Kindergarten Newsletter

October 6, 2020

By Kindergarten Team
Kindergarten
October 06, 2020

Dear Families, 

We are now 4 weeks smarter and more experienced and the kindergarten team wanted to take a minute to thank you for your continued support in helping your student get off to a great start this year. 

We are continuing to learn more every day about what works and what we can keep working to improve. We have learned that the students are rising to the challenges and learning incredible new skills that they will continue to build upon. 

We wanted to share a few tips that you can help us with to make sure students are ready to learn and engaged during our time together every day: 

  • Students should be logged in and near the computer:
    • Monday- 9:20-12:20 
    • Tuesday-Friday 9:20-2:50 (lunch/recess 12:20-1:20) 
    • Snack time will be during our 10:50-11:00 break. 
    •  Parents are encouraged to prioritize students' needs and give breaks when necessary 
  • You can help students feel ready to learn and participate by making sure they have a comfortable place to work. Help your student to designate a place to be productive during the day. Students may be most comfortable in a chair or at a table. Click on this link for some pictures of different seating positions your student may find most comfortable. 
  • A backpack or bin for supplies should be kept nearby for easy access during the day. This also makes clean-up a breeze at the end of the day.  
    • Red journal 
    • White board and dry erase marker
    • Orange Handwriting Without Tears book
    • Pencil
    • Crayons
    • Scissors
    • Glue stick
    • Any other materials students may have received in recent delivery. 

*If you need support with getting these materials, please let your child’s teacher know. We can help!

Language Arts

What are we learning?

  • Readers will continue to engage with various texts and reading for enjoyment.
  • Readers will be practicing reading from left to right and pointing under the words when they are reading.
  • Readers will use the pictures to help them think about the story.
  • In Writing, students will begin drawing pictures with details to express their ideas.
  • Students will engage in various activities to learn/review sight words.

Home/School Connection

  • After reading a story with your student, ask them to share their favorite part. 
  • Have the students try only reading the pictures of a book. They can use the pictures to help them figure out what is happening in the story.
  • When reading a book with your student, stop at the sight words they have learned in class. Are they able to read and recognize them? (a list of sight words can be found on your teacher’s google site)
  • When your student draws a picture, have them share the picture with you. Does the picture illustrate and match the story that they are orally telling?

Math

What are we learning?

  • Students will be learning how to count objects and write numbers.
  • Students will be learning how to put numbers in order.

Home/School Connection

  • Count different objects in your home like the windows in your house. Draw or take a picture of what you counted to share.  You can also write the correct numeral.
  • Go on a number hunt around your home/neighborhood.  How many different numbers can you find?

Science/Social Studies

What are we learning?

  • Students will continue reviewing the 5 senses as we introduce sensory descriptor words. 
  • We will also be observing and studying live ants soon as a part of our focus on life cycles and living things. 
  • We will continue to learn about community helpers.

Home/School Connection

Have students take turns completing this sentence frame based on the room that they are in: My _____ can _____ a ______. It is ________.  (My ears can hear my mom, she is loud. My eyes can see a clock, it is round.)

Social Emotional/Play

What are we learning?

Ms. Delzell’s class read A Little Spot of Sadness and talked about ways that you can help your friends when they are sad, and ways that you can help yourself when you feel sad.

Home/School Connection

Read this book with your child and practice doing the “Palm Circles”, saying the calming rhyme, and taking the calming breaths.

Class Compliments

  • Mrs. Nieto’s class has been doing awesome at accessing links posted in the chat and following along with lessons!  
  • Mrs. Bender’s class is doing a great job raising their hands to share their thinking! They are showing a lot of bravery and trying their best when answering questions.
  • Way to go Miss Matthews’ class at using the survey buttons to answer a question then sharing with the class!  Keep up the great work! 
  • Mrs. Johnson’s class is rocking their small group time! It is so great to see so many engaged, hard working kindergarteners.  We have come so far in 4 short weeks!

POG/Positivity Project (P2)

What are we learning?

  • Positivity Project (P2) for the week of October 5-9 is open-mindedness
  • Positivity Project (P2) for the week of October 13-16 is being present
  • Portrait of a Graduate (POG): All of Terraset Elementary is working on being Collaborators. Kindergarten is focusing on sharing our ideas. 

Home/School Connection

  • Celebrate your child’s attempts at trying something new! Congratulate them on being open-minded! We are trying new things daily with virtual learning!
  • Take a mindful moment with your child.  Before a meal or bedtime, take a moment to sit with your child and focus on your breath.  Take a deep breath in and out. Then put your hand on your belly when you take a deep breath in and out.  Focus on your belly going up and down with your breath.  Do his for 5 breaths. 
  • Let your child pick the topic of conversation for one meal.  Let them share their ideas on that topic.

Important Upcoming Dates

  • October 12- Indeginous Peoples’ Day- No school for students
  • October 13 @ 7pm- PTO virtual meeting
  • October 30 - Scholastic Book orders due

https://clubs.scholastic.com/home

Connect to your teacher with their class code for value prices on books and free shipping! 

  • Johnson class code: VNYJ6
  • Matthews class code: GZ3NY
  • Bender class code: TNMQD
  • Neito code: PH732
  • October 30- End of 1st quarter

Click here to see what students are learning in Specials!