Lots of mail!

Dear families,
I can't believe it is November 30th, but I'm so excited for this next month. I love the holidays!
There are a number of things in pochettes today. I have prepared the December calendar with what I know of now, but please keep checking this blog for last minute stuff. I also carefully tucked a tiny slip of paper inside many kids' library books today - this lists any books that are overdue to our school library. Please search your home and see if we can get all our books returned before the Christmas break.

Our library trip yesterday was successful and entertaining. We listened to the very funny story "That is NOT a good idea", and we watched a puppet show called "Nail Soup", featuring some cool 30-year old puppets! Please ask your listener about these two stories!
We also learned how to get a library card and I have sent home some information today. If you do not yet have a library card for your child, there are two easy ways to get one.
1) Take the postcard to any branch along with a piece of ID.
2) Fill out the white form and return it to me.
We will not be signing out books during our class outings to the library, but we do wish to make it easy for families to visit the public library and hope that you take advantage of this fantastic resource!
The librarian that we met wanted you to know that they are preparing another show for families on some upcoming Saturdays. It will be "The Princess and the Pea". You can call the College/Shaw branch at 416-393-7668 for information.

Our December Scholastic catalogues are also coming home today, and orders are due next week. Again, if you would like to keep your order a secret, just send it in an envelope and leave me a note. I'll contact you when the books arrive. Here are a few recommendations from the Club de Lecture catalogue:
#21F4 "Veux-tu être mon ami?" - A book about friendship, a subject often discussed at school. We are also very familiar with the word "ami", so maybe your beginning reader can help you look for this word in the book.
#7F4 "Toujours parfait" - 3 books for $6 - sweet deal! Plus, one of the books is the French version of "The Princess and the Pea" (the show that the library is putting on soon).
#2F4 "Activités pour les petits: Noël" - this is an activity and sticker book that might be fun to work on over the holiday. The kids are LOVING this type of interactive book right now, but remember that it is to keep at home!

Today was hat day. (I hope these special days have been sent out by the office because I always forget about them.) With hat day in mind, some students helped me plan a special crown-making centre. Artists who chose to make a crown got to wear it all day and bring it home.

Also this week, we did some great work with a story we read last week called "Ce n'est pas mon chapeau". It's a very funny story about a little fish who steals a hat from a big fish and thinks he can get away with it. The last few pages have no words, so it's a little unclear whether the little fish gets away or not... we know the big fish gets his hat back! I had the students draw how they imagine that the story ends, and I wrote down their idea. Each student helped me with the writing by adding some missing vowels (a's and e's). Please ask your author what happens in this book, and what their ending is!

Mots de la Semaine

Here are some words which have come up in our poems, stories, songs and writing this week. 

petit

gros

un poisson

un éléphant

mon ami(e)

Finally, in another burst of shameless self-promotion... It was a joy to see Eliza in the audience at The Redeemers doo-wop gig back in September. If you were interested, but couldn't make it to the Gladstone, check out our new videos on the media page here.

String Games

Today we were fortunate to be visited by Mirabel's mom, Aubrey who is an artist. She showed us her mesmerising work of moving art, all about creating pictures using string, or string games.
The kids loved watching her videos and imagining what they saw in the string. We had a chance to try the beginning positions, and some students chose to bring their string home so that they can keep practicing. It's not easy!

Here's a link to some YouTube videos if you are interested in working more with your string!

Merci Aubrey!

Vision/Hearing Clinic Upcoming

Hi parents,

Before I get to our update, I want to put in a little plug for the upcoming Vision & Hearing Clinic being offered at Dewson. I think you have already received information about this from the magical office email list. What is offered is a very short, simple screening to check for any vision and/or hearing issues. If anything comes up, you will be notified and it will be up to you to book a follow-up appointment with a doctor.
If you notice that your child doesn't respond when called, seems to not hear things, has trouble following simple instructions, complains of headaches or doesn't show much interest in literacy (no interest in books, signs, letters) than this simple screening is a great first step. Could be that there's a simple solution to a mystery problem!
Applications and payment are due by Tuesday, Nov. 28th and the clinic will be held during the school day on Dec. 15th.

This has been a good alphabet week for our class. We have solidified our knowledge of e and g and we have met their buddies i and j. To review, i makes the English ee sound ("see"). This is confusing at first, but we are pretty smart, so we get it! I also mentioned last week that g and j have switched names in French, so you see j, but you say "jee". This stays confusing for a loooong time, but we'll never stop practicing! At least their sounds are the same as in English.

I challenged the class to build some of our new letters during centre time - here are some of the things they came up with...

We have also started building our word wall. This will help us grow our French vocabulary as we slowly learn and post words so that we can look there for fun and for support. This week, I hid some words around our classroom and the kids went on a treasure hunt. When they found a word and learned its meaning, they drew a little picture next to the word and presented it to the whole class. The pictures I am using as the title for each letter of the alphabet on the word wall are the characters from Le Village des Sons. Maybe you can look at the picture below, review the stories of a and b and ask your presenter what word they were responsible for drawing and presenting!

