May Newsletter

I can't believe how quickly the year is going by.  I am very proud of the class and all their hard work.  They have really grown both socially and academically.  I am happy that I have one more month to continue enjoying them before sending them off to First Grade!!

Here are a few important dates for the Month of June:

June 2-5 Book Fair

June 5 School Store  & Birthday Lunches

June 6 End of Year Picnic 6-9PM

June 11 Field Day (Rain Date June 12)

June 13 Kindergarten High Touch - High Tech Science in class Field Trip

June 17 Kindergarten Celebration in classrooms & July Birthday Lunches

June 19 Step-Up Day at noon and Early dismissal at 1:35

June 20 Last Day of school and Early dismissal at 1:35

Below are the wonderful achievements your students made during the month of May:

Writing-

We completed our unit on Opinion writing.  Students wrote letters and made signs to voice their opinions about situations they feel need to be corrected.  Some examples were running in the hallways, the cafeteria being too noisy and using playground equipment safely.  They also wrote pieces on what some of their favorite things are and why.  They worked really hard to provided reasons to support their opinions.  They had a ton of fun sharing their favorite things and writing letters.  You will see some of this writing coming home in their folders shortly.

Reading-

I am amazed how far the class had really grown with their reading.  We continue to work on comprehension and using all strategies while reading.  Please remember to continue reading with your child at night.  This is an important habit to maintain during the summer months to help them maintain the awesome work they have done this year in reading.

Math-

We have been working on teen numbers to 20.  The classed counted on from 10 to find the two parts that make the teen numbers.  They have become very proficient with 10 frames and showing me how they know their answer is right.  We continue to work on word problems, shapes, and mathematical reasoning skills in the coming weeks.

Social Studies and Science

We have been continuing to learn about our community of Monroe and writing about things we have done around town.  

In science we have been learning about living and nonliving things and finding evidence to show why something is living or nonliving.  We have also begun labeling diagrams of animals and plants.  The class has enjoyed the High Touch and High Tech experiences they have had thus far and looking forward to another visit in June.  This company provides them with an opportunity to do hands on experiments that compliments to our science curriculum.

Again thank you for all of your help and support this year!!

April Classroom Newsletter

April came and went very quickly!  Below are a few of the month's highlights important dates for next month:

Writing/Reading:

We finished our Informational Unit for writing.  All students edited and published a "How to" story on a topic of their choice.  Students were asked to pick a topic that they knew a lot about and then write a "How to" piece that informs their reader of the steps they need to take to accomplish the task.  The class had fun writing these pieces, many of them choice getting ready for school or taking care of a pet.  One of their favorite lessons in this unit was when they got to act out their partners writing.

Students are continuing to make progress in reading.  It is important as the weeks fill up with spring sports to continue reading with your child at night.

Math:

Students have been working on number sentences both subtraction and addition and beginning to apply this knowledge to word problems.  Next month we will begin working with teen numbers!

Social Studies and Science:

In social studies we have been discussing our Community and community members that we have in Monroe.  We will be discussing our role in our Monroe Community and various places we visit within Monroe.   This unit is to help them view themselves as belonging to a bigger community than just school and home and how community member work together.


We have finished our science unit on Shelters and students worked in groups to construct their own shelters.  They had to verbally explain the materials they used and why and also different features they added to their shelters and why they were important.  The class had a blast constructing their shelters!!   A big THANKS to all the parents who donated materials for them to use for this project.

Thank you for all the support you provide for your child!  They all come in very happy and ready to tackle the day ahead of them!

Upcoming Dates:

May 15th Birthday Lunches
May 16th Father Daughter Luau Night
May 26th No School - Memorial Day
May 31st PTO Follies Talent Show
June 17th Kindergarten Tea

February Newsletter

Hello Room 32 Parents

We made it through February and I am hoping there are no more big snow storms in the forecast.  Last week was a long week for all of us since it was our first full week in a long time.  I am excited to begin another week with the class without any snow days or delayed openings. (Keeping my fingers crossed!!)

I am amazed at the progress the students have been making.  They have become so much more familiar and comfortable in their subject areas and are beginning to be more independent learners.

Below is a brief summary of what we have been up to over the last month:

Literacy:

Students should be continuing to practice any sight words they may have in their reading bags along with their books.  Encourage your child to practice writing sight words as well as reading them. This is a much harder task but will help them in their writing.  In the classroom we continue to work in small literacy groups to focus on reading strategies and word work.  We have been working a lot with word families and trying to find familiar chunks in words.

We have begun a new unit in our writing curriculum called "How-To" books.  Students are learning to  correctly order and write steps to teach their readers how to accomplish different tasks.  Please help your child brainstorm some ideas that they may like to write about for this topic.  Some examples are: riding a bike, making your bed, making a PB&J sandwich, getting ready for school, brushing your teeth, etc.

Math:

In math we have been working on number sentences both addition and subtraction.  We have also been practicing solving word problems by drawing and labeling pictures to match and trying to write the number sentence that goes along with it.  We have also been learning about volume, more than/less than, and comparing numbers.

Science:

We had an in class field trip for science and the company High Touch High Tech came and taught the class about magnets.  The students were very engaged in the experiments and they all had a great time!

We are nearing the end of our properties unit and will begin learning about shelters and constructing our own shelters for humans.  You will be receiving a letter shortly regarding this.  We will be asking for some supplies to be donated to the classroom to support this unit.

Social Studies:

We are just finishing up our topic on Our School Community.  We learned about the many people who make up our school community and the many jobs we all have within our school community.  We have also discussed how we each can help each other accomplish our jobs at school and listed ways we could be helpful school community members.

Other News:

I just wanted to thank all of you for all that you do to foster your child's learning at home and for making sure they are ready for school each day!

On Friday as a school we were giving the book "Masterpiece" by Elise Broach.  The class was very excited as I read the first two chapters to them.  Included in the letter that came with the book was a link to a podcast where you and your family can listen to the chapters being read.  The link is http://fhbigread2014.weebly.com

Our second marking period is coming to a close and progress reports will be issued towards the end of March and conferences are the first week in April.

January 2014 Room 32 Newsletter

We have made it through the first month back after break and I’m glad to report we have all fallen back into our classroom routines!

The class is very excited about our new C.A.R.E. program and students are recognized for displaying safe, responsible and respective actions.

Language Art

We have begun a new unit in our writing program called Writing for Readers.  The students are proofreading their writing for understanding and legibility.  They are also making sure they leave spaces and use upper and lower case letters correctly.

We are continuing to work on our short vowel sounds.  We are learning that every word needs to have a vowel in it.

Math

In Math we have introduced Geometry and Measurement.  We will start to compare numbers and continue working on our number sentences.

Science & Social Studies

We have begun our Properties unit in science and have been experimenting with magnifying glasses and magnets.  In social studies we have been discussing communities and talking about how our school community is different than our home community.

Thank you all for reading with your child every night.  It is very important that students practice their reading at night by reading to someone for 10-15 minutes a day.  It is evident that you have been reading with them because they are really starting to flourish as readers.  Keep up the good work!

Thank you all for bringing in box tops for our classroom! The penny wars have begun and the students are excited to bring their pennies down to the foyer to fill up the Kindergarten jar.

** Reminder**

When there is an early dismissal day due to inclement weather students will go home on the bus unless a note is sent in with them that day.

Please remind your child what they are having for lunch before arriving at school.  They can either have the first menu option for that day or a bagel.