We have a busy 4-day week ahead of us! The first term of Kindergarten is over and I am really working with them on developing independence. The students have had many months to learn our morning routines and show responsibility. I encourage parents to drop their child off at the classroom door and let him/her do the morning routines independently (putting clothing on hook, changing shoes, putting agenda/lunch/library books where they belong and beginning our morning work – nametag in chart, looking at a book, etc). You may hear your child saying “Can you please help with my zipper/shoes/gloves/etc., I already tried by myself”. I encourage the kids to try things on their own first, to then ask a friend, and finally ask the teacher. We have been working very hard to create a caring, helpful classroom community (to be “Bucket Fillers!”). Please know if your child needs help after you leave in the morning, his/her classmates and I are here to help. By all means, please come into the classroom if you need to speak with me or hand an order form in, etc. - let’s just allow the kids to get settled in on their own. :) Also note, that adults entering the school are also required to take their boots off at the entrance door.
The snow has arrived, which also means starting new routines and responsibilities for snow-gear! Please go over the routines of putting on snow-gear at home. In the classroom, we have worked on the following: 1st snowpants, 2nd coats (practice zippers!), 3rd pinnies, 4th toques/scarves, 5th mittens and lastly picking up our boots from the hallway and carrying them to the front door where the students put their boots on. To ensure our hallways are safe and dry, please remind your child to take his/her boots off at the front entrance doors and carry them down the hallway to our class’s designated boot racks. It is also very helpful to label your child’s snow gear so it can be returned to the owner if anything is lost.
HIGHLIGHT FROM LAST WEEK:
WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK:
We will focus on the letter “Rr” this week. We have continued to work on letter names and sound recognition with Phonics books and games on the Smartboard (abcya.com is a free website the kids have LOVED!). In Math, we will focus on printing 4 and continue to use the Handwriting Without Tears program to practice correct formation for the numbers 1-4. We ran out of time to play a dice game called, “Roll A Snowman” last week, so we will try this week! In Art, we will be busy making some Winter-themed creations as well as a little surprise the kids will bring home on Dec. 16th.
This week, we will review all of the topics and strategies we discussed in our Social Responsibility theme. The kids and I discussed that we will use TILT (Tell them to stop, Ignore, Leave the area, Tell an adult) most often because we have been working on using our words to solve problems. The students have learned that using an “assertive” voice, identifying feelings and the specific behaviour that bothers us, is very helpful when solving problems. If we walk away or ignore someone before we try to talk to them (as in the WITS and WALK, TALK, SQUAWK methods) then the other person may not realize his/her behaviour choices are bothering/hurting someone. Last week, we really worked on one of the final step to problem solving - TELL an adult/SQUAWK, differentiating between TATTLING and TELLING and knowing when each is necessary/not necessary. TELLING is HELPFUL - when we are trying to get someone out of trouble/danger. TATTLING is HURTFUL/HARMFUL - when we are trying to get someone in trouble. We TELL when it is an emergency or a “right now” problem. TATTLING occurs with a "it can wait/not now" problem. We read another Julia Cook book called, “Tattle Tongue” in case you hear your child talking about a yellow and purple polka-dotted tongue! This week we will talk more about getting help and saying sorry if we were bothering someone.
Winter Concert
Our class, along with Mrs. Hyslop/Mrs. Lundgren’s have been practicing two songs for the holiday concert: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” and “Up on the Housetop”. Lyrics were sent home last week so you can work on them at home. We will begin practicing on the gym stage this week as well! To keep “costuming” simple, our group of Kindies will wear black pants/skirt/tights and a white or red shirt (please avoid logos - or turn the shirt inside out). Girls can wear a red or white party dress if they’d rather. Also keep safe footwear in mind, the kids will be walking up and down some metal stairs and bench-type risers independently so high-heeled party shoes can be dangerous. We understand there is potential for clothes becoming dirty if worn all day (and with it needed for 3 performances!), so if you prefer, you can send the “costume clothing” with your child and he/she can change before going on stage.
