Teriffic Tuesday!

We had our special visitor on our tenth day of school today - it was Zero the Hero!  Zero the Hero is a special hero that comes to our classroom on any school day that ends in a ZERO!  The great thing about Zero the Hero (according to the boys and girls) is he always brings a yummy treat in the shape of a zero to share with the class! 

Everyday during our calendar time together we keep track of our days using straws. We add a straw each day until our very last day of Kindergarten.  Today we took the 10 straws from our ones pocket and bundled them up with a rubber band and moved our new group of 10 to the tens pocket.  Tomorrow - you guessed it - we will add one straw to our ones pocket to illustrate our 11th day of school.  By the time March comes the boys and girls wonder if we will have enough straws to finish out our year together.  Calendar time is an excellent opportunity for us to explore number patterns together.  Soon we will add pennies to help us count our days for each month.  We will gradually add nickels and dimes as we learn coin recognition.  Already we are using tally marks to help us count our days for the month.  This will help us learn to count by fives.  Each month we begin our tally marks again.

Don't forget tomorrow is library day as we celebrate  Wonderful Wednesday!

Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight

Marvelous Monday!

It was my first Monday with my Kindergarten kiddos.  For those of you that haven't heard, I am a grandma again and I was staying with my daughter's family as we welcomed little Kyla last Monday.  Mondays at the beginning of the year are a little interesting as we get back into a routine we are just beginning to learn about.  The first weeks of Kindergarten are like that - just learning how to be in school.  I am amazed at these little people who have adapted to the structure and routine of lining up and raising their hands.  We are still working on when it is OK to talk and not OK to talk in the classroom.  Some of them like to see how strong they are and try to "pick up" a special friend.  These are are typical behaviors we work on in the first few weeks of school.  After Labor Day I hope to have the boys and girls all on the "same page"  as they learn appropriate behaviors at school. 

However it isn't all about the behaviors.  We have started our new reading series "Treasures" by McGraw Hill.  I have introduced 4 popcorn words or sight words.  We call them popcorn words because they just pop up whenever we read.  I will have a running list for you as a tabbed page at the top of our blog.  I encourage you to make flashcards for these words and practice at home.  We are also learning songs to go with our color words - another page to our blog I hope to add by the week's end. 

In Math, we have begun exploring math tools like our pattern blocks and our teddy bears.  We have also started our numbers.  Don't forget to check out the number jingles in your child's BEE Book when working on number formations at home with your little one.

The beginning of the school year is an exciting time but more excitement is on the way as we expect the arrival of a special visitor in the very near future...stay tuned....

Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight

WELCOME!

Technology is a wonderful thing when it is used appropriately.  It is fascinating  how many of us have given in to try some amazing new tools - texting, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and other sites.  This summer I had the opportunity to attend a technology institute in Norfolk with many of my fellow Winside teachers and learned many new things that will help me and my little students in using some great tools for learning.  It is a very exciting yet scary time for me to wander into this new world.  I would like to invite all of you to come along for the ride.   With this site, it is my goal to provide you with some insight as to what your child, grandchild, niece and/or nephew experiences in Kindergarten.  I will highlight some great learning experiences, activities, songs, and projects for you.  With the help of Mrs. Kollath, our elementary technology teacher, I will share with you some photos of our classroom and great links for you to try at home.  As a result I hope to give you a glimpse into our world and hope you will love kindergarten as much as do!

Your child's teacher,
Mrs Straight