Dear Families,
Thank you for the generous gifts and surprises this week. Thank you also for the cards and kind wishes. I appreciate all the support and generosity! A big thank you goes out to all of our volunteers who come to our classroom each month, every other week, every week, or some even twice a week! We depend on you and we are so lucky to have your help in our classroom! Thank you also for the volunteers who prepare weekly homework or math packets at home, and our room parents! We are thankful for all of you!
This week was filled with many busy activities. We spent much of the time finishing our holiday presents for you! These presents are a combination of writing, art, social studies, and computer skills. We also learned how to make pop-up cards for you! We hope you like our gift and will be able to use it next year! There is also an ornament for you to keep!
Our specials this week were: library on Monday, Star of the Week for Evan on Tuesday (you can read about him on our website!), computer lab on Wednesday, and making snowflakes with our buddies on Thursday. Mrs. Rowe announced the WOW (Walk One Week) raffle winners and congratulations to Tess who received a ribbon and Sydney who received a Baja Fresh coupon! Every classroom had at least one raffle winner. In computer lab, we tried our best to finish two ongoing projects. One project was for the cover of your gift, and the other project was our illustrations of the “First Day of Winter” poem. Unfortunately, some students were not finished with their cover pages, but we had to print it out anyways.
Today was our Polar Express Day! The classroom was set-up like a train when the kids arrived in the morning. They sat down in the train just like the children in the book (who are also wearing their pajamas!). I read them the Polar Express story and each child received a bell just like in the story. The children on the Polar Express drank hot chocolate and had cookies, so we did too. We also did a kindness activity where we delivered hot chocolate to all the teachers and staff around the school. One of the most important concepts for me during the holiday season is for students to understand “giving”. So often, kids are focused on only themselves and receiving gifts. I hope that we can teach kids that giving and helping others is so much more rewarding then getting something. Afterwards, we watched the movie version of Polar Express!
I hope your family has a wonderful holiday vacation. I plan on staying local both weeks to spend time with my family and my nieces. For those of you who are traveling, I hope you have safe travels! Today, we had to say a sad goodbye to Nanaka and her family. We will miss you very much! Please keep in touch!
I will see you on Monday, January 3rd! There will be a new AM girl joining us, her name is Aishwarya and she will have a twin sister in Mrs. Van Dick’s classroom. Please welcome her and her family to our class! Our sharing will be a New Year’s resolution when we return. Happy 2011!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
December 10, 2010
Dear Families,
Our classroom is decorated with different holiday projects! If you haven’t already, you can see photos of our December decorations in the “Photos” section of our website! We have lots of work from different holidays around the world! Plus, I always love to decorate the classroom during this time of the year to make it festive! Enjoy!
Remember to check the “Classwork” section of our website and click on the “Dear Santa” picture! Each child shared 3 reasons why they think they were good this year, and then they wrote down what they wish to get this year. Take a look at their letters!
Your family turkey feather is also coming home today. Everyone did such a beautiful job on their feathers, and they were so creative. Thank you for spending time together as a family to make them so special. Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: This week we started reading some Gingerbread Man stories. There are a lot of variations of the story, but we read the Gingerbread Man, Gingerbread Pirates, Gingerbread Baby, and Gingerbread Friends. During our Friday centers, we made our own gingerbread men using white paint and brown paper. We also made a mini book about eating different body parts of the gingerbread man!
• Social Studies: We are continuing our 3-week Social Studies project on the holidays, seasons, and months. Also, almost all of us have some sight words memorized such as the, month, for, and is! It is really important that at this time of the year, the children begin mastering their handwriting of little and big letters. We have been reading stories about different holidays around the world. We continued learning about Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and we also learned about Mexico and the special meaning of poinsettias.
• Writing: In our journals this week, we wrote a sentence about what we think of when we hear “December.” We illustrated our pictures and checked our handwriting. We are trying to get into the habit of using capitals, spaces, and periods! It is still hard for some students to remember to check their work.
• Math: This week we continued reviewing our numbers and worked on 8, 9, and 10. We are practicing to identify 10 quickly by using a ten-frame. We are also continuing to write math sentences using the plus and equals sign. Another vocabulary word we use often is “in all.” One area that is difficult for students is to answer “How many more?” in word problems using illustrations. An example is (and I would read this orally): There are 3 soccer players. 10 players are needed to play a game. How many more players do they need? We practiced this type of word problem this week. The math sentence would be 3 + 7 = 10. They need to be able to solve the problem using numbers, words, and pictures. In pictures, we show how to solve the problem by first counting the 3 players, and then we draw circles and continue counting from 4 until 10 to show the remaining players. Please practice at home!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week and we sang some holiday songs! We sang Jingle Bells and used sticks as well as bells to accompany the song. We also walked and galloped like the horses on Santa’s sleigh! Another song we learned was about Hanukkah. We learned about a game they play using a dreidel and we learned some Hebrew words! Finally, we learned movements to a song about a bunny eating a snowman’s carrot nose!
• Computer Lab: This week we used Kidspiration to work on a Social Studies picture about the seasons and months of the year. For our lesson, we chose pictures to match the different months of the year. We had to think about different special days throughout the year and make sure our pictures fit the season or month. This lesson will continue next week.
• Assembly: Today we had a special assembly called Earth Dome. It taught us facts about our Earth and geography. They even brought in a 12 foot dome for us to see and learn about the Earth.
Now that the rain has started, we have a few extra rainy day procedures in place. When you arrive at school and it is little to no rain, then please line up in our regular spot. If it is raining, then:
* Morning Class Drop-Off: If the doors are open, you can drop your child off. If the door is closed, that means I might be in a meeting or I am not in the classroom. You can then line up in the lunch table area that has an overhang directly across from our classroom door (where you pick up your child after school). Please stand in line behind the blue pole facing my door.
* Afternoon Class Drop-Off: If it is raining, you can wait in the hallway door entrance until 10:55am (or 10:35am on Tuesdays). Please wait in line with your child in the hallway until I open the door. Please make sure they are quiet, especially Tuesdays.
* Pick-Up for Morning and Afternoon Classes: Wait in our regular spot by the lunch tables unless it is raining hard. If it is windy and raining hard, I will dismiss the kids from the door leading to the hallway.
Remember that Nanaka’s last day with us is on Friday, so if your child would like to make or give Nanaka a goodbye card/present, you are welcome to do so! Have a wonderful weekend!
Our classroom is decorated with different holiday projects! If you haven’t already, you can see photos of our December decorations in the “Photos” section of our website! We have lots of work from different holidays around the world! Plus, I always love to decorate the classroom during this time of the year to make it festive! Enjoy!
Remember to check the “Classwork” section of our website and click on the “Dear Santa” picture! Each child shared 3 reasons why they think they were good this year, and then they wrote down what they wish to get this year. Take a look at their letters!
Your family turkey feather is also coming home today. Everyone did such a beautiful job on their feathers, and they were so creative. Thank you for spending time together as a family to make them so special. Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: This week we started reading some Gingerbread Man stories. There are a lot of variations of the story, but we read the Gingerbread Man, Gingerbread Pirates, Gingerbread Baby, and Gingerbread Friends. During our Friday centers, we made our own gingerbread men using white paint and brown paper. We also made a mini book about eating different body parts of the gingerbread man!
• Social Studies: We are continuing our 3-week Social Studies project on the holidays, seasons, and months. Also, almost all of us have some sight words memorized such as the, month, for, and is! It is really important that at this time of the year, the children begin mastering their handwriting of little and big letters. We have been reading stories about different holidays around the world. We continued learning about Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and we also learned about Mexico and the special meaning of poinsettias.
• Writing: In our journals this week, we wrote a sentence about what we think of when we hear “December.” We illustrated our pictures and checked our handwriting. We are trying to get into the habit of using capitals, spaces, and periods! It is still hard for some students to remember to check their work.
• Math: This week we continued reviewing our numbers and worked on 8, 9, and 10. We are practicing to identify 10 quickly by using a ten-frame. We are also continuing to write math sentences using the plus and equals sign. Another vocabulary word we use often is “in all.” One area that is difficult for students is to answer “How many more?” in word problems using illustrations. An example is (and I would read this orally): There are 3 soccer players. 10 players are needed to play a game. How many more players do they need? We practiced this type of word problem this week. The math sentence would be 3 + 7 = 10. They need to be able to solve the problem using numbers, words, and pictures. In pictures, we show how to solve the problem by first counting the 3 players, and then we draw circles and continue counting from 4 until 10 to show the remaining players. Please practice at home!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week and we sang some holiday songs! We sang Jingle Bells and used sticks as well as bells to accompany the song. We also walked and galloped like the horses on Santa’s sleigh! Another song we learned was about Hanukkah. We learned about a game they play using a dreidel and we learned some Hebrew words! Finally, we learned movements to a song about a bunny eating a snowman’s carrot nose!
• Computer Lab: This week we used Kidspiration to work on a Social Studies picture about the seasons and months of the year. For our lesson, we chose pictures to match the different months of the year. We had to think about different special days throughout the year and make sure our pictures fit the season or month. This lesson will continue next week.
• Assembly: Today we had a special assembly called Earth Dome. It taught us facts about our Earth and geography. They even brought in a 12 foot dome for us to see and learn about the Earth.
Now that the rain has started, we have a few extra rainy day procedures in place. When you arrive at school and it is little to no rain, then please line up in our regular spot. If it is raining, then:
* Morning Class Drop-Off: If the doors are open, you can drop your child off. If the door is closed, that means I might be in a meeting or I am not in the classroom. You can then line up in the lunch table area that has an overhang directly across from our classroom door (where you pick up your child after school). Please stand in line behind the blue pole facing my door.
* Afternoon Class Drop-Off: If it is raining, you can wait in the hallway door entrance until 10:55am (or 10:35am on Tuesdays). Please wait in line with your child in the hallway until I open the door. Please make sure they are quiet, especially Tuesdays.
* Pick-Up for Morning and Afternoon Classes: Wait in our regular spot by the lunch tables unless it is raining hard. If it is windy and raining hard, I will dismiss the kids from the door leading to the hallway.
Remember that Nanaka’s last day with us is on Friday, so if your child would like to make or give Nanaka a goodbye card/present, you are welcome to do so! Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, December 03, 2010
December 3, 2010
Dear Families,
I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. It was so nice for my family because of the twins and of course, because my sister is home and getting better. I hosted this year! I was thankful for the entire week off to go grocery shopping and prepare for the all day event!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: During the next 3 weeks, we will not be doing our regular language arts activities such as letter of the week or literacy centers. Instead, we are working on our reading and writing through a social studies project. We are learning about the months of the year and special days that occur each month. We are writing a sentence that describes something about each month, and we are making crafts to match our writing. We are remembering to use capitals, spaces, and periods in our sentences.
• Writing: In addition to our social studies project, we read some stories about Santa this week. We tried to write a letter to Santa and tell him three reasons why we have been good this year. Then we wrote what our wish was. Some students had a difficult time with sounding out the words and using inventive spelling to write down their ideas. Some students told me what they wanted to write and I wrote it down for them. During weekly library journal homework, please encourage your child to write down their own sentences versus telling them the letters and spelling. They need to practice writing independently. Again, spelling is not important. I am looking for breaking down the sounds they hear and their effort. These Santa letters are always very adorable, and you can read them on our website under “Classwork!”
• Math: This week we continued reviewing our numbers and worked on 6 and 7. We are starting to practice writing math sentences using the plus and equals sign, such as 3 + 2 = 5. In addition to writing the math sentence, we are learning to orally tell a story about the math sentence, such as: There are three ducks in the water. Two ducks join them. How many ducks are there now? There are five ducks in all. We are learning the magic words, “in all,” which mean addition. Students need to demonstrate understanding of math concepts using not just numbers, but words and pictures too.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Saad, who was chosen as our twelfth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” In addition to our months and special days project, we are learning about holidays around the world. This week we learned about Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. We read some stories to teach us about these special holidays. Today, we made a menorah to celebrate Hanukkah, which is the object that holds all the candles. Also, we learned about another holiday called Kwanzaa and made a unity cup that is used to show unity within family members.
• Computer Lab: We illustrated a poem this week called, “First Day of Winter.” We learned that December 21st is the first day of winter, and we drew a picture that shows what a snow scene would look like from inside our homes. They drew snow, icicles, and snowflakes! Some students were able to finish this week, but we will be continuing this project next week.
• Art: We saw Mrs. Abada on Thursday for our December art class. We learned about different directions such as horizontal, vertical, and diagonal. Then we learned to make different types of lines such as zig zag, dashed, hairy, castle, spiral, wavy, etc. Afterwards we used watercolor to paint different sections on our pictures!
I found out on Monday this week that Anika is no longer in our classroom. Her last day was before Thanksgiving break! We didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to her. Also, Nanaka’s last day with us will be in two weeks on December 17th. Her family is moving back to Japan and we will definitely miss her!
If your family plans on leaving Eaton during the year, please try to let me know at least 2 weeks in advance. We have many projects that I have to collect and return to you, so knowing ahead of time is very helpful. Thank you!
I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. It was so nice for my family because of the twins and of course, because my sister is home and getting better. I hosted this year! I was thankful for the entire week off to go grocery shopping and prepare for the all day event!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: During the next 3 weeks, we will not be doing our regular language arts activities such as letter of the week or literacy centers. Instead, we are working on our reading and writing through a social studies project. We are learning about the months of the year and special days that occur each month. We are writing a sentence that describes something about each month, and we are making crafts to match our writing. We are remembering to use capitals, spaces, and periods in our sentences.
• Writing: In addition to our social studies project, we read some stories about Santa this week. We tried to write a letter to Santa and tell him three reasons why we have been good this year. Then we wrote what our wish was. Some students had a difficult time with sounding out the words and using inventive spelling to write down their ideas. Some students told me what they wanted to write and I wrote it down for them. During weekly library journal homework, please encourage your child to write down their own sentences versus telling them the letters and spelling. They need to practice writing independently. Again, spelling is not important. I am looking for breaking down the sounds they hear and their effort. These Santa letters are always very adorable, and you can read them on our website under “Classwork!”
• Math: This week we continued reviewing our numbers and worked on 6 and 7. We are starting to practice writing math sentences using the plus and equals sign, such as 3 + 2 = 5. In addition to writing the math sentence, we are learning to orally tell a story about the math sentence, such as: There are three ducks in the water. Two ducks join them. How many ducks are there now? There are five ducks in all. We are learning the magic words, “in all,” which mean addition. Students need to demonstrate understanding of math concepts using not just numbers, but words and pictures too.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Saad, who was chosen as our twelfth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” In addition to our months and special days project, we are learning about holidays around the world. This week we learned about Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. We read some stories to teach us about these special holidays. Today, we made a menorah to celebrate Hanukkah, which is the object that holds all the candles. Also, we learned about another holiday called Kwanzaa and made a unity cup that is used to show unity within family members.
• Computer Lab: We illustrated a poem this week called, “First Day of Winter.” We learned that December 21st is the first day of winter, and we drew a picture that shows what a snow scene would look like from inside our homes. They drew snow, icicles, and snowflakes! Some students were able to finish this week, but we will be continuing this project next week.
• Art: We saw Mrs. Abada on Thursday for our December art class. We learned about different directions such as horizontal, vertical, and diagonal. Then we learned to make different types of lines such as zig zag, dashed, hairy, castle, spiral, wavy, etc. Afterwards we used watercolor to paint different sections on our pictures!
I found out on Monday this week that Anika is no longer in our classroom. Her last day was before Thanksgiving break! We didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to her. Also, Nanaka’s last day with us will be in two weeks on December 17th. Her family is moving back to Japan and we will definitely miss her!
If your family plans on leaving Eaton during the year, please try to let me know at least 2 weeks in advance. We have many projects that I have to collect and return to you, so knowing ahead of time is very helpful. Thank you!
Thursday, November 18, 2010
November 19, 2010
Upcoming Dates
Monday, November 22nd to Friday, November 26th: No School – Furlough Days
Enjoy your week of vacation! Happy Thanksgiving! I am thankful for time spent with my family!
Next Sharing: Something you are proud of
Monday, November 29th: December Scholastic Book Orders Due Online -
1) Please go to www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2) Log in with your own username and password. If it is your first time, you need to enter our Class Activation Code: GQ68Q
3) Browse books online and pay with your own credit card!
4) Books will arrive at school 2 weeks from our due date and I will send them home!
Wednesday, December 1st: November Homework Due
I will send home the December monthly homework in the homework folder.
Friday, December 3rd: First Trimester Report Cards Go Home
Please return the report card manila envelope, but you can keep the report card papers at home.
----
Dear Families,
November is a short month! I hope you were able to have a nice four-day weekend with your families last weekend. The Cupertino teachers took 5 furlough days for 2010-2011 in order to save 100+ teacher jobs, so that is why we don’t have any school next week (in a regular school year, we come on Monday and Tuesday). I hope you have something special planned! I will be spending time with my sister and her babies. She finally was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday of this week (after being there for almost one entire month), and she still has a central line that is connected to some different medications. Nevertheless, I am definitely thankful she is not in the hospital anymore! Thank you so much for thinking of her and asking about her these past few weeks. We have so much to be thankful for, and often we take for granted our health and ability to walk, run, move…
I have updated a few more things on our website. Be sure to check out the “Photos” section of our website to see our November classroom decorations, and check out our newest “Classwork” with our turkey computer lab pictures and the latest literacy center illustrations!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Tuesday last week and Wednesday this week, and our letter of the week was H and then V. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter H and V in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Lunch and this week we heard Turkey Trouble. This week we have been reading many stories about Thanksgiving and the meaning of giving thanks. We have been talking about what we are thankful for. We wrote in our journals this week about what we are thankful for in our lives.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Clarissa, who was chosen as our tenth Star of the Week! Last week, Evelyn was chosen as our eleventh Star of the Week! You can read about them both in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Also, we have continued to learn about the first Thanksgiving story. We learned about the Pilgrims and Native Americans, and about their first feast together. We learned about what it looks like to help others, to teach others, and to respect people who are different than us. We finished our Thanksgiving stories. Have your child teach you all about the very first Thanksgiving!
