Reminder

"A" students go to Penguin Patch shoppe tomorrow, 12-19-12.
"B" students go to Penguin Patch shoppe on Thursday, 12-20-12.

First, I would like to say "Great job!" to both classes.  Each class had a guest teacher last Thursday and Friday, and they earned super reports!  I am so proud of them for making good choices and working hard.

Gingerbread time...Monday and Tuesday, we read seven different gingerbread tales.  Gingerbread Cowboy and the Gingerbread Girl were the overall favorites!  The classes enjoyed acting out "Five Little Gingerbread Men" while we practiced counting back from 5-0.  We will be partnering with the fourth graders to write our own gingerbread stories in the next few days--what fun!  Until break, we will be learning about Kwanzaa, Hannukah, and Christmas.  We will be having holiday fun!

Tuesday Tip

If your son/daughter is struggling with letter names (upper or lower case), try http://pbskids.org/lions/games/abcd.html.  This is a silly game that helps students to learn the letter names while having fun.  We have used it in class and the kids love it!  I've been told you can hear their laughter down the hall when we complete this activity on the Smart Board.  Hope you like it as much as we do!

Hello December!

First, I would like to say how nice it was to be able to meet with so many of you at conferences over the past few weeks.  It is so important for parents and schools to work together for students' success.

This has been another terrific week in Room 201.  We tackled our third math test of the year.  What a great opportunity for students to learn test taking skills at an early age.  I am certain that this will help make the transition to future grades easier for them.  The students will be bringing home the Chapter 4 packet for math this week so that you can see what we will be studying in the next few weeks.  We are going to be working on comparing numbers and groups of objects to 10 to determine which ones are greater, less, or equal.

In language arts, we continue to work on blending sounds to read and write words.  We introduced two new sight words: "he" and "for."  The students are so excited to learn new words!  I am so impressed with their enthusiasm and determination.  We read "A Bed For The Winter" and learned about animals and their habitats. 

Thanks to all of the parents and grandparents who came to school to have lunch with the students this week!  The kindergarteners were thrilled to have visitors!  Thanks also to all of you for helping to make our school Book Fair a huge success!

With Thanksgiving only a few days away, our class is collaborating with Mrs. Reynolds' fourth graders to create our own handprint turkeys and write a story about them.  The students created their own characters, setting, and plot--what creative minds they have.  Mrs. Reynolds and I were quite impressed.  These stories/illustrations will be laminated and displayed in the hallways for all to see.  Mrs. Reynolds and I are already planning our next team endeavor!  Great job boys and girls!

We continue to focus on mastering the letter names and sounds.  We have added the skill of connecting the sounds to read unknown words, such as zap, mix, fed, and big.  The students are determined to leave kindergarten ready for first grade.  I am impressed with their drive to succeed!  In math, we are nearing the end of the third chapter, which has focused on counting and writing numbers to 10.  Soon we will begin more work comparing these numbers. 

In honor of Thanksgiving, most of our learning this week is centered around the holiday.  We are creating graphs, listening to stories about the holiday, counting turkeys and more! 

I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your loved ones!  Remember, there will be no school on Thursday, 11-22, or Friday, 11-23.

Quarter #2 is here!

The second quarter started with a short week.  This week, we studied animal babies and their parents that live in the grasslands.  The students are really enjoying nonfiction books!  It is wonderful to be able to watch their faces as they learn new things--they get so excited.  We began our discussion of adjectives this week.  This is a tricky topic for kindergarten students, and we will continue to return to them throughout the school year. 

In math, we focused on the numbers 7-9.  We read a counting book about Ohio history to reinforce our counting skills.  Both classes were amazed at some of the things we read about Ohio's rich history.  We also began counting to 50 each day.  This takes a lot of repitition to master.  Please practice at home as often as possible.

I hope you are all able to enjoy the sunshine this weekend!

End of the First Quarter

Today we are officially one-fourth of the way through the school year!  The students are making such wonderful progress--I am so proud of them!  I am looking forward to more wonderful work in the next three quarters.

This week, we practiced our numbers from 1-10: counting, writing, and comparing.  We had fun with fairy tales and worked on our reading comprehension skills.  The students are doing well understanding the definitions of "plot," "character," and "setting."  Impressive!  We are still practicing letter sounds and have advanced from naming the first sound in a word to the final sound in a word. 

