Play, Learn, & Grow in 4K
December 13th
Mrs. Knutson's Last Week
Mrs. Krahn will be returning from her maternity leave right after Winter break, January 2nd, which sadly means my last full week will be the week before Winter break (December 16-20). I will be returning for an overlap with Mrs. Krahn on January 2nd and 3rd to help with the transition for the students to a new teacher and to say goodbyes. I will miss these children more than I can say and I am so grateful for the time I had with them here at Rose Glen! Time flew faster than I ever thought it would, and I would like to extend my sincerest of thanks to all of my students, families, and the staff here at Rose Glen for making me feel right at home these past 4 months. I hope everyone has a fantastic second half of 4K, and good luck to these future kindergarteners next year! I know they'll be great :)
Winter Celebration and Pajama Party!
On Thursday, December 19th we will be having a 4K pajama day to celebrate the coming holidays before Winter break. We will provide the students with a snack of popcorn, juice, and mini candy canes to enjoy during a holiday movie. Please still send your child with Winter gear as we will still be going out for recess if weather permits and PJs typically are not warm enough on their own. Feel free to send students with a small stuffed animal that fits in their backpack to snuggle during the movie. We look forward to a cozy celebration with the children!
Snow Pants, Boots, and Mittens...Oh My!!
Now that winter weather is upon us it is time to prepare for all the winter gear. The 4K children will be going outside for recess everyday. If there is snow on the ground, please send your child to school already dressed in boots and snow pants.
When sending snow clothes to school:
- Please send a separate bag for snow pants and boots
- Please label EVERYTHING
- Please send your child with mittens they can put on without difficulty. Gloves can be very tricky for some children.
- Please practice putting on shoes. Children should be wearing shoes that they can take off and put on independently. If your child has shoes that tie, please be working with them at home to tie on their own. Slip-on shoes and velcro are best for kiddos who do not know how to tie yet. :)
- Please have your child practice putting on and taking off snow clothes. Turn it into a game, set a five-minute timer and see if they can get dressed in under five minutes! This includes snow pants, boots, jackets on and zipped, hats, and mittens.
Thank you for all your help!
4K Reminders
- Library books are due back each Tuesday. If your child does not return their book, they will not be able to check out a new book until we receive the past weeks book back as according to library policy. If you lose your book, please contact us so we can get you in touch with the librarian on what your next steps should be. Thanks!
- With cold and flu season upon us please reinforce good hygiene habits with your children including how to cough/sneeze into your elbow and how to blow and wipe your nose. We give these reminders daily in school and are staying on top of washing hands as much as possible, but making that connection between school and home always helps!
Math
The weeks leading up to Winter break have granted us time to go back and review all of our math skills we have learned so far this year including counting to 10, drawing and identifying shapes, number recognition, using math language such as bigger/smaller and more/less. The children were able to use their skills to put together a Christmas tree by sorting the triangles of the tree from smallest to biggest and following directions on how many ornaments to count out for each triangle.
Literacy
In Literacy we continue to focus on the alphabet and our letters of the day. In December, we read an assortment of Gingerbread stories which we then discuss the differences and similarities in. We are working on being able to answer questions after we finish a story such as who were the characters, what were their feelings, and what was the setting. In our journals we continue to create sentences that match our pictures and have begun talking about beginning sounds to go along with our letters of the day.
Gingerbread Letter Hunt
Gingerbread Stories
Practicing Letter Recognition
Social/Emotional Growth
In Second Step we have been talking about self talk to help us stay focused. Self talk is when we know we have a job to do and we give ourselves a reminder in our heads or in the form of a whisper or little song we make up of what it is we need to do such as at clean up reminding ourselves "clean up the blocks, find my carpet spot". We continue to discuss our problem solving strategies in the classroom and at recess to help us regulate ourselves and give our friends reminders when they make poor choices.
List of Skills to Practice
A few parents have asked for a list of skills that they can continue to work on at home with students over Winter break and beyond. I have linked a document with a list of skills that we consistently work on in 4K and would be great if you find the time to try at home!