Books We Read
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
The Great Fuzz Frenzy
Song of the Week
Autumn Leaves are Falling Down (to the tune of "London Bridge")
Autumn leaves are falling down, falling down, falling down!
Autumn leaves are falling down. Welcome to autumn!
Grab a rake and rake them up, rake them up, rake them up!
Grab a rake and rake them up. Welcome to autumn!
Make a pile and jump right in, jump right in, jump right in!
Make a pile and jump right in. Welcome to autumn!
Weekly Centres
Letter E
We learned that, by adding an extra line to the letter "F", we can easily make a letter "E"!
Autumn Branches
Using brown pipe cleaner and leaves with holes in them, we worked on our fine motor skills, winding pipe cleaner in and out of the hole to make branches with autumn leaves!
Sorting by...????
We used some non-traditional sorting items, like dinosaurs, cars, ponies and Jenga blocks, and figured out how we could sort them into different groups.
Other Things We Did
Madame DeGroot showed us a few videos on Terry Fox to get us ready for our Terry Fox run on Thursday! A few of us also got to exchange our old books for new ones.
We learned that the other word for fall is "autumn" and talked about clues that let us know autumn is coming.
The letters "T" and "I" were added to our Jolly Jingles repertoire! We also started blending some letters together with our Word Wizard program, figuring out that with the letters S, A, T, F, E and I, we could make words like "eat", "safe", "at" and "sat".
We met our Reading Buddies! The grade four and five students from Ms. Stillman's class will be coming to our room every Day 1 with a fun selection of books to read!
Wednesday was Crazy Head Day! We had some amazing hats, hairstyles and headwear, which we then tried to draw onto a head that Mr. McCullough gave us. Everybody got lots of compliments from the other teachers and students in the school!
Our Terry Fox Run happened on Thursday afternoon! It was more of a Terry Fox Run, Jog, Hop, Skip, Slow-Motion and Walk, but we had lots of fun running for Terry!
Monday 23 September 2013
Monday 16 September 2013
Week 3: Sorting Out Heroes!
Books We Read
We Share Everything
A Sick Day For Amos McGee
Enemy Pie
Good Little Wolf
Song of the Week
Where Do We Start Our Letters? (to the tune of "If You're Happy And You Know It!")
Weekly Centres
The Letter F
We started our first printing practice of the week, using the "Frog Jump" motion of our hand to make the letter "F"! We also learned that, as the song says, if you want to start a letter, then you better remember to start it at the top!
Sorting
Our sorting centre involved moving magnets, making groups with coloured bears and buttons and figuring out what else in the class we could sort.
Prediction: Sink or Float
We used our Water Table for the first time this year, but before we did, we had to predict if what we were putting in the table was going to sink or float.
Who's My Hero
Everybody coloured in a picture showing who their "hero" was, real or imagined, and we made a list of their "Special Abilities".
Other Activities
Everybody got a giant envelope for their work! The envelope will hold a bunch of our writing, math and art projects through the year and, at the end of the year, we get to take it home! We decorated the envelope with whatever we wanted, and we'll get to add to it as the year goes along!
Somebody left Mr. McCullough a challenge that said "Sort Me". So, we figured out that sorting meant putting things that were the same (like the same colour) into groups! We also tried sorting by a bunch of different attributes. During the week we sorted things by colour, size, shape, type, and we sorted ourselves by boys and girls!
We talked about what a "hero" is and decided it was somebody who helps people, keeps them safe and healthy and tries to do good things. Along with the usual superheroes, we figured out that policemen, ambulance drivers, firemen and even PARENTS could be heroes!!!
We also talked about "villains" and "enemies". We talked about how you can't judge a villain by how they look (Good Little Wolf) and how having "enemies" can sometimes be solved by being nice to them and trying to make friends (Enemy Pie).
Getting ready for the Terry Fox Run next week, we told the story of Terry Fox and talked about what makes him a hero.
Mme. Degroot took us "on the roof" while we were in the library, as we watched an amazing video about the Jackman Green Roof!
