Week of 3/27

As we head into our final week before Spring Break, I hate to say it, but the weeks after the break are going to just fly by! We have a lot to pack in and a lot of upcoming events, so keep updating your calendars with the information at the bottom of this post. You will notice there are a lot of upcoming events!

We have an author visit this week, sponsored by the Alta Vista Home & School Club. Kevin Henkes, author of many favorite children's books such as: Owen, Chrysanthemum, Kitten's First Full Moon, and Lily's Purple Plastic Purse, will be coming to the school at 1:00 on Thursday the 30th. Because this is after our class hours, the AVHSC wants to make sure you know that you are welcome to bring your children back to see him. I believe Champions will be taking their students over. It should be a great presentation, so I encourage you to come if you can.

Spring Fling is on Friday and we are looking to some good weather and a fun send-off to our Spring Break. Thank you to Alison, Susan, Claire K., Asma, Marylu, Eden, and Belinda for helping. We will see you all at 9:00.

Language Arts
This week, we will be looking at silent e. We will be studying how it changes the sound of the vowel in the middle of the word from short to long. We have many fun and engaging videos to show the children about this "magic" letter. We also have a new sight word, do. Children should now know 27 of our 40 sight words. See the list of words on our webpage for more reinforcement, or go to http://spellingcity.com/k2grist/  As I mentioned to many of you during conferences, after your child has mastered these words, start working on the 1st grade 100 word list, that can be found here.

The sharing this week is homemade item. Children can bring any craft, picture, project, etc. that they've made at home or elsewhere. They should be prepared to talk about how they made the item.

Math
We continue working on both subtraction and addition. This week, we will begin working on fluency. Since we have done so much work with manipulatives, the math facts should be quite innate at this point-- children should be able to visualize the "parts" that make the "whole."

Science
We will continue with the science unit on Wood & Paper this week. This week, we will be sanding wood and making some particleboard and plywood.

*Please remember to send in your child's Blue Bag on Monday. We will not be sending blue bags home this Wednesday due to the upcoming vacation week.

This Week's Helpers & Activities:
Monday: Blue Bags Returned (Asma), Centers (Annie & Anna R.),  Sharing
Tuesday: Centers (Claire K. & Minna), Sharing
Wednesday:Wacky Wednesday, Recess 101, Sharing, No Blue Bags

Thursday: Centers (Chris & Susan),  Sharing, Author Visit @ 1:00
Friday: Spring Fling, Story Time with Grandma Gail, Sharing

Upcoming Events:
Thursday 3/30: Author Visit: Kevin Henkes @ 1:00

Friday 3/31: Spring Fling
4/3-4/7: Spring Break
Weds.  4/19: Field Trip to Emma Prusch Farm
Friday, 4/21: AV Multicultural Family Night
Weds. 4/26: Parent Volunteer Tea
Friday 4/28: Kindergarten Movie Night for Auction Winners
Friday 5/5: Cinco de Mayo Dance
Friday 5/12: Mother's Day Celebration
Friday 5/12: Alta Vista Fantasy Faire 5:00-8:30
Weds. 5/24: Open House
Mon. 5/29: Memorial Day Holiday
Tues. 6/6: End of Year Party: "Splash Bash"
Weds. 6/7: School-wide Olympic Day
Thurs. 6/8: Promotion Ceremony-- please attend!
Fri. 6/9: Last Day of School

Week of 3/20

Thank you all for meeting with me during conference time. I gained some insights from all of you about your children, and I look forward to our final trimester together! We have about 11 weeks left together to prepare your children for first grade-- let's continue working as a team to make that happen. Centers return this week now that conferences have concluded. Please check the schedule below to see if you are helping this week.

Language Arts
Our word families this week are od and og. We will be reading and spelling words like dog, pod, hog, rod, etc.  We also have two new sight words, on and of. Children should now know 26 of our 40 sight words. See the list of words on our webpage for more reinforcement, or go to http://spellingcity.com/k2grist/ You will be able to see the full 40 word list, a 25 word kindergarten list, and a supplemental 25 word list that includes more first grade words. Your children will be able to play word games on this website to become more familiar with these words. On the link on the side of this website, the list is organized so that the 25 words they most need to know are first, then after those are the remaining 15, so that you know which ones to really reinforce. As I mentioned to many of you during conferences, after your child has mastered these words, start working on the 1st grade 100 word list, that can be found here.

The sharing this week is toy share. Children should bring a toy in a bag with three clues written, preferably by them, at this point in the year.

