Thursday October 28, 2010

Just wanted to write a quick note to let you know that the students are currently in lunch and are enjoying every minute of it! I will not be able to blog until later this evening, as I will be attending a math PD this afternoon. Check back later to see what your child was up to today!

Wednesday October 27, 2010

Wow! What a windy day! I'm surprised those little kindergarten bodies don't just blow away.

We talked about what our favorite types of transportation are this morning. During computer lab time, the students used KidPix to draw a picture of their favorite vehicle. We printed them off and will be sending it home as another class-made book! Look for it to come home over the next couple of weeks!

Mrs. Abbey read, How Partridge Built Canoes. The students listed many ways in which they knew that the story was fiction.

During handwriting, the students practiced writing shapes. Next week we begin letters!

In guidance, Mrs. Canada and Mrs. Russell talked to the students about how to make friends. The students role played a skit about making friends, and drew a picture of a friend in their workbook.

Mrs. Abbey worked with small groups of students reading the book, Tig Can See.

Tomorrow is our late dismissal. The students are very excited to be eating lunch at school! Please remember to send a drink in your child's lunch box. There will not be recess. At 12:35 I will take the pick-up students outside to the north end of the school, and we will wait as a group for parents to pull up. It is a long line, so please be patient! As an alternate, you may pick your child up in our classroom at 12:25, or park in the lot (either the main lot or north end lot) and walk to the North side of the school to pick up your child. See you then!

Just a reminder...there is no school on Friday.

Tuesday October 26, 2010

Check out our first video! We were talking about fall leaves and the students decided that they wanted to sing me a song about fall leaves that they had learned in music class. Enjoy!

The students did a much better job of listening today. Many of them counted their tickets and traded in for a prize! Some of the students have been saving a long time...to earn a prize from the 25 ticket box...and have succeeded! For others, it is difficult to save tickets...they would rather trade in more frequently for smaller prizes or stickers.

The students helped retell the story, The Bus for Us, using retelling cards. We talked about making predictions in the story. We discussed why we liked the story. Some ideas were--"I like the colors.", "It has fire trucks in it.", "I like to guess what's coming next."

Thank you to Blake's mom who helped with a color mixing science investigation! Half of the class had a chance to mix colors using eye droppers and colored water. The other half will finish next week when I have another parent volunteer here to help out!

In PE, the students played "Ghostbusters". They were exhausted when I went to pick them up. It might be a good afternoon for a nap!

The students practiced forward circles in handwriting today.

Thank you to all of the parents who returned the early dismissal questionnaire so quickly! I did notice an incorrect time on the form...if you would like to pick your child up in the classroom (instead of driving through the pick-up line, which gets quite long and crazy especially on early-dismissal days), please come to the classroom and pick your child up at 12:25. (I had written 11:25. Sorry for the confusion.)

Monday October 25, 2010

Oh boy, were we loud today! Mrs. Abbey needed to remind the class several times to work quietly and talk in whisper talk with their buddies. We also had quite a few students who thought it would be great if they acted silly. We are working on this issue, with the goal being that the students know when it is ok to act silly and when it is important to listen, learn, and work. We will talk more about these social skills at conference time!

Today we started a new literacy unit: transportation. We brainstormed a list of vehicles and other things we ride in (hot air balloons, rockets, bicycles, wagons, etc.). The kids had many good ideas! Mrs. Abbey read, The Bus For Us, a fiction story about all the vehicles the kids see while waiting for the bus. Our focus sound for the week is /t/. Our new sight word we will be practicing this week is "see".

In handwriting, we reviewed the lines we have learned so far and started learning forward circles. In our handwriting curriculum, we will start learning letters later this week!

The students practiced basic addition story problems today. Mrs. Abbey pulled students individually to re-assess number recognition #0-30. Many students get mixed up with the teen numbers, and a handful are saying the 20's numbers backwards (ex. 26 is "62"). I am in the process of creating some fun number flash cards that I will be sending home later this week for you to practice with your child. Mrs. Abbey is making a special recognition chart to hang in the classroom which celebrates when students have learned their numbers 1-10, 10-20, and 20-30! Continue to help your child practice their numbers at home, and I will continue assessing their growth and will add them to the chart when they have mastered it!

