Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the blend of /sn/.  We will play a game called "Pass the Snowball."  Our snack of "berries in the snow" (berries with powdered sugar) will be provided by Harper!

There will be no sharing this week.

Our school holiday program will be this Friday in the auditorium, with two shows at 8:30 with another show at 11:00. Be sure to arrive early to get a good seat for this favorite show!  Friday will be a minimum day with one break for brunch in between the two shows.

This week we will meet Mr. M who has a munchy mouth.  We will practice writing M as well as practicing the sound of the letter and words that begin with that sound.

We continue our gingerbread activities and holiday activities this week culminating with our Holiday Party complete with cookie decorating, Thursday after lunch!  We will make decorations, work in our gingerbread journal, participate in gingerbread math activities, gathering data and making a graph and conduct a gingerbread science experiment.  We will also read many stories about all of the holidays of lights that we recognize and celebrate at this time of year.

As we prepare to take our winter break, we wish all of our Room K families a wonderful holiday season of giving, sharing and love.  I hope you take time to read, snuggle, enjoy each other and cherish the joy you can create with family and friends.
Best wishes,
Mrs. W

Our Schedule:
Monday:  Big Buddies
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Yoga, Council, P.E.
Thursday:  Holiday Program rehearsal for students, Holiday Party
Friday:  Holiday Program (8:30 & 11:00), Minimum Day

Speech & Language:  This week we will focus on the initial /sh/ blend.  We will make shells and our snack of sugar snap peas will be provided by Ellie!

There will be no official sharing this week, however, if your child did not have an opportunity to share in November, please feel free to prepare a share for Friday.

Guess who loves to laugh?  Ms. L!  We will practice our printing, write words and practice the sound of /L/ this week.

We will begin learning about winter holidays and this week Hanukkah begins!  We will look forward to a special Hanukkah lesson this Friday including playing dreidel, making decorations and tasting latkes!  Yum!

We will also begin our special Gingerbread activities which will continue next week.  We will read many gingerbread stories about gingerbread men, girls, babies, and more!  Our activities will include story sequencing, syllable sorting, creating a Gingerbread Journal illustrating the differences in each version of the story and next week we will conduct a science experiment and taste gingerbread cookies.

Our Second Step lessons will focus on feelings for the next few weeks.  We are learning to recognize our own feelings and to notice others' expressions to detect their feeling too.

Thank you all so much for helping to make this season so special in Room K!

Our Schedule:
Monday:  Big Buddies
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Yoga, Council, P.E.
Thursday:  Science (different day/time this week only), Second Step
Friday: Morning Assembly, Hanukkah Lesson, Homework Review, P.E.

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the sound of initial /P/.  We will create pumpkin pie art (better late than never!) and our snack of pumpkin pie will be contributed by Taiyo!

Sharing:  Due to our unexpected week off, this week the Winnie-the-Poohs and the Tiggers will share.  This will be our last share this year as we are talking about family traditions.  Sharing will resume in January.

Thank you all for the well-wishes during the tense and stressful time of evacuation and worry about the fires.  It was a very hard time for all of us.  I am here to support you and the children in any way I can and so very grateful that we can once again reunite in Room K.

This week we will meet Ms. K who loves to kick her soccer ball. Like so many of our children she has a lot of energy!  We will be practicing our letter printing and letter sounds as we practice our sight words, rhyming (ending) sounds and beginning sounds.

We will be catching up from our missed week in both our Benchmark workbook and our math journal and daily math pages.

This week we will begin practicing our holiday songs for our school Holiday Program, which will be on December 14th with two shows.  Details will follow!

A very big thank you to Rainer and Sinead for coordinating our photo shoots for our special holiday gift.  There were many parent helpers and I am grateful to all of you for helping to make this a fun experience.

Our Schedule:
Monday:  Big Buddies
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Yoga, Council, P.E.
Thursday:  Art Trek, Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly, Homework Review, Sharing, Science P.E.

Thank you all so much for everything you do to help support Room K,
Mrs. W

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the sound of initial /S/.  We will make sailboats and our snack of celery sticks will be contributed by Sophia Bella!

