May 22-25

Last week...

Last Thursday and Friday I began the ELOT assessments for each child. ELOT stands for Early Literacy Observation Tool and it is a Board assessment. The assessment takes about 15 minutes per child and is broken down into 3 components: Letter identification (children may name the letter, the sound,or a word/name that begins with the letter), Reading Continuum (book awareness...where do I begin? which way do I go?, etc.), and Phonological Awareness and Encoding (listening to 2 sentences and writing them down). I use these assessments throughout the year to inform my planning and teaching, however, only one set of data is required by the Board, so I will submit this latest round of assessments.

What we're working on...

The children continue to work cooperatively within their groups to plan, investigate and complete a number of literacy and numeracy based activities. Our focus has been on 2-D shapes and 3-D figures for math and the children have really impressed me with how quickly they are internalizing the new (and challenging!) vocabulary. They enjoy investigating the box of 3-D solids, figuring out the placement of geometric shapes on the puzzle cards and reading our "Shape Monster" poem on their own. I often hear things like, "Ms. Cox! It's a rectangular prism!" Impressive!

We have also be investigating the elements of a story (characters, setting, problem and ending). We have been reading and discussing "The Fox and the Springtime Blossoms" and children have been drawing and writing about their personal responses to the story.

During large group meetings we have been playing a number of games to help strengthen our awareness of beginning/middle/ending sounds (sound segmentation). We clap the sounds and jump into hula-hoops to represent each sound (3 sounds= 3 hula-hoops). As the children progress, they will be asked to jump into the right hula hoop (i.e. for 'cat'..."jump to the 't' sound", and the child would jump into the 3rd hoop). To reinforce our circle time learning, we have a number of centres which the children visit to practice and reinforce their knowledge of sounds.

In science, we continue to explore the world around us, noting the changing weather (the kids love using the karaoke machine and microphones to deliver the daily weather or to sing our weather song), the changes to our natural environment (tulips! daffodils!birds!buds!) and our understanding of living and non-living things Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to our crocuses yesterday. Despite our efforts they did not bloom or survive the hot, long weekend. The children considered the many reasons why plants sometimes die. Our maple tree, however, is really opening up and the children have been enjoying watching it grow and change all year. Hard to believe we only have on more monthly journal entry to make!
We have also been learning about pussy willows and are currently experimenting with the branches (some are in water and some are not). We've made predictions and observe the plants each day. Watch for your child's pussy willow paintings to come home soon.

SUNSCREEN

Please ensure that your child has sunscreen, a hat and sturdy shoes for outside play. Thanks!

SCHOLASTIC

I will send home the final book order forms next week (for June) to ensure any orders are received well in advance of the end of the year.

PD DAY

Please note that Friday, June 8th is a PD Day.

END-OF-YEAR

I will be planning an end-of-year celebration for later in June. Parents/grandparents/caregivers will be invited to join us for a slide show, our portfolios and to share some treats. More info to follow.

AT HOME READING

Thanks so much for participating in the program this year! Our combined efforts have resulted in a number of independent readers! Wow! I will run the program for 2 more weeks. Please check that all of the books have been sent back in as I am missing several (I know they are small!). Thank you!

