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Week of 3/25

 Language Arts

We are beginning Unit 4 in Fundations this week. In this unit, we will continue blending sounds to read & spell words. We will also introduce the digraphs sh, th, wh, ch, and ck. We've been talking about these digraphs when they are in sight words that we've introduced, but now, we will have drills & activities in Fundations that will also highlight these digraphs. Parent tips and activities for this unit can be found here. Our sight word this week is look. 

Math
We introduced subtraction last week, and will continue working on subtraction for several more weeks. The key to subtraction fluency is practice, practice, practice, which we will be getting a lot of in the upcoming weeks.

Kimochis

The Kimochis are back this week, and we will be focusing on kindness. Your child will learn about the Kimochis® kotowaza—or Japanese proverb—that accompanies this feeling. “Take the time to be kind” is this week’s kotowaza to encourage kindness. This kotowaza inspires people to say and do kind things. Research has shown that there is a close association between kindness and happiness. Kind people experience more happiness and have happier memories. Kindness also helps children make and keep friends. Kindness builds patience and tolerance because we can learn to think kind thoughts when others make mistakes or hurt feelings.

Makerspace

We had a great first trip to the Makerspace last Wednesday, where we worked with a building tool called Strawbees. We will continue working with Strawbees this week as well. Children have to work together as teams to build and create something. Pictures updated soon!

Reminders

**Library is every Wednesday. Please return your child's library book by Tuesday each week.

**School spirit days are every Wednesday. Wear your Alta Vista t-shirts or your Panda t-shirts to show your school pride 

 

This Week's Helpers & Activities
Monday: Centers @ 12:20 (____& Lauren)
Tuesday: Centers @ 12:20  (Lauren & Sehwa)
Wednesday: Makerspace @ 10:45-11:15 (Need one helper), Library @ 9:30 (Reader is Steve & check in/out is Lydia), Dismissal @ 1:15
Thursday:  Centers @ 12:20 (Sehwa & Need a helper)
Friday:  Music @ 10:20

Upcoming Events

Thursday, 4/4: Spring Fling

4/8-4/12: Spring Break

Friday, 5/3 @ 5:00: Kindergarten Movie Night

Week of 3/11

 I have enjoyed meeting with most of you already for parent-teacher conferences, and I am looking forward to meeting with a few more of you this week-- it's great to share your child's successes with you. For those who I did not meet with, your child's report card will be in this week's Wednesday envelope. 

It's hard to believe that we are already in our last trimester of kindergarten. The time will pass quickly in these last 3 months, and before you know it, your child 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. Remember that the 1:15 dismissal time will continue through Wednesday the 13th, with only Thursday being a 1:40 dismissal day this week.

There will continue to be no centers this week due to parent-teacher conferences. We do have library (as usual) on Wednesday, and our special leprechaun trap making activity on Thursday at 12:20. Thank you to Sehwa, Kristi, Joe, Aida, & Rebecca for helping with the leprechaun traps. 

Auction Update

The AVHSC Auction last week was a successful fundraiser and they exceeded their fundraising goal by over $5000! Our kindergarten movie night was also very popular, and 15 students in our class will be joining in for the event on May 3rd. The AVHSC has generously agreed to reopen ticket sales for a few more days in case you missed the auction last weekend & would like your child to join in. The final cut-off (no exceptions!) will be this Friday the 15th. Here is the link if you're interested in one of the remaining 8 tickets: https://altavistahsc.membershiptoolkit.com/packet/9451 I sent a separate email out about this as well. :)

Language Arts
Our sight words this week are you and your. We call both of these words "heart words" because they have a part in them (ou) that is not decodable with our regular phonics rules- you have to just memorize the "by heart". 

We are in the 5th week of Unit 3 of Fundations this week. The children are doing very well with blending sounds to read & spell CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words. 

Math

We are continuing Module 5: Numbers 10-20; Count to 100 by 1s and 10s. We've already covered the counting portion of this module, so our focus now is writing and decomposing numbers in the teens. Parent tips for this module can be found here. We will return to Module 4 for the subtraction portion of that module the following week.

Upcoming Events & Activities

Leprechaun Traps: This Thursday, 3/14, children will be designing and creating their own leprechaun traps! We will send the traps home with the children on Thursday since St. Patrick's Day is on a Sunday. I look forward to hearing about what happened to their traps when they return to school on Monday!

School Spirit Day-- Wear Green: Also on Thursday the 14th, there is a schoolwide Spirit Day. Wear green to celebrate St. Patrick's Day a little early! The Grasshopper shirt is perfect for this day, or any other green attire your children would like to wear. 

No School Friday the 15th: Union School District Professional Development Day for teachers & staff.

USD Health & Wellness Fair 3/23, 2:00-4:00pm: Hosted at Union Middle School, the fair will include many health and wellness centered activities, exhibits, and resources. Members of our community's first responder agencies, medical organizations, and wellness groups will join with activities highlighting sports, movement and exercise, healthy nutrition, bicycle safety, animal-assisted therapy, and much more. You'll also be able to enjoy exciting live student music and dance performances and a special student creativity showcase highlighting inspiration, imagination, and Technicolor Dreams.

This Week's Helpers & Activities

Monday: Conferences, Dismissal @ 1:15

Tuesday: Conferences, Dismissal @ 1:15

Wednesday: Library @ 9:10 (reader is Steve & check in & out is available) Sign up is listed in my email signature now. See below!

Thursday: Leprechaun Traps (Sogol, Sara, Kelly, Snigdha, Vanessa, Sandy), Dismissal @ 1:40

Friday: No School

Week of 3/4

Today is the last day for the auction! Check out the many wonderful items available in the AVHSC online auction here. Remember-- the auction closes tomorrow night at 6:00 pm, and the kindergarten movie night will be the place to be on May 3rd! To avoid having any disappointed children, please log in and buy your child a ticket to this fun & special night out. **If there is a financial hardship, please contact me. An anonymous donor is happy to buy a ticket for anyone who needs one.

We start conferences on Monday. I'm looking forward to meeting with you & updating you on your child's progress. If you need to check the schedule, it can be found here. Please note that this is now a "view only" document. If you need to reschedule, please email me. 

Remember that dismissal will be at 1:15 from Monday, March 4th through Wednesday, March 13th.

I've added a few new dates on the Sign-Up Genius. We are going to start going to the Makerspace on Wednesday mornings! This will be a time to explore the many STEAM activities available there. We will be kicking off our visits there on 3/20, when we will be building with Strawbees. We will be going to the Makerspace on Wednesday mornings in between snack and lunch 10:45-11:20. I hope some of you are able to join us! I will continue adding dates as we are able to book time in the Makerspace. Right now, I have 4 dates on the Sign-Up Genius.

School Garden

This Monday (tomorrow!) we will get to have our first trip to the school garden. We have a planter box in there, and we will work with the AV garden lead, John Van Kirk, to select and plant a few different seeds and sprouts. We will continue to revisit the garden and see how our seeds are growing. We are looking forward to getting started in the garden!

Language Arts

Our sight words this week are they and back. Both of these sight words contain digraphs, so we will highlight the digraphs th and ck so that we can orthographically map these words. Here is a great article to read so that you can better understand how words become instantly recognizable and the importance of mapping words so that they can become "sight words."

We are now in our 4th week of Unit 3 in Fundations. Blending sounds to read and spell words is now the main focus in our reading curriculum. There are some great resources in the Unit 3 Fundations Home Support letter. 

Math

We are continuing with the module, Module 5: Numbers 10-20; Count to 100 by 1s and 10s. We've already covered the counting portion of this module, so our focus will be writing and decomposing numbers in the teens. Parent tips for this module can be found here. We will return to Module 4 for the subtraction portion of that module after we finish with numbers in the teens.

Upcoming Events & Activities

Leprechaun Traps: On Thursday, 3/14, children will be designing and creating their own leprechaun traps! Most of the materials for this activity are provided by the AVHSC funds, but if you are out and about and see something that looks like a fun addition to our leprechaun traps, we will gladly take your donations for our supply of trap "accessories!" Thank you in advance!

