Our first full week of Kindergarten was awesome! We packed a lot in.
On Monday we went outside, and our ALO teacher, Mrs. Belkind, came in to meet everyone and teach us about how she will help us think deeper this year. We also started learning about our block center. We talked a lot about the expectations of how to use all the materials, playing safely, and cleaning up (we will do this for every area of the classroom). We started with wooden blocks and Magna Tiles.
This class is AMAZING at clean up! We play Shake It Off to signal it's time to clean up, everyone helps each other, and then we dance :)
On Monday we went outside, and our ALO teacher, Mrs. Belkind, came in to meet everyone and teach us about how she will help us think deeper this year. We also started learning about our block center. We talked a lot about the expectations of how to use all the materials, playing safely, and cleaning up (we will do this for every area of the classroom). We started with wooden blocks and Magna Tiles.
This class is AMAZING at clean up! We play Shake It Off to signal it's time to clean up, everyone helps each other, and then we dance :)
On Tuesday we read and listened to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. We made our own Chicka trees with our names, which you will see at Open House. We played outside, and continued our block center with Legos and Zoobs. We also read and talked about bucket filling. You fill someone's bucket by being nice, a good friend, following directions, etc. You dip or spill someone's bucket when you are not making good choices or being a good friend. The students really understood this concept, and it's great to hear them using this language at school. Ask your child how they can be a bucket filler!
On Wednesday we read Chrysanthemum and talked about how everyone is special, and that being unique is great! We practiced our fine motor skills by tearing and gluing our names. We also started practicing more of our flexible seating options during snack time such as soccer chairs, stools, and yoga mats. It looks like we are set up to go to Ravinia :) We ended the day with waffle blocks and cardboard blocks.
On Thursday we read Only One You, and talked more about being unique. We also discussed that everyone is different, and how that is ok! Our main literacy concept this week was parts of a book (title, cover, back cover, author, and illustrator), so with every book we read this week we identified those parts. After reading, we headed out to the courtyard to paint our own rockfish! They came out SO great! Lastly, day 4 of our block center we played with ramps and animals.
Friday we practiced cutting by snipping the letters of our name. We put them in order and then graphed them. We counted how many letters were in each of our names, and then found the longest and shortest names. We rounded off our week with free choice in the block corner.
The students are doing a wonderful job getting to know our routines, the jobs and responsibilities of the classroom, as well as getting to know each other. Next week we will start our 2 week color unit and continue to focus on identity and community.