Have a wonderful break

Have a wonderful, restful, and celebratory winter break (and think about us as you are shopping-- we need snacks!).

See you next year.

Mr. Melling, Shari, and Mythandra

Pearl

Our thoughts are with Pearl as she recovers from her illness.

Field Trip to NW Library

Late Start Wednesday and more

Hi all:
Just a quick reminder that tomorrow is a late start Wednesday.  Buses and bells will be two hours behind schedule.  I look forward to seeing everyone at 9:55.

By popular demand, Friday will be pajama day.  Your child can come in their favorite P.J.'s and bring a stuffed animal of their choice.  Be sure they wear real shoes -- we will have our usual outdoor recesses.

Thursday is library day -- I am encouraging everyone to check for books at home.
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This week in kindergarten

Here are some details about this week in kindergarten, plus read below for belated information about last week...

Thank you to the wonderful volunteers who made our trip to the library a success last Friday!

This Wednesday is a late opening -- buses and bells will be two hours behind schedule.

Theme Book: Little Quack
Comprehension skill: plot
New words: me, with, she (week 2)
New letter Rr
Math:length, recognizing quantities 5-10

We will not join the holiday sing-along in the auditorium Friday afternoon.  Instead we will be switching classrooms for afternoon activities.

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Somehow this never got posted last week.  Here is my report from last Monday

We had a great week last week with several volunteers helping at center time.  It is amazing how much of a difference it makes to have that extra set of eyes and hands helping with centers.  Thank you to everyone who has made time to volunteer in the classroom.

Here are a few dates to keep in mind
December 12 (this Friday) -- walking field trip to NW Library
December 17 -- Late start
December 19 -- Last day of school before winter break
January 5 -- School resumes

This week's themes:
Chapter Book: Dinosaurs Before Dark
Theme Book: Little Panda
New words: me, with, she
New Letters: Nn, Bb
Comprehension: Compare and Contrast
Math: length, pattern block puzzles

Tardiness 2

Thank you to everyone who was here promptly this morning!  It really made a difference and started the day on the right note!

Quick clarification – The students who arrive by bus have been here early and, generally, do a great job waiting outside the classroom.

Thank you again!

tardiness

Hi all:

This morning (actually yesterday morning) when the late bell rang at 8:00, I looked around and less than half of our students were present.  Over the course of the next 40 minutes, twelve students made their way in.  On most mornings we have eight to ten students who are late coming through the door.

This is a challenge for everyone:

For students who are already in class – it is hard to pay attention to the teacher when a friend walks through the door.

For late students – it is a challenge to walk in and immediately start focusing.  Kids need a moment or two to greet friends, say goodbye to parents, and get adjusted to a new setting.

For me -- it is hard to teach with frequent goodbyes, greetings, and students who need redirection.

Our learning time in the morning is short and precious.  I know that it is a challenge to get five-year-olds out the door and that life throws curveballs at all of us, but I ask anyone who is late frequently to carefully look at their schedule to find ways to get their child to school by 8:00.

Thank you so much!

Richard Melling

This week in kindergarten

After the October / November craziness, we enter into three weeks of solid school.  This is a time where we focus on learning and do our best to ignore the mounting excitement about Christmas, Hanukkah and winter break.

We are deep in the heart of basic phonics right now.  This week has no new letters or words, but we continue to focus on using our letters to form simple 3 letter words.  We spend a lot of time substituting letters --  mat to sat to sap to sip to tip to tap...  Most students are having an easy time substituting initial letters, a more challenging time substituting final letters, and a harder time substituting middle vowel sounds.  I have found this "substituting" game a great way to build basic decoding skills.

Here are a few dates to keep in mind...
Friday, December 12 -- Field Trip to NW Library, Noon
Wednesday December 17 --  Late Start
Friday, December 19 -- Last day of school before winter break

This weeks themes:
Theme Book - Whose Garden is it?
Chapter Book Dinosaurs Before Dark
Literary Theme: realism and fantasy
Letters we know: m, a, t, s, p, c, i
Math: December Calendar, comparing sets

Please let me know if you have read a great, kindergarten friendly, chapter book that has been published within the last few years!