• Math: We are starting a new unit this week on more numbers to 10. We have been practicing writing, counting, and naming numbers. Keep practicing the numbers, especially on reversals! We are also working on more complicated pattern sequences.
• Computer Lab: We continued making our November illustrations that go along with our poem of the month called, “Here is a Turkey.” We are using Kidpix for this project, and this week we finished the background for our turkeys. The setting of our poem is on the farm, so we drew a barn and tried to draw many details in the background. You can look in our “Classwork” section of the website to see these pictures!
• Music: On Tuesday we saw Ms. Disney. We have been learning a lot of songs about specific animals. This week’s animal was the chicken. We heard an instrumental song that sounded like a chicken pecking and moving. We imitated the movements of chickens and also practiced walking to the beat of the song.
• Buddies: We saw our fourth grade buddies and they helped us to weave our Thanksgiving mats. This actually was quite challenging for many students (even 4th graders =) We learned to weave the color strips over and under, over and under, and we learned how to make pattern squares on our mats. This is a good skill to keep practicing at home too!
• Field Trip: Thank you for being flexible today with the arrival and dismissal time. We often run into traffic on the freeway, so it is better to have more time versus less. Thank you also to Evelyn’s mom, Teresa, for being our chaperone this time!
In today’s Friday Folder, you will find a Thanksgiving paper of all the things our class is thankful for. This is one of my favorite activities to keep because sometimes the things Kindergarteners think of are little reminders for us as adults to appreciate!
Enjoy reading and have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!
Monday, November 22nd to Friday, November 26th: No School – Furlough Days
Enjoy your week of vacation! Happy Thanksgiving! I am thankful for time spent with my family!
Next Sharing: Something you are proud of
Monday, November 29th: December Scholastic Book Orders Due Online -
1) Please go to www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2) Log in with your own username and password. If it is your first time, you need to enter our Class Activation Code: GQ68Q
3) Browse books online and pay with your own credit card!
4) Books will arrive at school 2 weeks from our due date and I will send them home!
Wednesday, December 1st: November Homework Due
I will send home the December monthly homework in the homework folder.
Friday, December 3rd: First Trimester Report Cards Go Home
Please return the report card manila envelope, but you can keep the report card papers at home.
----
Dear Families,
November is a short month! I hope you were able to have a nice four-day weekend with your families last weekend. The Cupertino teachers took 5 furlough days for 2010-2011 in order to save 100+ teacher jobs, so that is why we don’t have any school next week (in a regular school year, we come on Monday and Tuesday). I hope you have something special planned! I will be spending time with my sister and her babies. She finally was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday of this week (after being there for almost one entire month), and she still has a central line that is connected to some different medications. Nevertheless, I am definitely thankful she is not in the hospital anymore! Thank you so much for thinking of her and asking about her these past few weeks. We have so much to be thankful for, and often we take for granted our health and ability to walk, run, move…
I have updated a few more things on our website. Be sure to check out the “Photos” section of our website to see our November classroom decorations, and check out our newest “Classwork” with our turkey computer lab pictures and the latest literacy center illustrations!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Tuesday last week and Wednesday this week, and our letter of the week was H and then V. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter H and V in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Lunch and this week we heard Turkey Trouble. This week we have been reading many stories about Thanksgiving and the meaning of giving thanks. We have been talking about what we are thankful for. We wrote in our journals this week about what we are thankful for in our lives.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Clarissa, who was chosen as our tenth Star of the Week! Last week, Evelyn was chosen as our eleventh Star of the Week! You can read about them both in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Also, we have continued to learn about the first Thanksgiving story. We learned about the Pilgrims and Native Americans, and about their first feast together. We learned about what it looks like to help others, to teach others, and to respect people who are different than us. We finished our Thanksgiving stories. Have your child teach you all about the very first Thanksgiving!
• Math: We are starting a new unit this week on more numbers to 10. We have been practicing writing, counting, and naming numbers. Keep practicing the numbers, especially on reversals! We are also working on more complicated pattern sequences.
• Computer Lab: We continued making our November illustrations that go along with our poem of the month called, “Here is a Turkey.” We are using Kidpix for this project, and this week we finished the background for our turkeys. The setting of our poem is on the farm, so we drew a barn and tried to draw many details in the background. You can look in our “Classwork” section of the website to see these pictures!
• Music: On Tuesday we saw Ms. Disney. We have been learning a lot of songs about specific animals. This week’s animal was the chicken. We heard an instrumental song that sounded like a chicken pecking and moving. We imitated the movements of chickens and also practiced walking to the beat of the song.
• Buddies: We saw our fourth grade buddies and they helped us to weave our Thanksgiving mats. This actually was quite challenging for many students (even 4th graders =) We learned to weave the color strips over and under, over and under, and we learned how to make pattern squares on our mats. This is a good skill to keep practicing at home too!
• Field Trip: Thank you for being flexible today with the arrival and dismissal time. We often run into traffic on the freeway, so it is better to have more time versus less. Thank you also to Evelyn’s mom, Teresa, for being our chaperone this time!
In today’s Friday Folder, you will find a Thanksgiving paper of all the things our class is thankful for. This is one of my favorite activities to keep because sometimes the things Kindergarteners think of are little reminders for us as adults to appreciate!
Enjoy reading and have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!
Friday, November 05, 2010
November 5, 2010
Dear Families,
Thank you to those of you who helped with our traffic duty this week! Eaton school really appreciates all your help to keep our school drop-off and pick-up areas to be safe places. Look for your name in the Eagle Eye! No more traffic duty until next year =)
Thank you also for completing the beautiful turkey feather family projects! We collected all the feathers on Monday and put them together on our class turkey bulletin board. I will be posting pictures of our class turkey and putting them on our website!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Wednesday this week, and our letter of the week was N. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter N in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Pick a Pumpkin, Mrs. Millie. This week we also read many turkey stories and made a project where we pretended we were turkeys that did not want to be eaten! We wrote about ourselves and then created our turkeys. I will be putting up our November decorations on our website in the next few days, so you can see our turkeys soon!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Ava, who was chosen as our ninth Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Also, we are starting to learn about Thanksgiving. We started making a few pages in our Thanksgiving books and we are learning about the first Thanksgiving. We started learning a little bit about the Native Americans and the Pilgrims.
• Math: This week’s chapter was all about the numbers from 0-5. Keep practicing the handwriting of the numbers. Sometimes it is easy to reverse the direction. We are practicing counting using pictures, numbers, words, and graphs.
• Computer Lab: We started making our November illustrations that go along with our poem of the month called, “Here is a Turkey.” We are using Kidpix for this project, and this week, we made the turkey picture.
• Music: On Tuesday we saw Ms. Disney. We sang a song about a lion and we learned movements to pretend to be lions. We then used cymbals to play during certain parts of the song.
• Buddies: We saw our fourth grade buddies yesterday and we made turkeys using our handprints and footprints. Our buddies helped us to trace our feet on brown paper for the turkey body, and our hands on colored paper for the feathers.
• Art: Today in centers we made our November quilt squares using fall colors. We also made handprint turkeys using paint, and a corn mosaic picture.
An update on my sister, she is still in the hospital but things are looking better. They have narrowed down the bacteria that has been infecting her uterine cavity and she is finally starting to respond to some of the antibiotics and medicine. Hopefully she will be able to go home soon! The babies definitely miss her!
Next week is a short week. I will not be sending home a newsletter so this letter should have all the important upcoming dates that you will need to know. Have a great weekend!
Thank you to those of you who helped with our traffic duty this week! Eaton school really appreciates all your help to keep our school drop-off and pick-up areas to be safe places. Look for your name in the Eagle Eye! No more traffic duty until next year =)
Thank you also for completing the beautiful turkey feather family projects! We collected all the feathers on Monday and put them together on our class turkey bulletin board. I will be posting pictures of our class turkey and putting them on our website!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Wednesday this week, and our letter of the week was N. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter N in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Pick a Pumpkin, Mrs. Millie. This week we also read many turkey stories and made a project where we pretended we were turkeys that did not want to be eaten! We wrote about ourselves and then created our turkeys. I will be putting up our November decorations on our website in the next few days, so you can see our turkeys soon!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Ava, who was chosen as our ninth Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Also, we are starting to learn about Thanksgiving. We started making a few pages in our Thanksgiving books and we are learning about the first Thanksgiving. We started learning a little bit about the Native Americans and the Pilgrims.
• Math: This week’s chapter was all about the numbers from 0-5. Keep practicing the handwriting of the numbers. Sometimes it is easy to reverse the direction. We are practicing counting using pictures, numbers, words, and graphs.
• Computer Lab: We started making our November illustrations that go along with our poem of the month called, “Here is a Turkey.” We are using Kidpix for this project, and this week, we made the turkey picture.
• Music: On Tuesday we saw Ms. Disney. We sang a song about a lion and we learned movements to pretend to be lions. We then used cymbals to play during certain parts of the song.
• Buddies: We saw our fourth grade buddies yesterday and we made turkeys using our handprints and footprints. Our buddies helped us to trace our feet on brown paper for the turkey body, and our hands on colored paper for the feathers.
• Art: Today in centers we made our November quilt squares using fall colors. We also made handprint turkeys using paint, and a corn mosaic picture.
An update on my sister, she is still in the hospital but things are looking better. They have narrowed down the bacteria that has been infecting her uterine cavity and she is finally starting to respond to some of the antibiotics and medicine. Hopefully she will be able to go home soon! The babies definitely miss her!
Next week is a short week. I will not be sending home a newsletter so this letter should have all the important upcoming dates that you will need to know. Have a great weekend!
Friday, October 29, 2010
October 29, 2010
Dear Families,
I hope this week went well with the substitute. I am sad to have missed the Halloween parade and party today. I asked the substitute to take lots of pictures, so hopefully I will get to see all of the cute costumes!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Tuesday this week, and our letter of the week was B. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter B in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called The Spooky Wheels on The Bus. We hand fun singing to this song, which is similar to “The Wheels on the Bus.” We also read and colored a mini book called, “Orange Pumpkin, What Do You See?”
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Sainik, who was chosen as our eighth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: This week’s chapter was all about the numbers from 1-3. We practiced writing and counting objects. Please remember to start on the top line when we write numbers and letters. We usually write from top to bottom, left to right. These are skills that help overall when we are reading books. Also, we practiced reading picture graphs and answering questions about graphs, such as, which set has more animals? Which set has less animals? In addition, we practiced making our own graphs and collecting our own data.
• Computer Lab: We had exploration time this week on the website, www.starfall.com. This is a website that I recommended during Back to School night. This week we read some of the holiday stories, including “Pumpkin,” and also read different alphabet books.
• Red Ribbon Week: This week we celebrated red ribbon week and the theme was, “Making Healthy Choices.” Red ribbon week is about educating children to stay healthy be eating well, exercising, and staying away from negative influences such as drugs, alcohol, or smoking. For the Kindergarteners, we focus on healthy eating and how we can take care of our bodies. We made a poster about our healthy choices and also the PTO organized little activities for us to do each day this week!
• Art: This week we saw Mrs. Abada on Thursday and she read a story about Shapes to us. Then we made prints using foam shapes and paint.
• Assembly: Today we had a presentation by the Wildlife Associates. They always bring in real animals that have been injured and need extra care. They teach us lots of great facts about the animals. Ask your child about today’s assembly!
• Halloween Party: Today the students drew a self portrait of themselves in their costumes and the substitute also took individual photos of the students! In the afternoon, we had our snack and then met our fourth grade buddies for the school parade. Afterwards, we made Halloween necklaces!
Thank you for many of you who have been asking about my twin nieces. It’s actually been a tough 2 weeks for my family. My sister started getting an on-and-off fever 2 weeks ago, and she ended up going to the ER last Friday for extremely high white blood count and extremely low blood pressure. They discovered that she had some complications from her C-section 4 weeks ago, and had to get 2 surgeries done last Saturday. After that, her fever still continued to exist and her white blood count continued to rise. So she is still in the hospital this week, and they are trying to give her all sorts of antibiotics to fight the infection. Since she and my brother-in-law have been in the hospital, my mom and I have been on full-time duty taking care of the twins. They are doing great and have gained almost 2 pounds in the last month, but I am just worried for my sister. Please send some positive thoughts and prayers for my sister’s health… thank you.
Have a safe time trick-or-treating on Sunday. Happy Halloween!
I hope this week went well with the substitute. I am sad to have missed the Halloween parade and party today. I asked the substitute to take lots of pictures, so hopefully I will get to see all of the cute costumes!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We had our literacy centers on Tuesday this week, and our letter of the week was B. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter B in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called The Spooky Wheels on The Bus. We hand fun singing to this song, which is similar to “The Wheels on the Bus.” We also read and colored a mini book called, “Orange Pumpkin, What Do You See?”
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Sainik, who was chosen as our eighth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: This week’s chapter was all about the numbers from 1-3. We practiced writing and counting objects. Please remember to start on the top line when we write numbers and letters. We usually write from top to bottom, left to right. These are skills that help overall when we are reading books. Also, we practiced reading picture graphs and answering questions about graphs, such as, which set has more animals? Which set has less animals? In addition, we practiced making our own graphs and collecting our own data.
• Computer Lab: We had exploration time this week on the website, www.starfall.com. This is a website that I recommended during Back to School night. This week we read some of the holiday stories, including “Pumpkin,” and also read different alphabet books.
• Red Ribbon Week: This week we celebrated red ribbon week and the theme was, “Making Healthy Choices.” Red ribbon week is about educating children to stay healthy be eating well, exercising, and staying away from negative influences such as drugs, alcohol, or smoking. For the Kindergarteners, we focus on healthy eating and how we can take care of our bodies. We made a poster about our healthy choices and also the PTO organized little activities for us to do each day this week!
• Art: This week we saw Mrs. Abada on Thursday and she read a story about Shapes to us. Then we made prints using foam shapes and paint.
• Assembly: Today we had a presentation by the Wildlife Associates. They always bring in real animals that have been injured and need extra care. They teach us lots of great facts about the animals. Ask your child about today’s assembly!
• Halloween Party: Today the students drew a self portrait of themselves in their costumes and the substitute also took individual photos of the students! In the afternoon, we had our snack and then met our fourth grade buddies for the school parade. Afterwards, we made Halloween necklaces!
Thank you for many of you who have been asking about my twin nieces. It’s actually been a tough 2 weeks for my family. My sister started getting an on-and-off fever 2 weeks ago, and she ended up going to the ER last Friday for extremely high white blood count and extremely low blood pressure. They discovered that she had some complications from her C-section 4 weeks ago, and had to get 2 surgeries done last Saturday. After that, her fever still continued to exist and her white blood count continued to rise. So she is still in the hospital this week, and they are trying to give her all sorts of antibiotics to fight the infection. Since she and my brother-in-law have been in the hospital, my mom and I have been on full-time duty taking care of the twins. They are doing great and have gained almost 2 pounds in the last month, but I am just worried for my sister. Please send some positive thoughts and prayers for my sister’s health… thank you.
Have a safe time trick-or-treating on Sunday. Happy Halloween!
Friday, October 22, 2010
October 22, 2010
Dear Families,
This was a fun week for us! Next week is a short week and it will also be filled with lots of special activities. It is Red Ribbon Week, and we have our Halloween parade and party too! Unfortunately, I will not be at school from Wednesday to Friday next week. I am very sad to miss Halloween especially because I love to take pictures of all the children in their costumes =( My husband has a conference that he is presenting at and I will be flying with him to attend the conference. We have a substitute coming and it is very important that the kids remember to follow the rules. Please remind them to be on their best behavior!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Our journal entry this week was to write about spiders. We practiced capital letters, spaces, periods, and sounding out words. We also learned how to draw a spiderweb! In literacy centers, our letter of the week was T. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter T in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Alice and Greta. Keep practicing writing the listening center sentences about your child’s favorite part. We start the sentence with: I like when __________.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Sreenidhi, who was chosen as our seventh Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We started our next chapter on comparing sets. We learned to use the words more, less, fewer, greater, equal, and same, to compare two sets of objects. We also learned how to use the > greater than, < less than, and = equal sign to compare numbers. The last few problems in our math worksheet had us practice word problems such as: Draw more ducks than ponies. We practiced how to solve these problems.
• Computer Lab: This week we finished our October Kidpix illustrations of our Pumpkin poem. We practiced making a background for our pumpkins including a ground, sky, moon, and stars! You can see these drawings in our “Classwork” section of our website!
• Science: We finished our Pumpkin, Pumpkin books about the life cycle of a pumpkin! Have your child share with you the stages of how a pumpkin grows: seed, sprout, plant, flower, pumpkin, green to orange, and then it is picked and carved out to become a Jack O’Lantern!
• Enrichment Day: Thank you to all the parents who came to help during this special school-wide event! Our first presentation was by two dentists, and they taught us how to take care of our teeth. They gave us toothbrushes! Our second presentation was by the sheriff and they gave us stickers that looked like badges! The third presentation was by the librarians from the Cupertino Public Library. They gave us applications for library cards, if you don’t already have one! The last presentation was by several Kindergarten moms, and they taught us how to make pumpkin pie! The recipe is in today’s Friday folder!
• Pumpkin Patch: Thank you for all the parents who came to chaperone on this trip. We decorated our own little pumpkins and also pet some farm animals. We had a great time!
Eaton has had some problems recently with the silly band bracelets that have been in fashion lately. If your child has them, that is fine as long as they keep it on their wrist. However, they cannot trade them or give them away, because of Eaton’s policy against toys. Please make sure they wear them and are not playing with them!
Another reminder is to please come to school on time! Once the kids enter the classroom door, then school has officially started. Unfortunately, if you come in after we have closed the door, your child is marked “Delayed.” This record will be counted on your child’s progress report.