SAFE ARRIVAL SYSTEM -beginning TUES. DEC. 6
A GREEN SCHOOL NEWSLETTER WILL BE SENT HOME MONDAY (I did not send it home Friday as there were incorrect dates printed in it and I did not want to create confusion) with important info about the SAFE ARRIVAL SYSTEM and what you will be required to do prior to 8:30am if your child is absent or late from school (absences can be reported using a toll-free phone #, by app or online website). Please note that if your child has not arrived to school by 8:30am, he/she will be marked as absent by the classroom teacher. If you have not connected to the Safe Arrival System by 8:30am on the day of your child’s absence, the system will automatically phone you until you can be reached (up to 5 times). Please ensure all phones numbers and email addresses you have listed with the school are current. If you are arriving late to school, please take your child to the office to sign in (as Ms. Gartrell cannot make changes to her attendance records after 8:30am).
HOW PARENTS CAN HELP:
THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE:
Monday – Pro- D Day – No school (Ms. Gartrell and Ms. Bains will be at a Sign Language course!)
Tuesday – P.E. with Ms. Hall
- Poinsettia orders available for pick-up
Wednesday –Library with Mrs. Gorman
Thursday –
Friday – P.E. with Mrs. Brkovic
- Roots of Empathy visit with Wayne
- Term 1 Report Cards sent home (please read and keep the paper report, then sign and return the envelope to school)
REMINDERS:
UPCOMING EVENTS:
-Tuesday, Dec. 13 - 1:00pm Dress Rehearsal for School Winter Concert in gym
-Wednesday, Dec. 14th – 1:00pm School Winter Concert in gym (families with surname A-L, if possible -see Dec. School newsletter for info)
-Thursday, Dec. 15th - 1:00pm School Winter Concert in gym (families with surname M-Z, if possible)
-Dec. 19- January 3rd - WINTER HOLIDAYS
Phew, that was a long post! See you Tuesday.
-Ms. Gartrell
The snow has arrived, which also means starting new routines and responsibilities for snow-gear! Please go over the routines of putting on snow-gear at home. In the classroom, we have worked on the following: 1st snowpants, 2nd coats (practice zippers!), 3rd pinnies, 4th toques/scarves, 5th mittens and lastly picking up our boots from the hallway and carrying them to the front door where the students put their boots on. To ensure our hallways are safe and dry, please remind your child to take his/her boots off at the front entrance doors and carry them down the hallway to our class’s designated boot racks. It is also very helpful to label your child’s snow gear so it can be returned to the owner if anything is lost.
HIGHLIGHT FROM LAST WEEK:
- Hearing about Ms. Gartrell’s trip, seeing MORE pictures and videos and learning about Australian animals like dingos, platypuses, Aussie parrots, monitor lizards, snakes,
- Filling our class “bucket” and watching a Christmas movie with Mrs. Lundgren’s class AND getting to use the special turtle cushions Ms. Gartrell made, as a reward
- Playing the phonics game, BUZZ
- Starting our "Countdown to Christmas" with a class ornament advent tree
WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK:
We will focus on the letter “Rr” this week. We have continued to work on letter names and sound recognition with Phonics books and games on the Smartboard (abcya.com is a free website the kids have LOVED!). In Math, we will focus on printing 4 and continue to use the Handwriting Without Tears program to practice correct formation for the numbers 1-4. We ran out of time to play a dice game called, “Roll A Snowman” last week, so we will try this week! In Art, we will be busy making some Winter-themed creations as well as a little surprise the kids will bring home on Dec. 16th.
This week, we will review all of the topics and strategies we discussed in our Social Responsibility theme. The kids and I discussed that we will use TILT (Tell them to stop, Ignore, Leave the area, Tell an adult) most often because we have been working on using our words to solve problems. The students have learned that using an “assertive” voice, identifying feelings and the specific behaviour that bothers us, is very helpful when solving problems. If we walk away or ignore someone before we try to talk to them (as in the WITS and WALK, TALK, SQUAWK methods) then the other person may not realize his/her behaviour choices are bothering/hurting someone. Last week, we really worked on one of the final step to problem solving - TELL an adult/SQUAWK, differentiating between TATTLING and TELLING and knowing when each is necessary/not necessary. TELLING is HELPFUL - when we are trying to get someone out of trouble/danger. TATTLING is HURTFUL/HARMFUL - when we are trying to get someone in trouble. We TELL when it is an emergency or a “right now” problem. TATTLING occurs with a "it can wait/not now" problem. We read another Julia Cook book called, “Tattle Tongue” in case you hear your child talking about a yellow and purple polka-dotted tongue! This week we will talk more about getting help and saying sorry if we were bothering someone.
