I Have Manners

Today we read the story "I Have Manners".  Each student then shared with their turn & talk buddy some ideas for ways we share during the day at school.  Each child then wrote and drew three examples in their notebook of ways they use their manners at school.  Finally we listened to each other share their ideas as they showed us the page in their notebooks.

Are you wondering what three your child chose???  

Frog Research has Officially Begun!

Click on the Hoppin' Into It: Frog Research Link above!

Measurement

Today the students used cube trains to measure every day items in the classroom.  Like good mathemeticians, they had to record their findings in their math notebooks.  We called this 'taking notes'.  The recorded a picture of the object measured, at least a beginning sound of that object, and the number of cubes in the train that matched it's length.

Word Sort Activity

A new activity will be coming home with your child today in their Tuesday envelope.  It looks like this:

The children cut apart the pictures and sort them under the correct beginning sound.  When they are done, you can check to be sure the pictures are sorted correctly.  We will be doing these on a regular basis in the coming months.  This is part of the Words Their Way program that was adopted by Discovery Elementary this year.  As the children get older, it becomes a very important part of learning  common spelling patterns.

A Different Kind of Puzzle

100 Pieces!

Some students worked on a different kind of 100 piece puzzle.  They attempted this earlier in the year and were unsuccessful.  This time they were able to complete it and it took only 2 free choice sessions to do it!  They were quite proud of their achievement... as they should be!

I Spy

Can you spy your child in the following pictures?  What do you notice about where they are sitting?

As the year goes on it becomes more and more challenging to spot the Kindergarteners in the lunch room.  Not only are they confident with the routine or getting and eating their lunch, but they are also confident about sitting with new people!  The K,1, and 2 classes are all mixed up and enjoying each other's company.

This is something we really encourage at Discovery!  Not only does it help children stretch and grow in their learning and leadership skills, but it greatly reduces bullying as well!  When the children of mixed ages and classrooms know each other they are more likely to befriend and defend each other!

So, even if you do not spot your child today, take that as a good sign that they are very comfortable here with their new friends at Discovery!

A SNAKE!

Today the children got very creative and made a unifix cube (math tool) snake out into Commons B!  All the older classes in the school were having a fun time watching them.   It was an excellent example of team work and building communication skills to get a big job done!  Here is a video I took of the project:

Unifix Cube Snake

We are learning a new word each day about "Being the Best Me I Can Be."
So far we have spent a day each on "I am Generous", "I am Creative", and "I am Responsible."  The children were very excited when Ms. Schrick told them their snake was 'creative'!

Next week's topics:

"I am Positive"
"I am a Leader"
"I am Confident"

Enjoy your weekend!
Ms. Tacke  :)

1, 2, 3!

The homework coming home today has a number writing practice sheet.  This is the time to make sure that your child is practicing the number correctly.  It is normal for children to reverse their letters and numbers at this age, but when it is actual handwriting practice, we want their muscles to practice it correctly!  We call that muscle memory and it is what helps us get faster and faster at writing letters and numbers correctly.

I hope you have your erasers - and an encouraging smile -  handy!

Let it Snow!

We have refilled our bulletin board with a new project.  First we cut out snowman 'paper dolls'.  (Most of them worked, a few are held together by tape.)  Then, using only scrap paper we decorated the snowmen.  No markers, pencils, or crayons allowed!  Each one is certainly unique!  (The one up in the air is flying a helicopter!)

If you click on the picture you will be able to see it close up.

300!!

The class has finished their first three hundred piece puzzle.  This one finally slowed them down a little!  Well done, students!

If anyone has 200 or 300 piece puzzles to donate or share, please let me know!

Reading Stamina

Here is a video that shows what our reading stamina time looks like and sounds like.  Because the children can read like this for 15+ minutes, we will start small group reading lessons called Guided REading.  Children will meet with me and learn more about reading using books at their level.

Reading Stamina Video

Here is what the students said they wanted you to notice:

"We are looking at books, not everybody else."
"We are learning to read."
"We did this for 18 minutes."
"We are being very quiet so we can practice."
"No one is talking."
"Looks good that we are sitting in one spot."
"We are not bugging each other."
"There's no giggling."
"We try hard not to let our reading tubs fall over."

In their reading tubs are:
letter books
paper books they have written
paper books they know how to read
winter season picture books

Stick To It!

Today we reviewed the resolutions we made on Wednesday and discussed this picture/quote!

The children's insights were quite impressive!

Homework today!

It is time to get back into our homework routine.  For the next few weeks, homework will continue to come home on Thursdays.  It will be in the purple envelope as usual.  After the Martin Luther King Jr. Day, homework will start coming home on the days your child has a guided reading lesson with me in a small group.  I will send home a letter explaining the changes in homework at that time.

Thank you for all you do to follow up on work at home and get the books back to school in a timely manner!

Kindergarten Resolutions!

We read a book called "Squirrel's New Year's Resolution" by Pam Miller.  The book explains what a resolution is and tells how the different animals in the story decide on which resolution to make.

When we were done, the children wrote down their resolutions for 2013:

I want to learn how to read. (many picked this!)
I want to be a better table mate.
I want to help my mom more.
I want to play my game more but my mom won't let me.
I want to be more creative.
I want to meet more people.
I want to help others at my table be quiet.
I want to do more coloring.
I want to better organize the classroom.  (OK... that's mine!)
I want to read a whole book.
I want to make better Mm's.
I want to be nice on the playground.