The week of March 9-13.

I can sure tell the weather has changed!  It has been a crazy day with crazy behaviors!  I'm hoping each day gets better as the week goes on.

We are going to be talking more about the weather and writing in a weather book each day.  We will check the temperature and fill in a paper thermometer to understand how a thermometer works!

Today we talked about how we can measure how much snow or rain we get.  I know we depend on the weatherman to tell us how much snow we got. We talked about how we can use a ruler to measure the snow and a rain gauge to measure the rain.  Do you have a rain gauge at home for your child to check how much rain we got?   That would be fun for them to check!

Reading this week!  We are reading science books on weather and climate.
sight words:  your, they (4th quarter sight words)
Letters of the week:  Vv, Qq   (never a q without a u)
I am finishing up benchmarking this week, so no reading groups this week.  Please read at home with your child!  We'll begin again after spring break!

I am so proud of how hard your child has worked on their sight words!  Thank you for continuing to practice at home!  Now on the 4th quarter!

Spelling lists and tests!  The first spelling list will come home this Friday!  Please work on the "an" word family words with your child.  The test will be on March 27!

Math this week!
Topic 8 test tomorrow!  Please work on the addition math facts to 5 at home!  I will be sending the subtraction math facts home this week for you to cut up and put on the ring also!

Topic 9 will be on More addition and subtraction.  We will be making fact families!
2 + 3 = 5 
3 + 2 = 5
5 - 3 = 2 
5 -2 = 3

Coming up!
Mar. 10                     KDG round-up for incoming KDG @ 6:00 in the gym
Mar. 16-23               spring break
Mar. 23                     End of 3rd quarter
Mar. 26                      Fritz' night
Mar. 27                      Grades posted for 3rd quarter
Mar. 27                       First spelling test!

April 24                    Kindergarten Open House!  It will begin at 2:30. It will end around 3:00-                                      3:15.

Imagination Station Time

Subtraction Fish Activity

The week of Mar. 2-6.

The weather has just brightened our day today!  It was so nice to go out for recess and not feel the wind!  Even though it was cool, it didn't feel bad at all.

Spring pictures are tomorrow!

We are not going to be having reading groups the next two weeks, as I need to benchmark the kids to see if they have progressed on their reading.  It's so fun to watch them jump up levels in their reading, as it is really clicking with a lot of them!

Feb. Book it Calendars are due Friday!

Read Across America!  Also known as Dr. Seuss week, for us.  Dr. Seuss' birthday is today.  He would have been 116 years old today!  We learned today that Dr. Seuss (Theodore Seuss Geisel) would use pen names for his name on the books.  Besides using his middle name, "Seuss" on his books, he also used Theo. LeSieg.  LeSieg is Geisel spelled backward.  

I love reading Dr. Seuss books to the kids, so we will have fun reading about his funny characters and rhyming books!  We will also be doing some fun activities this week!  Do you have any Dr. Seuss books you can read to your child at home?  Talk about what rhymes and have your child try to sound out his silly character names!

Science!!!  We are jumping from social studies to science the rest of the year!  We have begun our weather unit by reading books about weather.  Next week we will be reporting the temperature on a graph each day and writing the weather and what we should wear in a weather book.
More to come about weather !

Reading this week!  Weather and Dr. Seuss books will be our fun in reading also this week!  
sight words:  word, when (these are the last two 3rd quarter sight words)
I will be sending home your child's sight word testing sheets at the end of the quarter.  If your child needs to learn 3rd quarter words, I will be writing them on a note for you to practice at home this week to hopefully pass them in the next two weeks!

Please keep taking time to read our paper little books that come home too!  Each student is able to sound out words to read them now.  Make sure to keep them in their bucket to reread them!  I'm sure the bucket is full, so please take out easier books from last fall to replace with books on their level!

Math this week!  We are continuing with subtraction and solving problems in different ways.  We drew a picture in our journal of a tree with birds that flew away and wrote the problem for the picture.  We had fun with teddy bears in a cave and taking some out of the cave and seeing how many were left.  (We used our counting bears and a paper bowl with a hole taken out to show the cave door. ) . The recording sheet went home last Thursday.  
Today we used a number line and a teddy bear to count back when some were taken away in our word stories.  Tomorrow we will use the number line and dry erase marker to hop back to take away by drawing loops to each number we count back.  
Then, the end of the week we are going to do a goldfish activity, making up story problems and eating the goldfish that are taken away!  Using food is always a fun way to solve problems!
Shh!  It's a secret!

Coming up!
Mar. 3                       Spring pictures tomorrow!
Mar. 10                     KDG round-up for incoming KDG @ 6:00
Mar. 16-23               spring break
Mar. 23                     End of 3rd quarter
Mar. 26                      Fritz' night
Mar. 27                      Grades posted for 3rd quarter

April 24                    Kindergarten Open House!  Time to be determined, but plan on 2:15-2:30.

The week of Feb. 24-28.

It's hard to believe we are on the last week of February!  The kids have progressed so well and it's so fun to watch them read and write sentences!

