October 28th Newsletter

Dear Parents and Guardians,

The last few weeks in literacy we did some focused work with vowels.  Vowels are tricky, and if we don't continue to notice and emphasize them they can be very confusing.  We found them in our shared reading poems, we created a vowel chart, and we've been finding them on various print around the classroom.  We've been practicing both the short and the long sounds for the vowels.  You can help at home by doing the same with words you notice when reading with your child or even when looking at a holiday catalog or a recipe!  Help your child understand that words are all around us, and they all have to have at least one vowel.  Keep in mind, it is best to use words that either have the short or the long sound in them, like in "bat," but not "ball."  Or in "that," but not in "the." 

This week we will continue our first study of small moment (or narrative) stories for the year.  We are hoping to be done with this unit next week.  Some stories will continue to come home, and some will be saved for parent teacher conferences.  It sure has been fun to learn more about these amazing kids and get to know them in the best way, through their stories!  I've learned about their friends, their pets, their families, their weekend adventures and more!  Keep the stories coming!

This week in Math, we will...

• Count by 5's and 10's with nickels and dimes when playing games called "Who Has More Cents with Nickels & Pennies" and "Who Has More Cents with Dimes, Nickels and Pennies."
• Compare amounts using the terms greater than, less than and equal to. 
• Play a game called "Drop the Beans" to practice fluently adding sums within 10, apply the commutative property when adding and organize/represent data on a graph.
• Make a variety of combinations of 10 by matching ten frames.
• Learn several new Math Workplace games to reinforce these skills!

**Math homework is due on Monday, because of the short week. 

This week in Social Studies, we will learn about land forms, bodies of water, and using globes and maps. We will also continue to learn about bullying prevention with Mrs. Kikkert.

**Children can bring their costumes to school on Thursday in a labeled bag. They will change into them before our Fall Party! It's going to be a fun day, and a fun week.  Thank you in advance for all of the help and donations for our Halloween Classroom Party!  The kids had a blast!

Remember to dress your child for the cold weather.  They will be going outside for every recess unless it rains.

Reminders and Upcoming Events:

• October 30- Picture Retakes
• October 31- Fall Party and Halloween Parade (3:00 pm)
• November 1- End of first quarter- No School
• November 11-15- Stuff the Bus Food Drive
• November 11- Veterans Day Program (2:00 pm)
• November 13- Dining for Dollars-Brandywine
• November 21- Parent-Teacher Conferences
• November 25- Parent-Teacher Conferences
• November 27-29- Thanksgiving Break-No School