Have a wonderful three-day weekend!
This was a fun week for us! Next week is a short week and it will also be filled with lots of special activities. It is Red Ribbon Week, and we have our Halloween parade and party too! Unfortunately, I will not be at school from Wednesday to Friday next week. I am very sad to miss Halloween especially because I love to take pictures of all the children in their costumes =( My husband has a conference that he is presenting at and I will be flying with him to attend the conference. We have a substitute coming and it is very important that the kids remember to follow the rules. Please remind them to be on their best behavior!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Our journal entry this week was to write about spiders. We practiced capital letters, spaces, periods, and sounding out words. We also learned how to draw a spiderweb! In literacy centers, our letter of the week was T. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter T in our website, under “Classwork.” The story of the week was called Alice and Greta. Keep practicing writing the listening center sentences about your child’s favorite part. We start the sentence with: I like when __________.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Sreenidhi, who was chosen as our seventh Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We started our next chapter on comparing sets. We learned to use the words more, less, fewer, greater, equal, and same, to compare two sets of objects. We also learned how to use the > greater than, < less than, and = equal sign to compare numbers. The last few problems in our math worksheet had us practice word problems such as: Draw more ducks than ponies. We practiced how to solve these problems.
• Computer Lab: This week we finished our October Kidpix illustrations of our Pumpkin poem. We practiced making a background for our pumpkins including a ground, sky, moon, and stars! You can see these drawings in our “Classwork” section of our website!
• Science: We finished our Pumpkin, Pumpkin books about the life cycle of a pumpkin! Have your child share with you the stages of how a pumpkin grows: seed, sprout, plant, flower, pumpkin, green to orange, and then it is picked and carved out to become a Jack O’Lantern!
• Enrichment Day: Thank you to all the parents who came to help during this special school-wide event! Our first presentation was by two dentists, and they taught us how to take care of our teeth. They gave us toothbrushes! Our second presentation was by the sheriff and they gave us stickers that looked like badges! The third presentation was by the librarians from the Cupertino Public Library. They gave us applications for library cards, if you don’t already have one! The last presentation was by several Kindergarten moms, and they taught us how to make pumpkin pie! The recipe is in today’s Friday folder!
• Pumpkin Patch: Thank you for all the parents who came to chaperone on this trip. We decorated our own little pumpkins and also pet some farm animals. We had a great time!
Eaton has had some problems recently with the silly band bracelets that have been in fashion lately. If your child has them, that is fine as long as they keep it on their wrist. However, they cannot trade them or give them away, because of Eaton’s policy against toys. Please make sure they wear them and are not playing with them!
Another reminder is to please come to school on time! Once the kids enter the classroom door, then school has officially started. Unfortunately, if you come in after we have closed the door, your child is marked “Delayed.” This record will be counted on your child’s progress report.
Have a wonderful three-day weekend!
Friday, October 15, 2010
October 15, 2010
Dear Families,
In the next 2 weeks we will be having lots of special events at school. If your child is allergic to any of the following, please email me asap: milk, canned pumpkin, instant vanilla pudding mix, cinnamon, ground ginger, graham crackers, raisins, cookies (without nuts), juice.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Our journal entry this week was to write about pumpkins. We practiced capital letters, spaces, periods, and sounding out words. In literacy centers, our letter of the week was R. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter R in our website, under “Classwork.” For listening center, if your child had trouble sounding out the words to write their favorite part, please practice this skill with them at home. I say it is like a rubber band and we’re stretching out the word, saying it very slowly to hear all the letters. Keep practicing!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Paul, who was chosen as our sixth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” On Monday, we learned about Christopher Columbus since it was Columbus Day. We made a project that taught us that the world is shaped like a sphere, and that Columbus sailed in a ship from Spain in 1492. Ask your child to tell you about him!
• Math: We finished our second Unit on identifying patterns and shapes. We reviewed the skills from this chapter and took our Unit test today! We started glancing at the next chapter on numbers from 1-5 and comparing sets using the words: more, fewer, and same.
• Computer Lab: This week we started our October Kidpix illustration about a poem we have been learning called, “Pumpkin.” We practiced using the oval and rectangular tools to make our pumpkins, and we added faces on our pumpkins to make them Jack O’Lanterns. We will finish the background next week.
• Science: In the next two weeks, we are learning the life cycle of pumpkins. We read several non-fiction books about how pumpkins grow and change. We are comparing the life cycle of pumpkins to the life cycle of apples that we had learned in September. This week we learned some vocabulary words such as seeds, roots, sprout, buds, or vine, and we are making our own books to learn about the pumpkin life cycle. Have your child teach you about how pumpkins grow!
• Library: We will not be visiting the library or having library journal homework for the rest of October because this week and last week was the book fair, and then we don’t have school on the last Monday of October. Instead, I will just pass out the homework packets on Monday in your child’s daily folder. I encourage you to keep finding books and reading daily to your child! On Monday, we did get to visit the library and make a wish list of books that we wanted. Thank you for those of you who bought books for our classroom from the book fair! I appreciate your generosity!
• Friday Fun Centers: This week we started learning about scarecrows and we read many books about scarecrows. We took a close-up picture of our faces and made a scary expression. We used these photos to make our scarecrows, using square wallpaper pieces and other decorations. Also, we made a spider hat and learned a short poem about spiders!
• Fall Portraits: Today we took individual pictures which are used for school files. Thank you for turning in the photo envelopes today if you were interested in purchasing them. If your child was absent today, there will be a make-up picture day next month.
Make sure to visit our website! I have been updating it every week with information about the Star of the Week and now computer center drawings that we do for each letter of the week. In addition, about every 2 weeks I upload the computer lab drawings we make, as well as photos of our classroom decorations. Take a look at this month’s artwork in our classroom! I also took a few pictures to show you what our literacy centers look like. There are no close-up pictures of the students, but you can see them in action during listening center, computer center, and vocabulary center.
Have a wonderful weekend!
In the next 2 weeks we will be having lots of special events at school. If your child is allergic to any of the following, please email me asap: milk, canned pumpkin, instant vanilla pudding mix, cinnamon, ground ginger, graham crackers, raisins, cookies (without nuts), juice.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Our journal entry this week was to write about pumpkins. We practiced capital letters, spaces, periods, and sounding out words. In literacy centers, our letter of the week was R. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter R in our website, under “Classwork.” For listening center, if your child had trouble sounding out the words to write their favorite part, please practice this skill with them at home. I say it is like a rubber band and we’re stretching out the word, saying it very slowly to hear all the letters. Keep practicing!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Paul, who was chosen as our sixth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” On Monday, we learned about Christopher Columbus since it was Columbus Day. We made a project that taught us that the world is shaped like a sphere, and that Columbus sailed in a ship from Spain in 1492. Ask your child to tell you about him!
• Math: We finished our second Unit on identifying patterns and shapes. We reviewed the skills from this chapter and took our Unit test today! We started glancing at the next chapter on numbers from 1-5 and comparing sets using the words: more, fewer, and same.
• Computer Lab: This week we started our October Kidpix illustration about a poem we have been learning called, “Pumpkin.” We practiced using the oval and rectangular tools to make our pumpkins, and we added faces on our pumpkins to make them Jack O’Lanterns. We will finish the background next week.
• Science: In the next two weeks, we are learning the life cycle of pumpkins. We read several non-fiction books about how pumpkins grow and change. We are comparing the life cycle of pumpkins to the life cycle of apples that we had learned in September. This week we learned some vocabulary words such as seeds, roots, sprout, buds, or vine, and we are making our own books to learn about the pumpkin life cycle. Have your child teach you about how pumpkins grow!
• Library: We will not be visiting the library or having library journal homework for the rest of October because this week and last week was the book fair, and then we don’t have school on the last Monday of October. Instead, I will just pass out the homework packets on Monday in your child’s daily folder. I encourage you to keep finding books and reading daily to your child! On Monday, we did get to visit the library and make a wish list of books that we wanted. Thank you for those of you who bought books for our classroom from the book fair! I appreciate your generosity!
• Friday Fun Centers: This week we started learning about scarecrows and we read many books about scarecrows. We took a close-up picture of our faces and made a scary expression. We used these photos to make our scarecrows, using square wallpaper pieces and other decorations. Also, we made a spider hat and learned a short poem about spiders!
• Fall Portraits: Today we took individual pictures which are used for school files. Thank you for turning in the photo envelopes today if you were interested in purchasing them. If your child was absent today, there will be a make-up picture day next month.
Make sure to visit our website! I have been updating it every week with information about the Star of the Week and now computer center drawings that we do for each letter of the week. In addition, about every 2 weeks I upload the computer lab drawings we make, as well as photos of our classroom decorations. Take a look at this month’s artwork in our classroom! I also took a few pictures to show you what our literacy centers look like. There are no close-up pictures of the students, but you can see them in action during listening center, computer center, and vocabulary center.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, October 08, 2010
October 8, 2010
Dear Families,
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Now that we finished previewing the alphabet keep books, we are starting to put the letters and sounds together to form words. This week, we started our writing journal on Monday. Every Monday we write in our journals. We always complete the front page together and then students have free writing on the back, as long as they stay on topic. We learned why it is important to write the date on our journal entries, and we practiced writing a complete sentence about Fall altogether. This is an opportunity for me to teach students what a complete sentence looks and sounds like. We talked about how there is a capital letter in the beginning of sentences and a period at the end. We also used a “two-finger space” or some used their erasers to mark spaces between words. Students illustrated their journals and on the back, they tried to write their own sentences about Fall.
• Literacy Centers: Our letter of the week was M. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter M in our website, under “Classwork.” For listening center, we tried writing and drawing about our favorite part in the story. It is similar to what they do in their homework each week with our library journal and books.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Madhav, who was chosen as our fifth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We worked on the next chapter in math, which was more on patterns. We are practicing being able to say the patterns and use letters to identify the patterns. Students have to be able to create their own patterns as well. Please look over your child’s work and practice having them show you different patterns.
• Computer Lab: This week we continued working on our fall patterns page in Kidspiration. We used different fall foods to finish our patterns, and then we made our own patterns at the very bottom. You can see these fall pattern pages on our website, under “Classwork.”
• Science: We continued talking about Fall. In addition to learning about fall leaves, we also talked about how some animals prepare for winter. Some animals, like squirrels, collect food in the fall, or other animals, like bears, may get ready to hibernate. We also have been talking about pumpkins and we learned a song called, “5 Little Pumpkins!”
• Buddies: We saw our buddies on Thursday. We read the story, “Rainbow Fish,” which is about a beautiful fish who finds that sharing and being happy is more important than being selfish and lonely. We talked about how being kind to others is important. Then, we made our own fish using tissue paper and foil.
• Art: Today in Friday centers, we made handprints of a spider and we also made a pumpkin project.
• PE: We practiced skipping, jumping, hopping, galloping, and balance skills!
On Monday, we will be visiting the book fair. At the book fair, we get to browse all the books, and students try to write down a “wish list” of titles they would like. They bring home these wish lists to you so that if you go back to the library, you will know which books to purchase. If you are able to help write titles for the children, please come to the library at the following times. The more help, the better, so anyone is welcome.
AM Book Fair Visit: 9:10am – 9:30am
PM Book Fair Visit: 1:10pm – 1:30pm
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: Now that we finished previewing the alphabet keep books, we are starting to put the letters and sounds together to form words. This week, we started our writing journal on Monday. Every Monday we write in our journals. We always complete the front page together and then students have free writing on the back, as long as they stay on topic. We learned why it is important to write the date on our journal entries, and we practiced writing a complete sentence about Fall altogether. This is an opportunity for me to teach students what a complete sentence looks and sounds like. We talked about how there is a capital letter in the beginning of sentences and a period at the end. We also used a “two-finger space” or some used their erasers to mark spaces between words. Students illustrated their journals and on the back, they tried to write their own sentences about Fall.
• Literacy Centers: Our letter of the week was M. You can see our computer center illustrations for the letter M in our website, under “Classwork.” For listening center, we tried writing and drawing about our favorite part in the story. It is similar to what they do in their homework each week with our library journal and books.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Madhav, who was chosen as our fifth Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We worked on the next chapter in math, which was more on patterns. We are practicing being able to say the patterns and use letters to identify the patterns. Students have to be able to create their own patterns as well. Please look over your child’s work and practice having them show you different patterns.
• Computer Lab: This week we continued working on our fall patterns page in Kidspiration. We used different fall foods to finish our patterns, and then we made our own patterns at the very bottom. You can see these fall pattern pages on our website, under “Classwork.”
• Science: We continued talking about Fall. In addition to learning about fall leaves, we also talked about how some animals prepare for winter. Some animals, like squirrels, collect food in the fall, or other animals, like bears, may get ready to hibernate. We also have been talking about pumpkins and we learned a song called, “5 Little Pumpkins!”
• Buddies: We saw our buddies on Thursday. We read the story, “Rainbow Fish,” which is about a beautiful fish who finds that sharing and being happy is more important than being selfish and lonely. We talked about how being kind to others is important. Then, we made our own fish using tissue paper and foil.
• Art: Today in Friday centers, we made handprints of a spider and we also made a pumpkin project.
• PE: We practiced skipping, jumping, hopping, galloping, and balance skills!
On Monday, we will be visiting the book fair. At the book fair, we get to browse all the books, and students try to write down a “wish list” of titles they would like. They bring home these wish lists to you so that if you go back to the library, you will know which books to purchase. If you are able to help write titles for the children, please come to the library at the following times. The more help, the better, so anyone is welcome.
AM Book Fair Visit: 9:10am – 9:30am
PM Book Fair Visit: 1:10pm – 1:30pm
Friday, October 01, 2010
October 1, 2010
Dear Families,
Thank you for coming to your parent-teacher conference this past week! I really enjoy the time to meet with each of you and get to know your child a little bit better. A copy of your conference will be sent home next week for you to keep. It is always difficult having a substitute in the classroom because they are unfamiliar with our procedures and routines. Mrs. K let me know that everything went ok and hopefully the children enjoyed having her as a substitute! I will be back in the classroom on Monday.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We finished our letter books by working on W, X, Y, and Z. Also, we had our first literacy centers experience on Wednesday. Every Wednesday, we will get to listen to a story and complete a listening worksheet, draw a Kidpix picture of the letter of the week, and we will work on a page in our dictionaries. This week’s letter was S. For the dictionary activity, I provide 15 different S words and pictures. Students get to choose 8 S words of their choice to write and illustrate in their dictionary. In listening center next week, I will be having them draw and write about their favorite parts. In computer center, they need to draw a large picture starting with the letter of the week.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Tess, who was chosen as our fourth Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We worked with Mrs. K this week on patterns. We practiced naming different patterns by saying the object (apple, orange, apple orange, etc) and by using letters (A, B, A, B, etc). We also practiced the ABB, AAB, and ABC patterns. Also, today in Friday centers we did a fun project that goes with the book, “Ten Apples Up On Top.” We glued a picture of ourselves with 10 apples on our head! Then we practiced writing our numbers from 1 to 10.
• Computer Lab: This week we used a new program called Kidspiration. We began by learning about the program, typing our names, and working on a patterns page. We used different fall foods to finish patterns. We will be continuing this activity next week.
• Social Studies: We read about Johnny Appleseed on Monday. His birthday was on September 26th and he is famous for planting many apple trees! We learned how to make applesauce in class. Thank you to Madhav and Shaunak’s mom for peeling, coring, cutting, and boiling all the apples you brought last Friday. In class, we used potato mashers to smoosh the apples, then we mixed in water, cinnamon, and sugar. Afterwards, we ate our yummy applesauce!
• Science: We are talking about the Fall season. We learned that leaves changed color. Today in Friday centers, we made tissue paper apples with Ms. Shama!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week on Tuesday. Mrs. K was the substitute so I was not there. Ask your child what they sang! Thank you to the music volunteers for helping to manage the kids. It is really important the kids know when to be silly and when to listen to directions!
• Art: We saw Ms. Abada yesterday for art class. We used chalk and pastels to draw a beautiful pumpkin sitting on the grass at night. The office is actually using our drawings next week as decorations for the beginning of October! Please stop by the office to see our beautiful pumpkins! Thank you to all the art volunteers!
• Assembly: Today we had an assembly by Kaiser called “Healthy Living.”
Have a great weekend! Be sure to check out our website for some updated photos and work!
Thank you for coming to your parent-teacher conference this past week! I really enjoy the time to meet with each of you and get to know your child a little bit better. A copy of your conference will be sent home next week for you to keep. It is always difficult having a substitute in the classroom because they are unfamiliar with our procedures and routines. Mrs. K let me know that everything went ok and hopefully the children enjoyed having her as a substitute! I will be back in the classroom on Monday.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We finished our letter books by working on W, X, Y, and Z. Also, we had our first literacy centers experience on Wednesday. Every Wednesday, we will get to listen to a story and complete a listening worksheet, draw a Kidpix picture of the letter of the week, and we will work on a page in our dictionaries. This week’s letter was S. For the dictionary activity, I provide 15 different S words and pictures. Students get to choose 8 S words of their choice to write and illustrate in their dictionary. In listening center next week, I will be having them draw and write about their favorite parts. In computer center, they need to draw a large picture starting with the letter of the week.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Tess, who was chosen as our fourth Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We worked with Mrs. K this week on patterns. We practiced naming different patterns by saying the object (apple, orange, apple orange, etc) and by using letters (A, B, A, B, etc). We also practiced the ABB, AAB, and ABC patterns. Also, today in Friday centers we did a fun project that goes with the book, “Ten Apples Up On Top.” We glued a picture of ourselves with 10 apples on our head! Then we practiced writing our numbers from 1 to 10.
• Computer Lab: This week we used a new program called Kidspiration. We began by learning about the program, typing our names, and working on a patterns page. We used different fall foods to finish patterns. We will be continuing this activity next week.