Mots de la Semaine

Our outdoor clothing which we so carefully hang up in our cubbies...

un manteau

les mitaines

un chapeau

les bottes

une écharpe

I'm going to ask you for one more packing favour. If you could please remind your child to keep their personal colouring books and workbooks at home (just like home toys), that would be helpful. They are very exciting and when they are pulled out, everyone wants to share it which is not only hard to facilitate, but also prevents us from trying other activities. Thanks!

Thank You

Dear parents,
Thank you all very much for meeting with us this week and for being so supportive and receptive to our feedback. It is always so lovely to work with families that are invested in their childrens' education and want to help out however they can. It makes our job easier and so much more enjoyable.
As many of you saw during our quick chat, each student had a chance this week to self-evaluate how they believe they are doing on many of the important learning skills mentioned in the report. We were impressed with how self-aware and honest the kids were. We are encouraging our students to pay even more attention to those skills by giving them stars on our chart when we catch them doing those good things. It has been very motivating these last two days!
I was also thrilled, Thursday morning, when I asked the class if anyone had done what I'd asked and set a goal with their parents after reading their report. Not only did many hands shoot up, but the goals they shared with me were very fitting, and manageable for each individual. You had clearly discussed what I wrote and supported your child in making a very wise decision, and it's showing at school. Many students have already started doing their goal (e.g., participating more, using words to solve problems, or organizing their cubby independently). I've spoken to each child and written down their goal for myself so that I can remind and encourage them. I know you will be reminding them and asking them about it, and I thank you in advance. What a difference your encouragement makes!

Amazing news!! We WON the book fair draw!! Actually, Nora won (félicitations!), but I was able to choose 2 lovely books for our class, so it feels like we all won. How exciting!

This week, I told our class another oral story (no book, no pictures). It's about a girl named Tipingee, who, together with her friends, manages to outwit her mean aunt who's treating her like a servant (think: Cinderella). Ask your storyteller if they can tell you more about Tipingee and her friends, and how Tipingee gets out of a tricky situation...
Once again, I gave students the challenge of representing the story somehow, during their centre time. Many students took on the challenge, and I saw many different representations, including building Tipingee's house, a lego boat with Tipingee's family in it, and many drawings of different parts of the story. These varied representations are a great window into how the kids were imagining the story as they listened, and give me an idea of just how much of the French story they understood.

This week, we also got our sand table going. Our intention had been to use all your beautiful moon sand in our outdoor space, but now that it's mitten weather, that's not so practical. Here's the first group enjoying the soft feel of the moon sand in our class.
(This reminds me, we are anticipating moon sand next week from Huxley and Max.)

Outside, we've been playing tag games, a little of "Promenons-nous", I spy, we've been sharing stories, and occasionally I am treated to a special show.

Some of our students earned stars for using word to solve a problem kindly when two different groups were trying to share the big blocks to build a fort and a castle.

In alphabet news, we have made it up to the letter h now in letters that we have spent time focusing on. We have read their stories in our book about le village des sons and we look for them every morning in the message. We spent extra time on e because not only are vowels so important to learning to read, but it is one of the few letters that is different in French than in English. In English, of course, the letter e sounds like 'eee' (as in "see"). In French, however, that sound and name belong to the letter i, who we will meet soon. In French e's name and it's sound are much less bright and more round - think "could". Some words you may already know that use this sound are  je, bleu and feu. E is probably the most confusing letter of the French alphabet, because it's sound can be affected by many different accents or neighbouring letters. For now, we're just learning its main sound, and that there are exceptions. As we approach the end of the year, and in grade 1, students will learn more specific grammar rules.

Two other differences in French are that j and g have traded names (so we see g, but we say "jay"), and the letter h is usually silent. In the story, Mademoiselle h is a very shy lady, who hides under her h-shaped chair whenever there is a knock on the door. Words that begin with h in French don't have a breathy sound at the beginning, it's basically just there for show. So, for example, "hibou" (owl) would just sound like "ibou".

Words of the Week

This week, I thought I'd put some of the frequently used words in our classroom. These are often featured in instructions, for example when we're coming inside in the morning, and when it's time to have snack.

le tapis

la table

une chaise

dehors

le sac à dos

Reports

Hi parents,
As you know, first reports come home tomorrow. I've already mentioned that we decided to focus on learning and social skills in this report, as preparing our minds and bodies for learning is an essential first step in having a happy, healthy and productive experience at school. Please read and discuss the report with your child, celebrating all of his/her positive accomplishments. It is always a nice idea to choose one (one is enough) thing to work on going forward. There are suggestions in every report card, and we can also talk about a goal during our interview. We will be doing a goal setting activity with our students this week, so it will be helpful if they already have an idea of what they might want to work on.

