Kindergarten Open House

What an amazing day!  We were so excited and proud to see all of our students and the parents and grandparents that were able to attend our open house.  We only wish we had been able to take more pictures!  The highlight of the day was definitely decorating the gingerbread house.  And it sure is one for the ages! We aren't sure how all the candy was able to stick to the house, but it seems to still be stuck.

The gingerbread houses will be on display at the Bulk Barn on Clair Road from December 4 to 31.  Please visit the store and cast your vote for our house by donating your change.  The house with the most money at the end of December will win a treat bag from Bulk Barn.  We are all winners though, because we had a great time decorating and we are raising money for a great cause.

Our students had so much to say about the experience, and we wanted to capture their thoughts on the blog.  We asked the students what they would say on our blog for everyone to hear.  These are their unedited responses:

Rhya - I liked decorating the gingerbread house
Zoe - It was fun and I showed my granny reading because she loves reading
Lexi -  I liked building the gingerbread house
Marleigh - I liked doing the art work.  I liked playing with the snow dough.
Liam - It was fun because I liked my mom and dad touching the sand, I mean the dough.  And I was cutting shapes out.
Ajaydeep - I like the gingerbread house
Brooklyn - The fun part was because my mom was here
Cala - I liked decorating the gingerbread house.
Eden - I had fun because I like my mom.
Layla - I did a little bit (of the gingerbread house)
Sahneez - I liked it because I like to sing
Jake - My mom loved the gingerbread house
Tessa - Mommy loves it and she likes my gingerbread picture
Rhya - I really loved making gingerbread man
Aidan - I showed everything to my mommy.
Owen - My brother liked the gingerbread house
Mason - I liked it.  It was pretty fun decorating the gingerbread house.
Vivian - I liked building the gingerbread house.
Jayden - My favourite part was my mom and she liked decorating the gingerbread house.
Cooper - I had a lot of fun making my gingerbread man.
Michael - My mom liked my art work.
Henry - I liked making the gingerbread house.
D* - My mom liked it.
Aaradhya - I liked when we decorated our gingerbread house.  It's so pretty.  Good.
Tharsan - My grandma likes my snowman.

Now it's your turn moms and dads!  Please leave a comment below and let us know your thoughts about the open house!

KA Veterinarian Hospital ... By Appointment Only

Since our students have shown a keen interest in animals this year, we decided to change the dramatic centre into a veterinarian office for them.  Mrs. L. MacPherson was nice enough to lend us some materials, and Mrs. Piquette worked hard with the children to set up the new dramatic area.  Have a look!

Penny for your Thoughts

Today was a very special day.  We are learning about the /p/ sound, so when we went on a nature walk in the neighbourhood and ended up close to Mrs. Piquette's house, we thought it would be a good idea to have Mrs. Piquette bring out her new puppy, Penny (because both start with Pp!).  We spent a few minutes outside Mrs. Piquette's house, and she brought Penny out to meet us.  Then we headed back to school.

There was a Cold Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow

We are very excited about the project we have been working on with our Grade 5/6 Learning Buddies.  We read a book together called There Was a Cold Lady who Swallowed Some Snow by Lucille Colandro.  If you have heard There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, you will be familiar with the main idea of this book.  (Incidentally, if you are looking for an awesome version of the song, my personal favourite is sung by Cyndi Lauper). 

When Mrs. Piquette and Mrs. Kelly-Miller got together to discuss how we would work as learning buddies this year, we were determined to include technology into the mix.  This book provided the perfect opportunity to do just that.  Our classes are interested in stop motion animation, and the iPads and Android devices that we have access to make it very easy to create stop motion animation.  Even our kindergarten students are able to do this independently.

We are using an app called Stop Motion Studio (find it for free on the app store here) to create an animated version of this book.  We will present the final film along with a performance of the song at our holiday assembly during the last week of school before winter break.

We started working on this project at the beginning of November, and have made some really excellent progress.  Mrs. Piquette showed the grade 5/6 leaders a few videos about stop motion animation and how to make it work:

1.  The Three Principles of Animation

2.  Storyboarding Your Idea

Last week we created our story boards.

We are really pleased with how well they came out.  

We were so eager to get started with filming that some of the grade 5/6 girls came to visit our kindergarten class on Friday to get a head start on cutting out the materials needed to create our little film.  

 We can't wait to see the finished product!  Stay tuned for more updates!

What is Discovery Time?

You may be hearing your child(ren) at home talking about Discovery Time at school.  We would like to take some time to talk about Discovery Time and what exactly it is.  Our Ontario Curriculum states that

               The Full-Day Early Learning-Kindergarten program is a child-centred,

               developmentally appropriate, integrated, extended-day program of learning

               for four- and five-year old children.  The purpose of the program is to

               establish a strong foundation for learning in the early years, and to do so in

               a safe and caring play-based environment that promotes the physical, social,

               emotional, and cognitive development of all children."

As a result, you will see a lot of Discovery Time on our schedule.  This time provides an opportunity for our students to explore the activities in the room while we call small groups to work with us at planned activities.  So how does Discovery Time relate to the curriculum?

Owen and Aidan play in the Dramatic Centre,
November 6

When I Play at the Dramatic Centre, I am Learning:

• to use my imagination and role play
• to work cooperatively with peers
• to explore elements of drama
• to retell stories and familiar events
• to communicate my ideas with others
• to take turns and use kind words
• about people in my community
• to write lists, letters, and notes
• to be a nurturer and care for others
• to use puppets and props to enhance my play and learning
• to tidy up materials when I am finished

Michael, Mason, Ashton, Lexi, Elliott, and Cooper
 work together to create structures, using a slide
show of famous buildings and roadways as
inspiration, November 6

When I Play at the Construction Centre, I am Learning:

• to select and use different materials
• to create designs with peers
• to construct structures following my plans
• to communicate or write about my discoveries and observations
• to use problem solving skills effectively
• to be creative with a variety of materials
• to role play and imagine
• to investigate how things work and fit together
• to share materials and tools with others
• to experiment with simple machines
• to develop my fine and gross motor skills

Tharsan, Rhya, Aaradhya and Tessa create art
at the Creative Centre, November 6

When I Play at the Creative Centre, I am Learning:

• to use my imagination to create art
• to create a plan and follow it through
• to explore and share a variety of tools and materials with my peers
• to use problem solving skills effectively
• to explore different elements of design
• to demonstrate an understanding of vocabulary related to visual art
• to share my artistic accomplishments
• to respond to a variety of visual art forms
• to practise my fine motor skills

Zoe, Ammon, Jake, Brooklyn, and Sahneez
work together with a special soft dough on
November 6.

When I Play with Playdough, I am Learning:

• to select and use different tools
• to create designs with peers
• to create a plan and follow it through
• to communicate my discoveries
• to use problem solving skills effectively
• to be creative with a tactile medium
• to experiment with letters and numbers
• to explore how tools help me
• to share materials and tools with others
• to experiment with simple machines
• to develop my fine motor skills

Zoe, Cooper, Ajaydeep and Tessa work at
the sensory table with water on November 16.

When I Play at the Sand/Sensory Table, I am Learning:

• to select and use different materials
• to work cooperatively with others
• to create a plan and follow it through
• to communicate my discoveries
• to use problem solving skills effectively
• to be creative with a variety of materials
• to make predictions and observations
• to explore how tools help me
• to experiment with simple machines
• to develop my fine motor skills
• to develop literacy and numeracy skills
• to wonder about how things work

Kindergarten A is SEW Awesome!

A great fine motor activity that we have introduced in Kindergarten A is sewing.  Several of our students have shown a keen interest in sewing, and ask to sew on a regular basis.  At this point we are reviewing how to handle and be safe with a sewing needle, and how to push and pull the needle through the fabric.  Our students are SEW excited!

Curriculum expectations that are being targeting during this activity are:

Health and Physical Activity 2.2: 

• demonstrate persistence while engaged in activities that require the use of both large and small muscles

Health and Physical Activity 4.1:

• begin to demonstrate control of small muscles in activities at a variety of learning centres and when using a variety of materials or equipment 

Celebrating Hallowe'en in KA

On Thursday, October 29th, we celebrated Hallowe'en in our classroom.  It was an opportunity for our students to dress up and spend some time dancing in the gym.  We also played games and practiced describing our costumes to the class.  Standing up and talking in front of the class was a challenge for some students, but they all gave it a try and most children participated in the activities we had.  It was a wonderful day full of fun.  We would like to share some pictures of our students having a blast that day.

Welcome to Kindergarten A 2015/2016!

Welcome!

We have already had a successful start to our school year, with our senior kindergarten students attending school Tuesday and Wednesday.  Our junior kindergarten students will begin their staggered entry tomorrow, and we are super excited to meet them!

Marcia Piquette, OCT

For this post we have a few goals.  We want to introduce ourselves, share some information about our classroom, and expand on some of the things you may have heard about in kindergarten.  In addition, we want to share with you the benefits of following our blog and website for updates and information.

The teachers in Kindergarten A are Marcia Piquette (OCT) and Katrina Proud (RECE).  As a teacher and an ECE team, we share the job of teaching and guiding your child(ren) through the 6 areas of the kindergarten curriculum: personal and social development, language, mathematics, science and technology, health and physical activity, and the arts.

Katrina Proud, RECE

Of course, we aren't alone in this team effort.  As the saying goes: "it takes a village to raise a child."  At SIB we have a wonderful village of educators who contribute to the kindergarten team.  Specifically in our class, our students will be working with Shelly Lockhart (OCT), Tamara McCormick (EA), Sheila McConnell-Agombar (EA), and Susan Flood (EA).  Currently Ms. McCormick is in our room supporting students on a full time basis.

Newsletters
Each month, we will send home a newsletter and calendar to keep you informed about what is happening in our classroom and in our school.  You can also find our newsletters posted on the class website.

Class Website and Blog - https://sites.google.com/a/ugcloud.ca/mrspkindie/home
The website along with this blog can be invaluable tools for parents to see what is happening and get a glimpse inside the classroom.  We strive to keep our online communications updated and post pictures of what we are doing on a regular basis so you can discuss activities at home as well.  Children love to see pictures of themselves on the computer and share what they are doing at school.  If you have questions about our website, our blog, our newsletter, or anything else, please do not hesitate to contact us.  We are here for you!

Volunteering or Visiting our Class

Please remember that we have an open door policy and you are always welcome to come in. If you would like to volunteer, just tell us know when and we’ll be happy to include you in our day. If you have any questions or concerns, please send us a note in the communication book.

All of this information and more will be coming home in hard copy within the next few days.  Thank you for your patience as we sort out all of the beginning of the year paperwork!