Part of my job

Most of my job as a Kindergarten teacher is to teach the ideas laid out in the curriclum.  Things like the alphabet, counting, recognizing number sets, changes in our environment, etc.  But there are things that I teach that are also as important as the curriculum guidelines. 

One of my jobs as a Kindergarten is to teach your child self reliance , confidence in themselves,   ability to problem solve, and deal with difficult situations.  It is not always easy to sit back while a student struggles with a task that they deem too difficult as it would be easier if I did it for them.  I know that these small struggles are what makes them more confident and self reliant.   I am the first to cheer with them when they do succeed and it warms my heart when they do so.  I love to hear when they are able to tackle a task thought to be too difficult and the sight of them with the look of excitement of their face is something that brings a tear to my eye every time. I am proud of all them. 

Nutrition Nazi

I apologize for being so picky with lunches this past week.  Part of the expectation across the board for Health as a curriculum is to promote and teach healthy eating.  If we are able to show and teach kids about healthy eating and they start to eat healthier they will have more energy, be ready and able to learn, sustain attention and have less mood swings.  I am expecting that lunches will contain fruits and vegetables as well as the other food groups.  I understand (as I am a parent too) that lunches are the last things on our brains some of the time but taking the time to pack a healthy lunch most of the time will pay off.  So, please send only one or two small "extras" to help with that.  Raising Healthy Eaters and  Super Healthy kids are two websites that I visit for more information and interesting  lunchtime and healthy eating ideas. Please feel to contact me if you have any questions. Thank you.

Kaleidoscopes

We made kaleidoscopes with pattern blocks today.  It was so good to see them being so careful with their work.  I have attached their work.  I have not added faces to keep it anonymous.  Please attach a comment to the end of this blog and let me know if you think  it should be anonymous or if I can show faces.  Really I just want to know who reads the blog.  lol . 
Halloween party on Friday.  We will not be attending Spooktacular on Friday as it will interfere with our party.  Boys will bring snacks (small plate only). 

Check out the kaleidoscopes - they are really cool. 
Sorry for the lateness.  Computer issues again.  I feel I am cursed. 

The Next Couple of Days and How to be a Friend

As I previously stated I will not be here Thursday or Friday so I will not be posting in the agenda.  I have sent home a floruide consent form for you to fill out if interested.  Halloween party will be next Friday so we will not be doing spooktacular with the rest of the school. 
I am asking the boys in the class to please bring a small healthy snack to share with the class - not too big as we have lots.  We will share this in the afternoon.  We will be doing activities in the classroom so if you want to come and join us you are welcome to come.  We will start the afternoon with a tour of the school to show off our costumes.  Please do not send your child in their costume in the morning as it is too hard to do the morning normally.  We will get dressed after noon recess.  I will help those who are finding it too difficult to dress on their own. 

We have talked about how to deal with small problems and I have told the kids that they need to tell the person who is bothering them that "Stop doing that.  I don't like it - let's try this instead"  because some of  the students are being "told on" all the time.  They are still to come to me with big problems.  I would rather that we all work on being a good friend to all the class because kids respond to other kids very well.  We'll see how that works. 
Please email me if you have any questions. 
Have a good weekend!

Pictures from Friday and good things of the day

Thanks to the Brittania Wilton Fire Department members - Shane, Shane and Dean.  We appreciate it!


Just a reminder - I will not be here on Thursday and Friday. 

Just today I was so proud of two Kindergarten students.  One came to me to tell me that the toilet paper was empty... "oh- what should we do" was my response. " Oh we already changed it for you!" 
Yeah - what little workers I have!   

Ah Friday!!!!

It seemed like that work week just flew by... oh right. I was only there one day. I have to say I haven't been that sick in years.  Three days on the couch and I couldn't move without wanting to sleep. 

Today was a rush. We started with a visit from our friendly neighbourhood firemen.  We love it when the Wilton Britannia Firemen come to visit.  They are all such good sports. 
We learned about smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, STOP DROP AND ROLL and how to use 911.  They suggested that all families make and practise a fire escape plan and that your land location or address is available for all to see in case of emergencies.  One thing that I like is that they always dress up as "real firefighters" and show the kids that is not something to be scared of in case they were ever in a fire. 
I will try to add pictures later when I get back to school as they are on the school network....

I am sorry for not sending a note home.  My computer is not helpful and does not play with the rules so I can often not print when I need to.  Any time that I do not send home a note, please look here and I will try to post. 