Winter Concert
Our class, along with Mrs. Hyslop/Mrs. Lundgren’s have been practicing two songs for the holiday concert: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” and “Up on the Housetop”. Lyrics were sent home last week so you can work on them at home. We will begin practicing on the gym stage this week as well! To keep “costuming” simple, our group of Kindies will wear black pants/skirt/tights and a white or red shirt (please avoid logos - or turn the shirt inside out). Girls can wear a red or white party dress if they’d rather. Also keep safe footwear in mind, the kids will be walking up and down some metal stairs and bench-type risers independently so high-heeled party shoes can be dangerous. We understand there is potential for clothes becoming dirty if worn all day (and with it needed for 3 performances!), so if you prefer, you can send the “costume clothing” with your child and he/she can change before going on stage.
SAFE ARRIVAL SYSTEM -beginning TUES. DEC. 6
A GREEN SCHOOL NEWSLETTER WILL BE SENT HOME MONDAY (I did not send it home Friday as there were incorrect dates printed in it and I did not want to create confusion) with important info about the SAFE ARRIVAL SYSTEM and what you will be required to do prior to 8:30am if your child is absent or late from school (absences can be reported using a toll-free phone #, by app or online website). Please note that if your child has not arrived to school by 8:30am, he/she will be marked as absent by the classroom teacher. If you have not connected to the Safe Arrival System by 8:30am on the day of your child’s absence, the system will automatically phone you until you can be reached (up to 5 times). Please ensure all phones numbers and email addresses you have listed with the school are current. If you are arriving late to school, please take your child to the office to sign in (as Ms. Gartrell cannot make changes to her attendance records after 8:30am).
HOW PARENTS CAN HELP:
- Please practice our holiday songs at home
- Dress for the weather every day! All students must go outside at recess and lunch so they need to have a warm winter jacket, gloves and a toque, boots and snow pants
- Students AND adults take boots off at the front entrance and carry them down the hall to the classroom boot racks
- Send an extra pair of clothes (or leave them in your child’s coat/shelf area) for accidents or muddy/wet weather
- Remember to Label your child’s snow gear so it can be returned to the owner if anything is lost
THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE:
Monday – Pro- D Day – No school (Ms. Gartrell and Ms. Bains will be at a Sign Language course!)
Tuesday – P.E. with Ms. Hall
- Poinsettia orders available for pick-up
Wednesday –Library with Mrs. Gorman
Thursday –
Friday – P.E. with Mrs. Brkovic
- Roots of Empathy visit with Wayne
- Term 1 Report Cards sent home (please read and keep the paper report, then sign and return the envelope to school)
REMINDERS:
- Kamloops Salvation Army “HUNGER HEROES” Food Drive: until Dec. 16th. Parkcrest students are encouraged to be Hunger Heroes and bring in the heaviest non-perishable food items they can. The school with the heaviest amount of food will be awarded a Pizza snack sponsored by Papa Johns! There will be collection boxes outside the office. Let’s be Bucket-Fillers and make a difference in our Kamloops community! :)
UPCOMING EVENTS:
-Tuesday, Dec. 13 - 1:00pm Dress Rehearsal for School Winter Concert in gym
-Wednesday, Dec. 14th – 1:00pm School Winter Concert in gym (families with surname A-L, if possible -see Dec. School newsletter for info)
-Thursday, Dec. 15th - 1:00pm School Winter Concert in gym (families with surname M-Z, if possible)
-Dec. 19- January 3rd - WINTER HOLIDAYS
Phew, that was a long post! See you Tuesday.
-Ms. Gartrell