Dear families,
Thank you very much for your lovely cards and wonderful gifts. It is my pleasure and privilege to teach your wonderful children each day.
A special thank you to the Jakob's family for taking taking of Bubbles the Beta fish over the holidays, and thank you so much to the parents who made our holiday craft party such a success!
I hope you have a wonderful holiday!
Mrs. Tyndall
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Week of December 16-19
Dear families,
Last week we continued with our holiday-themed activities and also worked/played at five centres: letter/letter sound bingo, magnet letter/number tracing, letter tracing, number bingo and a sight word game.
At this week's Sharing Assembly please bring a Santa or elf hat for your child. I hope to see you then!
With our Reading Buddies we practiced our Holiday words and made our mobiles. This week we sang holiday songs at the piano, did holiday addition and subtraction (SK), dot-to-dot alphabet (JK), did a fun word recognition game on the SmartBoard, and learned about the importance of being kind when we read The Kindness Quilt. We will be making a kindness quilt made of paper in the new year. Look for it on our hallway bulletin board!
On Tuesday it is Career day at LKS - dress for the career you'd like to have.
If you are volunteering for Thursday's Holiday craft party, thank you in advance for your help! I have lots of fun crafts ready to go. If you are doing white bags on Thursday, please come at the beginning of class since there will be a lot if things going home and the children will be putting their crafts in their bags as well.
I hope you have a wonderful week! Thank you for your continued support.
Mrs. Tyndall
Last week we continued with our holiday-themed activities and also worked/played at five centres: letter/letter sound bingo, magnet letter/number tracing, letter tracing, number bingo and a sight word game.
At this week's Sharing Assembly please bring a Santa or elf hat for your child. I hope to see you then!
With our Reading Buddies we practiced our Holiday words and made our mobiles. This week we sang holiday songs at the piano, did holiday addition and subtraction (SK), dot-to-dot alphabet (JK), did a fun word recognition game on the SmartBoard, and learned about the importance of being kind when we read The Kindness Quilt. We will be making a kindness quilt made of paper in the new year. Look for it on our hallway bulletin board!
On Tuesday it is Career day at LKS - dress for the career you'd like to have.
If you are volunteering for Thursday's Holiday craft party, thank you in advance for your help! I have lots of fun crafts ready to go. If you are doing white bags on Thursday, please come at the beginning of class since there will be a lot if things going home and the children will be putting their crafts in their bags as well.
I hope you have a wonderful week! Thank you for your continued support.
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, December 8, 2013
Week of December 9-13
Dear families,
It's had to believe that there are only two more school weeks until our Holiday Break. In the classroom we are counting down the days and counting up the days until December 19 (last day of school) and December 25 (Christmas). We are also learning about Hanukkah traditions as well as Kwanzaa.
The Snuggle Books that go home in Friday's mail bags will stop this Friday. I would appreciate it if you have misplaced a book (a note would have been sent home) to double check one more time. If you still can't find the book, the fine is 3.00. If you are unsure of the title, I have a record in my classroom. A very special thank you to the parents who have done all the white bags and snuggle books this term. I know you are all busy and the time commitment that you have given is much appreciated. The children and I are very fortunate to have this kind of support. Thank you again to all the parents who volunteer their time on a regular basis.
Now that the weather is getting colder with more and more chance of snow, it is important that the children are dressed warmly for outdoor play. Names on clothes would really help as well to find the right owner if something gets lost. I have a bag with several lost articles in the cubby room waiting to find their home! It is amazing when I hold up lost articles and no one claims them - sometimes the children don't remember what is theirs.
With our Grade 2/3 Reading Buddies we read Holiday books and made Santa/Rudolph mobiles. The Grade 8 Reading Buddies continue to help the children on their path to reading and the children themselves are "reading buddies" to each other at the start of each day. "If you can read it, you can write it!" I'm really seeing excellent progress which is wonderful. The children are very proud of themselves, and so am I!
We have made a beads/bell countdown to December 25 which went home in Friday`s mail bag. Each night before your child goes to sleep, s/he moves one bead over towards the bell. When all the beads have been moved over, it's December 25 and they can ring the bell!
The SKs read and followed simple written instructions about Holiday themed items to draw (by colour and number i.e. "Draw two red and white candy canes, one big and one small"). The JKs are learning their colour words and coloured in reindeer lights. All the children completed a booklet called, "Christmas is..." Their fine motor skills (small movement - writing, tracing, colouring, cutting, etc.) are really coming along. We are also learning several holiday words and the children are enjoying the "Write a Letter to Santa/Write a Holiday Card" Centre. I think their favourite part is putting the cards in the classroom mailbox!
We also did a graphing exercise about the kinds of items the children wanted most from Santa, and compared Morning and Afternoon Classes (more, same, less, the most, the least).
The last of the Scholastic orders are on their way. If anyone ordered a Crayola Treasure Adventures game for the Nintendo DS or a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles book please let me know.
This week we will continue talking, reading and writing about the upcoming holidays and we will also make keepsake ornaments made from a mixture of cinnamon, applesauce and white glue. They will smell delicious! Let me know if you would like the recipe.
We will also be talking (as we do regularly) about Kindness and Caring (December's TDSB Character Trait), and we will be reading "The Kindness Quilt."
For our JK parents, here are some tips to accelerate your child's reading progress:
Play with letters, words, and sounds! Having fun with language helps your child learn to crack the code of reading. The tips below offer some fun ways you can help your child become a happy and confident reader. Try a new tip each week. See what works best for your child.
Talk to your child. Ask your child to talk about his day at school. Encourage him to explain something they did, or a game he played during indoor/outdoor play.
Say silly tongue twisters. Sing songs, read rhyming books, and say silly tongue twisters. These help kids become sensitive to the sounds in words.
Read it and experience it. Connect what your child reads with what happens in life. If reading a book about animals, relate it to your last trip to the zoo.
Use your child's name. Point out the link between letters and sounds. Say, "John, the word jump begins with the same sound as your name. John, jump. And they both begin with the same letter, J."
Play with puppets. Play language games with puppets. Have the puppet say, "My name is Mark. I like words that rhyme with my name. Does park rhyme with Mark? Does ball rhyme with Mark?"
Trace and say letters. Have your child use a finger to trace a letter while saying the letter's sound. Do this on paper, in sand, or on a plate of sugar.
Write it down. Have paper and pencils available for your child to use for writing. Working together, write a sentence or two about something special. Encourage her to use the letters and sounds she's learning about in school.
Play sound games. Practice blending sounds into words. Ask "Can you guess what this word is? m - o - p." Hold each sound longer than normal.
Read it again and again. Go ahead and read your child's favorite book for the 100th time! As you read, pause and ask your child about what is going on in the book.
Talk about letters and sounds. Help your child learn the names of the letters and the sounds the letters make. Turn it into a game! "I'm thinking of a letter and it makes the sound mmmmmm."
Most important of all, enjoy this special time with your child.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Tyndall
It's had to believe that there are only two more school weeks until our Holiday Break. In the classroom we are counting down the days and counting up the days until December 19 (last day of school) and December 25 (Christmas). We are also learning about Hanukkah traditions as well as Kwanzaa.
The Snuggle Books that go home in Friday's mail bags will stop this Friday. I would appreciate it if you have misplaced a book (a note would have been sent home) to double check one more time. If you still can't find the book, the fine is 3.00. If you are unsure of the title, I have a record in my classroom. A very special thank you to the parents who have done all the white bags and snuggle books this term. I know you are all busy and the time commitment that you have given is much appreciated. The children and I are very fortunate to have this kind of support. Thank you again to all the parents who volunteer their time on a regular basis.
Now that the weather is getting colder with more and more chance of snow, it is important that the children are dressed warmly for outdoor play. Names on clothes would really help as well to find the right owner if something gets lost. I have a bag with several lost articles in the cubby room waiting to find their home! It is amazing when I hold up lost articles and no one claims them - sometimes the children don't remember what is theirs.
With our Grade 2/3 Reading Buddies we read Holiday books and made Santa/Rudolph mobiles. The Grade 8 Reading Buddies continue to help the children on their path to reading and the children themselves are "reading buddies" to each other at the start of each day. "If you can read it, you can write it!" I'm really seeing excellent progress which is wonderful. The children are very proud of themselves, and so am I!
We have made a beads/bell countdown to December 25 which went home in Friday`s mail bag. Each night before your child goes to sleep, s/he moves one bead over towards the bell. When all the beads have been moved over, it's December 25 and they can ring the bell!
The SKs read and followed simple written instructions about Holiday themed items to draw (by colour and number i.e. "Draw two red and white candy canes, one big and one small"). The JKs are learning their colour words and coloured in reindeer lights. All the children completed a booklet called, "Christmas is..." Their fine motor skills (small movement - writing, tracing, colouring, cutting, etc.) are really coming along. We are also learning several holiday words and the children are enjoying the "Write a Letter to Santa/Write a Holiday Card" Centre. I think their favourite part is putting the cards in the classroom mailbox!
We also did a graphing exercise about the kinds of items the children wanted most from Santa, and compared Morning and Afternoon Classes (more, same, less, the most, the least).
The last of the Scholastic orders are on their way. If anyone ordered a Crayola Treasure Adventures game for the Nintendo DS or a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles book please let me know.
This week we will continue talking, reading and writing about the upcoming holidays and we will also make keepsake ornaments made from a mixture of cinnamon, applesauce and white glue. They will smell delicious! Let me know if you would like the recipe.
We will also be talking (as we do regularly) about Kindness and Caring (December's TDSB Character Trait), and we will be reading "The Kindness Quilt."
For our JK parents, here are some tips to accelerate your child's reading progress:
Play with letters, words, and sounds! Having fun with language helps your child learn to crack the code of reading. The tips below offer some fun ways you can help your child become a happy and confident reader. Try a new tip each week. See what works best for your child.
Talk to your child. Ask your child to talk about his day at school. Encourage him to explain something they did, or a game he played during indoor/outdoor play.
Say silly tongue twisters. Sing songs, read rhyming books, and say silly tongue twisters. These help kids become sensitive to the sounds in words.
Read it and experience it. Connect what your child reads with what happens in life. If reading a book about animals, relate it to your last trip to the zoo.
Use your child's name. Point out the link between letters and sounds. Say, "John, the word jump begins with the same sound as your name. John, jump. And they both begin with the same letter, J."
Play with puppets. Play language games with puppets. Have the puppet say, "My name is Mark. I like words that rhyme with my name. Does park rhyme with Mark? Does ball rhyme with Mark?"
Trace and say letters. Have your child use a finger to trace a letter while saying the letter's sound. Do this on paper, in sand, or on a plate of sugar.
Write it down. Have paper and pencils available for your child to use for writing. Working together, write a sentence or two about something special. Encourage her to use the letters and sounds she's learning about in school.
Play sound games. Practice blending sounds into words. Ask "Can you guess what this word is? m - o - p." Hold each sound longer than normal.
Read it again and again. Go ahead and read your child's favorite book for the 100th time! As you read, pause and ask your child about what is going on in the book.
Talk about letters and sounds. Help your child learn the names of the letters and the sounds the letters make. Turn it into a game! "I'm thinking of a letter and it makes the sound mmmmmm."
Most important of all, enjoy this special time with your child.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Week of December 2-6
Dear families,
As the holidays draw near the children are becoming more excited with all the festivities both at home and at school. I never tire of watching the holiday season through my students' eyes. The innocence and wonder of a four and five year old at this time of the year is truly a beautiful thing to behold. I feel very fortunate to be part of their world as we delve into holiday festivities here at school. The classroom decorations look wonderful! A special thank you to my wonderful Co-Op student Emma (who helps in the afternoon class 2-3 days/week) who helped decorate our classroom.
We will be doing a Santa countdown with patterned beads, including days of the week and weekends. Ask your child how many days until December 25! I am sure s/he will be able to tell you since we are counting by ones and twos and tens and every possible way we can until that magic number! This is an excellent way to reinforce number recognition and numerical order.
I am busy preparing for the Craft Party on December 19th and I am also setting up a "post office" so the children can write Christmas post cards to their friends and family. They love doing this and I simply use recycled cards from previous years which I have cut in half i.e. they write on the back of the picture, like a post card. Please save your old Christmas/holiday cards and kindly send them to our class so that we can "recycle" them in our class for next year's holiday season. They also make wonderful crafts. I welcome any kind of used cards - birthday, mother's day, father's day, etc. The children love to write/make cards and it is good writing and reading practice! The children also love opportunities to show how much they love their family and cards are perfect for this.
This week we finished our unit on Fairy Tales and a lot of reading, writing and learning came from the three stories we studied. The children also did a lot of retelling, sequencing and patterning activities based on the stories, which is good practice for Grade 1 and beyond. This week children learned about healthy ("real") foods from Little Red Riding Hood who you may recall was bringing food to her sick grandmother, and we talked about which foods would make grandma better by looking at simple grocery flyer. The children then each got a flyer of their own and cut healthy foods (and flowers too just like in the story) for Gramma, which they then put into paper baskets and in then their literature pockets along with all their other wonderful work. In their Literature Pocket for this story, along with a simple version of the story, is a little book with no words at all. This is excellent for re-telling, as are the little puppets they made; it is an important comprehension skill going forward as they learn now only how to read using their phonetic knowledge but are able to understand what they have read. Prediction, summarizing and retelling are important aspects of literacy. We also read two modern and funny versions of Little Red Riding Hood which the children enjoyed. Interestingly, the children liked the original Charles Perrault story the best! Maybe because it was a little bit scary but had a happy ending...
Our Word Wall is filling up with high frequency/sight words and I am impressed by how many the children know already! The children can refer to this wall when they are creating stories or need to know how to spell a word.
In the Little Red Hen literature pocket that went home on Friday, there was a sheet with story-related words to cut out, from which the SKs can make sentences based on the story (again, retelling and sentence structure).
We continued our numeracy lesson on patterns and sequencing this week; the JKs made patterns with two colours, the SKs with three.
Our Holiday Sharing Assembly will be on December 19. The children should wear a Santa or Elf hat please for this special assembly. I hope you will be able to join us!
Thank you to Lilia's mom and Megan's dad who were our wonderful Mystery Readers this week. Thank you to Lexa's mom who did the morning white bags and Brady's mom who did the afternoon white bags. Thank you also to our Grade Parents who prepare the volunteer calendars for each month. Thank you again for all your time.
JK homework this week is to complete the "Number Poem Book." The little rhymes help them learn how to form their numbers. Don't worry if your child's early number writing has some backwards numbers - this is normal as the children learn how to form them (always top to bottom, and left to right except for 6, 8 and 9!). It takes a lot of practice! SK homework is to practice their numbers 1-31 and beyond (lots of patterns!) and to continue work on their phonics duotang. We completed our November calendar in class and I am pleased with the children's neat number writing!
LKS parent volunteers have very kindly prepared donation baskets for needy families in the Stonegate community. The donation baskets will be in my classroom by the back door, along with a description of the items needed by our class's families.
Morning Class: Family #11
Single mother with 2 year old girl
Needs: Wipes, gift certificates to any store, food vouchers, household items such as dish soap, detergent, fabric softener, children's books, clothing size 3, socks, gloves, puzzles
Afternoon Class: Family #14
Single mother of 4 year old girl
Needs: Food vouchers, scarf and glove set for mother, household items, dish towels, detergent, non-perishable food items, child loves cats, clothing size 6.
Thank you for your generous support of a family in need this holiday season.
Please take a moment to read/sing the poetry/song sheets I send home with your child every week. The children love to perform them and this is a wonderful opportunity to sit and read together!
I would once again like to say how very much I enjoyed meeting you at the interviews. Thank you for coming. On Friday, December 6 I will be at a media literacy training session and there will be a supply teacher.
Enjoy this magical time with your children. It passes all too quickly and the next thing you know they are grown up! I know this from my own children and I remember very well when they were in Kindergarten...
Thank you for your continued support,
Mrs. Tyndall
As the holidays draw near the children are becoming more excited with all the festivities both at home and at school. I never tire of watching the holiday season through my students' eyes. The innocence and wonder of a four and five year old at this time of the year is truly a beautiful thing to behold. I feel very fortunate to be part of their world as we delve into holiday festivities here at school. The classroom decorations look wonderful! A special thank you to my wonderful Co-Op student Emma (who helps in the afternoon class 2-3 days/week) who helped decorate our classroom.
We will be doing a Santa countdown with patterned beads, including days of the week and weekends. Ask your child how many days until December 25! I am sure s/he will be able to tell you since we are counting by ones and twos and tens and every possible way we can until that magic number! This is an excellent way to reinforce number recognition and numerical order.
I am busy preparing for the Craft Party on December 19th and I am also setting up a "post office" so the children can write Christmas post cards to their friends and family. They love doing this and I simply use recycled cards from previous years which I have cut in half i.e. they write on the back of the picture, like a post card. Please save your old Christmas/holiday cards and kindly send them to our class so that we can "recycle" them in our class for next year's holiday season. They also make wonderful crafts. I welcome any kind of used cards - birthday, mother's day, father's day, etc. The children love to write/make cards and it is good writing and reading practice! The children also love opportunities to show how much they love their family and cards are perfect for this.
This week we finished our unit on Fairy Tales and a lot of reading, writing and learning came from the three stories we studied. The children also did a lot of retelling, sequencing and patterning activities based on the stories, which is good practice for Grade 1 and beyond. This week children learned about healthy ("real") foods from Little Red Riding Hood who you may recall was bringing food to her sick grandmother, and we talked about which foods would make grandma better by looking at simple grocery flyer. The children then each got a flyer of their own and cut healthy foods (and flowers too just like in the story) for Gramma, which they then put into paper baskets and in then their literature pockets along with all their other wonderful work. In their Literature Pocket for this story, along with a simple version of the story, is a little book with no words at all. This is excellent for re-telling, as are the little puppets they made; it is an important comprehension skill going forward as they learn now only how to read using their phonetic knowledge but are able to understand what they have read. Prediction, summarizing and retelling are important aspects of literacy. We also read two modern and funny versions of Little Red Riding Hood which the children enjoyed. Interestingly, the children liked the original Charles Perrault story the best! Maybe because it was a little bit scary but had a happy ending...