Math
We have now introduced subtraction using the number bonds. One of the "parts" is missing on the number bond, and the children have to figure out what it is by looking at the "whole" and the other "part." This was a difficult concept when we worked independently on it last week, so we will be revisiting that this week. Centers return this week, so we will be working in small groups on subtraction reinforcement.

Science
We will begin a new science unit on Wood & Paper this week. This is a really fun unit where we will be discussing different types of wood, which trees provide the wood, and how different types of wood are manufactured. We will also be discussing some of wood's byproducts and conducting different experiments with both wood and paper. The children love this unit!

Upcoming Events

We will be glazing our clay projects this week on Wednesday. I know that Asma could use a lot of helpers for glazing. Please email either of us to let her know if you can help with clay glazing.

On Friday, March 31st, we will have a favorite kindergarten event, "Spring Fling." This is a morning of spring fun-- special art projects, outside fun, music, and festivity! Spring Fling will begin at 9:00 and run until about 10:15. Thank you to all who have offered to help! So far I have: Alison, Susan, Claire K., Asma, Marylu, Eden, and Belinda. If you'd still like to help, just email me.

Some of you have noticed in the "Upcoming Events" that we have a field trip scheduled on Wednesday, April 19th. We will be going to Emma Prusch Farm near downtown San Jose as a culmination of our farm unit. This trip is definitely a more "hands-on" chaperoning event, where you will be helping the children feed the animals, going on a hay ride, etc. Due to farm and school district insurance policies, younger siblings are not allowed on this trip. I will need about five chaperones. If you are interested in chaperoning (the trip is for the duration of the kindergarten morning) please email me.

This Week's Helpers & Activities:
Monday: Blue Bags Returned (Ting), Centers (Minna & Annie),  Sharing
Tuesday: Centers (Anne-Marie & Claire K.), Sharing
Wednesday: Clay (Asma & ???), Recess 101, Sharing, Blue Bags Go Home

Thursday: Centers (Alison & Susan),  Sharing
Friday: STEAM Centers (Barry), Story Time with Grandma Gail, Sharing

Upcoming Events:

Friday 3/31: Spring Fling
4/3-4/7: Spring Break
Wednesday 4/19: Field Trip to Emma Prusch Farm
Friday 4/28: Kindergarten Movie Night for Auction Winners
Friday 5/5: Cinco de Mayo Dance
Friday 5/12: Mother's Day Celebration

Week of 3/13

Dear Parents,

Happy St. Patrick's Day week! I am looking forward to seeing all those traps on Wednesday. Blue bags are returned, as usual, on Monday. Thank you for your help and encouragement with the traps! I hope that it was a fun family project-- I know that the kids certainly seemed excited to get building.  Just to clarify again, for this week, trap sharing is our sharing theme, but we will only be sharing on Wednesday & Thursday. Then, we will set the traps and see if anyone is successful on Friday! We will get back to the regular sharing schedule next week.

I have enjoyed meeting with about half of you already for parent-teacher conferences, and I am looking forward to meeting with the rest of you this week-- it's great to share your child's successes with you. It's hard to believe that we are already in our last trimester of kindergarten. The time will pass quickly in this last 3 months, and before you know it, we will be moving on to first grade! After we meet, please be sure to praise your children for the progress they've made, and also continue to support them in areas where they still need reinforcement to meet end-of-year standards. If you need to confirm your time next week, click here.

There will be no centers this week due to parent-teacher conferences. Centers will resume on Monday, March 20.

Language Arts
Our word families this week are um and ud.  We will be spelling and reading words such as: gum, mud, hum, and sud.  Our sight word is said.  We will be doing a lot of writing this week with a St. Patrick's Day theme. We will be writing about what we will buy with a leprechaun's gold (because we are definitely catching a leprechaun next week! ;) We will also be writing about what is worth more than gold. Our story this week is Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola. It is a great story about a man who does catch a leprechaun, and what he gets from that leprechaun.

Math
We have now introduced subtraction using the number bonds. One of the "parts" is missing on the number bond, and the children have to figure out what it is by looking at the "whole" and the other "part." This was a difficult concept when we worked independently on it last week, so we will be revisiting that this week. Continue reinforcing both subtraction and addition at home.

Upcoming Events
Our "Spring Fling" event is coming up on Friday, March 31st. We will have special spring-themed centers for a fun send-off to Spring Break. We will have face painting, planting, spin art, painting garden stakes, and outdoor fun, to name a few. So far, I have not heard from anyone that they are available to help & we need lots of helpers to make this event a success. Please email me if you are available on Friday the 31st from 9:00 to about 10:15. Thank you!

