Parent-Teacher conferences are over and Kindergarten had 100 percent parent attendance! A firecracker cheer for the parents - ask your child to demonstrate for you. :o) It was very nice getting to spend a little time with each of you. I apologize if your conference with me was a little later than scheduled or you were a little late to your next conference after attending your Kindergarten kiddos conference. I do love to visit and get to know the parents. Sometimes we do get a bit off topic but communication is very important to your child's education and it is important for your child's teacher and you, the parent, to be on the "same page" so to speak. Great questions were asked and I hope I was able to answer them all. But conferences are not the only time to communicate. Feel free to e-mail me, drop a note or give me a call and I'll be happy to help you out.
October is just around the corner and I am amazed at how fast September has flown by. October is a busy month for us. We will spend time on fire safety as October is Fire Safety Month. We will walk to the fire station with the first graders and get a good look as those big fire trucks. We will study pumpkins and bats in as we get into the Halloween spirit. ( No pun intended) Red Ribbon Week is in October as we pledge to be drug free! Before you know it we will be dreaming about drumsticks and pumpkin pie....
Thanks to all of you, for all of your wonderful support for all we do in Kindergarten. You are a big part of a successful start to your child's school career.
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
What Can I Do At Home?
A question I am often asked is "How can I help my child at home?" There are so many things parents can do to reinforce learning at home. Reading to your child is so very important. Share this time to enjoy a good book or an old favorite. Remember it is my job to teach the boys and girls to read, it is your job to teach them how to love books by reading to them. But before children are even ready to learn to read they need to develop their phonemic awareness skills. This simple means teaching them to listen to sounds and patterns in words. It is strictly a listening skill. Phonemic awareness activities are incorporated into our reading on a daily basis. These are simple activities you can do while driving with your child, or while strolling down the grocery store aisles or while tucking your child in before you read that bedtime story. I have listed some phonemic awareness activities that you can easily do at home with your child.
Same/Different - say two words to your child if the words are the same word they say "same" or give you a thumbs up. If the two words are different the give you a thumbs down. You can also do this activity with rhyming words.
Stretch Out the Word - say a word but stretch out the sounds c-a-t then have your child say the word put together
Three in a Row - say three words that all begin with the same sound map, mouse, man have your child tell you the sound all three words begin with
Which One Does Not Belong - say three words, two of those words begin with the same sound sun, sing, tree have your child tell you which word doesn't belong and has a different beginning sound
Syllable Count- say a word to your child have them clap out how many syllable/word parts are in the word
I hope you enjoy these activities and I am looking forward to seeing you at our Parent-Teacher Conferences next week!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Same/Different - say two words to your child if the words are the same word they say "same" or give you a thumbs up. If the two words are different the give you a thumbs down. You can also do this activity with rhyming words.
Stretch Out the Word - say a word but stretch out the sounds c-a-t then have your child say the word put together
Three in a Row - say three words that all begin with the same sound map, mouse, man have your child tell you the sound all three words begin with
Which One Does Not Belong - say three words, two of those words begin with the same sound sun, sing, tree have your child tell you which word doesn't belong and has a different beginning sound
Syllable Count- say a word to your child have them clap out how many syllable/word parts are in the word
I hope you enjoy these activities and I am looking forward to seeing you at our Parent-Teacher Conferences next week!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
A Little Older - A Lot Wiser - and Even More Blessed
Boy - What a day! It was such a fun fun day. I can't feel anything but young at heart today. If you haven't already heard, the teacher turned 50 today! The boys and girls filled my day with smiles and laughter as they walked into the classroom wearing their "my teacher turned 50 today" stickers. The tons of hugs, smiles, well wishes, and cards from so many students past and present just reminded me of why and how much I LOVE teaching!
It wasn't all party time in Kindergarten today. In reading, we started blending our two sounds a and m to form the word am. They learned how to say the word slowly, then sing the sounds, and finally read the word. Have your little one demonstrate this at home. This is the procedure we will use to sound out unknown words. We also read sentences using our popcorn words and photo cards. Today's sentence was We see the ______. They were nothing but smiles when they discovered just how easy it is to read.
