Hello everyone!
SURVEY
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to fill in the 2-minute survery re: this blog! I wanted to know whether this format was helpful to families, or if the majority would prefer a monthly newsletter. Either is fine with me, but from the surveys that were returned, the majority prefers the blog, so I'll continue with it for the time being. Thanks again for your input!
LAST WEEK'S HIGHLIGHT
The children started last week with a celebratory parade of dragons and red drums to welcome the Chinese New Year! We paraded to the Child Care Centre, to Mrs. Kelly-Rubinof's Grade 1/2 and finally to see Mr. Tayler. Thank you so much for remembering to dress your child in lucky red! They looked great and I'll be sure to add the class photo to your child's portfolio.
WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON...
We are continuing with our look at 'winter'. Last week, your child brought home the booklet "In the Winter" to read with you. Look at all the sight words your son/daughter was able to find and circle! Bravo! Our class 'Word Worm' is really growing! Please continue to have your child point out letters and words as you read together.
Today we brainstormed a list of winter words and stuck them to our large snowman. Children will be encouraged to integrate these words into their own writing this week.
In math, we continue to work on recognizing, ordering and printing numbers 1-10. A "How Many?" booklet went home today to share with you. Children were encouraged to count and record the correct numeral. Others were ready to add the number word underneath. Please read through with your child and have them practise their numbers if they need it. For those ready for a greater challenge, ask them to add up 2 of the pages, or draw more items to reach a certain number (ex. "How many scarves do you need to draw to make 12?"). Have fun!
We are also continuing to count by 10s to 100, by 2s to 20 and down to 1 from 10.
The children were also very busy today creating blustery, blizzardly snow scenes using all sorts of white materials (cotton balls, lace, doilies, white paint, sponges, textured gloves, etc.). Very creative!
AT HOME READING
Our program is off to a great start and the kids seem keen to do their 'homework'! Thanks so much for supporting this important part of their learning. New books were sent home today.
SOUND BOOKS
Thanks for taking the time to complete this activity with you child. As I mentioned earlier, there is no due date, please just work at your own pace. I will check the books and add new letters each week or two.
SHOW AND SHARE
We are a little behind schedule, but should be finished January by the end of this week. Watch for February's schedule next week!
POSITIVE POLICE
The SK's are bringing in the 'positive police'! We've noticed some of our friends sometimes have a hard time remembering to use friendly voices, positive words, warm faces,helping hands, and good listening so each day we will have 2 'positive police' officers patrolling our room with their badges and stickers ready to hand out 'tickets'(stickers) to everyone they 'catch' being super positive! Don't forget to ask your child if they got 'caught' by the 'positive police'!
THE DIRECTOR'S CUT
Please find the permission form and payment fee ($5) enclosed in your child's Note Tote tonight. This is an in-class media literacy workshop and the SK's will be working with me, the Director's Cut staff and some of Ms. Hogan's students to create and perform a retelling of 'The Mitten' on February 16th. It should be loads of fun!
REPORT CARDS
Please note that report cards will be sent home on February 8th.
Thank you for checking in and have a wonderful week!
Warmly,
Ms. Cox
Monday, January 30, 2012
Monday, January 16, 2012
January 16-20
Hello and welcome to another week!
WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON...
This week the children will be learning about Chinese New Year. We will be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts ("D is for Dragon", "Bringing in the New Year", "Lion Dancer"), singing some new songs, designing and making red shakers, constructing dragon puppets, investigating the concepts of addition and subtraction using 'lucky money', practicing our number formation from 1-30 and talking about dragons (as it is the Year of the Dragon). Students will also talk about the year they were born (2006 was the Year of the Dog). We will finish off our study with a little party and a Dragon Parade with our shakers on Monday (we will dress in 'lucky' red!).
PD DAY
Please note that this Friday, January 20th is a PD Day for report card writing. Children do not come to school on Friday.
NOTE TOTES
Please ensure that your child's Note Tote comes to school each day. This system allows me to stay in touch with you, organize work and newlsetters and most importantly, it teaches your child organizational skills and responsibility. Thank you for your attention to this.
AT HOME READING PROGRAM
Our At Home Reading program is set to start next Monday. Please watch for the folder each week. It will be sent home each Monday and is to be returned (with the book, tracking sheet, Bookworm sticker-tracker, etc. in the ziploc bag each Thursday). In order for your child to earn his/her sticker it MUST BE SIGNED BY YOU (this helps me keep track of who is ready for a new book). The folder also includes an explanatory note outlining the purpose of the program, some tips and some reading strategies to use with your child. Please keep all materials in the folders. Thanks!
JOLLY PHONICS SOUND BOOKS
We have been using the Jolly Phonics letter/sound program in school once a week. This program uses movements and songs to help children associate the sounds with each letter. We then practice forming the letters in our notebooks. To supplement this program, I've decided to send home a smaller version of what we do (the letters and their movements) so that you can reinforce these at home.
Activities to try at home:
1. have your child tell you the letter, show you the movement and make the sound
2. ask you child to tell you words that begin with that sound and then write them in the book
3.ask your child to find and circle that particular letter
Please leave the Sound Book in your child's Note Tote so I can add to it.
SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDERS
January's order forms were sent home on Friday and will be due this Thursday, January 19. Thank you!
VOLUNTEER READERS
We have a new volunteer reader joining Gillian on Tuesdays. Andre and Gillian are both volunteers with Ottawa Reads and come to us from Carleton University. They are implementing our Board's Early Literacy Program (reading and talking one-on-one with each student using a provided checklist). The children really look forward to this special time. Thank you Andre and Gillian!
COLD WEATHER
Please make sure your child is dressed warmly for outdoor play. Boots and snowpants are a MUST.
Thank you for your attention to this.
LAST WEEK...
The children had a great week retelling The Mitten, setting a scene to music, using ordinal numbers (wow!!) and counting by 10's and down from 10. We have also started our Show and Share Surprise Box and are learning how to 'tally' our guesses. Well done. Thanks for helping.
That's all for now. Please don't hesitate to call or post. Have a great week!
Warmly,
Ms. Cox
WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON...
This week the children will be learning about Chinese New Year. We will be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts ("D is for Dragon", "Bringing in the New Year", "Lion Dancer"), singing some new songs, designing and making red shakers, constructing dragon puppets, investigating the concepts of addition and subtraction using 'lucky money', practicing our number formation from 1-30 and talking about dragons (as it is the Year of the Dragon). Students will also talk about the year they were born (2006 was the Year of the Dog). We will finish off our study with a little party and a Dragon Parade with our shakers on Monday (we will dress in 'lucky' red!).
PD DAY
Please note that this Friday, January 20th is a PD Day for report card writing. Children do not come to school on Friday.
NOTE TOTES
Please ensure that your child's Note Tote comes to school each day. This system allows me to stay in touch with you, organize work and newlsetters and most importantly, it teaches your child organizational skills and responsibility. Thank you for your attention to this.
AT HOME READING PROGRAM
Our At Home Reading program is set to start next Monday. Please watch for the folder each week. It will be sent home each Monday and is to be returned (with the book, tracking sheet, Bookworm sticker-tracker, etc. in the ziploc bag each Thursday). In order for your child to earn his/her sticker it MUST BE SIGNED BY YOU (this helps me keep track of who is ready for a new book). The folder also includes an explanatory note outlining the purpose of the program, some tips and some reading strategies to use with your child. Please keep all materials in the folders. Thanks!
JOLLY PHONICS SOUND BOOKS
We have been using the Jolly Phonics letter/sound program in school once a week. This program uses movements and songs to help children associate the sounds with each letter. We then practice forming the letters in our notebooks. To supplement this program, I've decided to send home a smaller version of what we do (the letters and their movements) so that you can reinforce these at home.
Activities to try at home:
1. have your child tell you the letter, show you the movement and make the sound
2. ask you child to tell you words that begin with that sound and then write them in the book
3.ask your child to find and circle that particular letter
Please leave the Sound Book in your child's Note Tote so I can add to it.
SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDERS
January's order forms were sent home on Friday and will be due this Thursday, January 19. Thank you!
VOLUNTEER READERS
We have a new volunteer reader joining Gillian on Tuesdays. Andre and Gillian are both volunteers with Ottawa Reads and come to us from Carleton University. They are implementing our Board's Early Literacy Program (reading and talking one-on-one with each student using a provided checklist). The children really look forward to this special time. Thank you Andre and Gillian!
COLD WEATHER
Please make sure your child is dressed warmly for outdoor play. Boots and snowpants are a MUST.
Thank you for your attention to this.
LAST WEEK...
The children had a great week retelling The Mitten, setting a scene to music, using ordinal numbers (wow!!) and counting by 10's and down from 10. We have also started our Show and Share Surprise Box and are learning how to 'tally' our guesses. Well done. Thanks for helping.
That's all for now. Please don't hesitate to call or post. Have a great week!
Warmly,
Ms. Cox
Monday, January 9, 2012
January 9-13
Happy New Year and welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays.
This week...
We will continue with our look at "The Mitten" as we did not complete many of the activities before the holidays. Many friends left early, or were sick, and we were busy with our concert prep, etc.! Our focus with this particular book is to work on identifying characters, setting and the problem (the animals and Nikki, the forest, and the lost mitten/tight squeeze). We will also be focusing on retelling the story (summarizing the main events), acting it out and setting a particular scene to music.
Try this game at home...
