Weekly News: Q4W4 April 7-11

 Hello, Kindergarten Griffins!

We hope everyone had a great weekend!  Please be sure to send in the classics to keep on the correct date, so that your child has a book to follow along in (dates listed below). We will be starting our reading of Little Bear Visits next Monday, 4/14.

Looking Ahead: 

For an upcoming money/coin unit, in Math, we are asking that each scholar bring to school 10 pennies, 10 nickels, 10 dimes, and 4 quarters in a Ziploc baggie labeled with their name on it.  We will return the baggie when the unit is completed.  Thank you in advance!  If you have any questions, please ask your classroom teacher. 

Field Trip: 

Final planning is underway for our Kindergarten field trip, and we’ll be heading to Sea World on Tuesday, April 29th!

 

The field trip fee will cover the cost of student tickets and transportation. We are asking that parents pay $20 per student enrolled in K-6, with a family maximum of $60.  During your check out process, you’ll be asked if your student would like a sack-lunch from our school lunch vendor, for $4.  If you would like to utilize this lunch option, we must have your order processed by 10 AM on Tuesday, April 15th.  This will close and not be able to be utilized once it is.   Please click here to complete your payment, lunch choice, and permission slip all in one step.  We must have this permission slip on file for your student to attend the field trip.  Please ensure this is completed as soon as possible to avoid any last-minute problems delaying our departure.  Thank you!  We will receive a list from the front office of students that have slips on file, so no need to let us know separately.

 

We do have scholarships available. If paying the fee is a hardship for you, please submit the Field Trip Scholarship Request Form to brooke.schultze@greatheartstxschools.org.

 

Kindergarten Promotion

Each student will wear a graduation cap and a tassel along with their Great Hearts uniform. Your child’s cap and tassel can be ordered via the following link: Promotion Caps/Tassels. These are one size fits all and sold as a set for $12.  The set will be delivered to school.  Please complete your order by Wednesday, May 15th so we will be ready for Promotion!

Additional details, including times, will be sent at a later date, but you may mark your calendars for the morning of Wednesday, May 28^th. 

Each ceremony will conclude with light refreshments for the families and scholars to enjoy before the students return to class.  

All scholars will need to arrive at school on time as usual, and we will have our regular mid-morning/afternoon schedule following the ceremonies.  Great Hearts scholars complete academic lessons through the last day of school, so we will have lessons and activities planned for the remainder of our ceremony day.  

Here is Configio link for the Kinder teacher to send to parents when the time comes to communicate with parents about purchasing the Cap & Tassel.

https://greatheartsnorthernoaks.configio.com/pd/7054?code=mK2vGlmXCB

Classics to Keep

We're nearing an exciting milestone in Kindergarten as our Literature classes will shift from teacher read-alouds to the student-led reading of some wonderful books!  As we look forward to the start of the 4th Quarter, we will begin reading our first Classic to Keep.  As you purchase these books and prepare to send them in, please help us preserve our class Sense of Wonder as we explore these stories and have the scholars experience them for the first time in class.  We will be sending them home as we finish each book, and we love when the students enjoy them again and again at home.  Stated simply, please do not read the books with your child before we read them in class.  

Below is a list of all 5 books we will read in the upcoming weeks, along with the ISBN.  Please try to purchase the same ISBN as we will be using in class so that all students will have the same page numbers to follow along as we read together.  All books are readily available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble, for about $5 each.  

Little Bear                                   978-0064440042
Little Bear’s Visit                        978-0064440233
Mouse Soup                                978-0064440417
Mouse Tales                               978-0064440134
The Grasshopper on the Road    978-0064440943

We begin with Little Bear. Students will need this book no later than Monday, March 31st.  It is important that each student have their own copy at school to complete with the readings for Literature class each day.  Please only send in one book at a time and label the book with your child's name (inside cover or on the front- we already have a few lost by the cubbies).  Thank you!

Book order and Dates:

Little Bear- 3/31

Little Bear Visits- 4/14

Mouse Soup- 4/21

Mouse Tales- 5/5

Grasshopper on the Road- 5/12, 5/19

This Week: 

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.  It will vary week by week when your child reads with their teacher and how often. Your child will receive a new list or book, as the teacher assess for fluency and comprehension when reading with each scholar. 

Library: 

KA/KB - Tuesday

KC/KD - Wednesday

This Week Academics:

Math Skills

• Cumulative Test #4 (addition and subtraction) on Monday, 4/7
• Begin Ch. 11 Word Problems and Deciding if Addition or Subtraction
• Math terms (all together, left) to help determine what time of problem

Language Arts Skills

• Spalding Phonograms: si
• Spelling Words: today, look
• 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

• The Writing Process

Literature

How-to Books

• The Writing Process

Core Saying

none

Poetry

Simple Simon

History/Science

• Science:
• Earth Materials
• Bodies of Water
• Rock Properties
• Importance of Soil for our Plants
• Senses to Discover Textures of Rocks and Smells of Soil
• Sight
• Touch
• Smell
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle- Importance of
• How does it affect our environment?

• History:
• 
  

Homework Reminders

• Be sure to read daily for 20 minutes; 100 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 Monday-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

• Cumulative Math Assessment (Addition and Subtraction) – Monday, April 7th
• WPR Assessment – Thursday, April 10th
• Spelling Assessment – Friday, April 11th
• Earth Materials Assessment – Friday, April 11th

Upcoming Events

• April 11 ~ Early Release
• April 18 ~ Good Friday Holiday; No School
• April 21 ~ SCHOOL DAY (was previously Easter Monday, but we used bad weather day)
• April 25 ~ Full Day Friday
• April 29 ~ Sea World Field Trip

Have a wonderful week!

Together for our children - The GHNO Kindergarten Teachers