Picture Forms

We have NOT received Picture Order Forms yet.  As soon as we do, I will send them home in your child's folder.

Media and Weekly Updates

Our Media date has been set for Mondays.  We will visit the library every Monday.  We will alternate weeks between a lesson with Ms. Seres or just a book exchange.  Your child can get a new book each week.  Remind them to bring their books back on Mondays.  Kindergarteners are allowed to have one book checked out at a time.

We will be starting our small guided reading groups next week.  Your child will be grouped with other students with similar skills and needs.  We are learning about the character in a book and will be moving on to the setting next week.  We are finishing up our weather unit in science with clouds and the water cycle.

Remember, Friday October 2 is an early release day.  We dismiss at 1:20.  Students will have lunch that day.

Enjoy the fall weather!!!!

Loving the fall weather

Just something about me....This is my favorite season and weather.

Anyway, back to school...we are continuing our color week - blue, purple, pink then brown.
Our reading testing will continue for the next couple of weeks.  We are learning about the weather and the seasons in science and counting in math.  We are perfecting our routines and learning how to work independently during centers (when I will eventually be pulling small reading groups).  We are up to 9 minutes of staying at our centers!  Our goal is to get to 15 minutes of independent work (they know they can not interrupt me when I am wearing a lei because this is when I would be working with other students).

Here's to another short week....

Dojo Points

We've been working very hard earning Dojo Points.  Your child can earn a point by showing behavior that follows the six pillars - Respect, Responsibility, Trustworthiness, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship.  For example, following directions the first time is responsibility.  Helping another student is caring.  Raising their hand quietly and waiting patiently to be called on is respect.  Other teachers can give them points, too, like Art, PE, Music and lunch and recess aides.

Today, we reset our points to 0.  We are starting over tomorrow to work towards earning a ticket with a specific reward.  This type of positive reinforcement has been proven to work with behavior management with young children.  Once a student receives 20 points, they can pick a ticket from my Dojo Ticket Collection.  The tickets reward them with a specific prize.  They currently have 8 different tickets to choose from:  use a special pen for writing all day, bring in a stuffed animal for a day, pick a prize from Mr. Heatwole's treasure box, pick a book from our library for me to read aloud, get extra computer time, wear the dojo master hat for the day, be a line jumper (jump ahead of other students in line), or bring in something for show and tell.  Your child will also bring home a little certificate letting you know they reached the 20 point benchmark.  Once they pick a ticket, their points will be reset to 0 and they can start earning towards another 20 points and another ticket.

In addition, when our class earns 200 points as a whole, we will have a Dojo Party with a special treat.

The kids are excited to start earning points tomorrow and I'm excited too see them grow with Dojo.

Color Days

For the next two weeks, we will be celebrating colors.  A letter was sent home with a daily schedule.  I encourage all the children to dress in the day's color if possible.  The kindergarten teachers do, and even the specialists join in.

Don't forget to check out the kindergarten team blog at www.singerkindergarten.blogspot.com.

Information has been posted there about September curriculum updates, important dates, snack information and Class Dojo.