Dear Parents,
We have an exciting week this week as we begin our intensive study of each letter of the alphabet, which will not be in alphabetical order. We introduce an "Alphafriend" to help your child remember the sounds of the letter. The children really enjoy the Alphafriends, and singing the songs that accompany each one.
At this point, it is very helpful for the children to have recognition of most letters under their belts, so that they can focus on learning the sounds. If you are noticing that your child does not recognize a number of letters, we highly recommend the DVD called The Letter Factory, which is available for about $10 at Target, etc. It is also available for check-out in the local libraries, although those copies are often scratched. This DVD really helps the children to learn both letter names and letter sounds, and it is truly a great investment. I have used it with my own two children and really seen results.
This week we will introduce the letter Ss. The worksheets that accompany our Language Arts program will all be about the letter Ss (and the stories we are reading)-- we will cover the sound and the handwriting of the letter, and the Alphafriend's name is Sammy Seal. In your child's homework packet this week, you will find a page where they cut out things that begin with the letter Ss, as well as draw something that starts with that letter. If your child is looking for a little more challenge, encourage him/her to draw the picture (or more than one) AND write the word(s) that go along with those pictures. This is entirely optional. Please be prepared at home with a gluestick or tape and some child-safe scissors for this homework, as it will appear in the packet weekly from now on. This will help you to know what letter we are studying in class so that you can reinforce it at home, if necessary.
This week's share is "Letter of the Week" share. Since our letter of the week is Ss, please have your child bring something that starts with Ss. They do like to do the guessing game with this item, so please have it hidden in a bag with three clues written about the item. Because it has to start with the letter Ss, this will also encourage them to think of things that start with the sound.
In addition to a letter of the week, we will also begin introducing a sight word each week. These are words that the children should know instantly, by sight, when the words are shown to them. Many of these words cannot be sounded out. This week's word is I. We will write sentences using the word I and look for the word in things that we are reading. There is a link on our webpage that has the list of sight words so that you can begin practicing with your child. There are 40 words that we will be covering this year. Words that have an asterisk next to them are words that we've introduced in class. We will be assessing the children on these words each trimester for report card information, and they continue using the sight words in first grade, so these are important words to master.
Another thing happening this week is Walk/Bike to School Week. We are encouraging children to walk, bike, ride scooters, etc., to get to school, rather than riding in a car. We realize that some children live too far from the school to walk. What we're asking for you to try in that case is driving, but parking a few blocks away so that your children get in some walking. Obviously, this encourages healthy activity, and it also reduces the congestion around the school. We hope you'll participate, even if only for a few days.
While on the topic of fitness, we also want to remind you that October 16th is coming up quickly! The kick-off assembly for the Alta Vista Walkathon will be this week. Though kindergarten does not attend the assembly, we will be doing practice laps so that the children will already have a "foot" on their Walkathon necklaces to get the fun started. Every few laps at the Walkathon, they add a foot to a necklace chain. When the children come to school on Monday following the Walkathon, they love to wear the necklace to show-off all the laps they completed! We hope you are all planning to come out for the Walkathon-- it is a great community event.
Also starting this month is the "Student in the Spotlight" program. This is a school-wide character building program, where we emphasize a positive characteristic each month such as honesty, respectfulness, etc. Several children from the class will get chosen for a certificate each month. By the end of the year, every child will be rewarded for a positive trait that they have exhibited. So if you see a certificate with "Student in the Spotlight" at the top, be sure to congratulate your child!
Remember your child's Red Bag tomorrow, with the homework folder inside the bag :)
MONDAY: Centers (Tammy & Megan), Sharing, Library, Red Bags Due
TUESDAY: Centers (Manami & Jamie), Sharing
WEDNESDAY: Red Bags & Wednesday Envelopes prepped (Karla/Angie/Derek), Computers (Margaret), Sharing, Red Bags go home
THURSDAY: Centers (Tammi & Matt/Lorraine), Sharing
FRIDAY: Sharing, SPARK P.E. (Megan, Margaret, Tim)
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Wednesday, 10/6: Willow Street Pizza fundraiser
Saturday, 10/16: 9:00 am Alta Vista Back Field: Walk-a-thon
Friday, 10/29: 8:15 am: Kindergarten Halloween Parade & Party
Friday, 10/29: 1:00 pm: School-wide Halloween Parade (come back and join us if you'd like!)
Monday, 11/8: Parent-Teacher Conferences begin
Thursday, 11/11: No School: Veteran's Day
Friday, 11/12: No School: Staff Development Day
Monday, 11/22: Thanksgiving Friendship Feast
Tuesday, 11/23: Grandparent's Day, grades K-2
Friday, 12/17: 10:00 am Nutcracker Performance (don't miss this annual kindergarten favorite!)
