A Peek At Our Week!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed today's sunny (but cold!) weather. Please see below for announcements and updates from Room 115! 🌞 

Important Dates:

March 11th: 

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM

March 13th:

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM

March 14th: 

Early Release

Parent/Teacher Conferences

1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

March 21st:

Student Council Spirit Day:

Rock your Socks!

March 28th:

Early Release

Announcements:

Parent/Teacher Conferences

It's hard to believe that spring parent/teacher conferences are next week! Please use the links sent out in Mr. Dearborn's SMORE to schedule your apppointment. It is important to note that all conferences are in person, however, I am more than happy to schedule a virtual conference if that is more convenient for you. Lastly, the evening conferences tend to be very popular and can run behind. Don't hesitate to let me know if you would like to meet before or after school instead. I'm looking forward to speaking with you about your child's progress!

Curriculum Update:

Reader's Workshop

Last week in Reader's Workshop we continued to discuss the essential question: "What does it mean to try hard?". To help us answer this question we read the book Emmanuel's Dream by Laurie Ann Thompson, a biography which tells the true story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, a man who rode his bicycle around Ghana with only one working leg. This inspirational story was the perfect way to close out module (unit) 5. In the week ahead we will begin module (unit) 6 which is titled: Home of the Free and the Brave. 

Fundations

Last week in Fundations we practiced reading the sight word no. We also continued to practice tapping or sliding CVC words such as hat, mug, and pot, and built CVC words using magnetic letters. In addition to our Fundations lessons, we also spent time reading words in the "at" word family. The students had fun making at cats as a fun Friday project!

Math

In math the children continue to learn about two dimensional shapes. In last weeks lessons we were sorting, comparing, composing, and decomposing shapes using pattern blocks. This week we will spiral back to review three dimensional figures and their attributes!

The class had a fun time picking a two dimensional shape and writing clues about it in an activity we called "Guess My Shape". 

Writer's Workshop

In Writer's Workshop we continue to learn about the genre of informational writing. Last week the students brainstormed things that they are experts about to determine the topic of their next informational text. Animals, sports, places, and toys were some of the most popular topics! I am looking forward to supporting the children as they write an informational piece about a topic of their choosing over the next few weeks.

A Peek Inside Specials 🎵

The class came back from winter break with a bang as they used bookwhackers in music class last week!

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎📖🚌

Welcome Back!

   I hope your child enjoyed their school vacation week! I am looking forward to being back together in Room 115 tomorrow! 😊

Important Dates:

March 11th: 

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM

March 13th:

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM

March 14th: 

Early Release

Parent/Teacher Conferences

1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

March 21st:

Student Council Spirit Day:

Rock your Socks!

March 28th:

Early Release

Announcements:

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Spring Parent/Teacher conferences are right around the corner! Please be on the lookout for a link to sign up in Mr. Dearborn's weekly SMORE.

Scholastic Book Fair 📖

We are thrilled to announce that the Scholastic Book Fair is coming back to Boyden. This special event is a wonderful opportunity for students to explore new books, build their love of reading and support our school media center and classroom libraries

Event Details:

• Student Wishlist Preview: From 3/4-3/7, students will visit the media center, browse the fair, and create wishlists. They will bring these wish lists home to share with their families. (Tip: Take a photo of their wishlist for easy reference!)

• Book Fair Shopping: Families are invited to visit and shop during Parent-Teacher Conferences:

  • March 11: 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
  • March 13: 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
  • March 14: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM

How You Can Help: We need volunteers to help students create their wish lists during the Preview event. If you’re available to lend a hand, it only takes about 15 minutes and is a wonderful opportunity to be in the library with your child and their friends. Every purchase made at the Book Fair directly benefits our school, so it’s a win-win!

Please sign up for the Book Preview Here:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0849A8A828A7FCC34-55066198-wishlist

We will have another opportunity to volunteer for the actual event during conferences so please look out for that in the SMORE in late February. 

Thank you for your continued support of the Book Fair and our school library. We can’t wait to see you there!

Valentine's Day! 💓

Room 115 was full of love as we celebrated Valentine's Day before the break! Please enjoy a few pictures of our celebration below.

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎🚌📖

A Peek At Our Week!

 It's an exciting time of year in Kindergarten! Please enjoy a few pictures and updates below!! 😊

Important Dates:

February 5th:

The 100th Day of School!

