Library Books

Today your child is bringing home a library book. Please try to read it with him/her. We have a library book exchange every Day 3. Currently, Day 3 falls on Thursday (this will change after Thanksgiving so please refer to your school calendar to stay current). It is very important that the library book is returned school by Day 3 in the same condition in which it was borrowed. If books are not returned, your child may not borrow a new one. Lost books can incur a fine. Please enjoy the book, read it, put it back in the book bag and send it back to us when you’re finished!
Merci :) 

This Week in K3!

We've had a busy first couple of weeks in Room K3! It has been a great start to the year :) So far we've been working on establishing routines, learning some basic vocabulary for everyday life, and getting to know one another!
Here are a few words and phrases we've been working on:
Bonjour! - Hello!
Merci - Thank you
S'il vous plait - Please
Ca va? - How are you?
Ca va bien. - I'm well.
Ca va mal. - Not so good.
Ca va comme si, comme ca. - Just so, so.
Puis j'aller aux toilettes? - May I go to the washroom?
Puis j'aller au cagibi? - May I go to my cubby?
If you get the chance, try to use these or test your child to see if they can teach you something new!

A couple of reminders:
~Please send in a pair of indoor shoes for your child! We still have a number of students who do not have a pair of indoor shoes and although the weather is nice now, we want to get them into the routine of changing their shoes before coming into the classroom. Also, in the morning the grass is quite wet where the children play and we don't want your child having wet feet all day or bringing in the dirt that goes along with that.
~We only have a couple of pictures on our family tree! We would love to see it nice and full. So please, when you get the chance, send in a photo of your family so your child can be included in this activity.
~Please make sure you send back any of the relevant forms that have been sent home (Welcome Package, About Your Child, Permission for Blog Posts, Snack Program info, etc.) Getting this information is important for the school and for some of the things that go on in our classroom so it would be great to get everything back as soon as possible. If you are missing any or all of these (or you are unsure what one of them is), please let me know and I will send a new copy home.
~Please make sure to send a water bottle to school with your child. We do not have a fountain in our class and with the hot weather and all of the activities the children are participating in, they get very thirsty! We have a great filling station where the students can fill their water bottles should the need, but going to the water fountain all of the time is becoming an issue.
~Please ensure you are sending healthy and nutritious options for your child's snacks and lunch. Part of the Kindergarten Curriculum is to teach children what it means to eat healthy and to enjoy the benefits of a healthy, active lifestyle. This is something that we think is very important in our class and we try to encourage it as much as possible but this can be tricky when unhealthy options are sent to school all the time. Treats once in a while are great! But please make sure you are limiting the unhealthy options as much as possible.
Thanks!

Our Timetable

Period/Time	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5
8:25 – 8:40	Entry
P1 8:40 – 9:15 (30 minutes)	Outdoor Classroom	Outdoor Classroom	Outdoor Classroom	Outdoor Classroom	Outdoor Classroom
P2 9:15 – 9:55 (40 minutes)	Music Mr Kryzanowski	Morning Routines	Phys. Ed Ms Lowen	Morning Routines	Morning Routines
9:55-10:10	RECESS
P3 10:10 – 10:50 (40 minutes)	Morning Routines	Learning Centres	Morning Routines	Phys. Ed. Ms Lowen	Learning Centres
P4 10:50 – 11:30 (40 minutes)	Learning Centres	Learning Centres	Learning Centres	Learning Centres	Learning Centres
11:30 – 12:25	LUNCH
12:25 – 12:30	Entry
P5 12:30 – 1:10 (40 minutes)	Afternoon Meeting / DPA	Afternoon Meeting / DPA	Afternoon Meeting / DPA	Afternoon Meeting / DPA	Afternoon Meeting / DPA
P6 1:10 – 1:50 (40 minutes)	Learning Centres	Reading Buddies with  M. Mastoraskos	Learning Centres	Drama/Dance Ms Wright	Learning Centres
1:50 - 2:05	RECESS
P7 2:05 – 2:45 (40 minutes)	Learning Centres	Music Mr Kryzanowski	Library Book Exchange	Learning Centres	Phys. Ed Ms Lowen
P8 2:45 - 3:15 (30 minutes)	Reflection Time / Outdoor Classroom	Reflection Time / Outdoor Classroom	Reflection Time / Outdoor Classroom	Reflection Time / Outdoor Classroom	Reflection Time / Outdoor Classroom

Simple Strategies for Creating Strong Readers

Without doubt, reading with children spells success for early literacy. Putting a few simple strategies into action will make a significant difference in helping develop children into good readers and writers:

•  Read from a variety of children’s books, including fairy tales, song books, poems, and information books.
• Through reading aloud, providing print materials, and promoting positive attitudes about reading and writing, you can have a powerful impact on children’s literacy and learning.
• Invite your child to read with you everyday.
• Read your child’s favourite book over and over.
• When reading a book where the print is large, point word by word as you read. This will help the child learn that reading goes from left to right and understand that the word he/she is says is the word he/she sees.
• Read many stories with rhyming words and lines that repeat. Invite the child to join in on these parts. Point word by word as he/she reads along with you.
• Discuss new words. For example: “This big house is called a palace. Who do you think lives in a palace?”
• Stop and ask about the picture and about what is happening in the story

Reading well is at the heart of all learning. Help make a difference!

Academic Readiness Goals to Work On

Fine Motor Skills

•    Puzzles
•    Buttons and Zippers
•    Writing name and other letters
•    Visual matching activities (match shapes, letters, numbers)
•    Identifying and copying basic shapes (horizontal and vertical lines, circles, squares, triangles)

Language

•    Vocabulary development both receptive and expressive
•    Learn colour names
•    Learn the name of various body parts (“point to your _____”)
•    Spatial terms (e.g. in, on, under, between, over, in front of etc.)
•    Encourage and model how to ask questions (what, when, where, why, how, who)
•    Listening to a simple story
•    Retelling a simple story (with a beginning, middle and end)
•    Simple sentences (expand on words said, if the child says “flower” say “Yes, that is a pretty yellow flower.”)

Number Concepts

•    Count by ones from 1-10, 10-20 etc.
•    Understand common descriptive terms (big, bigger, small, smaller, little, most, a few)
•    Concept of ‘half’
•    One-to-one correspondence