PARENT NEWS – NOVEMBER 2009
Joaquin Miller School
Kindergarten – Ms. Savage
PERSON OF THE WEEK:
November 3 – 7: Ella
November 10 – 14: Ethan
November 17 – 21: Grace
SPECIAL EVENTS
. Tuesday, November 11 – Veteran’s Day – NO SCHOOL
. Library – Wednesdays except for FRIDAY, NOV. 21
. November 24 – 28 – Thanksgiving vacation – NO SCHOOL
PARENTS:
Special thanks to parent readers Kristin (De’Mone) and Karen (Rohan)!
Also thank to sibling reader Eric (De’Mone)! The kids absolutely loved it!!!!!
Special thanks to Kristin Shiloh for organizing a truly special and fun Halloween Party! Special thanks to Monique Smith (Danielle) for the Halloween stories! Thanks also to all the parents that were present and helped out on that very special day!
Thank you to Jill Braff (Ella), Paul Boitano (Olivia),Luci McNulty (Morgan), Bettina Minoue (Louka), Monique Smith (Danielle), and Amy Suits (Hunter) for driving to the Redwood Park Fall Trees walk!
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
. Theme - Friends
. listening
. rhyming words
. focus on words in print
. identify order of words in spoken sentences
. letter order
. word substitution
. sounds in words
. oral blending – word parts
. segmentation
. print and book awareness – directionality, picture/text relationship, dialogue, punctuation, capital letters, word length, word boundries
. word families
VOCABULARY
. sensory words
. classification
. synonyms/antonyms
READING
. Comprehension strategies – visualization, asking questions, predicting, monitoring and clarifying, making connections
. Comprehension skills – cause and effect and drawing conclusions, reality vs. fantasy, compare and contrast
GRAMMAR
. words that describe
PRE-DECODABLES
. sight words – I, see, the, and, a, an, we, here, is, have, he, she, this, go, up, down, who, has, do, are, in, on
MATH
. review chapters 1 – 5
. Chapter 6 - Shapes
THEMES AND SCIENCE
. Friends
. Thanksgiving
. Food
. Trees
SOCIAL SCIENCE
. Second Step Violence Prevention Program – Feelings and Emotion Management
October 7, 2008
Dear Parents:
Hi! Things are going very well in room 3! The children are working hard and all are doing well.
The daily behavior notes are to keep you in touch with classroom behavior. We have had no major problems yet and I don’t forsee that we will. Most “problems” have been in the areas of listening, following directions, and staying focused and on task; but I believe these will work themselves out as time goes on. Thank you very much for your at home support when problems do arise, and please let me know if you ever have any questions or concerns.
Our class has begun a science unit on Fall Trees. We will be observing and comparing the trees in the schoolyard. You can join in the tree study by taking your child out into your yard and into the neighborhood to observe trees to compare how they are alike and different. Look at the tree shapes and the leaves. Which trees lose their leaves and which keep them? What shape are the trees and the leaves? Do the trees have buds, flowers, fruit, or seeds?
HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT: Have your child gather six to eight leaves to press at school. Put them in a small plastic bag to keep them fresh on the way to school. Thank you!
We will go on a Fall Trees FIELD TRIP TO REDWOOD PARK on Friday, October 24 from 9:15 – 1:00. WE STILL NEED DRIVERS, so if you are available please sign up on the clipboard by the yard door. If we don’t get enough drivers we will not be able to go.
Also on the clipboard: the HALLOWEEN PARTY SIGN UP for treats and party help. Please sign up if you are able to help.
And, for those that signed up to do special events in the classroom (music, money, France, etc..); please know that I have not forgotten you and will be in touch soon to set something up.
Thank you!
Sincerely,
Laura Savage
BIRTHDAYS:
Hunter Kelly – October 24
PERSON OF THE WEEK:
Aidan – September 29 – October 3
Andrey – October 6 - 10
Arianna – October 13 - 17
Danielle – October 20 - 24
De’Mone – October 27 - 31
LIBRARY SCHEDULE:
Wednesday’s – October 1, 8, 22, and 29
Friday – October 24 8:00 a.m.
