KindergartenCurriculum Night

September 11, 2012

Agendas

• Main communication between school & home• Transportation changes• Absence notes• Record nightly reading on yellow reading log

(F.R.E.D.)

Thursday Folders

• Go home on Thursdays

• Keep all completed work at home

• Return EMPTY folder on Friday morning

Homework

• Nightly reading – between 15 – 30 minutes (record on yellow reading log in agenda)

• F.R.E.D. Books, Media Books, or Local Library Books

• Nightly practice of sight words (must be recognized by “sight” – not sounding out)

• Beginning in October, complete activities on homework calendars

Curriculum• We use the Common Core State Standards for language arts and math (45 states have

adopted this as their curriculum)

• We use the N.C. Essential Standards for Science

• We use the N.C. Essential Standards for Social Studies

• The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. With American students fully prepared for the future, our communities will be best positioned to compete successfully in the global economy.

• Provides consistency across the states. See: http://www.corestandards.org/frequently-asked-questions for more information.

Our Daily Schedule7:30 - 8:00 - Unpack / Morning Enrichment8:00 - 9:00 - Science or Social Studies9:00 - 9:50 - Specials (except Mondays – 2:10 – 3:00)P.E. is every FRIDAY9:50 - 10:00 – Snack10:00 - 12:00 – Literacy (Shared Reading, Words their Way,

Reader’s Workshop, Writer’s Workshop)12:00 - 12:30 – Recess12:30 - 12:45 Bathroom / Prepare for lunch12:45 – 1:10 - Lunch1:15– 2:30 – Math2:30 – 3:00 – Interactive Read Aloud Time3:00 - Dismissal

Specials

• Monday – Music

• Tuesday – Art

• Wednesday – Computer Lab or Science Lab

• Thursday – Media

• Friday – P.E.

Science Themes(integrated through the general curriculum as much as possible)

• Animals• Plants• Weather (including seasons)• Matter• Moving Right Along (simple machines)• 1 lab lesson in the classroom each week• Science Lab as special every other week

Social Studies Themes

• Families• Unique Individuals• Citizenship• Changes (over time, within the community)• Holidays and special days in the community• Geography (simple maps and symbols)• Economic concepts (wants & needs)• Technology (transportation, media, computers)

Literacy

Throughout the year, we will work on the following skills:

• Identification of letters & letter sounds• Phonemic awareness: the ability to distinguish and

manipulate individual sounds (phoneme isolation, phoneme identity, phoneme substitution, oral segmenting, oral blending, sound deletion, onset-rime manipulations (i.e. j-ump, st-op, str-ong).

• Listening Comprehension• Sight Words (know by sight – not sounding out)

What is balanced literacy?

• A balanced approach to literacy instruction combines language and literature-rich activities associated with holistic reading instruction with the explicit teaching of skills as needed to develop the fluency and comprehension that proficient readers possess.

• Such instruction stresses the love of language, gaining meaning from print, and instruction of phonics in context.

• The Balanced Literacy approach to reading instruction incorporates many reading strategies in order to meet the varying needs of all students.

• Some of the components of the approach include phonemic awareness and phonics instruction, reading aloud to children, independent reading, guided reading, shared reading and literacy centers for independent practice.

Balanced Literacy

• Balanced literacy cultivates the skills of reading, writing, thinking, speaking, and listening for all students.

• Balanced literacy allows for flexibility within the classroom. It allows the teacher to meet each child where he is and move him forward in the manner and time best suited to the individual.

Balanced Literacy Cont.

What does Balanced Literacy look like in the classroom?

• Shared Reading: A selection of text in which the students and teacher read the same poem, story, etc. (10 – 10:20 am)

• Words Their Way: This is the word study portion of our literacy time. The students will be identifying letters, sounds, words, and definitions using word sorts. (10:20 – 11:00)

• Reader’s Workshop: A time for the students to interact with age appropriate text independently, with a partner (shared reading), or with the teacher. (11 – 11:30)

• Writer’s Workshop – (11:30 – 12:00)• Interactive Read Aloud – “A teaching context

in which students are actively listening and responding to an oral reading of a text.” The

Continuum of Literacy Learning, Grades K-2. A Guide to Teaching, page 163. (2:30-3:00)

What does Balanced Literacy look like?

Literacy Themes

• Off to School• Finding Friends• By the Sea• Stick to It• My Shadow• Teamwork• Ready, Set, Grow• Red, White, and Blue• Windy Days

Writer’s Workshop

• Lucy Caulkins – Writer’s Workshop• Predictable Charts (I am, I see, etc.)• Telling stories through pictures (5 color rule)• Labeling pictures with letters / sounds

(inventive spelling- don’t panic!)• Writing short sentences to tell a story across 3

fingers (by end of year)

Math

• Investigations (hands-on exploration)• Number sense• Problem solving• Counting and cardinality (to 100 by 1’s and 10’s,

write numbers to 20, etc)• Algebra (addition & subtraction)• Number & Operations (place value 11 – 19)• Measurement & Data (compare, graphing)• Geometry (identify 2-D and 3-D shapes, compare)

What is PBIS?

• PBIS stands for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

• Majors vs. Minors• Office Referrals• Are you making a good choice?• What should you be doing?• Interventions – time away, loss of privilege• What is a bee? What are “bee” incentives?

Bee Incentives

25 = candy50 = hat day75 = recess on PE day100 = wacky hair day125 = pajama day150 = class choice with teacher approval175 = game day on non-PE day of recess200 = educational video at 2:15 on a Friday

Progress Reports & Report Cards

• Sent home mid quarter • Sign and return• 1st quarter conferences will be held in October.• Conferences will be held on an as needed

basis thereafter.

Miscellaneous

• Pay Pams is the easiest way to pay lunch money www.paypams.com

• Please send an easy-to-open snack each day• Scholastic Book Clubs – class/parent gifts• Sight Word List• Shoes• NUT-FREE Snacks please• Check my wiki page often for informationhttp://helen.buff.cmswiki.wikispaces.net/