Kindergarten News
Nov. 16-20, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Thanksgiving/
Native Americans

Early Literacy Idea
Help your child understand how books work. As you read, point to words to show left to right, spaces between words, and word patterns.

November

This week we will cover the letters Y and Z. HOORAY, we made it to the end of the alphabet! This is a great accomplishment for these little ones! Make sure you look at their alphabet books and drawing books they will be bringing home. They are so excited to show you their awesome work! We will learn the sight words and, in.
We will have Centers this week, but because we are out Wednesday through Friday of the following week for the Thanksgiving holiday, we will not have them during that week.
If you signed up to furnish something for our Thanksgiving party, I will attach a reminder to your child’s homework packet on Monday. Our party is on Tuesday.
The Box Tops contest will end on Tuesday, Nov. 24. Thank you to those who have sent box tops to help earn money for our school! The goal is 800 per class—we have a ways to go to reach that, but every bit helps so please continue to send them with your child even after the contest is over. Another prize is coming in March. THANKS! Also, as you do your holiday shopping online, you can earn money for the school. There is a “box tops marketplace” website. Please check it out—we can earn up to 15%!
Thank you for all you do! Have a great week!
linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Nov. 9-13, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Thanksgiving/
Native Americans

Early Literacy Idea
Sing the alphabet song. Be creative—sing it in a rap, skip every other letter, sing it backwards, quietly or loudly.

November

This week we will cover the letters W and X and learn the sight words to, is, this. We will continue learning a poem for each of the letters A-Z. They are a lot of fun and help with memorization skills. The students are becoming great readers and writers! Thank you for your continued support at home. It is great to see the homework and reading books coming back on a consistent basis. You are wonderful parents. I am thrilled with the progress your children are making! As part of the testing for the 2nd quarter, the students are asked to recite their birthday, address and phone number. This is important information that each one needs to know but because it is so individualized, it is very difficult for me to teach. Please help your child with this. THANK YOU!

We will begin practicing recognizing and writing the numerals 11-20, simple addition and positional words (above, under, on, outside of, behind, in front of, and inside).
As it is getting colder, please make sure your child’s name is on his/her coat or jacket so we don’t loose them. There is a Lost and Found by the lunchroom if your child is missing one, please take a look and see if one belongs to you.

As always, please feel free to contact me anytime!
linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Nov. 2-6, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Mapping

Early Literacy Idea
Play “I Spy” using initial sound clues. For example, “I spy something that is yellow and starts with the sound /b/. (banana)

November

This week we will cover the letters T, U, and V. Please ask your child to identify both the capital and lower case as well as tell you the sound these letters make. Please have them write each one correctly as well. We will add the sight words up and go. We will also continue working on number recognition, matching numbers 0-10 and patterning.
If you haven’t already done so, please remember to fill out and send the October reading calendar back to school by Wednesday so your child can get the free pizza certificate. Reading is such a great way to help your child be successful in school! Our 2nd quarter assessments are coming up in less than a week. It will be exciting to see how much they have progressed since the beginning of the year. Thanks for your help at home as well!
Have a nice week and as always, please feel free to contact me any time!

linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Oct.26-30, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Halloween

Fluoride Swish
It is not too late to sign up for fluoride. If you would like your child to participate , send a note with your signature and I will make sure the people in charge receive that information. They are asking for a $3.00 donation for the year.

October

This week we will cover the letters R and S. Please ask your child to identify both the capital and lower case as well as tell you the sound these letters make. Please have them write each one correctly as well. We will add the sight word at. We will also do some Halloween activities and review the many things we have learned since school started. Please continue to help your child at home by asking him/her questions regarding the letters and sounds. For example, ask what sounds they hear in the word “frog”. What sound does it start with? What sound does it end with? Can you think of any words that rhyme with it?

We will have a Halloween party in our classroom on Friday, Oct. 30th. However, please do not have your child wear a costume to school. This is our school policy. We will have some snacks/treats in our classroom, but we will keep it simple. If you signed up to bring something, a reminder will come home in your child’s homework folder on Monday, Oct. 26th. Thank you for your help!

THANK YOU for bringing in box tops! The contest goes until Thanksgiving—each class has a goal to collect 800 box tops so please keep them coming!

As always please feel free to contact me anytime! I appreciate all you do to help with your child’s education!

linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Oct. 20-23, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Five Senses

Center Time
We are back on schedule for our ABC, Writing, Math, Art and Listening Centers. A big thanks to those who come each week to help!

October

This week we will cover the letters P and Q. Please ask your child to identify both the capital and lower case as well as tell you the sound these letters make. Let them show you how to write each one correctly as well. We will add the sight word on to our “We Can Read” board. They are doing great with the sight words and often hear them say, “Hey that is one of our sight words” when we are doing our shared reading or they are reading books by themselves.

We have also been working on writing in our class. The more kids write, the better writers they become. Research shows that kids who are good writers are usually good readers. Please encourage your child to write grocery lists, make cards, write letters, stories, etc. We have been practicing “stretching out” words by listening for the sounds in each word.

Here is a head’s up for Halloween—we will have a classroom party in our classroom on Friday, Oct. 30th. However, please do not have your child wear a costume to school. This is our school policy. We will have some snacks/treats in our classroom, but we will keep it simple. If you signed up to bring something, a reminder will come home in your child’s homework folder on Monday, Oct. 26th. Thank you for your help!

As always please feel free to contact me anytime! You are wonderful!

linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Oct. 12-16, 2009

Weekly Theme:
Five Senses

Center Time
No Centers for the week of Oct. 12th -16th because of our Fall Recess. We will begin again on Tuesday, Oct. 20th. THANKS to those who are helping! Our first week was a success!

October

We have learned the letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M. We will continue with N and O this week. Your child should be able to correctly identify and write upper and lower case of each of these letters and tell you the sound each one makes. The sight words we have learned are: me, see, I, can, like, look, here. We have reviewed numbers 1-10 and each student should be able to tell you what each number is and write them correctly. Each child should also be able to identify a circle, square, triangle and rectangle. The rectangle is the one that is giving some of the students’ trouble. Please encourage your child to write his/her name with a capital for the first letter and all lower case for the rest.

We will travel to the bus garage to learn about bus safety on Tuesday, Oct. 20th. We will still have Centers that day, but will begin about five minutes early so we can make it back to school on time for our regular dismissal time. Please sign and return the permission slip your child will bring home on Monday in his/her homework folder.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

linda.wood@ironmail.org
ginger.ekker@ironmail.org
586-2850

Kindergarten News
Oct. 5-9, 2009

Weekly Themes:
COLORS/SHAPES

Center Time
We are excited to begin our Centers. THANKS again for those who have volunteered to help!

October

Thank you for your support and encouragement from home! We are having
a great time learning and I am enjoying each one of your children. Every one of them has something special to contribute to our class.
Thanks for reading with your child at home! Reading aloud to your child is fundamental to his/her learning to read and being excited about reading. Please continue to read daily (five nights a week) with your child for at least 15 minutes. Remember our goal is 300 minutes a month--which includes the books you read to them as well as what they read to you.
We are doing well with the collecting of box tops so thanks for your diligent cutting and sending of those! The kids are excited and we will all continue to try for the hot chocolate and donut party at the end of November. The goal is 800 per class.
You are amazing parents and are greatly appreciated! Have a fantastic week!

linda.wood@ironmail.org