I was away at an all day math meeting yesterday, and it was so nice to be back in the classroom today!  There is nothing like sitting for most of the day to make me appreciate the bustle of the classroom.  We spent some time playing a new math game called bump today.  While we practiced adding two dice together, but more importantly worked on being good partners and good sports.  We also did some snowman problem solving and began a snowman project based on the book Snowballs by Lois Ehlert.

This afternoon while we were partner reading using books from our classroom library, using sticky notes to mark pages that we wanted to share because they were funny, exciting, or interesting in some other way.  A pair of partners approached me breathless with excitement.  They had marked a page because they could read the words in this book that was a "real" book (rather than one of the little leveled books that we use to practice reading words).  Their excitement was contagious as they shared the page and read it together to the class, and this led us to a discussion of the pay off for all of the hard work we do, learning sight words, using our fingers to point to words, getting our mouths ready with beginning sounds, and making sure we practice reading in some capacity every day- we are all really learning to read!

A belated thank you to everyone for coming to conferences.  I appreciate the extra effort it can take to make an evening meeting!  I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday- based on children's writing it sounds like you did.

This week we spent some time learning about Hanukkah.  We read lots of Hanukkah stories, compared Hanukkah to Christmas, noting lots of similarities between the two, and played dreidel with our third and fourth grade partners.  Eliana also very graciously helped everyone make a candle.  Next week we will shift our focus to Kwanzaa.

We are also wrapping up our exploration of rocks this week.  Today we used clay to model the rock cycle and the constant changes that rocks undergo.  We also created a rock story with movement to help us remember this cycle.

It felt really good to return to the forest for ECO on Wednesday.   The last several sessions we have been breaking into small groups and working through stations.  I think cooking over the fire is definitely a favorite- this week we roasted apples.  The weather looks good for next Wednesday as well, and although it is an early release day we will have ECO.

Thank you for helping your child come to school with appropriate clothing for going outside.   Hopefully the snow will return soon, and recess is much more enjoyable when we are all warm and dry or as dry as we can be!

Bees wax candles.

A group effort- nearly everyone in the class helped create this!

Walking in the forest.

About a month ago we planted some corn and pea seeds and we have been using our science notebooks to document their growth.  When we draw or write in our science notebooks we try to make our drawings as accurate as possible, paying attention to details like color and shape.  We have also been working on labeling as much as we can.  Yesterday we completed our final plant drawings- it is amazing how much these seeds can grow in a plastic cup with moist paper towel!

In case you haven't heard, tomorrow is pajama day!  Children are welcome to bring one stuffed animal as well!

Report cards will be sent home tomorrow- please look for these in your children's backpacks!  While they are meant to be informative about your child's progress in school, nothing can take the place of an actual conversation.  Please, if you haven't done so already, sign up for a conference time!

In math we have begun a unit on patterns.  Through this unit we are spending lots of time identifying, extending, and creating patterns.  Everyone is having a great time using a variety of materials to make all kinds of patterns.

At the same time, we are continuing our year long emphasis on number sense with a focus on teen numbers.  Children have been working on recognizing, building, and writing teen numbers.

ECO will be at school again tomorrow- please send warm clothing!!

Just a few quick notes and reminders:  although we will be at school tomorrow for ECO we will still be outside.  Please send your child with warm clothing.  If you have not returned the tool permission form it must come in tomorrow if your child is going to use the peelers.  Finally, don't forget to sign up for a parent conference with the online scheduler.  If you go to the school web page, www.waitsfieldschool.org, and look under quick links on the right side of the page there is a link called online scheduler.  Looking forward to meeting with all of you soon!

Today I have sent home a list of ideas for working on number sense with your child.  These include many different ideas for counting and practicing number recognition, some of the most important math skills we work on in kindergarten.

I have also sent an ECO permission slip for using tools.  In the near future we would like to use peelers to make cooking sticks that we will eventually use to cook over our fire.  As with all ECO routines, we have very specific protocol that we will follow when using the tools and there will be lots of pre-teaching with an emphasis on safety.  There is also a place to check for permission to receive emails from North Branch Nature Center and a media release permission box.  The most important one is for tool use!  Please return the permission slips as soon as possible!