Our Word Wall is filling up with high frequency/sight words and I am impressed by how many the children know already! The children can refer to this wall when they are creating stories or need to know how to spell a word.
In the Little Red Hen literature pocket that went home on Friday, there was a sheet with story-related words to cut out, from which the SKs can make sentences based on the story (again, retelling and sentence structure).
We continued our numeracy lesson on patterns and sequencing this week; the JKs made patterns with two colours, the SKs with three.
Our Holiday Sharing Assembly will be on December 19. The children should wear a Santa or Elf hat please for this special assembly. I hope you will be able to join us!
Thank you to Lilia's mom and Megan's dad who were our wonderful Mystery Readers this week. Thank you to Lexa's mom who did the morning white bags and Brady's mom who did the afternoon white bags. Thank you also to our Grade Parents who prepare the volunteer calendars for each month. Thank you again for all your time.
JK homework this week is to complete the "Number Poem Book." The little rhymes help them learn how to form their numbers. Don't worry if your child's early number writing has some backwards numbers - this is normal as the children learn how to form them (always top to bottom, and left to right except for 6, 8 and 9!). It takes a lot of practice! SK homework is to practice their numbers 1-31 and beyond (lots of patterns!) and to continue work on their phonics duotang. We completed our November calendar in class and I am pleased with the children's neat number writing!
LKS parent volunteers have very kindly prepared donation baskets for needy families in the Stonegate community. The donation baskets will be in my classroom by the back door, along with a description of the items needed by our class's families.
Morning Class: Family #11
Single mother with 2 year old girl
Needs: Wipes, gift certificates to any store, food vouchers, household items such as dish soap, detergent, fabric softener, children's books, clothing size 3, socks, gloves, puzzles
Afternoon Class: Family #14
Single mother of 4 year old girl
Needs: Food vouchers, scarf and glove set for mother, household items, dish towels, detergent, non-perishable food items, child loves cats, clothing size 6.
Thank you for your generous support of a family in need this holiday season.
Please take a moment to read/sing the poetry/song sheets I send home with your child every week. The children love to perform them and this is a wonderful opportunity to sit and read together!
I would once again like to say how very much I enjoyed meeting you at the interviews. Thank you for coming. On Friday, December 6 I will be at a media literacy training session and there will be a supply teacher.
Enjoy this magical time with your children. It passes all too quickly and the next thing you know they are grown up! I know this from my own children and I remember very well when they were in Kindergarten...
Thank you for your continued support,
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Week of November 25-29
Dear families,
It's hard to believe that December is around the corner except when we go outside and see the snow! Please be sure to dress your little ones in hats and mittens going forward.
The SKs should now all have their daily journals. In the front of their journals is a list moms and dads may remember completing called "10 Things I want [my child] to write about this year." There are so many fun things to write about!
This week we finished our "Little Red Hen" fairy tale with a little book about friends and wheat stalk/little red hen art. We also started "Little Red Writing Hood." Look for another literature pocket in the children's mail bag with all their hard work!
We are also continuing to make and colour cube patterns (a math skill). Patterns are everywhere! This weekend's homework is a sheet on patterning.
The children enjoyed listening to author Ted Staunton during his visit to our Library.
A reminder that the Christmas/Holiday Scholastic order is due by tomorrow (Monday) please.
Tomorrow is our third Sharing Assembly and we will be recognizing students who demonstrate Empathy.
I hope to see you then! Have a wonderful week.
It's hard to believe that December is around the corner except when we go outside and see the snow! Please be sure to dress your little ones in hats and mittens going forward.
The SKs should now all have their daily journals. In the front of their journals is a list moms and dads may remember completing called "10 Things I want [my child] to write about this year." There are so many fun things to write about!
This week we finished our "Little Red Hen" fairy tale with a little book about friends and wheat stalk/little red hen art. We also started "Little Red Writing Hood." Look for another literature pocket in the children's mail bag with all their hard work!
We are also continuing to make and colour cube patterns (a math skill). Patterns are everywhere! This weekend's homework is a sheet on patterning.
The children enjoyed listening to author Ted Staunton during his visit to our Library.
A reminder that the Christmas/Holiday Scholastic order is due by tomorrow (Monday) please.
Tomorrow is our third Sharing Assembly and we will be recognizing students who demonstrate Empathy.
I hope to see you then! Have a wonderful week.
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Week of November 18-22
Dear families,
We started last week with attendance at our LKS Remembrance Day ceremony and the children did a wonderful job of attentive listening. After the ceremony, the children discussed a time when they were brave and drew a picture (with a sentence for the SKs). They also made poppy art out of four hearts they cut out. Remembrance Day ties in well with the November TDSB character trait of Empathy.
It was a pleasure meeting with you this week to discuss your child's progress. If you were unable to schedule an interview time and would like to do so, please call the school or email me. Thank you.
The homework for the SKs this weekend was to circle the correct word to match the picture in the gingerbread man story line.
This week we started our second fairy tale - The Little Red Hen. This well-known fairy tale is about helping others, being responsible to your friends, and working hard. I read the full story out loud, the children's Reading Buddies read a simplified version to them, and the children have simplified versions in their Literature Pocket to practice at home.
We learned about the life cycle of a hen and about where flour comes from. We also talked about how water mills and wind mills used to grind grain. There is a wonderful working water wheel grain mill at Pioneer Village if you happen to go. We also talked about our local historic Old Mill and the Humber River beside it.
We also talked about and did a flow chart about friendship called "My friend is..." Next week we will write a booklet about this.
This weekend the SKs brought home Set 1 (of 8) of their Phonics Duotang. When your child has completed this set, please hand it in for a new one. The JKs work on their Phonic folders in class.
This week we will be saying so long to The Little Red Hen and hello to Little Red Riding Hood! We will also continue our numeracy lessons in patterning and measurement with cube-a-links.
Finally, thank you to Cole's mom who read a terrific book called "The Interrupting Chicken" that tied in perfectly with our unit, and thank you to Victoria's mom who was a terrific Mystery Reader as well. If you would like to be Mystery Reader please contact your Grade Parent. Children are so thrilled and proud when their parents come to class!
Thank you as well to Olivia's dad who did the white bags for the morning class.
I hope you have a wonderful week.
We started last week with attendance at our LKS Remembrance Day ceremony and the children did a wonderful job of attentive listening. After the ceremony, the children discussed a time when they were brave and drew a picture (with a sentence for the SKs). They also made poppy art out of four hearts they cut out. Remembrance Day ties in well with the November TDSB character trait of Empathy.
It was a pleasure meeting with you this week to discuss your child's progress. If you were unable to schedule an interview time and would like to do so, please call the school or email me. Thank you.
The homework for the SKs this weekend was to circle the correct word to match the picture in the gingerbread man story line.
This week we started our second fairy tale - The Little Red Hen. This well-known fairy tale is about helping others, being responsible to your friends, and working hard. I read the full story out loud, the children's Reading Buddies read a simplified version to them, and the children have simplified versions in their Literature Pocket to practice at home.
We learned about the life cycle of a hen and about where flour comes from. We also talked about how water mills and wind mills used to grind grain. There is a wonderful working water wheel grain mill at Pioneer Village if you happen to go. We also talked about our local historic Old Mill and the Humber River beside it.
We also talked about and did a flow chart about friendship called "My friend is..." Next week we will write a booklet about this.
This weekend the SKs brought home Set 1 (of 8) of their Phonics Duotang. When your child has completed this set, please hand it in for a new one. The JKs work on their Phonic folders in class.
This week we will be saying so long to The Little Red Hen and hello to Little Red Riding Hood! We will also continue our numeracy lessons in patterning and measurement with cube-a-links.
Finally, thank you to Cole's mom who read a terrific book called "The Interrupting Chicken" that tied in perfectly with our unit, and thank you to Victoria's mom who was a terrific Mystery Reader as well. If you would like to be Mystery Reader please contact your Grade Parent. Children are so thrilled and proud when their parents come to class!
Thank you as well to Olivia's dad who did the white bags for the morning class.
I hope you have a wonderful week.
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Week of November 11-15
Dear families,
Reading/Writing:
This past week we started our Fairy Tale unit with The Gingerbread Man. This is an excellent tale to start with for many reasons - it is fairly easy to sequence, there is a lot of repetition, and the story can be simplified into a readable version. I am making "literature folders" for each child and each fairy tale we study; the children will bring them home when they are done. In the folder will be a copy of the fairy tale and all their work. The Drama Centre is now the Dress up Centre tied to our fairy tales. I also have a lot of puppets related to the tales to encourage re-telling of the stories. We discussed the differences between the gingerbread man and the fox who tricked him. I have a class set of The Gingerbread Man as well as a tape recording, so each child could have his/her own copy and follow along. Our next story will be The Little Red Hen, a story about sharing responsibilities, working as a team and helping others. It also ties into how to make bread from flour which we can tie back to how to make gingerbread (i.e. where does flour come from?). This weekend's homework is to colour the gingerbread man page according to the rhyming colour words.
This week's poem is "Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!"
So far on our word wall we have the "popcorn" (high frequency/sight) words: and, am, the, I, and like. We add a new word each week and practice writing it and reading it each day. The words on the word wall can be removed and brought to the children's tables to help with their spelling. The SKs also enjoyed playing a sight word game this week in which they had to read the word (attached to a lid) and if they were correct they put the word in the can. Whoever has the most lids wins! The children are also practicing their popcorn words with our Grade 8 readers. Our morning books (books we read each morning before calendar) were the Bob books. Next week - Clifford Phonics. The JKs are working on letter sound recognition. So far we have done S,A,T,I,P,N,E and R.
We are continuing to work on the various reading strategies. I have been reviewing the students’ independent reading levels (which is lower than their instructional level so that they can be successful). Thank you so much to those parents who continue to make reading a daily activity with their child. It really makes a huge difference.
Math – We are continuing our work on patterning, and students learned that a patterns repeat.
I am very excited about the new SmartBoard that was installed in my classroom this week! An electrician will do the final wiring and as soon as it is set up we will be ready to start using it. I am looking forward to using this wonderful tool to make our learning more interactive and fun!
Science – we welcomed two Scientists in the school this week and learned about Water (morning class) and Magnets (afternoon class). The children learned so much! Thank you to our parent volunteers to helped make each learning centre run smoothly! Thank you also to Parent Council for funding Scientists in the School. It is such a valuable experience for children of all ages. Our little science table is a magnets table during the month of November.
Our Terry Fox Celebration Assembly was on Tuesday. Since we reached the $20,000 level, there was a fun staff vs. student tricycle race.
Report cards will be sent home on Monday, November 11. The interview is meant to be a way to celebrate the child’s accomplishments, and to help them develop a plan of action for the following term. I am looking forward to meeting with you this week to discuss your child's progress and samples of his/her work. I will be seeing parents most evenings this week starting Monday evening.
Our Remembrance Day Assembly is on Monday Nov. 11 at 10:30 am. All are welcome to join us in the gym. Please remember that this is a solemn assembly and we would ask that there be no clapping at any point. Aria will be carrying our class wreath to the front of the gym. Thank you Aria.
The cold and flu season is upon us. If your child is not feeling well, please be sure to keep them at home, until they are feeling better, and symptom free, in order to stop the spread of illness. You may want to consider having your entire family vaccinated against the flu this season as a preventative measure. Visit Public Health, or your family doctor for more information, as clinics have started to open. Also, please talk to your child about proper hygiene (washing hands, using a Kleenex and not their finger, covering their mouth and nose when they cough and sneeze, sneezing into their elbow and not their hand, etc..
Please remember that the November/Holiday Scholastic book orders are due on November 30th. If you would like to order something as a surprise, for either your child(ren) or someone else, just let me know by writing "surprise" on the outside of the envelope. Books makes wonderful gifts!
Please remember to send your child to school with a coat, hat and mittens as the weather gets colder and windier; the weather is definitely changing!
Have a wonderful week!
Reading/Writing:
This past week we started our Fairy Tale unit with The Gingerbread Man. This is an excellent tale to start with for many reasons - it is fairly easy to sequence, there is a lot of repetition, and the story can be simplified into a readable version. I am making "literature folders" for each child and each fairy tale we study; the children will bring them home when they are done. In the folder will be a copy of the fairy tale and all their work. The Drama Centre is now the Dress up Centre tied to our fairy tales. I also have a lot of puppets related to the tales to encourage re-telling of the stories. We discussed the differences between the gingerbread man and the fox who tricked him. I have a class set of The Gingerbread Man as well as a tape recording, so each child could have his/her own copy and follow along. Our next story will be The Little Red Hen, a story about sharing responsibilities, working as a team and helping others. It also ties into how to make bread from flour which we can tie back to how to make gingerbread (i.e. where does flour come from?). This weekend's homework is to colour the gingerbread man page according to the rhyming colour words.
This week's poem is "Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!"
So far on our word wall we have the "popcorn" (high frequency/sight) words: and, am, the, I, and like. We add a new word each week and practice writing it and reading it each day. The words on the word wall can be removed and brought to the children's tables to help with their spelling. The SKs also enjoyed playing a sight word game this week in which they had to read the word (attached to a lid) and if they were correct they put the word in the can. Whoever has the most lids wins! The children are also practicing their popcorn words with our Grade 8 readers. Our morning books (books we read each morning before calendar) were the Bob books. Next week - Clifford Phonics. The JKs are working on letter sound recognition. So far we have done S,A,T,I,P,N,E and R.
We are continuing to work on the various reading strategies. I have been reviewing the students’ independent reading levels (which is lower than their instructional level so that they can be successful). Thank you so much to those parents who continue to make reading a daily activity with their child. It really makes a huge difference.
Math – We are continuing our work on patterning, and students learned that a patterns repeat.
I am very excited about the new SmartBoard that was installed in my classroom this week! An electrician will do the final wiring and as soon as it is set up we will be ready to start using it. I am looking forward to using this wonderful tool to make our learning more interactive and fun!
Science – we welcomed two Scientists in the school this week and learned about Water (morning class) and Magnets (afternoon class). The children learned so much! Thank you to our parent volunteers to helped make each learning centre run smoothly! Thank you also to Parent Council for funding Scientists in the School. It is such a valuable experience for children of all ages. Our little science table is a magnets table during the month of November.
Our Terry Fox Celebration Assembly was on Tuesday. Since we reached the $20,000 level, there was a fun staff vs. student tricycle race.
Report cards will be sent home on Monday, November 11. The interview is meant to be a way to celebrate the child’s accomplishments, and to help them develop a plan of action for the following term. I am looking forward to meeting with you this week to discuss your child's progress and samples of his/her work. I will be seeing parents most evenings this week starting Monday evening.
Our Remembrance Day Assembly is on Monday Nov. 11 at 10:30 am. All are welcome to join us in the gym. Please remember that this is a solemn assembly and we would ask that there be no clapping at any point. Aria will be carrying our class wreath to the front of the gym. Thank you Aria.
The cold and flu season is upon us. If your child is not feeling well, please be sure to keep them at home, until they are feeling better, and symptom free, in order to stop the spread of illness. You may want to consider having your entire family vaccinated against the flu this season as a preventative measure. Visit Public Health, or your family doctor for more information, as clinics have started to open. Also, please talk to your child about proper hygiene (washing hands, using a Kleenex and not their finger, covering their mouth and nose when they cough and sneeze, sneezing into their elbow and not their hand, etc..
Please remember that the November/Holiday Scholastic book orders are due on November 30th. If you would like to order something as a surprise, for either your child(ren) or someone else, just let me know by writing "surprise" on the outside of the envelope. Books makes wonderful gifts!
Please remember to send your child to school with a coat, hat and mittens as the weather gets colder and windier; the weather is definitely changing!
Have a wonderful week!
Sunday, November 3, 2013
This week was busy in Room 166 and the children completed several Halloween-themed activities. We read the wonderful book "Stellaluna" about a bat who grows up thinking he is a bird, and learned about the similarities and differences between them. There are a lot more differences than similarities! We talked about more than, less than, the same as in relation to bats and birds. The children also did a fantastic job drawing "Bats flying at night" on black paper.
We also compared the two pumpkins we carved. The children took turns putting the pumpkin seeds into groups of ten. The morning pumpkin had over 300 seeds and the afternoon pumpkin, which was slightly heavier, had about 50 less. The children's estimates were interesting - some guessed there would be 10, others over 200.
Thank you to the parents who helped out at our Halloween Craft Party. The children enjoyed making a cloth ghost, decorating a foam skull, making a Halloween theme pattern, making a bookmark, and making a witch and a spider.
Each morning our routine is to select and read a phonics book on the carpet before we start the day with the calendar. This week we changed the routine slightly so that the SKs are "Reading Buddies" to the JKs and read their little books to them. They really enjoyed this!
The homework this week for the SKs is to complete "A Halloween Story" by filling in the missing words. The JKs were to finish their "Halloween Word Book" by colouring and tracing the Halloween words in the booklet.
This week the SKs completed a Halloween Colours booklet in which they had to read the words and colour accordingly. The SKs also helped the JKs with a sequencing activity about the steps carving a pumpkin.
On Tuesday the morning class will be participating in the tricycle race in the gym as part of our Terry Fox fundraising efforts. We are on Team Orange so please dress your child in something orange. If your child is in the afternoon class and would like to watch the morning tricycle race they must be supervised by an adult. Thank you.
Here are some tips on How to be a Good Reader:
Touch each word.
Return to the beginning.
Look at the picture.
Stretch out the word.
Look for little words inside bigger words.
Look at the first letter of the words.
This week we will be starting our unit on Fairy Tales and will continue learning about patterns. We will also be preparing for the Remembrance Day Assembly on November 11.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
We also compared the two pumpkins we carved. The children took turns putting the pumpkin seeds into groups of ten. The morning pumpkin had over 300 seeds and the afternoon pumpkin, which was slightly heavier, had about 50 less. The children's estimates were interesting - some guessed there would be 10, others over 200.
Thank you to the parents who helped out at our Halloween Craft Party. The children enjoyed making a cloth ghost, decorating a foam skull, making a Halloween theme pattern, making a bookmark, and making a witch and a spider.
