First Week Complete!
We have successfully completed our first "week" of school. By about 12:30 on Friday, I was thankful that it was a short week. EVERYONE was so tired. There was much yawning through our math lesson. We may face some challenges through next week with 5 full days. Although we are beginning more rigorous academics next week, we still take things fairly slowly in the beginning. Students and teachers alike need a strong foundation of routines and procedures.
On Friday, each child brought home a Kindergarten Keepsake box. The boxes are for you to keep any special projects throughout the year. The first piece of work we added was the school bus with our class rules. We plan on filling up these boxes so keep them in a safe place where they can be easily accessed!
This year we're going to use a new tool to share what we're learning in class called Seesaw. Your child will have his or her own learning journal, and you can get notified when your child adds new items. It's completely private -- only you can see your child's journal outside of class. Once you sign up, you can download the Seesaw Family app for iPhone or Android, or access your child's journal on the web. Click on https://app.seesaw.me/s/786-633-370 to sign up -- it takes just 30 seconds.
We have a specials class each day from 1:30-2:15. Our schedule is:
Monday-Art
Tuesday-Music
Wednesday-Library
Thursday-PE
Friday-Technology
*Please be sure your child wears tennis shoes/sneakers on days we have PE. On Monday afternoon, students have an additional special that rotates weekly. I will keep you posted on the extra special.
Here's a look ahead to what we will be learning next week:
Literacy
We begin Meet the Superkids, Units 1-13 of our Superkids Curriculum. It will take the entire first semester to complete these units. Each unit focus on the introduction of a new Superkid. Below are a welcome letter and a list of skills taught in the first unit.
Math
This year, Larkspur Elementary is implementing the Eureka Math curriculum.
Eureka Math is a complete, PreK–12 curriculum and professional development platform. It follows the focus and coherence of the Common Core State Standards and carefully sequences the progression of mathematical ideals into expertly crafted instructional modules. This curriculum is distinguished not only by its adherence to the CCSS. It is also based on a theory of teaching math that is proven to work. That theory posits that mathematical knowledge is conveyed most effectively when it is taught in a sequence that follows the “story” of mathematics itself. This is why we call the elementary portion of Eureka Math "A Story of Units." The sequencing has been joined with methods of instruction that have been proven to work, in this nation and abroad. These methods drive student understanding beyond process, to deep mastery of mathematical concepts. The goal of Eureka Math is to produce students who are not merely literate, but fluent, in mathematics. Your student has an exciting year of discovering the story of mathematics ahead!
In Module 1, students begin to observe and analyze the world around them mathematically. They
will count, order, and draw up to ten objects. They will eventually work toward an understanding that
each successive number names a quantity that is 1 more, and that the number before is 1 less. This is just the beginning of an exciting mathematical year for kindergarten students!
Standards Covered in Module 1 are:
Know number names and the count sequence
Write numbers from 0 to 10
Count to tell the number of objects
Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality
Understand addition as putting together and adding to, and understand subtraction as taking apart and taking from
Decompose numbers less than or equal to 10 into pairs in more than one way
Classify objects and count the number of objects in each category
Classify objects into given categories; count the numbers of objects in each category and sort the categories by count
Numbers to 10 How you can help at home:
• Have your student practice counting groups of objects in his/her environment
• In addition to counting, students can practice writing the numerals 0-10
• Practice decomposing numbers, e.g. talk about how 5 is made up of a group of 2 and a
group of 3
Social Studies
This week we learned the three rules in our classroom:
We are safe.
We are kind.
We are helpful.
We will continue to practice and reinforce the rules as well as the basic routines of our school and classroom. These first few weeks are all about establishing a strong, caring classroom culture.
Science and Outdoor Learning
We will take our first hike to become familiar with our outdoor spaces on our beautiful campus! Students will be learning to follow the same rules as well as to conduct themselves as learners in the outdoor classrooms just as they would inside. Students will be given opportunities to safely explore within the boundaries set by the teacher.
Upcoming Dates:
Curriculum Night- August 23rd 4:30-6:0
Picture Day- August 30th
