Dear Families:
I hope that you all will join me and Class K-207 for our Winter Celebration on Tuesday, December 23rd at 9:00 a.m. in Room K-207. We will be singing some of our favorite Winter songs. Even though this is a big holiday season for many of the families in our class, I am very attuned to the fact that some children's families do not celebrate these holidays. I have had talks with the children explaining the differences and the children do understand that we are all different...with different religions and different beliefs. Yet, I stress to our class that our class is one community and that we are all a family here in Class K-207...that we must respect each other and our differences. That said...our songs are just songs with really no emphasis on the meaning. We just love to sing!! I hope everyone undersands.
I am not assigning any "homework" over the holiday season but I would encouage everyone to read to their children on a daily basis. Have your child tell you what they notice about the book you are reading and what connections to their own life they notice. Have a "grown-up" dialogue with them. You will be amazed what you find our about them. We recently finished a chapter book entitled "One Hundred Dresses." We read one chapter a day. I was constantly amazed on a daily basis what they remembered about each and every character in the book and how they could recite word for word what the book was about the next day and what lessons they learned from our class discussions. It was such an enjoyable moment for me and reinforced my belief that children are like sponges soaking up everything that one teaches them. For math...talk to them about numbers all around. Play Monster Math. Have them do number stories in their head. The children love it.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for all the wonderful support that I have received from you throughout the year and thank you for the great opportunity to work with your children. I absolutely love each and every one of them. They have been a great source of enjoyment for me.
I hope that you all have a wonderful restful holiday. The "real" work begins in January so make sure your child is rested and ready. Many trips are being planned and I will definitely need many chaperones. So...you should also be rested and ready! The best is yet to come. Happy Holidays.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
P.S. I told the children to try tp wear red or green tomorrow.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
WINTER CELEBRATION
PLEASE JOIN CLASS K-207 FOR A WINTER CELEBRATION IN OUR CLASSROOM. WE WILL BE PERFORMING SOME OF OUR FAVORITE WINTER SONGS.
WHEN: Tuesday, DECEMBER 23, 2008
TIME: 9:00 A.M.
WHERE: CLASS K-207
ALSO, on Wednesday, December 17th, the students drew a name for their Special Secret Friend. Their Special Secret Friend activity will begin next Monday, Dec. 22nd and end on Tuesday, December 23rd. On Monday, students should give their Special Secret Friend a picture they have drawn at home or something that they have made with a tag that says To: (the person they have) From: YOUR Special Secret Friend. On Tuesday, the gift should be a small treat, a sucker, candy cane, etc. They should also have a tag on the treat that says To: (the person they have) From: YOUR Special Secret Friend. These gifts will be put into a basket and opened by the children on Tuesday after our sing-a-long. IT’S A SECRET!!! DON’T TELL WHO YOU SECRET FRIEND IS!
If any parent would like to contribute something to our class celebration, it would be very much appreciated. Some of the items can be juice, cookies, brownies, paper plates, forks, etc. Thank you in a advance. Hope to see you there.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
WHEN: Tuesday, DECEMBER 23, 2008
TIME: 9:00 A.M.
WHERE: CLASS K-207
ALSO, on Wednesday, December 17th, the students drew a name for their Special Secret Friend. Their Special Secret Friend activity will begin next Monday, Dec. 22nd and end on Tuesday, December 23rd. On Monday, students should give their Special Secret Friend a picture they have drawn at home or something that they have made with a tag that says To: (the person they have) From: YOUR Special Secret Friend. On Tuesday, the gift should be a small treat, a sucker, candy cane, etc. They should also have a tag on the treat that says To: (the person they have) From: YOUR Special Secret Friend. These gifts will be put into a basket and opened by the children on Tuesday after our sing-a-long. IT’S A SECRET!!! DON’T TELL WHO YOU SECRET FRIEND IS!
If any parent would like to contribute something to our class celebration, it would be very much appreciated. Some of the items can be juice, cookies, brownies, paper plates, forks, etc. Thank you in a advance. Hope to see you there.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
IS IT REALLY DECEMBER?
Dear Families:
It is hard to believe....but today - December 10th - marked our 65th day of school. We are now in the middle of December and almost in the year 2009. Time certainly does fly. In Class K-207, we are having so much fun with all the learning we have been doing. I hope the children told you that we had a big day yesterday - we launched our Just Right books and tore down the paper that was covering our Leveled Books!! This was certainly an exciting day. Each children received two leveled books close to where they are reading at this point in their reading careers. We want to children to be able to have a "smooth" read. It was a day when the children in Class K-207 learned that they need to become more focused on reading Just Right leveled books conventionally. In the days ahead, we will be learning that not only do the pictures tell the story, but the words do too!!! There are several children in the class who are already beyond this and several who can read high level books conventionally. Yet, there are the majority of the children who need to learn the strategies that good readers use at the beginning of learning to read - looking at the first letter in the word and checking the picture to see if it matches. From there...we learn to look for words within words and use many different strategies to move them forward. Please do not worry if your child is not reading. There are many different levels and, as teachers, we know how to put children together and how to move them forward. I know that I certainly did not read in Kindergarten!
Reading development is characterized by four stages: early emergent, upper emergent, early fluency, and fluency. At the earliest levels, the books have simple language structures, repetitive sentence or phrase patters, few lines of text on a page, strong illustration support, and easier vocabulary. As the levels progress, the books have less repetition, contain more lines of text on a page, and use longer sentences, more contextual support, and more advanced vocabulary.
An important aspect of this reading process used to teach children to read is Guided Reading. What is Guided Reading? Guided Reading is a group approach, involving the teacher with a small group of children of similar reading ability. As teachers, we select a book that is at the children's instructinal reading level and that will introduce or reinforce appropriate reading challenges for that particular group of children. We spend the first part of a Guided Reading session discussing the concepts of the book and scaffolding information. This lays a foundation for reading success. In the early emergent stage, the focus of the guided reading lessons is on developing students' awareness of concepts of print. Children at this stage are just beginning to look at letters and words and to attach sounds to letters. In the early emergent stage, the format of these guided reading lessons continues to support students' use of concepts of print but more emphasis is placed on developing their ability to use sounds and letters to decode words. Children at this stage are also developing their ability to use a variety of cueing systems when reading. This is a time when each child will get a lot of personalized attention from their teacher - no two children are alike and each child may get a different strategy to move them forward in their reading. The teacher has a more one-on-one relationship with the child and the child loves the attention their teacher gives to them. In K-207, we started guilded reading groups and I have met personally with several of the children and hope to meet with all of them by the end of the week. This will be a daily routine both in reading and writing. I hope that I did not bore you with all the details but it is a very exciting time for me and the children. I love to see the daily progress each and every child makes.
In writing, we have started our Small Moment unit. As I told you previously, this is a unit of writing that I love to teach. I love when the children write about true stories that have happened to them and how they ZOOM in on that moment. We will be listening to many stories that have small moments to get ideas about how to write our own.
Today in math, we made our Shape Museum. We looked through our magazines and cut out and pasted our different shapes on our different shaped posters. If the children had a triangle shape poster, then they had to go through magazines looking for triangles. If they had a circle shape poster, then they found and pasted circle shapes. To be honest, it was hard finding triangles in the magazines...the circles were the easiest to find. We had a lot of fun - messy ...but fun. We are now learning about money, measurement, patterns and working daily on our math problems!
In word study, we are working on our sight words. The children are reading these sight words on signs, on walls, and in books. Sight words are everywhere. Please have your children point them out to you as they notice them!
We have started our Firehouse study for our Social Studies Unit. We will be reading and learning a lot of Firehouses and Firemen. We will be making visits to the local firehouse, interviewing firemen and doing lots of research on firetrucks as well.
In January, we will be starting a Winnie the Pooh study. Each week, one child in the class has the opportunity to take our Class Winnie the Pooh home on a Friday and keep him for a week. The children will write about their adventures with Winnie and take a lot of pictures with Winnie. The following Friday, Winnie will be returned - with the class book - and the children will talk to the class about their adventures with Winnie. In the years past, Winnie has been to France, has been in a taxi, has been on a boat and has even been in JAIL! (only just visiting). This study is a lot of fun and teaches the children about responsibility - among other things. At the end of the project, our class goes to Prospect Park to look for Winnie at his house (He always seems to be at the dentist but leaves us a nice note) and have a picnic. I bet you did not know Winne the Pooh lives in Prospect Park - did you???? More on this later.
