Monica Ros School

Kindergarten Newsletter
October 2007

The children are adjusting well to their Kindergarten environment and enjoying new experiences, friends, and teachers.  We are excited to begin our all school theme week.  We will be exploring Inventions.  James Dyson, designer and engineer and inventor of the cyclone vacuum cleaner, said  “At school you are taught English, math and science, but imagine if you had the good fortune to attend lessons in inventions.  Inventions come down to a curious mind, determination, and creativity-things that we all have”.  Stay tuned for the exciting adventure. 

Math:  In math we have been working on recognizing attributes and sorting everything imaginable.  We are spending considerable time patterning which is said to be the foundation of all mathematics. We will closely examine patterns all around us: in our classroom; in print; and even on our clothing. We will be playing many math games which increase conceptual understanding since children learn best through everyday, playful activities.

Language Arts:   One of our primary concerns in the Kindergarten program is reading readiness. The children learn that letters work together in a systematic way to connect spoken language to written words.  This understanding is the foundation for reading.  We have been working on letter recognition, letter formation, and sound introduction.  We will write letters in many different ways, on chalk boards, in salt trays, and on magic slates.   The children are happily singing songs, learning rhymes, playing fun alphabet games, and illustrating their journals.

Research in Action
Phonemic awareness is the ability to think about the sounds of words as distinct from their meanings.  Because sensitivity to rhyme comes quite easily to most children, rhyme play is an excellent first step toward capturing children’s interest in the similarities and differences in the sounds of individual words.  (Marilyn Jager Adams, author, Open Court reading)
 
We’ve begun reading a favorite children’s chapter book, Charlotte’s Web, during the afternoons. 

We have begun working on “First-Step” stories.   First-Step stories are simple little books the children make. We want the children to understand that words and pictures go together in books and stories.   This experience provides children with meaningful “reading” experiences before they are actually reading on their own while increasing print awareness. Illustrating, narrating, and sharing their own stories with friends and family will give the children a sense of pride and allow them to practice the skills and behaviors of accomplished readers and writers.
Thank You:   We are so fortunate to have great parent support in our Kindergarten. Many thanks to the parents who accompanied us on our field trip.  A special thanks to Grandma Joyce for her help and support in the classroom.  We have had so much fun listening to stories read to us by Stacy_Davis, Anamaria_Schmid, and Donna_Pope.
We enjoyed singing fun songs with Doug_Day and meeting the well loved puffer fish brought in by Cullen_Robertson.
 
Reminders:

Shoes- We have P.E. on Friday afternoon please send your child in tennis shoes on that day.  In consideration of their safety they will not be able to participate in P.E. games and activities unless they have appropriate foot wear.
Library-   We will be going on Wednesday October 3rd.  The children will have a chance to choose a book in our Library and it will need to be returned any time before the end of the month.
Halloween-  We will be having our annual Halloween parade and party on Wednesday October 31st.  Please send your child to school in costume on that day. The children will change into their play clothes following the parade so please make sure that they come to school with a change of clothes.  Parents are welcome to join us for the parade we will begin at 8:45.
Pet Hen is our Kindergarten mascot.  She is excited to visit with each child in our class and get to know them.  Pet Hen has a journal and her stay with you can be documented.  The sky is the limit…..photos, stories, food, use your imagination and have fun with our friend.  Randomly, a child will get to take her home on Monday for the week and she needs to come back to share her adventure with the class on the following Monday morning!  Have fun!

Important Dates to Remember:

October 8th  –No school: Staff in-service
October 9th  –Theme week begins
October 22nd - Picture Day
October 31st –Halloween party and parade
                        (Parade 8:45)                                                

Kindergarten Teachers
Mrs._Fiore and Mrs._ Krout

This entry was posted on Monday, October 1st, 2007 at 8:31 pm and is in the Kindergarten.