We are going to be authors and illustrators of our first book this week!  The first step last week was brainstorming ideas for our Favorite Holiday.  Then, we drew pictures of our holiday, the season it is in, and two more details about why it's our favorite. This week we will be transferring our picture ideas to our book and adding sentences about our pictures.  It's such fun watching them get excited about being authors and illustrators!

In reading we are reading two short stories about weather.  One is a nonfiction about and Ice Hotel!  We couldn't believe there was such a thing and who would want to sleep in it!!  The 2nd one is a realistic fiction story about a family in a snowstorm.  We will compare the two stories and how they are the same and different.

sight words:  it, there (We learned that "there" has a homonym.  It is "their"!)
letter:  Kk

Handwriting:  We are learning the correct way to write lowercase letters!  Yay!  I am also asking the class to erase any uppercase letters they write in words and sentences that should be lowercase letters.  It's a hard habit to break, so if you see them doing it, please give a reminder to fix them!  Thank you!

Math:  Today we went over their math test, so it should be in their folder.  I introduced what subtraction is and how it is different from addition.  Please work on the addition math fact flashcards at home.  Each will have another set at school to practice.  

Science:  Our first science unit will be on Weather.  We will be reading stories about weather and learning what climate is and how it affects the land where we live.  More to come on our weather unit!

Coming up!
Feb. 28                       Dental screening if you opted in for your child to get screened.
Mar. 3                       Spring pictures
Mar. 10                     KDG round-up for incoming KDG @ 6:00
Mar. 16-23               spring break
Mar. 23                     End of 3rd quarter
Mar. 26                      Fritz' night
Mar. 27                      Grades posted for 3rd quarter

April 24                    Kindergarten Open House!  Time to be determined, but plan on 2:15-2:30.

The week of Feb. 18-21.

Thank you all for taking time out of your day to share in your child's accomplishments in KDG!  It shows how much you care about your child's development socially and academically.  Please take the time and talk to your child about how wonderful they are doing and how proud you are of them for trying their best at school!

Seesaw!
Kansas clip!  Unfortunately I forgot to show some of you your child's Kansas symbol clip they made.  Also, if you didn't see your child's President video, you can view it now too.  I am sending home a QR code from Seesaw that you will sign up to view.  Then, you can see both videos and share them with your spouse if they couldn't make it.  The kids also play games on Seesaw that you can view also.  If your child doesn't have very many games to view, they may be using their Ipad time to listen to books or play Reading Eggs.  I hope you enjoy them!

This week in Reading!
Letter of the week--Jj
sight words:  all, said

We are learning about what an opinion is!  We read a book about the author telling his opinion of favorite holidays.  Then, we shared our opinion of our favorite holiday and will write about it in our journals.

Math this week!
We are continuing with addition facts to 5.  Look for the addition facts cards to cut up, hole punch, and put a ring on.  I taped a ring to the facts page for you to use.  Have your child help you tell the math fact and write the correct answer on the back.  It would be great to use coins, buttons, or any counter to make groups to add the addends together to find the answer, instead of you giving the answer to them.  A great project to work together on!

Today, I am sending home two math practice sheets to be completed before Friday when our test is.  It will be a good review before the test.

Coming up!
Feb. 21                      PTA  Family Movie Night 7 pm
Mar. 3 .                      Spring pictures
Mar. 10                     KDG round-up for incoming KDG @ 6:00
Mar. 16-23               spring break
Mar. 23                     End of 3rd quarter
Mar. 26                      Fritz' night
Mar. 27                      Grades posted for 3rd quarter

Valentine Party pics!

The week of Feb. 3-7.

It happened!  I think it's very surreal for everyone yet.  But, what an awesome, but stressful win last night!  If you haven't heard yet, there will be no school on Wednesday, so all can go to the parade if they want to.  Be safe if you do!

This week is a little more back to normal in our classroom, with no special days.  Last week was quite crazy with Kansas activities and 100's Day activities. I'm happy for normalcy.

Today we learned more about Groundhog's Day and what it is.  We made groundhog puppets and went out to see if we could see our shadow.  We did, which would mean 6 more weeks of winter.  However, Punxsutawney Phil, the Groundhog in Pennsylvania, did not see his shadow.  I like that forecast better!

Book it Calendars!  Please return Jan. calendars by Friday!

Reading/Social Studies--We will be learning about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln this week with President's Day coming up!

Letter of the week--Ww, wh
Sight words: how, have

Math this week!  Topic 7 Understanding Addition.
The last test we took over numbers to 100 will come home this week.  I've a few absent, so we haven't had time to go over it.

Sight words:  Please keep reviewing 1st and 2nd quarter sight words once in a while to make sure they are not forgotten.  If you haven't started working on 3rd quarter, please do.  We are already 10 words into 3rd quarter.  It's hard to catch up!

Coming up!

Feb. 12                      Valentine's Party 11:15-11:50, Dismiss at 12:10, P/T conferences 4:15-8:00

Feb. 13                      P/T conferences all day--No School

Feb. 14/17                 No School

Feb. 21                      PTA  Family Movie Night 7 pm

Kansas Sunflowers!