Have a wonderful week,
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
It is hard to believe....but today - December 10th - marked our 65th day of school. We are now in the middle of December and almost in the year 2009. Time certainly does fly. In Class K-207, we are having so much fun with all the learning we have been doing. I hope the children told you that we had a big day yesterday - we launched our Just Right books and tore down the paper that was covering our Leveled Books!! This was certainly an exciting day. Each children received two leveled books close to where they are reading at this point in their reading careers. We want to children to be able to have a "smooth" read. It was a day when the children in Class K-207 learned that they need to become more focused on reading Just Right leveled books conventionally. In the days ahead, we will be learning that not only do the pictures tell the story, but the words do too!!! There are several children in the class who are already beyond this and several who can read high level books conventionally. Yet, there are the majority of the children who need to learn the strategies that good readers use at the beginning of learning to read - looking at the first letter in the word and checking the picture to see if it matches. From there...we learn to look for words within words and use many different strategies to move them forward. Please do not worry if your child is not reading. There are many different levels and, as teachers, we know how to put children together and how to move them forward. I know that I certainly did not read in Kindergarten!
Reading development is characterized by four stages: early emergent, upper emergent, early fluency, and fluency. At the earliest levels, the books have simple language structures, repetitive sentence or phrase patters, few lines of text on a page, strong illustration support, and easier vocabulary. As the levels progress, the books have less repetition, contain more lines of text on a page, and use longer sentences, more contextual support, and more advanced vocabulary.
An important aspect of this reading process used to teach children to read is Guided Reading. What is Guided Reading? Guided Reading is a group approach, involving the teacher with a small group of children of similar reading ability. As teachers, we select a book that is at the children's instructinal reading level and that will introduce or reinforce appropriate reading challenges for that particular group of children. We spend the first part of a Guided Reading session discussing the concepts of the book and scaffolding information. This lays a foundation for reading success. In the early emergent stage, the focus of the guided reading lessons is on developing students' awareness of concepts of print. Children at this stage are just beginning to look at letters and words and to attach sounds to letters. In the early emergent stage, the format of these guided reading lessons continues to support students' use of concepts of print but more emphasis is placed on developing their ability to use sounds and letters to decode words. Children at this stage are also developing their ability to use a variety of cueing systems when reading. This is a time when each child will get a lot of personalized attention from their teacher - no two children are alike and each child may get a different strategy to move them forward in their reading. The teacher has a more one-on-one relationship with the child and the child loves the attention their teacher gives to them. In K-207, we started guilded reading groups and I have met personally with several of the children and hope to meet with all of them by the end of the week. This will be a daily routine both in reading and writing. I hope that I did not bore you with all the details but it is a very exciting time for me and the children. I love to see the daily progress each and every child makes.
In writing, we have started our Small Moment unit. As I told you previously, this is a unit of writing that I love to teach. I love when the children write about true stories that have happened to them and how they ZOOM in on that moment. We will be listening to many stories that have small moments to get ideas about how to write our own.
Today in math, we made our Shape Museum. We looked through our magazines and cut out and pasted our different shapes on our different shaped posters. If the children had a triangle shape poster, then they had to go through magazines looking for triangles. If they had a circle shape poster, then they found and pasted circle shapes. To be honest, it was hard finding triangles in the magazines...the circles were the easiest to find. We had a lot of fun - messy ...but fun. We are now learning about money, measurement, patterns and working daily on our math problems!
In word study, we are working on our sight words. The children are reading these sight words on signs, on walls, and in books. Sight words are everywhere. Please have your children point them out to you as they notice them!
We have started our Firehouse study for our Social Studies Unit. We will be reading and learning a lot of Firehouses and Firemen. We will be making visits to the local firehouse, interviewing firemen and doing lots of research on firetrucks as well.
In January, we will be starting a Winnie the Pooh study. Each week, one child in the class has the opportunity to take our Class Winnie the Pooh home on a Friday and keep him for a week. The children will write about their adventures with Winnie and take a lot of pictures with Winnie. The following Friday, Winnie will be returned - with the class book - and the children will talk to the class about their adventures with Winnie. In the years past, Winnie has been to France, has been in a taxi, has been on a boat and has even been in JAIL! (only just visiting). This study is a lot of fun and teaches the children about responsibility - among other things. At the end of the project, our class goes to Prospect Park to look for Winnie at his house (He always seems to be at the dentist but leaves us a nice note) and have a picnic. I bet you did not know Winne the Pooh lives in Prospect Park - did you???? More on this later.
