May 27th-31st:
We celebrated our LAST 2nd grade buddy day. :'( The kids were so excited to give their treats to their buddies and receive a book that the 2nd graders have been working on for months! After we read together for a while, both grade levels went outside to enjoy the BEAUTIFUL weather by the "big kid playground"! :) We're so lucky to have the opportunity to work with older grade levels and I know how much the 4Kers looked up to them and will miss them going forward.
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May 27th-31st:
HWT We continued to practice identifying letters and sounds, as well as appropriate letter formation. Meeting We revisited the Elephant of Forgiveness and learned: "My mistakes help me learn and grow." We practiced this concept by playing ABC, 123 which required us to go around the circle and say the next letter or number, without repeating or skipping turns. We played a trivia game which was so fun to watch while the kids collaborated and tried to agree on only one answer. On the last day, we colored in the dark and challenged ourselves by switching hands, closing eyes, and holding our papers up under the table. They were a little hesitant and worried about making mistakes in the beginning but they ended up smiling a lot and always persevering. :) Projects -Writing and coloring our end of the year posters -Making a spider web -Matching ducks with dots and numerals Math -Patterns May 20th-24th:
Caterpillars Our classroom became parents to butterflies! They loved watching them grow and the release was even more exciting! :D Party for Kendall The class went into Miss Hannah's room to wish Kendall the very best during her surgery. We watched and sang to her favorite video, ate some treats, and enjoyed our time together. We heard that the surgery went well and will be seeing her next fall! Transition Day I didn't get to hear too much because the kids weren't with me much on Friday BUT I saw lots of smiles and heard some of them say that they loved 5K! I'm happy to hear that they had a great experience and thank all of you for giving them this opportunity. I'm sure that they slept well. ;) May 20th-24th:
HWT We concluded our exploration of letters with the letter Z this week! You should see your child's alphabet book in their backpack. We will keep practicing letters for the remaining 9 days of school. Meeting We revisited the Owl of Intuition and focused on: I think with my heart and head. We had a paper snowball fight which taught us to be careful of others and our surroundings. We did a silence/relaxation session to help calm our brains to help us think more clearly. We finished off the week by doing an "I like" activity which helped us find commonality among our peers and show respect to others with differing opinions. Projects -Father's Day gifts -Z craft Math -Addition -Subtraction May 13th-17th:
Caterpillars This week, the caterpillars all made it into a chrysalis and successfully attached onto the lid! :D The students keep asking me when they are going to come out so I respond with, "Be patient!" (a quote from The Very Impatient Caterpillar) ;) They've been doing such a nice job being respectful of them and continue to make observations. May 13th-17th:
HWT We worked with the letter Y this week and the students are becoming much more skilled at making slides instead of lines! :) We move onto our last letter of the week, Z. Projects -Father's Day Presents -BINGO Nursery Rhyme -Y Craft -Positional Word Rosie's Walk Page -Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (finding letters) -Barnyard Animal Noise Spelling -Graduation Songs! Guidance Mrs. Schaefer came to talk to our 4K classroom for the last time this year. She talked about Water Safety and helped the students brainstorm ways to be careful by water and why it's important. Math -Sorting by color and then solving an addition problem (on fingers) by combining the two colors -Rolling dice and covering up a barn or duck with that numeral -Solving pirate subtraction problems -Completing a subtraction book May 6th-10th:
HWT We worked on the letter X and I can say that the students are becoming very skilled at making slides instead of lines (for letters such as X). Testing The students have been doing a fabulous job respecting one another during these testing periods. We are almost done with PALS and I'm 2/3 of the way done with the 4K skills checklist. PALS results should be coming to you within the next couple of weeks and the checklist will come at the end of the school year (as a report card). Projects I didn't take many pictures this week because I didn't want mommies taking a peek at presents. ;) -Mommy questions and portrait -Flowers -Mommy vase -Ladybug card -X craft Math -Solving subtraction problems on fingers, with volunteers, and objects -Drawing objects and crossing them out to solve subtraction equations -Getting introduced to +,-, and = signs (if the child is ready for a challenge) -Finishing the 6-10 pages in our math book Caterpillars The students have been LOVING this metamorphosis observation! The caterpillars have been steadily growing and the kids were so lucky on Friday! They got to see the caterpillars start making their chrysalises! It was such a neat experience and I'm thinking that they'll all be in a chrysalis by the time we get back to school on Monday. STAY TUNED! April 29th-May 3rd