Tomorrow is PE. Please have your child wear PE shoes.

We are talking about fall and leaves. If you and your child would like to collect a few leaves and press them flat, we would love to do some leaf rubbings here at school! If you have the time, send some in! Thanks!

A note regarding our "late" dismissal on Thursday was sent home today. Please remember that the bus does not run at dismissal time, so you must plan transportation for your child on early dismissal days. Please fill out the sheet and return to me tomorrow (if possible).

Also in your child's backpack is a fundraiser packet. If you would like to order or have family, friends, or neighbors order please fill out the order form and return to school on Monday Nov. 1. Thank you!

Upcoming/Reminders:

•Picture retakes are tomorrow, Tuesday Oct. 26. Please send back your pictures if you would like your child's pictures retaken.

•Thursday October 28 is a 12:35 dismissal day. Please return the form in your child's folder no later than Wednesday Oct. 27. Thank you!

•There is No School on Friday October 29.

•Please send in your child's reading log (goldenrod paper with pumpkins) as soon as you are done recording your minutes read. A new reading log for the month of November will go home on Monday!

Thursday October 21, 2010

Happy Pajama Day!

I'm not sure if it was the pajamas or what, but the students had a challenging time of listening and following directions today (not only in our classroom, but in art class as well). We'll try harder tomorrow!

During large group, we talked about how friends help us and how we have helped our friends. Mrs. Abbey read The Turtle and the Sheep, a story about 2 friends who helped each other in different ways.

In science, we reviewed what we have learned about spiders, and shared some more spider books the students had brought. We will finish up talking and reading about spiders tomorrow. We are also planning to go outside to investigate the fall changes of trees tomorrow morning. Please send a sweatshirt or coat with your child, so that they are not cold. Thanks!

Thank you to Ella's mom for helping us with a math activity today!

Tomorrow is School Pride Day...try to wear something with our school colors--purple and yellow!

We are still collecting plastic bags for one more week! Continue to send yours in. As of today, our school is in 2nd place in the competition!

Wednesday October 20, 2010

Happy Spider Day!

What a fun experience to have someone come and talk to us about spiders, and show us some spiders up close! Before going to the speaker, we talked about what we as a class already knew about spiders. Mrs. Abbey then read a book, called Super Spiders, which gave us some more knowledge about spiders. Did you know that spiders can have up to 8 eyes? Did you know that spiders are not insects? (Ask your child how many body parts and legs a spider has...insects have 3 body parts & 6 legs, while spiders have 2 body parts and 8 legs!) Thank you, Jasmine, for bringing in a live little spider for us to see! Also, thank you to all the students who brought spider books to share!! We will send them home on Friday. After returning from the spider presentation, we used our new knowledge about spiders to draw a picture in our science journals.

During guidance, the students watched a video about making good choices and only eating and drinking things that are healthy for our bodies. The students also drew a picture of themselves doing a healthy activity...these are in your child's folder.

Also in your child's folder is a Scholastic Parent & Child Magazine. I thought that this would be a good resource to use to help supplement your child's learning (since the kids are in school 4 hours less than the typical kindergarten student), so I ordered copies for all of the parents. This magazine usually has some great ideas about parenting and helping your child learn. A new magazine will come home every month. Enjoy!

Another important thing in your child's folder is their Smile Safe Cards. These cards are provided for mom's and dad's to keep in their wallet, in the unfortunate event that your child would be lost.

Tomorrow is pajama day! Your child may wear their pajamas, slippers, and/or a robe to school!

Parents of girls...just a reminder...if your child wears a dress or skirt to school, please have them wear a pair of shorts or pants underneath! Sometimes it's hard to sit or play when we are worried about others seeing our underwear. Thanks!

Tuesday October 19, 2010

Happy Hero Day! Tomorrow is "wear your exercise clothes" day.

