Goodbye, Goodbye... Our Year is Done!

Wow... I cannot believe how quickly this year has flown by! I enjoyed teaching each and every one of your children very much. I hope they will enjoy seeing evidence of their learning in their memory books in the years to come and enjoy the memories on their class DVD!

Thank you all for the generous and thoughtful gifts and the notes you wrote and helped your children write. They were so special!

Click here if you didn't get to see the Year End Pictures yet. We had lots of fun at the pool and carnival! Thanks to all who helped out!

I am sending a letter with a picture from the last day of school to each student. I told them on the last day that they would be arriving in the mail this week and to put them into their memory book behind their diploma. Unfortunately, Canada Post is on full strike as of last night so if your child doesn't have a sibling in the school, it may take a bit longer for the letter to arrive at your house as they weren't accepting any mail at the post office this morning!

We had a little song we used to sing at the end of the day that now we can sing for the end of the year:

Goodbye, Goodbye, our year is done
We've worked, we've played, we've had some fun!

So let's be happy and safe and kind,
Until we're together another time!

The Mom Song

We had many requests for the song lyrics to "The Mom Song" that the classes performed at the Mother's Day Celebration. It's originally done by a group called The Go Fish Guys but we modified a few of the lyrics. Here it is:

The Mom Song

Give me an M (M, M, M)
Give me an O (O, O, O)
Give me an M (M, M, M)
What's that spell? MOM!


Cause we love our mom's we're gonna sing this song (woo hoo, woo hoo)
Cause we love our mom's we're gonna sing this song (woo hoo, woo hoo)


Verse 1:
If you’ve got a stroller but you’re still a rock ‘n roller
You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

If you do a lot of dishes and you know who Elmo’s fish is

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

If you have a lot of fun but your work is never done

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

Chorus:
You’re the boss, the driver, the ultimate survivor

A doctor, a cooker, Dad thinks you’re a looker!

If you work all day, but you never get paid

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

Verse 2: 
If you need a sick day but instead you’re gonna play

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

If your first occupation sounds like a sweet vacation

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

If your living room floor, looks like a toy store

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

Verse 3: 
If you mean the WHOLE world, to your little boys and girls

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

The lessons that you hold, can shape my little soul

You’re a mom! (Mom, Mom, Mom!)

If you have the MOST important job in the world….

You’re MY mom!

Spring is Here!

Happy Spring from Mrs. B's Class! 

We've been very busy in kindergarten... here is a glimpse of what's been going on!

For the past few weeks, part of our literacy focus has been reviewing letter sounds and names- capitals and lowercase. Each student has been constructing their own Alphabet Book by printing a lower case letter on the front of a card and a picture on the back that begins with the same sound. The book will be coming home next week once they are done further "decorating" each letter by adding a border using a pattern of upper and lower case (to continue to reinforce the formation of letters.)

Our numeracy focus has been integrating patterning into many other areas of the curriculum and strengthening our Number Sense of 1-10 (including recognition, writing and counting).

We worked on "shipping" all the crayons in the class but before we could do that, we needed to bundle them into packages of 10. We kept track of how many by recording the number of bundles and the number of loose. We also did a classroom inventory and counted many of the supplies we use everyday, such as markers, pencils, books, glue, paper bags, etc.

We've been discovering that there are patterns in numbers! Each student been working on solving their Number Pattern chart. Please note that we are NOT learning place value but have focused on combining numbers and patterns, and recognizing and writing them. They do NOT need to know place value of numbers (such as forty-five, forty-six, etc.) but we've focused on just on finding patterns. When the bright orange sheet comes home, ask them how they know! You'll be amazed at I was at how creative their thinking is!

We will also be doing a Mother's Day Celebration on Wednesday, May 4th at the Cultural Hall. The celebration for all 3 the morning classes will be held from 10:00-11:00 AM and the 2 afternoon classes will be from 1:30-2:30 PM. Students can be taken home directly following the close of the celebration. Please watch your child's backpack for your invitation and RSVP note!

Into March...

2011 has come and is going quickly. We're almost into the final stretch of the school year. Here's a little glimpse of what we've been doing in Mrs. B's Kindergarten Class:

Literacy Focus: 

• We've now learned all sounds except for qu, z and y. The students are now gaining awareness of both the letter name and the sound. Click here to see the Letter Sound Song or click here to see the Snowball Fight Song.
• We also have been viewing Letter Songs during snack time. Click here to view The Letter X Song. 
• The focus of the Fairytale Theme has been identifying main parts of a story and retelling a story. If you see puppets in your child's bag, ask them to tell you the story they learned. We have viewed some digital versions of stories at snack time as well: Rumplestiltskin, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Three Little Pigs and may be viewing other fairytale related material. 

Numeracy Focus: 

• We are working on printing the letters 1-10 
• 1 to 1 counting: assigning a number to each object
• Identifying the amounts 1-10: counting a number of objects and then understanding that the final number is also the amount that you have
• Subitizing: recognizing the amounts 1-5 at a glance without counting 

Physical Activity Focus: 

• We've been focusing on throwing and catching. Ask them if they remember "cleaning the yard" in the gym. We've experimented with throwing and catching in the class with scarves and "snowballs"
• We've continued doing a daily exercise routine which combines aerobics, dance and yoga. This week they will be introduced to Yoga Adventures. This is where the poses are put into a context or story. Today, the classes took a trip to the Pet Shop. We did the poses (or asanas) dog, cat, rabbit, fish, frog, spider, crab, snake (cobra), crocodile (chattaronga), gerbil (made up by the students) and a few others. Ask them about it and see if they can retell. 
• We've also been Speed Stacking in the classroom. It's a great in classroom activity that helps increase coordination, concentration, fine motor ability and right-left brain connection.

Online Enrichment: 

There are many online sites that have fun and academic activities for the students to do. If you have a child that enjoys the computer, this may be a good way to focus that time:

• Starfall: a great introduction to reading simple words, blending and identifying sounds. 
• PBS Kids: alphabet game and many others
• Illuminations Math: five frame activities
• ABC Ya Kindergarten Games: this one has a variety of literacy, spatial and numeracy activities. The students have enjoyed this one during center time.

Happy New Year!

We are excited to have all the students back at school! Please look to the left (Newsletter Section) for all current January News.

There are some important things that need to be sent in so be sure to read it!

Christmas Cookies!

Yesterday, Mrs. B's classes headed over to the high school where we met our Big Baking Buddies who helped us make sugar cookies. The kindergarten students were very good at rolling out the dough and using the cookie cutters. We've had a lot of practice at the playdough center! A big thank you to Mrs. Rompain and Mrs. Stringam and the high school foods class for letting us come over.

Nutrition and Numbers

Today we are starting our new theme: Nutrition! We'll be talking about healthy choices and food groups.

We're also working on writing numbers 1-5. Many students are writing them backwards. If your child is writing them at home, please make sure they are moving left to right on the page.

Here is a link to the song, "I Can Write My Numbers" that we've been using in class. It's a fun way to remember how to write 0-9. If you're wanting to review at home, ask them to write the numbers on your back with their finger, in the air with their hand, or on paper! Good luck!