Kindergarten News - Week of October 27th

 

   We have had 44 days of school!

Star Student: Iron was our Star Student! He turned 6 in October. Iron's favorite color is red. He loves to play on his phone and with his dog and cat, and also loves to help his dad on projects. His favorite food is pizza and his favorite sport in soccer. When he grows up he wants to farm with grandpa Ziesman

Pumpkin Carving: After reading the story of Little Boo, the story about a pumpkin seed that wants to be scary, it was especially fun to explore our pumpkin. Everyone had a chance to predict whether it would be heavy or light and lifted it to see if they agreed with their prediction. Then we cut the top off and everyone took turns holding it and exploring how it felt and smelled. Someone said it smelled a lot like the big cucumbers they have at home! Finally we got to take out the "guts". It was generally agreed that it felt slimy and they noticed how orange their hands were. When they saw the pumpkin seeds, there was a chorus of "Little Boo!". Finally Mr. Daniel carved the eyes, nose and mouth as per everyone's directions and turned our pumpkin into a Jack-o-lantern.

Show and Tell: Skateboarding in the classroom? Yes, that did happen.

Deen said his cool skateboard was gifted to him by his uncle. His favorite feature was the shark picture on the bottom. And of course, a demonstration was expected. Deen made it clear that he was still learning and carefully (and safely) showed us how to use it. Also this week,Talia brought in one of her favorite dolls (she says she has many) and a toy cell phone. Yes, it's a one item deal, but Talia reasoned well. The phone is what moms use when they walk around with their babies to make important calls and text...Fortunately Talia was able to shift attention back to the baby with her very detailed story of how she and her brother play together! Great job, Deen and Talia!

Bicycle Doubles: We have made it to Unit 3 (please check overview). This week we explored the concept of doubles (even) numbers by looking at wheels on a bicycle.  To help with the process, everyone made a drawing of a bicycle and added it to our growing pattern chart. We also introduced a new Work Place - Grab Bag Doubles, another fun way to practice recognizing doubles.

Reading:

'The Legend of Spookley the Square Pumpkin' took us on a thoughtful journey about appreciating differences. Spookley who was often teased because he was different, became the hero who saved the day. The class talked about how being different makes each one of us special. They then went on to color their own pumpkins for Spookley's pumpkin patch.

Global Perspectives:

Our Family Tree presentations have been so enjoyable!

This week Leith and his mom presented their family tree. Leiths family members are primarily Palestinian, though he has family member living in many places, including his grandmother who is visiting from Hawaii and who is of Russian and English background. With so many family members it was especially challenging for Leith to remember so many names! At the end of his presentation the class was treated to a delicious dish called "Maqluba" (upside down), a very popular dish in Palestine. The dish consists of rice, chicken and fried vegetables which is placed in a pot and then flipped over. The children were excited to taste it and so were the teachers! The next day Nicholas and his mom presented their family tree. Their family is mostly originating from Trinidad and Tobago, with many now born and raised in the Virgin Islands. Nicholas has a cousin who has not been born yet, but somehow still got most of the attention! After multiple questions about his family, Nicholas was also asked about music. It turns out they listen to soca, so everyone got up and danced to 'Coco Tea' by

Kes who is also from Trinidad. After dancing, everyone was ready for a snack. Ms. Jessica came ready with Nicholas' favorite Dahl and Rice and some Curry chicken. What a delicious treat it was! It's really wonderful to see this class be adventurous with food two days in a row! We might be getting a little spoiled...

Halloween:

And then there was Halloween! I am sure you felt it too. The rising energy and volume to match. There was excitement, even if they weren't quite clear why so excited. We made it to Friday and everyone started coming in in their costumes all adorable, and yes - there were some spooky ones in the mix. We paraded once around the school to be admired by all and then they were ready to get on with their day and certainly looking forward to more Halloween activities later on.

Kindergarten News - Week of October 20th

   We have had 39 days of school!

A Peek at our Week:

Composing & Decomposing Shapes.

This week we talked about quilts and we cut out butterflies. It took a minute to convince the class that this was all a part of Math class!   As everyone completed their quilt ‘blocks’ it all made more sense. Everyone helped to assemble the quilt by laying their blocks in an ABAB pattern.  At the end of the week, we introduced a new Work Place “Pattern Block Puzzles”. For this one, each student must use pattern blocks (hexagon, rhombus, triangle, and trapezoid) to recreate a puzzle three different ways.

Show and Tell: Always a big event in the class, this week Nicholas showed the

class his fishing rod. The class was impressed by its size and even more by his ability to cast the line (outside). He told them about different parts of the rod and what each is used for. Nicholas also shared that he has caught Tuna before! Afterward, Olivia was up with a beautiful collection of Sea glass. Olivia was wearing a very striking necklace, which she said she learned how to make at a jewelry making class. Olivia also told the class where she looks for sea glass and let the class inspect various pieces that she bought along. To showcase her creativity with sea glass, Olivia showed a picture she made of herself as a Moko jumbie. Awesome!

Family Tree Presentations: Frankie and her mom got us started with a wonderful presentations. Since mom is from Canada, they made their tree to look a bit like a Maple tree! Both mom and Frankie also wore Canada t-shirt and sweatshirt. Frankie told the class about her family and very 'teacher like' told her classmates to 'raise their hands' to ask questions. It was wonderful to see how excited she was about making this presentation. Looking forward to seeing more next week.

Who are our friends?: As we are reaching the end of our family and friends unit in Global Perspectives, we talked this week about what a good friend is. The class gave many examples of friends being someone who helps, listens, shares, and has fun with us.

Kindergarten News - Week of October 13th

  We have had 35 days of school!