The students helped Mrs. Abbey retell the story, Simon and Molly Plus Hester, using retelling cards with pictures from throughout the story. We talked about beginning, middle, and end. When reading books at home, see if your child can identify these things:
*Who are the characters?
*What is the setting (where does the story take place)?
*Is the story fiction (made-up) or non-fiction (real)?
*What happened at the beginning? the middle? the end?
These are all things we have been focusing on at school this month.

In PE, the 4th grade students helped our kindergarten class with the haunted house obstacle course. It sounds like they had a lot of fun!

We worked as a large group practicing story problems. Mrs. Abbey created many kinds of story problems for the students to figure out. You can do the same thing at home with your child! Just gather together some small manipulatives, such as 10-20 buttons, legos, or other little toys. Then make up a simple story problem for your child to work on!

Here's an example: "Anita went outside to look at the stars. She saw 4 stars in the sky. (child puts down 4 manipulatives). Anita looked a little longer and saw 3 more stars (child puts down 3 more manipulatives). How many stars did Anita see? (child counts up all manipulatives to get the correct answer)

The students enjoyed doing this math activity. Some students wanted to create their own story problems, which would be a wonderful thing to do at home together! Write down some of the story problems your child thinks up at home and send them to school. Mrs. Abbey will use those examples next time we work on story problems together!

Tomorrow, a visitor is coming to talk with the kindergarten students about spiders! If your child has any spider books or plastic spiders that they would like to share with the class, please send them to school tomorrow!

Monday October 18, 2010

The kids enjoyed wearing red for our first day of Red Ribbon and Character Counts week. Tomorrow they can dress up as their favorite hero...real hero or super hero!

We talked about friends and how sometimes friends don't get along. The students had some examples to share about the problems they've had with their friends and what they did to solve them. We talked about how it's important to have friends and to find ways to take turns, play fair, and get along. Mrs. Abbey read Simon and Molly Plus Hester, a fiction book about a boy who gets upset when a new girl moves in and "steals" his best friend. In the end, he realizes that his best friend is still his best friend, and that they can all be friends.

In handwriting, we practiced making backwards circles. We practiced the letters Oo and Cc, as both of these letters use the backwards circle stroke.

In math, we worked on basic addition using manipulatives and math fact cards. The students are getting very good at this! We will soon start story problems using basic addition facts.

Mrs. Abbey met with many of the students in individual writing conferences. During these conferences, the students have a chance to share with me all that they have been working on during writing time. We also make a goal to work on during the next month.

Coming Up:
•Wednesday we have a guest speaker coming to talk to the kindergarten classes about spiders!

•This Friday is the end of the first quarter of school. Can you believe we are 1/4 done with the year? The students are learning so much and are doing great! I can't wait to talk with each of you at conferences on November 22! (Reminder notes about your time will be going home soon.)

•Just a reminder that picture retakes are next Tuesday morning, Oct. 26. If you would like your child's picture retaken, please send back their envelope of pictures. Thanks!

•Thurs. Oct. 28 is an early dismissal day. Start thinking about how you are planning to have your child transported home that day, and let me know what you decide.

•Friday Nov. 5 is the last day to send in plastic bags for our collection. Remember to use your recyclable bags whenever you shop, and have them credit Horizon Elementary School!

Friday October 15, 2010

Happy Black Day!

Today we attended the celebration/assembly in the gym. Horizon Elementary was presented with the Bronze medal in the HealthierUS School Challenge! The kids really enjoyed the visit from "Power Panther" who reminded us to "Eat Smart and Play Hard"! In your child's folder is a sticker and frisbee for them to keep.

The assembly took up much of our morning, but we had a little time to practice backwards circles in our handwriting books. The students also went to library and checked out new books. They worked at stations (reading, writing, and working on letters and names) while Mrs. Abbey pulled students individually to work on reading and letter sounds.

Thank you to Jasmine's mom for coming to school to play a beginning sounds game with us!

Next week we celebrate Character Counts and Red Ribbon Week! Refer to the red sheet that went home on Thursday in order to dress appropriately each day of the week. Monday is "wear red" day.

