Continuing our story "Sam and Dave Dig a Hole"

In literacy, the students of Room 108 focused on Retelling the story Sam and Dave Dig a Hole before finding out the conclusion. They practiced making predictions of what they think might happen. When the story was over, the students worked in groups and completed a Reading Response Activity and answered the questions "How you would change the ending of the story?".

Ask your student to discuss the story at home and "Retell" the events to enhance oral Language Development. 

Check out what some students came up with.....

At home: Have your child predict what is going to happen next. Ask them to draw a picture of their favourite part or something that they imagine will happen next. Have them retell the story using the pictures.

Learning Goal: To listen and retell the story “Sam and Dave Dig a Hole” and to make predictions.

Success Criteria:

-I can listen to the story “Sam and Dave Dig a Hole"

-I can make predictions of what is going to happen next

-I can draw a picture of what I think Sam and Dave are going to find when they dig

-I can use my imagination and predict what is going to happen next in the story

-After we read parts of the story, I can retell the story to the whole class

-I can draw a picture of what I would change about the ending 

Transforming our Drama Centre….

The students of Room 108 have been working hard to create a Pizza Restaurant. From the initial idea to the materials they are using to “role-play”, they students have created EVERYTHING. It has been a great process and they are very excited to be acting as: waiters, customers, chefs, hostesses etc... 

The students worked hard with Ms. Saplala to create a pizza oven and make it as realistic as possible. The students used boxes, construction paper, paint and gift paper to make the pizza oven. We have set up all the toppings and ensured that the kitchen is set up properly for the chef.

The students used felt to create the toppings of the pizza and continue to sort (math) the toppings daily when putting them away. 

The students created the decorations and posters for the tables/walls by using gift paper and a water battle to create a vase. We added a flower from their ideas of making the restaurant look nice. The students worked with Ms. Givelos to create Menus. Through our inquiry, we investigated many different types of menus to be able to decide on our type of menu. We created different menus and practiced writing. 

The students made the outside of the Pizza Restaurant look like the outside of a Pizza Restaurant and put "posters" up of what they serve to attract "customers". We also put up an Open/Closed sign so that people know when our restaurant is "open".

Room 108 then decided to paint "spheres" to create ice cream scoops for desert. The students of Room 108 are enjoying "role-playing" in the Pizza Restaurant and have been showing:
1. Team work by working together
2. Responsibility by taking care of the items and by sharing with each other
3. Patience by giving others a turn
4. Oral Communication as they are expressing their needs and getting into character 

Playing in Kindergarten? Why is it important? Here is a video for you to watch from a school in England outlining the importance of allowing your child to PLAY and INQUIRE.  Click this link to access the video: Learning and Development through Play

Letter of the Week “D” Activity:

This week we are focusing on the Letter D in Literacy. We are also focusing on “Predicting”. We started reading the text “Sam and Dave dig a hole”. 

The story begins with the Sam and Dave beginning to dig a hole, we stopped on Page 2 and the students had a group discussion of what they think Sam and Dave would find:

 
"I think they will find treasure, like necklaces and money" - Tyler

"Maybe they will find a little bunny" - Marquis

"I think they might find a hedgehog because they live in tunnels" - Whayne

"Maybe they will find a race car track buried" -Malachi

"Maybe they will find a worm" -Vanessa

The students did a great job of connecting to their prior knowledge, experiences and other books they have read both outside of school.

Their next task was to put their thoughts on paper, and use their imagination to draw out what they think Sam and Dave would find:

Curriculum Expectations:

1.2 listen and respond to others for a variety of purposes

1.4 follow and provide one- and two-step directions in different contexts

1.8 ask questions for a variety of purposes (have a class discussion)

1.9 describe personal experiences, using vocabulary and details appropriate to the situation

2.1 demonstrate an interest in reading

2.4 respond to a variety of materials read aloud to them

4.1 demonstrate an interest in writing (draw ideas)

2.5 make predictions regarding an unfamiliar text that is read by and with the EL–K team, using prior experience, knowledge of familiar texts, and general knowledge of the world around them

2.6 use prior knowledge to make connections

 What's Next:

Tomorrow we will find out what happens in the story and discuss why or how it was different from what we thought. In centres, they students will reenact the story to help enhance their oral communication skills (repeating the words) as well as self-regulation (waiting their turn, performing for their audience, praising each other).