Enjoy the sunshine!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

April 30- May 4

Hello and welcome to May! I apologize for the formatting this week. The blog site has changed some things and I can't seem to publish it in the format I've written it?! Sorry for the jumble...I'll have it sorted out by next week. Last week... The children were introduced to a number of new math and literacy centres (More/Less game, matching beginning sounds puzzles, rhyming cubes, Word Worm sight words and playdough). We continue to explore spring and the changes it brings. We have started a 'daily weather' segment with the SK weather correspondants! Students get an 'on-air' introduction and then are handed the microphone to 'report' to the class. They love it and they're learning to observe the weather changes and use appropriate vocabulary to describe what they see! We ended our week with a look at 'shadows'. We read some non-fiction ("What Makes a Shadow?"), got up and moved around and discovered we could see some shadows in our room and then we read a poem called "My Shadow". After hearing the poem a few times the children were asked to draw how the poem made them feel. These pictures will be entered into Scholastic's Poetry Month Contest! We then set up some 'shadow making' centres using the overhead projector, as well as a blanket and some flashlights. The children experimented with hand shadow puppets and learned that the closer their hands were to the light source the bigger the shadow! This week... We will continue with the centres we began last week so that students have a chance to visit each one. We will also be setting up a 'shapes and figures' centre where children will be encouraged to examine and descibe the characteristics of shapes and 3-D figures. We will also be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction books about birds and the life cycle of robins. We will investigate how robins make their nests and discuss the 'homes' of other animals, as well. On Friday, if the weather cooperates, we will head out to the field to gather natural materials to make our own 'nests' for our wooden birds! I will be sending home a copy of the poem "My Shadow" for you to enjoy with your child. I will also be sending their artwork for the contest home for you to sign (I will not enter it in the contest if you choose not to sign). Please watch for the book "Shape Monster, Shape Monster" to come home (by next week) and please enjoy reading it with your child. EDI SURVEY A reminder notice will be going home at the end of this week to return the survey sent out a few weeks ago. If you've already returned the survey, thank you, and please disregard the reminder! SCHOLASTIC ORDERS The May orders will be sent home next week and will be due back on May 18th. MAY BIRTHDAYS! We have a lot of friends celebrating birtdays in May! Happy birthday to.... Malak May 12 Ida May 27 Cameron May 29 Julissa May 30 Arianna May 31 Thanks for checking in and have a great week! Warmly, Ms. Cox

April 16-20

Welcome to another week!

Before we see what's in store for the week, I'd like to send a BIG THANK YOU to Jack L. for bringing in the Easter pencils to share with all of his friends--how nice!

And, a BIG THANK YOU to Maahira for bringing in treats to share with all of her friends! What a thoughful group we have in SK!

This week...

The children had a guest teacher yesterday as I was in a "School Improvement Planning" workshop with our Primary Division team. The focus was on teaching our students how to approach texts using 'critical thinking' skills.

EDI SURVEY

Your child will be bringing home a large envelope today containing an important survey (the Early Development Index) for you to complete and return. All SK students in Ontario are completing this survey. It is completely confidential and my role is simply to facilitate the distribution and collection of the surveys. More detailed information about the survey is included in your package. Thank you for your attention to this.

NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK

This week is National Volunteer Week and the SK's will be writing thank you cards to all of our wonderful volunteers (Gillian and Andre who come to read with us every Tuesday, and Emily, who helps out on Thursdays). We are so lucky to have such committed volunteers!

HIP HOP with MISS REBECCA!

Last Thursday, Rebecca (who is a Algonquin College student completing a placement with Mr. Dunn in Grade 8) joined our gym class and taught us some 'hip hop' dance! The kids LOVED it and Rebecca couldn't believe how attentive the kids were. We learned lots of new moves! We can't wait to learn more from Rebecca this Thursday!

LOOKING AT PICTURES WITH THE NATIONAL ART GALLERY

Today, the students will take part in the NAG's school outreach program called 'Looking at Pictures'. Many children participated last year, as well. It is a wonderful workshop that allows children to view and discuss various works of art with a volunteer 'expert' from the gallery.

EARTH DAY

April 22 is Earth Day and the SK's will be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction this week which focuses on natural resources, recycling, reducing and reusing, as well as water usage. Please enjoy reading the booklet that comes home with your child this week. Ask your child to think of ways he/she can help take care of the earth (simple things that they can do and feel proud of include: helping with the recycling and composting, turning off the tap while they brush their teeth, using both sides of the paper when they draw, turning off computers and lights when not in use, tc.). Have fun!

APRIL IS POETRY MONTH

April is poetry month and the SK's have been discussing some of the features of poems. We will continue to read a variety of poems (please feel free to send in some poetry books for your child to share) and we will also be participating in Scholastic Canada's "Picture a Poem Contest". I'll send home the infomation sheet for you to read, but there is nothing for you to do! We will be completing the pictures in class and then I will mail off the entries by May 19th.

That's all for now! Thanks for checking in and have a great week!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

April 10-13

Hello everyone,

I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend with family and friends!I am glad to be back and am eager to begin our week...

LAST WEEK...