The online scheduler for parent conferences will open tomorrow, November 8th.  Directions for signing up were sent a few days ago by Kathi.  If for some reason the available days and times don't work for you please let me know as soon as possible and we can try to find a different time.

Journal writing about the day.

Making tea with a kelly kettle.

Today in your child's yellow folder or backpack there is a packet of math games that I have collected from various resources.  They vary in level of difficulty and skills, but hopefully there is at least one that will appeal to everyone.  We have played Build a City, Five Frame Fun, Bingo, Rocket, and Plus One in class, so everyone should be familiar with these.  If your child is like my son, he or she may enthusiastically play the games at school but prefer not to play them at home- that's fine!  I'm sending them along as an option, but not something that has to be done.

Next week during ECO we are planning to make tea.  This is something we will probably do several times during ECO, and I also love the option of having a warm drink after a cold winter recess.  If you have an extra travel mug that your child could bring in and keep here for the year that would be fantastic.  I have permanent markers in almost every color of the rainbow, so your child could label his or her mug and we could find a place to store it in the room.   If you don't have one, I have some extras at my house.

Playing Sneaky Snake, a fun math game.

Shaking hands after a good game!

We felt so lucky to be outside all morning enjoying the gently falling snow!  We have continued to spend a lot of time focusing on our nature name animals.  This morning we learned a bit about what foods each animal eats and each child had an opportunity to make food for his or her animals using model magic.  This afternoon we spent time working on a class book using our nature names and a pattern, much like the books many of us are currently reading.  Each child will create two pages in the book.  Ask your child to tell you about the pages we made today.

I am at a workshop all day today, so I will not be in school.  Hopefully ECO tags will be put on backpacks, but if not we do have ECO tomorrow!   Please make sure your child has warm clothing- snow pants and winter boots are good options, and please send hat and mittens!

I'm sure you know that Halloween is on Thursday!  My intent is to keep the day as routine as possible as children will have lots of opportunities to participate in Halloween activities later on.  Hopefully maintaining some normalcy at school might help kids last until trick-or-treat time later!

During our reading time I have started meeting with small groups.  Most children are working with emergent texts, which have one or two sentences on a page and follow a pattern (I see the car, I see the truck...)  with pictures that closely match the text.  We have been working on pointing to the words as we read, trying to make sure what we say matches the print (is it the truck, or a truck).  We have had a discussion about the importance of working at a level that is just right for us and not comparing ourselves to peers.  I often think of the acquisition of reading as very similar to the acquisition of walking:  certain components need to be in place for children to acquire these skills, but as long as those components are in place children will learn to walk and learn to read.  However, they do these at very individual paces.  Many children learn to walk by 9 months, while some don't take first steps until they are over a year old.  Some children rely on the support of furniture, large toys etc. for months before they walk independently, while others seem to stand up and take their first independent steps almost instantly.  Similarly, some children will spend a lot of time practicing reading before actually reading many words, while others will seem to start reading overnight.  The best thing adults can do is offer encouragement whatever stage a child is at.  I have told the class that despite the different ages they most likely learned to walk, they are all quite good at it now and when we walk down the hall I can't distinguish the early walkers from those who may have learned a bit later.  The same would most likely hold true if I read with them several years from now.

After four weeks of ECO everyone has become familiar and comfortable with our routine and we are feeling quite settled in the forest!   If you would ever like to join us on a Wednesday morning please let me know.  We usually leave school at 8:15 and arrive back by 11:00 and welcome any adult support.

Last week we read the book Leaf Man, by Lois Ehlert, about the adventures of Leaf Man and all of the leaf creatures he meets along his way.  After gathering our own leaves on the playground everyone made their own leaf creations.  It appears we were just in time- most of the trees on the playground are bare now, the temperature has dropped, and it seems winter is really on the way!  We do have ECO tomorrow.   The current forecast looks like it will be dry but cold.  Please send your child with warmest clothing, especially a hat and mittens!  

Yesterday, as a continuation of our study of living and non-living things we planted corn and pea seeds.  We will watch these grow over the next several weeks and document the changes in our science notebooks, noting some of the key differences between plants and animals along the way.