Each morning our routine is to select and read a phonics book on the carpet before we start the day with the calendar. This week we changed the routine slightly so that the SKs are "Reading Buddies" to the JKs and read their little books to them. They really enjoyed this!
The homework this week for the SKs is to complete "A Halloween Story" by filling in the missing words. The JKs were to finish their "Halloween Word Book" by colouring and tracing the Halloween words in the booklet.
This week the SKs completed a Halloween Colours booklet in which they had to read the words and colour accordingly. The SKs also helped the JKs with a sequencing activity about the steps carving a pumpkin.
On Tuesday the morning class will be participating in the tricycle race in the gym as part of our Terry Fox fundraising efforts. We are on Team Orange so please dress your child in something orange. If your child is in the afternoon class and would like to watch the morning tricycle race they must be supervised by an adult. Thank you.
Here are some tips on How to be a Good Reader:
Touch each word.
Return to the beginning.
Look at the picture.
Stretch out the word.
Look for little words inside bigger words.
Look at the first letter of the words.
This week we will be starting our unit on Fairy Tales and will continue learning about patterns. We will also be preparing for the Remembrance Day Assembly on November 11.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Week of October 28-November 1
Dear families,
The countdown to Halloween has begun! Last week the children made patterned bead countdown strings to count the sleeps until Halloween. We are learning a poem called "Witch, Witch" and painted a pumpkin with different shapes for the pumpkin patch in the gym. This week we will measure, estimate, carve and count the seeds in small pumpkins. Then we will compare our findings between the two classes. Sometimes small pumpkins have more seeds than large pumpkins!
Last week the JKs made booklets called The Pumpkin Seed in which they had to put pictures of a pumpkin from seed to jack-o-lantern in sequence. The JKs also completed a reading activity in which they matched Halloween words with pictures and cut and glued them. The SKs made two Halloween writing booklets about pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Their homework for the weekend was to work on a Halloween writing booklet.
I am still expecting more Scholastic books to arrive this week. I have contacted Scholastic and they have assured me that they are completing our orders as quickly as possible.
I have prepared bags for each of the children to take home after the Halloween Party. If you are sending in treats for your child's classmates, please do so by Wednesday so that the children have time to sort them. If possible, your child should write the names of his/her classmates. The children can also put their Halloween party crafts in them.
With our Grade 2/3 Reading Buddies we coloured and read a booklet called Pumpkins.
The children did a wonderful job singing "Mr. Pumpkin" at the Sharing Assembly. Congratulations to Jakob, Mason, Cole and Aria for earning a certificate for Responsibilty.
This week we will make more Halloween booklets, practice our Halloween words, sing spooky songs and read spooky stories.
Have a wonderful week!
The countdown to Halloween has begun! Last week the children made patterned bead countdown strings to count the sleeps until Halloween. We are learning a poem called "Witch, Witch" and painted a pumpkin with different shapes for the pumpkin patch in the gym. This week we will measure, estimate, carve and count the seeds in small pumpkins. Then we will compare our findings between the two classes. Sometimes small pumpkins have more seeds than large pumpkins!
Last week the JKs made booklets called The Pumpkin Seed in which they had to put pictures of a pumpkin from seed to jack-o-lantern in sequence. The JKs also completed a reading activity in which they matched Halloween words with pictures and cut and glued them. The SKs made two Halloween writing booklets about pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Their homework for the weekend was to work on a Halloween writing booklet.
I am still expecting more Scholastic books to arrive this week. I have contacted Scholastic and they have assured me that they are completing our orders as quickly as possible.
I have prepared bags for each of the children to take home after the Halloween Party. If you are sending in treats for your child's classmates, please do so by Wednesday so that the children have time to sort them. If possible, your child should write the names of his/her classmates. The children can also put their Halloween party crafts in them.
With our Grade 2/3 Reading Buddies we coloured and read a booklet called Pumpkins.
The children did a wonderful job singing "Mr. Pumpkin" at the Sharing Assembly. Congratulations to Jakob, Mason, Cole and Aria for earning a certificate for Responsibilty.
This week we will make more Halloween booklets, practice our Halloween words, sing spooky songs and read spooky stories.
Have a wonderful week!
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Now that Fall is really showing its colours we are taking advantage of the many learning opportunities this beautiful season has to provide; this week we talked and wrote about our Thanksgiving weekend, started the Jolly Phonics letters Cc/Kk, started our Popcorn (Sight) Word board with "and," talked and wrote booklets about natural occurrences in the Fall, made fall art (on display on the hallway bulletin board), and learned about how pumpkins and oak trees grow. We have also been singing four Fall Songs with the piano. We have completed our October calendar and will be completing "This is me in October" pictures (with writing for the SKs).
I am happy to see that most of the JK children can independently print their name. Practicing this at home is very helpful and children love to talk and write about their families and lives. Words like "mom," "dad" and sibling and pet names are often what children learn to write next. Some of the JKs are still learning how to use scissors - please provide them with child's safety scissors at home as well.
The children enjoyed going to the Book Fair. They will exchange their library books for new ones this week. Also this week will be our second Sharing assembly on Friday. We have been discussing the TDSB Character Trait of Responsibility for this assembly and will be singing a song about Halloween. Parents whose children will be recieving certificates this month have been informed by letter in their child's white TDSB bag.
This upcoming week the children will find the classroom decorated for Halloween! We will be weighing and measuring a pumpkin and will estimate and count its seeds. Our Halloween Parade and Party is on October 31st. An ideal costume for a small child is one in which they can move around easily, one with makeup as opposed to a mask, and no weapons please. Thank you.
If your child will be bringing in Halloween treats for his/her classmates, please ensure that they are nut and sesame-free. A great writing opportunity for your child at home is to write his/her classmates' names on each treat/treat bag as well as their own name ("To______ From_______").
I hope you have a wonderful week!
I am happy to see that most of the JK children can independently print their name. Practicing this at home is very helpful and children love to talk and write about their families and lives. Words like "mom," "dad" and sibling and pet names are often what children learn to write next. Some of the JKs are still learning how to use scissors - please provide them with child's safety scissors at home as well.
The children enjoyed going to the Book Fair. They will exchange their library books for new ones this week. Also this week will be our second Sharing assembly on Friday. We have been discussing the TDSB Character Trait of Responsibility for this assembly and will be singing a song about Halloween. Parents whose children will be recieving certificates this month have been informed by letter in their child's white TDSB bag.
This upcoming week the children will find the classroom decorated for Halloween! We will be weighing and measuring a pumpkin and will estimate and count its seeds. Our Halloween Parade and Party is on October 31st. An ideal costume for a small child is one in which they can move around easily, one with makeup as opposed to a mask, and no weapons please. Thank you.
If your child will be bringing in Halloween treats for his/her classmates, please ensure that they are nut and sesame-free. A great writing opportunity for your child at home is to write his/her classmates' names on each treat/treat bag as well as their own name ("To______ From_______").
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Week of October 15-18
Dear families,
I hope you are having a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! We finished our unit on farms and for the next two weeks will be focusing on Signs of Fall and Patterns. The children are already talking about Halloween and we will start all our Halloween related activities and learning the week before the 31st. With October and the coming of Halloween a tremendous amount of learning can take place. Thanksgiving also offers endless opportunities to teach not only reading and math skills but also important values about being thankful. It was so sweet that many of the children drew their families on their "I am grateful for..." Thanksgiving plates.
Please take time to sit down with your child and review the poems, songs and finger plays that I teach at school. Copies of these are sent home I your child's white bag each week.
We are going to complete a fall-themed art project using the "resist" technique of oil pastels and watercolour. It is called "Falling Leaves on a Sunny Day" and I will display the art on our hall bulletin board. We will also be doing leaf rubbings on tracing paper this week - please bring in one fall leaf that your child can use. Leaves that are not very dry work best. Thank you.
This upcoming week is the Book Fair in the Library. Both the morning and afternoon classes will be going on Wednesday. If you would like your child to be able to purchase a book/books, please ensure their money is in a zip-lock bag clearly labelled with your child's name. Thank you.
Please take time to read each night with your child, picking out familiar words i.e. high frequency words such as is, the, a, mommy, daddy etc. to help build a sight word vocabulary. For the Juniors, practice printing your child's name and play games recognizing the letters of the alphabet. Magnetic letters are always fun and work well. These can be purchased at Mastermind or any department store. Also, www.starfall.com is an excellent website for learning how to read and the children really enjoy the activities. If your child says that his/her snuggle book is too easy, try the following: work on intonation, predicting, drawing conclusions, retelling and talking about why they like the book. Reading is so much more than reading the words on a page.
A special thank you to our parent volunteers this week; Quentin's mom did the white bags and snuggle books and was Mystery Reader, and in the morning class Rhys' mom was Mystery Reader and Lily G.'s mom did the white bags and snuggle books. Thank you so much!
Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!
Mrs. Tyndall
I hope you are having a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! We finished our unit on farms and for the next two weeks will be focusing on Signs of Fall and Patterns. The children are already talking about Halloween and we will start all our Halloween related activities and learning the week before the 31st. With October and the coming of Halloween a tremendous amount of learning can take place. Thanksgiving also offers endless opportunities to teach not only reading and math skills but also important values about being thankful. It was so sweet that many of the children drew their families on their "I am grateful for..." Thanksgiving plates.
Please take time to sit down with your child and review the poems, songs and finger plays that I teach at school. Copies of these are sent home I your child's white bag each week.
We are going to complete a fall-themed art project using the "resist" technique of oil pastels and watercolour. It is called "Falling Leaves on a Sunny Day" and I will display the art on our hall bulletin board. We will also be doing leaf rubbings on tracing paper this week - please bring in one fall leaf that your child can use. Leaves that are not very dry work best. Thank you.
This upcoming week is the Book Fair in the Library. Both the morning and afternoon classes will be going on Wednesday. If you would like your child to be able to purchase a book/books, please ensure their money is in a zip-lock bag clearly labelled with your child's name. Thank you.
Please take time to read each night with your child, picking out familiar words i.e. high frequency words such as is, the, a, mommy, daddy etc. to help build a sight word vocabulary. For the Juniors, practice printing your child's name and play games recognizing the letters of the alphabet. Magnetic letters are always fun and work well. These can be purchased at Mastermind or any department store. Also, www.starfall.com is an excellent website for learning how to read and the children really enjoy the activities. If your child says that his/her snuggle book is too easy, try the following: work on intonation, predicting, drawing conclusions, retelling and talking about why they like the book. Reading is so much more than reading the words on a page.
A special thank you to our parent volunteers this week; Quentin's mom did the white bags and snuggle books and was Mystery Reader, and in the morning class Rhys' mom was Mystery Reader and Lily G.'s mom did the white bags and snuggle books. Thank you so much!
Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Week of October 7-11
Dear families,
I hope you are enjoying your weekend!
Thanksgiving weekend is around the corner and this upcoming week we will be completing several numeracy-, literacy- and craft-based activities related to this theme. It will tie in very well with the farm unit we just finished; we are talking about being thankful for the harvests from the fields.
If you have a chance, look at the bulletin board in the hallway to see the wonderful writing your children have done about Farms and themselves. We read, wrote and talked about farm food, farm life, farm animals, and why farms are important. A visit to an apple farm would tie in very nicely with our unit if you have the time! The children will decorate a plaster farm animal of their choice with their Reading Buddies this week to take home.
Related to the Thanksgiving theme was the homework I sent home in Friday's mail bag. I am looking forward to seeing the wonderful turkey puppets the children made at home. This week we will be making an "I am Grateful For..." plate.
We also learned and reviewed the letter sound "Pp" and so far have learned/reviewed the letter sounds SATIP. This week's letter sound will be "Nn." If you have magnetic letters at home it is amazing how many words can be made with those six letters (and this is why we learn them in this order as opposed to alphabetically). We are also learning about the changes that occur in the Fall.
Thank you to my Parent Volunteers this week: Mystery Readers were Luke's mom and Grace's mom, and white bags and snuggle books were done by Clive's mom and Izzie's mom.
If your child will be picked up by someone other than their regular caregiver, please remember to provide me with a note and to let the office know as well. It is very important for your child's safety that we are certain of your child's safe arrival to school and home. Please do not leave it up to your child to tell me that they are "not taking the bus today" for example or that someone different will be picking them up; the school must have a written note and/or the office must be called. Leaving a note in your child's backpack will not guarantee that s/he will remember to give it to me; it is best to call the office and they will let me know. Thank you so much.
The LKS Book Fair is the week after Thanksgiving in the Library during school hours. If you would like your child to be able to purchase a book/books at the Book Fair, please put money in a clearly labelled and sealed plastic bag. Thank you. October's Scholastic Order is due on October 20th and September's order should arrive this week!
I was very happy to see all the wonderful Bedtime Book Boxes that the children have made. They look terrific and are a wonderful way to encourage daily reading at home.
If it is your child's Special/Snack Day remember that it is also their Show and Tell Day.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
I hope you are enjoying your weekend!
Thanksgiving weekend is around the corner and this upcoming week we will be completing several numeracy-, literacy- and craft-based activities related to this theme. It will tie in very well with the farm unit we just finished; we are talking about being thankful for the harvests from the fields.
If you have a chance, look at the bulletin board in the hallway to see the wonderful writing your children have done about Farms and themselves. We read, wrote and talked about farm food, farm life, farm animals, and why farms are important. A visit to an apple farm would tie in very nicely with our unit if you have the time! The children will decorate a plaster farm animal of their choice with their Reading Buddies this week to take home.
Related to the Thanksgiving theme was the homework I sent home in Friday's mail bag. I am looking forward to seeing the wonderful turkey puppets the children made at home. This week we will be making an "I am Grateful For..." plate.
We also learned and reviewed the letter sound "Pp" and so far have learned/reviewed the letter sounds SATIP. This week's letter sound will be "Nn." If you have magnetic letters at home it is amazing how many words can be made with those six letters (and this is why we learn them in this order as opposed to alphabetically). We are also learning about the changes that occur in the Fall.
Thank you to my Parent Volunteers this week: Mystery Readers were Luke's mom and Grace's mom, and white bags and snuggle books were done by Clive's mom and Izzie's mom.
If your child will be picked up by someone other than their regular caregiver, please remember to provide me with a note and to let the office know as well. It is very important for your child's safety that we are certain of your child's safe arrival to school and home. Please do not leave it up to your child to tell me that they are "not taking the bus today" for example or that someone different will be picking them up; the school must have a written note and/or the office must be called. Leaving a note in your child's backpack will not guarantee that s/he will remember to give it to me; it is best to call the office and they will let me know. Thank you so much.
The LKS Book Fair is the week after Thanksgiving in the Library during school hours. If you would like your child to be able to purchase a book/books at the Book Fair, please put money in a clearly labelled and sealed plastic bag. Thank you. October's Scholastic Order is due on October 20th and September's order should arrive this week!
I was very happy to see all the wonderful Bedtime Book Boxes that the children have made. They look terrific and are a wonderful way to encourage daily reading at home.
If it is your child's Special/Snack Day remember that it is also their Show and Tell Day.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Week of September 30-October 4
Dear families,
I hope you enjoyed the lovely weather this weekend.
This week we continued our unit on Farms, reading books and reading and writing words about farm animals and their characteristics, what farms produce, farm work and why we need farms. The children started making a booklet called "Who us in the Barn" with their Reading Buddies as well.
The children did a wonderful job reciting the poem "Me" at our first Sharing Assembly.
The Halloween Scholastic order is due October 20. September's order is due on Monday.
Thank you to the parent volunteers who walked with us on the Terry Fox walk. LKS has raised 10,000 so far and that means we are having Crazy Hair Day on Tuesday!
Please join me in welcoming Emma, an ECI co-op student who will be assisting my afternoon class every other day until June.
This week we will finish our Farm Unit and starting to learn about patterns.
I hope you have a wonderful week.
I hope you enjoyed the lovely weather this weekend.
This week we continued our unit on Farms, reading books and reading and writing words about farm animals and their characteristics, what farms produce, farm work and why we need farms. The children started making a booklet called "Who us in the Barn" with their Reading Buddies as well.
The children did a wonderful job reciting the poem "Me" at our first Sharing Assembly.
The Halloween Scholastic order is due October 20. September's order is due on Monday.
Thank you to the parent volunteers who walked with us on the Terry Fox walk. LKS has raised 10,000 so far and that means we are having Crazy Hair Day on Tuesday!
Please join me in welcoming Emma, an ECI co-op student who will be assisting my afternoon class every other day until June.
This week we will finish our Farm Unit and starting to learn about patterns.
I hope you have a wonderful week.
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Week of September 23-27
Dear families,
This past week we completed our first calendar of the year. We will complete one each month, practicing writing our numbers 1-30. When the calendar goes home please put it on your fridge and practice number recognition, especially with the JKs. The children also enjoyed using our class set of magnetic write and erase boards, practicing number writing.
We have learned (JKs) and reviewed (SKs) the first three letter sounds of S, A and T. The next three are I, P and N. It's amazing how many words you can make with those six letters!
We also started writing a booklet called "I am..." and the children are doing a lovely job completing the sentences and drawing accompanying pictures. We will do several similar booklets this year, with different starting words. Our next booklet will be called "Farms are..."
We also welcomed our Grade 8 Reading Buddies again, who come each day from 9-9:20 and from 2:45-3:05 to read phonics books one-on-one with the children. They are doing a fabulous job and the children enjoy reading with them! We also had dun with our grade 2/3 Reading Buddies from Ms. Shklar's and Ms. Sunde's class. They are getting to know each other and are working very well together!
We use scissors and glue sticks often in the classroom; please encourage your children to use junior child-safe scissors at home as well. This is an important small motor skill.
Our science table has changed to fall items; pine cones, acorns, changing leaves.
Please remember to return your child's white bag each Monday. Remind your child to hand me their white bag when they come into school on Monday morning/afternoon.
Please return your child's medical/permission forms if you have not done so. Thank you.
If you would like to volunteer for Mystery Reader, white bags, class craft parties please let your Grade Parents know; they are responsible for doing the volunteer calendars. Thank you!
