Super Citizens

In December, we learned a lot about being good citizens and how to make a difference in our school and our community.  We read "Ruby's Hope" and "Christmas Trolls" and talked about "The Grinch that Stole Christmas" which all have wonderful messages about sharing and learning to care for others.  As a class, we decided to collect food for the food bank to help those in our community who needed it.  The children were so generous that our box was overflowing with food!  The kids also decided that we should do something for our Grade 4 helpers who come at lunch to help us, so we shared our gingerbread cookies with them and made them snowman thank-you cards.  It was great for the kids to see how simple things can make a difference!

Gingerbread Fun

On Tuesday, the Kindergarten kids had the chance to build a gingerbread house with Kai's mom, Mrs. Gorchynski.  They were so excited to each have a turn to go and decorate!  The one problem was...they all wanted to eat it too!  Because we had read The Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett, the kids called our house Gingerbread Baby's House.  You can see it on display at the Festival of Trees at the United Church Auditorium.

'Tis The Season!

We are now in the Christmas season and the kids are getting very excited!  Last week the Grade 4A kids came to help us write our Santa letters.  Everyone worked very hard and so we made plans to walk to the Post Office to mail the letters.  Unfortunately the weather has been so cold that we haven't even been out for recess!  But no worries - the letters were sent after school today and we now will have to be patient waiting for our replies...

Face Off

We have been learning a lot about numbers in Kindergarten and comparing them using more and less. The kids love rolling dice on the smartboard and deciding which one is "Mr. More" and which one is "Mr. Less"!  We have also learned how to play dice and card games which help us recognize numbers using dots and frames.  These pictures are of the kids using ten frame cards to play "Face Off".  Each player flips a card and has to say their own number. Then the kids decide who has more and that person gets the cards.   We can also play so that the person who has less gets the cards.  The kids are very good at this game and are wonderful sports as well!

Snow Much Fun!

The kids love the snow and are still hoping for more to come!!  We had a lot of fun and some great exercise trudging through the new snow.  These are some pictures of our time outside, exploring in the piles of snow...

Brown Bear, Brown Bear

We have been learning a lot about bears this month.  One of our favorite stories is Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.  The illustrations are done by Eric Carle.  They have also teamed up to create Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See?,  Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See?  and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?.  Great books for kids with repetition that makes it easy for them to read aloud as a group.  We were inspired by Eric Carle's artwork and decided to try our own.  The kids enjoyed adding texture in different ways to their paint and created truly beautiful art!

Learning About Letters

Each week we concentrate on learning a new letter.  We meet the animated literacy puppet and learn it's story, song and action.  We practice printing the letter and learn about the sound it makes.  One of our favorite activities is forming letters and words with Play-Doh.

Outdoor Education

Just before the snow fell, we went down into Legion Park as part of our science class to discover more about trees.  The kids studied the trunks, roots and bark of many different kinds of trees and tried to figure out how old they were.  We also found some tree stumps and the children tried to count their rings - which is a little tricky when you are five!

A Walk in the Park

We often spend time down in Legion Park.  We walk, play games, look for signs of fall and of course check out the trees as part of our science curriculum.  These Kindergarten kids are so easy to photograph!

Beautiful Fall Weather

Occasionally, after outdoor gym class, the kindergarten kids like to have the opportunity to try out the Grade 4/5 play area and be like the "big kids"!

Welcome to Kindergarten A!

I have created this blog to give parents an opportunity to see bits and pieces of what is happening within the classroom.  I will try to add to it as often as possible but most likely it won't be everyday.  Feel free to leave us a message if you would like as I will be letting the kids see the blog as well.  Now your children will no longer be able to tell you that they did nothing today at school!  Enjoy!