T-shirt Fashion Show

February 7th:

Early Release 

12:25pm Dismissal

February 10th-14th:

Kindness Week

February 14th:

Valentines Day

(See below for details)

February 17th-21st

No School

February Vacation

Announcements:

The 100th Day of School! 

The 100th day of school will fall on Wednesday, February 5th. To celebrate, our class will be having a t-shirt fashion show! Please refer to the notice that was sent home with your child last week for specific details. You can also click here to view the notice. In need of an idea? Try one of these!

*Although the notice asks your child to bring their t-shirt to school ahead of time, if it's easier for them to wear it to school on Wednesday the 5th that's fine with me! Please don't hesitate to let me know if you need help purchasing a plain t-shirt. A shirt you already have around the house is ok too!

Valentine's Day 💘

Our class will be celebrating Valentines Day on Wednesday, February 14th! As part of our celebration we will be exchanging valentines. Please click here for some helpful hints and tips for making our celebration an enjoyable one for your child. Please note food and candy is not allowed. A hard copy of this notice was sent home on Friday.

Kindness Week!

A kindness themed spirit week will take place at Boyden School from February 10th-February 14th. Please see below for details!

Curriculum Update:

Fundations

Last week in Fundations we practiced reading the sight word has. We also continued tapping or sliding CVC words such as hat, mug, and pot. Lastly, we reviewed how to write the uppercase letters Q-Y. This week we will complete our review of the uppercase letters as we practice the letter Z, and also apply our tapping skills to CVC words we encounter in texts.

Reader's Workshop

In Reader's Workshop last week the children were introduced to a new module (unit) of stories and asked the essential question: "What does it mean to try hard?" We began to explore this question by enjoying the books Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall and All by Myself by Mercer Mayer. We also used picture and text clues to identify character's feelings, and continue to practice making and checking predictions.

Math

In math we continued to explore two dimensional shapes. The class enjoyed playing a partner called Circle and Squares Race you to 20 which incorporated both shape and number identification. They also compared circles vs. spheres and sorted and counted pattern blocks!

Groundhog Fun!

On Friday the class had a great time participating in many groundhog themed activities in preparation for Groundhog Day! 

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎📖🚌

A Peek At Our Week!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! There are many fun and exciting events coming up in the weeks ahead. Please see the announcements section below for some important details. 😊

Important Dates:

January 31st:

Report Cards Available on Aspen/X2

February 5th:

The 100th Day of School!

February 7th:

Early Release 

12:25pm Dismissal

February 14th:

Valentines Day

(See below for details)

February 17th-21st

No School

February Vacation

Announcements:

The 100th Day of School! 

The 100th day of school will fall on Wednesday, February 5th. To celebrate, our class will be having a t-shirt fashion show! Please refer to the notice that was sent home with your child last week for specific details. You can also click here to view the notice. In need of an idea? Try one of these!

*Although the notice asks your child to bring their t-shirt to school ahead of time, if it's easier for them to wear it to school on Wednesday the 5th that's fine with me! Please don't hesitate to let me know if you need help purchasing a plain t-shirt. A shirt you already have around the house is ok too!

Valentine's Day 💘

Our class will be celebrating Valentines Day on Wednesday, February 14th! As part of our celebration we will be exchanging valentines. Please click here for some helpful hints and tips for making our celebration an enjoyable one for your child. Please note food and candy is not allowed. A hard copy of this notice will be sent home this week. 

Lost and Found

The following items are looking for their owners. If one of these belongs to your child please let me know!

Curriculum Update:

Fundations

Last week in Fundations we practiced reading the sight word as. We also continued to practice tapping or sliding CVC words such as hat, mug, and pot. Lastly, we reviewed how to write the uppercase letters G-P.

Math

In math we continue to learn about measurement using nonstandard units! A highlight of our week was measuring the length of our foot using pasta, paper clips, unifix cubes, and plastic pennies!

Reader's Workshop

Last week in reading we finished our fourth module (unit) titled Happy Healthy Me! The students worked hard over the past few weeks to answer the question, "How can I be my healthiest me?" and enjoyed reading books and participating in writing activities that helped them discover what is needed to have a happy, healthy lifestyle. In the week ahead we will begin our fifth module titled "I can do it!". During this unit the children will answer the essential question, "What does it mean to try hard?". 

Writer's Workshop

In writer's workshop last week we completed our unit on opinion writing! As a result of this unit the children are now able to give an opinion about a topic and provide at least one reason to support their opinion. To incorporate last week's chilly temperatures the class wrote about their favorite artic animal, a polar bear or a penguin!