• Social Studies: We read about Johnny Appleseed on Monday. His birthday was on September 26th and he is famous for planting many apple trees! We learned how to make applesauce in class. Thank you to Madhav and Shaunak’s mom for peeling, coring, cutting, and boiling all the apples you brought last Friday. In class, we used potato mashers to smoosh the apples, then we mixed in water, cinnamon, and sugar. Afterwards, we ate our yummy applesauce!
• Science: We are talking about the Fall season. We learned that leaves changed color. Today in Friday centers, we made tissue paper apples with Ms. Shama!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week on Tuesday. Mrs. K was the substitute so I was not there. Ask your child what they sang! Thank you to the music volunteers for helping to manage the kids. It is really important the kids know when to be silly and when to listen to directions!
• Art: We saw Ms. Abada yesterday for art class. We used chalk and pastels to draw a beautiful pumpkin sitting on the grass at night. The office is actually using our drawings next week as decorations for the beginning of October! Please stop by the office to see our beautiful pumpkins! Thank you to all the art volunteers!
• Assembly: Today we had an assembly by Kaiser called “Healthy Living.”
Have a great weekend! Be sure to check out our website for some updated photos and work!
Friday, September 24, 2010
September 24, 2010
Dear Families,
Happy Fall! I look forward to meeting with each of you next week during our parent-teacher conferences! Thank you for taking time out of your schedules to meet with me in the middle of the day. I know it is inconvenient, but it only happens once a year, so it is very important! Thank you for being flexible!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on many of the letters this week including R, S, T, U, and V. We have been learning a song that teaches us all of the vowels (A, E, I, O, U). Have your child sing you the song! We have also been reviewing a song called Clap Your Name about how many syllables we have in our name. In addition, we started a color book this week. We made a red ladybug and a green frog!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Caroline, who was chosen as our third Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We are starting the second unit in our math books on shapes and patterns. We are identifying, drawing, and sorting shapes such as circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles. We read a story called Pancakes, and we also played a math game to help us practice identifying colors and shapes.
• Computer Lab: This week we continued our project from last week, which was illustrating our Apple Tree poem. Thank you to all the extra moms that came to help this week! We had 8 helpers =) As the students get more and more used to opening files and using the Kidpix software, we will need less help. However, for now, it is so helpful because we can print and save files much quicker! Thank you!!! You can see our Apple Tree drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website! If you do not see your child’s drawing, that means they did not do the project.
• Library: This was the first time we checked out a book from the Eaton library. I talked to the students about how to choose a book that is good for homework. I encouraged them to find a book that has lots of pictures and not too many words or pages (like a chapter book), because they need to be able to read it during the week. Please remember to return the whole homework envelope every Friday, with the homework packet, library book, and library journal inside. Remember that homework is encouraged, but not mandatory. Some days you just might not have time, so you can choose what you want your child to focus on for that week. Spending time with your child each night is what is important, and reading with them is always a positive way to bond with them!
• Buddies: On Thursday, we met our fourth grade buddies for the second time! We made a fall leaves project. We used tear art to tear red, orange, and yellow papers to decorate our leaves. You can see these pictures as well in the “Classwork” section of our website under new September decorations!
• Science: This week we talked about our five senses! We learned that our five senses are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and feeling. We also learned that this week, the season changed from summer to fall (or autumn). We described fall using our five senses. In addition, during Friday centers today, we learned the life cycle of apples using the apples we brought to school! We learned that is changes from a seed to a tree, and then blossoms grow, and finally apples emerge!
• Art: Today in Friday centers with Ms. Shama, we decorated our red t-shirts using finger paint! We made a picture using only dots, and students were able to choose any kind of decoration of their choice. The shirts are drying now and will be ready to take home next week!
• Volunteers: Thank you to Siddharth’s mom for correcting the weekly homework packets for us. Thank you also to Mia’s family for helping to prepare all the math work for the year. Furthermore, thank you to Sreenidhi’s mom for helping to prepare the weekly homework packets at home! It is so wonderful to be able to ask for help, and to have more than enough parents to offer to help. Thank you so much!
Have a great weekend! I’m going to be an auntie on Sunday!!! My older sister is delivering identical twin girls on Sunday! =)
Happy Fall! I look forward to meeting with each of you next week during our parent-teacher conferences! Thank you for taking time out of your schedules to meet with me in the middle of the day. I know it is inconvenient, but it only happens once a year, so it is very important! Thank you for being flexible!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on many of the letters this week including R, S, T, U, and V. We have been learning a song that teaches us all of the vowels (A, E, I, O, U). Have your child sing you the song! We have also been reviewing a song called Clap Your Name about how many syllables we have in our name. In addition, we started a color book this week. We made a red ladybug and a green frog!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Caroline, who was chosen as our third Star of the Week! You can read about her in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.”
• Math: We are starting the second unit in our math books on shapes and patterns. We are identifying, drawing, and sorting shapes such as circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles. We read a story called Pancakes, and we also played a math game to help us practice identifying colors and shapes.
• Computer Lab: This week we continued our project from last week, which was illustrating our Apple Tree poem. Thank you to all the extra moms that came to help this week! We had 8 helpers =) As the students get more and more used to opening files and using the Kidpix software, we will need less help. However, for now, it is so helpful because we can print and save files much quicker! Thank you!!! You can see our Apple Tree drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website! If you do not see your child’s drawing, that means they did not do the project.
• Library: This was the first time we checked out a book from the Eaton library. I talked to the students about how to choose a book that is good for homework. I encouraged them to find a book that has lots of pictures and not too many words or pages (like a chapter book), because they need to be able to read it during the week. Please remember to return the whole homework envelope every Friday, with the homework packet, library book, and library journal inside. Remember that homework is encouraged, but not mandatory. Some days you just might not have time, so you can choose what you want your child to focus on for that week. Spending time with your child each night is what is important, and reading with them is always a positive way to bond with them!
• Buddies: On Thursday, we met our fourth grade buddies for the second time! We made a fall leaves project. We used tear art to tear red, orange, and yellow papers to decorate our leaves. You can see these pictures as well in the “Classwork” section of our website under new September decorations!
• Science: This week we talked about our five senses! We learned that our five senses are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and feeling. We also learned that this week, the season changed from summer to fall (or autumn). We described fall using our five senses. In addition, during Friday centers today, we learned the life cycle of apples using the apples we brought to school! We learned that is changes from a seed to a tree, and then blossoms grow, and finally apples emerge!
• Art: Today in Friday centers with Ms. Shama, we decorated our red t-shirts using finger paint! We made a picture using only dots, and students were able to choose any kind of decoration of their choice. The shirts are drying now and will be ready to take home next week!
• Volunteers: Thank you to Siddharth’s mom for correcting the weekly homework packets for us. Thank you also to Mia’s family for helping to prepare all the math work for the year. Furthermore, thank you to Sreenidhi’s mom for helping to prepare the weekly homework packets at home! It is so wonderful to be able to ask for help, and to have more than enough parents to offer to help. Thank you so much!
Have a great weekend! I’m going to be an auntie on Sunday!!! My older sister is delivering identical twin girls on Sunday! =)
Thursday, September 16, 2010
September 16, 2010
Dear Families,
This was another short week! On Monday, your child brought home their “cool-colored” Kindergarten Keepbook Box. Please remember to put them somewhere where your child can access them whenever they want to read. I told the students a good place may be in their room, such as in their closet, on a shelf, or under the bed. We have many mini-books this year, so please keep them altogether!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on many of the letters this week including N, O, P, and Q. Our handwriting is starting to look better and I am seeing good control on holding the pencil correctly! Many of the students can copy the letters if they have an example, but cannot write it properly on their own. This will be our next step. Keep practicing at home! This week we also read the story, “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom,” and its sequel, “Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3.” We made a coconut tree project using the letters in our name, just like the story!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Nobuaki, who was chosen as our second Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Please remember to take care of Beebear if you take him home for the weekend. He is pretty old, so he needs to be treated gently! Thanks!
• Math: We completed the first unit of our math books, which covered a lot of vocabulary such as before/after, top/middle/bottom, inside/outside, and between. We also should know how to sort by color, shape, or size, and be able to fill out a bar graph. We have also been learning about patterns in the calendar routine, and we are working on AB patterns.
• Computer Lab: This week we started our first project using the software, Kidpix. We are illustrating our September poem called, The Apple Tree. We learned how to open our folders and open our project files. We also learned how to type our name using a capital letter in the beginning. Then we started learning to draw a tree using the rectangle shape tool and paint bucket. Thank you to Shaunak’s mom, Rylee’s mom, Kai-Ting’s mom, Anthony’s mom, and Caroline’s mom for helping in computer lab (which is by far the craziest time because almost every student needs help!) We need all the extra help we can get in the computer lab, so if you are also able to volunteer every Wednesday from 11:40-12:20, please let me know!
• Library: This was our second visit to the library. Mrs. Glass read us a story, and then reviewed the library rules: walking feet, whisper voices, using a shelf marker to find books, putting books away, and reading quietly at the tables. Please begin getting in the habit of reading with or to your child every night, even just a few minutes. We want students to learn to love reading, or at this stage, love to hear stories, look at pictures, and think about what’s happening in the story. We will begin checking out books next week, so homework will include the reading journals as well as the regular weekly packets. Please return the homework envelope and book every Friday!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney again on Thursday. We sang animal songs this week. She even had enough stuffed animals for us to choose from, and we identified the animals that could walk vs. fly vs. swim vs. hop, etc. In music, we are trying to remember when it is ok to be silly and when it is time to be quiet. Thank you to the volunteers who came this week: Shaunak’s mom, Kai-Ting’s mom, Rylee’s mom, and Vivian’s mom.
• Assembly: On Wednesday, we had a special assembly for just our class from Officer Pete and Deputy Dane. Both of them came into our classroom to talk to us about strangers. We learned how to know a good stranger (such as a teacher at Eaton you might not know) vs. a bad stranger (someone dangerous), and they taught us not to talk to strangers. We also learned what to do if a stranger tries to talk to us! Also, Officer Pete showed us all the equipment he carries on his belt, including a gun. He told us that guns are very dangerous and that is why we do not even pretend to shoot a gun. There is NO pretend fighting or shooting at Eaton school because we want to be safe and be friendly to each other.
• Homework: This week we started our weekly homework packets. Remember to check your child’s work and explain anything they have made mistakes on. You can return these at the end of each week (usually Friday).
Theresa (Jon’s mother) has set up a google group for parents. If you haven’t already, please remember to join the group so you can stay connected with our class information! Have a great long weekend!
This was another short week! On Monday, your child brought home their “cool-colored” Kindergarten Keepbook Box. Please remember to put them somewhere where your child can access them whenever they want to read. I told the students a good place may be in their room, such as in their closet, on a shelf, or under the bed. We have many mini-books this year, so please keep them altogether!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on many of the letters this week including N, O, P, and Q. Our handwriting is starting to look better and I am seeing good control on holding the pencil correctly! Many of the students can copy the letters if they have an example, but cannot write it properly on their own. This will be our next step. Keep practicing at home! This week we also read the story, “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom,” and its sequel, “Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3.” We made a coconut tree project using the letters in our name, just like the story!
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Nobuaki, who was chosen as our second Star of the Week! You can read about him in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week.” Please remember to take care of Beebear if you take him home for the weekend. He is pretty old, so he needs to be treated gently! Thanks!
• Math: We completed the first unit of our math books, which covered a lot of vocabulary such as before/after, top/middle/bottom, inside/outside, and between. We also should know how to sort by color, shape, or size, and be able to fill out a bar graph. We have also been learning about patterns in the calendar routine, and we are working on AB patterns.
• Computer Lab: This week we started our first project using the software, Kidpix. We are illustrating our September poem called, The Apple Tree. We learned how to open our folders and open our project files. We also learned how to type our name using a capital letter in the beginning. Then we started learning to draw a tree using the rectangle shape tool and paint bucket. Thank you to Shaunak’s mom, Rylee’s mom, Kai-Ting’s mom, Anthony’s mom, and Caroline’s mom for helping in computer lab (which is by far the craziest time because almost every student needs help!) We need all the extra help we can get in the computer lab, so if you are also able to volunteer every Wednesday from 11:40-12:20, please let me know!
• Library: This was our second visit to the library. Mrs. Glass read us a story, and then reviewed the library rules: walking feet, whisper voices, using a shelf marker to find books, putting books away, and reading quietly at the tables. Please begin getting in the habit of reading with or to your child every night, even just a few minutes. We want students to learn to love reading, or at this stage, love to hear stories, look at pictures, and think about what’s happening in the story. We will begin checking out books next week, so homework will include the reading journals as well as the regular weekly packets. Please return the homework envelope and book every Friday!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney again on Thursday. We sang animal songs this week. She even had enough stuffed animals for us to choose from, and we identified the animals that could walk vs. fly vs. swim vs. hop, etc. In music, we are trying to remember when it is ok to be silly and when it is time to be quiet. Thank you to the volunteers who came this week: Shaunak’s mom, Kai-Ting’s mom, Rylee’s mom, and Vivian’s mom.
• Assembly: On Wednesday, we had a special assembly for just our class from Officer Pete and Deputy Dane. Both of them came into our classroom to talk to us about strangers. We learned how to know a good stranger (such as a teacher at Eaton you might not know) vs. a bad stranger (someone dangerous), and they taught us not to talk to strangers. We also learned what to do if a stranger tries to talk to us! Also, Officer Pete showed us all the equipment he carries on his belt, including a gun. He told us that guns are very dangerous and that is why we do not even pretend to shoot a gun. There is NO pretend fighting or shooting at Eaton school because we want to be safe and be friendly to each other.
• Homework: This week we started our weekly homework packets. Remember to check your child’s work and explain anything they have made mistakes on. You can return these at the end of each week (usually Friday).
Theresa (Jon’s mother) has set up a google group for parents. If you haven’t already, please remember to join the group so you can stay connected with our class information! Have a great long weekend!
Friday, September 10, 2010
September 10, 2010
Dear Families,
This was a short week. Everyday we are working on following our carpet rules, working rules, and lining up rules. We are also talking about how to treat others in the classroom and on the playground with respect. We are learning to share and we are learning to use our words to communicate with each other. I hope that this year the children will learn how to be kind to one another.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on the letters J, K, L, and M this week. Please review all of our alphabet letters at home, and have your child practice writing their own name properly. We have also been learning a new song called, “Clap Your Name,” where we clap the number of syllables in everyone’s name.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Siddharth, who was chosen as our first Star of the Week! We interviewed him and learned ten facts about Siddharth. Afterwards, we made a class book for him. Over the weekend, Siddharth finished his poster and Beebear’s journal. He did a great job sharing his poster to the class. You can read about Siddharth in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week” near the top of the page. I will update information on the Star of the Week blog every week.
• Math: We completed the third chapter in the first unit of our math book. This week was all about graphing. We learned how to read graphs and figure out which is more or less popular. We also had a chance to make our own graphs and interview classmates to fill in the data. We know how to make bar graphs on our own. Some bar graphs start from the bottom to top. Other bar graphs start from left to right. Some bar graphs are colored in completely to form a “bar”, other graphs are made from pictures of objects. Those are called picture graphs. We use graphing a lot in Kindergarten!
• Computer Lab: This was our first time in the computer lab. We learned some of the rules of the computer lab and how to use the mouse. We had free exploration time on the software program, KidPix. We also learned how to do “Apple-Q” to quit a program.
• Buddies: We met our fourth grade buddies from Ms. Allen’s class on Thursday! They came over to our class and we were paired up with a big buddy. Our first activity was to interview each other and find out our buddy’s favorite color, animal, activity, and food. Then we illustrated a picture of ourselves and our buddies drew pictures too!
• Art: This week we learned a poem about apple cores. We learned how to make “tear-art,” which is when we rip paper edges instead of using scissors. This is because for some projects we want a “torn” look. We practiced using glue stick properly by gluing all of the edges of the paper, and we learned how to keep our fingers and table clean when we glue!
• Friday Centers: We painted our shoeboxes with Ms. Shama today! We got to use big paintbrushes and we used cool colors (green, blue, and purple) to paint all the sides of our boxes. They will dry over the weekend. Also, we made a math project where we used rulers to make a beehive. We used our thumbprints to make bees and we showed the difference between: inside, outside, and on the beehive.
• Assembly: Today we had a special musical assembly by Gary Lapow called, “Our Bodies Are Our Buddies.” Gary Lapow writes songs using his guitar to teach about different things. This assembly was about eating right and exercising to stay healthy!
Thank you for returning all the paperwork from Back-to-School night so promptly. If you haven’t yet, please return at least the website permission form! Thank you to all of our volunteers so far:
- Room Parents: Lalitha and Theresa
- Library Helper: Sandra
- Music Helpers: Sujata, Ashley, and Sherry
- Computer Helpers: Sandra, Sujata, Sherry, JeeHyun, and Lana
- Art Helpers: Maria, Sujata, Anni, and Naoko (Nanaka’s mom)
- Friday Helpers: Lalitha (AM), Rachel (PM), Naoko (Konoka’s mom), and Mari
Thank you for those of you who signed up to help at home. At this time, I am not sure what areas we need help with. I will email you if we need help! Thank you!
Thank you also to everyone who signed up to help with traffic duty in November. I will send a reminder as we get closer to our traffic duty week. Again, if you haven’t signed up for a slot, please consider doing so and return the sign up sheet from Back to School night. Thank you for your help!
Next week will also be a short week. If you haven’t, please remember to bring your child’s red T-shirt next week. We will be decorating them to wear for our field trips. I will also try to send home information about parent conferences next week. The dates are TBD. Have a wonderful weekend!
This was a short week. Everyday we are working on following our carpet rules, working rules, and lining up rules. We are also talking about how to treat others in the classroom and on the playground with respect. We are learning to share and we are learning to use our words to communicate with each other. I hope that this year the children will learn how to be kind to one another.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on the letters J, K, L, and M this week. Please review all of our alphabet letters at home, and have your child practice writing their own name properly. We have also been learning a new song called, “Clap Your Name,” where we clap the number of syllables in everyone’s name.
