Ms. Nicky and Ms. Julie’s News
Thank you to all of you who attended conferences! I appreciate that you took time out of your busy day to talk with me about your child’s progress. It was nice to have the opportunity to get to know everyone a little better!
We have started our STEM Unit of study on Buildings, and everyone is hard at work with construction vehicles and tools. Room 237 is a very busy place to be! Our first GOLD assessments are almost complete and I will be sending a report home in a few weeks for you to look over. If you have any questions at that time, please let me know!
STEM Profile of the Month: Risk-Taker
“I have the courage to try new things. I’m not afraid to give it a try. I try to solve problems in a lot of new ways.”
Some books to encourage being a Risk-Taker:
Ish, by Peter H. Reynolds
Courage, by Bernard Waber
Home-School Connections
Please continue to read nightly with your child. Not only is it a great learning time, but the students love getting a prize from the treasure box for bringing in their completed reading log. Students also get a prize each time they turn in 5 homework assignments.
Our Big Idea for Math for the month of November is Counting. Some ideas of things you can do at home to work on this skill are:
-Sing songs and play games that involve counting.
-Play board games with paths to move along by counting spaces.
– Make a number puzzle – Correct Number Sequence
http://handsonaswegrow.com/two-for-one-cracker-box-number-puzzles/
Attendance
We are having a LOT of absences in our class each day. Please make every effort to schedule appointments outside of school time. If you are having trouble getting your child to school, please speak with me and maybe I can help you. Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school—and themselves. We want to see your child each school day!
Dressing for the weather
Now that the weather is getting colder, please make sure your child brings a coat each day. Please also work with your child at home to help them become independent at putting their coat on and zipping or buttoning it.
We’re here to help!
On our school website are resources under the Community Resources tab:
o CHILD DEVELOPMENT: http://sdpk.svvsd.org/node/124776
o CHILD NUTRITION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY: http://sdpk.svvsd.org/community-
resources/child-nutrition-and-physical-activity
o FOOD BANK: http://sdpk.svvsd.org/community-resources/food-bank
o HEALTH RESOURCES – DENTAL, VISION, MEDICAL:
http://sdpk.svvsd.org/community-resources/health-resources
o MENTAL HEALTH: http://sdpk.svvsd.org/community-resources/mental-health
o DEVELOPMENTAL CONCERNS: http://sdpk.svvsd.org/node/30303/child-find
If you do not have access to the internet, there are also resources in two additional areas:
• A binder of resources in the front office in the sitting area
• On the parent resources wall under the TV display at the front of the school
If you still need help, come and talk to me! I’ll make sure to lead you in the right direction.
Important Dates
November 2: Kindergarten transition event for parents at Spark! with staff from
Centennial El, Legacy El, Prairie Ridge El, and TVK8 presenting (6-7 p.m.)
November 3: PBIS Award-Obstacle Course
November 3: Chick Fil A Family Night-Come have dinner with Spark! Staff (5-7:30)
November 7 & 8: All-School Movement
November 7-December 16: Annual Toy Drive to benefit children in need at Spark!
November 10: Love and Logic Parenting Class (6-8 p.m.)
November 14: Picture Retake Day (tentative)
November 17: PTO-sponsored Pajama Day-Bring $1 and wear your PJ’s to school
November 21-25: NO SCHOOL
Kindergarten Information Night
On Wednesday, Nov 2, from 6-7 pm we will host a kindergarten information night at Spark! Discovery preschool, featuring staff and information from our four local elementary schools: Centennial Elementary, Legacy Elementary, Prairie Ridge Elementary, and Thunder Valley K-8. Believe it or not – it is not too early to start thinking about
kindergarten! Enrollment begins for kindergarten starting December 1, 2016 through January 15, 2017. Registration continues after January 15th, but choice of AM, PM or Full Day may be limited.
Parenting Classes
Do you need some parenting strategies to end arguing, backtalk, begging, or whining? If you could use some support with family goal setting in this area, this is a FREE opportunity to get support at our parenting class called PARENTING THE LOVE & LOGIC
WAY.
• 4-part Parenting Series = FREE, sponsored by Spark! Discovery Preschool, facilitated by
Cheryl Hamilton, parent coach from “Family Whisperer”
• Childcare = FREE, sponsored by Spark’s Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO)
• Pizza dinner = FREE, sponsored by Spark’s Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO)
Four Thursdays from 6:00 to 8:00pm, at Spark! Discovery Preschool–gym/cafeteria:
• Thursday, November 10
• Thursday, January 12
• Thursday, March 9
Each session’s schedule:
5:45 pm Check-in of children / get set with dinner*
6 pm PTO will conduct a General PTO meeting
6:15-7:30 pm Parenting classes with Cheryl Hamilton
*Participants or children with special dietary conditions will need to plan on their own for dinner.
A Resource for You
This website is great for all sorts of learning videos featuring robots. We utilize the alphabet videos because they help teach about alliteration by showing students a lot of words that start with the letter!