In our classroom we are very fortunate to have  an interactive white board.   Over the past several days we have been getting acquainted with our Smartboard and the many ways it can be used.  Thus far we have listened to/ watched an animated book, learned how to write on the Smarboard by practicing writing numbers using both the special Smartboard pens and our fingers, and used manipulated objects on the board to work on recognizing compliments to 5 (2+3 etc.) and matching beginning sounds to objects.

Just a reminder that we do have ECO tomorrow.  It looks like rain will hold off until the afternoon, but the forest is always wet in the morning and tends to be chilly as well.  Please send appropriate clothing, snacks, and water bottles!

We had a fantastic second day of ECO!  Last week during our first session we established routines that will stay the same all year- we always stop in the field when we get off the bus to play a game and have a whole group meeting.  Then we quietly make our way into the forest where we settle in for snack and hear a story.  Last week after snack we broke into small groups for a forest scavenger hunt and today everyone chose a spot next to a special tree to build a mouse house.   These will also be children's journaling spots throughout our time in the forest.  After our forest activity we gather back together to sing a song and pack up before our walk back to school.  Earlier in the week everyone had the opportunity to choose a nature name (or let the name choose them- we drew randomly).  These will become an integral part of our ECO lessons both in the forest and back in the classroom.

In math we have spent lots of time counting, matching numerals to quantities, and practicing numeral formation.  We will continue this throughout the year with increasingly larger numbers, and we are also now beginning to compare quantities and sequence numbers.

During read aloud we have been reading multiple versions of the same book, noticing similarities and differences.  Last week we read the Little Red Hen and this week we have focused on The Gingerbread Man.  We have also been reading Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems.  These books which quickly become favorites, are simple stories told through talking bubble conversations between Elephant and Piggie, a writing style that many have been trying out during writer's workshop. We have also been closely examining the illustrations and the way Willems uses lines or squiggles to show the emotions of his characters.

Playing a game in the field.

Mouse house construction.

A cozy mouse house!

Journal writing in the forest.

ECO TOMORROW!  There is a reminder note in your child's backpack and a reminder tag on his or her backpack.  I will always place the tags on your child's backpack the day before ECO and you can just leave them there- I will remove them in the morning.  I will probably not always send a reminder note!  Please make sure your child is prepared with appropriate clothing (we are out from 8:15- 10:30) and a snack and water bottle.

This morning kindergarteners had a wonderful opportunity to participate in a real vote.  Jen Peterson, Waitsfield's town clerk, graciously arranged for kindergarteners to vote on the dog tags that will be used  in the coming year.  She set up a voting booth and an official check list in the gym, and after explaining the process a bit to kindergarteners, including the importance of privacy, each child had the opportunity to vote on shape and color for the tags.  Following the vote, she took the children through the process of counting the votes and making sure the numbers match the number of people who voted.  The dog tags for the coming year will be orange dog bones!  Look for the new tags on any Waitsfield dogs you know.

Thank you to everyone who was able to come to Open House.  It is always exciting for children to share their classroom and some of the things they are working on with families.

For a couple of weeks we have been working on sight words, focusing initially on is, a, and the, which are almost always in our morning message.  Practicing and learning sight words is a great way to work on fluency in reading, as many of these words can't be sounded out, but are words we just need to recognize.   This week each child also got a sight word ring which has five sight words on it.  They practice these with me each day and when they have mastered a word they will get to take it home and a new one will be added to the ring.    Today I sent home a list of the first 100 sight words as a resource for you.  This is not homework- there is no expectation that children will work on these at home-but sometimes children really enjoy practicing them outside of school.  Most kindergarteners focus on list one, but I sent the whole list for children who are learning them quickly or feeling extra ambitious!  It is very exciting when children begin to learn these words and can use them in their writing or to begin reading.

On Wednesday morning we had a visit from Lindsey Vandal, who will be leading us in ECO this year.  We talked a bit about the program (ask your child about the 3 cares) and spent sometime outside looking for critters.  Our first day of ECO is next Wednesday, October 2nd.   We will leave school at 8:15 and be riding the bus to the Wu Forest, which is just over the covered bridge in town.  We will spend our first session getting acquainted with the forest and establishing routines that will be in place every week.  After a couple of hours in the woods we pack up and walk back to school, arriving back around 11:00.  The forest is apt to be cool early in the morning- please make sure your child comes with warm clothing, layers work best.  The ground is also likely to be wet so please also send rain boots or some kind of water proof foot wear.  I will send a reminder again next week!

Children from last year's kindergarten class participating in ECO.

This week we began our first science unit, which focuses on living and non-living things.  I usually begin this unit with monarch caterpillars in the classroom, but have been unable to find any this year.  Fortunately we have loads of other interesting caterpillars on our playground and some of us are particularly good at finding them!  Today we brought in a woolly bear caterpillar and what we think (based on our research in a caterpillar field guide) was a large maple span worm.  We had a discussion about what both of these caterpillars would need to survive, before letting them return to their natural habitat.

We have also had a discussion about scientific drawings and how these may be different from artistic drawings.  We talked about the importance of matching the colors we see to what we draw and using lots of detail (without adding extra details that aren't really there).  Then we went out to the playground and  practiced making scientific drawings of a maple tree and one other living thing.  Children will be able to share their drawings and other bits and pieces of our days during Open House on Tuesday evening from 5:30-6:30!

As we continue to get to know each other we have been spending time looking at our names.  We have counted the letters along with syllables (or claps) for each child's name.  We have spent time comparing the names of 2-3 children at a time, noticing that two classmates have ll in their names, although one's is twice as long as the other's, or two people have names that begin with J.  We have also read several books with a focus on names and worked the characters from these books into our discussions.  Chrysanthemum has 13 letters in her name, and four claps- the same number as one of our classmates.  Tikki tikki tembo no sa rembo chari bari ruchi pip peri pembo has 50 letters and 21 claps! (We triple checked this.) His brother Chang on the other hand has a much shorter name.  This is a fun way to get to know each other even better, really learn each other's names, and work on some literacy skills.

If you haven't returned the clothing checklist for ECO please send it in soon- it's very helpful to know what extra things we might need.

The copier is fixed and today your child brought home information about the ECO program.  Please return the clothing checklist as soon as possible!

I also wanted to share the hot snack menu with you, which stays the same each week.  Monday is bagel with cream cheese, Tuesday is banana bread, Wednesday is cheerios with milk, Thursday is egg and cheese burrito, and Friday is bagel with cream cheese.  This is posted on the bottom of the lunch menu if you need to find it again.  I am sharing it because most of the children who are getting hot snack on Thursdays are saying they don't like the burritos.  I sometimes have an extra apple, but otherwise don't have extra snacks so if they choose not to eat the burrito they probably aren't having a snack.

Wow- today was really hot!  With the weather fluctuations we've been having please make sure you're child is prepared to be outside (last week some of the mornings we're quite chilly!)  Being prepared for the weather will be especially important when we begin ECO (Educating Children Outdoors) in October.  I have information about this program along with a clothing checklist all ready to send home today.  Unfortunately our copier is broken, so I will try again tomorrow!

This week we have begun working on handwriting, practicing writing our names beginning with an upper case letter and ending with lower case letters, and practicing writing numbers 0-5.  We have also started the Fundations program which will focus on letter formation as well as letter sounds for the next few months.  So far we have worked on lower case t, f, and b.  We practice these in a variety of ways including using our fingers to write really big in the air, using white boards and dry erase markers, and using fancy hi-lighters!  In addition, we have been working on letter recognition through our morning message.  Each day after we read the message, volunteers underline specific words by listening to the beginning sound and finding that letter at the beginning of the word.

Yesterday in your child's yellow folder or backpack there was a letter from Eric Mongeon our technology integrationist, explaining Google Apps for Education.  This also includes a permission form that should be returned as soon as possible.

Reading about our class.

Rolling dice and building towers in math.

Partner reading.