I found a baggie of ABC cards in the classroom after school on Thursday. If your child did not bring home a baggie of ABC cards with a yellow activity card in it yesterday, please let me know. Thanks!

Picture retakes are Tuesday October 26. If you would like to have your child's picture retaken, please send the original picture packet back on re-take day.

Thursday October 14, 2010

Happy Brown Day! The students had a fun time "posing" for the picture today!

Thank you to Elijah for bringing such an appropriate book for the conclusion of our colors unit! Since it was such a familiar book for the students, they all helped me read it. Also, thank you to Roger who was thinking like a teacher, when he recommended we use Elijah's picture cards to sequence the story! What great thinking!

During handwriting, the students continued working on starting at the green dot and stopping at the red dot when writing. We finished our introduction to vertical lines. Tomorrow we begin practicing backward circles! Today, I sent home a baggie of uppercase and lowercase ABC cards from our Handwriting curriculum. Included in the baggie is a sheet of "game ideas". Use these cards at home to increase your child's confidence in letter sounds and word building! The students also thought of some other games they could play with the cards, which is wonderful! Use them however you think would benefit your child the best. The cards are yours to keep--they do not need to be returned to school.

In art, the students are using oil pastels to draw pictures of flowers. They look great!

We practiced adding using manipulatives, math fact cards, and counting boards today. The students are really working hard at this!

A big thank you to Kaylee C.'s mom for helping us out with a rhyming game today!

Tomorrow we have an assembly in the morning. Horizon Elementary School is being recognized for our nutrition/wellness program. It's a pretty big deal...even the media will be here!

Tomorrow is also black day!

Next week our school is celebrating "Character Counts" and "Red Ribbon Week". A flier went home in your child's backpack today. Each day of the week is a dress-up day!

Monday--wear red
Tuesday--dress up as your favorite hero (police, superhero, role model, etc.)
Wednesday--wear sweats/exercise clothes
Thursday--pajama day
Friday--wear purple and gold!

Wednesday October 13, 2010

Happy White Day!

Mrs. Abbey read, Brer Turtle Helps Out. We learned that one way of being a good friend is to be helpful. The students "turned to their partner" and talked about different topics about being a good friend and what they like to do together with their friends.

We mixed red and blue to make purple today. The kids just love color mixing! We recorded what we did in our science notebooks.

During handwriting, the students reviewed vertical lines and learned about horizontal lines. Ask your child to write each of these lines. By learning the fundamental writing strokes, we are laying the foundation for writing letters and numbers.

Mrs. Canada and Mrs. Russell talked with the students about feelings during guidance. They learned that it is okay to be angry, but it is not okay to hit, kick, yell, throw, etc. when we are angry. The students practiced "I feel _____." messages that they can use to talk about their feelings.

There will not be computer lab until the end of the month, due to the upper grades needing the labs for testing.

Mrs. Abbey is working with the students individually to find their current reading level. In a few weeks, your child will be bringing home a bag of books at their reading level that they will practice reading to you throughout the week. Each week, your child will bring home new books to practice. More information will be coming home soon!

Tomorrow is black day.

Tuesday October 12, 2010

Happy Green Day!

Our short morning is getting busier and busier! But at least we're still having fun while learning! Today, we did another science investigation where we mixed the colors yellow and blue. Many of the students guessed that it would make green. When asked how they knew, they said, "Because it's green day!".

During our literacy large group time, we used the retelling cards to retell the story, Friends All Around. We practiced identifying the lowercase letters of the alphabet. The kids are learning these real well! One area of weakness is the confusion between "b" and "d". We talked about the "bed strategy". (if you put your pointer fingers in the air and make circles with your thumbs and other fingers, your hands will resemble a "b" and a "d"....put them together to make a bed..bed starts with /b/ and ends with /d/.) Kind of crazy, but whatever works to help them remember!

We continued practicing vertical lines during handwriting. We practiced starting at the green dot and stopping at the red dot. Some of our lines went from top to bottom, and some of our lines went from the bottom to the top.

The students enjoyed playing a rhyming game with Ryan's mom today! Thank you for volunteering!