Have a wonderful week,
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Publishing Party - December 5, 2008
Dear Families,
This week, Class K-207 will be publishing our third unit in Writing Workshop for our scientific writing pieces. We first looked at leaves and wrote extensively about the leaves that we found. We did this by looking very carefully - like scientists - at what leaves look like, how big they are, what colors the leaves are, etc. We wrote our pieces by labeling first and last letter sounds, writing the words we know (word wall words) and stretching out our words. We then moved on to really looking at plants and did the same scientific study. Well...class K-207 got a little tired of the leaves and plants. In looking for another group of object to write about, we looked no farther than our table toy bins. Now this is fun! So each table really examined - like scientists - five rubber toys - a plane, a house, a car, a bus, a truck and, again, looked and wrote about the objects very scientifically - how many windows, how many wheels, , what color is the object, etc. We are finishing these pieces tomorrow and we would like to invite you to our writing celebration. On Friday morning, during Parents as Enrichment Partners, please join us and take a look at the children's very own science books and our work on the outside bulletin board and in our room. I am looking forward to seeing all of you on Friday morning.
Our next writing unit will be "Small Moments." Keep talking about small moments with the children.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
This week, Class K-207 will be publishing our third unit in Writing Workshop for our scientific writing pieces. We first looked at leaves and wrote extensively about the leaves that we found. We did this by looking very carefully - like scientists - at what leaves look like, how big they are, what colors the leaves are, etc. We wrote our pieces by labeling first and last letter sounds, writing the words we know (word wall words) and stretching out our words. We then moved on to really looking at plants and did the same scientific study. Well...class K-207 got a little tired of the leaves and plants. In looking for another group of object to write about, we looked no farther than our table toy bins. Now this is fun! So each table really examined - like scientists - five rubber toys - a plane, a house, a car, a bus, a truck and, again, looked and wrote about the objects very scientifically - how many windows, how many wheels, , what color is the object, etc. We are finishing these pieces tomorrow and we would like to invite you to our writing celebration. On Friday morning, during Parents as Enrichment Partners, please join us and take a look at the children's very own science books and our work on the outside bulletin board and in our room. I am looking forward to seeing all of you on Friday morning.
Our next writing unit will be "Small Moments." Keep talking about small moments with the children.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Fireman/Firehouse Social Studies Unit
Dear Families,
Our next social studies unit this month will be on firehouse/fireman. This is a new method of study that began last year in Kindergarten and is led by the inquiry and interests of the children. The unit will be constantly changing and evolving. It will bring a unique and exciting experience to the community. Last year, the four Kindergarten classes worked on different aspects of the Firehouse Study. My class concentrated on Firemen - so our study focused entirely on what we know about Fireman, what we want to know about Fireman, etc. Our class - with the help of several parents - cut out a pattern of a life size person (one of our fathers) and made a life-size fireman out of paper mache. This fireman received a lot of press in the local papers and was exhibited in the window of Assemblyman Jim Brennan's office in Ditmis Park for several months. This fireman is currently on display in the multi-media room of PS 154 right above Ms. Guzzi's office. It is truly amazing what Kindergarteners can do!
The reason this study was so rich was due to the fact that we had many parents involved with the process. How you can help:
* If you are, or know someone who is, involved with the fire department or a related occupation, and would like to get involved with this study, please contact me.
* do you have any child-appropriate books at home about fire, fire trucks, firefighters, firehouses... non-fiction or fiction? Please bring them in! Because this unit is constantly changing, and will vary from class to class, we need as many resources as possible.
I am extremely enthusiastic - as are the other Kindergarten teachers - about kicking off this unit with your children!
Thank yo so mcuh in advance for your support.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Our next social studies unit this month will be on firehouse/fireman. This is a new method of study that began last year in Kindergarten and is led by the inquiry and interests of the children. The unit will be constantly changing and evolving. It will bring a unique and exciting experience to the community. Last year, the four Kindergarten classes worked on different aspects of the Firehouse Study. My class concentrated on Firemen - so our study focused entirely on what we know about Fireman, what we want to know about Fireman, etc. Our class - with the help of several parents - cut out a pattern of a life size person (one of our fathers) and made a life-size fireman out of paper mache. This fireman received a lot of press in the local papers and was exhibited in the window of Assemblyman Jim Brennan's office in Ditmis Park for several months. This fireman is currently on display in the multi-media room of PS 154 right above Ms. Guzzi's office. It is truly amazing what Kindergarteners can do!
The reason this study was so rich was due to the fact that we had many parents involved with the process. How you can help:
* If you are, or know someone who is, involved with the fire department or a related occupation, and would like to get involved with this study, please contact me.
* do you have any child-appropriate books at home about fire, fire trucks, firefighters, firehouses... non-fiction or fiction? Please bring them in! Because this unit is constantly changing, and will vary from class to class, we need as many resources as possible.
I am extremely enthusiastic - as are the other Kindergarten teachers - about kicking off this unit with your children!