Conferences are coming up--if you would like to schedule a conference, please call the office at 943-6400 between 9:00-2:00 Monday through Friday.

The end of the first quarter is coming!

The quarter ends on Friday, November 2.  Please remember to pay your school fees as soon as possible.  I cannot believe how quickly the first quarter has gone.  Report cards will go home in a few short weeks.  The first report cards will primarily focus on letter naming, letter sound identification, counting, writing numbers, and letter formation.  Please practice these skills regularly at home to support our work in the classroom. 

We had a fun week in room 201.  The students enjoyed Spirit Week--I was impressed with the wacky hairstyles on Wednesday!  Thursday was Picture Day for the "B" class...all of the students looked so adorable!  I cannot wait to see their pictures in the yearbook. 

We are celebrating fabulous fall.  Both classes have made some incredible looking scarecrows.  Many of these are currently decorating our hallways!  The students have gotten many compliments from other grades--they are very artistic.  I am looking forward to more art projects throughout the year. 

The class is starting the third chapter in our math series, which focuses on the numbers 6-10.  They are excited about a new challenge and are already looking forward to the fourth chapter!  I think I have some future mathematicians in class!

October 19

Hello!  Another wonderful week at Brantner, and tonight is the Fall Festival!  What a nice thing to look forward to on such a rainy, chilly day.

The students are mastering the concepts of character and setting.  We are also working on "Classifying and Categorizing."  They are doing well with this skill.  In math, we continue to compare groups that are greater, less than, or equal to.  This week, Miss Kemen and I began small writing circles.  We are working on the steps of the writing process.  We brainstormed a list of things that we know about school (using our schema).  Next week, we will work as a group to write the first draft of a true story about school.  The students will share their stories with the other group at the end of this five week process.  The class is really excited to be authors!

Happy October!

I am amazed that it is already October!  September went by so fast!  Please remember that we have outdoor recess unless it is raining or under 32 degrees.  Layers are a great choice for students on chilly days.

I am so impressed with how quickly the students have learned the school rules--they have been getting many compliments from other teachers, parent volunteers, and the principal!  Great job boys and girls!  Both classes have earned their first set of Cardinal Cards for good choices.  Each class got an extra 15 minutes of recess as a reward!

In math, we are focusing on groups that are equal, fewer, and greater.  We are also practicing writing our numbers.  In three weeks, students will be assessed on the ability to write the numbers from 1-20.  Please practice at home from time to time to reinforce this skill.  In literacy, the students are doing a phenomenal job identifying characters and setting.  We are working on identifying the first sounds and final sounds in words.  Letter writing practice is part of our daily routine and we are also learning about the fundamentals of sentence writing.

Reminder: there is no school for students tomorrow, 10-12-12.  The teachers will be in trainings all day.  See you next week!

Letter names and sounds

Hi kindergarten parents!  We are halfway through the first quarter.  This means that quarterly testing will soon begin.  Two of the most important skills that will be assessed are letter names and letter sounds.  Students will be required to name all 26 letters--lower and upper case.  The sounds for each letter will be tested as well.  Starfall and SuperWhy are great web resources to review/practice these skills.  I also recommend using alphabet cereal as a good tool to help students name the letters.

Reading Rocks!

This week our class participated in "Read for the Record."  We read Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad.  We continued the fun by painting rocks like bugs, just like the characters did in the story!  The students had a great time showing off their artistic talent.  In reading, we worked on Classifying and Catergorizing--putting things in groups that are the same and stating how they are the same.  In math, we worked on identifying groups that contained the same amount of objects.

Week 4 Wrap Up

First, I would like to welcome Miss Megan Kincaid to the Brantner Kindergarten team! She will be joining the staff on B days and 22 students will be in her classroom. I know that she will be a great addition to the team and she and I will be working closely to make the transition as easy as possible for the students! Second, we celebrated two birthdays in class this week. I welcome snacks for the students, but I ask that all snacks be store bought. This way I can check labels to ensure that all students' dietary needs are being met. I really appreciate your help with this! Third, we had a busy week in class. We began reading stories aloud as a class and the students really enjoyed it! The class took our first math test together. We did the majority of the test as a class, so that the students learn HOW to take a test. The format is similar to the tests that they will take in grades 1-5, so we are laying the groundwork for success in years to come, as well as in kindergarten. I am looking forward to all of the wonderful learning ahead this school year!