We also had a little science mixed in with our reading today. (which is another reason I love this new reading series) - many of our literature selections are science and social studies based. We discussed mammals and their characteristics and how some mammals are nocturnal. See if your Kindergartner can tell you what a mammal is and what nocturnal means.
Thanks to all of those who have helped the start of our insect exhibit. The jumbo magnifying glasses are out and all insects are ready to be inspected. Real life learning is so much fun and the children remember it better as it has more meaning to them. To help our room feel more comfortable for our new crawly little friends, we started making our lady bug windsocks today. We will finish them up tomorrow and have them ready to be hung in our classroom in time for Parent-Teacher conferences.
In Math, we have been working on number formation for numbers 1-4. We have also introduced our first two shapes - circle and rectangles. We used crackers - you guessed it - circle and rectangle shaped to help introduce the concept. We love any excuse to eat in Kindergarten!
Special thanks to all my Kindergarten Kiddos, wonderful colleagues, and friends for making this a truly Wonderful Wednesday. Now I am going to go home and take a nap!!! I guess you get to do that when you're my age!
Your child's teacher ,
Mrs. Straight
It wasn't all party time in Kindergarten today. In reading, we started blending our two sounds a and m to form the word am. They learned how to say the word slowly, then sing the sounds, and finally read the word. Have your little one demonstrate this at home. This is the procedure we will use to sound out unknown words. We also read sentences using our popcorn words and photo cards. Today's sentence was We see the ______. They were nothing but smiles when they discovered just how easy it is to read.
We also had a little science mixed in with our reading today. (which is another reason I love this new reading series) - many of our literature selections are science and social studies based. We discussed mammals and their characteristics and how some mammals are nocturnal. See if your Kindergartner can tell you what a mammal is and what nocturnal means.
Thanks to all of those who have helped the start of our insect exhibit. The jumbo magnifying glasses are out and all insects are ready to be inspected. Real life learning is so much fun and the children remember it better as it has more meaning to them. To help our room feel more comfortable for our new crawly little friends, we started making our lady bug windsocks today. We will finish them up tomorrow and have them ready to be hung in our classroom in time for Parent-Teacher conferences.
In Math, we have been working on number formation for numbers 1-4. We have also introduced our first two shapes - circle and rectangles. We used crackers - you guessed it - circle and rectangle shaped to help introduce the concept. We love any excuse to eat in Kindergarten!
Special thanks to all my Kindergarten Kiddos, wonderful colleagues, and friends for making this a truly Wonderful Wednesday. Now I am going to go home and take a nap!!! I guess you get to do that when you're my age!
Your child's teacher ,
Mrs. Straight
Monday, September 20, 2010
Bugs BUGS BUGS
Creepy crawly things are so much fun to learn about. Last week we started our unit on insects. It is so much fun as we share our stories about bugs and where we've found them. (Ask your little one to tell you about Mrs. Straight and her kitchen and ... the ants.)
We began our unit by learning about the general characteristics of an insect - an insect has three body parts and six legs. The boys and girls even learned a song to help them remember the names of the three insect body parts. The words are found under the song tab of our blog if you'd like to sing along with your Kindergarten kiddo. :0) Once we became insect experts, we began the study of different insects, beginning with ants. As we discover each insect, we will study where they live, what they eat and how they move. We will chart our information and look for similarities and differences in the different insects. It all sounds so "grown-up" but these boys and girls are up to the task.
Literature is how I've chosen to introduce our different insects. Anyone who knows me or has stepped into our classroom knows how much I love, love, love books. It has give me the opportunity to introduce fiction and non-fiction to the boys and girls. I will incorporate technology through the use of the Internet as we look at close up pictures of the different creepy crawly critters. Art activities will also be incorporated as we have fun learning about lady bugs and the life cycle of a caterpillar. And nothing is more fun as hands on learning as the boys and girls begin bringing in insects they find and we examine them with magnifying glasses.