Thank yo so mcuh in advance for your support.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Monday, December 1, 2008
Welcome Back to School!
Dear Families:
I hope that you all had a great LONG weekend and got plenty of rest. I would like to thank all our families who had the opportunity to participate in our celebration last Wednesday. I cannot believe all the good food and delicious pies that we all ate. We were all so stuffed before the holiday! Well..that is a good segway into what I would like to discuss with all of you today.
I know that it's a challenge just to get your children out of bed in the morning, let alone get them to start each day with a healthy breakfast. Together we can change that.
There is an important initiative that I am beginning in Class K-207. It's called THINK BREAKFAST!, and is sponsored by the New York State Education Department, Child Nutrition Program Administration. The initiative is designed to educate and encourage children to start each day with a healthy breakfast, and the importance of physical activity. "Oh, No...not another thing we have to do!" I know that you are all probably thinking that - especially during this busy time of the year. But if we all just take a moment to stop and think of the importance of getting childen to start early and think about what they are putting in their bodies, I know that in the end it will be a very positive experience for both you and your child.
Research shows that children who eat breakfast and engage in daily physical activity:
* Feel better * Have more energy * Do better in school.
Our classroom will be using "Discover The Big Benefits of Breakfast." This three-week THINK BREAKFAST! program features a variety of fun-filled classroom activities and rewards. The activities are designed to help our children develop the lifelong healthy habits of eating breakfast and engaging in physical activity every day.
WAKE UP TO THE BIG BENEFITS OF BREAKFAST!
As a parent, you can help deliver this important message:
* Be a positive role model. Eat breakfast each day too!
* Encourage your child to eat breakfast every day at home or at school.
* Inquire about our school's breakfast program. P.S. 154 offers free breakfast in the morning.
I know that I have problems with my own children eating a good solid breakfast in the morning. We don't have time...we only like those fattening chocolate muffins...The list goes on and on. Yet, the childen in Class K-207 have been discussing what it means to sit down and eat healthy - how eating healthy makes us feel better...how eating heathy makes us "smarter" So today I will be sending home a student activity/agenda booklet. Even though some of the activities seem a little advanced, you can go over the activities with your child and talk to them about healthy eating. Everyday, the children and I will be charting our good breakfast behaviors - and remember...Kids are very very honest! Enjoy.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
I hope that you all had a great LONG weekend and got plenty of rest. I would like to thank all our families who had the opportunity to participate in our celebration last Wednesday. I cannot believe all the good food and delicious pies that we all ate. We were all so stuffed before the holiday! Well..that is a good segway into what I would like to discuss with all of you today.
I know that it's a challenge just to get your children out of bed in the morning, let alone get them to start each day with a healthy breakfast. Together we can change that.
There is an important initiative that I am beginning in Class K-207. It's called THINK BREAKFAST!, and is sponsored by the New York State Education Department, Child Nutrition Program Administration. The initiative is designed to educate and encourage children to start each day with a healthy breakfast, and the importance of physical activity. "Oh, No...not another thing we have to do!" I know that you are all probably thinking that - especially during this busy time of the year. But if we all just take a moment to stop and think of the importance of getting childen to start early and think about what they are putting in their bodies, I know that in the end it will be a very positive experience for both you and your child.
Research shows that children who eat breakfast and engage in daily physical activity:
* Feel better * Have more energy * Do better in school.
Our classroom will be using "Discover The Big Benefits of Breakfast." This three-week THINK BREAKFAST! program features a variety of fun-filled classroom activities and rewards. The activities are designed to help our children develop the lifelong healthy habits of eating breakfast and engaging in physical activity every day.
WAKE UP TO THE BIG BENEFITS OF BREAKFAST!
As a parent, you can help deliver this important message:
* Be a positive role model. Eat breakfast each day too!
* Encourage your child to eat breakfast every day at home or at school.
* Inquire about our school's breakfast program. P.S. 154 offers free breakfast in the morning.
I know that I have problems with my own children eating a good solid breakfast in the morning. We don't have time...we only like those fattening chocolate muffins...The list goes on and on. Yet, the childen in Class K-207 have been discussing what it means to sit down and eat healthy - how eating healthy makes us feel better...how eating heathy makes us "smarter" So today I will be sending home a student activity/agenda booklet. Even though some of the activities seem a little advanced, you can go over the activities with your child and talk to them about healthy eating. Everyday, the children and I will be charting our good breakfast behaviors - and remember...Kids are very very honest! Enjoy.
Fondly,
Ms. Graham
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