The students independently read the book, We Can Share to Mrs. Abbey today. The students are doing a wonderful job remembering the sight words we've learned so far: I, can, we, the, like, and a.

Tomorrow is white day. Please remember that we switched the day we wear our kindergarten t-shirts to coincide with white day.

I will be submitting the book order this evening. If you'd still like to order online, but haven't done that yet, please do so before 7pm. Thank you!

Monday October 11, 2010

Happy Orange Day!

What a busy morning! We talked about friends around the world. We learned that friends in other countries do some of the same things together as friends in the United States do, such as jump rope, ride bikes, build snow sculptures, etc. We also were reminded of the fact that it is ok to be friends with people who are different than us (different ages, boys or girls, different color skin, people who live in different states, etc.)

We learned a new sight word: "a". Right now, it is a little tricky for the students to say the word and not the sound that the letter a makes. With repeated practice reading, this will come. The letter sound we are focusing on this week is /p/. Thank you to Blake and his mom for sending in mini pumpkins for the kids--it fit in with our curriculum very well--/p/ as well as being orange!

We did a science investigation with color mixing. We mixed yellow and red. We recorded our results (orange) in our science notebooks. The students enjoyed creating their hypothesis and testing it! We will continue mixing primary colors throughout the week.

In handwriting, we learned about proper posture when writing and how to hold our pencil. We looked through our handwriting workbooks, playing an I-Spy game to find different concepts in it (colored lines for writing, arrows that tell us how to make the letter, green dots to show us where to start, and stop and check signs.

During small groups, the students worked hard to identify initial sounds of words (/s/, /p/, and /m/). We also read the book, We Can Share.

Every Monday morning after the Pledge of Allegiance, we recite the "Horizon Promise". The students wanted me to give you a copy of the promise so that they could practice it at home. Here it is:

As citizens of Horizon Elementary we will be the kind of friends that can be trusted. We will be honest . We will be respectful of the people and places around us. We will participate in the activities of our school and always do our personal best.

I will also send home a copy of the promise in your child's folder later this week.

Reminders:
•Book orders are due tomorrow. You may order books online or send your order form and money to school. Thank you!
•Tomorrow is green day!
•This Friday we have a Healthy School Award Assembly!

Friday October 8, 2010

Happy Purple Day!

What an exciting day we had today! The Johnston fire department came to visit the kindergarten students. They talked about what to do if the fire alarm goes off at school or at home. They stressed the importance of having a meeting place so that everyone is accounted for and safe. They talked about the different pieces of clothing that they wear when they go to a fire, and even had Mrs. Abbey try it all on! Boy, was it heavy!

The firefighters gave everyone homework...to sit down with mom and dad and make a fire plan--what to do if there is a fire in your house (how to get out, where to meet, etc.) They would also like everyone to test their smoke detectors/fire alarms, so that the kids know what they sound like, and to practice a fire drill at your home.

The students learned that it is important to "stay low and go" if there is a fire. They also learned how important it is to "stay out once out"...that they should never go back into a house or building that is on fire. The firefighters talked about calling 911 if there is a fire. They also talked to the students about not being afraid if a fire fighter is trying to help them, and not to hide if there is a fire. Ask your child what they learned from the firefighters!

Back in class, we read a Time Magazine article about fire safety. These are coming home with your child today. Read them together, and ask your child to show you "stop, drop, & roll".

The students went to the library today! Don't worry if your child forgot their library book...they can return their books any day of the week to check out a new one!

Thank you to Elijah's mom who worked with the students today! We love our parent volunteers!

Monday is orange day!

Have great weekend!

Thursday October 7, 2010

Happy Pink Day!

We started talking about color mixing today! A big thank you to Ella's mom who helped out with a hand painting/color mixing science investigation! The kids enjoyed making their handprints and seeing what color was going to appear when 2 colors were mixed together. We have them hanging in our classroom. Next time you are in the school, stop by and check them out! The kids love talking about them! We will continue learning about colors and color mixing next week.