SPECIAL EVENTS:
October 6 – Kristin Shiloh (De’Mone) – parent reader
October 10 – NO SCHOOL – staff development day for teachers
October 24 – FIELD TRIP – Redwood Park – Fall Trees
October 31 – Halloween Parade and Party – more info to follow
PARENTS:
- Thank you to all for signing up for volunteer activities during back to school night. Please see attached for a rough draft for parent volunteers in the classroom. Please let me know if you have something special that you would like to share with the class!
- Thank you for the contributions that have come in from my wish list! I have received 2 Walgreen’s gift cards that will be used to print photos of the kids.
- Please see attached field trip information. A sign up sheet for drivers/in class help will be on the clipboard by the yard door. Please
note that outgoing field trips are limited to a certain number of parents due to requests from the organizations we will be visiting. Thus, preference for field trip drivers will be given to those that can carry four or more children. The organizations also request that no siblings be in attendance. In class events are open to all parents who wish to attend; younger siblings are encouraged to stay home so you can focus on your child and the other children in the class. Thank you!
- Individual tutoring will begin on Monday, October 6, 9:00 – 9:30. So far, Nina Johnson and Kristin Shiloh have signed up for Mondays. We still need help on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 9:00 – 9:30. Please let me know if you are available.
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
Theme - Shadows
- alphabet letter recognition and printing – letters Rr – Zz
- rhyming words
- positional words (up, down, over, under, etc..)
- listening for missing sounds, words, and sounds in sequence
- following directions
- identify spoken sentences and build block sentences
- identify and focus on order of words in spoken sentences
- print and book awareness – directionality, picture/text relationship, dialogue, punctuation
VOCABULARY
- sensory words
- rhyming words
- words that name – people and places
READING
- Comprehension strategies – visualization, asking questions, predicting, and monitoring and clarifying
- Comprehension skills – cause and effect and drawing conclusions
PRE-DECODABLES – sight words
- review words: the, a, an, here, is, I, see
- new words: we, and, he, she, have, big, small, this, is, no, it, go, up, down
MATH
- Chapter 3 – One to One Correspondence (same number, more, less counting)
- Chapter 4 – Numbers 1 – 5
- Chapter 5 – Numbers 6 - 10
SCIENCE
- FOSS - Fall Trees
SOCIAL SCIENCE
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program – Feelings and Emotion Management
HALLOWEEN ACTIVITIES
ROOM 3 – SAVAGE KINDERGARTEN
Our Halloween Party will begin at 1:15 on Friday, October 31, and end at 2:00. We will all need to pitch in to clean up after the party. Lunch will start at 11:45.
You may take your child home at 11:45 to change into costume and eat lunch or you can go to lunch with them in the cafeteria and then bring them back to the classroom to change at about 12:20.
If you change in the classroom:
Once you are changed, please take your child out to the little yard for recess. Please do not stay in the classroom.
Be sure to take all clothes, backpacks, etc. with you. Do not leave anything they will need at home in the classroom. They will not be able to return to the classroom after the parade.
I will lock the classroom door at 12:35. All parents and children should meet me on the big yard by 12:40 for the parade. We will participate in the parade, after which we will return to the classroom for the party. The kindergarten day still ends at 2:20 as usual. Children will be released to your care after the party or will go to Adventure Time as usual.
If you are not able to attend the party/parade please speak to me in advance. I will enlist another parent to help your child get dressed and watch over them during the activities.
Kristin Shiloh is the parent coordinator (Monique Smith will be helping). Please talk to Kristin if you would like to help.
If you have any questions about this, please see me.
Thank you!
Laura Savage
The following people have signed up for volunteer opportunities. Please let me know if you have not yet signed up for one but would like to.
