It has been a very busy time in a Kindergarten. I enjoy seeing the growth in all my STARS!!! I hope you are seeing it too. We have 2 1/2 weeks until Winter Vacation. During that time we will be very busy comparing and contrasting many Gingerbread stories, learning story elements with Gingerbread stories, many Gingerbread math and language activities , Gingerbread science activities, sight word games, handwriting , and a focus on guided writing.
In math, students have been working on adding and subtracting. Any extra practice at home would be very helpful. Other math skills to do at home are tallying, counting to 20 and on, recognizing numbers 1-30., days of the week, months of the year, and counting by 5's and 20's! Some fun videos to help learning these concepts are on YouTube. Search HAVE FUN TEACHING OR HARRY KINDERGARTENER... They both have great music to all above concepts. They also have songs for sight words too.
Another great online resource is Storyline Online . These are stories online your child can listen to reading. ENJOY!!
Thank you everyone for all of your help with classroom supplies and support with your child's learning! I appreciate all of you!
Leslie
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Mrs. Downing's Kindergarten Stars October 4, 2013
It has been a very busy few weeks in Kindergarten. We have finished up with Senses and Nursery Rhymes and have bee practicing and learning Word Work Station during their Daily Five time while reading groups are being taught. I will be sending home an information sheet explaining what Daily Five is and how it helps the students grow as a reader and writer.
During our Five Senses Unit, the children explored each sense in a museum style set up. During our Touch Museum the children got to "touch" each others exhibits and then sign their name on their exhibit sheet describing how it felt. During our Tasting Party each child got to taste each others "tasting exhibit" and then sign their name showing if they thought it was a "good" taste or "bad" taste. Our Smelling Museum was set-up the same way. They got to "smell" each others smelling exhibit and then sign their name under whether they thought it was a "good" and "bad" smell. Another exciting activity included trying something that was sweet, salty, sour, and bitter and then mapping the tongue. The main objective was to learn to build science vocabulary and exploring with their senses.
Listening and learning nursery rhymes helped the children practicing fluency, rhyming words, and sequencing. They completed a Nursery Rhyme book that will be kept in their independent book tub so they can reread nursery rhymes during Read to Self or Read to Someone during Daily Five. I hope you got to enjoy seeing all of their nursery rhyme activities that have been coming home.
We are well into the Animated Alphabet. We introduce two new characters a week, learn their song, read their story, and build a new sentence during our read, write, and draw. Continue to add these character sheets and sentence sheets in your Kindergarten Star's Reading Treasure Box or Notebook.
Reading Groups begin Monday, October 7. Your Kindergarten Star will participate in a small guided reading group where specific skills are being taught at their level. You will be receiving information about reading groups.
We will begin our new unit on Trees in the next week.
Thanks for all of your help and support.
:-) Mrs. Downing
During our Five Senses Unit, the children explored each sense in a museum style set up. During our Touch Museum the children got to "touch" each others exhibits and then sign their name on their exhibit sheet describing how it felt. During our Tasting Party each child got to taste each others "tasting exhibit" and then sign their name showing if they thought it was a "good" taste or "bad" taste. Our Smelling Museum was set-up the same way. They got to "smell" each others smelling exhibit and then sign their name under whether they thought it was a "good" and "bad" smell. Another exciting activity included trying something that was sweet, salty, sour, and bitter and then mapping the tongue. The main objective was to learn to build science vocabulary and exploring with their senses.
Listening and learning nursery rhymes helped the children practicing fluency, rhyming words, and sequencing. They completed a Nursery Rhyme book that will be kept in their independent book tub so they can reread nursery rhymes during Read to Self or Read to Someone during Daily Five. I hope you got to enjoy seeing all of their nursery rhyme activities that have been coming home.
We are well into the Animated Alphabet. We introduce two new characters a week, learn their song, read their story, and build a new sentence during our read, write, and draw. Continue to add these character sheets and sentence sheets in your Kindergarten Star's Reading Treasure Box or Notebook.
Reading Groups begin Monday, October 7. Your Kindergarten Star will participate in a small guided reading group where specific skills are being taught at their level. You will be receiving information about reading groups.
We will begin our new unit on Trees in the next week.
Thanks for all of your help and support.
:-) Mrs. Downing
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Kindergarten Stars September 8, 2013-2014
It is hard to believe that we have been in school for 15 days. Your Kindergarten Star is working hard and already showing lots of growth emotionally, socially, and academically. We have really focused on daily routines and class expectations. They are really beginning to show "The Bobcat Roar"...Ready, Responsible, and Respectful. I am proud of each one.