A Peek at our Week:

*Just a quick note: I like to always include some pictures, but there are many times when we just have to be right in the moment and that won't happen. That's the kind of week we had. A shorter, but always busy week!

Tallying. Kindergartners have discovered that they have many different Math tools that can help them count. This week they were introduced to ‘tallying’. The concept of making a ‘gate’ for 5, is still a little confusing, but we used Tally Cards and with the help of popsicle sticks, everyone had a chance to practice tallying. The 'Home Connection" sheet that went home on Friday - they get to practice tallying with toothpicks!

We are Storybook readers! What fun was had this week, we jumped into the world of storytelling! In this ‘pre-reading’ phase, Kindergartners will retell familiar stories. This retelling will mimic reading, as they match their words to the pictures and sound like the characters. They are excited to look at books, even though they are not yet sure about the storytelling part. The fun is only just beginning!

Is it Halloween yet?? Seems like that's our daily question. Our Number Corner calendar shows us that it's not quite yet, but they are anxious to talk about costumes and dream about candy. So, in our Friday Art block, we tied Halloween in with some Math, by making "Shape' Monsters! Everyone had fun thinking and designing what, I think, are some of the cutest monsters around. Come by our windows and check them out!

ELC Garden: Kindergarteners always have fun exploring the garden. This week

they counted five cucumbers! When the children noticed a bee buzzing around, Ms. Christina explained to the class that without bees we wouldn't have the cucumbers! After a bit of gardening, it was time to munch on some cucumber slices! Yum! This time Ms. Christina brought some homemade Ranch dressing (aka Jolly Rancher dressing). If your child ever asks for cucumber with Jolly Rancher, you'll know what they're asking for. It was all very delicious and I love seeing my Kindergartners enjoying fresh vegetables!

Kindergarten News - Week of October 6th

 We have had 31 days of school!

A Peek at our Week:

 Introducing the Number Rack. Kindergartners have discovered that they have many different Math tools that can help them count and solve number problems. This week they were introduced to the ‘Number Rack’ and even had a chance to make one for themselves. Using ten-frame cards, they practiced moving the beads on their number racks to reflect the corresponding number - in preparation for the new Work Place, “Numbers & Number Racks”.

Fire Safety & Prevention Week: How exciting to get a visit from the Virgin Islands Fire Department during Fire Safety & Prevention Week! In class we talked about what to do in case of a fire. Our discussions were so good that by the time the firefighters arrived, they were very impressed with what they were hearing. Everyone had a chance to sit in the cab of the firetruck , but the highlight was certainly spraying water from the fire hose!

SEL: Our monthly lesson focused on 'personal space'."May I pop your bubble and tickle you?” is the question I heard frequently! Ms. Bird talked with the class about respecting each other's space. Everyone extended their arms to create their bubble and walked around the classroom asking their classmates if they could "pop" their bubble. They also practiced telling someone nicely that they do not like being hugged or tickled (etc) and then practiced saying it again in a firmer voice if their nicer request was ignored.

Show and Tell:

This week Brooklyn brought her bunny 'blanket'
"Petunia", which she said was a special gift from her dad. She demonstrated to the class how Petunia could 'sing' by pressing a button. Then Frankie showed off her doll, Blueberry, who likes to hide! Frankie and her mom had to search very hard for this special doll which was made by her auntie. Luckily they found her just in time for her big presentation!

ELC Garden: Kindergarteners got busy in the garden again this week. With Ms. Christina's guidance they inspected the leaves of the cucumber plant and searched for different types of leaves. They spent some time smelling and tasting the leaves of the Basil plants and some were brave and tried "Island Thyme" which was a little spicier. After that, they got busy digging holes to plant tomato plants and water any plants in need.

Readers can Teach! As we continued exploring 'Learn About the World' books, the class was excited for the opportunity to teach. They sat in small groups and selected one book each to get to know very well. They then took turns teaching what they learned in their books. It was wonderful to see how attentive each group was when their classmate presented.

Kindergarten News - Week of September 29th

  We have had 27 days of school!

A Peek at our Week:

• FUN RUN: Was there anything else?? Kindergartners were so excited
  about this event and when the big day came, they were all in! Everyone did an incredible job running one lap after another. By the end their arms were heavy with bracelets and they were really proud of themselves. After the run, they still had the energy to tackle the giant obstacle course and play in the foam! They absolutely loved every moment and were definitely up to the challenge. We used the bracelets in Math class to count and also to compare and predict if one stack had more or less bracelets in it. Since there was little time left for our math class that day, counting all of the bracelets was the perfect activity. Thanks to all of your support, Kindergarten landed in 2nd place. Yay!!

• Dots To Ten: This week we started our second Math Unit, which has Kindergartners exploring numbers to ten and different ways to see and count to ten. They learned the funny word “subitizing”, i.e. identifying the number of items in a set simply by looking at it. We had fun practicing this skill with the new work place "Count and Compare Dots". (check Bridges in Mathematics Unit 2 overview)
• Show and Tell:
  
  Everyone looks forward to this special time. This week, Jahlicia (JJ) showed everyone her iPad. She showed the class the lovely picture on her home screen and told them which games she likes the most. Next Leith showed the class his Buzz Lightyear toy, complete with attached rocket. Everyone got a kick out of the Rocket lighting up at Buzz Lightyear's command!
  
• 
  Hispanic Heritage Month/Art: We continued to celebrate Hispanic Heritage month, by reading books by hispanic authors, dancing to Latin music, and learning more about Colombia. At the end of the week, we painted the Puerto Rican flag, in anticipation of VI/Puerto Rico friendship day .
• 
  ELC Garden: Kindergarten has been enjoying their gardening sessions. The best part, this week was being able to harvest a beautiful cucumber. Ms. Christina (Jaspers mom) sliced it up for everyone to taste and most really enjoyed it!