Sharing:  This week the Piglets will share.  Please check the sharing topic on this site located under the "more' tab.

Monthly Book Charts for October are now due!

Reminder:  Early Dismissal all week.  Please be on time to pick up your child!

Please complete the School Experience Survey sent home on Friday, either online, or on paper returned to the school office.

It was so great to see so many children participating in the school variety show Friday night.  We have so many amazing, talented children!

This week we will meet Ms. J with her jingle jangle jacket.  Help your child think of words that begin with the sound of /J/!  We will practice writing, rhyming and play reading games and well as continue our Lexia reading program.

We have started our new math page of the day as an addition to our November Math Journals and math games.

We are continuing to learn about becoming a successful learner during our Second Step lesson each week.  Thank you for reviewing these skills with your child by completing the home link each week.

Parent conferences are a time for us to review your child's progress, report card and assessment data.  I look forward to meeting with each of you during this week and am excited to share your child's accomplishments in Room K!


Our Schedule (early dismissal all week for Parent Conferences):
Monday:  Big Buddies (art project)
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, Council
Thursday:  Photo Shoot with Rainer (thank you!), Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly (8:00 a.m.), Sharing, Art Trek, Homework Review, Science

Thank you to so many for helping us in Room K, preparing materials at home, helping in the garden, taking photos, teaching Art Trek and so much more.  What a great, involved and supportive group of parents we have in Room K!

Mrs. W.

Speech & Language-This week we will practice the sound of initial /G/.  We will make a ghost for our craft and our snack of grapes will be provided by Henry!

Sharing:  We have a new sharing topic so be sure to check this site under the "more" tab.  This week the Eeyores will share.

Please make sure you have signed up for a parent conference.  It is very important that we have some time to discuss your child's progress.  The link to the SignUp Genius was sent last week.  Report cards will also been given to you during this conference and data will be shared to inform you of your child's progress.

This week we will meet Mr. I ( a vowel letter with two sounds) who loves to measure things in inches.  We will practice both sounds (long and short).  We will be beginning Unit 4 in our Benchmark reading series focusing on Community Helpers. 

We are beginning our math daily pages, which touch on Common Core kindergarten standards in addition to our November math journals, math games and puzzles.

We had a great Art Trek lesson last Thursday with Ana and Sarah.  We made color wheels, practicing mixing colors and we experimented with splatter painting a la Jackson Pollock.  The children had a great time!  We also planted our class garden thanks to Sarah's dedication!  Photos an be seen on our Shutterfly site.  The children are looking forward to eating the eating the vegetables that will grow!

Thank you to our classroom volunteers, Julia, Yuco, Simone, Stacey, Laura, Sarah, Dina, Whitney, April and thanks to Rainer and Sinead for helping with our special photo project.

This week's schedule:
Monday:  Buddies
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, yoga, Council, P.E.
Thursday:  Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly, Sharing, Science, P.E.

Best wishes,
Amy Weisberg

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the blend of /sp/.  We will make Spooky Spider Webs and our snack of sponge cake will be contributed by Phoenix!

Sharing: 

Color Days:  this week we will make our gray book and will wear gray on Thursday.

Reminder!   Our first field trip is this Monday.  We are going to the Theatriucm Botanicum for a fun day of theater, music, dance and will watch a performance.  This is a great outdoor trip.  Please dress your child in layers as it gets warmer throughout the day. Be sure to send an easy to eat snack, a lunch and water.

Parent Conferences:  Please sign up for a Parent-Teacher conference via the SignUp link sent to you in an email.  You will receive your child's report card, assessments and discuss your child's progress.

This week we will meet Mr. H with his happy hair!  We will practice the sound of /H/ and of course write the letter and words beginning with the sound..

We will work in our Number 10 books this week and continue practicing forming the letters and numbers correctly using the Handwriting Without Tears model.  Please reinforce this at home as much as possible.  Practice makes perfect!

Our schedule for this week:

Monday:  Field Trip to the Theatricum Botanicum
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, yoga, Council, P.E.
Thursday:  Gray Day, Art Trek (Color Wheels-Michelanglo, Stella, Pollack), Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly (8:00), Sharing, Homework, Science Hike to the Amphitheater for Raptor Day!, P.E.