Another area of focus has been fine motor control. We have had mini-lessons on holding a pencil, crayon, scissors, and the use of glue sticks and glue bottles. These mini-lessons are very important as we have begun Animated Literacy and learning to print letters correctly and number writing in math. Any extra help with writing at home would be very beneficial.
We have been focusing on colors, the letters of the alphabet, and friends in our school community. In each of these themes we have been immersed in many rich literature books. Brown Bear, Brown Bear is one of the books we engaged in to learn about colors. With this book the children learned to read color words and retell a story in sequence after creating their own personal retelling rope. They have learned that one way to read a story is to retell the story. Some other activities the children have completed are creating their own rainbow and story starter about what they would do if they had their own rainbow, a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom color book, and finding color words in the room. My favorite was learning our color poems and songs.
In math, the children are learning to build numbers using partners, adding, and writing their numbers. We are also learning attributes of circles, squares, and rectangles. Math talk at home would be helpful for your child.
REMEMER TO HAVE YOUR READING TREASURE BOX READY AS OUR FIRST PAGE...POLLY PANDA HAS COME HOME. PUT IT INTO YOUR READING NOTEBOOK FOR FUTURE REFERENCE.
Make-It, Take-It Night is Tuesday, September 24 in the Multi-Purpose Room from 6:00-7:00. All you need to bring is your Reading Treasure Box and Notebook.
Our first book order has arrived. Thanks for your orders. With your orders our class earned 800 bonus points that I used to get new books for our library. :-)
This week we will continue to work on colors through experiments, art, and writing.
I enjoyed meeting all of the Grandparents and special friends on Grandparent's Day. Your Kinders were gracious hosts and hostesses. We had a fun afternoon together.
Thanks for all of your support and donations to our classroom.
Leslie Downing
Another area of focus has been fine motor control. We have had mini-lessons on holding a pencil, crayon, scissors, and the use of glue sticks and glue bottles. These mini-lessons are very important as we have begun Animated Literacy and learning to print letters correctly and number writing in math. Any extra help with writing at home would be very beneficial.
We have been focusing on colors, the letters of the alphabet, and friends in our school community. In each of these themes we have been immersed in many rich literature books. Brown Bear, Brown Bear is one of the books we engaged in to learn about colors. With this book the children learned to read color words and retell a story in sequence after creating their own personal retelling rope. They have learned that one way to read a story is to retell the story. Some other activities the children have completed are creating their own rainbow and story starter about what they would do if they had their own rainbow, a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom color book, and finding color words in the room. My favorite was learning our color poems and songs.
In math, the children are learning to build numbers using partners, adding, and writing their numbers. We are also learning attributes of circles, squares, and rectangles. Math talk at home would be helpful for your child.
REMEMER TO HAVE YOUR READING TREASURE BOX READY AS OUR FIRST PAGE...POLLY PANDA HAS COME HOME. PUT IT INTO YOUR READING NOTEBOOK FOR FUTURE REFERENCE.
Make-It, Take-It Night is Tuesday, September 24 in the Multi-Purpose Room from 6:00-7:00. All you need to bring is your Reading Treasure Box and Notebook.
Our first book order has arrived. Thanks for your orders. With your orders our class earned 800 bonus points that I used to get new books for our library. :-)
This week we will continue to work on colors through experiments, art, and writing.
I enjoyed meeting all of the Grandparents and special friends on Grandparent's Day. Your Kinders were gracious hosts and hostesses. We had a fun afternoon together.
Thanks for all of your support and donations to our classroom.
Leslie Downing
Monday, August 19, 2013
WELCOME NEW KINDERS OF 2013-2014!!!!
Welcome new Kindergarten Stars of 2013-2014!! I look forward to a wonderful year full of learning and growth. I want to thank your parents in advance for their help and support.
Mrs. Downing
Mrs. Downing
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Mrs. Downing's Kindergarten April 8, 2013
It has been a busy place in our Kindergarten room. The children have been working on writing, spelling, reading, and many math skills. Many activities the children have completed in working on these skills include sight word Connect Four, a sight word parking lot, pattern block sight word cover up, word family flip books, creating own storybooks, journal writing, and picture story writing.
We earned a marble party last week and the children voted on an extra recess and popsicle party. They have shown a lot of growth in all areas socially, emotionally, and academically. I am very proud of each one of them.