This Week's Helpers & Activities:
Monday: Blue Bags Returned (Hosun), No Centers
Tuesday: No Centers, Sharing
Wednesday: Leprechaun Traps returned, Sharing (A through I), Recess 101, Blue Bags Go Home

Thursday: No Centers, Sharing (J-S), Set up Traps
Friday: Check our Traps!, Story Time with Grandma Gail

Upcoming Events:

Wednesday 3/15: Leprechaun Traps returned to school
3/9-3/17: Spring Conferences
Saturday 3/18: Alta Vista Hawaiian Luau/Auction
Friday 3/31: Spring Fling
4/3-4/7: Spring Break
Wednesday 4/19: Field Trip to Emma Prusch Farm
Friday 5/5: Cinco de Mayo Dance
Friday 5/12: Mother's Day Celebration

Week of 3/6

Dear Parents,

We had a very fun, "Seussical" week in celebration of Read Across America on March 2nd. We enjoyed hearing Superintendent Clay read Widget and asking her about her job. The kids shared great Dr. Seuss books, fun other book titles, and did a few Dr. Seuss-themed projects. I hope you were all able to view your child's video about Thing 1 and Thing 2 in SeeSaw. They had some cute stories to share about what those two would do if they came to their houses!

We have Art Vistas this Wednesday-- thank you Susan, Minna, and Eden. We also have Cornerstone this Thursday-- thank you Claire K. & Alison.

This Wednesday, your child will bring home a special homework assignment. We will be building leprechaun traps! Get creative and have fun-- traps are due next Wednesday the 15th, (please note the time extension). However, the Blue Bag with the journal will be due as usual on Monday the 13th.  There will be more specific directions in the Blue Bag this week, but we do ask two things-- that the traps not contain any unwrapped sticky food items (we've had trouble with ants in the past!) and that the traps are not overly large-- shoebox sized is perfect. We have to store traps from both the a.m. class & the p.m. class, and it gets tricky if we have huge traps. Plus, we're only catching tiny leprechauns :)  It's exciting to see the children's creations, and they are so proud to share and talk about how their trap will work. On Wednesday & Thursday next week, they will have that opportunity. They will share their design with the class (Leprechaun traps are next week's sharing topic, but we will only share on Wednesday & Thursday) and tell us how it will hopefully catch a leprechaun! Finally, we will all come in next Friday (St. Patrick's Day) and see if we were successful!

Language Arts

This week, we are taking a look at two new digraphs, oo and or. We will be spelling and writing words with these digraphs, such as spoon, pool, fork, horn, etc. Our sight word this week is play. Keep reinforcing the sight words-- they really help with reading fluency. In Handwriting without Tears, we will be learning the correct formation of the letter Oo. It is very important that children start at the top with this letter, and move their pencil counter-clockwise.

Our sharing this week will be Song, Poem, or Nursery Rhyme. Please have your child come prepared to share any song, poem, or nursery rhyme that they'd like to recite/sing. Poems and rhymes in other languages are always welcome as well.

Math
We are continuing with Eureka Math Module 4. This module lasts all the way until mid-April, since it covers some of the core kindergarten math concepts. We continue to focus on writing number sentences, and are beginning to look at subtraction.
Parent tips for helping your child with this unit can be found here. Please continue reinforcing the concept at home.

Upcoming Events
Parent-teacher conferences begin this week on Thursday, March 9th.  As they were first trimester, before-school conferences will be in the classroom and all other conferences will be in the office conference room. The 3/13 evening conferences will also be in the classroom. If you have forgotten your date/time, please check this link. I have now made this document viewable only (cannot be edited). If you need to change your time, please email me. Just a reminder that we will not have centers during conference time. This week, we will only have centers on Monday & Tuesday.

Please note two new events below in the "upcoming events" below. On Friday, May 5th, we will have a Cinco de Mayo dance. All four classes of kindergartners will perform a few dances for you! On Friday, May 12th, we will be celebrating Mother's Day in class. There is a special presentation and some light refreshments are served. I would really love every mom to be there to be celebrated, so I give lots of notice on this event. If a mom is unable to come, please send another representative for her if possible (aunt, grandma, even dad!) Please mark your calendars for 5/12!