Please remember to send your child in clothes appropriate for the fall season.  Some of the child have come to school in only a thin bunnyhug and are cold before the recess has hardly started.  I swear that there is an Arctic iceberg just over the hill when the wind starts blowing so it can get very cold out there.  A pair of mitts would help too (please label them clearly as one pair of black mitts look just like another to a five year old.)

I will be gone Thursday and Friday next week as I am the cochair of the Saskatchewan Early Childhood Educators Conference in Saskatoon so I will be at school Monday to Wednesday.  Please feel free to call or email or text if you have any questions before I go. 

We will have a Halloween party on Oct. 28 in the pm.  We typically have a party where we dress up and tour the school and then play some games and share some healthy(and unhealthy) treats.  Parents are welcome to join us if you like and little siblings can come if they would like.  I will send a real note next week. 
Have a great weekend. 
Robyn Hunter

September is over - oh how it flew by!!

Thanks to all the parents who have sent back the information and papers so quickly.  As well,  let me know if there is something that you don't understand because chances are that someone else has the same questions.  Remember there are no silly questions and I promise not to laugh. 
Heads up that even though it is not a Kindergarten day,  parents are welcome to bring their children and families to join us at the Thanksgiving dinner.  More info will be sent out in the coming days. 
Scholastic orders are due on Oct. 7th.
And I promise that I will add to the blog.......I promise!

The 2011 school year is fast approaching

I have sent out an email to all my new Kindergarten parents so please look in your inboxes for more information.  If you are a parent that has a Kindergarten child that has not received your email or you are new to the school and do not know about our pre entry interviews, please feel free to contact me at robyn.hunter@nwsd.ca.  First day of school for Grade One to 12 is August 31.  First day of real school for K is Tuesday September 6th.  Can't wait to see you soon. 

EWWWWW!

We have been learning about handwashing in Kindergarten and we did a potato experiment last week.  The potato on the right was not touched by human hands and the potato on the left was wellhandled by unwashed Kindergarten hands.   If you want to see some more grossness take a look on my Science page for pictures of washed and unwashed hands and a short germ video!

Something to brighten your day!

I have loved this commercial since I first saw it on TV about a month ago.  Now if we all were like this wouldn't the world be a wonderful place!

Optimism Commercial

Hope you enjoy this gloriously windy Thursday!  (How's that for optimism at its best!)

What to Measure with?

We have been learning about measuring and we use a lot of non standard measurement.  That means we don't use a ruler but rather we use things like paper clips, shoes or unifix cubes.  Today we were brainstorming where it what would be a more appropriate measure - paper clips or unifix cubes.  I quickly realized that they were unsure of where to use each one.  For example they though they could use a shoe to measure a piece of paper and paper clips to measure a vehicle.
So just like the Magic School Bus we were off on a field trip!  They quickly learned that paper clips take forever when you are measuring something big.  But they perservered and discovered it was around 300 paper clips long but only 13 shoes long.  After we were done both they had a better understanding of where each unit would be best used.
Blogger is being painful.  I will try to upload pics later!  Happy Wednesday!

Easter Bunny Art

I wanted to let you see the finished product of the Art from yesterday.  We started with a guided drawing lesson that had them adding the parts one at a time.  When we started the year I would only do with at least one other adult to help me go around the room to make sure the ovals and other shapes we drew with were the "right" size and placement on the page.  Now I can stand and draw the pieces on the easel at the front of the room and they can do it ON THEIR OWN!!  Each one is so different that the other but they are all fabulous in their own right!  You rock Kindergarten!!!!

Peek a Boo I see you!!!!

I am so sorry that I haven't been posting.  My life has been crazy and I haven't made it a priority to post to my blog.  Kindergarten are gettting so capable and when I look back to where we have come from they are getting so BIG and MATURE!

Today we are working on drawing Easter Bunnies through guided drawing.  We have some awesome little artists in our room!  Enjoy a wonderful spring morning!

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

Today we got to celebrate a really cool day.  Dr. Seuss was born on Mar.2 so what better day than this to do a bunch of Dr. Seuss Activities.  This morning we made oobleck after reading BARTHOLOMEW AND THE OOBLECK.  The ingredients are really easy.  All you need is cornstarch and water. 

Mix together 2 parts cornstarch and one part water.  Mix until the water no longer sits on top.  Put into a bowl and enjoy.  I dare you not to.  The kids have had a fabulous time.

I have added a link to the Dr. Seuss website so that your kids can enjoy some Seuss at home. 

Enjoy the rest of your Dr. Suess Day!