This week we are starting our unit on Farms. We will be doing several numeracy and literacy activities with this theme as well as a craft. This is the perfect time for apple picking - if you have a chance, take your child to a local apple farm and help your child understand that our food comes from farms.
It is getting chillier as Fall is officially here. Please remember to provide your child with a light jacket and appropriate foot wear. I hope your have a wonderful week!
This past week we completed our first calendar of the year. We will complete one each month, practicing writing our numbers 1-30. When the calendar goes home please put it on your fridge and practice number recognition, especially with the JKs. The children also enjoyed using our class set of magnetic write and erase boards, practicing number writing.
We have learned (JKs) and reviewed (SKs) the first three letter sounds of S, A and T. The next three are I, P and N. It's amazing how many words you can make with those six letters!
We also started writing a booklet called "I am..." and the children are doing a lovely job completing the sentences and drawing accompanying pictures. We will do several similar booklets this year, with different starting words. Our next booklet will be called "Farms are..."
We also welcomed our Grade 8 Reading Buddies again, who come each day from 9-9:20 and from 2:45-3:05 to read phonics books one-on-one with the children. They are doing a fabulous job and the children enjoy reading with them! We also had dun with our grade 2/3 Reading Buddies from Ms. Shklar's and Ms. Sunde's class. They are getting to know each other and are working very well together!
We use scissors and glue sticks often in the classroom; please encourage your children to use junior child-safe scissors at home as well. This is an important small motor skill.
Our science table has changed to fall items; pine cones, acorns, changing leaves.
Please remember to return your child's white bag each Monday. Remind your child to hand me their white bag when they come into school on Monday morning/afternoon.
Please return your child's medical/permission forms if you have not done so. Thank you.
If you would like to volunteer for Mystery Reader, white bags, class craft parties please let your Grade Parents know; they are responsible for doing the volunteer calendars. Thank you!
This week we are starting our unit on Farms. We will be doing several numeracy and literacy activities with this theme as well as a craft. This is the perfect time for apple picking - if you have a chance, take your child to a local apple farm and help your child understand that our food comes from farms.
It is getting chillier as Fall is officially here. Please remember to provide your child with a light jacket and appropriate foot wear. I hope your have a wonderful week!
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Week of September 16-20
Dear families,
Thank you for helping make the first two weeks of school a smooth transition for your children.
This week was busy and the children did a wonderful job listening during the Fire Drills and Lockdown Drills. There was also a fun presentation called "Cyberbusters" this week and a Terry Fox Assembly.
A note regarding water bottles and snacks -- your children can bring water bottles to school but there is no need for them in class since we have a water fountain. There is no need for snacks either since the Special Person of the Day provides snack for the entire class. Please remember to provide your child with indoor shoes that remain in their cubbies. Thank you.
It was a pleasure meeting you at Curriculum Night. For further information regarding the Kindergarten Curriculum please see tdsb.on.ca/kindergarten.
Some parents were asking about good first dictionaries for their children, and I recommend the Scholastic First Dictionary, which is the one we use in class. The ISDN number is 978-0-439-7983 and it can be purchased through Scholastic for 22.99.
Bubbles the Beta Fish is our new classroom pet and the Special Person of the Day gets to feed him! We also met with our Reading Buddies this week and the JKs and SKs were interviewed by their Buddies and started making a booklet together called "The Twelve Days of Kindergarten."
A big thank you to my Grade 8 volunteers Haley and Leyla who read one-on-one with the afternoon children each day at the end of the day. I will be recruiting morning Grade 8 volunteers as well.
We are practicing the poem "Me" for the Sharing Assembly:
I've got ten little fingers,
And ten little toes,
Two little eyes,
And one little nose.
Put them all together
And what have you got?
You've got me, baby,
And that's a lot!
We read the wonderful book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and the children enjoyed making a coconut tree with the letters of their name on it. They are on display in the hall bulletin board.
We also learned about the letter sound "S" and are practicing our number poem, a copy of which will be sent home in this Friday's white bag. Soon your child will be bringing home his/her first calendar. Please put it on the fridge and practice saying and counting the numbers with them.
Here are some tips on how to be a good Reading Coach:
Pause...Prompt...Praise
When your child is stuck on a word, pause, then give them time to figure it out.
Prompt
Suggest a strategy they could try:
- Look at the picture. Are there any clues there?
- What would make sense there?
- Let's look at the letters. Are there any little words in it you know? Stretch out the sounds in the word.
- Try skipping a word. Read to the end of the sentence (or re-read the whole sentence) and come back to it.
Praise
- "I like the way you sounded that out."
- "Good for you for re-reading to figure that out."
- "You did a great job looking for clues in the picture."
Don't let your child struggle for a long time oveer a single word. Tell them it's a hard word and tell it to them.
Whether your child is listening to you read, "reading" pictures, or reading words, be sure to communicate how much you enjoyed your book time together. Your enthusiasm will encourage your child's interest in reading. Each child reads at his/her own pace.
Most of all, enjoy this special time with your child...
A big Thank You to my Grade Parents Tim Ryder, Marsha McFayden, Erica Bower and Liza Snowden for their help in creating our volunteer schedules. They are posted by the entrance doors each month. Thank you as well to the parents who have already signed up for the numerous volunteer opportunities within the classroom. Thank you to Grace's dad for doing the afternoon mail bags!
Scholastic orders are due September 30. Thank you to Megan's mom who volunteered to do Scholastic orders from October onwards.
An important reminder to bring only nut- and sesame-free snacks to class. There are children in my classes that have severe nut and sesame allergies. A note regarding this will be sent home tomorrow. Thank you.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Thank you for helping make the first two weeks of school a smooth transition for your children.
This week was busy and the children did a wonderful job listening during the Fire Drills and Lockdown Drills. There was also a fun presentation called "Cyberbusters" this week and a Terry Fox Assembly.
A note regarding water bottles and snacks -- your children can bring water bottles to school but there is no need for them in class since we have a water fountain. There is no need for snacks either since the Special Person of the Day provides snack for the entire class. Please remember to provide your child with indoor shoes that remain in their cubbies. Thank you.
It was a pleasure meeting you at Curriculum Night. For further information regarding the Kindergarten Curriculum please see tdsb.on.ca/kindergarten.
Some parents were asking about good first dictionaries for their children, and I recommend the Scholastic First Dictionary, which is the one we use in class. The ISDN number is 978-0-439-7983 and it can be purchased through Scholastic for 22.99.
Bubbles the Beta Fish is our new classroom pet and the Special Person of the Day gets to feed him! We also met with our Reading Buddies this week and the JKs and SKs were interviewed by their Buddies and started making a booklet together called "The Twelve Days of Kindergarten."
A big thank you to my Grade 8 volunteers Haley and Leyla who read one-on-one with the afternoon children each day at the end of the day. I will be recruiting morning Grade 8 volunteers as well.
We are practicing the poem "Me" for the Sharing Assembly:
I've got ten little fingers,
And ten little toes,
Two little eyes,
And one little nose.
Put them all together
And what have you got?
You've got me, baby,
And that's a lot!
We read the wonderful book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and the children enjoyed making a coconut tree with the letters of their name on it. They are on display in the hall bulletin board.
We also learned about the letter sound "S" and are practicing our number poem, a copy of which will be sent home in this Friday's white bag. Soon your child will be bringing home his/her first calendar. Please put it on the fridge and practice saying and counting the numbers with them.
Here are some tips on how to be a good Reading Coach:
Pause...Prompt...Praise
When your child is stuck on a word, pause, then give them time to figure it out.
Prompt
Suggest a strategy they could try:
- Look at the picture. Are there any clues there?
- What would make sense there?
- Let's look at the letters. Are there any little words in it you know? Stretch out the sounds in the word.
- Try skipping a word. Read to the end of the sentence (or re-read the whole sentence) and come back to it.
Praise
- "I like the way you sounded that out."
- "Good for you for re-reading to figure that out."
- "You did a great job looking for clues in the picture."
Don't let your child struggle for a long time oveer a single word. Tell them it's a hard word and tell it to them.
Whether your child is listening to you read, "reading" pictures, or reading words, be sure to communicate how much you enjoyed your book time together. Your enthusiasm will encourage your child's interest in reading. Each child reads at his/her own pace.
Most of all, enjoy this special time with your child...
A big Thank You to my Grade Parents Tim Ryder, Marsha McFayden, Erica Bower and Liza Snowden for their help in creating our volunteer schedules. They are posted by the entrance doors each month. Thank you as well to the parents who have already signed up for the numerous volunteer opportunities within the classroom. Thank you to Grace's dad for doing the afternoon mail bags!
Scholastic orders are due September 30. Thank you to Megan's mom who volunteered to do Scholastic orders from October onwards.
An important reminder to bring only nut- and sesame-free snacks to class. There are children in my classes that have severe nut and sesame allergies. A note regarding this will be sent home tomorrow. Thank you.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Week of September 9-13
Dear families,
Kindergarten in Room 166 is well under way and we had a terrific first week! The new JKs and SKs are learning our classroom routines and are making new friends every day. We completed our first "This is Me" sheet and started counting our days as well.
On Friday you received a lot of important information and forms in your child's white bag that should be read carefully. All forms should be completed and returned in your child's white bag tomorrow, Monday. Thank you.
Our Afternoon Class met with their Reading Buddies from Ms. Sunde's grade 2/3 class for the first time on Friday! The grade 2/3s interviewed my class and had fun getting to know them. This week our Morning Class will meet with their Reaung Buddies from Ms. Shklar's Grade 3 class. Reading Buddies meet once a week in my room. I look forward to another wonderful and productive year with our Reading Buddies!
Please join me in welcoming our Grade Parents - Morning Class: Tim Ryder + one more tbd
- Afternoon Class: Liza Snowden, Erica Bower
I hope you will attend Curriculum Night on Tuesday, September 10. I look forward to seeing you at our Kindergarten Presentation at 5:30 in the gym. I will have hand-outs for you in my classroom as well.
Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions. I look forward to another terrific year with your wonderful children!
Yours in partnership,
Beverley Tyndall
Kindergarten in Room 166 is well under way and we had a terrific first week! The new JKs and SKs are learning our classroom routines and are making new friends every day. We completed our first "This is Me" sheet and started counting our days as well.
On Friday you received a lot of important information and forms in your child's white bag that should be read carefully. All forms should be completed and returned in your child's white bag tomorrow, Monday. Thank you.
Our Afternoon Class met with their Reading Buddies from Ms. Sunde's grade 2/3 class for the first time on Friday! The grade 2/3s interviewed my class and had fun getting to know them. This week our Morning Class will meet with their Reaung Buddies from Ms. Shklar's Grade 3 class. Reading Buddies meet once a week in my room. I look forward to another wonderful and productive year with our Reading Buddies!
Please join me in welcoming our Grade Parents - Morning Class: Tim Ryder + one more tbd
- Afternoon Class: Liza Snowden, Erica Bower
I hope you will attend Curriculum Night on Tuesday, September 10. I look forward to seeing you at our Kindergarten Presentation at 5:30 in the gym. I will have hand-outs for you in my classroom as well.
Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions. I look forward to another terrific year with your wonderful children!
Yours in partnership,
Beverley Tyndall
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Week of September 2-6
Dear families,
Another exciting school year is about to start and I look forward to seeing all the children on September 3rd at the Open House! The Open House will give you and your child an opportunity to meet me and become acquainted with some classmates and the classroom. Morning Open house runs from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and Afternoon Open House runs from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. The first day of school for the SKs will be Wednesday, September 4, and the first day of school for the JKs will be either Thursday, September 5 or Friday, September 6, depending on the schedule you received in the mail in June. If you have forgotten which day your JK child is scheduled to start, please contact the office or send me an email at betyndall@rogers.com. Because I would like the Open House to be a special time for your kindergartner, I am asking that siblings please not attend. I will have several activities set up for you and your child to do together. I am looking forward to your visit.
Please find below my Kindergarten Handbook for Parents:
Kindergarten Handbook for
Parents
Prepared for Parents by
Mrs. B. Tyndall
Lambton-Kingsway JMS
Introduction
The Kindergarten Handbook has been created to acquaint you with the
major components of my program as well as to provide activities which
will help your child prepare for and succeed in Kindergarten. Please keep
this as a reference guide for the entire year.
Mission of the Kindergarten Program
I would like to welcome you and your child to our kindergarten program at Lambton Kingsway Junior Middle School. I am looking forward to an exciting year of new experiences and lots of fun! It is during the first years of life that children form attitudes about themselves, others, learning, and the environment. These attitudes last a lifetime, so I work very hard to find ways to help children develop positive attitudes.
Educating a child is most successful when families and schools work together in the best interest of the child. I welcome your input and assistance in educating your child. After all, you are your child’s first teacher! Valuing education and the opportunities it provides are important first steps. I am hopeful that you will find time to participate in some of our school activities. I am always in need of parents to help in the classroom and in many other capacities.
The goal of my program is to meet your child's needs not only intellectually, but also physically, socially, and emotionally. Going to school is one of the most important experiences in a child’s life. School can be an exciting place where children meet new and different people and participate in many new and different experiences. I promise to work diligently to provide the children with wonderful experiences that help them to feel good about themselves and their school.
Communications
Contacting the Office:
School Phone Number: 416-394-7890
My Blog: mrstyndallslksblog.blogspot.com. Please check my blog for weekly updates about classroom activities. I try to not send paper notes home and will post most information on my blog.
My email: betyndall@rogers.com
Overview of the Curriculum
Reading and Language Arts
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
communication arts areas:
Pre-reading and reading activities
• Letter identification
• Letter-sound relationships
• Letter formation (printing upper and lower case letters)
• One-to-one correspondence
• Determining real and make-believe
Writing activities
• Drawing a picture to convey meaning
• Holding a pencil correctly
• Copying words
• Identifying and writing sight words
• Writing words and sentences
• Revising writing in a group setting
Speaking and listening activities
• Telling stories
• Dictating lists, stories, and descriptions
• Listening to others
• Listening to stories
• Story retelling
• Reciting poems
• Participating in class discussion
• Show & Tell
Knowing and using basic library terminology (author, title,
illustrator, Title page)
• Identifying parts of a book (spine, cover)
• Making predictions and drawing conclusions
• Selecting appropriate reading materials
• Demonstrating respect for others using library materials
• Participating in author studies
• Using visual structure to communicate ideas
• Developing organizational skills in association with art activities
Mathematics
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
mathematics areas:
• Counting forward from 0 to 100
• Color Recognition
• Recognizing and writing numerals 0 to 100
• Skip counting by 2, 5, and 10
• Counting backwards from 20 to 0
• Reading numerals to 100
• Estimating time on an analog clock
• Naming the value of a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, loonie, and toonie
• Performing simple data collection and graphing
• Patterning
• Naming geometric shapes (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, cone, sphere,
and cube)
• Showing Addition and subtraction facts to 10
Science
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
science areas:
• Five senses
• Weather elements
• Production processes involving plants and animals
Social Studies
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
social studies areas.
• Identifying and locating places and regions
• Identifying landforms and bodies of water
• Identifying people in places and community helpers
• Recognizing the Canadian flag and singing the national anthem
• Discussing sources of conflict and possible solutions
• Identifying reasons for rules and routines in the classroom/playground
Health, Physical Education, Safety
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
health, physical education, and safety areas
• Large muscle activity through outdoor play including running, sliding, skipping,
and other games
• Basic rhythms of walking, running, marching, skipping, and jumping
• Fire drills and other safety drills (earthquake drills; drop and cover; Stop,
Drop, and Roll )
Music:
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
music areas:
• Singing alone and in groups
• Movement to music
Helpful Reminders for School Starting Times:
AM Kindergarten 8:30-11:20
PM Kindergarten 12:30-3:05
Before your child comes to school, please make sure he/she has had a
good breakfast or lunch and also plenty of rest (ten to twelve hours is
recommended for this age).
Snack Program: Please remember to send in snack for the children on your child’s Special/Snack Day. This is also your child’s Show and Tell day. If you forget to bring snack, I will provide snack and will send home a reminder to bring non-perishable snacks for the children to store for future use. Children will be provided time to eat their snack in a relaxed social setting.
All snacks must be nut free
Birthdays-individual special snacks
Monday-washed and cut vegetables
Tuesday-cheese and crackers
Wednesday-washed and cut fruit
Thursday-your choice of a healthy snack
Friday-cookies, muffins, rice krispy squares etc.
Label, Label, Label: Please label your child’s coats, sweaters,
backpacks, lunch pails, thermos, etc… Please label everything and
anything sent to kindergarten.
Shoes: For safety reasons, I ask that all children wear closed toe shoes
to school. Please provide your child with a pair of indoor crocs or slippers if/when they wear boots to school.
When your child is ill: When your child is ill, please call the office at
416-394-7890 and report your child’s absence. All absences must be
verified. If your child becomes ill at school, he/she will be sent to the
office and you or one of the names listed on the emergency card will be
contacted. Please notify us immediately if any contact numbers change.
Targeted activities you can do at home to help your child in Kindergarten:
Practice writing his/her first and last name
1. Have your child practice writing his/her name using a variety of
tools such as a Magna Doodle, crayons, pencils, and markers. Check that
your child is gripping the writing utensil correctly. You may even
consider having your child practice writing his/her name using
different items around the house such as pudding, rice, sand, or
shaving cream.
*** Be sure that your child uses a capital letter only at the beginning
and lowercase letters for the rest of the name.
2. Write your child’s name in large letters (or use magnetic letters).
Say each letter aloud as you write or place it so your child can
associate the name of the letter with the shape of the letter.
3. Cut apart the letters of your child’s name (or use magnetic letters)
and have him/her put them back in the correct order saying the name
of each letter while doing so. (Start with just the first name, adding
the last name only when they have mastered this.)
4. Label your child’s door or other objects so his/her name can be seen
in print.
Practice recognizing and writing the numbers 0 to 10 (or higher)
1. Read and enjoy counting books together.
2. Point out numbers in license plates, in the store, in your home, and all
around you.
3. Use magnetic numbers to have your child practice naming them. Have
your child put the numbers for your phone number in order saying
each number while doing so.
