November 3-7

Important News:

• Don't forget that there is no school on Tuesday, November 4th!
• Thursday, November 20 is Dads and Donuts!  Dads or a special guest are welcome to come and share a doughnut with your child before school. 
• November 12 is Picture Retake Day.
• Report Cards will be handed out at the conference.  We look forward to talking with you about your child's progress!

Language Arts
We will be learning about bears through both fiction and non-fiction books.  We will be comparing and contrasting the stories.  We will continue to discuss how we know if a book is fiction or non-fiction.

Sight words have also been a focus.  Please continue to practice the sight words at home.  If you child is very fluent (can say it quickly), then move on to the bonus sight words that come home monthly.

Math
We have been learning the combinations that make 5.  Also, we are working on becoming fluent within 100.  We will be playing several games this week that reinforce these skills.  We are also reinforcing recognition of the teen numbers.

Homework

• Counting to 100--Practice saying the name before and after a given number.
• Try writing at home.  We tell our students they cannot say "How do you spell..." instead they can say "Can you help me chop/stretch?"  Help your child stretch out the words that they are writing.  

October 27-31

Important News

• Please be sure to send back the confirmation of your conference time.  
• Thank you to all the families that donated books to our classroom from the Book Fair!  It is so fun to have the new books for the students to enjoy!
• No School on Tuesday, November 4
• Please practice zipping coats! 
• Please make sure your child's name is on all of their winter clothes.  Thank you! 
• Friday, October 31 is the Fall Festival Party.  Please send your child's costume to school in a bag.  We will get dressed right before the party begins.  Please refer to the party/costume guidelines that came home in the Miller newsletter.  Remember no extra treat bags allowed!

Language Arts
This week we will be reading fiction and non-fiction books about bears.  We will be focusing on the skill of sequencing.  What happened first, second, third, and at the end?

Another skill we will be focusing on is positional words.  (on, under, beneath, in, above, etc.)

Don't forget to send back your "book buddy" so that your child can continue to practice reading!

Math
We will be doing several activities where the children will be practicing the number combinations that make up 5.  We will also be ordering numbers.  This activity involves putting number cards in order that are not necessarily in sequence.  For example, the cards they might have are 7, 4, 2, 9.  They would have to order the cards from least to most 2, 4, 7, 9.  We will continue to work on skills such as counting, number recognition to 20 and number formation.

Star Student

Each week a child in the class will be the Star Student!  This means that they get to bring a poster to school to share with the class all the very special things about them.   Also, the students can write about the star student during literacy centers.  

Book Buddy Letter

Your child will be bringing home a "Book Buddy" or "book in a bag".  The book inside this bag is the one your child received small group instruction on during guided reading.  This book MUST be returned tomorrow.  Inside the bag, you should also find 2 bookmarks with the reading strategies that your child is learning in guided reading.  The students have not received instruction on all of these strategies just yet, but will as the year progresses!  Please encourage your child to use one of these strategies when they get stuck on a word.   The letter you see below is also included in the book buddy bag for your reference.  Happy Reading!

Dear Parents,                                                                                                                   

“Book Buddy Bags” are an important part of our reading program.  Several days a week your child will bring home a guided reading book in the bag, home to practice.  This book will be one that he/she has practiced with me in our small guided reading group lesson.  Please have your child read the book as part of his/her homework.  It is extremely important the book be returned to school the following day.   We will be using it again for our guided reading groups.

At this stage of reading the story has a very predictable text (I like red, I like blue) and the pictures are very important, as they support the child’s “reading” of the words.  At times your child may forget the predictable part of the text (I like).  If that happens, you can help them by reading the first few pages together.

When working with your child, please encourage him/her to:

·         Point to each word as they say it (this helps develop their one-to-one correspondence)

·         Look at the pictures if they get stuck

·         Go back and re-read if they get confused (you may help them by saying “I like…). Then have them read the sentence again on their own.