I hope you will share in the fun and help your young one contain an insect for us to examine ... no bees or wasps please :o) ... I think you know why. We welcome ants, crickets, ladybugs, grasshoppers, caterpillars, butterflies, beetles...the more the merrier! I can supply the ants...did I tell you to ask your little one to tell you the story about Mrs. Straight and her kitchen and the...ANTS!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
We began our unit by learning about the general characteristics of an insect - an insect has three body parts and six legs. The boys and girls even learned a song to help them remember the names of the three insect body parts. The words are found under the song tab of our blog if you'd like to sing along with your Kindergarten kiddo. :0) Once we became insect experts, we began the study of different insects, beginning with ants. As we discover each insect, we will study where they live, what they eat and how they move. We will chart our information and look for similarities and differences in the different insects. It all sounds so "grown-up" but these boys and girls are up to the task.
Literature is how I've chosen to introduce our different insects. Anyone who knows me or has stepped into our classroom knows how much I love, love, love books. It has give me the opportunity to introduce fiction and non-fiction to the boys and girls. I will incorporate technology through the use of the Internet as we look at close up pictures of the different creepy crawly critters. Art activities will also be incorporated as we have fun learning about lady bugs and the life cycle of a caterpillar. And nothing is more fun as hands on learning as the boys and girls begin bringing in insects they find and we examine them with magnifying glasses.
I hope you will share in the fun and help your young one contain an insect for us to examine ... no bees or wasps please :o) ... I think you know why. We welcome ants, crickets, ladybugs, grasshoppers, caterpillars, butterflies, beetles...the more the merrier! I can supply the ants...did I tell you to ask your little one to tell you the story about Mrs. Straight and her kitchen and the...ANTS!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Thursday, September 16, 2010
A Little Time Away
This post will be very short. I am in Shelton, Nebraska today and will be here until Sunday. I am on Nana duty helping out my daughter with the girls as she gets back into the routine with a newborn in the house. I did let the boys and girls know I would be gone and their first concern naturally was "But who will teach us?"
Routine and structure are very important to young children. I try to keep things as normal as possible when I know I am going to be gone but that's not to say it might be a bit of a struggle for everyone.
Well, one needs a bottle and another needs her hair brushed...the life of a Nana.
Looking forward to an exciting new week when I return.....
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Routine and structure are very important to young children. I try to keep things as normal as possible when I know I am going to be gone but that's not to say it might be a bit of a struggle for everyone.
Well, one needs a bottle and another needs her hair brushed...the life of a Nana.
Looking forward to an exciting new week when I return.....
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sid the Science Kid
I love being a grandma actually a "Nana". It keeps me young and hip with the 3-6 year old population. Last summer my granddaughter, Karrigan, introduced me to a show on PBS called Sid the Science Kid and I was hooked! I thought what a wonderful way to teach science to young children. The vocabulary is perfect, explanations are easy for little ones to understand, the characters are lovable and very relatable to young kids, and the science that is taught is awesome! I wanted to record every episode and bring it back to the classroom. I wanted to be Teacher Susie. Then I found out you can buy the episodes on DVD - so I did.
As you've guessed, I have incorporated Sid the Science Kid into our science lessons. For every episode, we will take a class survey similar to the one Sid will give his friends and then we will discus our survey results. This will set up what we will be learning about. I will show the Sid the Science Kid episode to the class the next day. On the third day, we will do the experiment similar to what the boys and girls just watched. We will go back to our survey again and then journal our findings. I don't know who will have more fun me or the kids!
Well, we did just that this last week and finished up today. Our first Sid the Science Kid episode was all about estimation. We estimated balloons and lollipops. We will carry this skill over with our math as we introduce a traveling Estimation Jar. We will do a few more estimation activities at school before we begin this take home adventure. Please watch your BEE Books for information at a later date.