• Social Studies: Congratulations to Siddharth, who was chosen as our first Star of the Week! We interviewed him and learned ten facts about Siddharth. Afterwards, we made a class book for him. Over the weekend, Siddharth finished his poster and Beebear’s journal. He did a great job sharing his poster to the class. You can read about Siddharth in the “Classwork” section of our website, and click under “Star of the Week” near the top of the page. I will update information on the Star of the Week blog every week.
• Math: We completed the third chapter in the first unit of our math book. This week was all about graphing. We learned how to read graphs and figure out which is more or less popular. We also had a chance to make our own graphs and interview classmates to fill in the data. We know how to make bar graphs on our own. Some bar graphs start from the bottom to top. Other bar graphs start from left to right. Some bar graphs are colored in completely to form a “bar”, other graphs are made from pictures of objects. Those are called picture graphs. We use graphing a lot in Kindergarten!
• Computer Lab: This was our first time in the computer lab. We learned some of the rules of the computer lab and how to use the mouse. We had free exploration time on the software program, KidPix. We also learned how to do “Apple-Q” to quit a program.
• Buddies: We met our fourth grade buddies from Ms. Allen’s class on Thursday! They came over to our class and we were paired up with a big buddy. Our first activity was to interview each other and find out our buddy’s favorite color, animal, activity, and food. Then we illustrated a picture of ourselves and our buddies drew pictures too!
• Art: This week we learned a poem about apple cores. We learned how to make “tear-art,” which is when we rip paper edges instead of using scissors. This is because for some projects we want a “torn” look. We practiced using glue stick properly by gluing all of the edges of the paper, and we learned how to keep our fingers and table clean when we glue!
• Friday Centers: We painted our shoeboxes with Ms. Shama today! We got to use big paintbrushes and we used cool colors (green, blue, and purple) to paint all the sides of our boxes. They will dry over the weekend. Also, we made a math project where we used rulers to make a beehive. We used our thumbprints to make bees and we showed the difference between: inside, outside, and on the beehive.
• Assembly: Today we had a special musical assembly by Gary Lapow called, “Our Bodies Are Our Buddies.” Gary Lapow writes songs using his guitar to teach about different things. This assembly was about eating right and exercising to stay healthy!
Thank you for returning all the paperwork from Back-to-School night so promptly. If you haven’t yet, please return at least the website permission form! Thank you to all of our volunteers so far:
- Room Parents: Lalitha and Theresa
- Library Helper: Sandra
- Music Helpers: Sujata, Ashley, and Sherry
- Computer Helpers: Sandra, Sujata, Sherry, JeeHyun, and Lana
- Art Helpers: Maria, Sujata, Anni, and Naoko (Nanaka’s mom)
- Friday Helpers: Lalitha (AM), Rachel (PM), Naoko (Konoka’s mom), and Mari
Thank you for those of you who signed up to help at home. At this time, I am not sure what areas we need help with. I will email you if we need help! Thank you!
Thank you also to everyone who signed up to help with traffic duty in November. I will send a reminder as we get closer to our traffic duty week. Again, if you haven’t signed up for a slot, please consider doing so and return the sign up sheet from Back to School night. Thank you for your help!
Next week will also be a short week. If you haven’t, please remember to bring your child’s red T-shirt next week. We will be decorating them to wear for our field trips. I will also try to send home information about parent conferences next week. The dates are TBD. Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, September 03, 2010
September 3, 2010
Dear Families,
I’m glad so many of you were able to make it yesterday to Back to School Night! I apologize for speaking so quickly and rushing through many things, but there is so much to cover! Remember to take time to look over the website if you ever have questions about our classroom procedures. If you were unable to attend, I have sent home our Back to School Night packet in your child’s yellow or blue daily folder. Please look through all the materials and return the forms included.
I mentioned homework last night; which includes library take home book and journal, sharing, monthly packets, and weekly packets. Only the September Homework packet has started, and that will be due October 1st. Sharing begins the week of September 20th and library take home book and journals will begin in October. I will try to send the weekly homework packets in the next few weeks.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on the letters E, F, G, H, and I this week. Remember to keep these Kindergarten Keep Books together in a safe place! We learned the sounds of the letters and how to write each letter properly. We are even learning sign language! Ask your child to show you the alphabet up to letter I in sign language and tell you all the sounds! Also, we sang the song, “The Wheels on the Bus” and changed the verses each time. We made school buses and drew children in the windows.
• Social Studies: We are beginning our Star of the Week program today. We will select a child each week to learn about. We will interview them by asking them questions, and then afterwards we complete a book about things that they like. The Star of the Week completes their posters at home and they get to bring Beebear home for the weekend!
• Math: We completed the second chapter in our math books on sorting. Each day,
we used colored foam shape manipulatives to practice sorting by same colors (i.e. red, blue, and yellow), by same shapes (ie. squares, triangles, rectangles, circles), or by size (i.e. large and small).
• Library: We had our first library visit this week. We met Mrs. Glass and learned about the library rules. We need to use walking feet, whisper voices, and we have special shelf markers to help us remember where we found our books. Students have time to read different books in the library and learn how to put them back in the correct spot. We will not be checking out books until October.
• Music: We met Ms. Disney for the first time this week. She is a wonderful music teacher who has great discipline and control of the classroom. During music, she focuses a lot on movement, rhythm, and beats, instead of just singing songs like we do in the classroom. When we first started, we moved in a circle to different drum sounds that reminded us of skipping, jumping, hopping, tip-toe-ing, sliding, or galloping. Then we did some rhythm patterns using our names. We clapped everyone’s names and made different rhythms. We will see her every other week.
• Art: We also met Ms. Abada for the first time this week! She is also a wonderful art teacher and she does really unique projects with the kids. We went to the art room and she taught us about cityscapes. We learned about the city of Chicago and talked about what type of buildings are in cities. Then we used all sorts of cardboard, wallpaper, stickers, film, markers, etc. to build our own cityscapes. Afterwards, we learned how to help clean up our scraps, glue, scissors, and markers. We need to remember not to leave a mess, and instead return everything to its proper place.
• Friday Centers: Today, we practiced our AB patterns again by gluing red and blue squares down. We have been practicing AB patterns on our calendar as well. Next, Ms. Shama helped us make apple handprints using our palm, thumb, and pointer finger. We also illustrated a Kindergarten Keep Book about “The Pledge of Allegiance.”
Thank you for filling out the forms and paperwork from last night. Please return them as soon as possible. I will be contacting classroom volunteers through email as soon as I can, so we can have help in the classroom. Thank you! Have a great long weekend!
I’m glad so many of you were able to make it yesterday to Back to School Night! I apologize for speaking so quickly and rushing through many things, but there is so much to cover! Remember to take time to look over the website if you ever have questions about our classroom procedures. If you were unable to attend, I have sent home our Back to School Night packet in your child’s yellow or blue daily folder. Please look through all the materials and return the forms included.
I mentioned homework last night; which includes library take home book and journal, sharing, monthly packets, and weekly packets. Only the September Homework packet has started, and that will be due October 1st. Sharing begins the week of September 20th and library take home book and journals will begin in October. I will try to send the weekly homework packets in the next few weeks.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Language Arts: We worked on the letters E, F, G, H, and I this week. Remember to keep these Kindergarten Keep Books together in a safe place! We learned the sounds of the letters and how to write each letter properly. We are even learning sign language! Ask your child to show you the alphabet up to letter I in sign language and tell you all the sounds! Also, we sang the song, “The Wheels on the Bus” and changed the verses each time. We made school buses and drew children in the windows.
• Social Studies: We are beginning our Star of the Week program today. We will select a child each week to learn about. We will interview them by asking them questions, and then afterwards we complete a book about things that they like. The Star of the Week completes their posters at home and they get to bring Beebear home for the weekend!
• Math: We completed the second chapter in our math books on sorting. Each day,
we used colored foam shape manipulatives to practice sorting by same colors (i.e. red, blue, and yellow), by same shapes (ie. squares, triangles, rectangles, circles), or by size (i.e. large and small).
• Library: We had our first library visit this week. We met Mrs. Glass and learned about the library rules. We need to use walking feet, whisper voices, and we have special shelf markers to help us remember where we found our books. Students have time to read different books in the library and learn how to put them back in the correct spot. We will not be checking out books until October.
• Music: We met Ms. Disney for the first time this week. She is a wonderful music teacher who has great discipline and control of the classroom. During music, she focuses a lot on movement, rhythm, and beats, instead of just singing songs like we do in the classroom. When we first started, we moved in a circle to different drum sounds that reminded us of skipping, jumping, hopping, tip-toe-ing, sliding, or galloping. Then we did some rhythm patterns using our names. We clapped everyone’s names and made different rhythms. We will see her every other week.
• Art: We also met Ms. Abada for the first time this week! She is also a wonderful art teacher and she does really unique projects with the kids. We went to the art room and she taught us about cityscapes. We learned about the city of Chicago and talked about what type of buildings are in cities. Then we used all sorts of cardboard, wallpaper, stickers, film, markers, etc. to build our own cityscapes. Afterwards, we learned how to help clean up our scraps, glue, scissors, and markers. We need to remember not to leave a mess, and instead return everything to its proper place.
• Friday Centers: Today, we practiced our AB patterns again by gluing red and blue squares down. We have been practicing AB patterns on our calendar as well. Next, Ms. Shama helped us make apple handprints using our palm, thumb, and pointer finger. We also illustrated a Kindergarten Keep Book about “The Pledge of Allegiance.”
Thank you for filling out the forms and paperwork from last night. Please return them as soon as possible. I will be contacting classroom volunteers through email as soon as I can, so we can have help in the classroom. Thank you! Have a great long weekend!
Friday, August 27, 2010
August 27, 2010
Upcoming Dates
Thursday, September 2nd: Back-to-School Night 6:15pm-7:00pm in Room 8
This is a mandatory informational meeting about our classroom procedures and curriculum plan for the year. There will be a PTO meeting in the MP room afterwards from 7:00pm-7:15pm.
Monday, September 6th: No School – Labor Day
Enjoy your three-day weekend!
Friday, September 17th: No School – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be coming to school, but students have the day off!
-----
Dear Families,
Thank you to those of you who have given generous donations for our classroom! In addition to the kindergarten supply list, we ask each family to donate $150 (payable to Eaton Elementary School) in order to cover the costs for all the assemblies, field trips, projects, and activities we complete all year long. These programs are not possible without your donations. Currently, we have 2/3 of the class who has donated money. If you are financially able to help, please contribute to our classroom funds! We appreciate your support!
The Eaton PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) also is asking for a $175 donation (payable to Eaton PTO) to help plan school wide events and fundraisers such as Enrichment Day, International Night, Field Day, etc. They also use this money to pay for our amazing classified staff such as our instructional aide, art, music, library, primary PE, and computer teachers! In addition, these funds pay for technology, PE, and emergency supplies for our school! Please consider these donation opportunities, as they greatly help our school!
The first few days of school have been focused on class rules and procedures. Remember to look through and empty the daily yellow and blue folders each day. The work that goes home in the folders should have been completed at school. However, some students may bring back incomplete work. Please have your child finish the remainder of the assignment at home. You do not need to turn it back to me, but it should be finished for your child’s benefit. I also encourage you to take a few minutes every night to review the work with your child and have them tell you what they learned. Please reinforce these concepts at home, whether it’s math or language arts, or other subjects. If there are highlighter markings or notes on the papers, that is an area you can help your child learn. These are some suggestions on how to assist your child at home.
Students are learning to become more independent by unpacking and packing up each day, cleaning up after themselves, and finishing work on their own. I encourage you to let your child do the same at home. Practice giving directions once and have your child respond immediately. At school, some students are not listening to directions and need a lot of repetition. Practicing listening skills at home will help them at school! Also, we are working on following classroom rules when sitting on the carpet, working at the tables, lining up, and during recess or lunch. Last week, we took a tour of the Eaton campus to learn where the office, bathroom, library, computer lab, MP room, etc. is. Please make sure that your child is comfortable going to the bathroom by him/herself (closing the door, flushing, washing hands after, etc) and also is able to open and close their lunches or snacks. Thank you!
Here are some highlights from the week:
• Reading: We continued to read the Kissing Hand and its sequels. We made a handprint using paint to show what our Kissing Hands look like. Also, we have been learning the words to a book called, “We All Sing With the Same Voice,” which describes children around the world who are alike and different. Everyday, we read an alphabet story so that the students are learning their letters and different vocabulary words that begin with each letter.
• Language Arts: We have begun our phonics and handwriting lessons. We learned how to hold a pencil and how to use one-finger spaces. We have been writing our name on lined paper to practice proper letter formation. We worked on A, B, C, and D this week. We practiced big and small letters as well as saying their sounds. I use a highlighter to help the children with letter formations. Please practice at home all of the letters we work on at school! Please keep these ABC books and other 8½ x 5½ sheet booklets together in a safe place. These are called Kindergarten Keep Books and they will be part of our homework this year! In a few weeks, we will be making a box to store these books, but for now, please keep them organized in one place.
• Math: We completed the first chapter in our math book. The vocabulary words we learned included: top/middle/bottom, before/between/after, inside/outside, and left/right. Please look over the work that goes home and also review these concepts and vocabulary words with your child. We also did an art project about ice cream and practiced applying the concept of top/middle/bottom.
• Social Studies: We are learning about ourselves and our community. We drew a self portrait using as much detail as we could. We also completed a Kindergarten Keep Book about school. This book will be going in the boxes that we will be making.
• Art: We had a scissors lesson last week and learned how to properly hold scissors. We practiced cutting different types of lines and then made an art project to the poem, “Blue Sky, Yellow Sun.” We are learning how to glue along the edges of a paper without getting our fingers or the table sticky, and to not waste glue. We are also learning how to try our best when we draw, by outlining edges and coloring in completely.
• Fire Drill: On Thursday, we practiced our first fire drill. We talked about why we have to practice fire drills and other emergencies. We have to line up quietly when the fire bell rings and walk onto the field until we are excused. Some students are still learning where to stand in their ABC order, and to remember all the lining up rules (face forward, hands behind, quiet feet and mouths in line).
• Friday Centers: On Fridays, we will be having special centers where children work in small groups to complete activities. This is a time for children to interact and learn how to socialize with others by sharing, including, and treating others nicely. We are lucky to have Ms. Shama, a Kindergarten and upper grade aide, on Fridays during the small group sessions (9:00-10:35am and 1:10-3:05pm). At back-to-school night, I will be looking for a committed AM and PM parent helper who is comfortable managing and teaching a small group of children during centers. During Friday centers, I get to work with students individually on reading, comprehension, math skills, or language assessments.
• Assembly: We had our first assembly today from Mara the Storyteller! Her specialty is oral storytelling. We are working hard on being good listeners and being a good audience!
• Library: We will have our first Eaton library visit on Monday. Mrs. Glass, our librarian, reads us a story and then we get to read books during this time. For the first month, we will not be having the kids check out books on their own because it takes some time to learn the library procedures and how to choose an appropriate book. Therefore, if you would like to find books for your child at home, please visit the Cupertino Public Library. As a general rule, we have children browse for books, and if they cannot read more than 5 words on a page, then that book is too difficult. For now, alphabet books and picture books are great, unless you are reading to them (then it can be harder).
I am looking forward to meeting all of you next Thursday at Back to School Night! Please plan on attending. Have a wonderful weekend!
Thursday, September 2nd: Back-to-School Night 6:15pm-7:00pm in Room 8
This is a mandatory informational meeting about our classroom procedures and curriculum plan for the year. There will be a PTO meeting in the MP room afterwards from 7:00pm-7:15pm.
Monday, September 6th: No School – Labor Day
Enjoy your three-day weekend!
Friday, September 17th: No School – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be coming to school, but students have the day off!
-----
Dear Families,
Thank you to those of you who have given generous donations for our classroom! In addition to the kindergarten supply list, we ask each family to donate $150 (payable to Eaton Elementary School) in order to cover the costs for all the assemblies, field trips, projects, and activities we complete all year long. These programs are not possible without your donations. Currently, we have 2/3 of the class who has donated money. If you are financially able to help, please contribute to our classroom funds! We appreciate your support!
The Eaton PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) also is asking for a $175 donation (payable to Eaton PTO) to help plan school wide events and fundraisers such as Enrichment Day, International Night, Field Day, etc. They also use this money to pay for our amazing classified staff such as our instructional aide, art, music, library, primary PE, and computer teachers! In addition, these funds pay for technology, PE, and emergency supplies for our school! Please consider these donation opportunities, as they greatly help our school!
The first few days of school have been focused on class rules and procedures. Remember to look through and empty the daily yellow and blue folders each day. The work that goes home in the folders should have been completed at school. However, some students may bring back incomplete work. Please have your child finish the remainder of the assignment at home. You do not need to turn it back to me, but it should be finished for your child’s benefit. I also encourage you to take a few minutes every night to review the work with your child and have them tell you what they learned. Please reinforce these concepts at home, whether it’s math or language arts, or other subjects. If there are highlighter markings or notes on the papers, that is an area you can help your child learn. These are some suggestions on how to assist your child at home.
Students are learning to become more independent by unpacking and packing up each day, cleaning up after themselves, and finishing work on their own. I encourage you to let your child do the same at home. Practice giving directions once and have your child respond immediately. At school, some students are not listening to directions and need a lot of repetition. Practicing listening skills at home will help them at school! Also, we are working on following classroom rules when sitting on the carpet, working at the tables, lining up, and during recess or lunch. Last week, we took a tour of the Eaton campus to learn where the office, bathroom, library, computer lab, MP room, etc. is. Please make sure that your child is comfortable going to the bathroom by him/herself (closing the door, flushing, washing hands after, etc) and also is able to open and close their lunches or snacks. Thank you!
