Thank You!

Thank you very much for the beautiful flowers you gave me on Teacher Appreciation Day!  It was very thoughtful.  I enjoy them every time I look at them.

Exploring Simple Machines

Classroom Newsletter May 9, 2014

Language Arts

Writing – It is evident that the children are using the strategy of tapping out sounds in words in order to be able to spell with increasing accuracy in their writing.  It is very exciting to see the growth in independence in all the children.  During our writing mini-lessons, the children have been editing samples of my writing.  They are able to find misspelled trick words, missing ending sounds, incorrect vowels, as well as missing punctuation and capitals.  I continue to remind them that these are the things they need to be aware of in their own writing as well.  Self-editing will become more important as they continue on into the upper grades.

Reading – The children work on reading books at their own level during guided reading groups.  All children continue to show growth in their ability to decode independently as well as to read more fluently.  We work on comprehension skills as we discuss what is happening in the story and talk about connections between the story and the children’s own lives.  We have been reading non-fiction texts during our literature groups as well.  I will also be reading with each child individually as I begin my end of year assessments.

Genre Study – We have started our non-fiction genre study.  We have been exploring different types of non-fiction texts and adding to a list of characteristics we notice.  The children are developing an awareness of terms such as table of contents, index, and glossary.  They have noticed the use of photographs in non-fiction texts and are becoming aware of how illustrations support the text through the use of labels and diagrams, for example.  We are developing our understanding of non-fiction writing as well.  The children have done some procedural writing, writing in an organized way and explaining how to do something step by step.  They will also be learning how to do expository non-fiction writing and will be writing facts about sea life during our ocean unit.

Literacy Centers – We are beginning our study of ocean life and tidepools.  This week we reviewed what we learned during our visit from Ellen Goethel, marine biologist, and her Touch Tank enrichment program.

Math

Our current math chapter has focused on composing and decomposing numbers through 20.  We are learning how to combine sets, find out how many more are needed to arrive at a given number, as well as learning how to count on to find the difference between two numbers.  The children are also learning how to count on using a numberline.  We have explored patterns and learned to identify repeating patterns and pattern units.  After a chapter on measurement, we will begin our unit on subtraction.

Science and Health

In Science we finished our unit on Transportation by inventing our own vehicles.  The children had some very creative ideas!  We also talked about wheels and their importance in making transporting things easier.  We went on a “wheel walk” around the classroom and the school and wrote about what we saw.  We talked about wheels and axles again during our unit on Simple Machines.  The children had the opportunity to explore wheels and axles using Tinker Toys and rolling them down an inclined plane.  They experimented with rolling different sized balls down inclined planes set at different heights.  They lifted objects in a beach bucket pulley and worked with gears and other wooden models of simple machines.  The favorite activity was using a hand-held egg beater to see if they could make bubbles in a bowl of water and dish detergent.  Using the egg beater was much more interesting than using the wooden spoon!

Our next unit will focus again on Living and Non-LivingThings.   We will be talking about seeds and doing some planting.  We will also begin our study of tidepools and ocean life.

Upcoming Dates

6/3 Field Trip to Joppa Flats 

6/10 Portfolio Breakfast 8:30 – 9:15

6/18 Field Day

6/20 Field Day Raindate 

Portfolio Breakfast

Please join us on Tuesday, June 10th from 8:30 – 9:15 for a Portfolio Breakfast.  This is a special opportunity for some one on one time with your child.  Your child has made wonderful progress while in kindergarten and would love to share their work with you.  Room mothers may be contacting you about food items to bring.  We look forward to seeing you.

Supplies Needed

If you are able to donate anti-bacterial hand wipes to our classroom it would be greatly appreciated.  Also, we are in need of disinfecting wipes to clean the tables as well as tissues.  Thank you very much.

 

Touch Tank with Ellen Goethel, marine biologist