Hello KA Parents,
We have reached the mid-point of the first academic trimester! Kindergarteners receive report cards each trimester; their first report cards will go home the beginning of December. Parent-teacher conferences will be scheduled for the Fri/Mon/Tues before Thanksgiving. (More about this coming soon!)
Here is what we have been working on the first half of the first trimester in kindergarten. If you have any questions, please let me know.
Literacy (reading/writing): In reading, we are working on listening and retelling, both fiction and non-fiction. We have introduced the letters Mm, Aa, Ss, Pp, Tt, and Ii. For each letter introduced, students practice saying the letter sound and identifying works that start with that sound. We practice writing the letter, with correct letter formation that begins from the top. The majority of our letter writing practice focuses on lowercase letters, as these are what we encounter most as we read and write! We have literacy stations four times each week, in which we work on reading out loud in small groups, listening to reading on the iPads, writing, and hands-on activities such as play-doh, wiki-stix, and literacy games. The students have learned the sight words “I”, “we”, “can”, “the”, “am”, “a”, “see”, “go”. These are words we memorize. As we add new sight words each week, we practice using these words in sentences. In reading groups, we are learning to track each word with our finger as we read. We look for sight words, use the pictures in a book as clues, and listen for patterns and rhyming words.
Math: In math, we have been learning about patterns, positions, shapes, colors, and sorting. We use many manipulatives to practice these skills in a hand-on setting. We practice counting every day as part of our morning meeting and calendar. We use a ten-frame to help us identify ten objects and are beginning to count by tens. We do graphing as a group to identify data and trends in our classroom, such as personal traits, favorites, weather, etc. We are beginning to work with numbers 0-10, and learning to write numbers correctly. We have math stations 3-4 times per week, to practice these skills and apply them in new ways.
Science/Social Studies: We have learned about what scientists do, that there are many types of scientists, and that in kindergarten we are all scientists! We completed our first unit on the five senses. Students learned about the use and application of each of the five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. We identify the body parts that we use for each sense. The students completed a booklet showing each of the five senses. We completed apple investigations in September, and pumpkin investigations in October. We are currently learned about the four seasons of the year. We read our own Let’s Find Out! magazine each week, with seasonal topics related to science and social studies.
Religion: We recite the Sign of the Cross, Our Father, Blessing Before Meals (bless us o Lord…) every day. We learn that when we pray, it is a special time to talk to God. We learn that we can pray as a class, with our family, or by ourselves. We practice deep breathing to calm and quiet ourselves before we pray. We share special intentions so we can pray for each other and show caring for each person. We have read and studied the Creation story in the bible, and learned about all of the different things God made. We learn that God made all of us unique and special, and He loves us very much.
Specialists: We are so lucky, we get to attend special classes each day.
- Monday- music (Mrs. Rivord)
- Tuesday- PE (Mrs. B)
- Wednesday- PE (Mrs. B)
- Thursday- music (Mrs. McMurray) AND library (Mrs. Mallahan)
- Friday- counseling (Mrs. Framel)
If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s progress in kindergarten, please let me know! Our hallway art changes often, so come check it out any time! For pictures of our class in action, please see our private KA Instagram page at kakindofday.