Thank you all for volunteering in so many ways to help Room K be a successful learning environment for our students.

Mrs. W.

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the /sk/ blend.  We will make skeletons and our snack of "skinny sticks" (pretzels) will be provided by Aryan!

Sharing:  This week the Piglets will share.

Color Days:  This week we will be making our brown book and we will wear brown on Thursday.

We will be getting into the Halloween spirit this week making witch puppets and ghosts!  Thank you for sending in egg cartons. 

I will continue to assess the children in both reading and math in preparation for our upcoming report cards and parent conferences.

Thursday we will have our annual Shake Drill.  During this drill we practice what to do during an earthquake.  Please discuss this with your child.

Our schedule this week:

Monday:  Photo Shoot #2!  Big Buddies
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, yoga, council, P.E.
Thursday:  Happy Birthday Miss Samm.! Shake Drill, Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly, Homework Review, Sharing, Science Hike, P.E.

A big thank you to Michael's dad, Caeser, for coming in to talk to the children about his job as a postal worker.  We are learning about communities and community workers.  The children loved hearing about what he does at his job!

Thank you all for your continued commitment to helping your children learn at home and for helping in our classroom.

~Mrs. W.

Speech & Language:  This week we will be practicing the sound of the final /ch/ blend. We will make "watches" and our snack of peaches will be provide by Elliot!

Color Days:  This week's color is black. We will make our black color book and wear black on Thursday.

Sharing:  This week the Eeyores will share.  If your child is a Tigger, and forgot his/her share last week, please prepare a share for this coming Friday as well.

Meet Ms. F, who has funny feet.
"I'm Ms. F, and I'm very fond of my funny feet! I like to frolic and walk fancy-free. My funny feet are different from other people's feet. We're all different from one another, and that's just fine! I just got back from Florida, where I saw some of my favorite things - like flocks of flamingos, floating frogs, and fragrant flowers. Very cool!"

Ms. F teachers us that everyone is different.  This is such an important social skills lesson and correlates nicely with our Second Step program.  I am happy to say that we received our brand new Second Step box of materials.  The family link letters have changed and have great activities.  I will be sending these home on Thursdays, after our Second Step lesson.  Please help your child complete the activities and reinforce our lesson concept at home.  It is wonderful to watch the children putting these skills into action.

We will begin our Lexia reading program on the computers this week.  The first step is a placement test and then each child will work at her/his own level on the program.  This is a school wide program to sharpen reading skills.  You can find information here.

This week we will begin Unit 3 of our Benchmark reading series:  Where People Live.  We will be learning about different types of homes and lifestyles as we learn letter sounds and sight words.

A huge thank you to our wonderful volunteers who enrich the Room K student's lives with one to one attention, loads of patience and enthusiasm.  Thank you to our moms who prepped materials at home for our upcoming fun Halloween crafts!

Our Schedule:
Marvelous Monday:  Photo Shoot, Big Buddies, Dance
Terrific Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wonderful Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, yoga, Couoncil, P.E.
Thrilling Thursday:  Wear Black today!, Second Step
Fabulous Friday:  Morning Assembly, Sharing, Art Trek (artist Paul Klee), Science, P.E., Homework Review

I'm looking forward to a great week in Room K!
Mrs. W

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the blend of /ch/.  We will make paper chains and our snack of cherries will be provided by Elia!

Sharing:  We have a new sharing topic so be sure to look at it under the "more" tab on this site.  This week the Tiggers will share.

Color Days:  This week is Pink Week and we will have Pink Day on Thursday.

This week we will meet Ms. E, who loves to exercise!  She is a "letter light" letter, meaning she is a vowel letter.  We will practice both the long and short sound of the letter E.  The children are doing very well with our language arts routine of our Letter People pages, rhyming book, Handwriting Without Tears printing practice, alphabet picture-word journal, listening center and the Starfall activities.   We also work in our Benchmark reading series workbooks and have begun our leveled readers and now are adding sight words.  This week we will have the following words:  a, is, it, this.  You can practice these words at home with your child and also look for them in the environment.

