Another great week of kindergarten is in the books! It was an action-packed five days of singing, celebrating, learning, and playing with friends. I so enjoyed the opportunity to meet many of the children's grandparents and see them enjoying their special time together on Thursday. One of my favorite things about kindergarten is the ENTHUSIASM! We sing, and we sing loud! Hearing the littlest ones belt out praise songs put a big smile on my face (and the grandparents' faces too!). Here is a summary of what we've been up to this week.
Our Week
Bible
In Bible this week, we continued learning about the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We finished talking about God's promises to Abraham and then studied Isaac and his wife Rebekah. Then, we acted out the story of Jacob and Esau, and how Jacob received the blessing (bendición) instead of his brother. Even though this family had many problems and was not perfect, God still chose them to be the ancestors of our Savior. What a great reminder that God loves us despite our imperfections!
Reading
We have finished our study of las vocales! This week we learned the final vowel, I (pronounced "ee"). This is a tricky sound because kids often confuse it with the letter E (pronounced "eh"). We have practiced these important sounds through song, movement, writing, coloring, dotting, and many other activities. Next week we'll begin the next pivotal step in Spanish language literacy, which is syllable blending. Additionally, we sorted nombre comunes and nombres propios (proper and "regular" names) and differentiated between mayúscula (capital) and minúscula (lower-case) letters.Writing
In writing this week, we have been looking at books and noticing the things that writers do. Writers write about topics they know, experiences they have had, and things that interest them. The kids have enjoyed writing and drawing creatively and then sharing their writing with each other. It has been impressive to hear the kids gaining confidence in using the prompt, "Este es..." (This is...) and continuing in Spanish.
Math
In math, we have continued practicing number stories with sumas and restas. The children are getting pretty quick at identifying addition and subtraction problems as well as saying equations. We use manipulative to tell stories and practice showing the problems on our fingers. We have also practiced writing the numbers 1-4.
Science
This week in science, we studied the last sense--la nariz (nose) para oler (to smell). We got to smell some common household items, such as a candle, perfume, chocolate powder, and shaving cream, and decide if it smelled good (huele bien) or bad (huele mal). Then we tried to find matching smells in film canisters. This was a challenge! It has been a lot of fun to incorporate language learning into our science lessons. Immersion Tip of the Week
You'll notice that some of Spanish reading instruction looks a little different from English reading instruction--for example, Spanish reading relies heavily on syllable blending. Even though some of the phonics and strategies are different from English, many strategies--such as comprehension of text and using picture clues--are the same and will transfer to English.
Let's keep it simple this week--just READ together! Don't underestimate the power of reading with your child! If you have not already, incorporate reading books into your daily routine. Looking for new books? Your child brought home a Scholastic order form with instructions for ordering online, and there are many titles in both English AND Spanish!
Important Dates to Remember
*Wednesday, October 17: Field trip to DeGraaf Nature Center to learn about the 5 senses.
*Monday, October 22 and Tuesday, October 23 are Parent-Teacher conferences. Please make sure you sign up for a 15-minute slot!
Action Items
1. Please look over your child's Scholastic Book Order and place your online orders. Make sure you use our class code (TRHVL) so the books will be shipped to our school.
2. Would anyone like to donate pumpkins/gourds for our classroom? I'd love some small gourds (like the ones they sell for 50 cents at the Farmer's Market) to decorate and to incorporate into our math activities. If you have a chance, please send in a couple this week. ¡Muchas gracias!
Have a great weekend, and enjoy some pictures from this week below!
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