 Mixing our trailmix on 100's Day

The week of Jan. 27-31.

It will be good to get back to a full week of school!  The kids are needing that routine again.

We have had fun with Gingerbread activities today!  I'm sure the scavenger hunt was the best!  Ask your child about it.  What did we find at the end of the hunt!

100's Day will be this Friday!  Several kids have already brought in their two 100 collections.  One being a food snack that is not wrapped and another of 100 items that can fit in a baggie.  Please make sure that your child is doing the counting not parents or siblings.  This is a great time to see if they can do it on their own yet.  If they need help, then please help them, but don't count for them!  We talked about counting by ones, tens ( you would have ten piles of ten things), or even 20 piles of 5 if they want to challenge themselves to count by 5's!  Please write their name on the baggie and make sure to have it here by Friday!  Thanks!

This week we are on the letter Dd and the sight words:  that, her.  

We are reading the tale, "The Boy Who Cried Wolf".  This is a great tale to talk about how it's hard to know when they are really sick if they are just saying it to get out of class or to get attention.  Or I have caught kids telling tall tales about something to get attention or a reaction, and then I don't know what's true if they are telling the truth.  It's a good book to remind your child at home too, if you catch them telling a tall tale.

Math--We will be taking our Topic 6 math test tomorrow over Numbers to 100.  
Our next Topic 7 is over Understanding Addition.  We will begin by counting groups together, using "and" and "is" instead of a + or =.  

Kansas Day Activities will be on Kansas Day this Wednesday.  

Coming up!
Jan. 29                      Kansas Day Activities

Jan. 31                      100th Day of School!!

Feb. 1                        Books and Bling Dance at MTMS . 6 pm

Feb. 12                      Valentine's Party 11:15-11:50, Dismiss at 12:10, P/T conferences 4:15-8:00

Feb. 13                      P/T conferences all day--No School

Feb. 14/17                 No School

Feb. 21                      PTA  Family Movie Night 7 pm

Fun times in the IS!

We had 15 people that were born in Kansas and 6 who weren't.

It's the most I've ever had not born in Kansas!

Gingerbread Man/Girl comparison

The week of Jan. 21-24,

We had a great time making our Kansas symbol clips today!  The kids are not fearful at all! They all knew what fact(s) to say and it ran smoothly!  Our District Instructional Specialist, Nichole Gurwell, led the kids on what to do.  It was so much fun to watch them!  You will get to see your child's clip at conferences!  Thank you again for your help at home!

This week in reading the letters are soft Gg and hard Gg.  There is so much to do with both sounds this week and it's already a short week with yesterday off!  I sure hope we don't have anymore days off with the bad weather coming in again.

I like to have fun reading several different Gingerbread Man books.  Today we read, "The Gingerbread Kid Goes to School" and "The Ninjabread Man".  We will also read, "The Gingerbread Man Loose in School", " The Gingerbread Girl", and the original, "Gingerbread Man".  We will compare and contrast the characters, setting, and refrain (the repeated verse) of the latter two stories.

On Friday I have a special scavenger hunt planned to find the Gingerbread Man.  Shh!  it's a secret!

sight words:  from, one . (Please keep helping your child work on learning their 3rd quarter sight words!)

Math this week!  We are working on finding patterns on a 100's chart.  We are learning to recognize when we are counting by ones starting with a random number or when we are counting by 10's beginning with a different number than 10.  We do not have to learn how to count by 5's in KDG, but we practice it at calendar and most can do it!

Last week some of us were ready to write all the way to 100 by themselves without  any help, which means they will be able to count to 100 too!  What an accomplishment!

Kansas packets--This week we are learning about the Kansas Seal and the Kansas Flag.  We will find out what "Ad Astra Per Aspera" means at the top of the seal. "Through the Stars With Difficulties".  January 29, 1861 is the year Kansas became a state, is at the bottom of the seal.  The seal also has 34 stars representing Kansas being the 34th state.   The picture also has the covered wagon, a man plowing with his horses, bison in a field, and a cabin overlooking the horizon.   There's a lot happening on the seal that we forget is on it!

We will be finding Kansas on the map, along with its bordering states.  Then, we will find our county on the map of 105 Kansas counties.

There's just so much to learn about Kansas!  We will also graph who was born in Kansas and is called a Jayhawker, and who is not born in Kansas and what they are called.

100's Day!  Right now we will celebrate Kansas Day on it's birthday since we had the snow day and 100's day is pushed back to Jan. 30.  Some of you were sure on the ball this weekend getting the 100 collections done and sent back to school!  Feel free to do those ahead of time and check it off your list!

Coming up!
Jan. 29                      Kansas Day Activities

Jan. 30                      100th Day of School!!

Feb. 1                        Books and Bling Dance at MTMS . 6 pm

Feb. 12                      Valentine's Party 11:15-11:45, Dismiss at 12:10, P/T conferences 4:15-8:00

Feb. 13                      P/T conferences all day--No School

Feb. 14/17                 No School

Feb. 21                      PTA  Family Movie Night 7 pm