Enjoying an Old Favourite

With the bitter cold temperatures and mounds of snow outside, this is the time of year when we like to snuggle in and enjoy some lovely wintertime storybooks. An old favourite is the classic Ukrainian folktale, The Mitten, retold and illustrated by Jan Brett. Her gorgeous illustrations and unique embellishments make it a wonderful read each year.

We read the book over a number of days last week and focused upon different comprehensive elements each day. Following the reading on day two, students were given pictures from the text out of order and asked to put them back in order using the sequencing words first, next, then and finally.

On the final day reading the book, a large, felt mitten and pictures of all of the animals in the story were placed in the reading centre so that the children might reenact the story themselves. 

Estimation

In addition to learning about Canadian coins and their  respective values, we have been doing some simple estimating in our classroom. It all began by explaining what estimating was and why it is important. We then talked about the importance of an estimate being 'reasonable.' Students were shown a chart paper with random snowflakes scattered all over it. Without counting the snowflakes, they were then asked to estimate how many they thought were there in all. For a first time attempt at estimating, the boys and girls did quite well. On the next day, an estimation centre was placed in the room for the students to visit during free choice play time. Students were asked to estimate how many 'snowballs' there were in a small Ziploc bag. Here are the results.

Further opportunities to work on bettering our estimating skills will be made available to the children in the upcoming weeks.

Calling All Twins

On Thursday, January 16th, students are invited to partner with a classmate and come dressed as twins. Be creative and have a lot of fun planning what you'll wear and how you will style your hair. Look for pictures in our school hallway and see if you can tell us apart.

Pets For Sale

With the coming of the new year, there are new rumblings occurring in our Dramatic Play Centre. Early last week, the students brainstormed a list of possible ideas for our Dramatic Play Centre. An overwhelming majority of votes were cast toward creating a pet shop. Once the decision was made, a name for the stop was decided upon, the Parnall Pet Shop. A sign was quickly designed and furniture in the area was swiftly arranged to better replicate the layout of a pet store. The boys and girls were able to get some great ideas from the illustrations in the book, Franklin Wants a Pet, which was read to the class on Wednesday. Throughout the week, several students decided to bring in props and stuffies to fill out the shelves. It was determined that one of the important props missing was…money. This led to a discussion about Canadian coins and bills. Students decided to make their own money, rather than use plastic play money. Mr. Pickett introduced two songs to aid students in associating value and Canadian symbols to their creations. If your child wishes to bring something from home to add to our pet shop, please make sure that it is not too precious and that it is well labelled. Be on the lookout for upcoming pictures of this popular, new centre on our blog.

Classroom Donations Appreciated

In the wake of a new year, we are finding a few deficiencies in our classroom. Basic classroom supplies such as paper, glue sticks, crayons, etc… are supplied by the Board. However, special art materials and play dough supplies are not. The cost of these materials are afforded by the teacher and mount very quickly. To offset these expenses, donations of gift cards to Dollarama, Dollar Tree and Wal Mart are always appreciated. Boxes of Kleenex are welcome, too. Thanks in advance for considering donating to our classroom community. 

Welcome 2014

Mr. Pickett and Ms. Campbell are anxiously looking forward to seeing all of their kinder friends on Monday, January 6th.