June 3-7

 The sun is shining and June has arrived.   As we changed our classroom calendar from May to June and put up special events of the month, there was something very strange about putting up "Last Day of School" at the end of the month.  I don't think any of us can really believe that the year has gone so fast.  It's going to be a busy month and we are going to pack in as much learning, fun and friendship as we can before our summer break.   Our word of the week was "Determination!" and we are all determined to end our year in Kindergarten by doing our best and trying new things.

We read the story "Jabari Jumps" and "Mr. Strong" this week- and in both stories the characters needed to have determination to try something new.  They made a decision and they "went for it".  We have also been doing this in the classroom as we have attempted new things- like reading words together, spelling new words, writing sentences using punctuation and using our number sense skills to solve mystery math problems. The AM class also used our determination and muscles to do a special science experiment on friday morning. You'll have to ask your child what we made- it was scrumptious.

In Literacy we noticed just how many words we can actually already read.  We looked at lots of signs and logos and environmental print and we were so excited to see we could identify and "read" so much.  We also spent time writing in our journals and reading our last fairytale- "Goldilocks and the Three Bears".  We loved acting out the story doing "Kinder Theatre".  For phonics we have continued to learn about beginning and end sounds, rhyming words and alliteration.  

In math, we started to learn all about 3D shapes.  We learned the difference between 2D and 3D shapes, and explored what makes 3D solids different from one another.  We have been noticing 3D shapes in our classroom now and can label them.  We also learned how to play a new game called "Mystery Cup"- it combines subitizing skills with numbers 1-10 and mental math.  

We also learned about "Land Acknowledgements" and why they are important.  As a class we created our own Land Acknowledgement- sharing where our families are from, why we love nature and the land, and how we promise to take care of it.  The Kindergarten students had so many wonderful ideas to share and did a fantastic job listening to one another.

At center times we had fun playing in our new Ice Cream Shoppe centre, building with all types of materials, exploring capacity concepts at the water table, painting with fluffy paint, taking care of baby dolls, building forts and playing all kinds of new tag games at the park.

Rock Collection  

Students will be completing a special project next week which requires rocks!!! If you have time over the weekend, please have your child find two small rocks to bring to school next week (not too big)! We are looking for each student to have one about the size of a toonie and one the size of a loonie. (One can be slightly bigger than the other). Please  send your rocks to school in a labelled bag by Wednesday. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Here are some other updates from the school:

On Thursday June 20, the Grade Three students at our school will be hosting a Global Citizenship fundraiser in support of the Calgary Bridge Foundation for Youth, which supports newly arrived immigrants and refugees. They will be selling various student handmade items for $2. There will also be lemonade and fudge bites available for purchase. If you would like your child to participate, please send money with them and we will help them select their items to purchase. Thank you for all of your support!

The Grade Three Team

It has been great to see all of the students walking or riding to school on Thursdays (and other days of the week).  Every Thursday is a Walk or Ride day, and we are encouraging all students to get to school in an active way.  We are doing this because it is: good for the environment, good for our bodies, and it's fun! 

Mark van Sluys

PE Teacher

Here are some pictures from our week: