Griffin Gazette

I hope you had a nice and relaxing weekend. I did. We got our tree up and house decorated! Did you?

This week will be a short week for me. I will be out Friday due to a doctor's appointment in Idaho Falls. I will also be out Monday the 13th and Tuesday the 14th for Professional Development with all K-1 teachers. I am looking forward to learning lots and implementing as much as I can. I have cancelled all December volunteers due to play practice and our EVER-changing schedule this month. I hope to see you all back in January. 

This week in READING:

Interactive Readaloud of A bed for the Winter by Karen Wallace 

Snap words: he, for

Phonics: Ii

Other skills: adjectives, forming and writing sentences, sequencing

See the FAMILY times that comes home today for more

This week in WRITING:

We will continue to work on our "EXPERT" books. We are over half-way through. We plan to have a publishing party on the 17th. You will be invited to this one. Stay tuned for more on this. 

This week in MATH:

Probability

Review the PAN balance

Play and Practice the Dreidel game with pennies

Train games (concrete addition and subtraction)

Themework: 

Holidays that include Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanza

Snow

Winter is coming

Remember that the "SUPER CRITTER-BUCKET FILLER CHRISTMAS TREE" is out in our hallway. WE are working hard to decorate it. We have 2 ornaments! Encourage your little one to fill buckets and write them down on their ornament. I hope our tree is decorated by Christmas!

Mrs. G

Well, I ate my share of turkey...did you? We ended up not going to Denver due to road conditions. We were bummed, but had fun with Mrs. Stitt and her family in Victor. What did you do?


This week in Kindergarten we will be getting back into the swing of things. 
Reading:
Concept question- Where does a bear hibernate?
Book-Bear Snores on *Your child will listen and participate in an INTERACTIVE readaloud
Letter of the week: Cc /k/ *hard c sound
Snap words: reteaching WE,MY,LIKE
Comprehension skill: Realism and Fantasy
Look for your child to bring home a book to read Tuesday-Thursday. Please help by reading and SENDING back to school. 
Amazing words: hibernate, lair, winter, cave, woods, blustery


Writing:
We will keep pushing forward on our "Expert" books. We left off last week learning how writers sometimes "try it or draft" a practice page first, then copy it to make it better. 


Math Skills include:
*Measurement with objects (interlocking cubes or other nonstandard measuring devices) and measuring the BLUE WHALE with body measures
*Pocket problems (addition and subtraction using concrete experiences)
*Number card games (sequencing numbers 0-20, top-it *war-type card game)
*Probability stories (introducing basic language of probability)
*Probability tray (developing understanding)


Science and Social Studies:
Holidays and Animals in the late Fall


*Parents...PLEASE help your child bring back their WATER bottle. I sent them home on Tuesday to take a trip through your dishwasher. 
*Please help your child remember his/her classroom shoes. We cannot be without shoes in the rooms. Bring snow boots and indoor shoes. THANKS.
Have a wonderful week back.

Bear Snores On

November's on it's way out....RATS!

On our way to the ALTA school's Thanksgiving Thursday.....yum yum

Hallway in October

Beginning our APPLE "Tom" turkeys

The fine-motor challenge

success

thank goodness for parent volunteers

Almost done

I just wanna eat it....

Yeah, I did it.

ME too!!!!
Happy Turkey Day...safe travels everyone! See you Monday, November  29th !!!! 

2010 Class singing Jellyfish

A Jellyfish...A Jellyfish....A griffin gazette

This week in Kindergarten: 

READING-

We are reading Animal babies in grasslands

Question: Who lives in the grasslands? *Ask your child this question

Phonics skill: /Pp/

Comprehension skill: Main Idea and Author's purpose

Your child will be bringing home a book to practice Tuesday - Thursday. Please help me by reading with your child and making sure the book comes back to school (even if it's a paper book) because often times we re-read the book in reading groups. Thanks.

NEW skill: RESPONDING to Reading with our new READING response journals. Today we wrote about our favorite GRASSLAND animal baby after reading from ANIMAL babies in grasslands.

Below you will find pictures of us with our JELLYfish from last week after studying the ocean...stay tuned for a video of the jellyfish song.

WRITING:
More non-fiction....planning our "EXPERT" book. 
*Generating facts
*Choosing a layout
*visiting AUTHOR's purpose
*Learning about table of contents and FACT boxes


MATH:
Practice writing numbers
Creating and describing patterns with macaroni necklaces
Estimation
Review counting and number recognition through a graphing activity
Introducing the pan balance as a tool to compare the weights of objects


SCIENCE and SOCIAL STUDIES:
Turkeys, Animal babies, FOOD CHAINS, Native Americans, Pilgrims, and Thanksgiving


BIG ART PROJECT:
APPLE turkeys this Friday...LET ME KNOW if you would like to help with the project or buy supplies. THANKS.

4 day week!

This week will be a four day week...we have Friday off due to PARENT/TEACHER conferences on Wednesday and Thursday evening. I am looking forward to meeting with each of you.

