Happy May!  It is hard to believe that there are only 2 more months of school left.  April has flown by.  May leader calendars were sent home on Friday.  The Sharing theme for May is animal research. The leader should choose an animal they want to learn more about, bring in a picture or representation and then tell the class 2 or 3 interesting facts they have learned.  It is a great introduction to doing research and a great way to teach your classmates new information.  Please see Mrs. Burn or Miss Santiago if you have any questions.

     We went outside with our Reading Buddies on Tuesday, looked for signs of Spring and made a list of what we saw. It is always nice to be outside and exploring nature in this wonderful weather.  We also began learning about plants this week.  We planted sunflower seeds and have placed our cups on the window ledge to get lots of sunlight.  The children enjoyed making a flip book and labelling what plants need to grow.  We have created sunflowers and will label the parts of a plant this week.  

     In the gym, Miss Santiago continued to teach the children new dances and this week the children learned "At the Hop" and "Cotton Eye Joe".  We split the children into 2 groups during our gym time, and each group has 20 minutes in the gym and 20 minutes in the classroom.  We are able to do some small group activities and games with the smaller groups.  This week the children played "I Have" and "Who Has?" with words and numbers.  Each child was given 2 cards and they had to listen to their classmates for their number or word and continue the game.  A great time was had by all!  In the computer lab, the children played Earth Day games on Starfall.

     Springfest, LKS's annual fun fair will be held on Saturday June 2.  The Grade Parents have sent out a sign up sheet for our basket, Summer Fun.  Each year, classes create baskets which are part of the Silent Auction.  Please see the sign up opportunity sent by the Grade Parents.  Donations may be brought to the classroom and will be placed in our basket.  Please contact the Grade Parents if you have any questions.  Thanks in advance to Candace, Artie and Linda for their organization.  It is greatly appreciated.  Mark your calendars for Springfest.  It is always a great day to see friends and neighbours.  More details regarding volunteering will be sent out soon!

This Week:

Monday-Library (A), Computers (B)

Tuesday-Happy May!

               Snuggle Up books exchanged

Wednesday-Library (B), Computers (A)

Thursday-Return Sound Review Books and Sight Word books

Friday-Snuggle Up books exchanged

             Music

     Welcome to the last full week of April!  Fingers crossed that this wonderful Spring weather is here to stay!  (finally)  I would hate to jinx it, but hopefully we can put away the mittens and snow pants.  Thank you to everyone who attended our Open House on Thursday.  Miss Santiago and I loved watching your children show you all the great things they do in Room 159.  We hope you had a great visit and can now visualize the learning activities that your children participate in.  Thanks again for spending time with us!
     We had a busy week discussing Earth Day, measuring using balances and exploring many scientific fields with the scientist.  A big thank you to our volunteers Tuesday morning, we could not have done it without you!  Throughout the week, the children discussed how to take care of the Earth, we sorted helpful and harmful activities and made our own Earth using coffee filters, markers and a spray bottle.  These will be on display next week in the hall.  The children worked in partners to use balances to compare and record objects into heavier and lighter.  It was a wonderful opportunity for the children to co-operate and record their results.
     On Tuesday morning, Scientist Janet arrived with great activities for the children to rotate through.  The children investigated chemistry using water, sand, sugar, baking soda and water.  They were astronomers looking for constellations, and even created their own personalized constellation.  As palaeontologists the children looked for fossils, made their own fossils and matched fossils to dinosaurs.  They studied sea life at the marine biology activity and became meteorologists checking water temperature and making rain.  It was a  wonderful morning of discovery.  Thank you to Parent Council for funding this great activity.  We loved it!
     In the computer lab, the children worked on abc, ya completing activities with the 5 senses.  Miss Santiago did folk dancing in the gym including "Hot, Hot, Hot" and the "ChaCha Slide."  Ask your children for some dance lessons!
     Thank you so much for helping your child dress for Beach Day on Friday.  Student Council organizes our LKS spirit days and we often have short notice.  Thanks to the Grade Parents for helping us spread the news.  The children loved wearing their shorts, googles and sunglasses.  Maybe it helped to bring this great weather!  Thanks again!
     This week's upcoming activities include our April Sharing Assembly on Thursday at 9:00 am.  Everyone is welcome.  We will be sharing a Spring poem.  On Friday is Pizza Day.
     Just a reminder, at the front of your child's sight word book, there are words for you to keep at home.  Please put them in a prominent place that your child can practise them.  For example, if they were displayed in his/her bedroom, they could read 2 or more each night before going to bed, or use them to play school.  Putting the in the kitchen, then everyone could read them.  When you leave them in the book, they often fall out at school and we don't want to lose any of the words.
     Thank you very much for your wonderful emails.  You have touched my heart!