On report card day, I always talk to my students about some basic report card etiquette. Report cards are personal and should never be shared with friends. Even though there are no marks on this particular report, it is good to get into the habit of keeping report cards private. Each student has been successful in many areas and has room to grow in others. It never feels good to compare.

Don't forget to check your envelope for your interview confirmation slip and email me if you are no longer able to come at the assigned time. At the moment, we hope to be able to use our own classroom for all interviews. If this changes, I will leave a note on the door. See you soon!

Today, students brought home a yellow note about our second walking excursion. We will be going to the College/Shaw Library on Wednesday Nov. 29th in the afternoon. Please add this to your calendars! You can read all of the exciting details in the note. Please email me or send in the bottom slip if you are able to join us for that afternoon. Thanks!

In Remembrance

Dear salle 202 families,
Sorry I am late with the words for last week, it has felt very busy, between the windows, Remembrance Day and snowsuits... where do I begin?

First of all, I am missing interview time sheets from about 7 families. My schedule is filling up, so please send those in Monday (or email me) so that we can hopefully find a time next week that works for all of us. I will send home the confirmation forms in the report card envelope on Tuesday. So far, I've been able to find times that work for everyone on Wednesday or Thursday so you'll have time to get your time and read the report card at least a day in advance.

Our class did a good job in room 115 during the window replacement, and they finished our class in record time - one day!! The new windows look sooooo much better. Please feel free to oooo and ahhh! (My mom has been wanting to wash our windows for years... she will be so happy!)

We also managed our winter gear very well on Friday. As the cold weather sets in, we are teaching the kids how to put their mittens, hats, scarves and other assorted bits, in their coat sleeves before hanging up their coat. With this strategy, we hope to reduce the amount of clothing that goes missing this winter. You can help us by using this same strategy at home, and checking that every little piece of clothing has a name in it. We do need for every student to have a pair of gym/indoor shoes at school now so that we can change out of our boots (the kids will not be able to participate in indoor gym if their footwear is not safe for the activity). Thanks for your help!

Now for the fun stuff! For the past several weeks, our students have been working on a dance with Mme Gaudreault and our guest instructor, Rebecca. I was invited to view the final performance and it was charming. Here are a few pictures!

In anticipation of Remembrance Day, we fashioned our own poppies to wear out of muffin cups that we painted, pipe cleaners and buttons. Each coquelicot was unique and beautiful, and we made some extras to put on a class wreath. Each student wore their poppy to the assembly on Friday, and brought it home.

Dewson's assembly took place Friday and we had prepared our students for a solemn assembly that would not include clapping and would include being still and quiet. I was so impressed with how our class did, and I would like to give them ALL a special Bravo for their behaviour. Merci mes amis!

In addition to the assembly, we had read a book about who we are remembering, and we had read the poem "In Flanders Fields". I think the kids were touched by the messages. During centre time on Friday, many students chose activities that were related to Remembrance Day. Some students worked in their special Remembrance Day booklets that we were given (these were brought home Friday), others drew pictures of fields of poppies.

I was particularly touched by the group of builders, below, who decided to build their own memorial, complete with RIP signs. They were very purposeful in their building, and I was blown away when they announced that they wanted to sing O Canada around it once it was done. I sang our anthem for them and they stood there silently for the whole song. We let the structure stay in place all day. It was quite amazing.

For our end of day story on Friday, I told the kids about my own grandfather, who was in the Navy during World War II. I shared a funny story about his experience on his ship. Ask the kids about what happened when they thought they'd detected an enemy submarine...

Mots de la Semaine

In making our own poppies to wear to the assembly, I'm fairly certain we all learned the word coquelicot. We should also know the word soldat from all our time playing the ball game by the same name. I've also put our numbers up to 10 for this week. This is easy as pie for most kids, so feel free to go further. We have a new poem (about cherries) that uses numbers, and remember we did our pumpkin math this week where we actually counted by 10 to one hundred! Feel free to do some counting challenges of your own!

Coquelicot (poppy)

Soldat (soldier)

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq,

six, sept, huit, neuf, dix

Lastly, a reminder that the English book fair will be open in the library most of next week. Don't forget to cut out your entry for the draw and bring it to school by Wednesday!! 

Interview Process and Window Replacement

Dear parents,
Today each student is bringing home an interview time sign-up sheet. Interviews are being scheduled for next Wednesday and Thursday, and I have made myself available on Tuesday in case the other days are very busy. Please circle your top 3 choices and return the form to me ASAP (by Friday latest). I will let you know your final time as soon as receive all forms. Sorry about the quick turn around on this one!
Please note that many of our interviews will need to take place in a different room, as our daycare runs out of our classroom until 6pm every day. Please look closely at your interview confirmation slip, when you receive it, to see where we are meeting. The interview slots are 10 minutes. I realize that this is very little time. If we find we have more to talk about, we can always schedule a follow-up meeting at another time. Dominique and I are happy to meet with you anytime throughout the year.
Tomorrow, I will send home an additional letter from the office regarding interviews. It also includes an interview sign-up, however you can disregard and just use the one I sent home today.

