Mrs. Bryer's Class Newsletter
September 3, 2012
Morning Assembly
Our morning assembly routine is off to a good start. Most of the children are able to find our line, sit quietly once we begin, and follow the directions of the speaker. I did notice that some children are arriving much earlier than the 7:50 start time. A suggestion I have is to put a notebook and pen or a few books in their book bag. These items will help the time pass quickly.
Lunch Time
I have eaten with the class for the first week of school. They are doing a great job remembering to follow the procedures in the cafeteria. Thank you for being conscious of the containers. Most children are able to open everything from their lunchbox. This is a great help when I am no longer eating lunch with them. Please continue to practice your child's lunch code.
Handwriting Without Tears
This is our handwriting program. It is really just a simple, consistent way to form letters with a quick flow. We will be working on Mat Man this week to introduce the 4 basic strokes- big line, little line, big curve, and little curve. Check out the letter formation sheet I sent home last week. If you need a new letter formation sheet, please email me.
This weeks homework- help your child practice writing their first name correctly.
www.starfall.com
Starfall.com is a site I use in the classroom to help children learn to use the smartboard and computers as well as practice letters and sounds. Our smartboard has had many issues this week so not as many children have had a change to explore the site. If your child is going to have time on the computer, I would encourage you to allow them to explore this site. The letter portion is also available as an app.
Safe Place
This week I will introduce the Safe Place and several components of it. It is in line with Conscious Discipline. It is a place within our classroom where children can go when they are upset, angry, or just need a few minutes alone. We will also begin to practice our breathing techniques to help us calm down when we become upset.
Routines and Procedures
We have practiced our routines and procedures a lot this past week. We will continue to do so throughout the year. One thing that encourages them to work together as a class outside of the classroom is our compliment reward system. Each time the CLASS earns a compliment in the hallway from another teacher they will earn a monkey from the barrel. Once they earn 10 monkeys we will celebrate. We have earned many of our monkeys this week in the cafeteria. Our first reward- popcorn and a movie!
Aggie Students
I am a teacher that LOVES extra hands. This week our Reads and Counts tutors will begin visiting our classroom. I will give them instruction to work with individuals or pairs on basic kindergarten skills. To begin, they will play board games to get to know the kids and practice turn taking, counting, and number recognition. Once I have a chance to assess my children, these tutors will also work with logic activities with students who already have a strong grasp on their basic skills.
We will also have one Senior Method (two full days) and two Jr. Methods students (one full day) from A&M (as long as they transfer from my old school). These students are at the end of their educational path to becoming a teacher. They will learn to lead small groups, classroom management, and transition. What this does for our classroom is allow for lessons to be taught is smaller groups, more individual attention from the Aggie student as well as myself. It is really a win win for everyone!
Current skills to reinforce...
- - rote counting 1-20
- - recognizing and writing own name
- - remembering that the teacher's name is Mrs. Bryer :)
- - recognize square, circle, rectangle, and triangle
- - eyes on the person talking