Although I was away, the children continued to investigate transportation and how things move. The week before, we performed some experiments with wheels and ramps. The children figured out that the steeper the ramp, the farther their cars travelled...bravo! The students also learned about 'wheels' and 'axles', sang the song "My Little Red Wagon" ("..one wheel's off and the axle's broken..", etc.) and then they made cucumber and pretzel wheels and axles (and ate them, of course!). Delicious engineering!

The children are also continuing their study of living things, specifically plants. Last week, children worked in groups to add a white flower to a vase of water along with some food colouring. They then drew what they saw (a white flower in coloured water). A few days later, students observed that their flowers had changed from white to the colour of their water! We read a non-fiction text called 'Roots' that confirmed what we discovered about how plants eat. Children then recorded their observations in their science books.

The SK's are also busy tending to their crocus flowers that they planted 6 weeks ago. Despite many curious hands and the temptation to touch, our crocuses ARE growing! We are using non-standard measuring devices (plastic links) to chart the growth.

THIS WEEK.. as we move into our study of 'spring', we'll experiment to learn how plants help create clouds and rain.

This week your child will bring home the booklet "Goodbye Winter" to read to you. We will be using a larger version of this book all week during our Shared Reading time. Children continue to focus on tracking the print left to right, identifying punctuation (periods), finding sight words and using different strategies to read independently (looking at the beginning sounds, using picture clues, finding small words inside bigger words, etc.).

We will also continue to listen for and create rhymes. I will be using different spring riddles to help children develop this important skill.

Children will be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction books focusing on spring and birds. Children will help me categorize each book as either fiction, or non-fiction. Please reinforce this concept at home as you read with your child.

In math, children will be working with partners to play our new 'more or less' game.

SHOW AND SHARE

Rather than our usual format for Show and Share, we'll be doing an 'at home' math activity that reinforces our understanding of 'more and less'. Please watch for the sheet and enjoy the activity with your child. It does not need to be returned to school.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Last week, all primry children were fortunate to have dental screening done at the school. Please check your child's Note Tote in case you received a notice for dental follow-up.

BOOK ORDERS

Please find April's book order forms in your child's Note Tote today. Orders are due on Friday, April 20th.

TREE JOURNAL

The children have been busy observing and documenting the changes they see in our maple tree out front. This month, the children have noticed that buds have appeared. The students are now doing a majority of the writing in our Tree Journal. Bravo!

MARCH AND APRIL BIRTHDAYS

Happy birthday to :

Khanya (March 7)
Jack K (March 22)
Danny (March 31)
Maahira (April 8)
Miriam (April 11)

Goodbye to Jack K. We are sad to see our good friend Jack K. moving away, but we know that he will love his new home and school. Be sure to send us a letter telling us about your new home, Jack! We will miss you!

Have a wonderful week and, as always,please stop by or call if you have any questions or concerns.

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

March 19-23

Welcome back everyone! I hope your child had a fun March Break!

Before the break...

The children really enjoyed our 'On the Loose with Dr. Seuss' focus before the break. We focused on identifying and making rhymes, measuring using non-standard measuring devices (our feet and links), patterning (did you see your child's 'Cat in the Hat' crown and their 'Socks on Fox' sock patterns?), making personal connections to what we've read (The Lorax), fine motor activities (Truffula Trees) and we investigated solids and liquids by making 'gluppity glupp' using water and cornstarch (the substance hardens until the heat of the child's hands turns it back to liquid). Lots of messy fun!

This week...

This week our learning centres and activities will be centred on 'travel and transportation'. We will be investigating various methods of travel, as well as how things move (sailboats need wind). We'll discuss where we've travelled to and how we got there. We'll look at maps, too.
Children will also have the opportunity to explore the sorting and patterning station, paint boats and cars, and create and eat wheels and axles! Watch for the booklet "How Will You Get There?" and please enjoy reading it with your child. Have them find the question marks and any other sight words they know!

Book Orders

Book orders will be sent home today and will be due back on Friday, March 23rd. Thanks!

Dental Screening

Children will be screened on April 4 at 1:15pm.

Outdoor Gear


Please ensure your child comes to school with a sun hat and shoes suitable for running outside. We will be enjoying this beautiful spring weather!

Thanks so much for checking in and enjoy the week!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

February 27-March 9

Hello everyone and welcome to another week!