This upcoming week is going to be a very busy week as well as month. Please note activities, fieldtrips, and Helper Calendar.
Upcoming themes are Farm, Sink and Float, and Dinosaurs. A fun way to end a wonderful Kindergarten Year.
Keep reading and writing at home!! It is the best way to support your growing Kindergarten Star.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Mrs. Downing's Kindergarten Stars February 14, 2013
We have had fun learning about geography in Kindergarten. We focused our learning around a book called Me on the Map. The children learned about their home, street, city, state, country, continent, and world. They realized they have a special place inside a very big place. They created a book called Me on the Map that is displayed in our hallway. They enjoyed looking at the globe and maps we have in our classroom.
In February, the children have been assessed in curricular areas across the curriculum. I am so proud of all of the progress they have made. I enjoyed speaking to each one of you and hope you are just as proud of the hard work they have put in and the growth they have made. I am excited about our third trimester.
We are about to finish Unit 4 in math. In this unit, the children have been working on teen numbers, equations, partners, graphs, and story problems. A fun activity at home is to practice skip counting by 5's and 10's. If you have a domino set, it is fun to play dominoes but have the children add the dots together. Great addition game.
February also brought stories about friendship and family. They wrote Valentine cards to their families, learned to cut hearts, made radiating hearts, played Valentine math games, and shared Valentines with each other.
To practice sight words, we played sight word hopscotch outside and put hands on our door frame that they have to give a high five to and say the sight word every time they leave the room.
I am sending a sight word game home with words attached to practice. The directions are on the back. Have fun and happy learning.
We will be learning about presidents past and present.
Thanks so much for your support on a daily basis.
Leslie Downing
Monday, January 28, 2013
Mrs. Downing's Kindergarten Stars January 22, 2013
Glad to be back at school after a three day weekend. I enjoy seeing all of the kids ready to learn.
Last week, we finished our Winter, Snow, and Ice unit. This unit included learning about how snow crystals. We learned how they are formed and their characteristics. Each kindergarten star painted snowflakes, wrote about snowflakes and how they are all different, and listened to many fiction and non-fiction books about snow and winter. We made frost, and ice castles out of sugar cubes. Our library now has our class books that we created about hats and mittens.
Skill focus continues to be sight words, listening for beginning, middle, and ending sounds, and building word family words.
Our kitchen area has become a grocery store. The children can create a grocery list using grocery adds, shop for groceries reading the environmental print on the boxes or containers of food, and check out customers, add quarters, dimes, and nickels. It is a favorite right now.
We will celebrate Kansas Day and 100th Day this week. Look forward to reading about all of our exciting activities we did next week.
:) Have a great week.
Leslie Downing
Last week, we finished our Winter, Snow, and Ice unit. This unit included learning about how snow crystals. We learned how they are formed and their characteristics. Each kindergarten star painted snowflakes, wrote about snowflakes and how they are all different, and listened to many fiction and non-fiction books about snow and winter. We made frost, and ice castles out of sugar cubes. Our library now has our class books that we created about hats and mittens.
Skill focus continues to be sight words, listening for beginning, middle, and ending sounds, and building word family words.
Our kitchen area has become a grocery store. The children can create a grocery list using grocery adds, shop for groceries reading the environmental print on the boxes or containers of food, and check out customers, add quarters, dimes, and nickels. It is a favorite right now.
We will celebrate Kansas Day and 100th Day this week. Look forward to reading about all of our exciting activities we did next week.
:) Have a great week.
Leslie Downing
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Happy New Year.....January 7, 2012
Happy New Year to Everyone.... it has been a great start to the year and I believe with the start of a New Year it will only continue to get better. After a very exciting Winter Break....I was so excited to see the kiddos. They came back excited and motivated to learn. Our theme for this month will be Winter, Snow, Kansas Facts, and 100th Day of School.
The children will be working hard in reading groups, starting a new math unit on addition and subtraction story problems, practicing sight word lists, and many literacy and math activities.
Keep up the reading at home!!
Looking forward to a great start to 2013!!!!!
Thanks for all of the donations and help at our Gingerbread Party.
Ms. Downing (Ross) :-)
The children will be working hard in reading groups, starting a new math unit on addition and subtraction story problems, practicing sight word lists, and many literacy and math activities.
Keep up the reading at home!!
Looking forward to a great start to 2013!!!!!
Thanks for all of the donations and help at our Gingerbread Party.
Ms. Downing (Ross) :-)
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