We learned a couple of mini-songs from our Jolly Phonics book, focusing on the letter S and the letter A. We then tried to put the letters S, A and F together to see if we could make words. We couldn't, so we might need to learn more letters.
On Tuesday, the Jackman Gardening Committee came to the Kindergarten Garden! We helped them clean up the garden, sweeping wood chips off the concrete, putting pruned leaves and branches in a recyclable bag and shoveling some mulch into the garden!
We Share Everything
A Sick Day For Amos McGee
Enemy Pie
Good Little Wolf
Song of the Week
Where Do We Start Our Letters? (to the tune of "If You're Happy And You Know It!")
Where do you start your letters?
At the top!
Where do you start your letters?
At the top!
If you want to start a letter then you better, better, better,
Remember to start it at the top!
Is this the top, top, top? No,
it’s the bottom!
Is this the top, top, top? No,
it’s the middle!
Is this the top, top, top? Yes,
it’s the top, top, top!
Remember, to start them at the top!Weekly Centres
The Letter F
We started our first printing practice of the week, using the "Frog Jump" motion of our hand to make the letter "F"! We also learned that, as the song says, if you want to start a letter, then you better remember to start it at the top!Sorting
Our sorting centre involved moving magnets, making groups with coloured bears and buttons and figuring out what else in the class we could sort.
Prediction: Sink or Float
We used our Water Table for the first time this year, but before we did, we had to predict if what we were putting in the table was going to sink or float.
Who's My Hero
Everybody coloured in a picture showing who their "hero" was, real or imagined, and we made a list of their "Special Abilities".
Other Activities
Everybody got a giant envelope for their work! The envelope will hold a bunch of our writing, math and art projects through the year and, at the end of the year, we get to take it home! We decorated the envelope with whatever we wanted, and we'll get to add to it as the year goes along!Somebody left Mr. McCullough a challenge that said "Sort Me". So, we figured out that sorting meant putting things that were the same (like the same colour) into groups! We also tried sorting by a bunch of different attributes. During the week we sorted things by colour, size, shape, type, and we sorted ourselves by boys and girls!
We talked about what a "hero" is and decided it was somebody who helps people, keeps them safe and healthy and tries to do good things. Along with the usual superheroes, we figured out that policemen, ambulance drivers, firemen and even PARENTS could be heroes!!!
We also talked about "villains" and "enemies". We talked about how you can't judge a villain by how they look (Good Little Wolf) and how having "enemies" can sometimes be solved by being nice to them and trying to make friends (Enemy Pie).
Getting ready for the Terry Fox Run next week, we told the story of Terry Fox and talked about what makes him a hero.
Mme. Degroot took us "on the roof" while we were in the library, as we watched an amazing video about the Jackman Green Roof!
We learned a couple of mini-songs from our Jolly Phonics book, focusing on the letter S and the letter A. We then tried to put the letters S, A and F together to see if we could make words. We couldn't, so we might need to learn more letters.
On Tuesday, the Jackman Gardening Committee came to the Kindergarten Garden! We helped them clean up the garden, sweeping wood chips off the concrete, putting pruned leaves and branches in a recyclable bag and shoveling some mulch into the garden!
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Week 2: How Do You Fill Your Bucket?
Books We Read
Those Shoes
Chicka Chicka 123
I Am Absolutely Extremely Boiling
The Giving Tree
On My First Day of School
Song of the Week
Fill A Bucket (sung to Frere Jacques)
Fill a bucket (fill a bucket)
Every day (every day)
I can fill a bucket (I can fill a bucket)
You can too! (You can too)
Fill a bucket (fill a bucket)
Every day (every day)
I like filling buckets (I like filling buckets)
You will, too! (You will, too!)
Weekly Centres
We give children a chance to explore a variety of centres during the week, making their own discoveries as they go. Every week, we have a variety of "guided" centres that focus on specific skills. These will be the centres listed.
September Portfolio
Our first page of our writing portfolio was finished this week! We were asked to write our name and draw a picture of anything we like! Then, Mr. McCullough wrote down what we drew!
Bucket Pictures
Keeping with the "What fills your bucket?" idea, everybody drew a picture of the things that fill their bucket. Some people drew kisses, others drew toys, some drew families and some drew hugs!