Our Five Senses

Check out the awesome list of our five senses that we made in class today! We hear… • vaccuums • lawn mowers • birds • movies • tiger’s roar • truck’s engine • t.v. • wind We see… • butterflies • lions at the zoo • crocodiles • giraffes • pencils • lightbulbs • bookbags • windows • snake We smell… • flowers • other people • food • pizza • broccoli • milk • cake We touch… • buttons • clothes • bookbags • forks • cookies • blankets • teddy bears We taste… • cupcakes • milk • ravioli • carrots • broccoli • strawberries • popsicles • noodles • grapes • ice cream • fries

Reminders

You can follow West Clermont Local Schools on Facebook. This is a good way to stay up-to-date on the latest news at the district level. Also, if you need to register to vote you can pick up a form from the office. There are many important issues on the November ballot. Let your voice be heard.

Week 3 News and Notes

Hello! We have had another wonderful week in Room 201! We've focused on writing numbers 1-5 in math class. In handwriting, we have been working on writing the letters a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, and i--upper and lowercase. In reading, we have been expanding our vocabulary and working on identifying characters, setting and plot. We are running low on napkins for snack time. If you would like to send in a package, that would be most appreciated. Hope that you all have a wonderful weekend. Reminder: next week, the "B" group attends on Friday. Thanks!

Week 2 is a wrap...

What a good week in Room 201! Mrs. Paytes is working with me in the class to help give each child extra attention with our large class sizes. She is a joy to have join us and I know the children feel the same way. We have covered a lot of material this week--letter names and sounds, "Amazing" vocabulary words, graphing, counting, writing numbers, and more! We stay busy in class each day. I am sure that some of the little munchkins need a nap after school! They are adjusting quickly to our fast pace and loads of information--I am so proud of them. Coming soon: more letter names/sounds, ordering numbers, discussions of setting, characters and plot! Reminder: "A" day picture day is tomorrow, September 17. "B" day picture day will be in October. More information will be sent home as soon as I have it. Have a great Sunday. Go Reds! Go Bengals!

First Week of 2012-2013 School Year

My oh my, it's been hot in our classroom! Please send a cold water bottle to school (with your child's name on it) for your son/daughter while it is warm outside. Whatever the outside temperature, our classroom feels about 15 degrees warmer. I want to make sure that they all stay hydrated and healthy!

This week we have focused on routines, and kindergarten basics such as coloring in the lines, proper scissor use, and becoming acclimated to the classroom. We have also had fun rhyming, learning about the calendar, and listening to some wonderful books! Next week, we will begin our reading and math programs full-steam ahead...your first math information packet will be sent home at the beginning of the week. I am so excited to be working with such a neat group of new students!

May 20, 2012

Last week, we had loads of fun while reviewing our learning throughout the year! In reading, we read "The House that Tony Live In" and the students had fun with a house-themed art project. In math, we continued to work on our addition and subtraction skills so that the students will be well prepared for first grade. On Friday, the fourth grade students read to the class. What a good time!

Right to Read Week Fun

Loads of fun in Room 201 this week for Right to Read Week...guest readers Tanny McGregor, Doug Young, and Mrs. Reynold's 4th graders for "B" day students...a visit from the library and the zoo for "A" day students...equals a great week in kindergarten! We are coming to the end of a fabulous year in kindergarten. Monday and Tuesday of this week, the students will be taking their final DIBELS assessments. The students have been preparing for this task all year. We are completing many year-end assessments and I am so incredibly pleased with how far the students have come. I am so proud to have been their teacher and know that their first grade teachers will be as pleased with them as I have been!

May News

Hope everyone is staying cool in this warm weather. Our classroom is quite warm, so I encourage you to send a bottle of water with your child so that they can keep it at their seat. This way, the students can stay hydrated and keep right on learning! We have DIBELS in one week--this means that the students will be assessed on their letter naming skills, identifying the sounds in words, and sounding out nonsense words. Please keep practicing at home to reinforce our work at school. This will keep their skills fresh and help them to get the best scores possible. The students have been working so hard! We have been focusing on subtraction and took a formal test this week. They are so proud of their subtraction skills. Each day we watch Subtracting with Pirates on YouTube at the beginning of math. Ask your son or daughter to sing it for you--it is a hit with the students and helps them remember the rules of subtraction. We enjoyed reading The Little Engine that Could this week in Reading Street. The students have enjoyed learning about a various forms of transportation! This coming week is Right to Read week and there are many fun activities planned! Be sure to ask your child each day what our special activity was. Have a great week!

