians and checking our work, especially with patterns. We don’t want to just continue a pattern with what it started with. An example would be:

J x J x J x J __ __ __ __

When the students get a problem like this they often look at the beginning and start it over so they add J x J x which is actually not right. We are always encouraging them to go back and check their work.

**In Math we continue to work on “Math Talk”. This is where we use questions to have students explain their math thinking and reasoning. Many times when we ask students how they got their answer they will say they just knew it. We want our students to be able to share and explain how they got their answer. Some of the questions we might ask are How did you know? Why? Does your answer make sense? What strategy did you use? How did you get your answer? What did you need to find out? What did you notice? Is there another way? What will you try? Feel free to encourage math talk at home with your child.

 

Health: Body Basics

 

 

BIST: This month our school-wide BIST focus will be on:

• Arrival/Dismissal
• School Assembly and Audience Behavior
• Life Skills
• Cafeteria and Playground Rules and Procedures
• 100 Days of Kindergarten!

• Wednesday, January 25th will be the100^th day of school: We will be celebrating at school.   We are asking each child to bring one set of 100 things:

• 100 things to count: Please help your child count out 100 items and bring them to school in a baggie marked with his/her name. We will count out objects in sets of 10 and line them up to see how they compare in length. Items your child could bring are: tooth picks, cotton balls, Q-tips, cards, cars, gum, paper clips, pennies etc.

***These items to count for the 100^th day can be brought early, or at any time before January 25th.

Thank you! Kindergarten Teachers,

Bobbi Adams, Shannon Svoboda, Karen Langan,

Amanda Williams, Dottie Kitchen

Read on for more information about our upcoming reading curriculum…

Week 1:

Dear Family Member:

This week our class will be focusing on the four seasons and how they are different. Children will also be reading stories and poems about the weather in each season.

Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the skills we will be practicing.

Word Workout

• Vocabulary: weather, seasons Discuss the four seasons and describe how the weather is similar or different, depending on where you live. Then invite your child to draw a picture of each season.
• My Words to Know

High-Frequency Words: is, little Write the words is and little on paper, then have your child do the same. Describe the weather you see outside today. Use the words is and little and record them on paper.

Category Words: seasons Display some of the clothing that your child wears in each of the four seasons. Ask your child to identify the season during which the clothing is worn.

Phonics: b, l Invite your child to search for objects that begin with the letter b and the letter l. Write the names of the objects on sticky notes. Have your child stick the labels on each item.

Comprehension: key details in a sequence

Read descriptions of the four seasons. Have your child draw a picture of each season. Encourage your child to think of fun things to do in each season.

Week 2:

his week our class will be reading stories about different kinds of weather. Your child will be predicting the weather and learning how to describe it.

Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the skills we will be practicing.

Word Workout

• Vocabulary: predict, temperature Look outside with your child and try to predict what the weather will be like later in the day. Try to predict the temperature for tomorrow.
• My Words to Know

High-Frequency Words: she, was Write the words she and was on paper. Then have your child trace each word. Write short sentences that include each word.

Category Words: weather words Make a 7-column table and write the days of the week at the top of each column. Every morning, look outside and have your child write a word under each day to describe the weather.

Phonics: initial k, final ck Help your child find objects that begin with the letter k or end in ck. Make a list of the words.

Comprehension: key details in a sequence

Have your child listen to a story, then put the story’s pictures in order, numbering them 1, 2, and 3. Invite your child to point to each picture and retell the story.

Week 3:

This week our class will be reading stories about how to stay safe in bad weather. Children will also learn about severe weather conditions, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, earthquakes, droughts, and floods.

Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the skills we will be practicing.

Word Workout

• Vocabulary: safe, prepare Make a list and gather materials for a weather supply kit. Include items such as a first aid kit, canned food, and a battery-operated radio.
• My Words to Know

High-Frequency Words: my, are, have, with, is, little, she, was Have your child think of sentences using the review words. Write the sentences on paper, and then read them together.

Category Words: question words Look for pictures of severe weather in a newspaper, or a magazine, or online. Ask your child questions about each picture.

Phonics: h, e, f, r, b, l, k, ck Play “I Spy,” having your child guess the names of objects that have the letters h, e, f, r, b, l, c, or ck.

Comprehension: key details

Tell your child to imagine that a blizzard might happen in a few days. Ask your child to circle items that should be included in a weather safety kit. Encourage your child to tell why each item should be included.