Centers

The students are gaining independence during Centers!  
During Centers, the teachers are pulling students for reading groups and assessments.

Morning Routines

We all line up out on the blacktop together.                               *If there's bad weather, we all line up together in the gym.*There's a K helper...

and a 1 helper.

All Kindergarteners answer a morning question...

as well as the 1st graders.

Open Circle Letter 4

Dear Family:

In Open Circle, we have been getting to know each other better. In order for students to become friends and work well together, it is important for them to learn about each other. We played the “Stand Up/Sit Down” game to find out what we have in common, such as how many like to draw, have a sister, like to play with blocks, or know how to swim. Ask your child to tell you what he/she learned from the “Up/Down” game about what the students in the class have in common. You might encourage your child to get to know a classmate they do not know very well during recess or lunchtime.

We also practiced our listening skills and learned the school listening look. The school listening look refers to expectations for listening at school. 

The school listening look means that we:

• sit still.

• sit up.

• look at the person who is speaking.

• pay attention.

It is important to everyone in the class — students, teachers, and visitors — to be listened to when they speak. At home, ask your child to show you the school listening look and teach it to you. Practice it by listening to your child. This is a very important lifelong skill, not only for children to develop but also for adults to learn and practice. You might want to encourage all members of your family to become better listeners.

Yours truly,

 Nicole & Lynne

Literature Connections

Here are some books that relate to the topics we discussed in Open Circle. You might want to check out one or two at the library and read with your child:

*Cummins, Julie. Country Kid, City Kid. Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, 2002.
Even though Ben lives on a farm in the country, and Jody lives in an apartment in the city, they have many things in common, including the camp they attend in the summer.

*Lester, Helen. Listen Buddy. Houghton Mifflin, 1995.
Buddy’s poor listening habits get him into big trouble. After his encounter with the dreaded Scruffy Varmint, Buddy tries harder to pay attention to what his parents say. 

*Walsh, Melanie. My Nose, Your Nose. Houghton Mifflin, 2002.
In very simple language, the author points out that, although people have many differences, they have many things in common. 

Open Circle Letter 3

Dear Family:

In several recent Open Circle lessons, we talked about what it feels like to be calm and how to get calm when we are upset. When we are being calm, we are also breathing slowly and calmly. Sometimes at school and at other places, it is important to get calm when we are feeling upset, anxious, too excited, or not listening or behaving well. We learned two calm breathing exercises to help us get calm. 

One is called calm breathing:

• Breathe in slowly and deeply, filling your belly with air like a balloon.

• Breathe out slowly.

A second calm breathing exercise is called flower breathing*:

• Breathe in through your nose, imagining the fragrance of a sweet-smelling flower.

• Breathe out with an “ahhh” sound.

Each person has his/her own way of calming down. However, when strong feelings and signals in our body tell us that we’re losing control, the first thing to do is to stop and take some calm breaths.

Ask your child to teach you the two calm breathing techniques he/she learned in school. Practice them together. Share with your child some times when you might want to use one of the calm breathing techniques. Talk about times he/she might want to use them to calm down. Make a habit of using calm breathing yourself, and encourage your child to use one of the exercises whenever he/she needs to calm down.

Yours truly,

 Nicole & Lynne 

Literature Connections

Here are some books that relate to the topics we discussed in Open Circle. You might want to check out one or two at the library and read with your child:

Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry, Really, Really Angry. Blue Sky Press, 1999.
When Sophie and her sister argue, Sophie gets so angry that she feels like a volcano that is about to explode. She runs, she cries, and then she tries to calm down by going to places that soothe her.

MacLean, Kerry Lee. Peaceful Piggy Meditation. Albert Whitman, 2004.
Humorous pig characters demonstrate how important it is to use calm breathing in order to think clearly during stressful situations.

Curriculum Night

6:45 Cafeteria with Principal Talk
7:00 Room 8 Presentation by Ms. Dichter & Ms. Melnik

We hope to see you tomorrow, Wednesday 10/3.

A big thank you to everyone that came tonight!!!  We really enjoyed meeting many new parents and seeing some familiar faces.  We hope you have a better idea what your child is busily doing every day. 

If you were unable to make it, we will send home a folder with some important information that you missed.  

As always, please feel free to email us with questions.

Have a great night! :)

Open Circle Letter 2

Room 8's Nonnegotiable Rules are: 
Be Nice, Work Hard, Stay Safe, Play Fair, & Reach Out


Dear Family:

During our first Open Circle meetings, the class practiced taking their chairs and getting
into a circle quietly, safely, and cooperatively. We form a circle so that everyone can see
everyone else and be heard. We always leave one space open in case another person
would like to join the circle.  Everyone is welcome, and no one is ever left out. The Open
Circle symbolizes the idea of an inclusive classroom community. Ask your child to tell
you how the class gets into a circle.
Students worked on getting to know each other’s names in one Open Circle. In order
to be able to work well together, they need to know each other’s names and how to
pronounce them correctly. Ask your child to say the names of as many people in the
class as he/she can remember.
In another Open Circle, we discussed and developed some classroom rules that will help
to keep our classroom safe, make it a place where students feel cared about, and make
it a place where we can do our best learning. Students also learned that some rules are
nonnegotiable. This means “no choice.” They may ask to have these rules explained,
and they may ask questions about them, but they cannot be changed. Ask your child to
share with you some of the classroom rules that we developed. Ask for an example of a
nonnegotiable rule in our classroom. Talk to your child about the rules in your home for
mealtimes, bedtimes, and chores.

Yours truly,
  Nicole & Lynne

Literature Connections:
Here are some books that relate to the topics we discussed in Open Circle. You might
want to check out one or two at the library and read with your child:

*Henkes, Kevin. Chrysanthemum. Greenwillow Books, 1991.
Chrysanthemum loves her name until she starts going to school and the other
children make fun of it.  A teacher’s gentle intervention sheds light on the
importance of respecting people and their names.

*Henkes, Kevin. Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. Greenwillow Books, 1996.
Lilly learns the hard way that she has to follow the classroom rules and wait for
“sharing time” to talk about her new purse.


*Shannon, David. David Goes to School. Blue Sky Press, 1999.
It takes david a while to adjust to the rules at school.

*Orgwanson, Susan Marie. The First Thing My Mama Told Me. Harcourt, inc., 2002.
A young girl learns to recognize her name when she sees it on
labels, cakes, signs, cards, and school cubbies.

*Yolen, Jane. How Do Dinosaurs Go to School. Blue Sky Press, 2007.
A very unusual student has to learn some basic classroom rules.

Mystery Readers

Calling all mystery readers...

Come read a story to the Kindergarteners and first graders in Room 8 on Fridays from 1:30-2:00.

Sign up:
http://tinyurl.com/mysteryreaders


Please answer the 3 questions so the kids will have clues to guess who our mystery reader might be!


Thanks for volunteering!

Thank you to Nate's Mom, Neva, for being our first mystery reader!!  Can anyone be our mystery reader next week-Friday, October 12th??