Congratulations to our perfect attendance winners! :D We have one more month of this. I cannot believe that it's coming to an end. Keep up the great work! April 29th-May 3rd:
HWT We practiced the letter V this week and the kids thought that it was SO interesting that the Literacy Links hand gesture makes a V. :P Butterflies -Butterfly informational video -Metamorphosis informational video -The Very Hungry Caterpillar book (popping up finger quantities) -Butterfly journal entry #1 -We have six little caterpillars growing in our classroom now! The kids are so excited to see real animals and cannot believe that they'll get to watch the whole transformation. STAY POSTED! Projects -V Craft -Butterfly life cycle craft -Mother's Day gifts -Gifts for the volunteer breakfast Guidance -Segmenting words and tapping out each sound before blending -Learning about Cooperation Math -Acting out addition problems -Using objects to keep track of addition problems -Writing out story problems (seeing what the + and = signs look like) -Solving addition problems up to 5 April 15th-18th:
We were lucky enough to be visited by a representative from the Milwaukee Zoo! The kids got to learn lots of facts about animals, see pictures, touch objects, do movement activities, read a book, and take a project home! They enjoyed this new opportunity and shared their wealth of animal knowledge with everyone. We also had a blast during the Spring Party! We did sound munching, went on an egg hunt, had a treat, read How to Catch the Easter Bunny, and were even visited by The Easter Bunny! It was loud and just what the kids needed. :) The Talent Show was also incredible! It's so nice being able to attend all school events and for the students to see familiar faces on stage! I hope that you are all enjoying break and that your holiday weekend was special! April 15th-18th:
HWT We practiced the letter W and are getting stronger at making slides instead of straight lines! Projects -Oviparous egg -W craft -Easter bag Math -Reading Number Tales books -Writing number 3: "Backward C, backward C. That is how I write a three!" -Writing number 4: "Down the side, to the right some more. Top to bottom, I've written a 4!" -Writing numbers 1-4 that make up the number 5 April 8th-12th:
HWT We worked on the letter N and discussed its similarities to the letter M. The students giggled quite frequently because I kept reminding them that its my favorite letter so hopefully that helps them remember it! :P Meeting We revisited the Hummingbird of Love and learned: I am thankful. It was really sweet to hear and see the students engage in these activities. We made "I am thankful for you" cards and the children picked whoever they wanted. Students took turns standing in front of the class and saying something that they have that makes them feel thankful and inquiring who else felt the same. Finally, everyone came up to say who or what they are most thankful for. :') Projects -Tops and Bottoms carrot tallying craft -N Craft -Parts of a Plant -Spring beginning sounds -Jack and the beanstalk measuring -End of the year book (writing and drawing) REMEMBER TO TURN I"N YOUR ORDER FORMS! Guidance -We worked on beginning and ending sounds and blending everything together to make a word. Math -Flipping number cards, building towers, and comparing who has more, less, or exactly the same -Putting counters in two different areas to compare quantities and put the numbers together -Writing the numbers 0-2 with new songs. 0: Curve from the top, be a hero. Close the loop and make a zero! 1: Top to bottom, then I'm done. I just wrote the number one. 2: Half a moon, there's more to do. Slide to the right, I wrote a two! -Reading questions with picture clues in them April 5th:
We had our First Friday Assembly this week! Congratulations to Brynlee, Enzo, and Nolan for winning academic, character, and effort awards! :D I am so proud of you! April 1st-5th:
HWT We practiced the letter M and talked about the difference between an M having lines and slides and a W only having slides. Meeting We revisited the Elephant of Forgiveness and learned: "The truth is bright and feels light. Truth leads me where I want to go." We practiced this trait by playing Would You Rather, Who Stole the Cookies, and Go Fish. Projects -Working on end of the year book pages -M craft -Mary Had a Little Lamb -Itsy, Bitsy Spider -Bunny craft -Our potato plant is getting much taller too so we've been making sure to take care of it! Guidance The students learned about the new character trait, responsibility, when Mrs. Hawkins came. Math -Counting the "say 10 way" -Matching two objects to make a set -Noticing which object in a set has more or less -Discovering that perfect matches have exactly enough objects to match March 25th-29th:
Guest Reader A third grade student in our school came to our classroom to read to the kids. It was so nice to see the room fall silent and the four-year-olds take in every word that Megan spoke about following your dreams. :) Awards Congratulations to all of the Perfect Attendance March Achievers! Your hard work doesn't go unnoticed! Potato Plant Our potato plant has started to grow! The kids were shocked that "it's actually working" haha Baseball Day I think the kids enjoyed Opening Day! We made Brewer's pennants to wave around, watched a Goofy baseball video, talked about how to play baseball and set up the room. We split the class into two teams, listened to the National Anthem, and played ball! The students were such good sports and helped each other out whenever needed. We ate hot dogs, chips, and Jell-O and enjoyed punch and small talk. After eating, we read Pete the Cat: Play Ball and The Pigeon Finds A Hot Dog to rest our bellies. We swapped roles and played a second round of baseball before going outside to play. I could tell that they were pretty tired when I took them out for recess and they were doing more sitting than running. :P Thank you everyone who donated supplies and helped your child dress for the occasion! :D March 25th-29th:
HWT We worked on the letter A this week and spent a lot of time talking about which letters start at the top and which letters start at the middle. The students spent some extra time on their letter formation skills. Meeting We revisited the Fox of Joy and learned: I am adaptable. I can move and dance. We rolled some dancing cubes and chose some movement cards to get our bodies moving, voices talking, and laughs echoing throughout the room. We also danced to some new GoNoodle videos. The kids really needed some happiness and energy-releasing activities this week! Projects (Mo Willems Author Study Week) -A Craft -Draw a monster (Leonardo the Terrible Monster) -Make a self-portrait with cityscape (Knuffle Bunny and Knuffle Bunny Too) -There's a Bird on Your Head SmartTV retelling -Elephant Gerald or Piggie craft -Drawing our favorite Mo Willems characters Guidance -Beginning sounds Math -Counting the say 10 way (11 is 10, 1) (12 is 10, 2) -Comparing pairs and seeing if there are exactly enough items or not enough items -Talking about the difference between less (quantity you cannot count like water) and fewer (quantity you can count like fingers or toys) March 18th-22nd:
HWT We practiced the letter K and the students were doing great deciphering whether or not specific words began with a K or a C. They've started inquiring more about the appropriate formation of the uppercase and lowercase letter. Meeting We revisited the Lion of Balance and discussed "I make my feelings and can change them with my thoughts." We practiced reading, coloring, and doing mindfulness videos. It was unbelievable how quiet they were for 20 minutes at a time! Projects -Umbrella writing activity -Old Mother Hubbard sound spelling -K Craft -Painting clouds -Blowing different materials -Dancing with scarves and reading repetitive text Guidance -Mrs. Schaefer talked to the students about Honesty this week. Math -Counting in a circle -Remembering which object was counted first and last -Turning bears in different directions and changing who is first and last -Rolling two dice and counting the total amount of counters together. March 15th:
Erik the leprechaun paid a visit to our classroom and my, did he make a mess! He left us notes, destroyed our classroom, walked all over the tables, hid gold coins, and peed in our toilet! So what did we do? We put on Irish music, worked together, and cleaned up the room! :D They enjoyed it so much but were determined to make traps at home so he wouldn't come back. We read a story and came up with potential traps to prevent Erik from returning. However, he snuck back into the classroom while we were having snack! He left some chocolate pots of gold so at least his tricks were tasty this time around. We also visited our 2nd grade buddies to make fruit loop necklaces (and snack on them too)! Happy St. Patrick's Day! :) March 11th-15th:
HWT We worked on the letter R this week and focused on rainbows. Projects -Pot of gold syllables -What do you see book -Letter R craft -Rainbow chain with gold Math -Discovering if objects fit better into small or large bags -Comparing containers and the quantities that they can hold -Exploring tall/thin and short/wide containers -Rotating between length, height, weight, and volume centers March 4th-8th:
