Our First Full Week!

Greetings, Families!

I hope you had a fantastic weekend – the weather was amazing! It was great to get outside and enjoy it. I hope you did, too!

Last week was our first full week at the helm. While I was away with my Dad helping him to hobble home on Tuesday and Wednesday, the children did a lovely job learning with our guest teacher, Miss James! I was so pleased to get such positive feedback about their adventures – they are really getting the hang of the big school. I am so proud of them.

We began our Reader’s Workshop last week – children were able to pick some favorite books for their very own book box. We learned about how to enjoy books when you can’t read all the words. We practiced finding and staying in our own special spots to read. Next week (9/25), please help your child to bring in their favorite book from home. We will use it for the week and return it on Friday. 

In math, we worked on our “Growth Mindset” lessons and will finish them up this week in math. It has been fun to work through these activities with sorting, shape building and number exploration. We also worked on a few new math workplaces that involve building 3-D shapes, counting pennies, creating shapes using rubber bands and rolling dice to match number values with their symbols.

Finally, we had our 4Winds session outside in the forest on Friday. It was SUCH an interesting and engaging time. We learned about different types of metamorphosis and spent time finding insects in our midst. The lesson was especially pertinent as we are currently on butterfly standby in our classroom! We have a keen eye on our 4 chrysalises hanging delicately. Many thanks to our 4Winds Teachers – Andrea, Sarah, and Mary. We are already looking forward to next session in October.

 

 

 

Important Dates to Remember:

9/20 – Mountain Day – All School Hike up Mt. Philo – leaving school at 10:30.

9/22 – Book Orders Due – Online or via paper catalogue

9/27 – Open House at Robinson School – 6-7pm

9/29 – Kindergarten Field Trip to Adams Apple Orchard in Williston – departing 9ish

10/3 – Early Release Day

10/6 – Picture Day – More info to come home in Friday Folders soon

10/10 ANESU Math Night – Mt. Abe, 6:00

10/16 and 10/17 Parent Conferences, 3-7 pm

10/19 and 10/20 No School

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More Fun Beginnings…

 

Hello Families,

I hope you are doing well and weathering these rainy days. Inside recess has been kind of a drag but we managed to go out for our “Timber Tuesday” session despite the raindrops and mosquitos.

As you can see from our photos, we continue to learn about the rules and routines of our learning spaces. We practiced how to show with our bodies that we are ready to learn. Can you guess which pictures show our learning circle expectations? See if you can match the following expectations to the pictures below:

  1. Eyes are watching.
  2. Ears are listening.
  3. Mouths are resting.
  4. Body is still.

Try matching our line expectations to the pictures below, too:

  1. Eyes forward.
  2. Hands to our sides.
  3. Mouths at rest
  4. Walk behind the person you follow.

Along with making books about our rules and expectations, we practiced our self-regulation skills by playing a “freeze dance” game and a treasure hunt game. We really love those activities. Finally, Doreen taught us all about going through the lunch line which we practiced and she gave us all a yummy apple!

We experienced our first time in the Forest Classroom on Tuesday! It was a super fun time to check out the parts of our classroom in the woods. Did you know we found a castle, a boat and a neighborhood of fairy houses right in our very own woods? The fairy houses even had glitter sprinkles in them! On Friday afternoon, we extended this first experience by discussing the expectations to keep us having fun, learning, and staying safe in our woods. We read a story and worked with a partner to do a scavenger hunt. We also had lots of play time in the forest so that we can start to get to know it well.

We practiced math by using some math tools we will use this year. We also filled up our book boxes with some favorites and tried out some special reading spots around the room. Next week, we are going to follow the youcubed.org program of “A Week of Inspirational Math” to lay a strong foundation for exploration and growth as mathematicians. Here’s the website if you’re interested:

https://www.youcubed.org/week-inspirational-math/

I apologize for the absence of Friday Folders – they haven’t shipped yet as they are coming from the Houston area. I am hoping they will be ready to roll next week. If you could just send permission slips back in the backpacks, I will look for them.

Thank You!

Happy Weekend!

Important Dates to Remember:

*9/20 – Mountain Day – All School Hike on Mt. Philo

*9/22 – Book Order Forms Due

*9/27 – Open House

*9/29 – Apple Picking Field Trip to Adams in Williston – 9:00 departure

 

 

 

 

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Our First Few Days!

Wowzers, Families!

We have had a super, duper first few days in Kindergarten! We colored pictures, made crowns, played games, sang songs, ate ice cream sandwiches, made towers, drew with chalk and laughed and smiled a lot. I am so impressed with the energy, kindness and enthusiasm they have shown each day! I know we’re going to have a super amazing year together!