This week we will begin our October math journal and our number 7 book.  We enjoy adding math games, sorting activities and Starfall math activities.  In science we are learning about the sense of touch this week.  I hope you were able to discuss the Second Step lesson with your children.  They really enjoyed it and your reinforcement of this at home helps your child develop strong social skills.

Our schedule this week:
Monday:  Big Buddies, Dance
Tuesday:  Speech & Language
Wednesday:  Let's Find Out! magazine, Yoga, Council P.E.
Thursday:  Pink Day!, Second Step
Friday:  Morning Assembly, Homework Review, Sharing, Science, P.E., Treasure Box

Thank you all for the amazing support you provide for Room K both in and out of the classroom!
Mrs. W.

Speech & Language:  This week we will practice the sound of initial /L/.  Our craft project will be "leaves on trees" and our snack of lemonade will be contributed by Hasan!

Sharing:  This week the Pigglets will share.

School Pictures:  Room K school pictures will be on Tuesday.  We will most likely go first so please be on time to school.  We take our school pictures in the garden.

Coyote Run:  Please get lots of pledges for our annual Coyote Run that helps to fund our P.E. program.  We will be running at 8:45 on Friday and we need at least 4 volunteers.  Please either sign up on our Shutterfly account or talk to Laura. 

Purple Day:  This week we will make our purple books and we will wear purple on Thursday!

Mid-Semester Progress Reports will be sent home this week.  Please sign and return the letters to acknowledge receipt.  Many students will receive letters as we are required to give parents advanced notice of children not meeting grade level standards prior to report cards.  This information will be useful to parents and support at home has a big impact on student learning.  TK and K have different report cards.  We will have parent conferences the week of November 5th.

This week we will meet Mr. D.  He is very dashing in his dancing suit.  We will practice writing Dd using our Handwriting Without Tears model, one big line and one big curve, one big line and one small curve.  Please continue to practice all letters we have covered at home.

During our Language Arts time we practice "perfect printing" using the materials from our Handwriting Without Tears program.  We use special pencils, pencil grips, crayons, magnetic boards, wood lines and curves and sing songs reminding us to start our letters at the top.  It is very important to reinforce these skills at home as your child develops and solidifies the brain to hand synapses that create life-long printing/handwriting skills.  This is extremely important as your child must learn to writing quickly and legibly and will be writing more every year as they progress in school.  Early habits are important habits!

We are exploring new activities on our Starfall program including letter recognition, letter sounds, listening to stories, sounding out three letter (CVC-consonant-vowel-consonant) words, vowel sounds, math activities (patterns, sorting, counting, addition, subtraction)  We also use sorting tubs, pattern blocks, play math games, learn to write and count with a new number each week, and work in our monthly math journal.

This week we will begin Art Trek.  A huge thanks to Sarah for attending the training, and to Ana and Lisa for stepping up to volunteer to co-teach the lessons.  This is a parent driven program and we are so grateful for our Art Trek parents.  This weeks lesson is on shapes (such a great tie-in to our math program) and the artist Kandinsky.

Last week we went on our first Science "hike" to our garden.  We explored with magnifying glasses and talked about plants, trees, and objects in the garden.  We did not have a parent helper for this activity, but we really do need at least 2 parents to assist, especially if we want to hike up to the amphitheater.  Please let me know, or sign up on the Shutterfly site, if you can assist with these monthly hikes.

Second Step will begin this week.  It is an empathy program focusing on social-emotional skills and the lessons have a weekly theme.  The program uses three puppets:  Impulsive Puppy, Slow Down Snail and Be Calm Bunny, to teach the lessons.  Also included are picture cards with photos of situations discussed as a group.  I will send home a letter for each theme so you can reinforce the behaviors at home.  Take a look at the website for more information.

The children are enjoying their Big Buddies and I have posted some photos on our class Shutterfly share site.  We will be reading together and doing reading related activities each week.

We have a very busy schedule with so many fun activities in Room K.  I am very grateful to the parent volunteers who help facilitate small group instruction and prepare materials.  Thank you!

Best wishes,
Amy Weisberg