If you ever get the opportunity, I hope you will watch Sid the Science Kid at home and join in on all the fun!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
As you've guessed, I have incorporated Sid the Science Kid into our science lessons. For every episode, we will take a class survey similar to the one Sid will give his friends and then we will discus our survey results. This will set up what we will be learning about. I will show the Sid the Science Kid episode to the class the next day. On the third day, we will do the experiment similar to what the boys and girls just watched. We will go back to our survey again and then journal our findings. I don't know who will have more fun me or the kids!
Well, we did just that this last week and finished up today. Our first Sid the Science Kid episode was all about estimation. We estimated balloons and lollipops. We will carry this skill over with our math as we introduce a traveling Estimation Jar. We will do a few more estimation activities at school before we begin this take home adventure. Please watch your BEE Books for information at a later date.
If you ever get the opportunity, I hope you will watch Sid the Science Kid at home and join in on all the fun!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Sunday, September 12, 2010
It's a Whole New World
On Friday, we finished up the Smart Start section of our reading series. It was basically an introduction of our daily reading format. We reviewed the alphabet as a whole and introduced four popcorn words (sight words).
On Monday, we begin the meat of our reading series. We will concentrate on one letter per week (on most occasions). We will learn correct letter formation, listen for beginning and ending sounds for that letter and when appropriate we will begin blending sounds together to begin reading words. We will also be introducing three popcorn words each week. I will begin working with the boys and girls on sentence structure as they will soon begin writing. I will be introducing the concept of naming words (nouns) and action words (verbs). The boys and girls will also be working in small reading groups as well as participating in whole class instruction. Our reading series runs in cycles. Week one and week two will be an introduction to new skills and on week three, we review the previous two weeks. the cycle will begin again.
There is also a Home to School connection for each week. These will help you to become an active participant in your child's learning. Watch your child's BEE Book for these activities and take-home readers.
It seems like so much but these primary years are the foundation for building great readers and writers. It is a lot different from when you and I were in Kindergarten. It is a whole new world!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
On Monday, we begin the meat of our reading series. We will concentrate on one letter per week (on most occasions). We will learn correct letter formation, listen for beginning and ending sounds for that letter and when appropriate we will begin blending sounds together to begin reading words. We will also be introducing three popcorn words each week. I will begin working with the boys and girls on sentence structure as they will soon begin writing. I will be introducing the concept of naming words (nouns) and action words (verbs). The boys and girls will also be working in small reading groups as well as participating in whole class instruction. Our reading series runs in cycles. Week one and week two will be an introduction to new skills and on week three, we review the previous two weeks. the cycle will begin again.
There is also a Home to School connection for each week. These will help you to become an active participant in your child's learning. Watch your child's BEE Book for these activities and take-home readers.
It seems like so much but these primary years are the foundation for building great readers and writers. It is a lot different from when you and I were in Kindergarten. It is a whole new world!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
It Takes a Village
I know you've heard me say it before but I have to say it again - I love my job! There is nothing better than seeing bright-eyed eager learners that love coming to school walk into your classroom. And of course - the hugs! But I have a confession to make, I don't do my job by myself. From time to time you may hear your son or daughter mention some of these individuals and I thought you might like to know who the unsung heroes are. After all it takes a village to teach a Kindergartner.
First and foremost there is Miss Topp. She is my right hand gal. She works with many of the boys and girls in the classroom. We work very closely together planning out learning activities that help boys and girls learn in their best way. Miss Topp is in our classroom all day everyday.
Miss Angie is the occupational therapist. She comes to our school twice a month from the Educational Service Unit. She is there to give me advice on how to strenghten fine motor skills for our kiddos. She gives me ideas for activities to strengthen muscles to help with better gripping their pencils or crossing the mid-line. There is also Miss Kim, our Speech and Language pathologist, also coming to us from the ESU. She helps me out with the boys and girls who are having troubles with some of their sounds and gives me ideas and activities we can do in the classroom to help them speak more clearly. She is at our school twice a week.
