September 11-15, 2023

 September 11-15, 2023

Phew! September is such a busy time in Kindergarten...this week we started adding in some new routines that help Kindergarten to run smoothly...assigning each kiddo to a lead teacher team, learning about our strengths when we try to work independently and practicing asking for help when we need it! 

Each kindergarten student now has an assigned hook where they can hang their belongings each day and is learning how to manage the indoor/ outdoor shoe routine as well as looking at our visual schedule each day!! It is amazing to see the enthusiasm our students have for learning, making new friends and trying new things.  We are excited to see what this year will bring!

To start our work together we have been focussing on the concept of identity and celebrating how each child is special and unique. We started an important art project this week to create a self portrait from ripped paper that will become the cover to our visual journals. We used small mirrors and read several books to help students explore their own unique characteristics and represent themselves! Stay tuned to see the finished results...

As we move through the year, most of the "work" your child completes will be completed in their journal and after special art pieces are displayed and celebrated, they are also collected into the journal so don't be concerned if your child is not bringing home many papers from school!

On Thursday we celebrated International Dot Day! We learned about embracing creativity and "making our mark". We read the story "The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds and talked about his character Vashti who was nervous to start her artwork but gained confidence in her abilities after experimenting making different types of dots and signing her name on her paper.

We celebrated Dot Day by reading this story! We learned we need to make a dot and see where it takes us, WE are ALL ARTISTS!

We loved this Dot Day song! You can play it with your child. They loved singing it this week!

We then used some paint sticks to make our mark and create a dot that looked just right to us!

Lost and Found

Please label ALLLLLL things that come to school. Children do NOT recognize their own items, especially when there are others that are similar.

Please let us know if these shoes belong to your child! We have asked every child and no one has claimed them!

Playground

We may have different rules for the playground than when you come with your family! When we have 50 children on the playground, safety is a priority. Most groups have visited the playground once this week. The others will have a chance to visit next week!

Kindergarten Conferences 

Thursday September 21 and  Thursday September 28

Kindergarten families will have the opportunity to come in for an open house "Meet the Teacher" evening. We will explain a few things about our kindergarten program and you will have the opportunity to see our classroom space and artwork your child has created! This will NOT be a one-on-one time to discuss your child or their progress. Those sessions will take place in November.

You will need to select ONE time to come as the information will repeat each session.

Session times will be:

Thursday September 21

5:00-5:30 OR 6:00-6:30 

OR

Thursday September 28

5:00-5:30 OR 6:00-6:30 

More information on how to book a time in PowerSchool will be emailed on Monday to families.

Important Kindergarten Dates

Link to our school  calendar: 

https://school.cbe.ab.ca/school/simonsvalley/about-us/calendar/Pages/default.aspx

Our Emails

We have chatted or emailed with many families. If you have any questions or need to contact us, our emails are:

Mrs. Oster: rdoster@cbe.ab.ca 

Mrs. Sutherland: klsutherland@cbe.ab.ca 

Mrs. Wiskar: mjwiskar@cbe.ab.ca