I have made the executive decision to stop doing the strips in the planners with our daily update and devote that time to making posts on right on this page!! This will save time with checking through those planners that I can put to better use. With that being said, here's what's been happening and going to be going on this week!!
We have extensively been working on ten frames in during math time! Today students taught their neighbors the correct way to count with ten fames. We also practice our new framework task: Handfuls of Counting. The way we play is that students reach one hand into a manipulative container and place that ONE handful of counters on their ten frames. We focus on counting from left to right. We talk about how many boxes in that ten frame are empty. We also figure out how many more counters we need to make ten! These are all Math Standards found in our CCGPS. If you would like to look at what your kindergartener will learn this year in math you can see our
state standards. Simply go to the right hand side of the webpage and scroll down to unit one and check out what we have been and will be learning! You can check out all of the kindergarten standards in each subject at the webpage linked above!
Our first unit of English Language Arts has been focused on Friendships. We have read many, many stories centered on making friends and being friends. Today we read a story about puppies as a prequel to our story tomorrow about a little girl who happens to be blind with a special furry friend that helps her throughout the day. We will watch a quick clip on helper dogs and write about times that we have been helpful to others.
Writing has really picked up this month! I have noticed some very great handwriting and some improvements on our personal writing skills. Students have begun a writing journal. This is kept at their seat and encourages different types of writings. We are following the writing curriculum developed by
Ms. Lilypad Primary Pond. Every student has their own writing journals. In those journals students are to complete a different writing task each day. I have really seen some great writing happening in the jammer room! below is a list of unit goals I have for this first unit in our writing curriculum:
- Use crayons, pencils, and both sides of a blank piece of paper appropriately
- Write name on work
- Get started right away during independent work time, and stay on task throughout the workshop
- Clean up immediately upon hearing the clean up signal
- Use a writing folder to sort writing pieces as “finished” and “in progress”
- Draw a picture that communicates an idea
- Incorporate multiple colors into a picture
- Revisit a picture to add more detail to drawings of people
- Revisit a picture to add more detail to drawings of animals / plants
- Revisit a picture to add more detail to the setting / background
- Independently make a decision about what to do next, when finished with one piece of writing
- Dictate a sentence about a picture for an adult to write down
- Include labels on pictures for people’s names and objects
- Use invented spelling to approximate words by listening for known sounds
- Use an alphabet chart as an aid in invented spelling
- Listen respectfully during buddy sharing time and whole group sharing time
Things have been a little different lately in our room! Friday was Ms. Mikell's last day so we have been with a substitute this week. We are BEYOND grateful for Ms. Brannen for coming in and helping us with the day-to-day. When we have our new paraprofessional we may go back to the planner daily updates, but for now just check in on here to see what we've been up to! Who knows maybe this will help me to remember to keep up with this website!!! :0) Perhaps a blessing in disguise!
I am looking forward to our parent conference next week! Please be sure and sign up if you have not already! Our meetings really shouldn't last longer than thirty minutes! Hope you have a great week and here are some fun photos for your viewing!