It has come to my attention that there is a conflict with our color days next week. Here is the revised color schedule:
•Monday--orange
•Tuesday--green
•Wednesday--white & wear Team Kindergarten t-shirts!
•Thursday--black
•Friday--brown

Tomorrow is purple day!

Mrs. Abbey read My Friends, a nonfiction story about things that friends like to do together. We practiced our a-z phonics songs, and focused on the /s/ sound at the beginning and end of words. This skill (deciding if the /s/ sound was at the beginning or end of the word they heard, ie. "sock" or "bus") was challenging for many of the students.

We started talking about fire safety today. Tomorrow a fire fighter comes to talk with the class! They are very excited for this special visitor!

Reminders:
•Remember to help your child fill out their pumpkin reading log this month each time you read together! It can be returned any time it is filled up, before November 1st.
•Students should continue practicing their Aa apple charts with you at home until they have mastered all of the letter names and letter sounds. Also, please find time to read the small white books your child brings home during the week. (There are usually two books that go home each week which focus on the words and skills we are learning in class.)
•Tomorrow is library day. If your child would like to check out a new book, please help them remember to return their book tomorrow.

Wednesday October 6, 2010

Happy Yellow Day!

Today we talked about games we like to play with our friends. We discussed how we don't always like the same things as our friends, but that we can still play together and be friends. Mrs. Abbey read Games Around the World, a non-fiction story about games that kids play no matter where they live, such as hopscotch, clapping games, mancala, and string games like Jacob's ladder. We practiced "turn to your partner" to discuss different things throughout the story. The students are really enjoying talking with their classmates about what we are learning, and it's a good way to get all of their voices heard.

In computer lab, Mrs. Abbey introduced the students to a new program, Kidpix. We learned how to "paint" using this program. The students practiced painting their names and some drew pictures around the edge. We printed our very best work to take home today! We will continue exploring and using Kidpix through the end of November, and will come back to it throughout the school year.

In guidance, the students played a sorting game to determine things that were or were not good for their bodies.

We continued work in our new handwriting workbooks! Today we talked about our left and right hands, and traced them into our handwriting books. We also learned a trick to help us remember which hand is which. Ask your child to show you their left and right hands & see if they remembered the trick!

Today there was a surprise snack from the PTO! Since everyone did such a good job of returning their Entertainment Book Fund Raiser, our class earned a Rice Krispie Treat and a bottle of water. Many of the students didn't finish their water and wanted to take their bottles home--check your child's backpack.

Information:
•This Friday a firefighter is coming to talk with the kindergarten students. Take some time at home to talk about your family's fire escape plan.
•October book order forms went home yesterday. You now have the option of ordering books online (which earns our class free books)! If you would rather not order online, orders can still be turned into me at school. All book orders are due by Tuesday Oct. 12. Thank you!
•Tomorrow is pink day!

Tuesday October 5, 2010

Happy Blue Day!

The Spanish class from Summit Middle School came over to perform The Very Hungry Caterpillar this morning! Despite it being all in Spanish, the students could understand most of it because of the fun costumes and acting done by the students. It also helped that it was a familiar story which the students had already heard! While waiting for the students to arrive, we talked about words we know in Spanish. The kids already know quite a few Spanish words!

During our "Being a Writer" time, Mrs. Abbey read Titch, a story about a young boy and his older brother and sister. The students practiced a sharing technique called "turn to your partner". Together we made predictions, talked about the feelings of the characters, and recalled events of the story. The students practiced their writing skills by drawing and writing about something they like to do with their family.

Our color of the day was blue. It is fun to see all of the students bringing in colored items each day! Tomorrow is yellow day!

We started something new today--our handwriting workbooks! At first, we will focus on the different writing strokes, then will go in to writing numbers and letters of the alphabet. At the end of the week, uppercase and lowercase alphabet cards will come home with your child, as well as a list of fun games to play with them. These cards are from the handwriting curriculum and are yours to keep. Writing is difficult to do if your child does not know the names of the letters. Please continue to practice identifying the uppercase and lowercase letters at home. Thank you!

