Mrs. Wacker's Kindergarten Class

 Oki AM Kindergarten parents, What's New: The big excitement this week was opening up a doctor's office in place of the house centre.  The children did a lot of thinking about "who" works at a doctor's office and who would visit and why.     We also started thinking about white glue!  We started a"glue table", where kids collaboratively worked on building with stryofoam and cardboard pieces.  Using white glue is tricky for little hands.  Twisting the top open, tipping and shaking it upside down and putting the "right amount" to do the job.   We also used white glue to help us make leaf creatures after reading Leaf Man by Lois Elhert.  Thinking carefully about the different sizes and shapes of letters, the kids made a whole menagerie of leaf creatures including a leaf moose, leaf deer, leaf bunny, left and leaf birds! Literacy:  Focus Letters: This week we reviewed letters Aa and Mm and explored the letter Ss and Tt.  Plea...

Oki AM Kindergarten families,  During our short week, we thought deeply about caring for each other.  We started the week by reading You Hold Me Up , by Indigenous author, Monique Grey Smith. We talked about how there are many ways of knowing and learning and that we learn with many First Nations ways of knowing including our Circle of Courage and Land Based thinking.  We briefly touched on the roots of the "orange shirt" of Orange Shirt Day and Phyllis Webstad's story of her residential school experience.  This story treads lightly on such a deep and difficult history, focusing on the importance of family and respecting each person's right to be who they are.  Thinking of all the people that matter, while filling our orange heart. We also learned about land acknowledgements and practiced one taught by the Calgary Public Library.  It can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-z-CJwNa4w The CBE short describing the word "indigenous" in an easy t...

 Hello AM Kindergarten families,  So much great learning in a short week. Math: Kindergarten has become experts recognizing numbers 1-6 in familiar patterns at a glance using bead bars, 5 frames, dice/domino patterns and loose materials.   This week we manipulated craft sticks into a variety of positions. We enjoyed exploring how many different ways we could arrange the sticks.   Literacy: We explored the letter Aa when it makes it short /a/ sound in words such as, at, as, cat, map.  (We are not associating Aa when in makes other sounds at this point like when you hear it in "and or are'. When we learn a new letter, we will send a page home so you can practice.  When printing the new letter, PLEASE, follow the coloured motor plan shown on the page.  We are teaching children to use an efficient and effect way to consistently form letters.  This will help you child greatly when they get to older grades and need to write quickly. When makin...

Hello Kindergarten Parents, It was great seeing so many of you at our Open House and Corn Roast.   Opening Activities:  Once children put away their folders (thanks for sending them every day) they get to work at table time. Table Time:  Fine Motor activities (building, cutting, manipulating small objects) Morning Meeting: Using a visual schedule and a Yesterday/Today/Tomorrow/Soon grid to help us think about sequencing and vocabulary about time. (before, soon, later, in a while) Phys. Ed: We have been taking advantage of the warm weather to explore movement on the playground and games of the field and gaga ball pit.  We have also introduced using the gymnasium.   We have started warming up for each phys. ed. class by running laps to help us build stamina for the Terry Fox Run. AM Kindergarten will be doing the Terry Fox Run during our gym time in the morning, hopefully with the support of our grade 3/4 buddies.  Learning to use equipment such as ...

 Hello Kindergarten Families,  This week: Students went home today in their beautiful crowns, because they have shown so much leadership in the classroom.   Inspired by the awesome book, The King of Kindergarten by Derrick Barnes, which Mrs. Bouchard, our school librarian read to the students this week, we decided we were all the Kings and Queens of Kindergarten. Making our crowns We have been thinking a lot about what a leader is, as it is a part of the new social studies curriculum. At TRS, Mr. B leads the whole school helping to lead all the staff.  In Music, Mrs McMillian leads the class in games and songs and in the library, the librarian leads through organizing all the books and materials! We decided that leaders do their jobs, help others, and are good role models. Way to go Kindergarten! This Tuesday at the library we met Mrs. Bouchard,  learned about the space and how our library time will work.  Next Tuesday your child will come home with a...

  Hello AM Kindergarten Families,  Welcome to our morning Kindergarten blog.  This site will be updated at the end of each week.  You will get a messenger reminder to go to the blog. It is a great idea to bookmark the blog, so it is easy to check in on.  The blog with keep you up to date with activities and learning that is happening in the classroom as well as reminders of important upcoming dates and events (dates found at bottom of blog).  This week:  It was wonderful to meet our class this week. We had great first week in Kindergarten.  It is amazing to see how comfortable students are following our routines, such as putting on their indoor shoes at arrival, lining up for music or bringing their communication folders into the class in the morning. ( Please check these folders each day and remove any notices or classwork from them.  This is where you can send notes to the teacher and completed forms.) We focused this week on building routi...