February Fun!

Check out some of our learning this week!

- We learned different facts about groundhogs and Groundhog Day. 

-At writing center this week, we wrote if we wanted the groundhog to predict spring or winter, and why. 

- We made a class chart which showed our predictions 

-We even watched a live newscast to find out if Punxsutawney Phil saw its shadow on Groundhog Day. He saw his shadow, so 6 more weeks of winter... Oh No!!  

-We made a groundhog popping out of its burrow at the art center!  

Check out some pictures below! 

Check our some pictures from our brave students who read our poem this week! 

On "Fun Friday," we made our Valentine's bags! We are getting ready for our special celebration on February 14th!!  

Happy Birthday to Blake, who turned 6 on Sunday!!  

Fundations
We are continuing to practice tapping out the sounds we hear in words. Students are doing a great job tapping each sound they hear, and then blending the sounds together to say the whole word. This skill is hard to do and takes lots of practice! Try it at home! Here are some words you can ask your child to "tap out:"

sad, sat, sap, mad, mat, map, rag, rap, rat, nag, nap, lad, lag, sip, sit, rip, lip, lit, fit, and more! 

Sight Words:

 So far we have learned the following sight words:

I            can

a            up 

the         go

at           so

it           no

on         my

in          by

am         like

an          he

see        she

Thank you for all your support at home in helping your child practice his/her sight words each week!

enVisionMath
We just finished up Topic 7, Understanding Subtraction. In this topic, we learned that subtraction means taking away or taking apart. When we subtract, we use a minus sign.
Ask your child some subtraction questions at home. See some examples below.
- There were 8 dogs in the park, four dogs ran away. How many dogs were left at the park?
- There were 7 goldfish swimming in a tank, three swam away. How many fish are still in the fish tank?
- There were 9 bunnies, 7 bunnies hopped away. How many bunnies are left? 
-There were 7 snowmen. Some snowmen melted. There were 4 left. How many snowmen melted? 

Upcoming Events...

Procedural Shares
Our "Procedural" Shares during morning will begin next week! Each child will have a turn to share with the class how to do/make something they are passionate about. Please remember that although these shares are informal, it would be helpful for your child if he/she practiced beforehand. So far, the children have learned how to make a pizza from Miss Christie, and how to take care of a pet bunny from Mrs. Binnall. We can't wait to learn more from our students! Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns!

Valentine's Day: February 14th! 
We are getting very excited for Valentine's Day on February 14th! Feel free to send in your child's Valentine's anytime, but no later than February 13th.
On Valentine's Day, we will be doing lots of exciting things, such as having a "Party in a Bag" snack, passing out Valentines, and engaging in Valentine's Day centers and crafts.

100th Day of Kindergarten! 
We will be celebrating 100th day of Kindergarten on February 16th!! A very special "cape" and notice was sent home with your child regarding how we will be celebrating "surviving" 100 days of school.  Here are some reminders & suggestions when helping your child decorate their cape with 100 items! 

* Stick on 100 stickers
* Use fabric markers or sharpie makers to decorate/draw 100 of something
*Use fabric paint / t-shirt paint to decorate 100 of something
*Use Tacky glue to attach 100 objects, such as: googly eyes, paperclips, pennies, beads, pom-poms, etc.
*You could even put 100 of something on a poster board and attach it to your child's cape! 
*If you would like, you can use a different material for the cape as long as it is the same size and color! 
*Please make sure the items on your child's cape are food-free!!! 
*If you are unable to complete this project, or need any extra supplies, we would be happy to help! Please just let us know as soon as possible, so we have time to plan accordingly. 

Please return your child's cape back to school by Monday, February 13th!!!

Thank you so very much for helping your child complete our 100th day project. We hope you enjoy your time together counting to 100!! 

Guiding Questions

- Can your child recite the poem of the week to you? 

- Give your child some CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words. Ask your child to tap out and blend the word for you! (see above for some examples).
-Ask your child about Ms. Greene's lesson on Monday. We learned how to be patient and even got to practice. Waiting is hard, but the students did a great job!! 

- Did your child think the groundhog would see its shadow? Ask if he/she voted yes or no! 

-Star Tag Ceremony: Which star tag did your child receive? 

-Ask your child about an Assembly we saw on Friday about Ella Fitzgerald.

We are looking forward to another fun week full of learning!
Have a wonderful weekend! 
GO PATRIOTS!!!