Here are some highlights from the week:
• Reading: We continued to read the Kissing Hand and its sequels. We made a handprint using paint to show what our Kissing Hands look like. Also, we have been learning the words to a book called, “We All Sing With the Same Voice,” which describes children around the world who are alike and different. Everyday, we read an alphabet story so that the students are learning their letters and different vocabulary words that begin with each letter.
• Language Arts: We have begun our phonics and handwriting lessons. We learned how to hold a pencil and how to use one-finger spaces. We have been writing our name on lined paper to practice proper letter formation. We worked on A, B, C, and D this week. We practiced big and small letters as well as saying their sounds. I use a highlighter to help the children with letter formations. Please practice at home all of the letters we work on at school! Please keep these ABC books and other 8½ x 5½ sheet booklets together in a safe place. These are called Kindergarten Keep Books and they will be part of our homework this year! In a few weeks, we will be making a box to store these books, but for now, please keep them organized in one place.
• Math: We completed the first chapter in our math book. The vocabulary words we learned included: top/middle/bottom, before/between/after, inside/outside, and left/right. Please look over the work that goes home and also review these concepts and vocabulary words with your child. We also did an art project about ice cream and practiced applying the concept of top/middle/bottom.
• Social Studies: We are learning about ourselves and our community. We drew a self portrait using as much detail as we could. We also completed a Kindergarten Keep Book about school. This book will be going in the boxes that we will be making.
• Art: We had a scissors lesson last week and learned how to properly hold scissors. We practiced cutting different types of lines and then made an art project to the poem, “Blue Sky, Yellow Sun.” We are learning how to glue along the edges of a paper without getting our fingers or the table sticky, and to not waste glue. We are also learning how to try our best when we draw, by outlining edges and coloring in completely.
• Fire Drill: On Thursday, we practiced our first fire drill. We talked about why we have to practice fire drills and other emergencies. We have to line up quietly when the fire bell rings and walk onto the field until we are excused. Some students are still learning where to stand in their ABC order, and to remember all the lining up rules (face forward, hands behind, quiet feet and mouths in line).
• Friday Centers: On Fridays, we will be having special centers where children work in small groups to complete activities. This is a time for children to interact and learn how to socialize with others by sharing, including, and treating others nicely. We are lucky to have Ms. Shama, a Kindergarten and upper grade aide, on Fridays during the small group sessions (9:00-10:35am and 1:10-3:05pm). At back-to-school night, I will be looking for a committed AM and PM parent helper who is comfortable managing and teaching a small group of children during centers. During Friday centers, I get to work with students individually on reading, comprehension, math skills, or language assessments.
• Assembly: We had our first assembly today from Mara the Storyteller! Her specialty is oral storytelling. We are working hard on being good listeners and being a good audience!
• Library: We will have our first Eaton library visit on Monday. Mrs. Glass, our librarian, reads us a story and then we get to read books during this time. For the first month, we will not be having the kids check out books on their own because it takes some time to learn the library procedures and how to choose an appropriate book. Therefore, if you would like to find books for your child at home, please visit the Cupertino Public Library. As a general rule, we have children browse for books, and if they cannot read more than 5 words on a page, then that book is too difficult. For now, alphabet books and picture books are great, unless you are reading to them (then it can be harder).
I am looking forward to meeting all of you next Thursday at Back to School Night! Please plan on attending. Have a wonderful weekend!
Thursday, August 19, 2010
First Day of School!
Dear Kindergarten families,
Welcome to Kindergarten! Thank you to those of you who attended Kindergarten Kick-Start yesterday morning. It was nice meeting many of you! If you were not able to attend, I included the yellow information sheet in your child’s manila homework envelope today.
Important Dates to Remember:
• Monday, August 23rd – PTO Ice Cream Social @ 6:30pm by the lunch tables
5th grade Science Camp Fundraiser at Pizza My Heart & Wing Stop
• Friday, August 27th – School Supplies Due (in a brown grocery bag labeled with your child’s name)
• Thursday, September 2nd – Back to School Night from 6:15-7:15pm
• Monday, September 6th – Labor Day (no school)
Back to School Night
Please save the date: Thursday, September 2nd. I will hold a mandatory meeting in Room 8 from 6:15-7:00pm. This is a very important meeting where I will be discussing our classroom procedures, standards, homework, volunteer schedules, etc. This event is for parents only. Afterwards, there will be a short PTO Meeting in the Multipurpose (MP) room from 7:00-7:15pm. If you have a sibling in another classroom during the same time, try to split up the parents so each of you can attend a different class.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
In early October, I will be able to meet with each individual family to discuss your child’s strengths and needs. In the meantime, please fill out the “Let’s Get Acquainted” sheet attached to this letter to share any information about your child and family (health concerns, family living situations, etc.).
First Day Packet & Extra Info
There will be a lot of information coming home today that needs to be signed and returned to school. Please return the following items with the manila homework envelope by Monday, August 23rd.
• Enrollment / Health Card (don’t forget your signature at the bottom!)
• CUSD Opening Day Packet / signatures on second page
• Eaton Eagle Behavior Expectation - signature at bottom
• Classroom Donation
• Library Permission Slip
• PTO Direct Donation
• Let’s Get Acquainted information sheet
I am looking forward to a wonderful year and am super excited to get to know you and your child better!
Mrs. Yu
Welcome to Kindergarten! Thank you to those of you who attended Kindergarten Kick-Start yesterday morning. It was nice meeting many of you! If you were not able to attend, I included the yellow information sheet in your child’s manila homework envelope today.
Important Dates to Remember:
• Monday, August 23rd – PTO Ice Cream Social @ 6:30pm by the lunch tables
5th grade Science Camp Fundraiser at Pizza My Heart & Wing Stop
• Friday, August 27th – School Supplies Due (in a brown grocery bag labeled with your child’s name)
• Thursday, September 2nd – Back to School Night from 6:15-7:15pm
• Monday, September 6th – Labor Day (no school)
Back to School Night
Please save the date: Thursday, September 2nd. I will hold a mandatory meeting in Room 8 from 6:15-7:00pm. This is a very important meeting where I will be discussing our classroom procedures, standards, homework, volunteer schedules, etc. This event is for parents only. Afterwards, there will be a short PTO Meeting in the Multipurpose (MP) room from 7:00-7:15pm. If you have a sibling in another classroom during the same time, try to split up the parents so each of you can attend a different class.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
In early October, I will be able to meet with each individual family to discuss your child’s strengths and needs. In the meantime, please fill out the “Let’s Get Acquainted” sheet attached to this letter to share any information about your child and family (health concerns, family living situations, etc.).
First Day Packet & Extra Info
There will be a lot of information coming home today that needs to be signed and returned to school. Please return the following items with the manila homework envelope by Monday, August 23rd.
• Enrollment / Health Card (don’t forget your signature at the bottom!)
• CUSD Opening Day Packet / signatures on second page
• Eaton Eagle Behavior Expectation - signature at bottom
• Classroom Donation
• Library Permission Slip
• PTO Direct Donation
• Let’s Get Acquainted information sheet
I am looking forward to a wonderful year and am super excited to get to know you and your child better!
Mrs. Yu
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Kindergarten Kick-Start
Welcome to Kindergarten in Room 8 with Mrs. Yu!
I am excited to meet all of you today! It will be a wonderful year!
AM Kids
Arrival – 9:00am
Dismissal – 12:20pm
Snacks – Students need to bring a small healthy snack to eat at recess.
PM Kids
Arrival – 10:55am (Tuesdays – 10:35am)
Dismissal – 3:05pm (Tuesdays – 2:30pm)
Lunch – Students will need to bring a lunch. Kindergarten hot lunch begins on Monday if your child chooses to participate. Hot lunch students will be walked to the cafeteria and back to our lunch tables. Lunch envelopes are available in the office and need to be turned in no later than the day you would like your child to have hot lunch. Your child will need to memorize his/her PIN number.
Snacks & Lunches
Please pack a reasonable amount of food for your child to eat during recess or lunch. Students need to be able to open their own snacks and lunches by themselves. Examples are zip-lock bags, granola bars, or containers. They are responsible for cleaning up their own trash too.
Communication
• First Day Packet: Tomorrow you will receive a first day packet with a lot of information from the school. More information will be sent home tomorrow.
• Daily Folder: Your child will be bringing home a folder everyday in his or her backpack (yellow for AM, blue for PM) starting on Friday. This folder will have your child’s daily work along with other important information. Please review and remove all the papers in the folder every night. Make sure your child brings their folder to school everyday! Some days the folder may come home empty. Do not be alarmed, we do a lot of hands-on activities in class, so some days there will not be much paperwork. If you have any information or papers for me, please have your child hold the paper when they arrive at school and place the papers directly in our “Turn In Work” basket.
Personal Belongings
• All bags, backpacks, lunch bags, jackets, etc. must be labeled with your child’s name.
• Your child needs an appropriate sized bag or backpack that can hold their lunch or snack and a 8 ½ x 11 folder). We do not allow rolling backpacks due to space constraints.
• Keep all toys at home.
Supplies
All students are asked to bring the items below. Please make sure to buy the EXACT brand (such as Dixon-Ticonderoga, Magic Rub, Crayola, Sharpie, etc.). Please purchase these items by Friday, August 27th and bring them in a large paper bag with your child’s name labeled on it. Thank you for your donations.
* If your last name begins with A-L please bring:
1 box of gallon size Ziploc freezer bags.
1 box of Kleenex
2 dozen glue sticks (Elmer brand only)
1 box of #2 pencils- Ticonderoga Brand (orange only)
1 container of baby wipes
1 bottle of liquid soap (SoftSoap brand preferred)
* If your last name begins with M-Z bring:
1 box of sandwich size Ziploc freezer bags.
1 box of snack size Ziploc bags
1 paper towel roll
2 dozen glue sticks (Elmer brand only)
1 box of wide-tip Crayola markers
1 container of baby wipes
1 bottle of hand sanitizer
Procedures
• Lining Up: When your child arrives to school, please line up at our designated spot by the Kindergarten yard in the order you arrive (no cutting). Please help to remind your children that it is not a playing or shouting time once they arrive on campus.
o AM Parents: Please do not come to school before 8:45am.
o PM Parents: Please do not come to school before 10:45am (10:25am on Tuesdays).
• Dismissal: I will dismiss children from our classroom (Room 8) through the door facing the lunch tables. Please do not wait in the hallway. If your child is going to be picked up by an after school program or friend, make sure you let me know and make sure your child recognizes that person.
o AM Parents: Please wait outside of the gate in the Suisun bus circle by Room 1. At 12:20pm, you may enter the gate and walk to Room 8 to pick up your child. Please do not let your child run around or play after 12:20pm.
o PM Parents: Please pick up your child at 3:05pm (Tuesdays 2:30pm). Eaton does not allow students to play on the playground structure or blacktop until after 3:45pm, unless a teacher is supervising.
• Cars: You may not park or leave your car unattended in the bus circle. It is only for dropping off and picking up. Don’t forget your child needs a car seat if he/she is under 6 years or 60 pounds.
First Day of School
For a smooth transition on the first day, please give your hugs and good-byes to your children BEFORE the bell rings. Today is the day to see our classroom, but tomorrow I will be closing the doors! =) The principal would like to meet with all the parents in the Multi-purpose room for coffee and discussion at 9:00am. See you tomorrow!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Yu
I am excited to meet all of you today! It will be a wonderful year!
AM Kids
Arrival – 9:00am
Dismissal – 12:20pm
Snacks – Students need to bring a small healthy snack to eat at recess.
PM Kids
Arrival – 10:55am (Tuesdays – 10:35am)
Dismissal – 3:05pm (Tuesdays – 2:30pm)
Lunch – Students will need to bring a lunch. Kindergarten hot lunch begins on Monday if your child chooses to participate. Hot lunch students will be walked to the cafeteria and back to our lunch tables. Lunch envelopes are available in the office and need to be turned in no later than the day you would like your child to have hot lunch. Your child will need to memorize his/her PIN number.
Snacks & Lunches
Please pack a reasonable amount of food for your child to eat during recess or lunch. Students need to be able to open their own snacks and lunches by themselves. Examples are zip-lock bags, granola bars, or containers. They are responsible for cleaning up their own trash too.
Communication
• First Day Packet: Tomorrow you will receive a first day packet with a lot of information from the school. More information will be sent home tomorrow.
• Daily Folder: Your child will be bringing home a folder everyday in his or her backpack (yellow for AM, blue for PM) starting on Friday. This folder will have your child’s daily work along with other important information. Please review and remove all the papers in the folder every night. Make sure your child brings their folder to school everyday! Some days the folder may come home empty. Do not be alarmed, we do a lot of hands-on activities in class, so some days there will not be much paperwork. If you have any information or papers for me, please have your child hold the paper when they arrive at school and place the papers directly in our “Turn In Work” basket.
Personal Belongings
• All bags, backpacks, lunch bags, jackets, etc. must be labeled with your child’s name.
• Your child needs an appropriate sized bag or backpack that can hold their lunch or snack and a 8 ½ x 11 folder). We do not allow rolling backpacks due to space constraints.
• Keep all toys at home.
Supplies
All students are asked to bring the items below. Please make sure to buy the EXACT brand (such as Dixon-Ticonderoga, Magic Rub, Crayola, Sharpie, etc.). Please purchase these items by Friday, August 27th and bring them in a large paper bag with your child’s name labeled on it. Thank you for your donations.
* If your last name begins with A-L please bring:
1 box of gallon size Ziploc freezer bags.
1 box of Kleenex
2 dozen glue sticks (Elmer brand only)
1 box of #2 pencils- Ticonderoga Brand (orange only)
1 container of baby wipes
1 bottle of liquid soap (SoftSoap brand preferred)
* If your last name begins with M-Z bring:
1 box of sandwich size Ziploc freezer bags.
1 box of snack size Ziploc bags
1 paper towel roll
2 dozen glue sticks (Elmer brand only)
1 box of wide-tip Crayola markers
1 container of baby wipes
1 bottle of hand sanitizer
Procedures
• Lining Up: When your child arrives to school, please line up at our designated spot by the Kindergarten yard in the order you arrive (no cutting). Please help to remind your children that it is not a playing or shouting time once they arrive on campus.
o AM Parents: Please do not come to school before 8:45am.
o PM Parents: Please do not come to school before 10:45am (10:25am on Tuesdays).
• Dismissal: I will dismiss children from our classroom (Room 8) through the door facing the lunch tables. Please do not wait in the hallway. If your child is going to be picked up by an after school program or friend, make sure you let me know and make sure your child recognizes that person.
o AM Parents: Please wait outside of the gate in the Suisun bus circle by Room 1. At 12:20pm, you may enter the gate and walk to Room 8 to pick up your child. Please do not let your child run around or play after 12:20pm.
o PM Parents: Please pick up your child at 3:05pm (Tuesdays 2:30pm). Eaton does not allow students to play on the playground structure or blacktop until after 3:45pm, unless a teacher is supervising.
• Cars: You may not park or leave your car unattended in the bus circle. It is only for dropping off and picking up. Don’t forget your child needs a car seat if he/she is under 6 years or 60 pounds.
First Day of School
For a smooth transition on the first day, please give your hugs and good-byes to your children BEFORE the bell rings. Today is the day to see our classroom, but tomorrow I will be closing the doors! =) The principal would like to meet with all the parents in the Multi-purpose room for coffee and discussion at 9:00am. See you tomorrow!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Yu
Friday, June 04, 2010
June 4, 2010
Upcoming Dates
NEXT WEEK EVERYDAY (MONDAY-THURSDAY) IS 9:00AM – 12:20PM FOR ALL KINDERS!
* No backpacks needed all week.
* Bring orange or green folders on Monday only.
* Bring a snack Tuesday and Wednesday only.
* Monday, June 7th: Wilson Park Field Trip
Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there. Thank you for everyone who donated carrots and ranch for our picnic snack. Families are invited to the park (even siblings). Thank you to Yuma’s family for transporting food for our class.
* Tuesday, June 8th & Wednesday, June 9th: Talent Show 9:00am-10:30am
Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances including singing, dancing, acting, and comedy! The teachers even perform an annual dance at the end of the second day, so come watch us if you are free! After recess on these days, we will be rehearsing our musical!
* Thursday, June 10th: Last Day of School and 11:15am Performance!
Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning. Thank you for everyone who donated bagels and cream cheese for our breakfast. If you are available from 9:05am-9:20am to help pass out food for our breakfast, please stay in the morning after I pick up your child in our line. We will be eating at the lunch tables in front of Room 8. Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location will be in Room 8, so expect it to be nice and cozy =)
-----
Dear Families,
I hope you all had a nice long weekend over Memorial Day. I was in Seattle for a wedding last weekend and I really missed the California sunshine =) This was a short week, and we are busy finishing up our last projects. We are cleaning up our classroom and getting ready for the last day of school.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Story of the Week: Our Library
• Sharing: Great job on a wonderful year of sharing! This week I did not make an evaluation sheet for the sharing presentations. On Tuesday, I was at school but had a substitute because it was a day for me to assess each student and work with them individually. Therefore, I did not get to fill out the evaluation for any Monday or Tuesday sharers, so I decided to just “let it go” this week. Everyone’s summer plans sound exciting!
• Language Arts: This week was our last journal entry. I had the students write down their summer plans using at least 3 complete sentences, without any help. This is a way for you and I to assess their writing progress and see which areas they can continue to work on next year. Students will be taking home their journals next week and they are welcome to add on to the empty pages inside!
• Math: We took the last unit test on solid shapes and length, width, and capacity. We also reviewed many of the concepts from our Kindergarten year including time, sorting, computation, etc.
• Science: Our silkworms have hatched! Four of our silk moths are hopping around and we even have eggs already. On Wednesday, instead of our normal Dictionary center, we did our final observation of the silk moths. It has been amazing to watch the silkworms change and grow over the past 2 months! Another topic we started last week was on Nutrition. We learned about the food pyramid and the 5 food groups. We are talking about what is healthy to eat and what a balanced meal means.
