And Now, We Are on to a New Month and the Many Activities Outlined Below

December 2016

Dear Parents,

As I sit writing this newsletter, it’s hard to believe that November is coming to an end and we are so quickly approaching the end of 2016! Personally, my family had a very busy year but as much as we try to enjoy and appreciate the experiences of each day, time is passing much too fast! It even seems to be the case for the little ones! So, here we are recapping the events of the past month.

Our Thanksgiving play was the highlight providing a valuable experience for your children from the research, to the writing, to the costumes and scenery, to the practice and presentation. We incorporated all of our subject areas as we prepared: patterns, counting, calendar review, reading about and listening to stories of Thanksgiving, sequencing the events of the first Thanksgiving celebration as we wrote the play, writing about the experience as though we were there with the Pilgrims, learning new vocabulary such as freedom, liberty, pride, Native American, habitat, community, harvest, fertile, and working together toward a common goal knowing the everyone’s contribution was valuable and necessary. It was a great learning experience and we are grateful for your attendance at the big event! We even learned how to make homemade pie crust!!

And now, we are on to a new month and the many activities outlined below.

LANGUAGE ARTS

As I complete report card assessments, I am pleased with the progress the children are making. I am looking forward to sharing their work with you at our conference time and reviewing the report card. Please be sure to come prepared with any questions or concerns you might want to address.

This month, we will complete our LEAD 21 unit on homes and families then begin our next unit titled Let’s Explore the Outdoors. We will place some emphasis on letters Dd, Cc, and, if time, Kk. At this point, most of the children

are quite comfortable with letter identification and corresponding sound(s). We continue to work on correct formation, hearing the sounds within a word, blending sounds to decode words, and the ability to independently write the sounds when working on a story. We spent quite a bit of time in November working on this skill through our Thanksgiving writing pieces and and new class

publications. I ask the children to say their word with me so that they do not become dependent on hearing the teacher accentuate the sounds. We also use our “finger spelling” strategy: The children touch their fingers to their lips as they segment the sounds within a word then move their hand away from their mouth as they “throw the word forward.” With the proper focus, the children are capable of hearing the sounds and simultaneously writing what they hear. This is a multi-faceted skill that takes time, practice, and developmental readiness. As we read our books and join in small guided reading groups, we pay close attention to initial sounds so that we are not merely guessing at a word based solely on the picture clues. We have to strike a balance between learning these skills while at the same time not laboring over the text to the point of interfering with comprehension and enjoyment. Reading strategies are developing. As we sing in our song:

I put my sounds together,

I look at pictures, I think about it,

and when it all makes sense then I can read!

MATH

We will complete Chapter 4, numbers to 10 while using addition and subtraction to figure out more, fewer, and “how many more.” As we enter Chapter 5, we will be focusing on measurement. During our morning meeting, we will place emphasis a number recognition beyond 10. We will continue to review numbers in the teens learning that these numbers are always 10 and an amount from 1 to 9. Using the 10 frame is an important strategy to help us understand that concept. As always, our daily meeting will provide review of all concepts learned to date. Of course, our most anticipated Math activity will be counting down the days to Christmas!

As you complete homework assignments, please do not be alarmed if your child has difficulty with the concepts especially as we introduce a new chapter. The lessons in school review and build. Learning and understanding will take place over time with practice and we cannot forget that there is a developmental readiness component at this age.

SCIENCE/HEALTH

We will prepare to usher in winter and hopefully, some snow. Yes, Mrs. DeWald likes snow! We continue to watch the weather and graph the temperature on a daily basis. It’s helpful for the children to have a visual that allows them to see the temperature changes as winter approaches. Of course, this past month provided us with much conversation about the most unusual weather!

We will continue to work on communities and community helpers. If you told me you were interested in teaching the children about your occupation, I will be calling you.

We will also talk a bit about personal safety as we head into the holiday season.

SOCIAL STUDIES

In order to promote the giving aspect of the holiday, we will be putting up an artificial evergreen tree that we will refer to as “The Kindness and Caring Tree.” Every time your child does an act of kindness whether in school or at home, he/she can put a star on the tree. Our goal is to put enough stars on the tree that by Dec. 13th (the celebration of light in Sweden), the lights will twinkle when we plug them in to shine on all of our acts of kindness and generosity. If we have not been kind and caring, the lights will not work and we’ll have to spend a few days trying harder. I don’t anticipate this will be the case as I have a classroom full of willing helpers.

We will be preparing our Christmas program for you throughout the month. Our kindergarten Christmas show has become a tradition at Cloverbank and puts everyone in the holiday spirit.

We will be learning some of the holiday traditions from other parts of the world and will discover many similarities among cultures. If you have a holiday tradition that you would like to share with us, please let me know. We would love to hear about it!

Grandma Jane will be reading The Elf on the Shelf. She has provided us with a classroom elf. He will move around each evening and the children will have to find him when they return in the morning. You never know where he might end up! She will also be giving each child a miniature elf to take home.

Additionally and most importantly: Please see the attached letter titled: PAJAMA DRIVE. I am asking that you allow your child to complete a job or chore at home that would allow him/her to possibly earn money to put toward a new pair of pajamas for children in need. I will be telling the children that there are others in the world that are not as fortunate as they are and we can share what we have with them. The important ingredient here, and one that I will stress in school, is that your children worked to earn money or help out at home in order to benefit the needs of others. I am not talking about an expensive pair of pajamas but ones that meet the necessary requirements as outlined in the flyer. The goal is giving of self no matter how

small. If mom or dad send in a pair of pajamas that your child has no part in choosing or purchasing, although the donation is appreciated, the experience is

not as valuable. We would love to know what they did to earn money or help out at home so that others would not go without. And, of course, they will add stars to our tree through their kindness and generosity! All donations will be needed no later than Friday, Dec. 16th.

Thanks, in advance, for your help with this project.

As I look ahead to Christmas, the season of gifts and giving, know that your children continue to be a gift each day as I watch their curiosity and witness their growth.

Try to enjoy the season, amidst the frenzy of preparations, and celebrate family and traditions. Make the most of the remainder of 2016!!

Happy preparations,

Mrs. Mary DeWald

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SCHEDULE

Dec. 2 (Friday)EARLY DISMISSAL (12:00) Teacher Records Day

Dec. 9 (Friday)EARLY DISMISSAL (12:00) Parent/Teacher Conferences

Dec. 12 (Monday)NO SCHOOL for students, Parent/Teacher Conferences

Dec. 16 (Friday)All pajamas due for PAJAMA DRIVE.

Dec. 21(Wednesday)Kindergarten Christmas Show

12:30 in the auditorium ALL ARE WELCOME!

Dec. 22 (Thursday) Classroom Christmas celebration in the morning.

Dec. 23 (Friday)School wide Polar Express Day (more info. to follow)

Dec. 24-Jan. 2 Christmas Vacation.

Jan. 3School Resumes.

Visits to the Lakeshore Library will be scheduled as weather and time permit.