We have had a very busy week, continuing to practice routines that were established last week and adding in some new ones.  We began writer's workshop this week by reading a book call Library Mouse (ask your child to tell you about it), and then setting off to be authors ourselves.  We talked about many ways of writing including telling a story with pictures, writing pretend words (scribble writing), or writing letters or words that we already know.  At this point most of us using pictures to convey a story and I am scribing as the children share their stories with me. We have been practicing writing for about 10-15 minutes and then sharing the work of a few children each day, which is a great way to spread ideas and strategies.

After lunch each day we have a short quiet time.Children come in to their own space and may rest, look at books, or draw in their quiet time journals.  This gives children a chance to recharge for the afternoon and many children have come to look forward to this time (a few have asked me mid-morning when it will be quite time!)

Perhaps most importantly, we are continuing to get to know one another and working on being good friends.  Most children had a chance to share their artifact bags this week.  If your child hasn't shared yet, please send it in next week.  This is a great way for us to learn more about each other and many children are discovering that they share common interests.  Have a fantastic weekend.

Reading with 3rd and 4th grade buddies.

Quiet time journal writing.

Practicing number formation during math stations.

A choice time creation made by four students.

I hope everyone had a fantastic three day weekend!  We spent lots of time reviewing routines (three days is a long time to go without practicing!)  We have also been working really hard to learn the names of everyone in the class.  To help out with this, and get in a little reading practice, today in your child's yellow folder there is a class book.  These copies are for you to keep- each child also has a copy here at school.  We have also started sharing artifact bags.  As these are shared, the children who are not sharing are working on being really good listeners, trying to think of comments or questions for their classmates, and making sure that the focus stays on the person who is sharing (this is a challenge- even for adults sometimes!)  If your child hasn't brought his bag in yet, please send it in the next couple of days.  It is really fun for all of us to learn more about the individuals in the class.  Also, just a reminder that picture day is Friday.  Information about this was sent home in the red folder on the first day of school.

We had a fantastic second day of school.  Along with reviewing and practicing routines that we began yesterday we spent some time exploring math materials, reading quietly to ourselves, and working with third and fourth grade learning partners.  We will meet with children from Mrs. Hale's class each Thursday, a time that both kindergarteners and the older children grow to love.  Most often children will read with their partners, but we will also participate in a variety of other activities.  Today groups worked together on an outdoor scavenger hunt.  Ask your child to share some of things they found!

If you have not yet returned your child's red folder (sent home yesterday) with loads of general paper work for the school, please do so as soon as possible.  This helps Kathi tremendously.  Also, if at all possible it is extremely helpful for children to have water bottles.  It has been hot the last couple of days and it is hard to adequately quench thirst with the water fountain.  Finally, we have gym on Mondays and Thursdays and children need to have good shoes for running on these days.  Please no flip-flops, sandals or boots!

We had a great first day! Getting a school year under way takes a lot of patience on the part of students, with a lot of time spent listening and learning routines.  Everything from walking in line to eating in the lunch room needs to be taught and modeled, which will help ensure future success and independence.  Much of our time in the coming weeks will be spent reviewing expectations and practicing routines.  I greatly appreciate the effort and patience this requires from children!  Everyone in the class earned at least one ticket today for being safe, kind, responsible, or engaged.  These tickets are then traded in for rocks that will be collected as a whole school. Look for the bucket in the main lobby.

We will also focus much of our attention on getting to know each other and building our classroom community.

In your child’s bag  today you will find a yellow folder with a note of explanation inside, along with a paper bag that will be your child's artifact bag (also explained in the folder note.)  You should also find a red folder from Kathi with general school information and paper work.  These can be returned directly to Kathi at the front desk, or you can send them in your child's backpack and I will get them to her.  Thank you for all you do to help get the school year under way!

I have finally finished burning the ECO slideshow and everyone should have a copy in their backpacks today.  After a whirlwind month of May, we are keeping to our usual routines during these two weeks in June, with some end of the year twists.  Uno, rocket, and subtraction bowling are popular math stations, and our district states of matter assessment involves popsicles, with the directions explicitly stating that there should be extra popsicles on hand for when the students have finished the assessment! Hopefully we will have one more warmish day for this.  We are wrapping up one last project in the computer lab and I am finishing assessments in math and literacy.  It's hard to believe there are just eight days left!