4-8 de enero

¡Hola Familias!

¡Feliz Año Nuevo! ¡Feliz Día de Reyes! Happy New Year! Happy Three Kings' Day! We started 2021 with a bang in kindergarten this week! Here are some of the activities we've been doing...

El Día de Reyes

On Wednesday, we celebrated el día de Reyes, or Three Kings' Day, which is a common holiday in many Spanish-speaking countries. We read books about the three kings and their story, made special surprises to leave in the shoes of the other SI kids, left out our own shoes to receive surprises, and tried some traditional Rosca de Reyes and Mexican chocolate caliente! The rosca is a special oval-shaped bread decorated with sugar and candied fruits, and inside are some surprise plastic bebés (babies) for lucky kids to find! See more pictures of our celebration below.

SER / PBIS

Rexie the Dinosaur talks to the kids about SER

As you probably know, we have started implementing some new behavior systems this week--both in the classroom as well as the entire school. The entire school is beginning to use a system called PBIS, or Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports. Our goal is to help students achieve their maximum potential--academically and behaviorally--by imitating Christ and using a positive behavior management system. Our key word is SER, or "to be" in Spanish. SER stands for Self-control, be Engaged, and be Respectful. We've been practicing using SER all over the school, and the kids have done a fantastic job! I am so happy to see kids seeing the benefits of their positive choices. Let's keep up the great work!

Here's a quick snapshot of the rest of our week...

Reading / Lectura: This week we've learned the syllables fa, fe, fi, fo, fu. We've also been learning the difference between un sustantivo (a noun) and un verbo (a verb).

Writing / Escritura: We've been writing a book about SER in different places in the school. I encourage you to have your child share the book with you!

Math / Matemáticas: This week we have been reviewing concepts, such as addition and subtraction, teen numbers, and counting from 1-100 by 1s and by 10s.

Bible / Biblia: We learned about el Rey Salomón and how he asked for la sabiduría (wisdom) from God. We've also started to learn about the prophet Elías (Elijah). 

Science / Ciencias: This week we started our unit on force and motion, practicing the difference between un empujón y un jalón (a push and a pull). This was a fun activity to try outdoors with sleds!

Thank you! Gracias!

We are so grateful to be able to add more Spanish books to our school Media Center, provided by a generous donation from an anonymous donor! To your right is a photo of the new books we added. ¡Muchas Gracias!

Little Maroons

Thank you for your patience as we navigate changes to the winter season. With the high school basketball season being condensed and changed, there will be some adjustments to the Little Maroon schedule. We are doing our best to give your child the best schedule while also following COVID guidelines and best practices. Please note the date changes as well as some further health department guidelines that will need to be enforced. This is the schedule assuming that sports can resume as of January 16.

Guidelines that will need to be followed:
Each athlete will need their own water bottle, no water will be provided.
Each athlete will need to wear a mask or face covering for the duration of Little Maroons.
New: Only athletes will be allowed in the gym. Parents may walk in to drop their kids off but must leave at the start of each session. Parents may enter with five minutes of the session to pick up their child. This is to stay within compliance with the health department.

Adjusted Schedule:

MONDAY January 18: (No school)

8:30-10. 3/4 SKILL

10:30-12 k-2 SKILL

12:30-2 5-6 SKILL

January 23:

8:30-10. 3/4 SKILL

10:30-12 k-2 SKILL

12:30-2 5-6 SKILL

January 30:

8:30-10. 3/4 SKILL

10:30-12 k-2 SKILL

12:30-2 5-6 SKILL

February 6:

8:30-10. 3/4 League

February 13:

8:30-10. 3/4 League

February 20:

8:30-10. 3/4 League

February 27:

8:30-10. 3/4 League

That's all for now. Have a great weekend!

14-18 de diciembre

 ¡Hola Familias!

What a day; what a week, what an almost-semester we've had! If someone had told me in August that my class would be attending school every day from the first day until Christmas, I probably would have been skeptical. But wow--WE DID IT! Thank you from the bottom of my heart--for your commitment, for your prudence, for your communication, and for your perseverance through these tough times. Our kids have been THRIVING at school, and I am so grateful to see their beautiful faces every day.

Here's what we've been learning this week...

Reading / Lectura: We worked on the syllables ba, be, bi, bo, bu this week. We've been plowing ahead in our guided reading groups, working on reading strategies, and building our confidence. Additionally, we've been continuing our study of adjetivos (adjectives) in Spanish and correct word order.

Writing / Escritura: Over the past 2 weeks we've worked on a few pattern books: Te Amo (I love you), Yo Veo (I see), and Yo Puedo (I can). The kids have had so much success completing these sentences and writing/illustrating short books. We've also enjoyed sharing our work with others.

Math / Matemáticas: We've been working on subitizing (recognizing instantly the groups in a small set of objects), especially with 5-groups. We've also been practicing forming teen numbers as a group of 10 with 1s, as well as building fluency with addition and subtraction problems.

Bible / Biblia: This week we finished making títeres (puppets) to act out the Christmas story. We've also enjoyed singing lots of Christmas songs together! Interested in learning more songs we've been singing in class? Check out this playlist.

Social Studies / Estudios Sociales: We learned about our necesidades (needs) and deseos (wants), practicing the phrases yo necesito (I need) and yo quiero (I want). 

Vacation Challenge!

The kids went home today with a Vacation Challenge packet! I hope that all of our incredible learning can continue over break so that in January we will pick up right where we are leaving off today. Please let me know if you have any questions or if I can support you at all. Everyone is excited to get their prize in January!

Looking for More? Build your Child's Reading Stamina!

If you are staying around and looking for another great resource over Christmas break, might I recommend this video series? It is a video series designed to help your child build reading stamina, eventually reading up to 30 minutes at a time! (I did this with my own kids in March-April of last year, and I really see the difference in their ability to sit down and read a book for a sustained period of time.) Simply open the link, scroll down, and hit "watch video series"! It is easy and really fun to do during some down time at home.

Thank you! ¡Gracias!

My gratefulness for you goes beyond words. Thank you for each kind message, smile, gift, and treat. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to teach your child this year!

My prayer is that you and your family have a wonderful Christmas, a happy New Year, and that our learning in 2021 will continue to be as amazing as it has been so far! ¡Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo!

Enjoy some pictures from our Christmas concert, our Christmas party, and the gradual but certain destruction of our piñata below... :)