Field Trip Drivers:
Paul Boitano, Amy Suits, Dylan Kelly, Wendy Victory, Monique Smith, Maggie Nguyen, Arlette Sandigo, Dana Sheanin, Jill Braff, Luci McNulty, and Karen Vasudavan
Special projects Help (in class field trips):
Luci McNulty, Nina Johnson, Joshua Braff, Bettina Minoue, Wendy Victory, Karen Vasudavan, Jane Dilworth, and Monique Smith
Individual Tutors:
Nina Johnson (Mon) and Karen Shiloh (Mon)
We could still use tutors for Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays
Homework Helpers:
Luci McNulty and Karen Vasudavan
Valentine’s Day Party Coordinator:
Wendy Victory
Computer Volunteers:
Fabian Banga, Sunil Marangoly, Mike Johnson, and Brent Victory
Library Volunteers:
Dana Sheanin (Fridays), Jill Braff (Fridays), and Monique Smith (Fridays and sone Wednesdays)
We still need volunteers for Wednesdays (11:05 – 11:45)
Homework Helpers:
Luci McNulty and Wendy Victory
Parent Guest Readers:
Karen Vasudavan and Kristen Shiloh (October), Jane Dilworth and Ronald Fabio (November), Jill Braff and Monique Smith (December), Aaron Sheanin and Dylan Kelly (January), Paula Boitano, Paul Boitano and Brent Victory (February), Dana Sheanin and Jane Dilworth (March), Amy Suits (April), Nina Johnson (May).
We still need one volunteer for the months of April, May and June.
Classroom Sharing:
Eric Schoen (music), Dana Sheanin (Chanukah project), Karen Vasudavan (money project), and Bettina Minoue (France project)
Anyone else interested in this? We would love to have you.
We still need volunteers for the Yearbook Page, the Halloween Party Coordinator, and the Year End Coordinator. Please let me know if you are interested.
Our room coordinators are Dana Sheanin (Ethan) and Amy Suits (Hunter).
PARENT NEWS – SEPTEMBER 2008
Joaquin Miller School
Kindergarten – Ms. Savage
BIRTHDAYS: Arianna – September 12
Ethan – September 12
SPECIAL EVENTS: September 3 – no school, Labor Day
September 11 – Back to School Night
7:15 – 8:00 p.m.
PARENTS:
- Thank you all for your help on the first day of
school! All went very smoothly!
- Please fill out and return the beginning of
the year packets and the as soon as possible. Thank
you! The classroom fund ($50.00 per student) will be
used to fund out field trips this year.
- P.E. days are Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please be
sure to dress your child in sneaker type shoes.
- Please be sure that all homework pages are done
completely and neatly. Please do not let your child
use markers to do the homework pages as it will bleed
through to the sheet on the back. Also, please be
sure that any letter tracing/printing is done in
pencil. Thank you!
- Our library day will be Friday, though once a month
we will do it on a Wednesday because the Librarian,
Mrs. Gullikson, needs to attend meetings on Fridays.
The weekly homework sheet will tell which day our
library day will be for the week. Please be sure to
look for it. Our first library day will be on Friday,
September 12 at 11:05.
- PLEASE: If your child has a food allergy, be sure
to tell me about it!
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
- Theme - School
- alphabet letter recognition and printing – letters
Aa - Nn
- rhyming words
- positional words (up, down, over, under, etc..)
- listening for missing sounds, words, and sounds in
sequence
- following directions
- identify spoken sentences and build block sentences
- identify and focus on order of words in spoken
sentences
- print and book awareness – directionality,
picture/text relationship, dialogue, punctuation
VOCABULARY
- sensory words
- rhyming words
- words that name – people and places
READING
-Comprehension strategies – visualization, asking
questions, predicting, and monitoring and clarifying
-Comprehension skills – cause and effect and drawing
conclusions
PRE-DECODABLES
- sight words – I, see, the, and, a, an, we, here,
is, this
MATH
- Math Explorations
- Chapter 1 – Sort and Classify
- Chapter 2 - Pattern
THEMES AND SCIENCE
- All About Me
- The 5 Senses
- Fall
SOCIAL SCIENCE
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program – Feelings
and Emotion Management
KINDERGARTEN - MS. SAVAGE - ROOM 3
Wednesday, June 6, 2008
CRAB COVE FIELD TRIP - all day
Please return field trip permission slips if you have
not yet done so.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
YEAR END CELEBRATION
Room 3, 11:15 - 1:00
We will be having a pot-luck lunch, please sign up to
bring food or help with set up/clean up by the back
door.
minimum day - school gets out at 12:55 p.m.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
5th GRADE PROMOTION 10:30
We will celebrate all June/July birthdays today.
minimum day - school gets out at 12:55 p.m.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
LAST DAY OF SCHOOL
minimum day - school gets out at 12:55 p.m.