Just a reminder...your child can return their library book any day of the week. We can usually find a few minutes where they can walk down and check out a new book to bring home.

Monday October 4, 2010

Happy Red Day!

The morning flew by even faster than normal. New literacy stations were introduced and the kids were so busy working at them that they couldn't believe it was time to clean up and go!

We started our new unit about friends today. Mrs. Abbey read What Do You Like?, a fiction story about two friends and the things they like. We talked about characters (the people or animals who do the actions in the story). We introduced the word "like" and the students practiced reading it in a large group poem as well as in their guided reading book, We Like the Playground. The letter sound that we are focusing on this week is /s/.

Everyone had something red on today! Tomorrow is blue day! (It is also PE, so please remember PE shoes.)

The new literacy stations are focused on names and sight words. The students are writing, stamping, punching, sorting, flipping, matching, and building these words!

Thank you to Blake's mom for helping us with a beginning sounds game today!

Keep sending in any plastic shopping bags (from Target, Walmart, Fareway, etc.) to recycle! We will stop collecting bags on Friday November 5.

Collection for Boxtops, Campbell's soup labels, and other Labels for Education will continue through this Friday, October 8. Keep clipping!

Just a head's up...our first "early out" of the year is this month! Thursday October 28 the students will dismiss at 12:35 (an hour later than usual). The students will have lunch with the rest of the kindergarteners at school! Please send a sack lunch & drink with your child that day, or set up an account in the school office so that they can purchase a school lunch that day (school lunch choice is a sack lunch). Also, the bus will not run, so please make arrangements for your child to be picked up from school. Thank you!

Friday October 1, 2010

Happy October!

Your child is bringing home a purple reusable shopping bag today! Each family at Horizon is receiving a reusable bag to kick off our "Build with Bags" Challenge. This is a challenge across the metro to earn money for our school. It’s easy to do...just send to school any plastic bags you have at home to be recycled AND take reusable bags to the local grocery stores! When you check out, tell the cashier you’d like the credit to go to Horizon and we earn points! The metro school with the most points earns a free piece of outdoor equipment made from recycled plastic. There is an informational flyer in your child's folder with more specific details. Last year Horizon came in 4th in the metro....we’re hoping to win it this year!

Today was the first day your child is checking out a book from the school library. A note from Mrs. Adair is in your child's folder. They may return books (and check out a new one) any day during the week (not just on library day)!

A new reading log is also in your child's folder. Please remind your child to color one pumpkin each time a book is read, or for every 5-10 minutes you read together. Books counted can be books that you read to your child, as well as books they read to you!

The students had new carpet spots and table spots today! A few new stations were introduced, and the rest will be introduced next week. It was quite an exciting day!

Mrs. Abbey read, Jennifer Bing, Why Don't You Sing? which taught us that people in a family are different and may choose to like different things than other members of their family. It also showed us that everyone in a family is good at something, and that everyone is different and special. "Happy the Dog" helped us put sounds together to make words. Try saying the sounds in a word slowly to your child (ie. /b/, /a/, /t/) and see if your child can put the sounds together to say the word ("bat"). Try it with a variety of different 3-letter words to help your child master this skill!

We are starting to use math fact cards when working with our math stations. The students are enjoying using the manipulatives to show the addition problem, counting up their sets, and check their answer on the back of the card! This activity also helps with number recognition, making sets, and 1:1 counting.

Please continue to send in boxtops and other labels for education. We will continue collecting them throughout the year, but this "contest" ends Friday Oct. 8.

Next week, we start a new literacy unit, Friends. We will be reading books and learning about having friends.

We also start color week . Monday is "red" day...please help your child choose something red to wear!


Upcoming:
•Tuesday Oct. 5, students from Spanish class will come to act out, The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
•Friday Oct. 8, a firefighter will come talk to the kindergarten classes about fire safety.
•Wednesday Oct. 14 is the day we wear our "Team Kindergarten" t-shirts.
•Next week starts our color week! Monday-red, Tuesday-blue, Wednesday-yellow, Thursday-pink, Friday-purple. The following week (Oct. 11-15) we will also be focusing on different colors.