READING WORKSHOP:

We are reading Armadillo's Orange

Your child will be bringing home a book from reading group Tuesday-Thursday (which means you will have the RED folder over the weekend. Please remember to send the folder and book back on Monday.)

Letter of the week: Ss

See the FAMILY TIMES for more

WRITER's WORKSHOP:

We are launching Information books this week. Kindergarten refers to these books as "Expert" books. Be ready for your child to talk about NON-FICTION!!! 

Speaking of Writing....last Friday we had our Writing Celebration with a buddy. Kindergarten voted to invite one "guest of honor" to the party. Most kids invited a student in the school, but some kids invited their moms. IT was a huge success. We broke into groups with our buddy and shared our piece that we published in September and the piece we published in November. Kids and adults were impressed. WE also shared some snacks....cookies (THANKS Martha), apples (Thanks Monroe Family), popcorn and grapes. It was a nice way to end the week. Below you will find some pictures of our celebration. 

Even the Bus Driver comes to hear us read...Thanks Vancie.

Getting cozy...

 Sharing with my buddy.

Lucky Mom...

Yeah Super Critters!!!

Math: Launching Unit 3 this week...

*Estimation

*Number writing

*Number stories

*Counting games

Themework:

Animals....Food Chains and Predator and prey...

OTHER NEWS:

Picture remakes are the 9th if you are interested!

Report Cards come home on Tuesday! Please review it and bring it to the conference if you have any questions.

PARENT/TEACHER conference times are posted outside my door if you forgot...

A spooky Griffin Gazette

To make this newsletter extra exciting...I've included some pictures from "Halloween" last Friday. Enjoy! Please scroll all the way down for important news...glad to see the 12 days of Halloween behind us.....now moving on to the turkey!

LINED UP to begin the parade!!!!

READING: This week we will be reading LIFE IN AN OCEAN
Letter of the week: Aa
Snap Words: have, is
See the FAMILY times for more.. 

Those silly 4th graders....

WRITING: This week we will wrap up our Launching and Small moments unit. We hope to publish on Friday.  Some things we will be working on include: choosing a piece to fix up, editing and fancying up, PUBLISH!

 Nothing like a smoky brew...made by a green faced witch....

 And the bobbing begins...

 They did really well...

 right through the middle...

 wrap your mummy

 I would like to take credit for all of this yummy food....but I can't! Thanks to Kim Gillett! WOW!

Visiting 1st grade

 the witches 

being productive on Halloween day...

Other news:CAREFULLY go through the RED folder tonight....lots of important info. in there!!!

This week wraps up Trimester 1...can you believe it? Report cards go home next Tuesday. Your parent teacher conferences have been scheduled for you. Tonight you will receive a note about your scheduled time and a green sheet I would like you to fill out and send back to me by Friday. This is very helpful for our meeting. I am looking forward to meeting with each of you next week. We have some great things to talk about. 

NO Virgil this week due to the short week. He will take a long needed nap.

VOLUNTEER CALENDAR is coming home tonight in your child's folder. Please post it somewhere if you are a volunteer. THANKS!

GRIFFIN gazette...

READING:
question- How do machines help people work together?
Letter of the week- Tt (Bring your T sharing all week long)
Comprehension skill- Classify and Categorize
SEE the Family Times for more...came home tonight!
AND...Halloween Happening.

WRITING:
Skills include- Making lists, putting our lists into books, editing and fancying up, writing thank-yous

MATH:
*Tricky teens
*oral counting and recognizing teen numbers through movements
*Teen Partners
*Estimation Jars
*Halloween number stories

THEMEWORK:
Leaves (building a character with leaves from Wyoming, Idaho, Austria and back EAST...)
Halloween (History and fun crafts and games)

OTHER NEWS:
Halloween Parade will begin shortly after school starts (8:00ish) on Friday, October 29th...so make sure your child comes in costume. Please don't send any pretend weapons for the Halloween parade and party...save them for Trick or Treating...

Class party starts at 1:30 - 2:25 (Feel free to come...be sure to wear your costume!)

The BIG room puts on a "SPOOK ALLEY" every year in the gym. Kindergarten is invited to go. I have made an executive decision this year to take them with the lights on. In the past, they think they can make it and it's too scary. Please let me know if you would not like your child to go in at all.

As PARENT/TEACHER conferences ease up on us...NOVEMBER 10th and 11th...is there a day that works better for you? or a time? I usually begin conferences around 3:00 and set aside 3o minutes. Please email me personally if you have a specific request!

Poppas and Pumpkins

 

 I love October...and I love pumpkins...and for the last few years I have invited the "poppas" in for a kid + DAD = pumpkin carving madness afternoon of fun...it's a huge hit...this year the first graders joined us too...because last year I was on maternity leave and didn't get to organize it for them...

 the double attack technique

 props...

 making a plan

 BALANCE

success

 Happy Halloween!

Thanks Poppas...you ARE the best.