Strategies at home:

When you are reading with your child at home try to pause between pages and predict with your child what might happen next and why. Ask them if the story reminds them of anything and try to make personal connections. 

Math: 3D Shapes

The students of Room 108 when on a scavenger hunt around the room to identify different shapes that they found. We focused on:

a)    Cylinders

b)    Cones

c)     Rectangular Prisms

d)    Cubes

e)     Spheres 

                                             

                  

At home: Have your child find the various shapes and describe their properties.

Exploring the Features of Shapes:

  

As our letter of the week is R (cross-curricular math and science), we focused on how 3D shapes “roll” down “ramps”. We explored different shapes and discussed what helps them roll (round edges, curved edges etc…) We compared different shapes and the class predicted which shapes would roll or slide and why. In discovery centres, through play, the students of Room 108 explored various items in the classroom and tested their ability to "roll", they also played around with the height of the ramp.

Letter of the week: R

To stay consistent with our letter of the week, our Art task this week is creating “Red Rectangle Robots”.

Our DRAMA CENTRE is UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

Room 108 has agreed to turn the drama centre into a Restaurant. Over the next few weeks we will be creating menus, pictures and re-creating the layout of the drama centre. Discuss what a restaurant might look like with your child and maybe have them come up with ideas that they can share with the class. 

Writing:

To kick off the new year, the students of Room 108 have started their Holiday Writing, on Jan 5^th, each student shared something they enjoyed about the holiday. Their task was then to draw a picture of it and then to explain it to Ms. Saplala or Ms. Givelos. Once completed their first copy, they worked one on one with Ms. Givelos to ask what they would change about their drawing or add (just like an author would do in a book). This is what we have so far….

Language Curriculum Expectations:

-describe personal experiences, using vocabulary and details appropriate to the situation

- orally retell simple events and simple familiar stories in proper sequence

-demonstrate an interest in writing

- begin to use classroom resources to support their writing -communicate ideas about personal experiences and/or familiar stories, and experiment with personal voice in their writing

Literacy Centres:

We have added a new centre that students can choose to try out, which is focusing on letter recognition and fine motor (tracing).

Math: 3D Shapes

 Lesson based on book: Jack The Builder

 Jack the Builder is about a little boy who lets his imagination soar as he builds exciting things using 3D blocks.

The students of Room 108 took part of a 2 day lesson focusing on shapes. The first day the students began reading the book Jack The Builder and recognizing (reviewing) the 2D shapes within 3D Shapes. They would see the amount of blocks that Jack would use and try to imagine what he might be making, which they would discover throughout the book. The second day, the lesson was focused on introducing the 3D shapes (cube, cylinder, rectangular prism, cone, sphere) and seeing how Jack uses them to build.

Activity: The students had 3D shapes (that were both typical 3D shapes and unusual shapes) and created various items. In their groups, they presented what they had made as a group to the rest of the class (oral communication).

Activities at home: Have your child go on a scavenger hunt at home and locate 3D shapes and how they are used.

Stay tuned… Without the next week, we will have a scavenger hunt/3D match in the class and will be focusing on the various properties of 3D shapes (flat, round etc…)

Math Curriculum Expectations:

- explore, sort, and compare traditional and non-traditional two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional figures

- identify and describe, using

common geometric terms, two dimensional shapes (e.g., triangle)and three-dimensional figures (e.g., cone) through investigation with concrete materials

- build three-dimensional structures using a variety of materials and begin to recognize the three-dimensional figures their structure contains

- investigate the relationship between two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional figures in objects that they have 

Inquiry: The students of Room 108 have been asked their opinion on what we should change the drama centre too.. They came up with many ideas and we will have a vote within the next few days. 

TED Talks

TED Talks! There are some great online talks for both parents and educators. Here is one that I recently came across (also saved in the Articles Page) that focuses on growth mindsets vs. fixed mindsets and the impact that educators and parents can have on their child's learning.

TED Talk: The Power of Believing You Can Improve