DIRECTOR'S CUT DVDs

Lights! Camera! Action! Wow--what a great experience for all the students! Brad, from Director's Cut, worked patiently and professionally with all the kids on the 16th to bring our rendition of "The Mitten" to fruition. I hope you have had a chance to watch the DVD that your child brought home on Friday. We had a class 'viewing' on the big screen in Mme. Mortimer's room on Friday and the kids really enjoyed seeing themselves on TV! We learned about props, costumes, sets, voice overs, backgound music, credits and editing.

A BIG THANK YOU to Cameron's Mom, Allison, for volunteering on the day of our 'shoot'! It was certainly a busy day!

THIS WEEK...

For the next 2 weeks, the SKs will be 'on the loose with Dr. Seuss'! We will be immersed in the world of Dr. Seuss and reading many of his great books (Cat in the Hat, Wacky Wednesday, Fox in Socks, The Lorax, Green Eggs and Ham, The Foot Book, etc.) and using them as starting points for a variety of math, literacy, science, and art activities. We will be focusing on hearing, finding and making rhymes. We will also have a variety of 'fun days' (Wacky Wednesday, Crazy socks day, Dr. Seuss' birthday, etc.), so watch for the schedule to come home shortly!

NICKELBY TRAVELLING JOURNAL

The kids have been asking about Nickelby our 'dog', so we will restart our travelling journal this week. During this round, we should expect to see more detailed and colourful drawings, attempts at writing (beginning/ending sounds), random letters, and for some, complete words and sentences. The children are becoming very confident writers and are very proud of the work they produce. Please encourage them to do as much of the journal as they can on their own! Watch for the orange bag.

DR. SEUSS' BIRTHDAY/VOLUNTEER BAKER NEEDED...!

This Friday is Dr. Seuss' birthday and although I won't be here (I'll be out coaching the intermediate girls' basketball team at Confederation for the day) I would like to celebrate the big day! If you enjoy baking, perhaps you would consider baking a cake or cupcakes (possibly with a Dr. Seuss theme) for our class to enjoy? Please let me know if you'd like to help out!
Thanks!

PAGE 3 of REPORT CARDS

Thanks so much to those of you who have signed and returned page 3 of the report card. I appreciate your comments very much. If you have indicated that you would like to discuss the report card, I will check in with you soon to arrange a time.

GUEST TEACHER

The children will have a guest teacher on Wednesday (I will be using day 2 of 3 for the data entry for the SK EDI (Early Development Instrument) and on Friday (I will be out coaching our intermediate girls).

Thanks for checking in and please check in again soon, as I will post the schedule of upcoming 'seuss events'!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

February 13-February 17

Hello everyone and welcome to another week!

LAST WEEK...

Last week we transformed our Drama Centre into a puppet theatre. Children have a ticket booth to 'sell' tickets, an audience section, the stage and a variety of puppets. This tied in nicely to our Kids on the Block puppet show. The SKs were a great audience...attentive and participatory! Well done! We will continue our study of 'theatre' as we prepare for our Director's Cut production of 'The Mitten'. We had our first full rehearsal with the students from Ms. Hogan's class on Friday and I thought it went very well! We are using a large white sheet as a mitten and it gets pretty crowded in there, but the kids understood their roles and did a great job. A big THANK YOU to Jack K's Aunt Evelyn for kindly agreeing to knit us the mittens!

We will continue with our puppet centre and we will be learning some new vocabulary this week, as well (props, set, costumes, scripts, stage, etc.).

PERMISSION FORMS....I'm still missing about 5 permission forms for the production on Thursday, so please be sure to send them is ASAP. Thanks!

100s DAY!

Thanks for helping us celebrate 100s Day! We had quite the collection of items! We wore our crowns, shared our collections, took pictures, shared treats, counted by 10s and 1s to 100 (and counted by 100s to add up all of Jack K's bags!). Watch for the 'class book' as it will start travelling soon!

CROCUS FLOWERS

I was about to give up on our crocuses that we planted during science class a few weeks ago, when just today, the kids noticed a few have begun to grow! Very exciting for everyone and fingers crossed that they continue to thrive. We are discussing how to care for plants, the difference between living and non-living things and hopefully, we'll be able to do some measuring and record our observations.

