I can't believe our second week of school is in the books! The children had so much fun engaging in many new activities. We were busy this week continuing to practice various routines and procedures. The children are getting very good at navigating around the classroom and throughout the school. There are so many different rules we have to follow and the children are accepting them with grace!
Let's take a closer look at the activities the kids engaged in this week:
Learning Centers:
This week we introduced learning centers! Kindergarten learning centers are one of my favorite components in the classroom, and it is essential for hands-on learning. Why are learning centers so important?
Learning centers give kindergarteners a sense of satisfaction. They are presented with a task, they follow the steps to complete the task. They are able to take the activity from start to finish and complete it.
Kindergarten learning centers provide children with confidence. The activities placed in the learning centers are math and literacy concepts that have been previously taught. The students are able to complete the centers independently and their confidence soars!
Learning centers teach children to be independent. Little learners can become dependent on teacher assistance. Centers allow students an appropriate level of challenge so they can work independently to reach a solution.
Learning centers also give teachers time to work with small groups and give extra attention to students in a smaller capacity.
Math Game: Roll & Cover
The children learned a new math game for partners - Roll & Cover. To play, the children take turns rolling the dice and covering up the number in their row. The first one to cover their entire row wins! Roll & Cover teaches the kids how to quickly subitize (ability to instantly recognize the number of objects without actually counting them) as well as how to win or lose gracefully. Whether they win or lose we teach the kids to congratulate each other and say, "Good game! Rematch?" Roll & Cover promotes fun skill practice and will become a center activity once the children know how to play them without support.
"The Dot" and Growth Mindset
"The Dot" by Peter Reynolds is an amazing book that teaches students about their own importance as well as growth mindset. In the story, a little girl is frustrated when she cannot draw and her teacher gently guides her to “Just make a mark and see where it takes you.” The book has so many “big ideas” and is a wonderful way to introduce students to the idea of digging deeper into a book and beginning the discussions on growth mindset. After reading the book, I ask the children to tell me what they thought the author wanted us to learn or remember from the text. I then gave each child a piece of paper with a black dot. I asked the students: "What can you turn the dot into?" "Can you make something new?" The kids got very creative and added so many colors and details to their drawings! I saw an octopus, flowers, an apple tree, and a lot of fun designs!
Heggerty Phonemic Awareness
This week we started our daily systematic phonological and phonemic awareness lessons. Phonemic awareness is the ability to understand that spoken words are made up of individual sounds called phonemes, and it’s one of the best early predictors for reading success. The lessons are part of our morning meeting and the kids love participating. It's one of my favorite lessons every day!
Math: Write the Room - 2D Shapes
Throughout the year the kids will be engaged in various versions of "write the room." The best part of this activity is that the kids are up and moving! They are actively practicing math skills in a fun and engaging way. The activity requires the students to scan the classroom for the write the room cards, match the number on the card with the recording sheet and then color/circle/write the answer. Write the room will be used in math and in literacy centers, with the skills and rigor building through the year. This week the kids worked on 2D shapes, flat and real life.
STEM Challenge - Build a Raft
Last week the children were challenged to build a boat out of aluminum foil. The kids LOVED that challenge so I knew the students would enjoy a similar challenge. This week I challenged the kids to build a raft and then test its ability to float and hold a little bit of weight. It was exciting to see the children in action designing their rafts and problem solve as the rafts began to sink. There were lots of cheering and groaning as the rafts were tested! The materials used were straws, craft sticks, and masking tape.
SPECIALS:
PE: Coach Long & Coach B
Coach Long kicked off the week by introducing the kids to a colors game using hula hoops. The kids enjoyed finding the matching colors during this game of speed! In Coach B's class, they played Sharks & Minnows, Red Light/Green Light, and completed many hula hoop challenges!
Library: Ms. Hilda
Ms. Hilda read us two wonderful stories, and then the children checked out a book. Please keep the book for a week and return the following Tuesday. The children are always proud of their book choices and can't wait to look through them!
Music: Ms. Redmann
In music this week the kids learned a new song called "Fuzzy, Buzzy Bumblee." It is a wonderful singing name game that promotes rhythm and pitch.
French: Madame
Art: Ms. Lorenz - "It Looks Like Spilt Milk"
RECESS:
FREE CHOICE:
During free choice, the kids get to engage in various activities that include magna-tiles, coloring, blocks, legos, flower garden, marble run, sensory table, pop on's, etc. Free choice is a great chance for the kids to have a choice in their learning and it's a perfect opportunity for the kids to make their own decisions. It might seem pretty basic to us, as adults, but it's incredibly important to the kids. It gives them more ownership over their learning experiences.
MORE PHOTO'S FROM THE WEEK:
SCHEDULE:
Click here to get directed to our block schedule. The academic blocks are flexible and may be shifted throughout the week.
Comments