4. Practice writing numbers using a variety of materials such as pencils,
crayons, markers, and sidewalk chalk, etc. (see number formation sheet
in folder).
Practice counting orally and practice counting objects (to 10 or
higher)
1. Have your child count his/her own snacks such as pretzels, goldfish
crackers, grapes, etc....
2. Count each item as you pick up 10 things to put away in the house or
bedroom.
3. Count the number of stair steps in your house or the number of
steps from your car to the store.
Practice naming and correctly writing the letters in the alphabet
1. Read and enjoy alphabet books together.
2. Help your child recognize letters of the alphabet in everyday life
(ex. Restaurants, road signs, store signs, cereal boxes, etc...).
3. Practice recognizing and writing both upper and lowercase letters.
(see letter information sheet in folder).
Practice book handling skills
1. Discuss how to open the book from the front. Point out the front of
the book and the back of the book. Discuss that the front of the book
is where the story begins and the back is where the story ends.
2. Discuss how to hold a book so it is not upside down and show where
to start reading.
3. Read with your child on a daily basis.
Practice recognizing the eight primary colors
1. When your child is coloring, ask what colors were used.
2. Have our child draw objects on paper and ask him/her to color the
objects in certain colors.
3. Have your child sort objects or food by colors. Use items such as
clothes, blocks, Skittles, M&M’s, or Fruit Loops. Have your child name
the colors.
4. Discuss colors of things in the world around you such as the sky, the
grass, cars, clothing items.
Practice your phone number and address
1. Have your child practice his/her phone number on a play telephone.
2. To help your child remember his/her phone number, make up a
rhyme or song to go along with it.
Practice naming and drawing the four basic shapes (circle,
triangle, square, rectangle)
1. Point out objects in your house or environment that have the basic
shapes such as doors, windows, clocks, can tops, kites, etc...
2. Read and enjoy shape books together.
3. Have your child draw the shapes on chalkboards, paper, etc....then
cut them out naming each shape while doing so.
Practice coloring within the lines and cutting on the lines
1. Have your child cut out coupons.
2. Have your child cut out pictures from old magazines of things that
he/she is interested in.
3. Have your child draw simple objects with some detail (including
“self, family, house, and pets).
4. Explore coloring with a variety of resources including markers,
crayons, chalk, and paint.
Some Tips to Help with Beginning Reading and Writing
The greatest benefits of reading are obtained when your child is an
active participant engaging in discussions about stories, talking about
meanings of words and the story, predicting outcomes, and relating the
story matter to other texts and his/her own life.
1. Read to your child daily.
2. Talk about the book as you read with your child and after you have finished
reading it.
3. Look at the book cover before reading. Point out the title, author, and
illustrator.
4. Point out words or phrases that are repeated several times throughout the
story.
5. Encourage your child to finish predictable phrases or rhymes.
6. Remember to focus on the meaning of the story. If a child reads something
that doesn’t make sense, often he or she will go back and try again. If this
doesn’t happen, stop and ask, “Does that make sense?”
7. If your child comes to a word he or she does not know and asks for help,
consider asking these questions:
• Does the picture give you a clue?
• What word would make sense here?
• With what letter does the word begin (or end)?
If these strategies fail and your child wants you to say the word, go ahead
and do so rather than having your child labor over it.
8. Don’t worry if your child memorizes a particular phrase or story. That is an
early stage in the reading process.
9. Encourage your child to point to the word with his or her finger as he/she
reads.
10. Some helpful questions:
• What happened at the beginning, middle, or the end of the story?
• What do you think will happen next?
• Why do you think the character did that?
• What would you have done if you were that character?
• What was the best thing about the story?
11. Make sure your child sees you as a reader, (reading a newspaper, enjoying a
good book, reading a catalog, etc...)
12. When reading with a child, always sit beside the child with the book between
you so that you can both see the text and enjoy the pictures.
13. Consider giving books as presents so they become associated with a
pleasurable experience and have special meaning.
14. Make sure your child sees you as a writer, (writing things such as grocery
lists, thank you notes, notes to other family members, etc....)
15. Have a wide variety of writing supplies available for your child to write and
draw on including various sizes and types of paper, pencils, crayons, markers,
chalk, etc...
16. When your child draws a picture, encourage him/her to tell you about it. Then
write down what your child says as he/she says it. Let your child see you write
down what is said. Read it back. Point to the words as you read.
25 Ways To Use Magnetic Letters At Home
1. LETTER PLAY: Encourage children to play with the magnetic letters on the
refrigerator or on a table. Playing with letters allows children to learn more about
how they look.
2. MAKING NAMES: A child’s name is the most important word. Have children
make their names several times, mixing up the letters, making their names and
checking them with their names written on a card.
3. LETTER MATCH: Invite children to find other letters that look exactly the
same as a letter in their name (e.g., place an m on the refrigerator and have the
child find all the ones that look like it). They don’t need to know the letter name.
4. NAME GAME: Have children make names of friends or family. Have them make
the name, mix the letters, and make the names several times.
5. MAKING WORDS: Make a simple word like mom or dad or sun and have your
child make the same word by matching each letter below the model (sun – s-u-n).
6. ALPHABET TRAIN: Have your child put the lowercase magnetic letters in the
order of the alphabet. Then they can point to them and sing the alphabet song.
Have them repeat the process with uppercase letters.
7. CONSONANT/VOWEL SORT: Have children sort the consonant letters and the
vowel letters.
8. FEATURE SORT: Have children sort letters in a variety of ways – e.g., letters
with long sticks and letters with short sticks, letters with circles and letters with
no circles, letters with tunnels and letters with dots, letters with slanted sticks
and letters with straight sticks.
9. COLOR SORT: Have children sort all the red, blue, green, yellow letters.
10. UPPERCASE/LOWERCASE MATCH: Have children match the uppercase letters
with the lowercase form.
11. WRITING LETTERS: Have children select ten different letters and write each
letter on a paper. They can use the magnetic letter as a model.
12. WRITING WORDS: Have children make five simple words (such as dog, fun,
big, hat, like, sit) and then write them on a sheet of paper.
13. MAKING FOOD WORDS: Make some words that identify food – e.g., bun, corn,
rice. Have children draw pictures of each, mix the letters, and make the words
again.
14. MAKING COLOR WORDS: Give children a list of color words with an item made
in that color as a picture support (for example, a red ball). Have children make the
color word with magnetic letters using the model, mix the letters, and make it
again several times.
15. MAKING NUMBER WORDS: Give children a list of numerals with the number
word next to each. Have children make the word and mix the letters two or three
times.
16. LETTER NAMES: Specify a color and have children take one colored letter at a
time and say the letter name.
17. MAGAZINE MATCH: Look through a magazine or newspaper with children,
cutting out some larger print simple words (such as man, box, boy). Glue them on a
sheet of paper with plenty of space below each. Have children make each word
below the printed one.
18. FIND THE LETTER: Make a set of alphabet letters, upper-or lowercase, on a
set of index cards. Shuffle the “deck” and take turns drawing a card and finding
the magnetic letter that corresponds to it.
19. LETTER IN THE CIRCLE: Draw two circles and place an (h) in one and an (o) in
the other. Have children put letters in the h circle and say how they are like the h.
Do the same with the o. This activity will help children learn to look at features of
letters. Vary the letters in the circles; accept their explanations about what they
are noticing.
20. CHANGE THE WORD: Build several simple words and show the children how to
change, add, or take away a letter to make a new word. Examples are: he, we; me,
my: at, hat, sat. After the demonstration put the needed letters in a special place
in an empty container for them to practice.
21. ALPHABET SEQUENCE: Place the letter a on the table and have the child find
the next letter (b) and place the letter c next to the b and have the child look for
the next letter (d). Continue through the alphabet with lowercase letters. Repeat
the uppercase letters.
22. LETTER SORT: Place a pile of magnetic letters on the table for the child to
spread out. Have the child put all letters that are the same together in a pile.
Then, if appropriate, have the child give the letter name for each pile.
23. LETTER CHAINS: Make a five letter chain (for example, pfrmo). Have children
find the same letters and make the same chain below your model. Then have the
children make a chain that you copy.
24. LETTER BINGO: Make two cards with a grid of three boxes across and three
down. Trace one lowercase letter in each box. Put a pile of magnetic letters that
represent the letters on the cards and some that are not in a plastic bowl. Play a
Letter Bingo game. Take turns taking a letter, saying its name, and then placing the
letter in the box if there is a match. If there is not a match, put the letter back in
the bowl. The first to fill three boxes across, down, or diagonally says, “Bingo” and
wins the game.
Play the same game with uppercase letters.
25. RHYMING PAIRS: Use a magnetic cookie sheet. Make a simple three letter
word such as dog, but, cat, fan, can, hot, man, net, pan, rat, sit. Say the word and
then say a second word that rhymes (dog-log, bug-mug, cat-fat, fan-man). Ask the
child to make the rhyming .
Quick Assessment Instructions:
Have your child point to each letter and tell you what the letter is.
Record the letters your child has difficulties identifying. Write each
of the difficult letters on an index card and use the index cards as
flash cards.
Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways
to Use Magnetic Letters at Home”
This can also be used to practice letter sounds.
Have your child name the colors.
Have your child point to the shapes (triangle, rectangle, circle, and
square) using objects around the house.
Have a set of 10 objects . This could be buttons, pennies, cereal, etc…
Have your child touch each object and say a number that object. Vary
this activity by giving a new number and have your child count out this
new set.
Have your child cut straight lines on paper using “child-sized scissors.”
Have your child write his/her name using an uppercase letter for the
first letter, then followed by lowercase letters.
Have your child say his/her first and last name.
Lower Case letter names and sounds
Have your child point to each letter and tell you the name of the letter.
Record the letters your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the difficult
letters on an index card and use the index cards as flash cards. Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways to Use
Magnetic Letters at Home”. This can also be used to practice letter sounds.
Upper Case letter names
Have your child point to each letter and tell you what the name of the letter.
Record the letters your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the difficult
letters on an index card and use the index cards as flash cards. Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways to Use Magnetic Letters at Home”
.
Identifying the Numbers 0 – 20
5 3 0 9 2 6 8 4 1 7 10 13 11 14 16 12 17 15 18 20 19
Instructions:
1. Have your child point to each number and tell you the name of the number.
2. Record the numbers your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the
difficult numbers on an index card and use the index cards as Flash Cards.
PRACTICE.
3. Practice with the Flash cards and have your child count out beans, or pennies.
Start with the number 0 – 5. Once that becomes EASY, add a few more
numbers 1 – 10. Continue to add a few more. Make a matching game: you place
8 pennies on the table. Have your child count them , then find the correct
flash card. Keep a progress chart and set goals. 0- 10, 10 - 20. Encourage your
child and when he/she meets a goal, do something fun and special together.
Number Recognition Practice Sheet
Instructions: Have your child point to each number and tell you the name of the number.
Alphabet Practice: Directions: Trace the letters in the directions of the arrows (an alphabet practice chart will be provided at Open House).
I look forward to a wonderful year of learning with your child! Please feel feel to contact me at any time.
Sincerely,
Beverley Tyndall
Another exciting school year is about to start and I look forward to seeing all the children on September 3rd at the Open House! The Open House will give you and your child an opportunity to meet me and become acquainted with some classmates and the classroom. Morning Open house runs from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and Afternoon Open House runs from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. The first day of school for the SKs will be Wednesday, September 4, and the first day of school for the JKs will be either Thursday, September 5 or Friday, September 6, depending on the schedule you received in the mail in June. If you have forgotten which day your JK child is scheduled to start, please contact the office or send me an email at betyndall@rogers.com. Because I would like the Open House to be a special time for your kindergartner, I am asking that siblings please not attend. I will have several activities set up for you and your child to do together. I am looking forward to your visit.
Please find below my Kindergarten Handbook for Parents:
Kindergarten Handbook for
Parents
Prepared for Parents by
Mrs. B. Tyndall
Lambton-Kingsway JMS
Introduction
The Kindergarten Handbook has been created to acquaint you with the
major components of my program as well as to provide activities which
will help your child prepare for and succeed in Kindergarten. Please keep
this as a reference guide for the entire year.
Mission of the Kindergarten Program
I would like to welcome you and your child to our kindergarten program at Lambton Kingsway Junior Middle School. I am looking forward to an exciting year of new experiences and lots of fun! It is during the first years of life that children form attitudes about themselves, others, learning, and the environment. These attitudes last a lifetime, so I work very hard to find ways to help children develop positive attitudes.
Educating a child is most successful when families and schools work together in the best interest of the child. I welcome your input and assistance in educating your child. After all, you are your child’s first teacher! Valuing education and the opportunities it provides are important first steps. I am hopeful that you will find time to participate in some of our school activities. I am always in need of parents to help in the classroom and in many other capacities.
The goal of my program is to meet your child's needs not only intellectually, but also physically, socially, and emotionally. Going to school is one of the most important experiences in a child’s life. School can be an exciting place where children meet new and different people and participate in many new and different experiences. I promise to work diligently to provide the children with wonderful experiences that help them to feel good about themselves and their school.
Communications
Contacting the Office:
School Phone Number: 416-394-7890
My Blog: mrstyndallslksblog.blogspot.com. Please check my blog for weekly updates about classroom activities. I try to not send paper notes home and will post most information on my blog.
My email: betyndall@rogers.com
Overview of the Curriculum
Reading and Language Arts
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
communication arts areas:
Pre-reading and reading activities
• Letter identification
• Letter-sound relationships
• Letter formation (printing upper and lower case letters)
• One-to-one correspondence
• Determining real and make-believe
Writing activities
• Drawing a picture to convey meaning
• Holding a pencil correctly
• Copying words
• Identifying and writing sight words
• Writing words and sentences
• Revising writing in a group setting
Speaking and listening activities
• Telling stories
• Dictating lists, stories, and descriptions
• Listening to others
• Listening to stories
• Story retelling
• Reciting poems
• Participating in class discussion
• Show & Tell
Knowing and using basic library terminology (author, title,
illustrator, Title page)
• Identifying parts of a book (spine, cover)
• Making predictions and drawing conclusions
• Selecting appropriate reading materials
• Demonstrating respect for others using library materials
• Participating in author studies
• Using visual structure to communicate ideas
• Developing organizational skills in association with art activities
Mathematics
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
mathematics areas:
• Counting forward from 0 to 100
• Color Recognition
• Recognizing and writing numerals 0 to 100
• Skip counting by 2, 5, and 10
• Counting backwards from 20 to 0
• Reading numerals to 100
• Estimating time on an analog clock
• Naming the value of a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, loonie, and toonie
• Performing simple data collection and graphing
• Patterning
• Naming geometric shapes (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, cone, sphere,
and cube)
• Showing Addition and subtraction facts to 10
Science
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
science areas:
• Five senses
• Weather elements
• Production processes involving plants and animals
Social Studies
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
social studies areas.
• Identifying and locating places and regions
• Identifying landforms and bodies of water
• Identifying people in places and community helpers
• Recognizing the Canadian flag and singing the national anthem
• Discussing sources of conflict and possible solutions
• Identifying reasons for rules and routines in the classroom/playground
Health, Physical Education, Safety
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
health, physical education, and safety areas
• Large muscle activity through outdoor play including running, sliding, skipping,
and other games
• Basic rhythms of walking, running, marching, skipping, and jumping
• Fire drills and other safety drills (earthquake drills; drop and cover; Stop,
Drop, and Roll )
Music:
Your child will participate in activities to enhance his/her skills in the following
music areas:
• Singing alone and in groups
• Movement to music
Helpful Reminders for School Starting Times:
AM Kindergarten 8:30-11:20
PM Kindergarten 12:30-3:05
Before your child comes to school, please make sure he/she has had a
good breakfast or lunch and also plenty of rest (ten to twelve hours is
recommended for this age).
Snack Program: Please remember to send in snack for the children on your child’s Special/Snack Day. This is also your child’s Show and Tell day. If you forget to bring snack, I will provide snack and will send home a reminder to bring non-perishable snacks for the children to store for future use. Children will be provided time to eat their snack in a relaxed social setting.
All snacks must be nut free
Birthdays-individual special snacks
Monday-washed and cut vegetables
Tuesday-cheese and crackers
Wednesday-washed and cut fruit
Thursday-your choice of a healthy snack
Friday-cookies, muffins, rice krispy squares etc.
Label, Label, Label: Please label your child’s coats, sweaters,
backpacks, lunch pails, thermos, etc… Please label everything and
anything sent to kindergarten.
Shoes: For safety reasons, I ask that all children wear closed toe shoes
to school. Please provide your child with a pair of indoor crocs or slippers if/when they wear boots to school.
When your child is ill: When your child is ill, please call the office at
416-394-7890 and report your child’s absence. All absences must be
verified. If your child becomes ill at school, he/she will be sent to the
office and you or one of the names listed on the emergency card will be
contacted. Please notify us immediately if any contact numbers change.
Targeted activities you can do at home to help your child in Kindergarten:
Practice writing his/her first and last name
1. Have your child practice writing his/her name using a variety of
tools such as a Magna Doodle, crayons, pencils, and markers. Check that
your child is gripping the writing utensil correctly. You may even
consider having your child practice writing his/her name using
different items around the house such as pudding, rice, sand, or
shaving cream.
*** Be sure that your child uses a capital letter only at the beginning
and lowercase letters for the rest of the name.
2. Write your child’s name in large letters (or use magnetic letters).
Say each letter aloud as you write or place it so your child can
associate the name of the letter with the shape of the letter.
3. Cut apart the letters of your child’s name (or use magnetic letters)
and have him/her put them back in the correct order saying the name
of each letter while doing so. (Start with just the first name, adding
the last name only when they have mastered this.)
4. Label your child’s door or other objects so his/her name can be seen
in print.
Practice recognizing and writing the numbers 0 to 10 (or higher)
1. Read and enjoy counting books together.
2. Point out numbers in license plates, in the store, in your home, and all
around you.
3. Use magnetic numbers to have your child practice naming them. Have
your child put the numbers for your phone number in order saying
each number while doing so.