Now there are my "other" little helpers. There are many who are not physically present in our classroom but share their talents via the Internet or DVD or CD. First there is Miss Heidi, a Kindergarten teacher who has developed a series of movement based videos put to music to help young children learn basic skills. We have been doing our Alphabet Actions along with Miss Heidi and her DVD. Later in the year, we will be doing some counting by 1's, 2's, 5's, and 10's with Miss Heidi. Dr. Jean is also an educator and she has put a series of CD's together also using movement and music. We have learned her Days of the Week song. We will learn the months to the Macarena with Dr. Jean. And of course the kids LOVE Dr. Jean's "Tooty Ta'. Research show that children retain more information when it is learned by/through song.
The Internet is always a great source as there are so many wonderful teachers who are willing to share their ideas with others. From them I have implemented our B.E.E books, Brownie Points, Zero the Hero, our Birthday bags, and a few other surprises for the class.
My job is always exciting and certainly rewarding. With all of us working together, we can help your boys and girls be the best they can be - and I want you to know - I don't do it by myself - it really does take a village. I must say our village is pretty great!
Your child's teacher and village coordinator,
Mrs. Straight
First and foremost there is Miss Topp. She is my right hand gal. She works with many of the boys and girls in the classroom. We work very closely together planning out learning activities that help boys and girls learn in their best way. Miss Topp is in our classroom all day everyday.
Miss Angie is the occupational therapist. She comes to our school twice a month from the Educational Service Unit. She is there to give me advice on how to strenghten fine motor skills for our kiddos. She gives me ideas for activities to strengthen muscles to help with better gripping their pencils or crossing the mid-line. There is also Miss Kim, our Speech and Language pathologist, also coming to us from the ESU. She helps me out with the boys and girls who are having troubles with some of their sounds and gives me ideas and activities we can do in the classroom to help them speak more clearly. She is at our school twice a week.
Now there are my "other" little helpers. There are many who are not physically present in our classroom but share their talents via the Internet or DVD or CD. First there is Miss Heidi, a Kindergarten teacher who has developed a series of movement based videos put to music to help young children learn basic skills. We have been doing our Alphabet Actions along with Miss Heidi and her DVD. Later in the year, we will be doing some counting by 1's, 2's, 5's, and 10's with Miss Heidi. Dr. Jean is also an educator and she has put a series of CD's together also using movement and music. We have learned her Days of the Week song. We will learn the months to the Macarena with Dr. Jean. And of course the kids LOVE Dr. Jean's "Tooty Ta'. Research show that children retain more information when it is learned by/through song.
The Internet is always a great source as there are so many wonderful teachers who are willing to share their ideas with others. From them I have implemented our B.E.E books, Brownie Points, Zero the Hero, our Birthday bags, and a few other surprises for the class.
My job is always exciting and certainly rewarding. With all of us working together, we can help your boys and girls be the best they can be - and I want you to know - I don't do it by myself - it really does take a village. I must say our village is pretty great!
Your child's teacher and village coordinator,
Mrs. Straight
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Fabulous Friday!
Here I am on sleep-in Saturday telling you all about our Fabulous Friday. Unfortunately, my allergies got the best of me on Friday and I didn't get much done but I still wanted to fill you in on something very special about our Fabulous Fridays and that is Show and Tell.
Show and Tell is a very important part of our Kindergarten classroom. It gives the boys and girls an opportunity to develop speaking skills - looking at their audience and using a strong leader voice. These are things I work on with each student. It also gives them a chance to build a vocabulary while the rest of the class learns good listening skills and how to ask a question. But one of the best things I see happening during Show and Tell, is giving each boy and girl and chance for their "ME " moment - a chance to shine as they share something very special to them. It really brings a fabulous end to a Fabulous Friday!
I hope everyone has a safe and happy Labor Day weekend. My plans - I am staying indoors where there is no ragweed!!!
Your child's teacher,
(Achoo!)
