News for week of 9-17-07

We started the week a little slow after having such a nice break, but quickly got to work! We read the Gingerbread Man and worked on activities all week to reinforce the story, it’s characters and the sequence of events. Ask your child to “sing” our funky version, they loved it! We’ve begun targeting story elements like the ones listed above, we also did Jonah and the Whale and included those in the retelling and our art work during center time. We use the words, “first, then, next, and last” when naming sequences in a story. We made gingerbread cookies Friday, we’ll decorate them Monday to send home, hopefully they will get home before they’re eaten. We learned a new dance “Macarena Math”; it’s a fun way to get the kids counting by ones, twos, fives, and tens, while they’re doing movements with the counting. Integrating the kinesthetic actions with the counting reinforces the learning…and it’s fun!
We did a lot of work preparing for Yom Kippur, we had great conversations about hurting someone and when you do say I’m sorry, you’re also saying “I won’t do it again”. That’s a huge part of any apology and the kids really got the meaning through our classroom meetings. We made slippers from felt and “I’m Sorry” cards during some of our writing time. This was a tough activity because not only was it following directions, it was learning how to cut a heart with a folded piece of paper as well as the writing that went with it. Right now our focus on writing is getting them confident in taking risks, we talk about the different types of writing: squiggles, symbols, single letters etc. We want the kids to understand the concept of written language and that there are different forms that all convey meaning. You may see writing that comes home with their pencil writing and adult writing in pen. They write their “kid writing” first, then we come along and do the adult writing with them. This protects the integrity of their work while demonstrating the writing that goes with it. We do not correct their work, or tell them to “sound it out”, they’re not able to do this yet, and it’s very defeating when they put so much work into the product. We’re focusing on process not outcome.
We talked this week about the kids at Vogel Alcove, I went into more depth about how those children are homeless and the alcove is the only school they have. It was amazing to see the looks on their faces when they realized how little those children have and how much we do. I’m in the process of contacting Vogel Alcove, the volunteer director has been out sick, I will call again next week. I’d like to plan a fieldtrip to visit the kids and come back to our class and reflect on how we can make a special birthday party for them. I think seeing the kids first will help our children get better ideas of what they would like to do for them. More on that when I speak with someone there.
Reminders:
· Please send a baby photo of your child for a class book we’re making
· Noon release on Wednesday, September 26th (no lunch)
· Early Childhood Parent Meeting is scheduled for October 10th at 7:30 pm in the boardroom. The topic is The Jewish Spiritual Connections of the New Early Childhood Curriculum: Growth in “Frumkeit”
· Annual PTA Sukkot Dinner, Tuesday, October 2nd, 6:00-8:00pm
· I have added some of our photos to Shutterfly but couldn’t add them all due to computer problems, please check back later this week for the rest
Just a note:
Kindergarten is a tough year in many ways. The kids are growing so fast not only physically but emotionally. If your child is experiencing any frustrations,
please let Leah or me know if we can help in any way. We want to not only grow their minds but their hearts while they’re with us!