This Week:

Monday-Library (A), Computers (B)
Tuesday-Snuggle Up books exchanged
Wednesday-Library (B), Computers (A)
Thursday-Sharing Assembly at 9:00 am
              -return Sight Word books and Sound 
              Review books
Friday-Pizza Day
            Music
           Snuggle Up books exchanged

    Welcome to the middle of April, if only the weather would co-operate!  Fingers crossed for a warmer and drier week ahead.  Thank you very much for all your support this week, helping your children participate in all of our special days.  The classroom was pink on Wednesday to celebrate Pink Day.  We have been discussing being a good friend and being tolerant of others and their differences.  When our Reading Buddies visited on Tuesday, they helped us trace our hands, cut them out and decorate them.  These hands became part of a poster to show that we are all special and we belong.  This poster is on display in our classroom.  On Wednesday, the children created figures wearing pink shirts.  The children added positive messages on their shirts to reinforce being a good friend.  This wonderful art is on our classroom door.  On Thursday, we showed our support for Humboldt by wearing our jerseys, LKS shirts and green and gold.  Thank you so much for helping to explain this unimaginable tragedy to your children.  It was touching to hear the children discuss why they were wearing jerseys, how their parents wore jerseys or green and gold to work.  They also talked about leaving hockey sticks outside their homes.  The children were so proud to be part of something that everyone in the school, the city and the country were participating in. 
     The class also completed their April pictures this week.  The children participated in a variety of measuring activities using cubes and marshmallows for non-standard measurement.  In the computer lab, they used ABCya to connect the dots and put numbers in numerical order.  During gym classes the students played a co-operative game in pairs called "knee to knee" and practised their dance moves.
     We will be having a scientist visit Tuesday morning to guide us through a variety of activities.  Thank you very much to our volunteers for the morning.  If you are volunteering, please arrive at school at 8:35 so the scientist has the opportunity to discuss your activity with you.  Volunteers are listed on the April calendar.  Volunteers will have to sign in at the office and get a visitor's tag. If you are unable to attend, please let the grade parents know as soon as possible.  The scientist's visit is always a great learning opportunity.
     On Thursday, April 19, LKS will be hosting a "Day in the Life of your Student".  Everyone is invited to visit our classroom with your child acting as a guide and host.  Miss Santiago and I will be setting up a variety of favourite classroom activities for you to do with your child.  These include drama, math, reading, sight words and building centres.  The Kindergarten Open House is from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm.  This evening is organized as a drop in activity and you will not need to attend for the entire hour.  Miss Santiago and I look forward to seeing you then.  Please see us if you have an questions.  Thanks in advance.

This Week:

Monday-Library (A), Computers (B)
Tuesday-Scientist visits in the morning
               Snuggle up books exchanged
Wednesday-Library (B), Computers (A)
Thursday-Return Sound Review books and Sight  
                 Word Books
               *LKS Open House   6:00 pm-7:00 pm
Friday-Music
             Snuggle Up books exchanged

Special days this week:

Wednesday, April 11-wear pink

Thursday, April 12-wear a hockey jersey to honour the Humboldt Broncos hockey team

Friday, April 13-wear your Terry Fox shirt to remember the first day of the Marathon of Hope

Thursday and Friday special days were just announced today.  Sorry for the short notice.

     I hope that everyone had a wonderful first week of April.  It was hard to believe it was April with all the snow flurries and cold weather.  Fingers crossed that this week will be warmer and hopefully not too rainy.  The children visited the book fair in the library this week.  Thank you very much for returning all the wish lists and payments for the books you wished to purchase.  Many books were sold out when we visited on Friday and those books will be ordered and your child's purchases will be delivered to our classroom when they arrive.  We do not know the timeline for delivery, but hopefully it will be quick.  Thanks in advance for your patience as we work through this new system with Mabel's Fables.  If you have any questions, please see Ms. McGee.  
     This week the children completed their April calendars and made robins in nests for the artwork.  The children are also enjoying inspecting the birds' nests we have in the classroom.   In math, we are starting measurement activities using non-standard units including cubes and paper clips.  Our Reading Buddies traced the Kindergarten students' feet on Tuesday and the children measured and recorded the results on Friday.  This activity can be seen on our bulletin board outside our classroom. Pictures to follow.  We will continue with measurement activities in the following weeks.
     In the computer lab, Miss Santiago had the children use Pebblego to research facts about the rain.  There was no gym this week due to volleyball and badminton tournaments in the gym.  The children used their library period this week to visit the book fair.  Regular library periods will resume this week.
     On Wednesday, April 11, LKS will be participating in Pink Day.  Pink Day is the International Day against bullying and discrimination.  It is a day to celebrate diversity.  Let's show our support and wear PINK on Wednesday!