PLANT/FLOWER DONATIONS

If you have an extra plant or some clippings at home that you would be willing to donate to our class, we would love to care for them! I seem to have quite a few budding 'green thumbs' who are very interested in caring for plants, so I think a little 'greenhouse' by our sunny windows would be an excellent addition to our room.

LAST NAMES

Students have been working hard the last few weeks to say and identify their last names! We have them written on the circle time snowflakes and children find their last names and sit down. We will soon start printing them. This is something fun that can easily be practiced at home, as well!

SHOW AND SHARE

We finished our 'Surprise Box' Show and Share today and the children really enjoyed this activity. Thanks so much for taking the time to help your child prepare. We strengthened our writing skills, our listening skills, our critical thinking skills and became 'tallying' masters.

As February is halfway over, we will do something a little different. Instead of a monthly schedule, please watch for a 'Friendly Reflection' sheet to come home with instructions attached. Take your time completing it and send it back in when you're ready. Thanks!

SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDERS

Book order forms were sent home today and will be due on, or before, FEBRUARY 21.

PD DAY AND FAMILY DAY

Please note that Friday, Feb. 17 is a PD day and that Mon. Feb. 20 is Family Day-there are no classes.

VALENTINE'S DAY

Just a reminder to have your child wear red, pink or white tomorrow and to bring in a cut up fruit to add to our class 'Friendship Fruit Salad'...should be tasty!

Thanks for checking in and have a wonderful week!

Warmly,
Ms.Cox

Report Cards

Please note that report cards will be sent home on FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10th (not Wed. Feb. 8th, as previously stated). Sorry about that!

February 6-10

Welcome to another week!

POSITIVE POLICE

I'm happy to report that our 'positive police' force is doing a fantastic job 'catching' our friends being friendly and positive! It's been a great week and I've seen a huge jump in our positive behaviours. Well done, everyone! Be sure to check your child's hand for a 'ticket' (sticker)...

REPORT CARDS

Please note that report cards will be sent home on Wednesday, February 8th. Be sure to sign and return page 3. Thanks!

SHOW AND SHARE

We are still waiting to finish up January's Show and Share and then the new schedule will be out!

100s DAY!!

In the meantime, we'll get ready to celebrate 100s Day!! We will be celebrating the 100th day of school this Friday with games and stories. Each child will be asked to bring in a collection of 100 items (buttons, shells, pasta, coins, cars...anything to get your child counting to 100 with you!). Please place the items in a ziplock bag and label with your child's name. I'd like to take a photo of your child with his/her special collection of 100 items and then compile all the photos into a class book. Thank you in advance for your help!

KIDS ON THE BLOCK PUPPET SHOW

The primary classes will be attending a performance by 'Kids on the Block' tomorrow at 2:15pm in the gym. This is an educational puppet program that helps strengthen students' understanding and appreciation of the many social, academic, emotional and physical differences among us. Should be a great show!

EARLY DEVELOPMENT INSTRUMENT

A while back you received a letter explaining the EDI. I will be at a mandatory workshop funded by the Parent Resource Centre on Thursday, Feb.9th to learn how to use the program and enter the data.

ELKP

Carleton Heights is set to begin the Early Learning Kindergarten Program (all day) in the fall of 2012. As such, we must prepare! Ms. Muzumdar and I will be meeting on Wednesday to complete an inventory of existing materials, resources and furniture and to create a list of needed items.

VALENTINE'S DAY

February 14th is Valentine's Day and the SKs will be busy talking and reading about friendship.

Please have your child wear red or pink on the 14th and bring a fruit to add to our 'Friendship Fruit Salad'.

I will send home a class list for those who are interested in sending in Valentine cards (please send one for every friend, if you choose to participate). Thank you!

AT HOME READING

Please remember to send the ziplock bag with the folder and book inside each Thursday (I prepare them over the weekend, and I do not always have time during our day to check folders that come back late). Thank you for your understanding.

Be sure to stop by to check out some of the amazing artwork the SK's have completed. It's a blizzard of collages! Nicely done!

Have a great week!

Warmly,

Ms.Cox

January 30-February 3

Hello everyone!

SURVEY

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to fill in the 2-minute survery re: this blog! I wanted to know whether this format was helpful to families, or if the majority would prefer a monthly newsletter. Either is fine with me, but from the surveys that were returned, the majority prefers the blog, so I'll continue with it for the time being. Thanks again for your input!