Please remember to send in your child's Blue Bag tomorrow. :)

This Week's Helpers & Activities:
Monday: Blue Bags Returned (Asma), Centers (Marylu & Annie), Sharing
Tuesday: Centers (Claire K. & Minna), Sharing
Wednesday: Art Vistas (Susan, Minna, Eden), Sharing, Recess 101, Blue Bags Go Home

Thursday: No Centers, Cornerstone (Claire K. & Alison), Sharing
Friday: No STEAM Centers, Story Time with Grandma Gail, Sharing

Upcoming Events:

Wednesday 3/8: Leprechaun Trap Project goes home
Wednesday 3/15: Leprechaun Traps returned to school
3/9-3/17: Spring Conferences
Saturday 3/18: Alta Vista Hawaiian Luau/Auction
Friday 3/31: Spring Fling
4/3-4/7: Spring Break
Wednesday 4/19: Field Trip to Emma Prusch Farm
Friday 5/5: Cinco de Mayo Dance
Friday 5/12: Mother's Day Celebration

Week of 2/27

I hope your children are having a fabulous week off & that you are able to enjoy some family time. The upcoming month will be very busy as we celebrate "Read Across America Day" in honor of Dr. Seuss, and prepare for conferences. I am looking forward to discussing your child's progress with you soon.

I wanted to congratulate everyone on the fantastic job that they did with the President's Reports before break! We had a great variety of sentences, and I think we learned a lot about Lincoln & Washington because of this.

Language Arts
Our word families this week will be ug/ut/un. We have a new high frequency word, and. Continue reviewing those high frequency words posted on our website with your children. Remember that you can also use http://spellingcity.com/k2grist as a fun way to review the words, as I have posted our list on the website. You can encourage your children to play games on the website to become more familiar with the words. Check it out! There is also a Spelling City app for the iPad, if you are interested. Additionally, for those who prefer iPads, Lexia Core 5 is also available as an iPad app.  Use the same login information as previously provided to you. There is also a RazKids app for the iPad. Please continue taking advantage of all these online sites, as well as ixl.com-- they are being provided for you by the Home & School Club and the District for grade level concept reinforcement.

Our stories this week will be books by Dr. Seuss in anticipation of Read Across America Day on March 2nd (Dr. Seuss's birthday). We have some fun activities around these stories, where children will have an opportunity to design and create their own Dr. Seuss creatures and write some adventures about them.

We will have a writing assessment coming up this week. I will share the results of this assessment with you at your parent-teacher conference. Children will be expected to write one or more complete sentence without assistance that covers the given topic. Your children have been doing well with their journals, so I anticipate some good results!

Math
We are continuing with Eureka Math Module 4. We are now focusing on word problems and number sentences. One concept in Eureka Math is getting children to understand that number sentences can be arranged in different orders and still be correct. For example, both 9=5 + 4 and 5 + 4=9 are correct.
Parent tips for helping your child with this unit can be found here. Please continue reinforcing the concept at home.

Read Across America/Sharing
On Thursday, we will be celebrating Read Across America with a reading of a Mo Willems book. Read Across America is a national event that started 20 years ago, and takes place on or around Dr. Seuss's birthday. In honor of the event, our sharing this week will be book share, and I would love it if children would bring in a favorite Dr. Seuss book. As always, children should be prepared to tell the title of their book, a bit about what it's about, and have a favorite page bookmarked. If your child does not have a Dr. Seuss book, any book is fine. We will try to read as many of those books this week as possible, so if your child doesn't bring it home right away, it might be at school waiting to be read!

Upcoming Events
Parent-teacher conferences begin Thursday, March 9th.  If you have forgotten your date/time, please check this link. I have now made this document viewable only (cannot be edited). If you need to change your time, please email me. Just a reminder that we will not have centers during conference time.

On March 8th, we will be sending home a leprechaun trap project for homework.  We will send more specific directions later, but I'm just giving you a heads-up because sometimes the March seasonal items go quickly at stores such as Dollar Tree and Target, so you may want to snap up your trap supplies while they are available.

Finally, on Friday, March 31st, we will have a special event called Spring Fling. Fun spring-themed centers will be a part of the day to celebrate the kick-off to our Spring Break. Spring Fling will run from about 9:00 to 10:15. Sign-ups and more information will come later, but we need many helpers to make this event a success.

This Week's Helpers & Activities:
Monday: Centers (Minna & Annie), Sharing
Tuesday: Centers (Claire K. & Anne-Marie), Sharing
Wednesday: Writing Assessment, Recess 101, Sharing

Thursday: Read Across America Day, Sharing
Friday: STEAM Centers (Anna R.), Story Time with Grandma Gail, Sharing

Upcoming Events:
2/20-2/24: President's Week Vacation
Thursday 3/2: Read Across America Day
Wednesday 3/8: Leprechaun Trap Project goes home
Wednesday 3/15: Leprechaun Traps returned to school
3/9-3/17: Spring Conferences
Saturday 3/18: Alta Vista Hawaiian Luau/Auction
Friday 3/31: Spring Fling
4/3-4/7: Spring Break