4. Practice writing numbers using a variety of materials such as pencils,
crayons, markers, and sidewalk chalk, etc. (see number formation sheet
in folder).
Practice counting orally and practice counting objects (to 10 or
higher)
1. Have your child count his/her own snacks such as pretzels, goldfish
crackers, grapes, etc....
2. Count each item as you pick up 10 things to put away in the house or
bedroom.
3. Count the number of stair steps in your house or the number of
steps from your car to the store.
Practice naming and correctly writing the letters in the alphabet
1. Read and enjoy alphabet books together.
2. Help your child recognize letters of the alphabet in everyday life
(ex. Restaurants, road signs, store signs, cereal boxes, etc...).
3. Practice recognizing and writing both upper and lowercase letters.
(see letter information sheet in folder).
Practice book handling skills
1. Discuss how to open the book from the front. Point out the front of
the book and the back of the book. Discuss that the front of the book
is where the story begins and the back is where the story ends.
2. Discuss how to hold a book so it is not upside down and show where
to start reading.
3. Read with your child on a daily basis.
Practice recognizing the eight primary colors
1. When your child is coloring, ask what colors were used.
2. Have our child draw objects on paper and ask him/her to color the
objects in certain colors.
3. Have your child sort objects or food by colors. Use items such as
clothes, blocks, Skittles, M&M’s, or Fruit Loops. Have your child name
the colors.
4. Discuss colors of things in the world around you such as the sky, the
grass, cars, clothing items.
Practice your phone number and address
1. Have your child practice his/her phone number on a play telephone.
2. To help your child remember his/her phone number, make up a
rhyme or song to go along with it.
Practice naming and drawing the four basic shapes (circle,
triangle, square, rectangle)
1. Point out objects in your house or environment that have the basic
shapes such as doors, windows, clocks, can tops, kites, etc...
2. Read and enjoy shape books together.
3. Have your child draw the shapes on chalkboards, paper, etc....then
cut them out naming each shape while doing so.
Practice coloring within the lines and cutting on the lines
1. Have your child cut out coupons.
2. Have your child cut out pictures from old magazines of things that
he/she is interested in.
3. Have your child draw simple objects with some detail (including
“self, family, house, and pets).
4. Explore coloring with a variety of resources including markers,
crayons, chalk, and paint.
Some Tips to Help with Beginning Reading and Writing
The greatest benefits of reading are obtained when your child is an
active participant engaging in discussions about stories, talking about
meanings of words and the story, predicting outcomes, and relating the
story matter to other texts and his/her own life.
1. Read to your child daily.
2. Talk about the book as you read with your child and after you have finished
reading it.
3. Look at the book cover before reading. Point out the title, author, and
illustrator.
4. Point out words or phrases that are repeated several times throughout the
story.
5. Encourage your child to finish predictable phrases or rhymes.
6. Remember to focus on the meaning of the story. If a child reads something
that doesn’t make sense, often he or she will go back and try again. If this
doesn’t happen, stop and ask, “Does that make sense?”
7. If your child comes to a word he or she does not know and asks for help,
consider asking these questions:
• Does the picture give you a clue?
• What word would make sense here?
• With what letter does the word begin (or end)?
If these strategies fail and your child wants you to say the word, go ahead
and do so rather than having your child labor over it.
8. Don’t worry if your child memorizes a particular phrase or story. That is an
early stage in the reading process.
9. Encourage your child to point to the word with his or her finger as he/she
reads.
10. Some helpful questions:
• What happened at the beginning, middle, or the end of the story?
• What do you think will happen next?
• Why do you think the character did that?
• What would you have done if you were that character?
• What was the best thing about the story?
11. Make sure your child sees you as a reader, (reading a newspaper, enjoying a
good book, reading a catalog, etc...)
12. When reading with a child, always sit beside the child with the book between
you so that you can both see the text and enjoy the pictures.
13. Consider giving books as presents so they become associated with a
pleasurable experience and have special meaning.
14. Make sure your child sees you as a writer, (writing things such as grocery
lists, thank you notes, notes to other family members, etc....)
15. Have a wide variety of writing supplies available for your child to write and
draw on including various sizes and types of paper, pencils, crayons, markers,
chalk, etc...
16. When your child draws a picture, encourage him/her to tell you about it. Then
write down what your child says as he/she says it. Let your child see you write
down what is said. Read it back. Point to the words as you read.
25 Ways To Use Magnetic Letters At Home
1. LETTER PLAY: Encourage children to play with the magnetic letters on the
refrigerator or on a table. Playing with letters allows children to learn more about
how they look.
2. MAKING NAMES: A child’s name is the most important word. Have children
make their names several times, mixing up the letters, making their names and
checking them with their names written on a card.
3. LETTER MATCH: Invite children to find other letters that look exactly the
same as a letter in their name (e.g., place an m on the refrigerator and have the
child find all the ones that look like it). They don’t need to know the letter name.
4. NAME GAME: Have children make names of friends or family. Have them make
the name, mix the letters, and make the names several times.
5. MAKING WORDS: Make a simple word like mom or dad or sun and have your
child make the same word by matching each letter below the model (sun – s-u-n).
6. ALPHABET TRAIN: Have your child put the lowercase magnetic letters in the
order of the alphabet. Then they can point to them and sing the alphabet song.
Have them repeat the process with uppercase letters.
7. CONSONANT/VOWEL SORT: Have children sort the consonant letters and the
vowel letters.
8. FEATURE SORT: Have children sort letters in a variety of ways – e.g., letters
with long sticks and letters with short sticks, letters with circles and letters with
no circles, letters with tunnels and letters with dots, letters with slanted sticks
and letters with straight sticks.
9. COLOR SORT: Have children sort all the red, blue, green, yellow letters.
10. UPPERCASE/LOWERCASE MATCH: Have children match the uppercase letters
with the lowercase form.
11. WRITING LETTERS: Have children select ten different letters and write each
letter on a paper. They can use the magnetic letter as a model.
12. WRITING WORDS: Have children make five simple words (such as dog, fun,
big, hat, like, sit) and then write them on a sheet of paper.
13. MAKING FOOD WORDS: Make some words that identify food – e.g., bun, corn,
rice. Have children draw pictures of each, mix the letters, and make the words
again.
14. MAKING COLOR WORDS: Give children a list of color words with an item made
in that color as a picture support (for example, a red ball). Have children make the
color word with magnetic letters using the model, mix the letters, and make it
again several times.
15. MAKING NUMBER WORDS: Give children a list of numerals with the number
word next to each. Have children make the word and mix the letters two or three
times.
16. LETTER NAMES: Specify a color and have children take one colored letter at a
time and say the letter name.
17. MAGAZINE MATCH: Look through a magazine or newspaper with children,
cutting out some larger print simple words (such as man, box, boy). Glue them on a
sheet of paper with plenty of space below each. Have children make each word
below the printed one.
18. FIND THE LETTER: Make a set of alphabet letters, upper-or lowercase, on a
set of index cards. Shuffle the “deck” and take turns drawing a card and finding
the magnetic letter that corresponds to it.
19. LETTER IN THE CIRCLE: Draw two circles and place an (h) in one and an (o) in
the other. Have children put letters in the h circle and say how they are like the h.
Do the same with the o. This activity will help children learn to look at features of
letters. Vary the letters in the circles; accept their explanations about what they
are noticing.
20. CHANGE THE WORD: Build several simple words and show the children how to
change, add, or take away a letter to make a new word. Examples are: he, we; me,
my: at, hat, sat. After the demonstration put the needed letters in a special place
in an empty container for them to practice.
21. ALPHABET SEQUENCE: Place the letter a on the table and have the child find
the next letter (b) and place the letter c next to the b and have the child look for
the next letter (d). Continue through the alphabet with lowercase letters. Repeat
the uppercase letters.
22. LETTER SORT: Place a pile of magnetic letters on the table for the child to
spread out. Have the child put all letters that are the same together in a pile.
Then, if appropriate, have the child give the letter name for each pile.
23. LETTER CHAINS: Make a five letter chain (for example, pfrmo). Have children
find the same letters and make the same chain below your model. Then have the
children make a chain that you copy.
24. LETTER BINGO: Make two cards with a grid of three boxes across and three
down. Trace one lowercase letter in each box. Put a pile of magnetic letters that
represent the letters on the cards and some that are not in a plastic bowl. Play a
Letter Bingo game. Take turns taking a letter, saying its name, and then placing the
letter in the box if there is a match. If there is not a match, put the letter back in
the bowl. The first to fill three boxes across, down, or diagonally says, “Bingo” and
wins the game.
Play the same game with uppercase letters.
25. RHYMING PAIRS: Use a magnetic cookie sheet. Make a simple three letter
word such as dog, but, cat, fan, can, hot, man, net, pan, rat, sit. Say the word and
then say a second word that rhymes (dog-log, bug-mug, cat-fat, fan-man). Ask the
child to make the rhyming .
Quick Assessment Instructions:
Have your child point to each letter and tell you what the letter is.
Record the letters your child has difficulties identifying. Write each
of the difficult letters on an index card and use the index cards as
flash cards.
Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways
to Use Magnetic Letters at Home”
This can also be used to practice letter sounds.
Have your child name the colors.
Have your child point to the shapes (triangle, rectangle, circle, and
square) using objects around the house.
Have a set of 10 objects . This could be buttons, pennies, cereal, etc…
Have your child touch each object and say a number that object. Vary
this activity by giving a new number and have your child count out this
new set.
Have your child cut straight lines on paper using “child-sized scissors.”
Have your child write his/her name using an uppercase letter for the
first letter, then followed by lowercase letters.
Have your child say his/her first and last name.
Lower Case letter names and sounds
Have your child point to each letter and tell you the name of the letter.
Record the letters your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the difficult
letters on an index card and use the index cards as flash cards. Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways to Use
Magnetic Letters at Home”. This can also be used to practice letter sounds.
Upper Case letter names
Have your child point to each letter and tell you what the name of the letter.
Record the letters your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the difficult
letters on an index card and use the index cards as flash cards. Practice.
Practice with flash cards starting with a few at a time. See “25 Ways to Use Magnetic Letters at Home”
.
Identifying the Numbers 0 – 20
5 3 0 9 2 6 8 4 1 7 10 13 11 14 16 12 17 15 18 20 19
Instructions:
1. Have your child point to each number and tell you the name of the number.
2. Record the numbers your child has difficulty identifying. Write each of the
difficult numbers on an index card and use the index cards as Flash Cards.
PRACTICE.
3. Practice with the Flash cards and have your child count out beans, or pennies.
Start with the number 0 – 5. Once that becomes EASY, add a few more
numbers 1 – 10. Continue to add a few more. Make a matching game: you place
8 pennies on the table. Have your child count them , then find the correct
flash card. Keep a progress chart and set goals. 0- 10, 10 - 20. Encourage your
child and when he/she meets a goal, do something fun and special together.
Number Recognition Practice Sheet
Instructions: Have your child point to each number and tell you the name of the number.
Alphabet Practice: Directions: Trace the letters in the directions of the arrows (an alphabet practice chart will be provided at Open House).
I look forward to a wonderful year of learning with your child! Please feel feel to contact me at any time.
Sincerely,
Beverley Tyndall
Monday, July 1, 2013
Monday, June 24, 2013
Week of June 24-28
Dear families,
It's so hard to believe that this is the last week of school. I think the children are really realizing that summer is practically here, especially now that we have hot and humid popsicle weather! Please remember to provide your child with a hat and/or sunscreen.
This week we are reviewing all our phonics sounds as well as practicing blending sounds into words and of course reviewing our sight words. "If you can read it, you can write it!"
We are talking about Camping Safety and are making a booklet about camping safety as well. The children are really loving playing in the camp site area of the classroom!
We are finishing our unit on insects, and this week will be learning about ants and spiders.
Please remember to bring in your child's white bag this week as well as any outstanding Library books. I will need the white bags to send home the children's Phonics booklets, work done this week, work I filed for assessment purposes, as well as their journals.
For Pizza Day/Lunch on the Lawn on Thursday, please arrive at school by 11:30. Parent volunteers will be distributing the pizza and drinks (thank you!) from just outside my classroom door.
Senior Kindergarten Graduation is on Wednesday (10:15/2:00). I am really looking forward to celebrating all the children have accomplished and learned over the last two years! I have made photo DVDs for all the SK parents that are computer-readable.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
It's so hard to believe that this is the last week of school. I think the children are really realizing that summer is practically here, especially now that we have hot and humid popsicle weather! Please remember to provide your child with a hat and/or sunscreen.
This week we are reviewing all our phonics sounds as well as practicing blending sounds into words and of course reviewing our sight words. "If you can read it, you can write it!"
We are talking about Camping Safety and are making a booklet about camping safety as well. The children are really loving playing in the camp site area of the classroom!
We are finishing our unit on insects, and this week will be learning about ants and spiders.
Please remember to bring in your child's white bag this week as well as any outstanding Library books. I will need the white bags to send home the children's Phonics booklets, work done this week, work I filed for assessment purposes, as well as their journals.
For Pizza Day/Lunch on the Lawn on Thursday, please arrive at school by 11:30. Parent volunteers will be distributing the pizza and drinks (thank you!) from just outside my classroom door.
Senior Kindergarten Graduation is on Wednesday (10:15/2:00). I am really looking forward to celebrating all the children have accomplished and learned over the last two years! I have made photo DVDs for all the SK parents that are computer-readable.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, June 17, 2013
Week of June 17-21
Dear families,
I can't believe we are coming up to the end of the school year! The children are beginning to sense this and are becoming "just" a little more exuberant! They are excited about our ice cream scoop countdown (thanks to Ms. Raymond for the idea!).
I hope all the dads had a wonderful Father's Day this past Sunday and will enjoy their Coupon Books and key chains the children made.
The children did a wonderful job singing "This Fabulous Year" at our last Sharing Assembly of the year. Congratulations again to Jonas, Luke, Taylor and Kate for earning the certificate of "Perseverance."
The Volunteer Tea is June 25 at 8:15 a.m. in the Library. I hope that you will attend so we can thank you for all the volunteer hours you have spent in our classroom. Parent Volunteers are a big part of Kindergarten and we appreciate your help! Your efforts and time contributed so much to the success of the class. Thank you!
In anticipation of Grade One, I am beginning to take the children out to recess with the rest of the school. The children are very excited about this!
A note about the Phonics Books and Journals: I will continue to send these home for the children and will send them home on the last day of school for work over the summer. The summer is a wonderful opportunity for your child to write what s/he did each day in their journal with an accompanying drawing. I am sending home starter sentence ideas as well, such as "Today I...," "This summer I want to...," "Tomorrow I am going to...," Today was fun because..." etc. Your child's journal will also be a wonderful keepsake when they are older!
The Senior Kindergarten Graduation is fast approaching and I hope my SK parents will be able to attend. Bring your cameras! I will be presenting the children with their certificates, the children will be singing a special song, and I will be presenting them with awards and little gift bags. After the ceremony I will show a photo DVD, a copy of which each SK grad will receive in their little gift bag.
This week we will be learning all about bees and the toonie.
We have finished our Phonics Single Letter sounds and are reviewing all the sounds now with flash cards. We are also practising our reading with sound blending flash cards.
Tomorrow I am opening a Camping Centre! The children will have fun learning about Camp Safety by completing a little book and by playing in our mini camping area.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
I can't believe we are coming up to the end of the school year! The children are beginning to sense this and are becoming "just" a little more exuberant! They are excited about our ice cream scoop countdown (thanks to Ms. Raymond for the idea!).
I hope all the dads had a wonderful Father's Day this past Sunday and will enjoy their Coupon Books and key chains the children made.
The children did a wonderful job singing "This Fabulous Year" at our last Sharing Assembly of the year. Congratulations again to Jonas, Luke, Taylor and Kate for earning the certificate of "Perseverance."
The Volunteer Tea is June 25 at 8:15 a.m. in the Library. I hope that you will attend so we can thank you for all the volunteer hours you have spent in our classroom. Parent Volunteers are a big part of Kindergarten and we appreciate your help! Your efforts and time contributed so much to the success of the class. Thank you!
In anticipation of Grade One, I am beginning to take the children out to recess with the rest of the school. The children are very excited about this!
A note about the Phonics Books and Journals: I will continue to send these home for the children and will send them home on the last day of school for work over the summer. The summer is a wonderful opportunity for your child to write what s/he did each day in their journal with an accompanying drawing. I am sending home starter sentence ideas as well, such as "Today I...," "This summer I want to...," "Tomorrow I am going to...," Today was fun because..." etc. Your child's journal will also be a wonderful keepsake when they are older!
The Senior Kindergarten Graduation is fast approaching and I hope my SK parents will be able to attend. Bring your cameras! I will be presenting the children with their certificates, the children will be singing a special song, and I will be presenting them with awards and little gift bags. After the ceremony I will show a photo DVD, a copy of which each SK grad will receive in their little gift bag.
This week we will be learning all about bees and the toonie.
We have finished our Phonics Single Letter sounds and are reviewing all the sounds now with flash cards. We are also practising our reading with sound blending flash cards.
Tomorrow I am opening a Camping Centre! The children will have fun learning about Camp Safety by completing a little book and by playing in our mini camping area.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, June 10, 2013
Week of June 10-14
Dear families,
It's hard to believe it is June already...
In Science, we are continuing our unit on insects and learned where they live, what they eat, and how they grow. A special Thank You to Carson, our future entomologigist, for bringing in a beetle and catepillar from his garden. We have learned about Ants and Lady Bugs and will now learn about Bees.
We worked on our "My Seed" book with our Reading Buddies. Our bean seeds have not started to shoot yet but I will keep you posted and will send your child's little plant home when it sprouts.
In Literacy we have finished all the single letter sounds of the Jolly Phonics Program and are doing doing review. If your child's phonic duotang and/or journal goes home please encourage your child to work on them. It is good preparation for Grade One!
Thank you to everyone who supported Scholastic this year - our last Scholastic order was at the end of May. Scholastic helps support your child's classroom with resources such as books.
In Numeracy we learned about the quarter and this week we are learning about the loonie. The children are enjoying playing store and pizza restaurant and using play Canadian money and the cash register.