Fun in the Fourth Quarter

Both classes have now taken a "tour" of Brantner and the students worked together to create class maps of the school--inside and out. The students were very creative and the maps are now proudly displayed in the hallway. This was such a great way to meet the Social Studies standard for demonstrating familiarity with the school's layout.

Both classes are earning Cardinal Cards at record speed. We are really emphasizing the need to work hard to make good choices, as the students are almost first graders. I am so proud of how well they are focusing and putting forth so much effort to be successful!

Next week, we will begin focusing on subtraction. The students are very excited about addition, so I am hopeful to see the same enthusiasm for subtraction.

Back in the swing of things

We had a busy week following Spring Break! The fourth quarter is here, and the boys and girls will be first graders soon. This means that the work is getting more difficult and the students are being asked to do more things independently. I am so pleased with how much they have grown as learners this year.

In math, we have been focusing on various ways to solve addition problems: using a number line, counting on, drawing pictures, etc. The students will take their formal addition test next week, and I am expecting great results! Then we will move on to subtraction.

In writing, we are practicing what we have learned about the rules of writing a sentence and the students are beginning to explore more writing opportunities on their own.

In reading, we had a great time with Max Takes the Train. What a fun story! We also discussed various types of transportation, including subways, jets, ferryboats, and bicycles built for two.

Before the end of the year, the students will have many opportunities to show what they have learned for their final report cards. Additional practice at home is a huge help! Please practice the following:
~Writing the first, middle, and last sounds in words.
~Saying all of the sounds in words. (For DIBELS, students must state 40 sounds in one minute.)
~Counting by 1 to 100.
~Counting by 10 to 100.
~Writing numbers 1-20 in order.
~Reading all of the letters and stating their sounds.
~Reading all of the sight words we have learned this year.

Enjoy this beautiful day!

March Minutes

It was another great week in kindergarten--although the kids and I were disappointed to have indoor recess several days due to rain. Hopefully next week will be dry and sunny!

In math, we are working on counting, putting groups of numbers together (the step before formal addition), graphing, and counting back. In reading, we had loads of fun with Little Red Riding Hood. We focuses a great deal on describing the characters in the story. We also acted the story out, which is always a hit with the boys and girls!

There are so many great things happening, it is impossible to share them all. But please be aware, the quarter is ending soon--we will have several assessments before Spring Break. Report cards will go home in April, after the week off.

Have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day...may the luck of the Irish be with you!

March Musings

March has been a great month for Room 201. The students are showing off all that they have learned. I could not be prouder of them. They have been working so hard. Each day we are practicing our letter sounds and sight words. This week we started to focus on consonant blends. We have included them in our daily message--blending words, such as slam, trap, plug, step. The boys and girls are picking up this skill quickly. Great job!

Good-bye Fabulous Februart, Hello Magnificent March

Another busy week in kindergarten...
The students are doing an excellent job with the beginning stages of addition. The students enjoyed rolling dice, adding the number of dots together, and graphing the sum. We also practiced adding the two sides of a domino to find out "how many in all?" We have also started to count to 100 every day!
Our three new sight words for the week were: are, of, and have. Some of the skills that we practiced in reading include "cause and effect," smooth blending all of the sounds in a word, and identifying the subject in a sentence.
In honor of Dr. Seuss's birthday, we had loads of fun with rhyming words and make-believe words today with the "A" class. Next Friday, the "B" class will get to enjoy the same activities!
Have a safe, fun weekend!

Fun times in February!

Wow! What a quick week. Four days fly by. Nonetheless, there was a lot of learning going on in Room 201. The students enjoyed reading Rooster's Off to See the World, by Eric Carle. Judging by the students' reactions, I would not be surprised if they were begging to go to the library to get more of his books! I love his Grouchy Ladybug and the Very Hungry Caterpillar. Many of the students have been talking about going to the beautiful new library, so you may want to pick up a few Eric Carle titles on your next visit.

In math, we are in the early stages of addition. Currently, we are adding numbers together with picures and counting. Soon, we will be adding the addition and equals signs. The students are so excited about this new challenge. Their enthusiasm keeps growing!