You have probably noticed that Dewson's windows are being replaced. A much needed and very exciting improvement, and it's finally our turn!!
For the next 2 days (Wednesday-Thursday), we will be using room 115 while our windows are replaced. If you are dropping off late, or picking up early, this is likely where we'll be. Of course, our daycare will also be dislocated, and they will leave a note on our door to let you know where to go.

Finally, the other note in the pochette today is to let you know about the English book fair, which will take place next week. It will be in the library and will stay open late during Thursday interviews. I told our students about the little-known draw that takes place during the book fair. Students who return the small rectangle cut-out from the back of the pamphlet have a chance to win $25 worth of books for themselves and our classroom. Let's all enter the draw!!

See you soon,
Tamara

Pumpkin Predictions

Dear salle 202 families,
We have done a fair amount of predicting recently, using one little pumpkin three ways.
We learned that scientists always make their best guess of what might happen, before conducting an experiment, so that they can learn from it, no matter what the result.

Our first experiment, last week, was to see whether a pumpkin would float or not. We all drew what we thought would happen before testing it, and we drew what actually happened after. Some students thought the pumpkin would sink because it is heavy. Some students thought it would float because they know of other heavy things that float, or because water is also heavy. Great thinking! Here we are watching the experiment, and our observation sheets on the science board.

Our next two predictions were about how many lines, or ridges, were on our pumpkin and how many seeds were inside it. You can see the guesses that we shared in the picture below.

During centre time, most students came to help me trace a line on the side of the pumpkin so that we could count them, and they got to reach in and take some seeds out, placing 10 in each cup.

When we finally got all the seeds into cups, we all stood around and counted up the lines and seeds. For the seeds, we tried counting by 10, and we had 4 tries at this, since we had over 400 seeds!! Our total was exactly 453 seeds and 21 lines. A lot more than we predicted!

It was a good counting day!

C'est l'Halloween!

Hi Salle 202 families,

We had a fun Halloween day in salle 202. The costumes were amazing! Tough to get everyone in a picture, but we tried...

I was dressed up as the paper bag princess, and I enjoyed reading to the children the story of my life, at the end of the day.

For some extra Halloween fun, we sang the popular song "C'est l'Halloween", painted masks, and some of us tried out a new centre called "gymnase des doigts" (finger gym) which is fun for developing fine-motor skills. This time, the task was to use tweezers to place Halloweeny jewels on letter outlines. Some students made great patterns and designs with the three colours.

We also had a team of builders in the big blocks centre, and the result was quite amazing. I especially loved hearing that it was built "using teamwork"!

Before leaving, all students got a little treat from Max (merci!) and myself, and we got to bring home our school picture proofs. Everyone will receive a copy of the class photo when they come in. If you would like to order individual shots, that can be done online or by sending the form back to me by Nov. 13.
November Scholastic orders are due on the 9th. Sorry I didn't get these two dates on the calendar. If you would like to order Scholastic books this month or next as holiday gifts and keep them a surprise from your child, just send the order in an envelope and leave me a little note. I'll be happy to contact you when the order comes in.

Thank you to all that donated food to the "WE scare hunger" food drive. A little info about this came home last week and we talked about it briefly on Monday. Donations are accepted until tomorrow in the front hall.

If you're wondering about report cards and interviews, you're not alone. It will be a slightly different experience this year for all kindergarten families (teachers too!), as the reporting template has changed. All kindergarten students will receive a short report entitled "Key Learning". Our team has decided to write these reports with a focus on learning and social skills, as these are foundational skills that will allows us to do our best work in other academic areas down the road. We feel it is a huge part of our job as kindergarten teachers to support students in developing good learning skills early on, and it's what we have dedicated most of our time to up to this point in the school year.

While report cards are important, I personally feel that face-to-face communication is of more value when it comes to sharing personal anecdotes and making a plan for what to work on. At this point in the year, we would like to meet with all families and we invite students to come with their parents when possible, so that we can all have a voice in what's going well and what we will focus on improving. A letter will come home in the next week that will invite you to sign up for a convenient time slot on one of the interview days and I'll confirm times once I get most of the forms back.

Mots de la Semaine

Time for a couple frequently used sentences. We introduced these a while ago, but just this week a few students have begun remembering all the words and using the sentences without prompting. These will be needed for years to come, so it's worth memorizing them!

Est-ce que je peux aller aux toilettes? Can I go to the washroom?

Est-ce que je peux boire? Can I get a drink?