Joaquin Miller School
Kindergarten - Ms. Savage
BIRTHDAYS:
Catie Fee - May 15
Jaden Le - May 17
PARENTS AND CHILDREN:
Thank you all for the birthday cards, flowers, and
presents! They are much appreciated!
SPECIAL EVENTS:
- May 1 - Music Assembly - 12:40
- May 13 - Field trip - Aquarium By the Bay - all day
- May 16 - JCAS - Painting in the Style of Cezanne -
in class event - 10:30 - 12:00
- May 23 - May 26 - NO SCHOOL
- May 29 - Open House - 6:45 - 8:00
- May 30 - Read-a-Loud Folder due
PARENTS:
Special thanks to Parent Sharer Rabbi Jackie
Mates-Muchin (Teddy) for her Passover Presentation!
Special thanks to the Parent Volunteers for our
Oakland Zoo field trip - Carolyn Anteneh (Jaylen),
Nancy Caton (Mark), Jackie Mates-Muchin (Teddy), and
Jonathan Weldon (Jackson). We couldn’t have done it
without you!
NO SCHOOL FRIDAY, MAY 23th and MONDAY MAY 26th.
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
- listening and following directions
- phoneme replacement - initial consonants, final
consonants, medial vowels, initial short vowels, and
long vowels
- segmentation - identifying and counting phonemes,
restoring final consonant sounds, and adding/dropping
phonemes to make word changes
- oral blending - blending words in context
- print and book awareness - picture/text
relationship, punctuation, character language, high
frequency words, quote marks, repeated text, literary
elements - setting, characters, sentences, word
length, descriptive words, beginning/middle/end,
headings
VOCABULARY
READING
- Comprehension strategies - visualization, asking
questions, predicting, making connections
- Comprehension skills - sequencing, compare and
contrast, main ideas and details
GRAMMAR
-
speaking - sharing stories
-
listening - rhythm and sounds
-
language and words - describing events and pictures
DECODABLES
- sight words - I, see, the, and, a, an, we, here, is,
this, go, who, has, are, in, do, no, on, can, what,
you, at, like, to, not, my
MATH
THEMES AND SCIENCE
SOCIAL SCIENCE
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program - Empathy
Training and Emotion Management
April 1, 2008
Dear Parents:
Starting on Monday, April 14, I would like to begin a new morning routine aimed to give the children more responsibility and to help them get ready for first grade.
The children will say goodbye to you outside on the yard and will come into the classroom on their own. They will be responsible for hanging their coats and backpacks, taking care of their lunches, and for turning in homework and notes to me.
Please try to be sure your child is on time for class. Class starts daily at 8:00 a.m. Any late-comers should enter the class through the front door.
We will talk about this often in the classroom to prepare ahead of time. Thank you for your support with this.
Sincerely,
Laura Savage
Kindergarten - Ms. Savage
BIRTHDAYS:
Skyler Dale - April 5
Josephine Lam - April 24
SPECIAL EVENTS:
- April 18 FIELD TRIP - OAKLAND ZOO - ALL DAY
- April 28 - Khadra Dance Assembly - 10:30 and 11:10
PARENTS:
Special thanks to Parent Reader Christy Simons (Olivia) and Sibling Sharer Angie Le (Jaden) !
Special thanks to class sharer Mika Max for her origami and Japanese brush painting presentations!
Special thanks to Rocket Science helpers Charisse Hampton (Jason), Love Macione (Riley) and Christy Simons (Olivia) !
