Week 15: December 10-14, 2012

The frost is on the meadow!

Kinderbees

News
WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS  

The Winter Concert on Wednesday was our biggest highlight of the week.  Our Kinderbees and Mrs. White’s Can Do Kids did an outstanding job. It was their first experience on a big stage with an even bigger audience.  They were wonderful performers and were respectful listeners which helped to make a great audience. We hope you enjoyed the show!

Santa Lucia Day

On Thursday, December 13th,  we celebrated Santa Lucia Day by bringing gingersnap cookies to our friends in the 1st and 2nd grade and singing a short version of a traditional song, “When in the darkest night, enter with candelight, Santa Lucia,  Santa Lucia.” We enjoyed dressing up with handmade paper hats and holly crowns. Our very own Lucia dressed in a white gown with a red sash to portray Santa Lucia who lived in the fourth century in Sweden. 

Math: From the beginning of the year in Morning Meeting our math activities involve daily counting. For instance, when counting our number of classmates at school during attendance and the Number of Days in school (as we approach 100).  We use Unifix cubes to count and gather and straws  to count and bundle together to make tens. 

This week we began to learn how to represent numbers of objects using this strategy by physically grouping them and then drawing them on paper.  Math Activities: I hope the Everyday Math Home Link activities makes sense.  Additional math activity ideas will be sent home each week. Let me know if you have any questions.

Phonics:  This week’s Jolly Phonics lessons introduced two new vowel combinations /ee/ and
/or/.   They are making great progress. Keep up the at home practice!   

Explorations:  Painting continues to be a big highlight.   The children are really enjoying the opportunity to paint and are learning how to clean up afterward.  

Keira shares her pinecone treasure from nature.

Share:  We enjoyed wonderful shares from nature.  Among the many shares, we had rocks, gemstones, and pinecones.   Next week share theme will be the same. We are talking about the beginning sounds of each share and making connections to the letters that make those sounds. Please help your child choose something that comes from nature.  It can be something they find outside or treasure from nature they already have. 

CALENDAR:

All Next Week: 

• Christmas Project:  Please send in Non-Perishable Foods for this additional holiday fundraiser  

• December 19th Holiday Brunch: If you would like to join your child please send in a note to reserve a place. We eat lunch at 10:45-11:15am. The cost is $3.55.  Thank you! 

• December 20th:  Holiday Kindergarten Party. If you would like to participate or contribute please contact our class parent Sara Doolan.  Please help your child decorate the manilla bookmark which will be exchanged on Thursday next week at 10:20 am. Please return no later than  Tuesday.   Make sure they write To: and  From:  on it so we know who it goes to and who it came from. 
  -- We are planning to decorate cookies at 8:30 in the morning on Thursday, we have gym at 9:34 am then plan on exchanging the bookmarks at 10:20. After Lunch (11:15-11:45) we will be doing a holiday craft. then dismissal is at 12:00pm. Happy Holidays to all!  

HOUSEKEEPING ITEMS:

• Group Snack: Thank you to Conner’s family for contributing this week’s healthy snack! We enjoyed more healthy snacks throughout the week with pretzels, popcorn, carrots and clementines. Next week’s snack will be provided by Kerridwyn’s family.  Thank you!

• Snack 2013:  We will be signing up for more snack again starting with the week of January 2.  Please I will post a new sign up outside our door. You may send in a note with your requested date or email me to write in. Please make a first and second choice in case your first choice is taken. Thank you!

• David’s House:  We collected the pennies this week and sang together today in Mrs. Hitchcock’s class. We recorded it and it was played on the radio station KIXX 100.5 for the radiothon for David’s House.

• Outerwear:  The colder weather is here! If snow falls, please send in winter boots, snow pants, mittens, and hats. Please help your child learn to zip up their jackets on their own.  It will help us get them ready to go outside more easily. 

Sincerely, 

Mrs. Bodnar