This week and next we will be continuing our money and insect units and will make our special Father's Day book.
Thank you for sending in the Pizza Lumch forms - they are due tomorrow, June 11.
Have a wonderful week!
It's hard to believe it is June already...
In Science, we are continuing our unit on insects and learned where they live, what they eat, and how they grow. A special Thank You to Carson, our future entomologigist, for bringing in a beetle and catepillar from his garden. We have learned about Ants and Lady Bugs and will now learn about Bees.
We worked on our "My Seed" book with our Reading Buddies. Our bean seeds have not started to shoot yet but I will keep you posted and will send your child's little plant home when it sprouts.
In Literacy we have finished all the single letter sounds of the Jolly Phonics Program and are doing doing review. If your child's phonic duotang and/or journal goes home please encourage your child to work on them. It is good preparation for Grade One!
Thank you to everyone who supported Scholastic this year - our last Scholastic order was at the end of May. Scholastic helps support your child's classroom with resources such as books.
In Numeracy we learned about the quarter and this week we are learning about the loonie. The children are enjoying playing store and pizza restaurant and using play Canadian money and the cash register.
This week and next we will be continuing our money and insect units and will make our special Father's Day book.
Thank you for sending in the Pizza Lumch forms - they are due tomorrow, June 11.
Have a wonderful week!
Monday, June 3, 2013
Week of June 3-7
Dear families,
We've had another busy week in Room 166. This past week we learned about the quarter and this week we will learn about the loonie. The children enjoyed playing Ice Cream Store and the prices of the cones have gone up from under ten cents to between 10 and 25 cents in order to help them learn to count their coins. The kids have a lot of fun playing in our Pizza Restaurant, writing up the bill, counting money, using our cash register, and so on.
In Science we are continuing our unit on Insects and have almost finished learning about Ladybugs. Next is ants! The children had fun making a booklet called "Where is Ladybug?" which had them read location words such as "on, over, beside, under, above and below." We also read several books about Ladybugs, from science books about their life cycle, to Eric Carle's wonderful classic "The Grouchy Ladybug," about sharing and cooperating. We also made dragonfly art and a dragonfly key chain which the children really enjoyed. We tied our ladybug theme into beginning and end sounds by the children taking turns placing dots on our giant ladybug's two wings, depending on whether they heard a beginning or ending sound. We also used our scale to weigh pennies.
A special thank you to Quentin's mom who donated items for our Insect unit, and to Charlie's mom who gave each of the morning class a dime. Thank you as well to Dana's mom who read some fun poetry to the children and who gave each child a copy of the Ice Cream Store poem. Thank you! Thank you Cameron's mom and Logan's mom who did the white bags and Snuggle Books. Your time in the classroom is very much appreciated!
Our sounds this past week have been Ww and Yy, and next we are on to Xx.
It's so hard to believe we are now in June! I am busy preparing for the SK Graduation on June 26 and of course your children's report cards. In the interests of space and chairs, the SK graduation ceremony is open for SK parents.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
We've had another busy week in Room 166. This past week we learned about the quarter and this week we will learn about the loonie. The children enjoyed playing Ice Cream Store and the prices of the cones have gone up from under ten cents to between 10 and 25 cents in order to help them learn to count their coins. The kids have a lot of fun playing in our Pizza Restaurant, writing up the bill, counting money, using our cash register, and so on.
In Science we are continuing our unit on Insects and have almost finished learning about Ladybugs. Next is ants! The children had fun making a booklet called "Where is Ladybug?" which had them read location words such as "on, over, beside, under, above and below." We also read several books about Ladybugs, from science books about their life cycle, to Eric Carle's wonderful classic "The Grouchy Ladybug," about sharing and cooperating. We also made dragonfly art and a dragonfly key chain which the children really enjoyed. We tied our ladybug theme into beginning and end sounds by the children taking turns placing dots on our giant ladybug's two wings, depending on whether they heard a beginning or ending sound. We also used our scale to weigh pennies.
A special thank you to Quentin's mom who donated items for our Insect unit, and to Charlie's mom who gave each of the morning class a dime. Thank you as well to Dana's mom who read some fun poetry to the children and who gave each child a copy of the Ice Cream Store poem. Thank you! Thank you Cameron's mom and Logan's mom who did the white bags and Snuggle Books. Your time in the classroom is very much appreciated!
Our sounds this past week have been Ww and Yy, and next we are on to Xx.
It's so hard to believe we are now in June! I am busy preparing for the SK Graduation on June 26 and of course your children's report cards. In the interests of space and chairs, the SK graduation ceremony is open for SK parents.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, May 27, 2013
Week of May 27-31
Dear families,
Our unit on Canadian Coins and their Values continues this week as we review the penny, nickel and dime and learn about the quarter. Thank you for sending in the 10 pennies, 2 nickels and one dime for the children's Piggy Bank Booklet. Now they can count out the money at home with you. This will help reinforce the concept of 5 pennies equals one nickel, 10 pennies equals one dime, one nickel and 5 pennies equals one dime too.
To help the children understand these values, we played Ice Cream Store and Snack Store in the classroom, in which the children had to "pay" for their treats.
We also had fun making rubbings of the coins and watching them magically appear on paper.
We have learned about why the symbols of the Maple Leaf, the Beaver and the Bluenose are on our coins, and I brought in a photo of the Bluenose II from a trip to Halifax. Charlie contributed a lot of information as well since he has been to Halifax and knows a lot about this famous schooner too. Thanks Charlie! For the nickel the children took a good look at the real stuffed beaver in the Library. What an amazing animal! I will not be bringing in an elk/caribou as we learn about the quarter :) but if your children call it a Moose please remind them that it is a caribou/elk :) Caribou are often spotted in the Banff area where a lot of kids have been skiing. Try to relate learning to real life experiences and your children will remember!
Some of our bean plants have germinated and sprouted, and when they are about 3 inches tall I send them home. You can plant the seedling, including the paper pot, directly into the ground in a sunny spot. Next to a fence is ideal since beans climb and need support.
Our letter sound was Ww, like the noise the wind makes. This week we are learning about the letter sound Yy.
The children had fun at the Scholastic Book Fair. Thank you for supporting the LKS Library with your child's purchases.
Our poem for this week's Sharing Assembly is "Wiggly Tooth." I hope you can join us May 28 at the second last assembly of the year! We will be celebrating the TDSB Character Trait of Integrity. Next month we are celebrating "Perseverance" and Taylor, Kate, Jonas, Luke and Charlie will receive certificates celebrating their hard work and their terrific ability to always try their best and never give up!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Our unit on Canadian Coins and their Values continues this week as we review the penny, nickel and dime and learn about the quarter. Thank you for sending in the 10 pennies, 2 nickels and one dime for the children's Piggy Bank Booklet. Now they can count out the money at home with you. This will help reinforce the concept of 5 pennies equals one nickel, 10 pennies equals one dime, one nickel and 5 pennies equals one dime too.
To help the children understand these values, we played Ice Cream Store and Snack Store in the classroom, in which the children had to "pay" for their treats.
We also had fun making rubbings of the coins and watching them magically appear on paper.
We have learned about why the symbols of the Maple Leaf, the Beaver and the Bluenose are on our coins, and I brought in a photo of the Bluenose II from a trip to Halifax. Charlie contributed a lot of information as well since he has been to Halifax and knows a lot about this famous schooner too. Thanks Charlie! For the nickel the children took a good look at the real stuffed beaver in the Library. What an amazing animal! I will not be bringing in an elk/caribou as we learn about the quarter :) but if your children call it a Moose please remind them that it is a caribou/elk :) Caribou are often spotted in the Banff area where a lot of kids have been skiing. Try to relate learning to real life experiences and your children will remember!
Some of our bean plants have germinated and sprouted, and when they are about 3 inches tall I send them home. You can plant the seedling, including the paper pot, directly into the ground in a sunny spot. Next to a fence is ideal since beans climb and need support.
Our letter sound was Ww, like the noise the wind makes. This week we are learning about the letter sound Yy.
The children had fun at the Scholastic Book Fair. Thank you for supporting the LKS Library with your child's purchases.
Our poem for this week's Sharing Assembly is "Wiggly Tooth." I hope you can join us May 28 at the second last assembly of the year! We will be celebrating the TDSB Character Trait of Integrity. Next month we are celebrating "Perseverance" and Taylor, Kate, Jonas, Luke and Charlie will receive certificates celebrating their hard work and their terrific ability to always try their best and never give up!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Week of May 21-25
Dear families,
I hope you have had a lovely long weekend. The weather was beautiful! Now that the weather is more Spring like, please put sun screen on your child since we do go outside each day for a minumum of 20 minutes.
This week we are continuing our unit on Canadian Coins and their value, and starting our unit on Insects as well. We are also watching our bean sprouts grow!
We have learned about the penny, the nickel and are learning about the dime this week. The children will adding the dime to their Money Book and they will also be making a booklet called "Piggy Bank Math" about those three coins. At the end of the booklet the children will attach a "piggy bank bag" to count and compare the coins and they will need: 10 pennies, 2 nickels, and one dime in a small zip lock bag. When the booklet goes home this weekend ask your child to count the money with you! Thank you!
Last week the afternoon Book Buddies made a booklet called My Seed with the children and this week the morning children will make theirs.
This week is the Scholastic Book Fair at the Library. The morning class will go on Friday and the afternoon class will go on Thursday. If your child would like to buy a book/books please send your child's money to school in a labelled zip lock bag.
We are nearing the end of our Phonics sounds and are now on the letter sound "W." Way to go!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
I hope you have had a lovely long weekend. The weather was beautiful! Now that the weather is more Spring like, please put sun screen on your child since we do go outside each day for a minumum of 20 minutes.
This week we are continuing our unit on Canadian Coins and their value, and starting our unit on Insects as well. We are also watching our bean sprouts grow!
We have learned about the penny, the nickel and are learning about the dime this week. The children will adding the dime to their Money Book and they will also be making a booklet called "Piggy Bank Math" about those three coins. At the end of the booklet the children will attach a "piggy bank bag" to count and compare the coins and they will need: 10 pennies, 2 nickels, and one dime in a small zip lock bag. When the booklet goes home this weekend ask your child to count the money with you! Thank you!
Last week the afternoon Book Buddies made a booklet called My Seed with the children and this week the morning children will make theirs.
This week is the Scholastic Book Fair at the Library. The morning class will go on Friday and the afternoon class will go on Thursday. If your child would like to buy a book/books please send your child's money to school in a labelled zip lock bag.
We are nearing the end of our Phonics sounds and are now on the letter sound "W." Way to go!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Week of May 13-17
Dear families,
Wow it's hard to believe it's mid May with today's hail! Hopefully this cold snap bodes well for the Leafs game tonight!
At this month's Sharing Assembly on May 28 we will be recognizing Caroline, Sienna, Raine, and Logan for demonstrating the TDSB Character trait of Integrity. Well done!
On Thursday we had a "mystery reader" visit from two former students who are now in Grade Two. Thank you Jamie and Alexandra! On Friday the children listened to a Storyteller in the Library and enjoyed participating in her presentation.
We have concluded our unit on 2- and 3D Shapes and the children finished their Shape Art with their Reading Buddies as well as their booklet, "In the Park." We also planted our bean seeds and are learning about germination, what plants need to grow, made a flower glyph, and the children watched how florist beads absorbed about 30 times their weight in water. We placed 10 of these special "magic water beads" in our little peat pots to help keep the soil moist over the weekend.
Thank you to the parents who helped with our Artist in the Classroom day and for your time with Reading Club and Mystery Reader and White Bags this week. Your help is always appreciated!
LKS is continuing to collect gently used children's books this week for less fortunate schools. Please bring the books to our classroom and they will be collected at the end of the week.
This week we will have fun learning about and reviewing Canadian Coins and their Values and our Pizza Store will open in the Drama Centre as well as a portable store and other currency and counting activities in our Science Centre.
Happy Mother's Day!
Mrs. Tyndall
Wow it's hard to believe it's mid May with today's hail! Hopefully this cold snap bodes well for the Leafs game tonight!
At this month's Sharing Assembly on May 28 we will be recognizing Caroline, Sienna, Raine, and Logan for demonstrating the TDSB Character trait of Integrity. Well done!
On Thursday we had a "mystery reader" visit from two former students who are now in Grade Two. Thank you Jamie and Alexandra! On Friday the children listened to a Storyteller in the Library and enjoyed participating in her presentation.
We have concluded our unit on 2- and 3D Shapes and the children finished their Shape Art with their Reading Buddies as well as their booklet, "In the Park." We also planted our bean seeds and are learning about germination, what plants need to grow, made a flower glyph, and the children watched how florist beads absorbed about 30 times their weight in water. We placed 10 of these special "magic water beads" in our little peat pots to help keep the soil moist over the weekend.
Thank you to the parents who helped with our Artist in the Classroom day and for your time with Reading Club and Mystery Reader and White Bags this week. Your help is always appreciated!
LKS is continuing to collect gently used children's books this week for less fortunate schools. Please bring the books to our classroom and they will be collected at the end of the week.
This week we will have fun learning about and reviewing Canadian Coins and their Values and our Pizza Store will open in the Drama Centre as well as a portable store and other currency and counting activities in our Science Centre.
Happy Mother's Day!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, May 6, 2013
Week of May 6-10
Dear families,
I hope you had a wonderful time at Springfest - the weather has been beautiful!
Now that the warmer weather is here, I would like to ask that you send a hat with your child and apply sunscreen as well. Your cooperation is much appreciated.
In Language, we have covered a lot of ground with the Jolly Phonics program. Over the last few weeks we have focused on the letter sounds "o", "u", "l", "f", amd "j". This week we are focusing on "V".
The SKs and the JKs continue to work on their phonics duotangs and write in their journals regularly. It is lovely to see the incredible effort the children put into their journal work and I love seeing the progress the children have made. The SK children have also completed a little booklet called "I Know it's Spring."
In Math we are beginning our unit on Canadian coins and their values. Both the JK and SK children are learning to recognize and identify coins. I will be changing the Home Centre to a Pizza Store for this unit which I think the children will really enjoy. The SK children are working on a Money booklet and the JKs are completing identification activities for each coin we learn. We will learn all the coins up to and including the $2.00 coin.
Thank you in advance to the parents who are volunteering to assist our Artist in the Classroom on May 7 and thank you to Parent Council for funding this special day.
We will also be planting our bean seeds this week and learning about germination and what plants need to grow. The children will be making booklets and completing writing activities about how seeds grow.
Have a wonderful week! Go Leafs!
Mrs. Tyndall
I hope you had a wonderful time at Springfest - the weather has been beautiful!
Now that the warmer weather is here, I would like to ask that you send a hat with your child and apply sunscreen as well. Your cooperation is much appreciated.
In Language, we have covered a lot of ground with the Jolly Phonics program. Over the last few weeks we have focused on the letter sounds "o", "u", "l", "f", amd "j". This week we are focusing on "V".
The SKs and the JKs continue to work on their phonics duotangs and write in their journals regularly. It is lovely to see the incredible effort the children put into their journal work and I love seeing the progress the children have made. The SK children have also completed a little booklet called "I Know it's Spring."
In Math we are beginning our unit on Canadian coins and their values. Both the JK and SK children are learning to recognize and identify coins. I will be changing the Home Centre to a Pizza Store for this unit which I think the children will really enjoy. The SK children are working on a Money booklet and the JKs are completing identification activities for each coin we learn. We will learn all the coins up to and including the $2.00 coin.
Thank you in advance to the parents who are volunteering to assist our Artist in the Classroom on May 7 and thank you to Parent Council for funding this special day.
We will also be planting our bean seeds this week and learning about germination and what plants need to grow. The children will be making booklets and completing writing activities about how seeds grow.
Have a wonderful week! Go Leafs!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, April 29, 2013
Week of April 29-May 3
Dear families,
This week LKS is showing its spirit by wearing blue and white to support the Maple Leafs in the playoffs. Go Leafs!
Information regarding Tombola Leaf Campaign for Springfest:
The Tombola Leaf Campaign is one of LKS's most popular events. Last year, this campaign raised $8,000 in donations to the school! Students are encouraged to bring in cash or cheque donations that will be pooled each day for each classroom. Each class will receive a Tombola "Leaf" for every $5.00 raised. The leaves are proudly displayed on classroom doors. The classes with the most Tombola Leaves will WIN prizes. (The Tombola Committee will assess each class's success on a pro rata basis so that classes with fewer students are not disadvantaged from being eligible to win.)
This Campaign continues next week: Apr 29-May 3. Buy 1, 5 or 10 leaves! Simply send your cash or cheque (payable to "LKS & Parent Council") in an envelope marked "Tombola Leaves" with your child to their classroom. Thank you for your support!!
Last week and this week we are learning about three-dimensional shapes and the children had fun identifying the shapes of classroom objects. We will continue to learn about shapes this week.
We also completed a booklet called "I Know it is Spring when..." Our Spring Rain marble paintings are displayed in the classroom and look wonderful.
The children did a wonderful job at the Sharing Assembly and recited the poem "I Love the Earth." Congratulations to Alex, Ava, Jack and Yoel for their well-deserved certificates for Co-operation.
We also completed our April calendars and our "This is me in April" page.
The children should have a good idea now about what goes in the blue bin and what is garbage. We also wrote about what is good/not good for the Earth.
Please note that the date of our Artist in the classroom visit has been changed to May 7, and that Mr. Blais no longer requires volunteers in the computer lab.
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
This week LKS is showing its spirit by wearing blue and white to support the Maple Leafs in the playoffs. Go Leafs!
Information regarding Tombola Leaf Campaign for Springfest:
The Tombola Leaf Campaign is one of LKS's most popular events. Last year, this campaign raised $8,000 in donations to the school! Students are encouraged to bring in cash or cheque donations that will be pooled each day for each classroom. Each class will receive a Tombola "Leaf" for every $5.00 raised. The leaves are proudly displayed on classroom doors. The classes with the most Tombola Leaves will WIN prizes. (The Tombola Committee will assess each class's success on a pro rata basis so that classes with fewer students are not disadvantaged from being eligible to win.)
