Where did September go?  Here we are ready to start October already!  The following are some important dates to mark on your calendar:

 

October 2 – due date for comfort kits

October 14 – Thanksgiving (no school)

October 22 – Individual Photo Day

October 28 – Pumpkin Patch fieldtrip (11am-1pm) – details to follow

October 30 – Fall Colour Dress Up Day

Note:  This is a day earlier than the rest of the primary department since we won’t be at school on the 31st.  Also, please, no costumes, just fall colours with casual bottoms.

Tomorrow morning Mrs. Britz will be opening the classroom door at 8:55 and helping the children start their day.  I will be with my son at an appointment for the first 20 minutes of the day.  I spoke with the children about this today so that they wouldn’t be surprised.

Just a quick reminder that comfort kits are due October 2nd.  Thanks so much!

Monday, September 30 is Orange Shirt Day.  We will be talking about how every child matters throughout the primary department and would like to invite students to wear orange shirts and casual bottoms on this day.  if your child does not want to wear an orange shirt, they will need to wear their uniform.

It was day 7 for us today in part time Kindergarten and we have already started learning so many things!

In Language Arts we have talked about how to “pinch and flip” so that we are holding our pencil/marker/crayon correctly.  Here is a video made a few years ago to demonstrate what that looks like:

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We have also started to learn about the a-z phonograms, focussing primarily on the sounds phonograms make, rather than letter names.  So far, we have learned all of the clock letters (o,c,a,d,s,g,q,and f), printing them on our whiteboards and saying their sounds.

Note:  All clock letters begin on 2 on the clock and go up and around the 12.

I am sending home a paper in your child’s home folder today that gives the sounds for each of the phonograms.  The sounds for each phonogram are listed in order of frequency.  I would encourage you to also purchase a set of phonograms cards from the office.  We use this program in all of our primary classrooms at Highroad Academy so it will be a worthwhile investment.  The cards list the phonogram sounds and give printing instructions.  There are 70 in total.

In Math we are exploring numbers 1-9, learning to print (1-4 so far), playing games, and doing Number Talks to expand our mathematical thinking.

Our Theme has been learning about Me and My School.  We have learned about the rules of our classroom and school.  We are also learning our classmates’ names and the names of our principal, office staff, and primary teachers.  We went on a fun school scavenger hunt last week to learn more about the special places in our school building (gym, office, principal’s office, chapel, and sick room).

We are also learning about our identifying our emotions using a program called Zones of Regulation.  Today we coloured the four zones (blue, green, yellow, and red) and are bringing home the page to share with our families.  I will be sending home more information about this program at a later date.

In Bible we have learned about how much Jesus loves us and how special and unique He has made each of us.  The Me Bags were a great way for the children to share about themselves and learn that we are the same and different in ways from each other.

In addition to all of this, we have also done a lot of playing!

This is a great group of children and I am so proud of how they are doing in their new Kindie environment!

On Wednesday I sent home a bible verse page in your child’s home folder.  Your child can colour the picture if they want and then I’d suggest you put it in a special spot to review it for the week.  We will review it at school too and talk about what it means.  On Wednesday of each week I will ask your child to say it to me from memory (just the words, not the reference) and will send a new verse home in their folder.  As the year goes on we will make our way through the alphabet as we hide little nuggets of God’s word in our hearts.  Thank you for your home support!

Yay!  We made it through our first week of Kindergarten and I’m so proud of each boy and girl in our class!  The first few days are always the hardest.  Everything is new and there is so much to learn.  As the days go on we will settle into the routines of Kindergarten and it will feel easier.  Having said that, we’ve already had a lot of fun together.  I hope your child has come home with happy stories.

In no particular order, here are some start-of-the-year details for your information:

Library – Your child came home with a red bag containing library books yesterday.  Each Tuesday our class will visit Mrs. Britz in our school library and will check out (usually 2) library books.  We hope that you will enjoy reading these books with your child at home.  You may keep school books for one week.  On Tuesday morning simply have your child  return their book bag into a library book box that I will put outside of our classroom door.  They will bring home new books at the end of the day.

Pizza Day – Tuesdays are also pizza days at Highroad.  If you would like to order a slice of pizza for your child you can add their name to the sign up sheet that will be outside of our classroom door each Tuesday morning.  The cost per generous slice is $2.  You can pay by putting money in the pocket attached to the clip board or you can purchase a pizza card at the office and indicate that as your method of payment on the form.

Me Bags – In Bible we are learning about Jesus’ love for us and how he has made each one of us special. Please help your child choose their 3 items and be able to communicate why they were chosen.  Each student will have an opportunity to share their Me Bag with the class in the week ahead.  We are looking forward to learning new things about our friends.

Parent Meeting – There will be a parent meeting this coming Monday evening at 6:30 pm. in the gym.  You are encouraged to come out and hear about the vision for our school.  Feel free to come and chat with me about your child if you’d like.  I’d love to get to know you better and hear any concerns or comments you might have!

School Rules – We have been talking about our 3 classroom rules:

Be Safe – Be Respectful – Be Responsible

Your child brought home a booklet today.  We did not finish colouring the pictures.  If desired, your child can finish colouring it at home.  More importantly, can you read through it with them at home and talk about the importance of the 3 rules?  We will continue to have discussions at school but it is always so helpful when the same message is given at home and at school.  Thank you!

 

There is a new post on the classroom blog.  I am hoping you all received a notice via email about it yesterday.  If you did, can you email me a quick “yes” at dmorris@highroadacademy.com?

thank you!

Mrs. Morris

I hope you and your child enjoyed visiting our classroom on Tuesday morning.  I enjoyed meeting all of you and I’m looking forward to a great year together!

Here are a few details to keep in mind for the week ahead:

Monday, September 9 (1/2 day)

(Please make sure to bring a snack, a pair of gym shoes, a box of kleenex, a small pillow, and a plastic cup labelled with your child’s name)

When you arrive please help your child hang up their backpack inside their locker.  Any of the above listed items can be placed there as well.

The classroom door will open at 8:55 am.  Your child will be asked to come in and move their magnetic star on the filing cabinet

and then sit on one of the spots at the big carpet.

Feel free to come in with them and help them find their star, take a picture if you’d like, and give your child a big hug, telling them you’ll be back at 12 to pick them up.

Note: There might be some tears.  If this happens with your child don’t feel badly about leaving them.  I will happily console them and have always found that children settle much more quickly once mom or dad has left.

We will soon be playing and having a great time with our new Kindie friends!

At noon please come into the school and stand outside our classroom door.  I will call your child to be dismissed when I see you there.

Your child will be bringing their home folder  home with them.  There will be a note inside explaining its function more fully.

 

Tuesday, September 10 and Wednesday, September 11 (full days)

Please send a snack and a lunch.  If you think your child might be confused about which items are for snack/lunch you might consider using a special container for their snack or putting snack items in a separate spot in their lunch kit.  Consider having your child practise opening their containers and snack pouches.  This is great for their fine motor development and makes our meal times easier to manage.

The classroom door will open at 8:55.  Please make sure your child has their home folder.  It will go in a special basket by the front door.

Next, your child will move their star and have a seat at the carpet.

If you think they can do this on their own then feel free to say your goodbyes in the hallway.

The bell to end the day rings at 2:55.  I will call your child to be dismissed when I see you in the hallway.

 

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to email me at dmorris@highroadacademy.com and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

See you soon!

Mrs. Morris