Week 8

Hello parents of kindergarten A

I hope you have all stayed dry and warm in this wild and wet weather we have been having!

All this week we have been looking into EXTREME weather such as flooding, tornadoes, typhoons etc. Please feel free to discuss these topics and any extreme weather or seismic events (such as volcanoes (Mt Aso) or earthquakes).

English

This week in English we have been continuing with our phonic books, comprehension, sight words (tusk, kept, camp and gift) and looking at the blended sounds NK,SK, LK and SC.

I was very impressed with how quickly we started using the new sight words and how many words we could name that used the blended sounds!! We all really like the word skunk because it used both SK and NK in the same word!

Maths

We have doubled down on using a numbered line in learning to add and subtract quickly up to the number 20.

In their homework packets this week I have included a personalised desk pad for them to keep at home.  This desk pad has the alphabet and numbers 1-20 to help them with writing and counting.  If it gets damaged or if they happen to lose it please contact me so that I can replace it.

Next week we will still be focusing on adding and subtracting but we are also going to start introducing the concept of telling time on an analogue clock.  

Inquiry

As stated above we have been looking into the concept of extreme weather and their effects on the environment, we have touched on not only severe weather such as flooding or drought but also natural disasters like avalanches or landslides. We even talked about seismic events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

We talked about events that can occur in Japan such as the Mt Aso eruption, yearly typhoons, possible flooding and landslides due to heavy rainfall.

We watched videos about the effects of these extreme occurrences and how it changes the landscape. The class found the landslide and tornado videos the most exciting.

Next week we'll be diving deeper into the extreme weather and further look at how it impacts the environment.

Important information

Sharing time

Taisei -  Tuesday 11th

Yamato - Thursday 12th

Monthly assessment

I am putting together the monthly assessment of your children and you should receive an email next week advising you of how they are doing in our class. Please don't hesitate to contact me should you have any questions.

Height and Weight checks

We will be conducting height and weight check next week so please contact me if you don't receive your email.

Student leaving

It saddens me to inform you all that San Le will be leaving our class to return to Indonesia. Her last day will be Friday 21st June (next Friday) we would like to have a small going away party for her in class as well as having the students make a card for her to take with her to remember us by.

If you would like to include something special from your child please have them bring it to class on the 21st and we will give it together.

Study hall

This week Ms Aurora and myself trialled a special class we are calling study hall. This class is designed for students to get one on one time with their homeroom teacher to get some help in a subject they might be struggling with or need a confidence boost in.

While study hall is happening the rest of Kindergarten A and B are in the gym enjoying free play and a few structured games. Currently we are planning on holding it once a week, with 5-7 students from each class and they will work on a selected topic.

It was a big success this week and I hope that it will be reflected in the work of the students that participated.