This Campaign continues next week: Apr 29-May 3. Buy 1, 5 or 10 leaves! Simply send your cash or cheque (payable to "LKS & Parent Council") in an envelope marked "Tombola Leaves" with your child to their classroom. Thank you for your support!!
Last week and this week we are learning about three-dimensional shapes and the children had fun identifying the shapes of classroom objects. We will continue to learn about shapes this week.
We also completed a booklet called "I Know it is Spring when..." Our Spring Rain marble paintings are displayed in the classroom and look wonderful.
The children did a wonderful job at the Sharing Assembly and recited the poem "I Love the Earth." Congratulations to Alex, Ava, Jack and Yoel for their well-deserved certificates for Co-operation.
We also completed our April calendars and our "This is me in April" page.
The children should have a good idea now about what goes in the blue bin and what is garbage. We also wrote about what is good/not good for the Earth.
Please note that the date of our Artist in the classroom visit has been changed to May 7, and that Mr. Blais no longer requires volunteers in the computer lab.
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Sharing Assembly
At Thursday's Sharing Assembly, Alex, Ava, Jack and Yoel will be receiving certificates for Cooperation. I hope to see you then!
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Week of April 22-25
Dear families,
This past week we continued learning about the Earth, taking care of the Earth, and our moon and soar system. We completed books called "The Earth is...," made a collage of things found in nature, and practiced our "I Love the Earth" poem.
We also wrote words with the letter sound Ff in the beginning, middle and end of words. In numeracy we completed our April Calendar after reviewing our numbers using our mini magnetic write-and-erase boards. The kids love using them! Here are the rhymes:
A straight line down is lots of fun, this is how you make the number one.
Around and back on the railroad track, two, two, two.
Around a hill, around a tree, three, three three.
Down and over, down once more, now you've made the number four.
Fat old five goes down and around, give him a hat and look what you've found.
Sis is a monkey's tail that I've found, curve a good line down and around.
Straight over, slant down, mister seven is coming to town.
Make an S and close the gate, this is how you make the number eight.
Around and down, mister nine is coming to town.
A straight line down, a big fat ball, number ten stands straight and tall.
By this time of year the SKs are writing 1-30 independently, and the JKs are writing 1-20, some with assistance.
This week we will continue our unit on Measurement and will start our unit on two-and three-dimensional shapes.
Thank you for your support of the Me to WE Penny Drive!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
This past week we continued learning about the Earth, taking care of the Earth, and our moon and soar system. We completed books called "The Earth is...," made a collage of things found in nature, and practiced our "I Love the Earth" poem.
We also wrote words with the letter sound Ff in the beginning, middle and end of words. In numeracy we completed our April Calendar after reviewing our numbers using our mini magnetic write-and-erase boards. The kids love using them! Here are the rhymes:
A straight line down is lots of fun, this is how you make the number one.
Around and back on the railroad track, two, two, two.
Around a hill, around a tree, three, three three.
Down and over, down once more, now you've made the number four.
Fat old five goes down and around, give him a hat and look what you've found.
Sis is a monkey's tail that I've found, curve a good line down and around.
Straight over, slant down, mister seven is coming to town.
Make an S and close the gate, this is how you make the number eight.
Around and down, mister nine is coming to town.
A straight line down, a big fat ball, number ten stands straight and tall.
By this time of year the SKs are writing 1-30 independently, and the JKs are writing 1-20, some with assistance.
This week we will continue our unit on Measurement and will start our unit on two-and three-dimensional shapes.
Thank you for your support of the Me to WE Penny Drive!
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Week of April 15-19
Dear families,
We have been continuing our unit on caring for the Earth and are making booklets called "The Earth is..." We will also be making a collage of natural (vs. man-made) items. If you have copies of Canadian Geographic or National Geographic please send them in with your child. Thank you!
Thank you so much to Parent Council for their support and funding of our Artist in the Classroom (May 6) as well as the Scientist in the Classroom visit (Term 2).
This week LKS is supporting Seeds of Hope and is collecting pennies or loose change. On Friday LKS will be wearing black in support of Seeds of Hope.
The SpringFest Colouring Contest ends April 19! Hand in your wonderful art and have a chance for it to be a poster for SpringFest!
In Numeracy we are learning about measurement and are using flexible measuring tape to measure classroom items. In Literacy we are learning Earth words as well as the letter sound Ll. We are also using the Read, Write and Erase booklets to reinforce sight word recognition and writing.
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
We have been continuing our unit on caring for the Earth and are making booklets called "The Earth is..." We will also be making a collage of natural (vs. man-made) items. If you have copies of Canadian Geographic or National Geographic please send them in with your child. Thank you!
Thank you so much to Parent Council for their support and funding of our Artist in the Classroom (May 6) as well as the Scientist in the Classroom visit (Term 2).
This week LKS is supporting Seeds of Hope and is collecting pennies or loose change. On Friday LKS will be wearing black in support of Seeds of Hope.
The SpringFest Colouring Contest ends April 19! Hand in your wonderful art and have a chance for it to be a poster for SpringFest!
In Numeracy we are learning about measurement and are using flexible measuring tape to measure classroom items. In Literacy we are learning Earth words as well as the letter sound Ll. We are also using the Read, Write and Erase booklets to reinforce sight word recognition and writing.
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Tyndall
Monday, April 8, 2013
Week of April 8-12
Dear families,
This week and next we will be focusing on Earth Week activities. We are learning about caring for the Earth, recycling, and signs of Spring. Now that the warmer (and often rainy) weather is here, I would like to ask you to remember to dress your child appropriately. As you know, the weather can become cold within a few minutes at this time of year if clouds cover the sun, so it is best that your child has a coat or sweater with them every day.
In Language, we have covered a lot of ground with the Jolly Phonics Program. Over the last few weeks we have focused on the letters/letter sounds O,U L and F. We are also beginning to work on double vowels such as AI and AY. Please encourage your child to work on his or her Phonics duotangs at home as well.
We are also going to be learning about and reviewing two- and three-dimensional shapes. Is our Earth a circle or a sphere?
In late April/early May we will start our unit on Canadian Coins and their Values.
The JKs and SKs continue to work on their journals regularly. It is lovely to see the incredible effort and time they put into their journal work. The SKs are creating their own little booklets called "I Know It's Spring" as well. Don't forget to look at our hallway bulletin board for the children's wonderful work.
We have almost completed our little book called "Flowers Grow" with our Reading Buddies. I think the children really enjoy this special time and the Grade 2s and 3s have a wonderful opportunity to be leaders and role models to the little ones.
Soon we are going to be planting seeds and learning how they grow. This year we will be planting bean seeds, a change from the pumpkin and cherry tomatoes from previous years. When they go home before the May long weekend, please plant them beside a fence so they have support to grow as they climb.
As you have noticed I have changed the set of Snuggle Books to more non-fiction levelled readers. Please continue to read these with your child. One of the rules of thumb in teaching literacy is that the child reads at a level where they can concentrate on comrehension and fluency and experience success.
Please take the time to practice our April poem, "I Love the Earth." We will be presenting it at our next Sharing Assembly. The children who will be receiving certificates for "Co-operation" at our next assembly are Ava, Alex, Yoel and Jack. Well done!
Thank you for your Scholastic Orders. The April/Spring order is due April 30, and the May/Summer order is due May 31.
On April 10, LKS will be wearing pink to support "Anti-Bullying Awareness Day."
It is hard to believe that we are really on the home stretch of the year. I would like to say how very proud I am of ALL the children in my morning and afternoon classes. They have all made great strides this year and has been wonderful to see them learn and grow. Thank you as always for your continued help and support. You are wonderful parents to work with and the children are very fortunate.
Kind regards,
Mrs. Tyndall
This week and next we will be focusing on Earth Week activities. We are learning about caring for the Earth, recycling, and signs of Spring. Now that the warmer (and often rainy) weather is here, I would like to ask you to remember to dress your child appropriately. As you know, the weather can become cold within a few minutes at this time of year if clouds cover the sun, so it is best that your child has a coat or sweater with them every day.
In Language, we have covered a lot of ground with the Jolly Phonics Program. Over the last few weeks we have focused on the letters/letter sounds O,U L and F. We are also beginning to work on double vowels such as AI and AY. Please encourage your child to work on his or her Phonics duotangs at home as well.
We are also going to be learning about and reviewing two- and three-dimensional shapes. Is our Earth a circle or a sphere?
In late April/early May we will start our unit on Canadian Coins and their Values.
The JKs and SKs continue to work on their journals regularly. It is lovely to see the incredible effort and time they put into their journal work. The SKs are creating their own little booklets called "I Know It's Spring" as well. Don't forget to look at our hallway bulletin board for the children's wonderful work.
We have almost completed our little book called "Flowers Grow" with our Reading Buddies. I think the children really enjoy this special time and the Grade 2s and 3s have a wonderful opportunity to be leaders and role models to the little ones.
Soon we are going to be planting seeds and learning how they grow. This year we will be planting bean seeds, a change from the pumpkin and cherry tomatoes from previous years. When they go home before the May long weekend, please plant them beside a fence so they have support to grow as they climb.
As you have noticed I have changed the set of Snuggle Books to more non-fiction levelled readers. Please continue to read these with your child. One of the rules of thumb in teaching literacy is that the child reads at a level where they can concentrate on comrehension and fluency and experience success.
Please take the time to practice our April poem, "I Love the Earth." We will be presenting it at our next Sharing Assembly. The children who will be receiving certificates for "Co-operation" at our next assembly are Ava, Alex, Yoel and Jack. Well done!
Thank you for your Scholastic Orders. The April/Spring order is due April 30, and the May/Summer order is due May 31.
On April 10, LKS will be wearing pink to support "Anti-Bullying Awareness Day."
It is hard to believe that we are really on the home stretch of the year. I would like to say how very proud I am of ALL the children in my morning and afternoon classes. They have all made great strides this year and has been wonderful to see them learn and grow. Thank you as always for your continued help and support. You are wonderful parents to work with and the children are very fortunate.
Kind regards,
Mrs. Tyndall
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
April 2, 2013.
April already! Spring is officially here although you wouldn't know it with the snow!
Our Easter craft parties were a great success - thank you so much to the Parent Volunteers who helped the children with their crafts. The children had fun at each station they weaving an Easter basket, feathering the nest, dipping an egg, making an Easter Bunny puppet, and making an Easter bunny bag.
This children worked on Easter words, the SKs wrote a "Here is a..." booklet, the JKs wrote a "The Bunny can..." booklet, we did our March calendars and "This is me in March." and continued practising our sight words with popcorn word activities. Please take a moment to look at the children's wonderful work on our hallway bulletin board.
In Friday's mail bags three children in the afternoon class did not receive copies of the homework sheet, a package from Brentwood Library, and 2 booklets on how to help your child succeed in numeracy and literacy. Please let me know if your child did not receive these items. Twenty were set aside but after the mail bags were done there were three remaining. Thank you.
In this Friday's mail bag your will receive information about Sight Words and a list of several sight words. If your child is in SK you will also receive important information regarding your child's reading progress from books with a lot of repetition to books with a beginning, middle and end. I am so pleased with the children's progress and am very proud of them! Please continue to support your child's literacy at home by reading the Snuggle Books and encouraging your child to read the books they make in class to you. Read to your bunny, and your bunny will read to you...
The following Snuggle Books have not been returned: Morning Class: # 44 "In My Bed" Afternoon Class: #9 "Buzzing Flies" #13 "The Gingerbread Man."
Even though it seems far away now, I have set the date for the Senior Kindergarten Graduation at June 27. If you have volunteered or would like to volunteer to bring snacks for this special day please let your Grade Parent know. Thank you!
Pajama day is this Friday, April 5. Fun! The children are welcome to bring their "bedtime buddy" as well.
I hope everyone had a lovely Easter weekend with family.
Kind regards,
Beverley
Our Easter craft parties were a great success - thank you so much to the Parent Volunteers who helped the children with their crafts. The children had fun at each station they weaving an Easter basket, feathering the nest, dipping an egg, making an Easter Bunny puppet, and making an Easter bunny bag.
This children worked on Easter words, the SKs wrote a "Here is a..." booklet, the JKs wrote a "The Bunny can..." booklet, we did our March calendars and "This is me in March." and continued practising our sight words with popcorn word activities. Please take a moment to look at the children's wonderful work on our hallway bulletin board.
In Friday's mail bags three children in the afternoon class did not receive copies of the homework sheet, a package from Brentwood Library, and 2 booklets on how to help your child succeed in numeracy and literacy. Please let me know if your child did not receive these items. Twenty were set aside but after the mail bags were done there were three remaining. Thank you.
In this Friday's mail bag your will receive information about Sight Words and a list of several sight words. If your child is in SK you will also receive important information regarding your child's reading progress from books with a lot of repetition to books with a beginning, middle and end. I am so pleased with the children's progress and am very proud of them! Please continue to support your child's literacy at home by reading the Snuggle Books and encouraging your child to read the books they make in class to you. Read to your bunny, and your bunny will read to you...
The following Snuggle Books have not been returned: Morning Class: # 44 "In My Bed" Afternoon Class: #9 "Buzzing Flies" #13 "The Gingerbread Man."
Even though it seems far away now, I have set the date for the Senior Kindergarten Graduation at June 27. If you have volunteered or would like to volunteer to bring snacks for this special day please let your Grade Parent know. Thank you!
Pajama day is this Friday, April 5. Fun! The children are welcome to bring their "bedtime buddy" as well.
I hope everyone had a lovely Easter weekend with family.
Kind regards,
Beverley
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
March 25, 2013.
Dear parents,
I hope you had a wonderful Spring Break. Easter is coming early this year and we have been busy over the last few weeks reviewing our popcorn words and learning Spring and Easter words. The children enjoyed our popcorn word centres and their sight word vocabulary is really coming along! They especially enjoy their "read, write and erase" booklets and their letter formation is improving as well. Remember -top to bottom, left to right. :)
The children learned a new song for the Sharing Assembly called M-A-R-C-H, we read about how seeds turn to dandelions and made a pie chart to show the changes a seed goes through. The children also started a book they are making with their Reading Buddies called 'Flowers Make a Rainbow."
This Thursday your child will also be bringing home a bunny they made that "talks" and can "say" different words - hop, mop, pop, stop, flop and drop.
Major areas of growth this month and in April will include:
- observing seasonal changes and the signs of Spring
- continuing to learn new sounds in phonics
- confidently attempting to write personal stories in our journals
- reading simple pattern books
- planting and observing daily the growth of a seed
- learning new Spring and Easter songs and finger plays
- sequencing a series of events when discussing the growth of a seed and the birth of a chick
- continuation of number work in relation to counting, simple addition, patterning of numbers and numeral recognition
Easter activities will include making Easter bunny bags, building/weaving a nest for our Easter eggs, writing an "Easter is.." booklet and making a big bunny puppet.
Thank you in advance to our Parent Volunteers who are helping out at Thursday's Easter Craft Day. We will be dipping eggs (thank you for bringing them in!) so please dress your child in appropriate clothing. We need 25 green plastic baskets. They can be found at the green grocer and usually hold fruit.
Please remembrer to bring in a hollow egg for your child to dip at our Easter Party.
1. Pierce 2 holes in an egg, one at each end. A large sewing needle works well.
2. Pierce the yolk inside the egg.
3. Blow out the egg yolk and white into a bowl.
It was wonderful reading the children's journal entries from the March Break. What wonderful work they did and I am so pleased with their efforts. I will be sending home their journals to write in over the Easter long weekend. I am also sending home a homework sheet in which the children are to draw a picture of the word they read. Please remember that if work goes home stamped "Please complete for Mrs. Tyndall" that it is homework to be completed and returned. Please sit with your child and encourage him/her to do ther best work. This is also good practice for next year.
Kind regards,
Mrs. Tyndall
I hope you had a wonderful Spring Break. Easter is coming early this year and we have been busy over the last few weeks reviewing our popcorn words and learning Spring and Easter words. The children enjoyed our popcorn word centres and their sight word vocabulary is really coming along! They especially enjoy their "read, write and erase" booklets and their letter formation is improving as well. Remember -top to bottom, left to right. :)
The children learned a new song for the Sharing Assembly called M-A-R-C-H, we read about how seeds turn to dandelions and made a pie chart to show the changes a seed goes through. The children also started a book they are making with their Reading Buddies called 'Flowers Make a Rainbow."
This Thursday your child will also be bringing home a bunny they made that "talks" and can "say" different words - hop, mop, pop, stop, flop and drop.
Major areas of growth this month and in April will include:
- observing seasonal changes and the signs of Spring
- continuing to learn new sounds in phonics
- confidently attempting to write personal stories in our journals
- reading simple pattern books
- planting and observing daily the growth of a seed
- learning new Spring and Easter songs and finger plays
- sequencing a series of events when discussing the growth of a seed and the birth of a chick
- continuation of number work in relation to counting, simple addition, patterning of numbers and numeral recognition
Easter activities will include making Easter bunny bags, building/weaving a nest for our Easter eggs, writing an "Easter is.." booklet and making a big bunny puppet.
Thank you in advance to our Parent Volunteers who are helping out at Thursday's Easter Craft Day. We will be dipping eggs (thank you for bringing them in!) so please dress your child in appropriate clothing. We need 25 green plastic baskets. They can be found at the green grocer and usually hold fruit.
Please remembrer to bring in a hollow egg for your child to dip at our Easter Party.
1. Pierce 2 holes in an egg, one at each end. A large sewing needle works well.
2. Pierce the yolk inside the egg.
3. Blow out the egg yolk and white into a bowl.
It was wonderful reading the children's journal entries from the March Break. What wonderful work they did and I am so pleased with their efforts. I will be sending home their journals to write in over the Easter long weekend. I am also sending home a homework sheet in which the children are to draw a picture of the word they read. Please remember that if work goes home stamped "Please complete for Mrs. Tyndall" that it is homework to be completed and returned. Please sit with your child and encourage him/her to do ther best work. This is also good practice for next year.
Kind regards,
Mrs. Tyndall
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