Leaving on a Jet plane

I just wanted to let you know that I will not be at school tomorrow as I going on a trip.  I can't wait to see the kids on Feb. 28th.  Till then,  enjoy the snow and curl up and enjoy their kids! 

Mmmmmm Cookies.

We have iced the cookies and in the words of the kids they are not good.  They are fantastic, scrumptious, delicious, lovely and divine (all words they came up with!).  The sugar should wear off before they get home!

Friday Morning Funny!

This morning when we were making the icing for our cookies, I asked the kids how their Moms and Dads made icing.  As we went around the room  I was asking each how they made icing until I got to one boy who said,"  I don't know she makes it out of a measuring cup?  Is that homemade?"  They are so cute!

Our Busy Thursday

As a treat the Kindergarten class made cookies today.  Wegot to watch while I made the sugar cookie dough (did you know you can make it without eggs?) and they told me about all the fabulous things they make with mom and dad. 
They had a great time rolling out the dough and making the cookies in "valentime" shapes and not cannot wait until they get to ice them tomorrow. 
This afternoon we had a guest speaker.  Steve Harmer came to do a magic show to reinforce the topic of friendship.  They all had a Fabulous time and were sad to see him go.

Can't wait to see the kids tomorrow. 

What we make with our mess

Remember the mess that the kids made last week?  Well today we did something with them.    Here are some of them.  They all turned out so well.  It is really neat to see what is created from the simple finger painting that they made last week.  Happy Valentines week.  Can't wait for the party on Friday!

What Happens When We Paint

There are no words to describe the fun they have and the mess they make.  Have a great Friday!

When Ale comes to visit

On Day 6 we are lucky to have one of our Grade 12 students come in and help.  The kids always enjoy when Ale comes to visit as they have a chorus of "Ale's here" when she comes in the door.  She always reads to the kids and they listen intently to the story.  Today she helped us with our Groundhog craft and our alphabet and letters work.  Be sure to ask your child what they named their groundhog.  We talked about the famous groundhog names so there is Hillmond Harry, Greenstreet Gertie,  Sandy Beach Sally, etc. 
We really appreciate having Ale come to our room!

What we learned in Kindergarten today!

Today was a day that an interesting lesson was learned!  At lunch when the kids have heat up they will ask me how long to heat up their lunch.  I will read the directions and tell them how long by giving them the numbers to punch in.  If they are not sure a more experienced microwaver will help them.
Today a student brought a piece of pizza and asked how to long to do it.  I said that 1-0-0 would be good for it.  She went to the microwave and punched in the numbers and I went along my business.  A couple minutes later I heard the kids exclaim, "There's a fire" as they opened the door of the microwave to smoke billowing out.  When I looked at the microwave and it had 430 left on the microwave it quickly became apparent that 1-0-0-0 had been entered instead.  I had a quick lesson on the importance of zeroes in numbers and made quick work on opening windows. 
As I cleaned I listened to the kids talk abou the fire safety lessons they had back in October.  They asked if they should stop drop and roll as another told the number that they would need to call.   Before long they had told many of the things they should worry about in a fire!  And I never said a thing!  Good job Kindergarten!
So if you child came home smelling like they had fought a fire...... you could say they did!

Ahhh January~!

I am sorry that I have not updated the blog.  Life has been busy here and the time has not been taken.  I am sorry.  Almost all of the kids were sick today. Only 8 little faces came to school today.  I have reminded them to cough into their hand or arm as this is something we all have to work on. 
There will be one more round of skating on Monday at 1:17 to 2:07 so if you are able we would appreciate some help.  Thanks to those who have been able to help.
I apologize if youir child come home a little cooped up we have had what seems like 3 months of inside recesses. We are trying our best but it is TOOOO cold to go outside.

Happy Thursday - see you Monday!

Back to School - January Style

Happy New Year to you all.  I am so glad to see that the students had a restful (hehe) break and have come back to school energized and ready to learn.  I think some of them have grown two inches over the break.  January is a time of tremendous growth in Kindergarten (seems they have little else to put their minds to at this time of year!).  I will be testing the kids again to see where they are with letters and numbers.  If I have any concerns as to the rate they are learning them I will let you know in the coming weeks. 
We are continuing to work on wating to speak and not to interrupt when others are talking as well as speaking in full sentences.  I know that many of you already expect this at home and I thank you for that. 
I hope that your first week back in the school routine goes well and I will talk to you soon.
Thanks to those parents who have sent cans and boxes of food (empty) to school to fill up our grocery store.  We still need more grocery items to round out the store so any others items would be greatly appreciated.