Highlights of our days include lots of firsts:

*First All School Assembly – MARS – where we met our new school mascot – Rockin’ Robin – and learned about our whole school expectations. Check out the Addison Northeast Supervisory Union Page on Facebook to see the video of the MARS presentation.

*First Lunch in the Cafeteria – yummy pizza! And breakfast in the mornings, too.

*First set of recess times on the front and the back playground

*First time using our own pencil cases with supplies

*First Art Class with Mrs. Joy

*First set of safety drills as a school – fire drill, etc.

*First time learning the expectations in all the learning spaces in our school. We learned the rules from our peers at each location – playground, bathroom, lunchroom, bus line, hallway, stairway. It was awesome!

*First All School Community Games this afternoon – we played cooperative games and celebrated our hard work with an ice-cream sandwich!

*First Friday Folder sent home. Please send back Book Orders by 9/22.

 

Have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend! I hope you are able to spend time relaxing with your family and friends. Thank you for sharing your amazing children with me this year! I am really looking forward to our time together!

We have Wellness on Tuesday as well as Forest Classroom in the afternoon. Please make sure your child is dressed for weather – it shows we could have rain – and that they have sneakers for Wellness.

 

 

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What a Wonderful Year!

We have had an amazing year together.

Here are a few pictures from our last few days. We visited our forest spots for one last time as Kindergartners. We decorated them with a thankful flag decorated with a favorite part of nature. We had an awards ceremony and got some cool pictures, too.

Thank you so much for sharing your amazing children with me. This day is bittersweet for me. I will miss seeing these sweet faces every day but I know they are ready for first grade!

Have a wonderful summer.

 

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Amazing Forest Animal Reports and a FANTASTIC Day at the pond!

 

What a blast we had at the pond yesterday and we really lucked out with the weather! The children and adults just had a glorious day together. We were so thankful to share in the delight of this special place. What a way to send us off into summer and First Grade!

Here is the link to our Animal Reports “Movie.” We wrote and illustrated a book about our forest animals. We picked our favorite page to read out loud. Hope you enjoy the show! You have to advance the slide manually. Just copy and paste this address and it will take you there.

https://voicethread.com/myvoice/thread/9229748/52696404/52375020

Let me know if you can’t hear/see the movie.

 

Dates/Info to remember:

*Monday – 6/12 – NO WELLNESS

*Tuesday – Field Day – 1-2:30 – please send your child in SNEAKERS!

*Wednesday – LAST MARS 8:15-9:00 – Celebrate 6th Graders; 9-9:30 – Musical Showcase

*Thursday – 6:00 pm – Graduation

*Friday – 10:00 – Step Up – Children meet their First Grade teacher/class

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL IS A HALF DAY! Busses leave at 11:45

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Bird Reports and Time Sure Flies…

 

 

Hello Families,

Last week we spent time with our friends from Ms. Myriah’s class sharing our bird reports. Their class studied Cardinals and we studied the American Robin. So, we got to exchange information about our fine, feathered friends.

On Friday, we shared our animal reports with them. We have been using the Internet platform, PebbleGo! to research about our forest animal. Each of us has an animal name for Forest Fridays so we are researching anything from a fox to a skunk. The children have really enjoyed using the Google Chromebooks to learn more information about the animals. Then, we translated that information to our reports. Many thanks to Mrs. Mitchell for helping with this project. It is a bit challenging to help 10 children navigate the Internet at the same time.

Last Friday, we had a BLAST in the forest. Almost all of the children were wondering how the time went by so fast. We were so busy making teeter-totters, some children made a “ride” on a vine that was hanging from a taller tree, we dug worms and counted them, we cleared land for some new buildings we want to create, we made mud pie smoothies and cakes and some of us played house. We have had such an amazing year out in the woods. The children are also creating “Thankful Wish Flags” with Mrs. Gombosi that they will hang in their Sit Spots as a farewell and a thanks for our time in the woods. Next Friday, we hope to dig up the pumpkins we buried near the entrance to the Forest Classroom in the Fall. One pumpkin was filled with “trash” and the other was filled with natural materials – compost. We will share the findings that we unearth!

Dates to Remember:

6/7 – Field Trip to Cousino Pond

6/9 – Our Last “official” Forest Friday

6/16 – Last Day of School – Children dismissed after lunch. 11:45

 

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The Very Merry Month of May!

EE83ED89-CFA2-4C49-A50A-A95001E40185Greetings, Families!