LAST WEEK'S HIGHLIGHT

The children started last week with a celebratory parade of dragons and red drums to welcome the Chinese New Year! We paraded to the Child Care Centre, to Mrs. Kelly-Rubinof's Grade 1/2 and finally to see Mr. Tayler. Thank you so much for remembering to dress your child in lucky red! They looked great and I'll be sure to add the class photo to your child's portfolio.

WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON...

We are continuing with our look at 'winter'. Last week, your child brought home the booklet "In the Winter" to read with you. Look at all the sight words your son/daughter was able to find and circle! Bravo! Our class 'Word Worm' is really growing! Please continue to have your child point out letters and words as you read together.

Today we brainstormed a list of winter words and stuck them to our large snowman. Children will be encouraged to integrate these words into their own writing this week.

In math, we continue to work on recognizing, ordering and printing numbers 1-10. A "How Many?" booklet went home today to share with you. Children were encouraged to count and record the correct numeral. Others were ready to add the number word underneath. Please read through with your child and have them practise their numbers if they need it. For those ready for a greater challenge, ask them to add up 2 of the pages, or draw more items to reach a certain number (ex. "How many scarves do you need to draw to make 12?"). Have fun!
We are also continuing to count by 10s to 100, by 2s to 20 and down to 1 from 10.

The children were also very busy today creating blustery, blizzardly snow scenes using all sorts of white materials (cotton balls, lace, doilies, white paint, sponges, textured gloves, etc.). Very creative!

AT HOME READING

Our program is off to a great start and the kids seem keen to do their 'homework'! Thanks so much for supporting this important part of their learning. New books were sent home today.

SOUND BOOKS

Thanks for taking the time to complete this activity with you child. As I mentioned earlier, there is no due date, please just work at your own pace. I will check the books and add new letters each week or two.

SHOW AND SHARE

We are a little behind schedule, but should be finished January by the end of this week. Watch for February's schedule next week!

POSITIVE POLICE

The SK's are bringing in the 'positive police'! We've noticed some of our friends sometimes have a hard time remembering to use friendly voices, positive words, warm faces,helping hands, and good listening so each day we will have 2 'positive police' officers patrolling our room with their badges and stickers ready to hand out 'tickets'(stickers) to everyone they 'catch' being super positive! Don't forget to ask your child if they got 'caught' by the 'positive police'!

THE DIRECTOR'S CUT

Please find the permission form and payment fee ($5) enclosed in your child's Note Tote tonight. This is an in-class media literacy workshop and the SK's will be working with me, the Director's Cut staff and some of Ms. Hogan's students to create and perform a retelling of 'The Mitten' on February 16th. It should be loads of fun!

REPORT CARDS

Please note that report cards will be sent home on February 8th.

Thank you for checking in and have a wonderful week!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

January 16-20

Hello and welcome to another week!

WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON...

This week the children will be learning about Chinese New Year. We will be reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts ("D is for Dragon", "Bringing in the New Year", "Lion Dancer"), singing some new songs, designing and making red shakers, constructing dragon puppets, investigating the concepts of addition and subtraction using 'lucky money', practicing our number formation from 1-30 and talking about dragons (as it is the Year of the Dragon). Students will also talk about the year they were born (2006 was the Year of the Dog). We will finish off our study with a little party and a Dragon Parade with our shakers on Monday (we will dress in 'lucky' red!).

PD DAY

Please note that this Friday, January 20th is a PD Day for report card writing. Children do not come to school on Friday.

NOTE TOTES

Please ensure that your child's Note Tote comes to school each day. This system allows me to stay in touch with you, organize work and newlsetters and most importantly, it teaches your child organizational skills and responsibility. Thank you for your attention to this.

AT HOME READING PROGRAM

Our At Home Reading program is set to start next Monday. Please watch for the folder each week. It will be sent home each Monday and is to be returned (with the book, tracking sheet, Bookworm sticker-tracker, etc. in the ziploc bag each Thursday). In order for your child to earn his/her sticker it MUST BE SIGNED BY YOU (this helps me keep track of who is ready for a new book). The folder also includes an explanatory note outlining the purpose of the program, some tips and some reading strategies to use with your child. Please keep all materials in the folders. Thanks!