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎📖🚌

A Peek At Our Week!

 I hope your child enjoyed the long weekend and the first significant snowfall of the season! Please see below for announcements and updates from Room 115! ❄

Announcements:

Snow Gear

The snowy weather is finally here and we will continue to go outdoors for recess as often as the weather permits. The children will be allowed to play in the snow as long as they bring snow pants and snow boots to school. A blacktop area is available for children who do not have these items or do not wish to play in the snow. PLEASE have your child practice putting on their snow gear at home. With only two adults in the classroom we are not able to individually dress each child. Since storage space in our classroom is limited, your child's snow gear will be sent home each Friday. If you would like it to come home more frequently please let me know!

80s Day!

We had a great time celebrating 80s day on Friday! We also got together with our fifth grade buddies and did ST Math together. This was a great motivator for both the fifth grade students and kindergarteners as we continue to make progress with our puzzles.

Curriculum Update:

Fundations

Last week in Fundations we practiced reading the sight word can. We also continued to practice our "tapping" skills and became more comfortable with applying them to various CVC words. Additionally, we began to review how we write our uppercase letters. While we spent an entire week learning how to write each lowercase letter at the beginning of the year, our uppercase review is moving MUCH quicker, and we are practicing how to write two letters each day!

Math

Last week in math the class began to explore the concept of measurement! Our main focus was comparing lengths and identifying objects that were shorter or longer than a given example. We are looking forward to having more fun with measurement in the week ahead!

The students above estimate the length of my lanyard using a piece of yarn. We discovered that most student's yarn strings were either too long or too short, but two student's yarn piece was the exact length of the lanyard! 😁

Writer's Workshop

In Writer's Workshop we continue to practice our opinion writing. Last week we wrote our opinion about fairy tales and if we prefer half days or full days of school! Students who felt ready were also encouraged to use the word "because" to provide a reason for their opinion.

Social Studies

In Social Studies we discussed the important contributions of Martin Luther King Jr. The students watched a portion of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream Speech" and learned about his life through our Let's Find Out magazine. 

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎📖🚌

A Peek At Our Week!

 It was a chilly first full week back from break with LOTS of indoor recess, but we made it through! Please enjoy a few pictures and updates from our classroom. 😊

Important Dates:

January 17th:

Early Release

12:25pm Dismissal

January 20th:

MLK Day

No School

Announcments:

Media/Stem

This week is a book check out week in Media/Stem. Please have your child return any books they have at home by Tuesday so that they are able to select a new one. Thank you!

Star Student ⭐

Last week we began Star Student in Room 115! When your child is the Star Student they will get to enjoy many special jobs and activities in the classroom such as helping with the calendar and picking each day's movement breaks. We will also get to know more about them by creating an All About Me poster together in class. On Thursday of your child's Star Student week, they will be invited to bring in a few small items from home for Show and Tell. A new Star Student will be selected at random every Friday afternoon. I am SO excited to start this very special celebration in Room 115!

Curriculum Update:

Fundations

Last week in Fundations we practiced reading the sight word an. The children were also introduced to the concept of "tapping out" the sounds they hear in short vowels words also known as CVC words. Click here to watch a quick video that models this skill.

We practiced reading the sight word "an" last week and also learned that it can be part of a word family! The class had a great time making their own "an van" and built automaticity reading words such as man, tan, fan, and ran.

We also enjoyed pulling items from a mystery box and matching them to their beginning sound!

Into Reading

Last week we continued to answer the essential question: "How can I be my healthiest me?" We read the books Get Up and Go! by Nancy Carlson and Stretch by Doreen Cronin and Scott Menchin to help us deepen our understanding of this concept. We also used these read alouds to practice identifying the topic, central idea, and key details of a text, and also explored the concept of shades of meaning.

Writer's Workshop

In Writer's Workshop we continue to practice our opinion writing. Last week we wrote our opinion about our favorite exercise and our favorite toy! As this unit comes to an end, we will also begin to practice adding reasons for our opinion using the word "because".

Math

In math last week we explored the concept of counting on which can be used as a very helpful addition strategy. We played a fun game called Foxes and Dens to help us practice this skill. 

The chilly weather last week had us indoors for recess most days, and some creative options were needed to keep us entertained! My fingers are crossed we get to spend more time outdoors in the week ahead!

Thanks so much for taking a peek at our week! Please check back soon to watch us learn, grow, and play in the wonderful world that is K! 🍎📖🚌