Reminders

**Library is every Wednesday. Please return your child's library book by Tuesday each week.

**School spirit days are every Wednesday. Wear your Alta Vista t-shirts or your Panda t-shirts to show your school pride 

 

This Week's Helpers & Activities
Monday: Conferences, dismissal @ 1:15
Tuesday: Conferences, dismissal @ 1:15
Wednesday: Library @ 9:30 (Zaakir & Asma), Dismissal @ 1:15
Thursday:  Conferences, dismissal @ 1:15
Friday:  Conferences, dismissal @ 1:15

Upcoming Events

3/4-3/12: Parent-Teacher Conferences, dismissal @ 1:15

Thursday, 3/14: Special Event: Leprechaun Trap Building

Friday, 3/15: No School: Teacher Work Day

Wednesday, 3/20: First trip to the Makerspace @ 10:45

4/8-4/12: Spring Break

Week of 2/26

I hope you all enjoyed some nice family time this past week. I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get back into the school routine!  We start parent teacher conferences next Monday, March 4th. I'm looking forward to meeting with you & updating you on your child's progress. If you need to check the schedule, it can be found here. Remember that dismissal will be at 1:15 from Monday, March 4th through Wednesday, March 13th.

I've added a few new dates on the Volunteer Sign-Up Genius. One special event to note is that on March 14th, we will be doing a STEAM activity that is an annual favorite: designing and creating leprechaun traps. I hope some of you can join us! I'll need many adults to help with this really fun activity.

Language Arts

Our sight words this week are for and are. Going hand-in-hand with these sight words, we will also look at the "Bossy R," or r-controlled vowels, which both these words have.

We will continue with the 3rd week of Unit 3 of Fundations. Blending sounds to read and spell words is now the main focus in our reading curriculum. There are some great resources in the Unit 3 Fundations Home Support letter. 

Math

We are beginning a new module, Module 5: Numbers 10-20; Count to 100 by 1s and 10s. We've already covered the counting portion of this module, so our focus will be writing and decomposing numbers in the teens. Parent tips for this module can be found here. We will return to Module 4 for the subtraction portion of that module after we finish with numbers in the teens.

Upcoming Events & Activities

Leprechaun Traps: In class on Thursday, 3/14, children will be designing and creating their own leprechaun traps! Most of the materials for this activity are provided by our grade level money from the Home & School Club, but if you are out and about and see something that looks like a fun addition to our leprechaun traps, we will gladly take your donations for our supply of trap "accessories!" Thank you in advance!

Reminders

**Library is every Wednesday. Please return your child's library book by Tuesday each week.

**School spirit days are every Wednesday. Wear your Alta Vista t-shirts or your Panda t-shirts to show your school pride 

 

This Week's Helpers & Activities
Monday: No centers

Tuesday: Centers @ 12:20  (Sehwa & Lauren)
Wednesday: Library @ 9:30 (Reader and book check in/out person needed! Sign up here), Dismissal @ 1:15
Thursday:  Centers @ 12:20 (Sehwa & Rebecca)
Friday:  Music @ 10:20

Upcoming Events

3/4-3/12: Parent-Teacher Conferences

Thursday, 3/14: Special Event: Leprechaun Trap Building

Friday, 3/15: No School: Teacher Work Day

4/8-4/12: Spring Break

week of 2/5

 Parents, thank you all so much for the classroom supply donations and the shoe tying helpers! I appreciate it so much. 

We have "Snow Day" this week on Monday. See below for details on this winter-themed school day.    

I have added a few more dates on our Sign-Up Genius, If you're interested in either helping with Centers or Library, please check it out!

Spring parent-teacher conferences are coming up on March 4 through March 12. Check the sign-ups if you'd like to meet with me. These are optional conferences, but are available to anyone who would like an update on their child's progress. I would really like to meet with anyone whose child had more than two areas marked with a "B" last trimester.

Language Arts

Our sight words this week are his and to. We now are up to 31 sight words! Please check the words on the class website  to insure your child is retaining these words. 

We will begin Unit 3 of Fundations this week. Blending sounds to read and spell words is now the main focus in our reading curriculum. There are some great resources in the Unit 3 Fundations Home Support letter. 