Sensory Centres
Mr. McCullough brought out a bucket with things that squish, smoosh, shake, make sounds, light-up and move! It was our job to figure out how everything w
orks.
Blocks & Buckets
We figured out the different items in our building buckets, which include train tracks, magnet blocks and building straws, among other things.
Other Things We Did
We talked some more about what fills our buckets and, after singing the "Fill A Bucket" song, we shared what filled our bucket. For some people, it changed every day!
Stories like "Those Shoes" and "I Am Absolutely Extremely Boiling" taught us about sharing, and we had a few talks about how to ask for things politely.
We kept counting the days of school and everybody made a guess about how many days were in school. We had guesses from 2 to 1000200....
...and then we had a talk about how some of us might be wrong, and it's okay to be wrong because being wrong sometimes helps us learn!
We also "tucked away" the ending of Chicka Chicka 123, because Mr. McCullough said we'd need to remember it on a very special day of school (although we're not sure what day that is yet).
Mme. Degroot had us practice taking books off of shelves in the library, and soon we'll be able to take some home!
We learned the two different meanings of "boiling", and talked about how sometimes we use a word to describe something that isn't actually happening (none of us were REALLY boiling on Wednesday, even though it was REALLY hot!)
After reading "The Giving Tree", we talked about what it means to be a good friend, and how being a good friend means sharing, but also being honest with other friends if you're not feeling okay about what they're doing.
Our sensory centre had a Slinky, but NOBODY had ever seen a Slinky work in the real world! So, we tried it out on the steps of the school and it DIDN'T WORK! So, we came up with ideas of why not (steps were too wide, black stripes were making the slinky stick) before building our own steps in the classroom from our block centre! Everybody loved watching the Slinky go!
Those Shoes
Chicka Chicka 123
I Am Absolutely Extremely Boiling
The Giving Tree
On My First Day of School
Fill A Bucket (sung to Frere Jacques)
Fill a bucket (fill a bucket)
Every day (every day)
I can fill a bucket (I can fill a bucket)
You can too! (You can too)
Fill a bucket (fill a bucket)
Every day (every day)
I like filling buckets (I like filling buckets)
You will, too! (You will, too!)
Weekly Centres
We give children a chance to explore a variety of centres during the week, making their own discoveries as they go. Every week, we have a variety of "guided" centres that focus on specific skills. These will be the centres listed.
September Portfolio
Bucket Pictures
Keeping with the "What fills your bucket?" idea, everybody drew a picture of the things that fill their bucket. Some people drew kisses, others drew toys, some drew families and some drew hugs!
Sensory Centres
Mr. McCullough brought out a bucket with things that squish, smoosh, shake, make sounds, light-up and move! It was our job to figure out how everything w
orks.
Blocks & Buckets
We figured out the different items in our building buckets, which include train tracks, magnet blocks and building straws, among other things.
Other Things We Did
We talked some more about what fills our buckets and, after singing the "Fill A Bucket" song, we shared what filled our bucket. For some people, it changed every day!
Stories like "Those Shoes" and "I Am Absolutely Extremely Boiling" taught us about sharing, and we had a few talks about how to ask for things politely.We kept counting the days of school and everybody made a guess about how many days were in school. We had guesses from 2 to 1000200....
...and then we had a talk about how some of us might be wrong, and it's okay to be wrong because being wrong sometimes helps us learn!
We also "tucked away" the ending of Chicka Chicka 123, because Mr. McCullough said we'd need to remember it on a very special day of school (although we're not sure what day that is yet).
Mme. Degroot had us practice taking books off of shelves in the library, and soon we'll be able to take some home!
We learned the two different meanings of "boiling", and talked about how sometimes we use a word to describe something that isn't actually happening (none of us were REALLY boiling on Wednesday, even though it was REALLY hot!)
After reading "The Giving Tree", we talked about what it means to be a good friend, and how being a good friend means sharing, but also being honest with other friends if you're not feeling okay about what they're doing.