·         Get their mouth ready for the first sound in the word

Learning to read is a lot like learning to speak. You must:

·         Believe your child will learn to read

·         Praise and encourage your child’s every attempt. Just like you did with their first words

·         Reread books over and over and over….

·         Make reading a relaxed and enjoyable experience

·         Let them see you reading.

Please be careful NOT to:

·         Get impatient or upset when reading with your child (if you or your child is frustrated put it away for another time)

·         Expect your child to sound out each letter.

·         Cover the pictures to prove your child is “really” reading.

Don’t worry if it appears your child has memorized the text…That is a Good thing!!  Just be sure they are pointing to each word as they say it.

A note of responsibility: The children are taught that these books are precious and their responsibility (not Mom’s or Dad’s).  It is their responsibility to keep them in great condition and to bring them back every day.  The “Book Buddy Bag” will keep them dry and protect the pages from being ripped as they are put in their backpacks.  Once they have finished reading their books, please remind them to put them right back in their backpack.

Thank you for all of your help and support as we begin our adventure in reading.

Happy Reading!!!!! 

Letter Fluency Homework

Dear Parents,

A packet will come home today for you to practice letter fluency with your child.  For this activity, set the timer for one minute.  The students will read the letters across the row and see how many they can read within one minute. Research states that the quicker students are able to recall their letters the better readers they will become! Please spend only a minute or two on this activity a few times a week.

October 20-24

Upcoming Events and Reminders

• Book fair will be open all week!  Wednesday, October 22 is Family Night 4:00-7:00 if you would like to shop with your child.  This year the family night includes story time and crafts in the gymnasium with local author, Eric Van Raepenbusch!

Literacy Center Switch

We have started switching for Literacy Centers.  Your child will be in either Mrs. Gallucci's or Mrs. Haughey's class for an hour and a half for literacy centers.  Ask your child about which room they are in for centers.

Language Arts

We will begin a unit on the seasons and weather.  We will be reading both non-fiction and fiction books about these topics.  While reading these books, we will focus on main idea and comparing and contrasting.  We will also be writing about the things we see during each  of the seasons.

Writer’s Workshop: Personal Narratives

During the next few weeks of writer’s workshop we are going to be focusing on narrative writing. Students will be working on writing true stories of things that have happened to them. The standards emphasize the importance of narrating a sequence of events; having students write WHO is in the story, WHERE the story is happening and WHAT is happening. In school, we will be looking closely at this genre of writing, noticing what authors do when writing in this genre.

                The first step in helping students become successful in this genre of writing is promoting storytelling. As you know, our students always have stories to tell! They are excited to tell us about what they did the night before or places they have been. Orally rehearsing their stories will help them develop a sense of storybook language. We will be practicing telling our stories orally and then practice bringing those stories to our books in written words and pictures.

How can you support your child with this at home?

Promote storytelling at home! You may not realize it but you are already supporting this at home! When your child gets off the bus, the first question you usually ask is: How was school today? What did you do at school? Although your child may have a two word response or a shrug, you are waiting for all the details! I bet you could get a response out of: What did you do at recess? J Prompt your students to tell you WHO they played with, WHERE they were and WHAT they did. Thanks so much for your support in our next writing adventure!

Honoring our Heroes

Last week, we wrote letters to Miss Czaplicki's brother Private Jacob Czaplicki who is currently serving in the Army.  He is stationed in Iraq, which the students saw on the map. We are hoping to be able to talk to him via Facetime after he receives our cards.  He will also write us back!  

This was a great opportunity to show the students the importance of writing for a purpose.  We wanted the students to see a real life, real world experience, but at a kindergarten level.  The students were focused on sending thank yous for having an important job and being a community worker.  

October 13-17

Lake Farmpark Field Trip

We are all set for our field trip to Lake Farmpark on Tuesday, October 13.  Please make sure your child is dressed for the weather!  We will be outside even if it is rainy.  Also, please make sure your child brings a packed lunch.  Please pack in a disposable bag so that we can throw all items away after lunch.  Thank you!  We are looking forward to our trip tomorrow!

Remember no school on Friday!