Mrs. Straight
Show and Tell is a very important part of our Kindergarten classroom. It gives the boys and girls an opportunity to develop speaking skills - looking at their audience and using a strong leader voice. These are things I work on with each student. It also gives them a chance to build a vocabulary while the rest of the class learns good listening skills and how to ask a question. But one of the best things I see happening during Show and Tell, is giving each boy and girl and chance for their "ME " moment - a chance to shine as they share something very special to them. It really brings a fabulous end to a Fabulous Friday!
I hope everyone has a safe and happy Labor Day weekend. My plans - I am staying indoors where there is no ragweed!!!
Your child's teacher,
(Achoo!)
Mrs. Straight
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Thrilling Thursday !
What a thrilling day we had. Today, I experienced one of the many joys of teaching Kindergarten - when a child says "Mrs. Straight, I can read!" We have been working on our first four popcorn words and student name recognition. The boys and girls have done a super job learning to recognize and read these words. When we have a big book we share, a sentence written for our morning message or one of our papers, many of them can instantly recognize these words. When I gave them their first decodable reader last week, many big eyes looked up at me in fright and many a voice said "But, Mrs. Straight I don't know how to read a book". It wasn't long before the boys and girls were "discussing" over who was going to get to read the next book first. You got to love it!!!
Don't forget - Show and Tell is tomorrow.
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Don't forget - Show and Tell is tomorrow.
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Wonderful Wednesday!
I am so very blessed. I can honestly say everyday when I go to work, I am so happy to be there. I love my job! The boys and girls are so enthusiastic about learning new things and love the path we travel even if that path is a silly one. They encourage my indulgences in have fun while learning.
Today we introduced two new activities into our Kindergarten classroom. The first was our "brain tickets". An average person would just see a colored piece of paper with the words "brain ticket" written on it. No big deal. Ahhh - but what its represents is something of vast importance. Our brain tickets are handed out with much reverence as we begin to use our brains and use great thinking skills in the classroom. There is much ceremony in what they represent and boy do we have a good time passing them out! I hope you will take some time and congratulate your little one on bringing home the coveted brain ticket and for being such a good thinker at school.
The second activity was the introduction of Punctuation Pirate to our classroom. By just putting on a pirate hat and using my "Arrrg!" - pirate voice, I transport the kiddos to a different place as he teaches us all about punctuation marks. Today he introduced to the boys and girls that a period comes at the end of a sentence. He will continue to visit our classroom along with some other great characters to help make learning fun and not quite so ho-hum.
So I thank my all of boys and girls for letting me be so silly and have a little fun while learning!
All parents get a thumbs up and a firecracker cheer ( ask your child to demonstrate) as all the boys and girls remembered their library books for Library Day. Fantastic!
I can't wait for tomorrow - Thrilling Thursday!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
Today we introduced two new activities into our Kindergarten classroom. The first was our "brain tickets". An average person would just see a colored piece of paper with the words "brain ticket" written on it. No big deal. Ahhh - but what its represents is something of vast importance. Our brain tickets are handed out with much reverence as we begin to use our brains and use great thinking skills in the classroom. There is much ceremony in what they represent and boy do we have a good time passing them out! I hope you will take some time and congratulate your little one on bringing home the coveted brain ticket and for being such a good thinker at school.
The second activity was the introduction of Punctuation Pirate to our classroom. By just putting on a pirate hat and using my "Arrrg!" - pirate voice, I transport the kiddos to a different place as he teaches us all about punctuation marks. Today he introduced to the boys and girls that a period comes at the end of a sentence. He will continue to visit our classroom along with some other great characters to help make learning fun and not quite so ho-hum.
So I thank my all of boys and girls for letting me be so silly and have a little fun while learning!
All parents get a thumbs up and a firecracker cheer ( ask your child to demonstrate) as all the boys and girls remembered their library books for Library Day. Fantastic!
I can't wait for tomorrow - Thrilling Thursday!
Your child's teacher,
Mrs. Straight
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