Weekly Updates: Q3W2 January 20-24

Hello, Kindergarten Griffins!

We hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend and stayed warm on our unexpected snow day!  We have a short week but a lot of things coming up in the next few weeks- so please make sure to thoroughly read through the blog each week.  Thank you!

This Week:

Homework:

You will get Tuesday's and Wednesday's Spalding dictation sheet today (Wednesday, 1/22).  Please do the new phonogram wh on the Tuesday dictation sheet on Wednesday night, since we will learn it in class.  You may do Tuesday phonograms for extra practice in the Tuesday column, but it will not be taken as a grade.  Thank you!

Reading Bags/Check-Ins:

Reading logs still need to be signed and completed each night for homework.  Please make sure that your child brings their reading bags back to school each day in their backpack.  We have started reading with your child one-on-one, and our goal is twice a week per student, however, it varies by week when your child reads with their teacher and how often. This week we will read with each student once. Your child will receive a new list or book, as the teacher assess for fluency and comprehension when reading with each scholar. The reading logs are going to have Tuesday-Weekend dates but will only be graded for Wednesday-Weekend dates (60 minutes) due to our shortened week.

Library:

KA and KB Library: Tuesday- CANCELLED THIS WEEK

KC and KD Library: Wednesday

Friendship Day Guidelines: 

We are very excited this year to be carrying on the Great Hearts tradition of celebrating “Friendship Day” on February 7th.  On this special day, in our classrooms, we will be celebrating the virtue of friendship which states that we regard others and ourselves as deserving of kind and just treatment, portraying considerate and polite conduct, looking for the good in others, demonstrating compassion, and knowing that our attitudes toward others and their property reflect the way we wish to be treated. We want to encourage our students to Be the best for others. 

In Kindergarten, we will be reading Winnie the Pooh. We will look at how friendship is represented in this book, and what it means to be a true friend. 

We would also like to invite our scholars to create small friendship cards for their classmates.  This is an optional activity.  Should you choose to participate, please observe the following guidelines: 

• Scholars should make one card for each person in the class. 
• Cards should be homemade (not store bought). 
• Cards should focus on the virtue of friendship and NOT Valentine’s Day. (i.e. “You are a great friend” or “Thank you for being my friend.”) 
• NO candy! 
• Please send completed cards to school in a Ziploc bag on or before February 5th. 

• Cards should be addressed “To my friend,” and then have them sign it from….”their name” 

This Week Academics

Math Skills

• Ch. 7 Numbers Beyond 10 (Numbers 11-20)
• How to Count, Write, and Recognize Numbers

Language Arts Skills

• Spalding Phonograms: wh, ed, ew, ui (not used)
  
• Spelling Words: no new words
• Identify letter names
• Isolating sounds in words
• Identify phonogram sounds
• Identifying rhyming words
• Letter formation/pencil grip, writing phonograms on paper
• Distinguishing upper- and lower-case letters; naming letters
• Identifying rules and markings on spelling words.

Grammar

Literature

King Midas

• Prediction
• Humility

Core Saying

none

Poetry

Old King Cole

History/Science

• History: 
• 7 Continents, Names and Placement
• Interesting facts about each, create animal from each continent
• North and South America

Homework Reminders

• Be sure to read daily for 20 minutes; 60 minutes this week. Reading Logs will be collected next Monday. Please record on the Reading Log page. If you miss a night, please record 0 minutes and initial rather than leaving it blank.
• Spalding handwriting practice. Spalding homework will continue to be in the Written Phonogram and Spelling Word Review format-please read the GH logo homework sheet for instructions.  On Wednesday scholars write the list of phonograms and words once; on Thursday in preparation for our spelling test the list is written twice.
• Memorize poem by Friday!

Upcoming Assessment

• WPR Assessment – Thursday, January 23
• Review Spelling Assessment – Friday, January 24

Upcoming Events

• Jan. 22 ~ Individual Picture Retakes
• Feb. 4 ~ Whole Class Picture Day
• Feb. 7 ~ Friendship Day; Family Game Night; PSO Movie Night
• Feb. 11-13 ~ Parent Open House

Have a wonderful week!

Together for our children - The GHNO Kindergarten Teachers