Week of September 12-16, 2016

Hello Room 4 families!
I keep this webpage instead of sending home weekly newsletters. Please check here on Fridays to find out what is happening in room 4 and at Phoebe Hearst.

You have truly wonderful children. They have done a marvelous job this week with learning our school and classroom rules, getting to know one another, and working on some kindergarten curriculum! Hopefully your child has talked to you about some of his or her new friends, what it means to be a Bucket Filler, and some of the things we have been working on in class. Please check your child's backpack daily for completed work. All work that is completed and sent home does not need to come back to school.

Here is what we have coming up:

Wednesday, September 14: Back-to-School night, 5:45pm This is a night for parents to come and hear about everything we do in room 4. I will go over our day, curriculum, kindergarten standards, and answer any questions you have. Please meet on the main playground first for some information from Mr. McGill before heading over to room 4. Of course if you need to bring them kids are welcome at back-to-school night, but this event is mostly for adults. In the spring we have Open House when everyone is invited to come check out our classroom.

Friday, September 30:Phoebe Hearst movie night, 6:30pm
This is one of my favorite events of the year! Bring some snacks and blankets and watch a movie with friends under the stars.

Monday, September 26: Kindergarten Apple Day. On this day we ask all kinder students to bring an apple to school. We will use them for several lessons throughout the day and then have a nutritious snack! The apple can be any size or color.


5th Grade Reading Buddies
Thursday the kids met their 5th grade buddy from Mr. Goul's class in room 8. We will meet with our buddies on most Friday mornings to read, work in the garden, and complete projects together. Be sure to ask your child about his or her buddy!

Language Arts 
Next week we will begin focusing on a letter each day. We will work on correct letter formation and talk about the sounds the letters make. We will read poems that focus on the letters and complete workbook pages.
I will introduce the first sight word next week: the

Math
Next week we will continue working on numbers 1-5. We will take our first math test at the end of the week.

Homework
I sent the first homework packet via email today. I send these on Fridays to give everyone plenty of time to get them printed, etc. These are due back the following Friday in the homework folders, which are going home today.  I will cover homework at back-to-school night, but until then know written homework shouldn't take longer than 10 minutes to complete. Please let me know if you have questions about the homework.

Classroom centers/group time 
Thank you to those parents who signed up to help during our centers time from 8am until about 8:50 on a once weekly basis.  We will begin centers on Monday, September 19. If you would like to help, we are still looking for volunteers, especially for Thursday mornings. The sign up sheet is in the back of room 4.

Thank you for reading, everyone!
Please do not hesitate to email, call, or come by room 4 if you have questions or concerns. I look forward to speaking with all parents on Wednesday at Back-to-School night!