I hope you are all surviving all of this blasted rain we’ve been having. UGH! I am ready for warmer, Spring temps.

We have begun the busy month of May – this is the home stretch of Kindergarten. It is always such a gratifying time of year for me – I can truly see all of the growth and learning we’ve accomplished in our classroom.

This past week, we put the finishing touches on our non-fiction books about the American Robin. We have been working hard to make our writing clear and detailed. This week, we are going to get together with Miss Myriah’s students to exchange information about backyard birds. Her class has been learning about the Cardinal.

Next. we are going to use our “forest names” as the focus of our individualized, non- fiction reports. We are hoping to share our reports in a Voice Thread (video) platform, so, we will send you the link when it is complete.

In math, we are practicing numbers beyond 20 and also reviewing the “teen” numbers. We have learned a few new workplaces that have to do with building and comparing equations, too.

In the next few weeks, we will be completing the formal end-of-the-year assessments in math and reading. Along these lines, I will have a sub on 5/15 so that I can complete the math work. Additionally, I will be out on 5/24 to complete the Reading assessment. I will be in the building but I will be working with each student.

This Wednesday (5/10), we are headed to Mt. Abe for the afternoon to view the Fine Arts Festival Gallery and Presentations. We will go after lunch and recess and be back at school in time for the buses. If you’d like to meet us there, we’d love to see you! It is such a special event – each child in our ENTIRE district has a piece on display. Our art teacher, Mrs. Gombosi has worked tirelessly to highlight the creative minds at work in her art studio!

On Thursday (5/11), Myriah and I are headed to Keene, NH for the day. We are participating in a conference sponsored by Antioch University – “Promising Practices in Nature-based Early Childhood Education” – Mrs. Brakeley will be subbing for me that day. We can’t wait to learn and to experience all that this conference has to offer!

Here are a few pictures from Forest Friday this past week. It was soggy but Andy installed a new tarp over our new platform (THANK YOU COUSINO FAMILY!) so we stayed a little dryer… As always, it was really fun!! Sorry we sent them home so muddy!

 

Important Dates to Remember – this time of year always goes FAST!

*The last book orders are due on 5/12 so if you think you would like to order something, please do so by that date. The link to follow on the web to order is:
Our class code is: H2M3D
*The First Grade Placement Forms are due this week! Please have them to me by Tuesday (5/9) at the latest!
*We will be going to Shelburne Farms on 5/22. If you haven’t given me your permission slip and the money for the trip, please do so quickly! Also, WE NEED a few more drivers for the trip. Please let me know if you can help us!
*Please consider signing your child up for the Summer ELP Program. It looks amazing! Here is more information below!
The summer Expanded Learning Program is open for registration! Another round of sign-up forms will be going home in Friday folders and can also be found online at https://sites.google.com/site/anesuelp/bristol-elp/schedule
 
The program runs for 5 weeks from July 3rd to August 4th from 8AM to Noon M-F. You can sign up for one week or all!  This summer the ELP will be emphasizing robotics, coding, circuitry, foreign language, culture, literature, and outdoor education. No summer program offers more for your learner than ANESU’s Expanded Learning Program. A bus option is available for morning pick up and afternoon drop off.
 
Please contact John Amory at jamory@anesu.org with any questions.
*FINALLY – but very importantly – our school is going to do a food drive for the next few weeks. If you can contribute to this event, with non-perishable food items or cash donations, it would be greatly appreciated. We are honoring Mrs. Shep’s service to our school as she retires soon with a Food Drive for the Starksboro Food Shelf.
Check out Ms. Myriah’s blog for some amazing pictures – she is really a talented photographer! Glad to have her on my team!
Happy Sunday! Enjoy time with your family on this rainy day!
Let me know if you have any questions.
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April Happenings so far!

WOW! Time is really flying here in Kindergarten. This time of year always seems to speed by! Here are some photos from our most recent adventures…

 

Our latest adventure in 4 Winds was all about birds! It was such fun! We have been watching the Decorah, IA Eagle Cam in class – watching an eagle family – the web address is  www.explore.org. Feel free to check it out over break!

 

A very special thanks to Chris Runcie for making our maple sugaring dreams come true by leading us through the process (without all that waiting while the sap boils!) at her home. What a special activity! We loved it – especially meeting Chris’ dog, Maggie and trying the syrup. It was a super rainy day but no match for our smiling faces and warm hearts!

We were lucky to have seen the 5/6 performance of MacBeth this morning during MARS. I hope you all have a lovely April vacation!

 

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