Our sensory centre had a Slinky, but NOBODY had ever seen a Slinky work in the real world! So, we tried it out on the steps of the school and it DIDN'T WORK! So, we came up with ideas of why not (steps were too wide, black stripes were making the slinky stick) before building our own steps in the classroom from our block centre! Everybody loved watching the Slinky go!
Wednesday 4 September 2013
Tuesday 3 September 2013
Week 1: My Friends & I
Books We Read
First Day Jitters
Who Will Go To Kindergarten Today?
The Kissing Hand
Fill-A-Bucket
Song of the Week
Everybody drew a picture of themselves in our "This is me!" activity, and some of us were able to write our names on our pictures as well!
First Day Jitters
Who Will Go To Kindergarten Today?
The Kissing Hand
Fill-A-Bucket
Song of the Week
Kindergarten, Here We Come!
(Sung
to "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star")
Kindergarten
here we come.
We
know we'll have lots of fun!
Lots
of things to make and do.
Reading,
writing, counting too.
Kindergarten
here we come.
We
know we'll have lots of fun!
Things We Did
Everybody drew a picture of themselves in our "This is me!" activity, and some of us were able to write our names on our pictures as well!
We practiced signing in to the room, so everybody would know that we're here, and to help us learn how to write our names!
We learned each other's names by playing games with our Feel-Good Freinds (stuffies), who helped show us how to take turns.
We met our gym teacher, Mr. Baker, and our librarian, Mme. Degroot.
We danced to the "Popcorn" song, a fun way to move that allows everybody to be a leader in the dance at different times!
We practiced playing at our different centres, including our drama centre, our blocks centre, and our art centre! More to come soon!
We practiced playing at our different centres, including our drama centre, our blocks centre, and our art centre! More to come soon!
Our first "Drop Everything And Read" session happened, where we all grabbed a book and a place in the room and read! Well, we didn't know the words, but we practiced using the books!
Everybody learned about the "Invisible Bucket" that floats above our head. It fills up when we do nice things for other people, or when other people do nice things for us, and empties when bad things are done. We then all took a happy thought, put it in our bucket, and got ready to use it next week!
Everybody learned about the "Invisible Bucket" that floats above our head. It fills up when we do nice things for other people, or when other people do nice things for us, and empties when bad things are done. We then all took a happy thought, put it in our bucket, and got ready to use it next week!
Welcome to Room 207 - Important Notes
Timetable & Calendar
Please remember that it is important for the children to be on time throughout the school year and to attend regularly. If for any reason, your child will be late or absent from school, please contact the Safe Arrival Line (416) 393-9715.
Jackman follows a five-day schedule. I will send home a calendar with the children each month listing library and gym days, field trips, special events, and any other important information. For the time being, the calendar is as follows.
Monday - Library
Tuesday - Gym
Wednesday - Library
Thursday - Music
Friday - Gym
Entry and Dismissal
Our class will be lining up at the doors just outside the Kindergarten playground. Please say your good-byes outside and allow your child to enter the school with his/her classmates. We will help each student to hang up his/her belongings and get ready for the day. By allowing your child to do this on their own, you are increasing their independence and self-confidence.
When school is over, please wait outside kindergarten gate. For your child’s safety, I will be calling each child in turn, and dismissing them individually. I thank you in advance for your patience. If someone other than the individual(s) stated on the departure list will be picking them up, please send me a note or notify the office ahead of time.
Backpacks
Please send your child to school each day with a name-labeled backpack. This will help your child to become more responsible for his/her belongings, further ensuring that their work and other important messages arrive at home.
Clothing
Please send your child to school in clothes suitable for a day of active learning. Clothing that children can manage on their own is recommended (e.g., Velcro or slip-on running shoes). Please print your child’s name on the inside label of all outdoor clothing. Outdoor play is an important part of the Kindergarten program. We do play outdoors on most days (weather permitting).
It is a good idea to have an extra set of clothes on “stand-by” in case of any bathroom accidents that may occur. You can have an extra pair in the backpack or bring a “spare” that we can keep for the year.
It’s going to be a great year in 207 and I look forward to meeting all of you and getting to know your kids!
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