• Social Studies: Since we will not be in school much longer, we made our Father’s Day projects in centers today. We also wrote 10 reasons why our dads are the best. Happy early Father’s Day! Today was also our last day with Ms. Shama! She has been a great help to our classroom every Friday this year in Kindergarten!
• Music: Continue practicing your lines at home! We have been rehearsing everyday and trying to improve the flow and pace of our performance. We are definitely getting better and we’re excited to sing for you!
• Assembly: This was our last assembly for the year. We watched marionettes acting out a play called, “Carnival of Animals.” It is always neat to see the handmade marionettes and the fancy acting they do! On Tuesday, we also attended a special skit by the 3rd graders in Ms. Webber’s class!
Next week will be so much fun everyday. It is always my favorite time of the year because of the special activities. Please try to have at least one person come for our musical next Thursday! I will also be sending everything home, including our memory books, on Thursday, so expect to carry a big bag home after school (for those of you that usually walk). Have a wonderful weekend!
NEXT WEEK EVERYDAY (MONDAY-THURSDAY) IS 9:00AM – 12:20PM FOR ALL KINDERS!
* No backpacks needed all week.
* Bring orange or green folders on Monday only.
* Bring a snack Tuesday and Wednesday only.
* Monday, June 7th: Wilson Park Field Trip
Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there. Thank you for everyone who donated carrots and ranch for our picnic snack. Families are invited to the park (even siblings). Thank you to Yuma’s family for transporting food for our class.
* Tuesday, June 8th & Wednesday, June 9th: Talent Show 9:00am-10:30am
Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances including singing, dancing, acting, and comedy! The teachers even perform an annual dance at the end of the second day, so come watch us if you are free! After recess on these days, we will be rehearsing our musical!
* Thursday, June 10th: Last Day of School and 11:15am Performance!
Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning. Thank you for everyone who donated bagels and cream cheese for our breakfast. If you are available from 9:05am-9:20am to help pass out food for our breakfast, please stay in the morning after I pick up your child in our line. We will be eating at the lunch tables in front of Room 8. Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location will be in Room 8, so expect it to be nice and cozy =)
-----
Dear Families,
I hope you all had a nice long weekend over Memorial Day. I was in Seattle for a wedding last weekend and I really missed the California sunshine =) This was a short week, and we are busy finishing up our last projects. We are cleaning up our classroom and getting ready for the last day of school.
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Story of the Week: Our Library
• Sharing: Great job on a wonderful year of sharing! This week I did not make an evaluation sheet for the sharing presentations. On Tuesday, I was at school but had a substitute because it was a day for me to assess each student and work with them individually. Therefore, I did not get to fill out the evaluation for any Monday or Tuesday sharers, so I decided to just “let it go” this week. Everyone’s summer plans sound exciting!
• Language Arts: This week was our last journal entry. I had the students write down their summer plans using at least 3 complete sentences, without any help. This is a way for you and I to assess their writing progress and see which areas they can continue to work on next year. Students will be taking home their journals next week and they are welcome to add on to the empty pages inside!
• Math: We took the last unit test on solid shapes and length, width, and capacity. We also reviewed many of the concepts from our Kindergarten year including time, sorting, computation, etc.
• Science: Our silkworms have hatched! Four of our silk moths are hopping around and we even have eggs already. On Wednesday, instead of our normal Dictionary center, we did our final observation of the silk moths. It has been amazing to watch the silkworms change and grow over the past 2 months! Another topic we started last week was on Nutrition. We learned about the food pyramid and the 5 food groups. We are talking about what is healthy to eat and what a balanced meal means.
• Social Studies: Since we will not be in school much longer, we made our Father’s Day projects in centers today. We also wrote 10 reasons why our dads are the best. Happy early Father’s Day! Today was also our last day with Ms. Shama! She has been a great help to our classroom every Friday this year in Kindergarten!
• Music: Continue practicing your lines at home! We have been rehearsing everyday and trying to improve the flow and pace of our performance. We are definitely getting better and we’re excited to sing for you!
• Assembly: This was our last assembly for the year. We watched marionettes acting out a play called, “Carnival of Animals.” It is always neat to see the handmade marionettes and the fancy acting they do! On Tuesday, we also attended a special skit by the 3rd graders in Ms. Webber’s class!
Next week will be so much fun everyday. It is always my favorite time of the year because of the special activities. Please try to have at least one person come for our musical next Thursday! I will also be sending everything home, including our memory books, on Thursday, so expect to carry a big bag home after school (for those of you that usually walk). Have a wonderful weekend!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
May 27, 2010
Upcoming Dates
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
* Monday, June 7th – Thursday, June 10th: All Kinders attend AM Session!
The last week of school will be packed with fun activities. All Kinders need to come from 9:00am – 12:20pm from Monday to Thursday. Please mark your calendars! We will not need our backpacks or folders this week. All you need to bring to school is a snack.
* Monday, June 7th: Wilson Park Field Trip
Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there. The permission slip is attached to this newsletter! Please return it on Tuesday. Families are invited to the park (even siblings), but I do need some volunteers to walk with the class and one parent who can transport food for us. Please email me if you can help!
* Tuesday, June 8th & Wednesday, June 9th: Talent Show 9:00am-10:30am
Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances including singing, dancing, acting, and comedy! The teachers even perform an annual dance at the end of the second day, so come watch us if you are free!
* Thursday, June 10th: Last Day of School and 11:15am Performance!
Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning.
Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location will be in Room 8, so expect it to be nice and cozy =)
------
Dear Families,
First off, I would like to say congratulations to Yuma’s family!!! On Monday, Miyako delivered baby boy Toma! She is home now and I’m sure, very busy. Please congratulate their family and we are happy for them!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Story of the Week: Ping Pong Pig
• Language Arts: In our journals this week, we wrote two reasons why our dads are special. We practiced talking about “transition words.” These are words such as first, next, last, then, second, etc. We also interviewed our last Star of the Week this week, Ammar!
• Math: We worked on our final chapter this week on length, weight, and capacity. We compared different objects to see which ones were longer vs. shorter, taller vs. shorter, lighter vs. heavier, or able to hold more vs. less. These are all vocabulary words we have been using in class.
• Science: On Monday, we planted our beans! We scooped and packed dirt into our cups. Then we added our beans and more dirt. Finally, we watered our plants and took them home! We have also continued observing our goldfish and guppies. Our silkworms are still in their cocoons!
• Specials: Since it is the end of the year, all of our special activities are over. Our last library visit was on Monday and Mrs. Glass read us books. We are not going to computer lab anymore, and we also have no more art or music classes. We will see all the same teachers next year in first grade!
• Music: As many of you know, we are preparing for our musical performance for you on the last day of school! This week we started practicing our lines! We each will be narrating a part of our performance (about 2 sentences). These sentences will be going home on Monday for homework. Please have your child memorize and practice these sentences just like sharing. They should be standing still, looking at the audience, speaking loudly and clearly, and speaking with a good pace! Please plan on coming to our performance on the last day of school!
On Wednesday, we had a Volunteer Tea for the parents that have been helping out on a weekly or bi-weekly basis during this year. We also made a poster to say thank you to these parents! It has been so helpful to have consistent help throughout the year. Thank you for sharing your time and energy with our class!!!
- Ling Yu: computer lab helper
- Hongliang Chian & Jialin Song: weekly homework packet preparers
- Jane Young: computer lab helper
- Yoshiko Ueno: Friday centers small group leader
- Lingyan Zhu: art class assistant
- Miyako Moriwaki: Friday folder preparer
- Urmila Dey: weekly homework checker
- Sue Ranney: room parent
- Chien-Yu Chou: Friday centers small group leader
- Xiting Pan: library assistant
- Jaya Ayalasomayajula: art and music class assistant
- Heewon Kang: music class assistant
I can’t believe we only have 8 more days of school! Next week will be the last week of sharing and homework! Every Friday, Ms. Shama has been coming to our classroom to help with centers. Next Friday will be her last day with us. I told the children they can bring cards or gifts for her next Friday!
Have a wonderful weekend!
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
* Monday, June 7th – Thursday, June 10th: All Kinders attend AM Session!
The last week of school will be packed with fun activities. All Kinders need to come from 9:00am – 12:20pm from Monday to Thursday. Please mark your calendars! We will not need our backpacks or folders this week. All you need to bring to school is a snack.
* Monday, June 7th: Wilson Park Field Trip
Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there. The permission slip is attached to this newsletter! Please return it on Tuesday. Families are invited to the park (even siblings), but I do need some volunteers to walk with the class and one parent who can transport food for us. Please email me if you can help!
* Tuesday, June 8th & Wednesday, June 9th: Talent Show 9:00am-10:30am
Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances including singing, dancing, acting, and comedy! The teachers even perform an annual dance at the end of the second day, so come watch us if you are free!
* Thursday, June 10th: Last Day of School and 11:15am Performance!
Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning.
Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location will be in Room 8, so expect it to be nice and cozy =)
------
Dear Families,
First off, I would like to say congratulations to Yuma’s family!!! On Monday, Miyako delivered baby boy Toma! She is home now and I’m sure, very busy. Please congratulate their family and we are happy for them!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Story of the Week: Ping Pong Pig
• Language Arts: In our journals this week, we wrote two reasons why our dads are special. We practiced talking about “transition words.” These are words such as first, next, last, then, second, etc. We also interviewed our last Star of the Week this week, Ammar!
• Math: We worked on our final chapter this week on length, weight, and capacity. We compared different objects to see which ones were longer vs. shorter, taller vs. shorter, lighter vs. heavier, or able to hold more vs. less. These are all vocabulary words we have been using in class.
• Science: On Monday, we planted our beans! We scooped and packed dirt into our cups. Then we added our beans and more dirt. Finally, we watered our plants and took them home! We have also continued observing our goldfish and guppies. Our silkworms are still in their cocoons!
• Specials: Since it is the end of the year, all of our special activities are over. Our last library visit was on Monday and Mrs. Glass read us books. We are not going to computer lab anymore, and we also have no more art or music classes. We will see all the same teachers next year in first grade!
• Music: As many of you know, we are preparing for our musical performance for you on the last day of school! This week we started practicing our lines! We each will be narrating a part of our performance (about 2 sentences). These sentences will be going home on Monday for homework. Please have your child memorize and practice these sentences just like sharing. They should be standing still, looking at the audience, speaking loudly and clearly, and speaking with a good pace! Please plan on coming to our performance on the last day of school!
On Wednesday, we had a Volunteer Tea for the parents that have been helping out on a weekly or bi-weekly basis during this year. We also made a poster to say thank you to these parents! It has been so helpful to have consistent help throughout the year. Thank you for sharing your time and energy with our class!!!
- Ling Yu: computer lab helper
- Hongliang Chian & Jialin Song: weekly homework packet preparers
- Jane Young: computer lab helper
- Yoshiko Ueno: Friday centers small group leader
- Lingyan Zhu: art class assistant
- Miyako Moriwaki: Friday folder preparer
- Urmila Dey: weekly homework checker
- Sue Ranney: room parent
- Chien-Yu Chou: Friday centers small group leader
- Xiting Pan: library assistant
- Jaya Ayalasomayajula: art and music class assistant
- Heewon Kang: music class assistant
I can’t believe we only have 8 more days of school! Next week will be the last week of sharing and homework! Every Friday, Ms. Shama has been coming to our classroom to help with centers. Next Friday will be her last day with us. I told the children they can bring cards or gifts for her next Friday!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, May 21, 2010
May 21, 2010
Upcoming Dates
* Monday, May 24th: LAST Scholastic Book Order Due (attached to newsletter)
This is our last Scholastic Book Order for the year. Please try to order your books online. Our class earns free books with online purchases. Thank you!
1. Go to: www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2. Class User Name: Beebear
3. Password: MrsYu (no spaces or periods)
4. Browse books and place order using your credit card (no need to send money to school)
5. About 2 weeks after I receive all the orders, your books will be delivered to school!
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
* Monday, June 7th – Thursday, June 10th: All Kinders attend AM Session!
The last week of school will be packed with fun activities. All Kinders need to come from 9:00am – 12:20pm from Monday to Thursday. Please mark your calendars!
- Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there.
- Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances!
- Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning.
Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location is TBD. I am hoping to reserve the MP room, but otherwise, it will be in Room 8 (nice and cozy!). Hope you can make it!
-----
Dear Families,
Thank you for coming to Open House last night! I hope you had a great time “touring” our classroom and seeing all of the work your child has completed this year. I am so proud of them and am sad to see this year ending. Everything on the walls will be taken down in the next few weeks and I will add them into the back of the memory books. I hope you will be able to keep the memory books somewhere special so your child will always remember Kindergarten! If there were empty spots in the memory book, it is usually because your child was absent the day of the activity. I hope you enjoyed them!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Letter of the Week: U (This is our last letter!)
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: Stuck in the Mud
• Language Arts: This week, we reviewed some of the writing stages and talked about the difference between rough drafts and final drafts. We also talked about how we edit and proofread our work for mistakes or ways to make it better. We finished our final drafts of our expository writing about school. In our journals, the morning class wrote a fact about insects and had to tell us what their favorite insect was and why. The afternoon class had a special assembly this week to watch the fifth graders’ rehearsal for their Open House presentations.
• Computer Lab: We finished our caterpillar books! We were able to go twice this week to the computer lab because another teacher wasn’t using their lab time. This helped us to finish illustrating our books for us to print out and display last night! Whew! Next week will be our last visit to the computer lab for the year.
• Science: We are continuing to observe our silkworms and our beans. Some are still eating mulberry leaves, and some others may soon be coming out of the cocoon! We have also started seeing our beans grow roots, stems, and some have even sprouted leaves! This week we learned about the life of a bean and how it changes from a seed to plant. We sequenced different pictures and words to show how our beans will grow! We learned some science vocabulary to teach us about the plant!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week and it was our last music class with her. Fortunately, she will be back next year when all of you are first graders!
• Library: Next week will be our last visit to the library for the year. We will hear Mrs. Glass read us a story and we will be able to browse books during our visit, however, we cannot check a book out. Therefore, next week will be the last week of homework. We just have a worksheet packet to complete, but you do not need to do the library book journal.
Today was PTO’s Field Day! This was the first time this event has happened at Eaton since I’ve been here the past 8 years, so I was happy to see such a fun activity for the kids! Thank you for any of you who helped to organize or volunteer during the event! We played different relay games including passing the ball over and under, lemon on a spoon, and pouring water from one cup to another!
Unfortunately, Sumana’s last day with us was today. Her family will be going to India for the summer. She was with us for less than 2 weeks, but we will see her next year in first grade when school resumes! On Thursday, we got another new AM student. His name is Ammar and his family also just moved here from Texas. Please say hello to their family and welcome them to our class!
Have a wonderful weekend!
* Monday, May 24th: LAST Scholastic Book Order Due (attached to newsletter)
This is our last Scholastic Book Order for the year. Please try to order your books online. Our class earns free books with online purchases. Thank you!
1. Go to: www.scholastic.com/bookclubs
2. Class User Name: Beebear
3. Password: MrsYu (no spaces or periods)
4. Browse books and place order using your credit card (no need to send money to school)
5. About 2 weeks after I receive all the orders, your books will be delivered to school!
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
* Monday, June 7th – Thursday, June 10th: All Kinders attend AM Session!
The last week of school will be packed with fun activities. All Kinders need to come from 9:00am – 12:20pm from Monday to Thursday. Please mark your calendars!
- Monday will be our end of the year picnic. We will walk to Wilson Park and play there.
- Tuesday and Wednesday will be the Eaton Talent Show. We will watch many performances!
- Thursday is our last day of school! We will have breakfast and a book with our buddies in the morning.
Parents, our class would like to sing some of our favorite songs to you on the last day of school. You are invited to come watch our performance at 11:15am! The location is TBD. I am hoping to reserve the MP room, but otherwise, it will be in Room 8 (nice and cozy!). Hope you can make it!
-----
Dear Families,
Thank you for coming to Open House last night! I hope you had a great time “touring” our classroom and seeing all of the work your child has completed this year. I am so proud of them and am sad to see this year ending. Everything on the walls will be taken down in the next few weeks and I will add them into the back of the memory books. I hope you will be able to keep the memory books somewhere special so your child will always remember Kindergarten! If there were empty spots in the memory book, it is usually because your child was absent the day of the activity. I hope you enjoyed them!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Letter of the Week: U (This is our last letter!)
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: Stuck in the Mud
• Language Arts: This week, we reviewed some of the writing stages and talked about the difference between rough drafts and final drafts. We also talked about how we edit and proofread our work for mistakes or ways to make it better. We finished our final drafts of our expository writing about school. In our journals, the morning class wrote a fact about insects and had to tell us what their favorite insect was and why. The afternoon class had a special assembly this week to watch the fifth graders’ rehearsal for their Open House presentations.
• Computer Lab: We finished our caterpillar books! We were able to go twice this week to the computer lab because another teacher wasn’t using their lab time. This helped us to finish illustrating our books for us to print out and display last night! Whew! Next week will be our last visit to the computer lab for the year.
• Science: We are continuing to observe our silkworms and our beans. Some are still eating mulberry leaves, and some others may soon be coming out of the cocoon! We have also started seeing our beans grow roots, stems, and some have even sprouted leaves! This week we learned about the life of a bean and how it changes from a seed to plant. We sequenced different pictures and words to show how our beans will grow! We learned some science vocabulary to teach us about the plant!
• Music: We saw Ms. Disney this week and it was our last music class with her. Fortunately, she will be back next year when all of you are first graders!
• Library: Next week will be our last visit to the library for the year. We will hear Mrs. Glass read us a story and we will be able to browse books during our visit, however, we cannot check a book out. Therefore, next week will be the last week of homework. We just have a worksheet packet to complete, but you do not need to do the library book journal.