Math

We will continue with Module 4 this week. In class, I have noticed that some children are struggling when we move away from physical counters. Encourage your children to use their fingers to find the answers. Parent tips for this module can be found here.

Kimochis

This week, your child will learn the fifth Kimochis® Key to Communication: Redo hurtful moments. This key helps us remember to own and name our mistakes by apologizing and making things right. Although younger children may not always realize when they have said or done something wrong, they need to understand why it’s important to say they’re sorry. Learning the words “I’m sorry” comes faster than the genuine feeling behind it.1 As children develop the ability to take the perspective of someone else (between ages 3 and 4), their apology skills will improve. Kimochis® Cat comes with bandages that can help young children understand that hurt feelings are like an injury that needs attention. Children who can learn to redo communication mistakes will have healthier and more successful social relationships. 

UPCOMING

Snow Day:
Snow Day will be on Monday the 5th. This is a day when the children come to school all dressed in their snow gear-- whatever items you have. Mittens, knit hats, jackets, snow boots, scarves, goggles, etc. are all welcome! Please do not buy anything special for this day, just use what you have or borrow from a friend. They wear their gear, and then we will be having a "snowball fight" among all our K classes using wadded up recycled paper just after our 10:00 recess. Children should bring a separate bag for their snow gear for taking on and off, as it gets too warm wearing some of those items all day. They also tend to get lost if we don't have a place to put them. If they fit in your child's backpack, that is fine too. Our centers on Monday will all be snow-themed. It will be so fun!

Valentines Day: 

I know that valentines are now available in most stores, and children will be asking about our celebration. We will exchange cards in class on February 14th, but this is not a "party." We have a fun celebration of friendship, exchange valentines, and take them home to show our families. So that you can prepare for this event, I wanted to share some information:

1. Please send in a card for each child. There are 24 total students in our class: 14 girls and 10 boys.
2. Please ONLY sign the card & put nothing in the TO box. It is challenging enough for kindergartners to pass out valentines to all their classmates. Having the "to" part filled out makes this extremely challenging and it takes far too long. Thank you for your help with this!
3. Please try to purchase valentines that do not have candy attached. I know those can sometimes be hard to find, but there are good choices with stickers, play tattoos, and other non-food goodies.

**Library is every Wednesday. Please return your child's library book by Tuesday each week.

**School spirit days are every Wednesday. Wear your Alta Vista t-shirts or your Panda t-shirts to show your school pride 

 

This Week's Helpers & Activities
Monday: Snow Day, Centers @ 12:20 (Lauren & Hseu-Hwang)
Tuesday: Centers @ 12:20  (Sehwa & Kristi)
Wednesday: Library @ 9:10 (Lydia is check in/out person & we need a reader for this week, your favorite snowy themed book or even a Valentines Day themed book would be fun!), Dismissal @ 1:15
Thursday:  Centers @ 12:20 (Rachna & Sehwa)
Friday:  Music @ 12:30

Upcoming Events

Monday, 2/5: Snow Day!

Wednesday, 2/14: Valentines Exchange!

2/19-2/23: Presidents' Week Vacation

3/4-3/12: Parent-Teacher Conferences

Friday, 3/15: No School: Teacher Work Day

week of 1/30

 **No School Monday: Teacher Work Day

It was great hearing about all the kind acts of our Pandas during Kindness Week last week. I was so impressed with the things students were doing to be kind! It was wonderful emphasizing kind acts in the classroom, as well as at home. I hope you benefitted from plenty of kind acts in your home last week! One thing we discovered is it's SO EASY to be kind - just a smile, a greeting, or a hug will do it! We are going to continue building our chain in class. 

Spring parent-teacher conferences are coming up on March 4 through March 12. Here is the link to sign up. These are optional conferences, but are available to anyone who would like an update on their child's progress. As mentioned last week, I would like to meet with any parents whose child received any B's on the fall report card. If none of the available times or days work for you, please email me. I'm happy to find an alternative, since I've blocked out days/times to adjust for my personal schedule that week. Thank you!

