Welcome Back!

Dear Families,

I hope you had a restful week with your child and a wonderful Winter break! 

Reviewing Routines: 

This week, we have been focusing on getting back into our classroom routines, and remembering all the things we have been learning since September. We reviewed our classroom rules and expectations, learned about our new classroom jobs, got a special social "buddy" to sit next to at lunch, and started using "coupons" to reinforce positive behavior. 

Persuading for a Pet

In addition, this week our focus has been on writing. The students have been doing a phenomenal job in learning how to write a persuasive letter. The children are writing letters to Mrs. Johnson to persuade her to let us have a classroom pet. Students could choose among a bunny, turtle, fish or a hamster. Check out the "What We're Learning" tab to find out more about the features of a persuasive letter, and what we have been doing in our classroom to foster the students' learning. 

Welcome Cameron! 

A new student, Cameron, has joined Room 6! The students have welcomed him with open arms and he is a great addition to our classroom community! 

Fundations:

This week in Fundations, we learned letters y and x: (y, yellow, /y/; x, fox, /x/). 

Next week, we will learn the last two letters of the alphabet, z & q!!! 

    

EnVisionMath:

This week, we started Topic 6, numbers to 100. In this topic, children will use a ten frame to count, and children will develop an understanding in number patters, especially counting by 2s, 5s and 10s. Lastly, the children will understand what it means to estimate numbers.

Visit from a Furry Friend!

On Friday, Ms. Pavlicek from the Burlington Science center visited the children in Kindergarten with special visitors based on the story The Mitten. She brought two hedgehogs to Fox Hill, and students learned about scientific concepts including what is a habitat, and some defensive mechanisms of different animals, especially hedgehogs. This hedgehog show was a great introduction to next week's focus on The Mitten!  Please check out some pictures from the hedgehog show at the bottom of this post! 

Guiding Questions:

• What are some words that begin with the letter y?
• What are some words that have the /x/ sound in it? 
•  Can your child think of other words that begin with the letters we have learned?
• Which pet did your child choose to persuade Mrs. Johnson to let us have has a class pet?
• Ask your child what a persuasive letter needs to have.
• What's the highest number your child can count to?
• Who was your child's social "buddy" this week? 
• How was the hedgehog show? What are the defense mechanisms of hedgehogs? 

Looking Ahead: 

Next week, we will finish up Unit 1 in Fundations, we will return back to using centers during our ELA block, and begin guided reading groups. Our theme next week will center on the story The Mitten, by Jan Brett, and other winter-themed stories by Jan Brett.