This Week:

Monday-Library (A), Computers (B)
              Scholastic Book Orders Due
Tuesday-Snuggle Up books exchanged
Wednesday-Pink Day
                   Library (B), Computers (A)
Thursday-Return Sound Review Books and Sight 
                  word books
Friday-Music
            Snuggle Up books exchanged

     Happy long weekend!  I hope you are enjoying your time with family and friends this weekend.  We had a busy week with many Spring and Easter activities.  The children drew on hard boiled eggs and then dyed them on Monday and also created bunny bags for their goodies!  On Tuesday, we had our Spring party.  Thank you to all of our volunteers and for our food and drink donations.  A great time was had by all.  The children had the opportunity to circulate through 6 activities, including writing a bunny card, designing an Easter egg on aluminum foil, constructing a stand-up bunny, assembling a puzzle by counting by 10's, creating a chick and making a fun bunny face.  We also started our working on measurement by sequencing Easter eggs from the smallest to the largest.  The students also played a variety of games using sight words on plastic eggs.  These activities will continue next week.

     
     We will be visiting the book fair in the library on Wednesday and Friday this week.  There is a new format which is explained in the Parent Bulletin.  During our first visit on Wednesday morning, the children will be creating a wish list of books they would like to purchase.  This list will be sent home with your child.  On Friday, you may send cash or your credit card number and your child may purchase some items from their wish list.  The book fair is also open Thursday and Friday for you to visit with your child.  As always there is no obligation to purchase books.  Both of our book fair visits are scheduled for the morning. Please see Ms. McGee if you have any questions.  This is a new format, so we are all learning the procedure.
     In the computer lab this week, the children went on BookFlix and explored stories about Easter and bunnies.  The students played a game called Rice Crispies and Duck, duck goose.
     A reminder that there is no school on Monday, so mailbags should be returned to school on Tuesday to exchange Snuggle Up books.  Thanks in advance.

This Week:

Monday-No School
Tuesday-Snuggle Up books exchanged
Wednesday-Book Fair visit to create Wish List
Thursday-Return Sound Review books and Sight Word books
Friday-Bring your wish list and payment for any items you wish to purchase at the book fair

You may return library books, but the library will be closed for book exchange due to the book fair.

Scholastic Book Orders are due Monday, April 9.

Mark your calendars-Thursday April 19 is the LKS Open House and you will be able to visit classrooms and participate in the same activities that your child completes at school.

     Welcome back, I hope that everyone had a wonderful March Break.  It was great to hear about all the fun activities that happened during the week off from the children.  We had a busy week exploring "The Three Little Pigs" through a variety of activities.  The children had the opportunity to investigate the characters, setting and retell important details from the story.  We concluded with the children building a house for a pig which would withstand the huffing and puffing of the big bad wolf.  Each child was given a plate with a pig in the middle, 12 fruit gummies and as many toothpicks as they wished.  They were challenged to build a house with the pig inside.  When their house was completed, the big bad wolf came to try to blow it down.

Waiting for the builders!

Building a house

The big bad wolf huffed and he puffed, but he could not blow the house down!

A great house for a pig!

The children worked diligently to build a strong structure for their pigs and it was great to hear the children talk about how they were making a cube, or using triangles, or using many toothpicks to make their house stable.  

     We also completed our March pictures this week.  In the gym, the children played Octopus and moved with Just Dance video with Miss Santiago.  The students used PebbleGo to investigate Spring happenings in the computer lab.

     On Friday afternoon, Lambton-Kingsway participated in Earth Hour.  At 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm we shut off the lights in our classroom to help save energy, help the climate and draw attention to the wildlife loss in Canada and around the world.

    Please read the LKS Parent Bulletin to find information regarding the Book Fair the beginning of April.  This Book Fair is hosted by Mabel's Fables and will work a bit differently that our Scholastic book fairs.  Children will be able to make a wish list of books that they would like and then may bring in the money or a credit card number during the purchasing time.  As in the past, all children will have the opportunity to visit the book fair and purchasing books is not required.  We will be also be discussing this in class, that sometimes you just go to a store to look and not buy anything.  The book fair may also change our library schedule that week.  I have put the regular library times on our April calendar, but we will have to be flexible as the library will be a busy place.

     Our March Sharing Assembly is Wednesday at 9:00 am in the gym.  The children will be singing a song under the leadership of Ms. McGee.  The children have been busy practising during their music periods.  Everyone is invited!  The character trait being celebrated is Honesty.

     Wishing everyone a great long weekend with their friends and family.  A reminder that there is no school on Friday, March 30 and Monday, April 2.  Please return Sound Review books and Sight work books by Wednesday so we have time to add the new work.  April calendars will be sent home this Tuesday.

This Week:

Monday-Library (B), Computers (A)

Tuesday-Spring Party (am)

             -check the calendars for volunteers

              -Snuggle Up books exchanged

Wednesday-Sharing Assembly

                   -Music

                   -Return Sound Review books and 

                    Sight Word books

Thursday-Library(A), Computers (B)

                 -Snuggle Up books exchanged

Friday-No School

Monday-No School