We will be playing a new game each Monday called "Two Word Weekend". This game helps children develop their retelling/summarizing skills. It helps children focus their ideas into 2 descriptive words. They think about the bast part of their weekend and then tell us about it in 2 WORDS! Not easy, but they quickly get the hang of it. You can try it at home: "2 Word Day". Have your child tell you about the best, or worst, part of his/her day in 2 words. It's fun and it helps develop an important skill. Don't forget to model first!
THANK YOU TO SHERRI KERR!
I heard the presentation was wonderful! Thank you so much for taking the time to put on such a wonderful performance. We are very grateful. I was sorry that the busses were cancelled and that I missed it as well (both of my kids were home sick!). Everyone who was able to attend loved it! Thank you.
SHOW AND SHARE SCHEDULE
January's Show and Share schedule will be coming home this week. Watch for the "Surprise Box" (a small lunchbox). A sample and instructions are inside. This month's Show and Share will help students develop their descriptive language skills, their listening skills, as well as their logic and problem solving skills. Each student chooses a small item from home to place in the box and then writes 3 clues to read to the class. We will also be learning about tallying as we record how many guesses it takes the class to solve the riddle! Thanks for helping!
FOOD DRIVE
Thank you so much for all of your generous donations. This activity helps develop children's awareness of others, as well as strengthening their sense of empathy and sharing. The school raised 23 boxes...close to 900 pounds of food! WOW!
AT HOME READING PROGRAM
We will begin our "At Home Reading" program this month. Each child will receive a folder with a book and a tracking sheet. These books are levelled readers that focus on repetition, pattern and sight words. The purpose of these books is to help children feel successful as readers. Not all children are reading, so we will support them by reading to them and having them repeat back to us. You will notice that children seem to 'memorize' the book rather than 'reading' it. This is an important step towards learning to read and is to be encouraged and praised. This program is designed to build your child's confidence as a reader! Never let your child struggle or get frustrated. Keep it short and fun and offer lots of support. This program is NOT meant to replace the nightly reading of high quality storybooks and non-fiction books that you read with your child. Children need to hear high quality literature, challenging vocabulary and the rhythmn of language that reading aloud provides. More deatils to follow!
Have a fantastic week and please continue to check in regularly!
Warmly,
Ms. Cox
This week...
We will continue with our look at "The Mitten" as we did not complete many of the activities before the holidays. Many friends left early, or were sick, and we were busy with our concert prep, etc.! Our focus with this particular book is to work on identifying characters, setting and the problem (the animals and Nikki, the forest, and the lost mitten/tight squeeze). We will also be focusing on retelling the story (summarizing the main events), acting it out and setting a particular scene to music.
Try this game at home...
We will be playing a new game each Monday called "Two Word Weekend". This game helps children develop their retelling/summarizing skills. It helps children focus their ideas into 2 descriptive words. They think about the bast part of their weekend and then tell us about it in 2 WORDS! Not easy, but they quickly get the hang of it. You can try it at home: "2 Word Day". Have your child tell you about the best, or worst, part of his/her day in 2 words. It's fun and it helps develop an important skill. Don't forget to model first!
THANK YOU TO SHERRI KERR!
I heard the presentation was wonderful! Thank you so much for taking the time to put on such a wonderful performance. We are very grateful. I was sorry that the busses were cancelled and that I missed it as well (both of my kids were home sick!). Everyone who was able to attend loved it! Thank you.
SHOW AND SHARE SCHEDULE
January's Show and Share schedule will be coming home this week. Watch for the "Surprise Box" (a small lunchbox). A sample and instructions are inside. This month's Show and Share will help students develop their descriptive language skills, their listening skills, as well as their logic and problem solving skills. Each student chooses a small item from home to place in the box and then writes 3 clues to read to the class. We will also be learning about tallying as we record how many guesses it takes the class to solve the riddle! Thanks for helping!
FOOD DRIVE
Thank you so much for all of your generous donations. This activity helps develop children's awareness of others, as well as strengthening their sense of empathy and sharing. The school raised 23 boxes...close to 900 pounds of food! WOW!
AT HOME READING PROGRAM
We will begin our "At Home Reading" program this month. Each child will receive a folder with a book and a tracking sheet. These books are levelled readers that focus on repetition, pattern and sight words. The purpose of these books is to help children feel successful as readers. Not all children are reading, so we will support them by reading to them and having them repeat back to us. You will notice that children seem to 'memorize' the book rather than 'reading' it. This is an important step towards learning to read and is to be encouraged and praised. This program is designed to build your child's confidence as a reader! Never let your child struggle or get frustrated. Keep it short and fun and offer lots of support. This program is NOT meant to replace the nightly reading of high quality storybooks and non-fiction books that you read with your child. Children need to hear high quality literature, challenging vocabulary and the rhythmn of language that reading aloud provides. More deatils to follow!
Have a fantastic week and please continue to check in regularly!
Warmly,
Ms. Cox
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