Shapes, Shapes, Everywhere!

Today we had a shape-filled Fun Friday!  We have painted shapes, built shapes, and built with shapes!  

We have spent a lot of time talking about how to identify shapes and count the sides and corners of the shapes we are learning about.  Be on the look for shapes all around you!  What kinds of shapes to you see?  How did you identify the shape?  How many sides and corners does it have? 

What if Everybody Did That?

Yesterday Ms. Elliott, our school counselor, visited our classroom for our monthly Guidance Lesson.  She talked to us about expected and unexpected behaviors.  We took time to think about how our actions can effect other people and the environment around us while reading the book What if Everybody Did That?.

Your child is bringing home a "What if Everybody Did That?" sheet today in their PIRATE notebook.  It would be great to use this opportunity to talk about behaviors and consequences.  You can use it for home, school, or both!

If you want to revisit the book, you can find it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVH5XsNDZw4&list=PLxFL7d8QuO02yXlnznNRLUqIIfJNOluy5

I hope everyone has had an opportunity to do some reading and use their "Eagle Eyes" at home this week!  

"Eagle Eyes" are just one the many beginning reading strategies your child will be using as they learn to become confident, successful, and independent readers this year.  Using your "Eagle Eyes" is easy, and something every reader should do.  

First, I'll take a good, long look at the pictures on the page. 

Now I'll start to read.

Yikes!!!  I don't know that word!

Oh, wait!  I already used my "Eagle Eyes" to check the picture!  I saw a cow--so this word must be cow!

Now, I'll read the whole sentence one more time, and use my "Eagle Eyes" one more time just to make sure the words I read match the picture!

Whooo!!!!  Hooo!!!!

I did it just right!!  

HAPPY READING!!!

It was FUN FRIDAY today--and it was totally FUN!  

All week we have been working hard to complete our work, manage our materials, and make sure we are in the right place at the right time so that we are able to work and learn!  Every time children transition quickly and quietly and follow teacher directions the first time, they are able to earn points. And lots of points equals lots of fun activities for Friday! 

We got to explore some real coconuts today!  We found out that coconuts are round, hard, scratchy, and they can even make a noise.  We also found out that coconuts can FLOAT!  See if your child can tell you why. 

We made some coconut play-doh to practice making letters and numbers.  Everyone is bringing home a little bit of play-doh to use at home today!  See if your child can use their play-doh to form their favorite letters, numbers, or shapes.  

We made some cute little Kindergarten pirates and even dug for some "treasured" letters just like the pirates in Pirates Go to School.

    

But WAIT...there's more!!  We had our school wide STEAM kick-off this afternoon!  We saw lots of really cool experiments, and there was even some assistance from one very special Kindergarten volunteer! 

Today was LIBRARY day!!  We had a great time with Mrs. Benko in the Media Center this morning.  We learned all about how to use our library and treat our books with care!  Each child should be bringing home a book to share with your family tonight.  Read it, love it, and read it again!!  But don't forget to keep it safe and return it school by next week so you can have an opportunity to do it all over again!!

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom--check out what's been happening in our room!!

We have had fun exploring the alphabet and learning how to work together in both reading and math centers this week!  

           

We officially launched our Writers Workshop this week!!  I LOVE WRITERS WORKSHOP!  This is a very special time of day where children get to share what they know and love, practice using what they know about letters and sounds, and begin to develop their voice as authors.  I have been impressed with the work I have seen so far!

And...we completed several activities designed to introduce us to the five disciplines of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics).  SO MUCH FUN!

As you can imagine, all of that made for some sleepy little learners!  

You can check out some of our favorite ABC songs and videos here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0WELUxl7gc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BELlZKpi1Zs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhKmoI97X34

Three days down, and only 177 more to go!  Today was another day spent reviewing classroom rules and procedures.  We read a book about some dinosaurs that go to school.  In the book we saw those dinosaurs do some pretty crazy stuff at school!  We made our own dinosaurs to help us identify expected and unexpected behaviors at school.  Be sure to check your child's PIRATE notebook for their dinosaur, and take time to do a little practicing this weekend!  

               

       

Day 2 of Kindergarten is officially in the books!  We have spent a great deal of time talking about and practicing rules and procedures.  We also read about DAVID!!  David sure does some silly stuff, but what is so great about David is that by the end of the book David is able to "fix it." We are a lot like David, sometimes we make mistakes, but the important thing is we work hard to "fix it."

                

We will be using this color coded clip system to monitor our behaviors in the classroom. Your clip can move both up and down.  If you make mistakes like David, your clip may move down to either yellow or red.  If you work hard like David to "fix it" you can always move your clip back up to green.  You can also move your clip up to orange or blue for exhibiting expected behaviors consistently. 

You can also earn horseshoes for following directions quickly and working hard in the classroom!

Right now, we are focusing on treating other people the way we would like to be treated (being respectful), listening quietly and following directions the very first time (being respectful and motivated), and keeping our hands, feet, and objects to ourselves (being respectful and safe).  

We have been rocking in our school shoes with our friend Pete the Cat all day today in Kindergarten!  We have been writing in our school shoes, reading in our school shoes, learning about our alphabet in our school shoes, and even doing a little building in our school shoes!

What was the best thing you did in your school shoes today?

Happy Night before Kindergarten!  Miss Mary Ann and I are SUPER excited to see all your smiling faces bright and early in the morning!!  Don't forget to sprinkle your magic confetti under your pillow tonight!  I am sprinkling mine right now!