October 2014
Dear Parents and/or Guardians,
September has come and gone. October and the fall weather have arrived! Our classes have enjoyed learning about each other, friendships and feelings.
Thank you to all the parents who have sent in craft supplies and a box of Kleenex (cold season is just around the corner!). Thank you also, to all of the parents who have sent in a pair of indoor shoes. If you have not done so, please send in a pair that your child is able to put on independently (Velcro) as soon as possible. With the winter weather just around the corner it is very important as boots and wet or dirty shoes are not appropriate indoor footwear and stocking feet are not permitted for safety reasons.
September has come and gone. October and the fall weather have arrived! Our classes have enjoyed learning about each other, friendships and feelings.
Thank you to all the parents who have sent in craft supplies and a box of Kleenex (cold season is just around the corner!). Thank you also, to all of the parents who have sent in a pair of indoor shoes. If you have not done so, please send in a pair that your child is able to put on independently (Velcro) as soon as possible. With the winter weather just around the corner it is very important as boots and wet or dirty shoes are not appropriate indoor footwear and stocking feet are not permitted for safety reasons.
At a Glance
We have started a program in our classroom called JOLLY PHONICS. Each week, at school, we will be focusing on two letters and the sounds they make. Each sound is connected to an action to help the students better remember it. Please refer to the monthly calendar for the sounds of the week and encourage your child to be a letter detective and teach you the letter, sound and action at home. We have included a list of Senior Kindergarten High Frequency words. This group of 30 words is frequently found in children’s literature. Students are expected to recognize all 30 words by the end of Senior Kindergarten. JK students are not required to know these but encourage your child to find letters they recognize and learn new ones. We have sent home a list for both our JK and SK students to practice at home. As the weeks continue encourage your child to discuss with you what is happening in the classroom. In math we will continue with sorting, patterning and working with numbers using various hands-on activities.
Classroom Jobs
Classroom jobs are an important component in our classroom. Our jobs enable us to feel important, help us learn responsibility, and keep us involved in maintaining a successful and clean classroom. Everyone will participate in classroom jobs.
Show and Tell
Show and Tell is one way in which we are teaching children to be effective communicators. Show and tell will occur every Monday starting in November. We will have a group of friends share and answer questions based on their objects brought in. Our focus will be to bring in items that start with the letter sound we are focusing on that particular week. Please refer to the calendar for your child’s show and tell day as well as the letter sound we are exploring. Some ideas for Show and Tell are photos, collections, mementos from home or a trip, something from nature, a piece of artwork your child has created, a story your child has written or a book. Warlike toys, such as, guns, plastic swords or other violent toys are not acceptable. We strongly discourage your child from bringing in any item of value as these can easily be broken, lost or misplaced.
Project Share
Our school is proud to be involved with Project Share. Project Share is a multi-service organization committed to helping people who live on a low income within our city through programs that involve and assist with providing people with basic needs. In the classroom we are collecting pennies and any other loose change to be donated to Project Share.
Clothing
Please label shoes, boots, jackets, hats etc. to minimize lost and unclaimed items. It is that time of year when the cool winds are beginning to blow. It is important that your child be able to zip and unzip their jacket and dress independently. To ensure that your child continues to use these life skills, please provide them with plenty of practice on a regular basis. Before long they will feel successful dressing independently. Continue to praise them and encourage them to demonstrate these new skills to other adults or members of the family. This will not only provide practice but it will also be and excellent source of reinforcement. In addition, encourage your child to use these new skills with other clothing, zipping and unzipping their pants and boots.
At school, we get dressed in a certain order. It would be very helpful if you reinforced this at home as well.
1. Snow pants
2. Boots
3. Jacket
4. Hat
5. Scarf
6. Mittens or gloves LAST
At school, we get dressed in a certain order. It would be very helpful if you reinforced this at home as well.
1. Snow pants
2. Boots
3. Jacket
4. Hat
5. Scarf
6. Mittens or gloves LAST
Magic Flip
The “Magic Flip” works great for little ones when putting on their jackets. This is simply when the child lays the jacket on the floor in front of them with the hood of the jacket by their feet. The child then puts their arms into the armholes, flips the jacket over their head and TADA the jacket should be on (if all goes well).
Family Photos
Just a reminder - please send in a 4 x 6 family picture of your child (by themselves, with other family members, including animals) to school. School can be a hard transition for some little ones during the first few weeks. Family pictures are a fantastic way to help ease their fears, foster a sense of security and belonging, and further develop a feeling of home within the classroom. We have noticed a difference in our friends who have brought pictures in. They enjoy looking at them and sharing them with their friends. Remember to place their name on the back and the photo will be returned to you.
Information Bags
Wow, this class is doing really well with remembering their Mr. Zippy bags. Thank you! Again please check this bag each night and return it to your child’s backpack for the next day.
THANK YOU
It has been a pleasure meeting all of you and your precious little ones. We look forward to an excellent month and our time together this year. Thank you for your continued support.
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Treasures
We are on the lookout for adding more to our classroom collections. If you have any of these treasures at home and are no longer using them please pass them along to us. We love exploring with all sorts of items.
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Important Dates To Remember
October 10 - Professional Activity Day – NO SCHOOL ON FRIDAY
October 13 - Thanksgiving Day –NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY
October 20 – All Trip permission forms and money due
October 21 - Anti-Bullying Magic Show
October 22-23 – Dental Screening
October 27 – Pumpkin Patch Trip
October 28 - Parent Council Meeting at 2:00 p.m. (all parents welcome)
October 30 – Dress up for Black and Orange Day
October 31 – Halloween parade and party (more info to follow at a later date)
October 13 - Thanksgiving Day –NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY
October 20 – All Trip permission forms and money due
October 21 - Anti-Bullying Magic Show
October 22-23 – Dental Screening
October 27 – Pumpkin Patch Trip
October 28 - Parent Council Meeting at 2:00 p.m. (all parents welcome)
October 30 – Dress up for Black and Orange Day
October 31 – Halloween parade and party (more info to follow at a later date)