JOLLY PHONICS SOUND BOOKS

We have been using the Jolly Phonics letter/sound program in school once a week. This program uses movements and songs to help children associate the sounds with each letter. We then practice forming the letters in our notebooks. To supplement this program, I've decided to send home a smaller version of what we do (the letters and their movements) so that you can reinforce these at home.

Activities to try at home:

1. have your child tell you the letter, show you the movement and make the sound
2. ask you child to tell you words that begin with that sound and then write them in the book
3.ask your child to find and circle that particular letter

Please leave the Sound Book in your child's Note Tote so I can add to it.

SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDERS

January's order forms were sent home on Friday and will be due this Thursday, January 19. Thank you!

VOLUNTEER READERS

We have a new volunteer reader joining Gillian on Tuesdays. Andre and Gillian are both volunteers with Ottawa Reads and come to us from Carleton University. They are implementing our Board's Early Literacy Program (reading and talking one-on-one with each student using a provided checklist). The children really look forward to this special time. Thank you Andre and Gillian!

COLD WEATHER

Please make sure your child is dressed warmly for outdoor play. Boots and snowpants are a MUST.
Thank you for your attention to this.

LAST WEEK...

The children had a great week retelling The Mitten, setting a scene to music, using ordinal numbers (wow!!) and counting by 10's and down from 10. We have also started our Show and Share Surprise Box and are learning how to 'tally' our guesses. Well done. Thanks for helping.

That's all for now. Please don't hesitate to call or post. Have a great week!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox

January 9-13

Happy New Year and welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays.

This week...

We will continue with our look at "The Mitten" as we did not complete many of the activities before the holidays. Many friends left early, or were sick, and we were busy with our concert prep, etc.! Our focus with this particular book is to work on identifying characters, setting and the problem (the animals and Nikki, the forest, and the lost mitten/tight squeeze). We will also be focusing on retelling the story (summarizing the main events), acting it out and setting a particular scene to music.

Try this game at home...

We will be playing a new game each Monday called "Two Word Weekend". This game helps children develop their retelling/summarizing skills. It helps children focus their ideas into 2 descriptive words. They think about the bast part of their weekend and then tell us about it in 2 WORDS! Not easy, but they quickly get the hang of it. You can try it at home: "2 Word Day". Have your child tell you about the best, or worst, part of his/her day in 2 words. It's fun and it helps develop an important skill. Don't forget to model first!

THANK YOU TO SHERRI KERR!

I heard the presentation was wonderful! Thank you so much for taking the time to put on such a wonderful performance. We are very grateful. I was sorry that the busses were cancelled and that I missed it as well (both of my kids were home sick!). Everyone who was able to attend loved it! Thank you.

SHOW AND SHARE SCHEDULE

January's Show and Share schedule will be coming home this week. Watch for the "Surprise Box" (a small lunchbox). A sample and instructions are inside. This month's Show and Share will help students develop their descriptive language skills, their listening skills, as well as their logic and problem solving skills. Each student chooses a small item from home to place in the box and then writes 3 clues to read to the class. We will also be learning about tallying as we record how many guesses it takes the class to solve the riddle! Thanks for helping!

FOOD DRIVE

Thank you so much for all of your generous donations. This activity helps develop children's awareness of others, as well as strengthening their sense of empathy and sharing. The school raised 23 boxes...close to 900 pounds of food! WOW!

AT HOME READING PROGRAM

We will begin our "At Home Reading" program this month. Each child will receive a folder with a book and a tracking sheet. These books are levelled readers that focus on repetition, pattern and sight words. The purpose of these books is to help children feel successful as readers. Not all children are reading, so we will support them by reading to them and having them repeat back to us. You will notice that children seem to 'memorize' the book rather than 'reading' it. This is an important step towards learning to read and is to be encouraged and praised. This program is designed to build your child's confidence as a reader! Never let your child struggle or get frustrated. Keep it short and fun and offer lots of support. This program is NOT meant to replace the nightly reading of high quality storybooks and non-fiction books that you read with your child. Children need to hear high quality literature, challenging vocabulary and the rhythmn of language that reading aloud provides. More deatils to follow!

Have a fantastic week and please continue to check in regularly!

Warmly,
Ms. Cox