Mrs. Christensen's Kindergarten Class 2018-2019

Hello Families, On Monday, February 18th, we will observe George Washington's birthday.  There will be no school on this day.   On Tuesday, we have our Math Festival from 9:55-10:35.  We still need some volunteers to help out at the Festival.   We will continue learning about presidents and our country.  Also, we will continue our study on dental awareness for February!  Please encourage students to brush teeth, floss and eat healthy foods.  We will continue our biography study in RTI.  We will also introduce autobiographies. In Writers Workshop, students  are "editing" their  "How to" books and we will be celebrating in the next couple of weeks. In Readers Workshop, we are talking about reading with fluency not robot reading.  When reading at home try to help them with reading for fluency with our take home books.  If students still continue to sound out the words have them repeat the sentence with fluency for understanding.  Please remind

Hello Families, This week, we had so much fun learning about polar bears and how animals adapt to their environment.   We did a science experiment on blubber.  Ask your child about what they learned about blubber.   Next week, we have many celebrations!  On Monday, we'll celebrate "The 100th Day of School".  We have 4 fun centers planned to celebrate this special day! On Tuesday, Chinese New Year begins and we will have a few fun activities to celebrate.  We will finish our dragon mask on Tuesday, and have a "mini" parade on Wednesday.   Readers Workshop:  We will be introducing what vocabulary is and how to identify the definition of the word. We will be talking about biographies and autobiographies.  We will also introduce what a contraction is and how it is made up  of 2 words. Writers Workshop:  The class will be "picking a seed" which means they will choose one "how to" story they've written and nourish, edit and pub

Hello Families, We have a busy month ahead of us!  February is Black History, Dental, and Heart Awareness Month.  We will discuss the importance of each using a variety of resources.  We will also celebrate Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day, Groundhog Day, the 100th Day of School, and President's Day. Just a reminder, please turn in your next "Star of the Day" sharing. Collect 100 items and display them (no larger than 9x12).  One student did 100 stickers in groups of 10.  Another student made the number 100 out of a hundred rocks.  Be creative and have fun!  Bring it anytime this week or next so that we can continue our next "Star of the Day".   Math: Next week, we will continue subtraction word problems using manipulatives and white boards.  We will continue counting collections, math games in centers, and learning to count on.  Please continue to count to 100 by 1's, 5's and 10's which will help your child group objects.  Word

Dear Kindergarten Families, We had a great week!  Students were very excited to start the week and they all did an amazing job transitioning back to school. We read about Martin Luther King, Jr. and what makes him unique.   The students listened to a poem, "The Crayon Box That Talked", and drew a picture of what makes them unique.  Check it out on the wall! Word Wall Words:  "this", "that" Next week, we will learn about penguins and what makes them special animals.  The students will write a fact about penguins and it will be displayed on the bulletin board. Students are forgetting to bring folders in.  We had a couple important papers go home this week including our 100th Day Project and pictures.  If your child forgets their homework, it's important to send it as soon as possible.  I prefer not to send forms and/or projects home without the folders as the papers tend to get crinkled, wet or lost.   We will begin our "Ju

Hello Families, Wow! It is already December!  Time flies!   The next few weeks will be filled with winter, holiday, and Mind Up activities!  As we head into the holidays,  I find that students are more energetic and need "calm" during this time of year.  We will spend time discussing how to be "mindful"  using our senses.  We will practice mindful breathing and meditation.  I hope the students will be able to take these practices and use them at home! This week, we will also be finishing up gingerbread stories and projects.  We will also make cards for the our Reading Buddies and for our families. In Writer's Workshop,  students are wrapping up their narrative stories.  They are editing and adding more details to their pictures and writing.  At home, please practice writing sentences using spaces and punctuation, as this tends to be a teaching point revisited often.  Also, have your child practice writing s

Hi Kindergarten Families,  Since we only have school on Monday and Tuesday next week, we’ll spend time reviewing prior concepts and continuing to observe and study our caterpillars.   On Tuesday, we will have a small “friendship gathering"  in honor of Thanksgiving.  We will give the students a small snack and focus on manners, friendship and the meaning of being “thankful” and “giving”.  With Thanksgiving on my mind, I’d like to thank all of you who have volunteered/donated to our class in many different ways this year. Without your support we would not be able to do so many exciting activities in our class. I am very thankful for each and every one of you and your wonderful children! Word wall word: are After our Thanksgiving break, we will start our unit on Gingerbread Man stories.  We will read a variety Gingerbread stories.   We will be comparing the different settings, characters, and events.  Every year, we find more stories with a Gingerbread theme!  If you have