I know it's early but I'll be leaving for Vegas tomorrow so I wanted to make sure you guys got to see a bit of what our classroom learned about this week (or at least read about it). I apologize for only having two days worth of pictures! I'll be back next Tuesday! :D HWT We focused on the letter B this week and talked a lot about the difference between b, d, and p. We were picturing the b as needing a bat first (big line down) and then the ball (little curve). Projects -B craft -Stone soup recipe and counting activity -Coloring pictures of healthy food items -Making a grocery list, with nutritional food, and writing letters -Sorting fruits and vegetables Math -Comparing the weight of objects to one another -Noticing that size doesn't always determine something's weight Reading -Syllables -Beginning sounds -Main point -Story events February 25th-March 1st:
Plaque The students came back to school to see what happened to the plaque experiment. They were pretty disgusted to see how "puffy and bubbly" the cup with sugar got and wanted to brush their teeth. MOST of them were disturbed by the smell (yeast) more though. :P Dr. Seuss Dress-up Days The students had a BLAST coming to school in different attire and being extra silly! :D They were such good sports and although it was a little more chaotic than usual, it was nice to have an entertaining, 5 day week (since we haven't been at school much lately)! We also had a guest reader, The Cat in the Hat, come in to share the story with the 4K classes. Ms. Patty from the Slinger library also joined our classes to read a lot of books and show off her puppets! Perfect Attendance and Awards Congratulations to everyone who fought off all of the bugs that have been going around! I need YOUR immune system! A big congrats also goes to Aubrey, Alex, and Cameron for working so hard this month and earning awards! :D February 25th-March 1st:
HWT We practiced the letter P and did our usual activities with it. We started doing Literacy Links more frequently, since testing concluded, and I'm very proud of the students! With each passing day, more and more of them are participating! :D Projects We spent most of the week doing projects that related to Dr. Seuss books! These included: -Sleep Face -P craft -The Lorax Face and Deed -Green Eggs and Ham Plate -Wacky Wednesday BINGO -My Many Colored Days Scribbling -Rhyming Hats Guidance We practiced rhyming words this week and I can tell that the students are starting to become familiar with what it means to listen for the ENDING chunk, rather than always the BEGINNING sound(s). Math -We practiced comparing heights and lengths of objects to cubes and with peers. -We started talking about weight and how to tell if something is heavy or light. 4K was lucky enough to receive a visit from Swanson & Associates to delve deeper into dental hygiene and apply what they have been learning in the classroom. They got to become familiar with what happens during a dental visit, touch/see the tools that are used, learn about the amount of sugar in certain foods/drinks, hear important dental care practices, and test out materials. The kiddos did great and have really been paying attention to these elements now (especially during snack time). I've made sure to tell them that "sometimes" snacks are STILL OKAY! ;) If you haven't had a chance yet, please check the goodie bag that your child got from the dental office! They provided each student with some wonderful resources and materials! :D
February 19th-22nd:
Birthdays The students insisted that we celebrate my half-birthday as well so they had to help me blow out all of the candles on the cake! :P What sweethearts! Thank you to the students who drew me pictures and gave me a gift! 2nd Grade Buddies The children finally got to exchange their Valentines and read their library books with their buddies for a little bit. They were so thoughtful and they brought much happiness to one another! :D Winter Fun Day I sincerely apologize but I forgot my phone at home so I didn't capture images from this event. However, the kids had a blast!! We played on the other playground, went sledding, hiked through the woods, had hot chocolate with a cookie, and sat by a campfire. Thankfully, we had beautiful weather and Mr. Dziedzic captured one photo of our whole class. :) February 19th-22nd:
HWT We worked on our last digraph for the year, ch. The students are starting to distinguish between all three (sh, th, and ch) diagraphs now! Projects -Good/bad for my teeth coloring sheet -Smartboard sort of healthy/unhealthy things for your teeth -Brushing up sort -Plaque experiment (pictures to come) -Painting to prepare for Dr. Seuss week -Sound Munching -Syllable segmentation Math -Discussion about height (tall and short) -Discussion about length (long and short) -Brainstorming ideas of items that are short and long/tall -Sorting objects into groups based on their heights or lengths -Finding objects in the classroom that are shorter and taller than a cube tower Guidance -Mrs. Barbara from Nature in the Classroom taught the students about bears this time around! Reading -Defining the main point of a story -Describing the beginning, middle, and end of a story -Making connections |
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