Today was PTO’s Field Day! This was the first time this event has happened at Eaton since I’ve been here the past 8 years, so I was happy to see such a fun activity for the kids! Thank you for any of you who helped to organize or volunteer during the event! We played different relay games including passing the ball over and under, lemon on a spoon, and pouring water from one cup to another!
Unfortunately, Sumana’s last day with us was today. Her family will be going to India for the summer. She was with us for less than 2 weeks, but we will see her next year in first grade when school resumes! On Thursday, we got another new AM student. His name is Ammar and his family also just moved here from Texas. Please say hello to their family and welcome them to our class!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, May 14, 2010
May 14, 2010
Upcoming Dates
* Thursday, May 20th: Open House in Room 8 - 5:30pm-6:30pm (TIME CHANGE)
Please plan on attending this important evening! Your child will be your tour guide and they will show you some of their work form this year in Kindergarten. We hope you can make it!
* Friday, May 21st: ALL KINDERS ATTEND AM 9:00am-12:20pm – PTO Sports Day
The PTO is organizing a sports day for all of Eaton school, and we need all kinders to come in the morning session. Students need to dress comfortably because we will be playing running games and relays. More information to come!
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
------
Dear Families,
Thank you to Anna (Connor’s mom), Yoshiko (Kumiko’s mom), Jon (Leah’s dad), and Lingyan (Michael’s mom) for coming with us on Thursday to the Cupertino Fire Station. We left at about 9:!5am and arrived at the station around 9:45am. The firefighters gave us a tour of their building and we saw their office, exercise room, lounge area, kitchen, sleeping area, and of course the garage with all their fire trucks! They showed us what their uniforms look like and we saw all the different types of vehicles they have. Finally, we each got to sit in the fire truck! It was perfect timing because they actually got an emergency call right as the last few students were sitting in the truck. We watched them turn on their sirens and drive away! It was very exciting!
Welcome to Sumana and her family, who joined the PM class on Tuesday! They actually moved here from Texas, so Sumana attended Kindergarten there already. She is fitting nicely into our class. Please say hello!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Star of the Week: Risitha
(On our website under “Curriculum” and “Star of the Week.”)
• Letter of the Week: J
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: We’re Going on a Lion Hunt
• Language Arts: We learned a poem this week called, Jump or Jiggle. In this poem, we talked about how different animals move, for example, frogs jump and bugs jiggle! In our journals, we imagined ourselves as any kind of animal and explained why it would be neat to be that animal. Also in the week, we practiced our expository writing and wrote a paragraph about why we love school. We learned what a rough draft means, and how a final draft should look different. These will be displayed for Open House.
• Math: We finished another chapter in our last math unit. This week, we used pattern blocks in the shape of triangles, squares, and rectangles to make bigger shapes or outlines, similar to how tangrams work. Sometimes they can be quite a difficult puzzle to solve, but we practiced how to solve the puzzles together and how to imagine how many smaller shapes can fit inside the bigger one. We also reviewed how to make a bar graph to compare the quantity of two or more objects.
• Computer Lab: We are working very hard on our Caterpillar books. You can see a sneak peek of our Caterpillar covers by going to the “Classwork” section of our website. We even spent our computer centers working on our caterpillar books instead of illustrating J words this week because we have so much to do!
• Science: Our silkworms are changing and several of them have started to build their cocoons! In our Friday centers, we made observations of the cocoon, using our eyes only. Also this week, we planted some lima beans and pinto beans. We learned how to tell the two beans apart, and we wrapped them up in a damp cotton ball, placed instead a ziplock bag. We hope they will sprout next week! We are learning about how a bean grows into a plant. Finally, we finished our five senses book this week by writing about what we touch and taste at school.
• Social Studies: On Thursday, we went on our field trip to visit the Cupertino Fire Station! This was a perfect way to learn about our community helpers. They taught us important information about calling 911, keeping smoke detectors active, planning a meeting spot with your families in case of an emergency, how to stop drop and roll if you catch on fire, and making sure we don’t play with matches. They gave us a flyer with more tips to take home and it is in today’s folder.
• Library: We did not have our library visit this week because Mrs. Glass had to use the library for STAR make-up testing. We will be going on Monday, and it will be the last time we can check out books. We will still have one more visit after that, on May 24th, but we cannot take any books home. Therefore, we will only have one more week of library journal homework, and then we will not have to complete the journals after that.
Thank you again for helping to donate money for CEEF. It is pretty amazing that we have basically reached our goal of $3 million dollars! Wow! Thank you for all of your support and Cupertino teachers are thankful for your donations. Your children will also GREATLY benefit from the money raised this year because now they won’t be in a 30 to 1 first grade classroom!!! It will stay at 20 students to 1 teacher. Whew! =)
On Saturday, I will be dancing at a hip hop competition at the Palace of Fine Arts! Our group, Eight Count, has been invited to compete and the show is called Hip Hop 4 Hope. The organization throwing the event is AADP, which stands for Asian American Donor Program. This competition is a way for them to raise awareness and money to find more bone marrow and stem cell donors. For more information, you can go to our dance ministry’s website: www.eightcount.com Have a wonderful weekend!
* Thursday, May 20th: Open House in Room 8 - 5:30pm-6:30pm (TIME CHANGE)
Please plan on attending this important evening! Your child will be your tour guide and they will show you some of their work form this year in Kindergarten. We hope you can make it!
* Friday, May 21st: ALL KINDERS ATTEND AM 9:00am-12:20pm – PTO Sports Day
The PTO is organizing a sports day for all of Eaton school, and we need all kinders to come in the morning session. Students need to dress comfortably because we will be playing running games and relays. More information to come!
* Friday, May 28th: NO SCHOOL – Staff Learning Day
Teachers will be working, but you can have a nice long weekend!
* Monday, May 31st: NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day
I will be in Seattle over the weekend to attend a friend’s wedding. Hope you have a great long weekend!
------
Dear Families,
Thank you to Anna (Connor’s mom), Yoshiko (Kumiko’s mom), Jon (Leah’s dad), and Lingyan (Michael’s mom) for coming with us on Thursday to the Cupertino Fire Station. We left at about 9:!5am and arrived at the station around 9:45am. The firefighters gave us a tour of their building and we saw their office, exercise room, lounge area, kitchen, sleeping area, and of course the garage with all their fire trucks! They showed us what their uniforms look like and we saw all the different types of vehicles they have. Finally, we each got to sit in the fire truck! It was perfect timing because they actually got an emergency call right as the last few students were sitting in the truck. We watched them turn on their sirens and drive away! It was very exciting!
Welcome to Sumana and her family, who joined the PM class on Tuesday! They actually moved here from Texas, so Sumana attended Kindergarten there already. She is fitting nicely into our class. Please say hello!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Star of the Week: Risitha
(On our website under “Curriculum” and “Star of the Week.”)
• Letter of the Week: J
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: We’re Going on a Lion Hunt
• Language Arts: We learned a poem this week called, Jump or Jiggle. In this poem, we talked about how different animals move, for example, frogs jump and bugs jiggle! In our journals, we imagined ourselves as any kind of animal and explained why it would be neat to be that animal. Also in the week, we practiced our expository writing and wrote a paragraph about why we love school. We learned what a rough draft means, and how a final draft should look different. These will be displayed for Open House.
• Math: We finished another chapter in our last math unit. This week, we used pattern blocks in the shape of triangles, squares, and rectangles to make bigger shapes or outlines, similar to how tangrams work. Sometimes they can be quite a difficult puzzle to solve, but we practiced how to solve the puzzles together and how to imagine how many smaller shapes can fit inside the bigger one. We also reviewed how to make a bar graph to compare the quantity of two or more objects.
• Computer Lab: We are working very hard on our Caterpillar books. You can see a sneak peek of our Caterpillar covers by going to the “Classwork” section of our website. We even spent our computer centers working on our caterpillar books instead of illustrating J words this week because we have so much to do!
• Science: Our silkworms are changing and several of them have started to build their cocoons! In our Friday centers, we made observations of the cocoon, using our eyes only. Also this week, we planted some lima beans and pinto beans. We learned how to tell the two beans apart, and we wrapped them up in a damp cotton ball, placed instead a ziplock bag. We hope they will sprout next week! We are learning about how a bean grows into a plant. Finally, we finished our five senses book this week by writing about what we touch and taste at school.
• Social Studies: On Thursday, we went on our field trip to visit the Cupertino Fire Station! This was a perfect way to learn about our community helpers. They taught us important information about calling 911, keeping smoke detectors active, planning a meeting spot with your families in case of an emergency, how to stop drop and roll if you catch on fire, and making sure we don’t play with matches. They gave us a flyer with more tips to take home and it is in today’s folder.
• Library: We did not have our library visit this week because Mrs. Glass had to use the library for STAR make-up testing. We will be going on Monday, and it will be the last time we can check out books. We will still have one more visit after that, on May 24th, but we cannot take any books home. Therefore, we will only have one more week of library journal homework, and then we will not have to complete the journals after that.
Thank you again for helping to donate money for CEEF. It is pretty amazing that we have basically reached our goal of $3 million dollars! Wow! Thank you for all of your support and Cupertino teachers are thankful for your donations. Your children will also GREATLY benefit from the money raised this year because now they won’t be in a 30 to 1 first grade classroom!!! It will stay at 20 students to 1 teacher. Whew! =)
On Saturday, I will be dancing at a hip hop competition at the Palace of Fine Arts! Our group, Eight Count, has been invited to compete and the show is called Hip Hop 4 Hope. The organization throwing the event is AADP, which stands for Asian American Donor Program. This competition is a way for them to raise awareness and money to find more bone marrow and stem cell donors. For more information, you can go to our dance ministry’s website: www.eightcount.com Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, May 07, 2010
May 7, 2010
Upcoming Dates
* Sunday, May 9th: Happy Mother’s Day!
Mothers, we hope you enjoy the gifts we made for you. We appreciate everything you do for us. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
* Thursday, May 13th: ALL KINDERS ATTEND AM SESSION 9:00AM - !2:20PM
We will be going to the Cupertino Fire Department on Thursday. We will be walking to the fire station and they will give us a tour of their building. We plan to leave around 9:15am, arriving at 9:45am. Going to the fire department is unpredictable because sometimes they get called in to an emergency, but we will flexible with our schedule. We hope they will be free that day to show us around =) A permission slip is attached to today’s newsletter. Please fill it out and return on Monday. I actually need 6 chaperones to help us walk to the station safely! Please let me know if you are interested, but remember you need a TB test to chaperone. Thanks!
* Thursday, May 20th: Open House in Room 8 from 5:30pm - 6:30pm (NOTE TIME CHANGE)
Please plan on attending this important evening! Your child will be your tour guide and they will show you some of their work form this year in Kindergarten. We hope you can make it!
Dear Families,
What a beautiful week. We enjoyed the sunshine and warm weather! We are busy preparing our projects to show you during Open House on May 20th. Please save the date and plan on attending! Thank you also for those of you who participated in Community Day on Tuesday to help raise money for our schools. It was so amazing to see all the restaurants, stores, and businesses that participated to donate money, and it was even more amazing to see our community working together! Thank you for helping our schools, students, and teachers!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Star of the Week: Jennifer
(On our website under “Curriculum” and “Star of the Week.”)
• Letter of the Week: E
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: Me and My Mom
• Language Arts: This week the theme was Mother’s Day. We started on Monday by writing in our journals, and we had to write two sentences about why our moms are special. We practiced using transition words between sentences such as “Also,” or “Next.” We learned that sentences should not begin with the word “And” or “But.” Continue reminding your child to proofread their work for capitals and punctuation! Afterwards, we illustrated our writing about our moms.
• Math: We are continuing to learn about solid shapes. This week we practiced sorting different solid shapes by vocabulary words such as shapes that roll, slide, or shapes that can do both, as well as round shapes with no corners vs. shapes with more than 1 corner. We are identifying characteristics of each shape and also thinking about real objects that have the same shape. We are actually at the end of our math book, so you will not be seeing as many worksheets going home. Instead, we are working on many of our concepts through hands-on activities and projects.
• Buddies: We saw Ms. Allen’s class on Tuesday, and they helped us with a time math project. We read the book Time To by Bruce McMillan, and we are adapting our own stories from his example. We practiced drawing clocks and telling time by the hour. We thought about all the things we do during the day, from eight o’clock in the morning to eight o’clock at night. Big buddies helped us to brainstorm and write down our daily activities. We illustrated our book.
• Computer Lab: We continued our Very Hungry Caterpillar stories in the computer lab. This project is very independent, and each child’s progress varies according to how focused they are. We hope they will be finished by Open House for you to see!
• Science: Our silkworms are growing!!! They were about 2mm two weeks ago, and some of the silkworms have doubled in size! Friday centers have been an opportunity for us to observe and measure our silkworms. Also, in science, we are continuing our Five Senses at School pop-up book. We have completed our senses for seeing, hearing, and smelling so far.
• Social Studies: We are thinking about our families this week, specifically our mother and father. We wrote a paragraph describing our parents and all that they do for us. We are trying to add details in our writing. Afterwards, we illustrated portraits of both our mother and father. We also made a Mother’s Day frame during Friday centers to celebrate our moms.
• Assembly: This week we had an assembly by the San Jose Opera called, “Elixir of Love.” It was fun to see and hear a different type of performance than what we are used to. We learned that the actors and actresses have to change characters and costumes throughout the play sometimes.
• Library: Next week, we may not be able to have our regular library visit on Monday because of STAR test make-ups for 2nd – 5th graders. We will not know for sure until Monday. Therefore, we might only have the regular homework packets and not our library journals. Please return the homework on Friday as usual.
On Tuesday next week, we are getting a new PM student! It is so hard to have new students start this late in the year, with less than a month left, but we welcome her and her family to our class. Her name is Sumana Karnala. Please say hello to her family!
* Sunday, May 9th: Happy Mother’s Day!
Mothers, we hope you enjoy the gifts we made for you. We appreciate everything you do for us. Hope you have a wonderful weekend!
* Thursday, May 13th: ALL KINDERS ATTEND AM SESSION 9:00AM - !2:20PM
We will be going to the Cupertino Fire Department on Thursday. We will be walking to the fire station and they will give us a tour of their building. We plan to leave around 9:15am, arriving at 9:45am. Going to the fire department is unpredictable because sometimes they get called in to an emergency, but we will flexible with our schedule. We hope they will be free that day to show us around =) A permission slip is attached to today’s newsletter. Please fill it out and return on Monday. I actually need 6 chaperones to help us walk to the station safely! Please let me know if you are interested, but remember you need a TB test to chaperone. Thanks!
* Thursday, May 20th: Open House in Room 8 from 5:30pm - 6:30pm (NOTE TIME CHANGE)
Please plan on attending this important evening! Your child will be your tour guide and they will show you some of their work form this year in Kindergarten. We hope you can make it!
Dear Families,
What a beautiful week. We enjoyed the sunshine and warm weather! We are busy preparing our projects to show you during Open House on May 20th. Please save the date and plan on attending! Thank you also for those of you who participated in Community Day on Tuesday to help raise money for our schools. It was so amazing to see all the restaurants, stores, and businesses that participated to donate money, and it was even more amazing to see our community working together! Thank you for helping our schools, students, and teachers!
Here are some highlights for the week:
• Star of the Week: Jennifer
(On our website under “Curriculum” and “Star of the Week.”)
• Letter of the Week: E
(You can see our computer center drawings in the “Classwork” section of our website.)
• Story of the Week: Me and My Mom
• Language Arts: This week the theme was Mother’s Day. We started on Monday by writing in our journals, and we had to write two sentences about why our moms are special. We practiced using transition words between sentences such as “Also,” or “Next.” We learned that sentences should not begin with the word “And” or “But.” Continue reminding your child to proofread their work for capitals and punctuation! Afterwards, we illustrated our writing about our moms.
• Math: We are continuing to learn about solid shapes. This week we practiced sorting different solid shapes by vocabulary words such as shapes that roll, slide, or shapes that can do both, as well as round shapes with no corners vs. shapes with more than 1 corner. We are identifying characteristics of each shape and also thinking about real objects that have the same shape. We are actually at the end of our math book, so you will not be seeing as many worksheets going home. Instead, we are working on many of our concepts through hands-on activities and projects.
• Buddies: We saw Ms. Allen’s class on Tuesday, and they helped us with a time math project. We read the book Time To by Bruce McMillan, and we are adapting our own stories from his example. We practiced drawing clocks and telling time by the hour. We thought about all the things we do during the day, from eight o’clock in the morning to eight o’clock at night. Big buddies helped us to brainstorm and write down our daily activities. We illustrated our book.
• Computer Lab: We continued our Very Hungry Caterpillar stories in the computer lab. This project is very independent, and each child’s progress varies according to how focused they are. We hope they will be finished by Open House for you to see!
• Science: Our silkworms are growing!!! They were about 2mm two weeks ago, and some of the silkworms have doubled in size! Friday centers have been an opportunity for us to observe and measure our silkworms. Also, in science, we are continuing our Five Senses at School pop-up book. We have completed our senses for seeing, hearing, and smelling so far.
• Social Studies: We are thinking about our families this week, specifically our mother and father. We wrote a paragraph describing our parents and all that they do for us. We are trying to add details in our writing. Afterwards, we illustrated portraits of both our mother and father. We also made a Mother’s Day frame during Friday centers to celebrate our moms.
• Assembly: This week we had an assembly by the San Jose Opera called, “Elixir of Love.” It was fun to see and hear a different type of performance than what we are used to. We learned that the actors and actresses have to change characters and costumes throughout the play sometimes.
• Library: Next week, we may not be able to have our regular library visit on Monday because of STAR test make-ups for 2nd – 5th graders. We will not know for sure until Monday. Therefore, we might only have the regular homework packets and not our library journals. Please return the homework on Friday as usual.
On Tuesday next week, we are getting a new PM student! It is so hard to have new students start this late in the year, with less than a month left, but we welcome her and her family to our class. Her name is Sumana Karnala. Please say hello to her family!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)