Farewell to our classmate - Fellow classmate, Yujoon will be moving to South Korea with his family. His last day with us is this Wednesday. The pandas will be working on writing a little note to Yujoon for a class book we will gift him. If your child would like to write him a little note and/or draw a picture for him at home over the weekend, I'm sure Yujoon would be thrilled!

100 Day

This Wednesday is 100 Day! This is a fun celebration of the number 100 and being at school together for 100 days. There is a schoolwide Spirit Day on this day-- dress like you are 100 years old. As always, Spirit Days are totally optional, but very fun. I look forward to seeing many 100-year-old Pandas on Wednesday! 

Language Arts

We have many fun stories to read and 100 day themed center activities to do in honor of this special day- it will be an all week celebration. Our sight words this week are my and is. This is the last week of Unit 2 in Fundations. We will finish upper case letter instruction, covering letters Qq through Zz this week.

A big emphasis right now is using our knowledge of letter sounds, word families, and sight words to write simple sentences. Children need to be able to put together a readable sentence on their own by the end of kindergarten. Encourage your children to write and spell phonetically as often as possible to build their abilities as independent writers. Try to resist the temptation to spell words for them if they ask, rather, encourage them to "stretch the word out" and put down all the sounds they hear themselves. They can write notes to you, grocery lists, cards for family members, etc.

Math

We will continue with Module 4 this week; just the addition portion of this module will last up until President's Week Break. Parent tips for this module can be found here. I have noticed that some students need extra reinforcement with addition. Use objects you have at home such as Legos, Cheerios, pennies, etc. to encourage children to work on their addition skills.

We will also have lots of number & counting fun this week in celebration of 100 Day.

Kimochis

This week, your child will learn the fourth Kimochis® Key to Communication: Choose helping words. This key helps us to both think before we speak and consider our word choices. Typically, children acquire a basic ability to understand another’s perspective between 3 and 4 years of age. This allows them to become caring people. However, they will need modeling and practice to do so. In our lesson, we will talk about words that make hearts feel good and words that hurt feelings and your hearts. Your child knows that everybody makes mistakes and can accidentally use words that hurt. Your child will learn to use the following communication tool when hurting words are used: 1. Place your hand over your heart. 2. Show a gentle, but hurt facial expression. 3. Make eye contact with the person who hurt you. 4. Say, “Ouch” in a soft, but hurt tone. The children now know that this is a safe, kind way to express hurt feelings. If a mistake is made, family members can use this tool so they can apologize and make things better.

Upcoming Events

Valentines Day: I know that valentines are now available in most stores, and children will be asking about our celebration. We will exchange cards in class on February 14th, but this is not a "party." We have a fun celebration of friendship, exchange valentines, and take them home to show our families. So that you can prepare for this event, I wanted to share some information:

1. Please send in a card for each child. There are 24 total students in our class: 13 girls and 11 boys.
2. Please ONLY sign the card & put nothing in the TO box. It is challenging enough for kindergartners to pass out valentines to all their classmates. Having the "to" part filled out makes this extremely challenging and it takes far too long. Thank you for your help with this!
3. Please try to purchase valentines that do not have candy attached. I know those can sometimes be hard to find, but there are good choices with stickers, play tattoos, and other non-food goodies.

**Library is every Wednesday. Please return your child's library book by Tuesday each week.

**School spirit days are every Wednesday. Wear your Alta Vista t-shirts or your Panda t-shirts to show your school pride (this week it's dressing like you're 100 years old instead)

 

This Week's Helpers & Activities
Monday: No School: Staff Work Day
Tuesday: Centers @ 12:20  (Sehwa & Lauren)
Wednesday: Library @ 9:10 (Reader: Steve & Check in & out: Nikta), Dismissal @ 1:15
Thursday:  Centers @ 12:20 (Sehwa & Sara Frances)
Friday:  Music @ 10:20

Upcoming Events

Monday, 1/29: No School: Teacher Work Day

Wednesday, 1/31: 100th Day of School

Monday, 2/5: Snow Day

Thursday, 2/8: Art Vista @10:30

Wednesday, 2/14: Valentines Exchange

2/19-2/23: Presidents' Week Vacation

3/4-3/12: Parent-Teacher Conferences