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
- listening and following directions
- phoneme replacement - initial consonants, final consonants, medial vowels, initial short vowels, and long vowels
- segmentation - identifying and counting phonemes and restoring final consonant sounds
- initial and final consonant sounds - Ff, Ee, Xx, Zz, WW, Kk, Qq, Yy, Vv
- print and book awareness - picture/text relationship, punctuation, character language, high frequency words, quote marks, repeated text, literary elements - setting, characters, sentences, word length, beginning/middle/end, headings, directionality, capital letters
VOCABULARY:
- classification
- concept words
- sensory words
READING:
- Comprehension strategies - visualization, asking questions, predicting, making connections
- Comprehension skills - sequencing, compare and contrast , main ideas and details
GRAMMAR:
- speaking - sharing stories
- listening - rhythm and sounds
- language and words - describing events and pictures
DECODABLES
- sight words - I, see, the, and, a, an, we, here, is, this, go, who, has, are, in, do, no, on, can, what, you, at, like, to, not, my
MATH
THEMES AND SCIENCE
SOCIAL SCIENCE
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program - Empathy Training and Emotion Management
Joaquin Miller School
Kindergarten - Ms. Savage
BIRTHDAYS: Asmani - March 17
PERSON OF THE WEEK:
March 3 - 7 - Josephine
March 10 - Asmani,
March 11 - Jackson H.
March 12 - Mark,
March 13 - Olivia,
March 14 - Skyler
SPECIAL EVENTS:
- March 7 - end of report card period
- March 10 - Parent/teacher conferences
- March 14 - Friday Library day
- March 15 - Walk-A-Thon 9:30 - 3:30
- March 17 - Mobile Dairy Day
- March 21 - Friday Library Day
- March 21 - JCAS Rocket Science - 10:30 - 11:45
- March 21 - March read-a-loud folder due
- March 24 - 28 - NO SCHOOL - SPRING BREAK
- March 31 - NO SCHOOL - Cesar Chavez Day
Parents:
Special thanks to Parent Readers Terri Duff (Alicia),
Christy Simons (Olivia), Maisah Mason (Asmani) and
sister reader Marion Newbury (Jason)!
Special thanks to Parent Sharer Marianne Lam for her
Chinese New Year presentation!
Special thanks to Carolyn Anteneh for organizing and
orchestrating our class Valentine’s Day party! And
thank you for all the Valentine cards and candy!
Special thanks to all children and parents who donated
books from the book fair to our class!
Other:
March 21 - JCAS “Rocket Science” - 10:30 - 11:45. We
have a couple of parent volunteers - if anyone else
would like to join us please let me know. The more
the merrier!
Parent conference dates are here! There will be a
sign up sheet on the clip board by the back door.
Please try to be on time to class every day. Our day
starts at 8:00. When your child is not on time,
he/she misses a lot of very important Kindergarten
learning activities that are not repeated at other
times of the day. If you arrive after 8:10, please
send your child into the classroom by her or himself.
I will help them get acclimated and into the learning
day. Thank you.
LANGUAGE ARTS HIGHLIGHTS:
- Theme - Patriotism
- listening
- linking sounds to letters
- phoneme replacement - initial consonants, final
consonants, medial vowels, initial short vowels, and
long vowels
- sound blending
- initial and final consonant sounds - Bb, Cc, Rr, Uu,
Gg, Jj, Ff
- print and book awareness - picture/text
relationship, punctuation, character language, high
frequency words, quote marks, repeated text, literary
elements - setting, sentences, word length,
beginning/middle/end, headings, directionality,
capital letters, and environmental print
VOCABULARY
- classification
- concept words
- antonyms
READING
- Comprehension strategies - visualization, asking
questions, predicting, monitoring and clarifying,
making connections
- Comprehension skills - cause and effect, drawing
conclusions, sequencing, compare and contrast
GRAMMAR
- speaking - sharing stories
- listening - rhythm and sounds
- language and words - describing events and pictures
SIGHT WORDS
- the, here, is, a, an, I, see, we, and, he, she,
have, big, small, this, no, it, go, up, down, who,
has, do, are, in, on, what, can, you, at, like, too,
to, not, one, two, three, four, five
MATH
- Chapter 9 - Measurement
- Chapter 10 - Time
SOCIAL SCIENCE
- Second Step Violence Prevention Program - Empathy
Training and Emotion Management