Star of the Week, Numbers, Poetry, Five Senses, and Writing

What a week!!  WE have worked so hard this week introducing different things in our classroom.  It was lots of hands-on fun and excitement!!

Star of the Week:
Our Star of the Week is a friend that loves the color pink and has an infectious smile!!  You can't help but smile when she is around!

Grandparent's Breakfast:

On Friday, we celebrated our Grandparents with a special breakfast celebration.  It was a fun time!  Thanks for all you do, Grandma and Grandpa!!

(I had to throw one in of my boys with their Grandma!!)

Writing:

This week we learned about writing.  In Kindergarten, we start writing by drawing our thoughts and stories using pictures.  We can also "LABEL" the pictures using words like our names, the names of our family, and the beginning sounds of the words.  We have practiced labeling several times in our new "Writer's Notebook."  The pictures below are of us practicing writing in our Writer's Notebook.  

We also learned about the writing station where we can practice labeling and writing in our Writer's Notebook (pictured below).  

Poetry:

Each week we have a poem that we practice and use to discover letters, sounds, and words.  This week our poem was titled "I Am Me."  Last week our poem was called "Kindergarten Rap."  At the end of the week, we add the poem to our Poem Notebook.  We can then use our Poem Notebook to practice reading fluency throughout the year.  Wonder how many poems we will have by the end of Kindergarten??  The pictures below are of us practicing reading our Poem Notebooks.  

Numbers:
In math, we have been learning about numbers 0-5.  We have built number sets, learned about the pips (the dots) on a dice, and practiced writing each number.

We played "Roll a Robot" on Friday.  To play this game, you have to "read" the pips on the dice and color the correct part of the robot.  When the robot is all colored, you have finished building him!!

We used wipe off boards to practice writing our numbers.  Each number has a special song to help us remember how to write it.

Five Senses:

Every person has five senses that help them discover the world around them.  We use them so frequently, that we don't even recognize we are doing it!  On Wednesday, we went to the science lab and used our five senses for a special surprise.  It was air-popped popcorn!!!!  I was soooooo sad to miss this experience because I had jury duty!!!  There are no pictures of this awesome event, but please ask your child about it!!

On Friday, we used our sense of smell to determine what what inside the special jars.  There were four jars and we had to "waft" the air.  The first three scents smelled great (coffee, orange, and peppermint), but the last one (vinegar) was AWFUL!!!!  You should have seen their faces!!  Hilarious!!!!!!  We used our math/science journal to record our discoveries.  Pictured below are the kids smelling the orange scent.  The journals in front of them are where they are recording whether they like it or not.  

First Week of School!!

What a first week of school!!!  I'm so excited to be teaching these sweet little kiddos.  They are eager and anxious to learn!

It has been a big week of getting to know our rules, the school, and how Kindergarten works.  

We brainstormed school helpers and what they do at our school.  

We had a tour of the building and discussed where each school helper was located. We used a map to place them in the correct area.  

We read The Little Engine that Could.  We discussed what we can do, too!

We made a glyph of ourselves.  The girls have a dress on.  The boys have a shirt and shorts on.  We are holding our favorite color crayon.  We have buttons on our shirt that correspond to our age.  

Habitat:

This week we visited the habitat.  We will be using the habit for observations, experiments, and some reading time!  We found grapes, bell pepper, and pumpkins growing in the garden!

Math Tubs:

This week we learned about math tubs.  Math tubs is a time to review and practice math concepts that we have learned and don't want to forget!  This week we practiced using our math rules that we brainstormed ourselves.  

Literacy Stations:

Each day we go to Literacy Stations.  This is a time where we practice activities that promote and enhance literacy.  Right now we have introduced just a few stations and they seem more like "play."  Later, as the year progresses and the work increases, they will be more "work" stations. These are pictures of us practicing literacy stations.   

In Drama Station we can re-tell stories and make up our own.

In Creation Station we can use our fine motor skills to create pictures or playdoh masterpieces.  

In Magnetic Station we can build words, spell our names, and match letters.  

In Home Station, we can practice our communication and speaking skills.

In Block Station we can practice thinking skills to build architecture.  

In Puzzle and Game Station we can play with puzzles and games that promote thinking and literacy skills.

In Library Station, we can read a book using the pictures or the words.  Notice the chart behind the kids about being a book buddy or book bully.  

In Pocket Chart Station we can match letters and match our friends' names and pictures.  

Gingerbread Man:

On Friday, we read The Gingerbread Man.  As we were reading, a note fell out of the book!  The note gave us clues to find him.  We went all around the building, and each time we got to the next clue, he we gone!!!  When we finally got back to the room, we found that he left us gingerbread cookies.  We loved eating them!!  It was so much fun!!

He left us cookies!!!!

YUM!!

Dates to Remember:

September 1---NO SCHOOL!!!  Labor Day