December happenings...

Oh, there is simple too much to share! What a wonderful December we've had in kindergarten...

We are having so much fun in math! The students built shapes out of marshmallows and pretzels. In our discussion of 3-D shapes, we enjoyed eating ice cream cones (cones) filled with mini-marshmallows (cylinders). The class agreed that math is mighty tasty! We are practicing counting and writing numbers from 1-20 each day to prepare for our end-of-quarter test in January. Also in math, we are learning fun songs and games to count back from 5-0. Five Little Gingerbread Men and Zero the Hero are two of the students' favorites.

In literacy, we have been focusing a great deal on sequencing, and determining the difference between fantasy and realism. The students are doing well with these skills--I am so proud of them! While studying hibernation, the students discovered two new activities that they cannot get enough of..."Wake Up Sleepy Bear" is a game in which one child "hibernates" and has to guess which classmate woke them up and "Bear is Sleeping" has become their favorite song! In fact, we performed the song for Miss Lynne's preschool class this week. The kindergarten performance was a hit! They did a terrific job. Mr. Mack joined us for one performance and he was so impressed with all of the boys and girls!

Next week we will have our holiday parties. Please fill out the form that was sent home this week if you would like to help.

Thanks!

Turkey Time

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends!

Last week, the students showed off their creativity by making hand-print turkeys. The students practiced counting back from 5-0 while acting out "Five Little Turkeys"--they were so excited to pretend to be our little feathered friends!

We reviewed letters/sounds of: a, m, t, s, and p. We also practiced counting to 20 and identifying the following shapes: circle, triangle, square, rectangle, and hexagon. Next week we will begin studying 3-D shapes and learning about hibernation. While we study hibernation, we will be celebrating the fact that the students earned 15 Cardinal Cards for great behavior! We will have pajama day on Tuesday, 11/29 ("B" day) and Wednesday, 11/30 ("A" day).

Three-day Weekend!

In honor of Veteran's Day, school will be closed tomorrow (11/11/11). I hope that you all enjoy the long weekend! Next week will be a full week, and "B" day students will attend on Friday.

This week, we used the short week to complete some fun activities. The students made some adorable scarecrows! They are such creative kindergarteners. We continued to practice identifying the first sound in a word. The students are mastering this skill, and I am so proud of their hard work. In math, we practiced counting backward with a fun poem about squirrels and with the always-fun game "Zero the Hero." Please ask you son/daughter about this game--I think it may be the students' new favorite activity! It's a terrific way to practice counting back from 5 to 0 and loads of fun all at once.

I am almost completely booked for fall conferences...I look forward to seeing many of you on Tuesday evening. Have a terrific holiday weekend!