Kindergarten Writers

The kindergarten students collaborated to write poems as a class. I am so impressed with their first poems! The students wanted to share them with everyone, so here they are...

Kindergarten

by "A" day kindergarten

Sometimes we color
Go to lunch
Go outside for recess
Hugging Miss Stepaniak
Fun
Teaching
Cool
Awesome

Learning

by "B" day kindergarten

We learn about animals
We learn about patterns
We learn about panda bears
We learn about books
We learn about shapes
We learn about poems
We learn about giraffes
We know about zebras
We learn about elephants
We read books
We learn together

The students really enjoyed listening to fun poems by a number of wonderful poets, including Jack Prelutsky. I love seeing their excitement about poetry!

Just a quick reminder: please fill out only the "from" portion of your child's Valentine's day cards. Thanks so much!

Welcome to the third quarter!

I've said it before and I will say it again: this year is passing at warp speed. I can't get over the fact that we are at the halfway point of the year. The curriculum will continue to get more challenging, to prepare the students for first grade.

In reading, we are focusing more on fluency--reading words and sentences correctly, quickly, and with understanding. The students have learned about setting, characters, and the plot of a story. We will continue to review these concepts, as they are essential for quality comprehension.

This week, we focused on the book "Farfallina and Marcel." With the book, we studied how animals change. Farfallina changed from a caterpillar to a butterfly and Marcel, the gosling, grew into a goose. The two became unlikely friends and looked out for one another.

In math, the students have enjoyed playing "Top It." We divide a deck of cards into 2 stacks--diamonds/hearts and spades/clubs. The students select a card from each stack and the child with the hightest numbered card "wins" the pair. It is a fun way to compare numbers--the students ask to play each day! We are also practicing counting back. This skill is essential for basic subtraction, which we will be starting soon!

January 22

Hi all! Hope you are all safe and sound after the lovely ice we had yesterday. With the bizarre weather we are having, please be sure to dress your child in layers for school. It may be awful at the beginning of the day, but by recess we may be able to go outside and enjoy some fresh air. If it is above 32 degrees, we will go outside, weather conditions permitting. Also, the temperature in our classroom fluctuates, but it is usually one of the warmest classrooms in the building. By 10:00, most of us are wearing short sleeves! Thanks for your help in keeping the students comfortable.

The third quarter begins on Wednesday! This means that the content will continue to get more difficult to ensure that the students are ready to start first grade in the fall. Some of the tasks that can be practiced at home include: Writing first AND last names correctly, counting to 100, counting back from 10-0, and writing numbers from 1-20.

Request

Hello all,
The cold and flu season is here...this means we are using a lot of sanitizer in our classroom. If you would like to donate a bottle of sanitizer for the classroom, it would be greatly appreciated. We are trying to keep all of the children (and grown-ups) healthy. We love to see their smiling faces each day!
Thanks!

January 15

Hello all! It is hard to believe that we are halfway through January AND halfway through the school year. The quarter ends on Monday 1/23/12. The year is going so quickly and I am enjoying each day with my wonderful kindergarten kiddos! We have been completing our quarterly assessments and I am so impressed with each student's growth since the beginning of the year. They have all been working so hard and I am incredibly proud of each and every student!

This past week we began to focus on comparing weight using a pan balance. We learned that when things are heavy the pan goes down and when things are light the pan goes up. We also studied plot--what happens in a story. The students and I made up a cheer which they enjoyed. The class also studied verbs this week. We asked ourselves, "Can you do it?" If the answer was yes, then it is a verb! The students had a good time demonstrating their knowledge of verbs, as we marched, jumped, hopped, skipped and tiptoed through the classroom!

Welcome to 2012!

What a wonderful first week back to school! The students quickly remembered our routines. Both classes earned quite a few Cardinal Cards this week--great job boys and girls!

In math, we are having fun with nonstandard units of measurement. Don't be surprised if your child tries to measure the width of your door with shoes or the length of the table with pretzels! Both classes enjoyed measuring objects in our classroom and comparing lengths.

Next week the students will be taking the mid-year DIBELS benchmark assessments. They will be assessed on their ability to name letters, identify the sounds in words, and sound out words. "A" students will be assessed on Wednesday and "B" students will be assessed on Thursday. This is a significan portion of their report cards, therefore additional practice at home will be helpful.

Have a great weekend! Enjoy the sunshine and warmer temperatures!