Terry Fox...

Today we had the opportunity to participate in the Terry Fox run at our school. We talked about Terry. The children had lots of questions about why he only had one leg, why did he run, why did he die. Lots and lots of questions. I found a fantastic video, which I did not show to the Kindergarten kids. You may want to take 8 minutes to watch it yourself and share it with your child if you think it is appropriate. It is well worth your time...
Terry Fox video on youtube

In the blink of an eye....

One minute we are making the letter T with playdough, and then all of a sudden, out of no where, we have a Candy Factory! Right there people... is the joy of Kindergarten! Within 5 minutes, we had a "Candy Boss" rolling the dotted dice on the smartboard, I as the "foreman" had a gruff voice and a hardhat on, all the workers had applied for a job and been hired as candy makers and had made many colored candy "balls." They had their packaging material (recycled muffin containers) and they were working. The "Candy Boss" would roll the dice and that would be the number of candies that needed to be added to the containers. Of course, once the containers were properly packaged, they needed to be shipped to Michigan(?), by big truck of course, so we got some keys, used the big blocks to pack our containers in and sent the "Candy Boss" to Michigan with his load. GOOD DAY people, I love Kindergarten! Have I mentioned the importance of pretend play...YES....I have. While pretend playing they were also developing fine motor skills, counting, identifying number, showing one to one correspondance, following directions, helping others and staying completely on task. The Candy Factory was continued at afternoon Center time and expanded upon in many ways. It was awesome!

Have a glimpse at the back of our big truck getting ready to go to Michigan, one of our sales clerks taking a phone order and our new foreman keeping our employees organized.

Playdoh....

Honestly, not many things appeal more to a 5 year old than playdoh. Honestly, not many things appeal to a Kindergarten teacher more than playdoh! I love, love, love playdoh. We celebrated National Playdoh Day on Thursday and we all had a blast. First we had to make our playdoh, we had our directions on the smartboard and four groups. We added ingredients, mixed and mixed some more. Then we had to carry those heavy pots to the kitchen, where the adults mixed and cooked. We rolled that warm playdoh in flour and proudly took it back to our room. We even ran into the principal and informed him of the importance of National Playdoh Day! Then we played.
Squeezing and squishing works on hand strength while pinching and rolling into cool shapes helps with coordination. So while I say we "played" we actually followed directions, measured, and developed our fine motor skills. Have a look at some of the fun we had....

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Don't forget the COW bus!

Dont' forget that the C.O.W bus is visiting our town on Thursday, September 23 from 3pm to 6pm. This Classroom on Wheels is designed for parents and their children under 6 years old. It is absolutely packed full of learning activities and ideas that can be easily incorporated into your home. It is a very fun activity to do with your child and they will love it!

The importance of pretend play....

I am and always will be a huge believer in pretend play in the Kindergarten classroom. I hear so many stories about Kindergarten classrooms that have become so academic that you can not separate them from a Grade 1 classroom. The learning that takes place during every "Center" time in Kindergarten is very evident if one just listens to the voices of the children. This is a great time for parents to come in and just watch, the children are having a ball while learning social and emotional skills, building language and thinking skills. If interested, here is an
article from Scholastic that shares an opinion similiar to mine.

And here they are....

Welcome one and all to the adventures of 14 fabulous five year olds! Watch as these children will amaze and delight. Each one with a personality all their own and ready to take on the world. It's going to be a good year!

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

A new school year...

Like each of you, I am a Mom. I ran across this video this morning and it just made me realize again what a huge responsiblity I have to your children. You trust me with them and that is an amazing gift. I understand this because I trust my babies to teachers and pray that they understand the magnitude of their responsiblity. As this school year begins I just want you to know that I take this responsiblity seriously and will nurture your babies like they were my own. Thank you to Heidi Hass Gable for producing this video.