Kickin' It Kindergarten: Odds and Ends

I have a lot of info from the week, so please be patient as you read through this!

Valentine's Day Party: Our party is next Friday, February 14 from 1-2 pm. I have had several parents offer to help with the party, but we can always use more. If you are interested, please let me know ASAP! In addition, don't forget your child can begin sending in their Valentine's Day Cards on Monday.

Valentine's Day Writing: In your child's green folder today, you will find directions and materials for a writing project. In honor of Valentine's Day, and to practice being a Bucket Filler, your child will have the opportunity to write something nice about a friend in our classroom. The kids had the chance to draw a name at random today. The name they drew is the name of the person they will write about. These projects can be sent back in whenever you are done with them. I'm looking forward to seeing and reading all the positive comments about the friends in our classroom!

Specials Schedule: Don't forget that when we have snow days, we do not skip over that special. When we return to school, we pick up where we left off. Because of our snow day on Wednesday, this now means your child's specials schedule is 1 day off. Should we have more days off, we will continue to backtrack on the calendar.

Jump Rope for Heart: Thanks to all of you who have already turned in your donations money for Jump Rope for Heart. Any who are still collecting, please remember this is due on Wednesday, February 12. The kids will be jumping during their specials time on Friday, February 14th. Please be sure your child has on tennis shoes this day as all specials will go to the gym.

Math: Below are the activities we have been working on in math this week. Please continue to work on these strategies with your child at home:

Measuring: We have done a lot of practicing learning how to measure items in our rooms. We traced a paper cut out of our foot, and compared it to a Standard Foot (12 inches). The kids have been using both to measure various items, and then compare the lengths of each. We have also learned about yardsticks, tape measure, and rulers. Yesterday the kids used a ruler to practice measuring items around our room. Have your child show you our "Mark it, Move it" strategy we have learned to help us measure.
Tally Marks: We have been working hard to master tally marks. We have also discussed how counting tally marks is the same as counting by 5's.
Raft Game: This is a game the kids have learned to help us learn to make exchanges. The students roll a dice and take the same number of counters. When they have 5 counters, they can exchange for 1 stick. When they earn 5 sticks, they can exchange for 1 raft. The first person to earn the raft is the winner!

Around the World: Today we sailed back from Antarctica and landed in Argentina. We talked about The Obelisk (a monument that looks very much like the Washington Monument), Casa Rosada (The Pink House which is the government building), 9 de Julio Avenue (the largest street in the world), and La Boca (a very colorful part of Buenos Aires). In addition, we saw a huge Rubber Tree, talked about the Tango, and took a stroll through Tierra del Fuego National Park.

Avenue 9 de Julio. The largest in the world, combines 4 sections of roads. The center aisles have 7 lanes each, with two outer sections with 2 lanes each. All together, the avenue has 18 lanes of traffic!

Casa Rosada (The Pink House) is the government building in the capital city of Buenos Aires.

La Boca. A very colorful neighborhood in Buenos Aires.

The Obelisk. A monument built in honor of Argentina's independence.

A large Rubber Tree. With branches stretching 150 feet across, this tree's lower branches are supported by beams that help to support the weight of the tree.