Apples from the orchard!

Today Mrs. Porto brought in apples, a crock pot, an apple peeler and some fix'ins. As a group, we peeled, cut, mixed and cooked the apples.

At the end of the day we had a chance to taste what we made. Our class chart indicated that MORE people liked the chunky apple sauce. 15 people liked it and 7 din't like it.

Please talk to your child about their apple experience today.

Have a great night,
Mrs. Kimberley and Mrs. Porto

Our daily table centres are always changing, check out Monday's centres...

Alphabet Letter Homework!

This is an example of how you could decorate your letter homework. Please remember to use one item only. Make sure it's secured on tightly. You may want to use cotton balls, rice, pasta, buttons, stickers. Please make it unique and help your child with this task. Print your name on the back and bring it in by Tuesday.

Thank you!

Wednesday morning table activities. Take a look at what we plan...

Mrs. Kimberley and Mrs. Porto plan different table activities each morning. In this picture we have "draw what you see" where we ask the children to look in a mirror and draw themselves. "Draw what you see" where they look at the flower view in front of them and draw their perspective. At the top they were asked to use all of the materials that are on the table to create a "Me".

Terry Fox

Tomorrow is our Terry Fox walk. Please make sure your child brings a water bottle, walking shoes and if possible, a toonie!

Thank you,
Mrs. P and Mrs. K

Missing gray, zipper Gap kids jacket!

Dear Families, there is a missing gray, gap jacket that belongs to Adam. It's gone missing! If you see it, would you please send it in.

Thank you and happy Thursday!
The FDK Team

Library and Class Vote Wednesday (Homework)

Monday's are our Library day. We have had our library orientation and next Monday your child will be coming home with a book. Please read this with them as it won't be at their reading level. A snuggle up and read time each night is always a good idea. Please do not rush with the book. It is important to read it at least twice during the week. The book is due back each Monday morning so that they can get a new one that day.

Also, our class homework from last night was not done by most of the class. Please scroll below and choose two inquiry topics with your child. Write them down in the communication book so that we can use their choices for a vote.

Thank you.

Monday night homework! Pick an Inquiry...

Tonight's homework is for your child to pick two from our inquiry list. Please write it down in their communication book for them. We will then tally up the votes. Check the blog to see which one will be our first inquiry!

We can't wait!

More important Purple Room Information: Snacks, Pick up, Volunteers...

The beginning of a school year is an exciting time in the lives of children and a very busy one for many parents. By now, many of you know our arrival and dismissal routines and snack and lunch information. This letter should provide you with information to answer many other questions you may have concerning procedures in our room and in our school.

We look forward to developing my partnership with you and I hope that you will be able to become involved in the life of the school. With team work and cooperation among parents, teachers and students, we will have a TERRIFIC year!!

Arrival
As you know, the school hours are 8:55 AM to 3:15 PM. Bus students will be led to the Kindergarten yard every morning where they will be supervised.


If your child will be late or absent from school, please make sure you call the attendance program. If you know that your child will be away for a period of time, please let us know in the communication book.
Any change in supervision to or from school should be made in writing to the teachers/office.

Pick-up: Pick-up will be outside in the kindergarten yard. Each student will wait until their name has been called by the teacher to be dismissed. Some students have not quite grasped this idea yet. Please be patient so that we can do this in an orderly fashion.

Please come for pick up between 3:05 and 3:20 pm (at the latest). After 3:20 pm, we will bring your child to the front office to wait for their special person there.

Snacks
Please send at least 2 light and nutritious snacks for your child daily - one for the morning and one for the afternoon. These snacks should be packed separately. We have been doing well with students having enough to eat. Also, please send your child to school with a water bottle daily. Make sure all lunch bags, water bottles and containers are labeled with your child’s name on them. Children are asked not to drink a juice box during snack time as often only a couple of sips are taken and they can’t be put back in their backpack. A reminder that in order to keep our students with allergies safe, please do not send in nuts or peanut butter. We also have a large list of "allergens" that contain latex that are not allowed in our school. Please remember not to pack these items either (i.e., mango, avocado etc).


Parent Volunteer Wanted
We are in need of a parent volunteer to come help with after snack or after lunch clean up and for small group reading. If you are interested in helping us out with this, please drop us a line. One or two days a week would be great!

Thanks for reading. We look forward to working with you this year!
Mrs. Porto and Mrs. Kimberley

Important information about picture day and shoes!

Picture Day is on the 24th!!!!
Please remember to fill out the form that is coming home, if you would like a personal package.

Please remember that you child needs more than one pair of shoes. One for inside the classroom and one for outside. We really need to get into the habit of changing our shoes and keeping the classroom dry and safe.

Thank you,
Have a great weekend.
Mrs. Porto and Mrs. Kimberley

Our Friday so far!

International Dot Day in the Purple Room!

We celebrated International Dot Day but listening to "The Dot" by Peter Reynolds. Our tasks were to make a beautiful dot that is unique, just like we are.

Your children did a great job! They took their time and made their dot very special. They are displayed in the class.

Please ask your child about the story and what they created.

Mrs. P

First days...

All about me bags...

Dear Families,
Your child went home with an all about me bag and information inside. Please do not rush the bag with them. Please return by NEXT Friday so that you can work on it together and enjoy making it.

:)

Missing Blue Jays Hat!

Please check your child's backpack for a Blue Jays hat. We have one missing and he would really love to get it back. 

Thanks so much!

Indoor and outdoor shoes needed!

Dear Families,

Please remember to have indoor and outdoor shoes for your child as we really need to get them into the habit of changing in and out of them at recess. During the Fall and Winter months, the floors will get slippery and dangerous if they do not have the proper foot attire. Please help us out with this.

Thank you for your help,
Mrs. Porto and Mrs. Kimberley

"Your partners in education"

Look what we did this week!

Play-dough making
Outdoor play
Draw what you see (mirror activity)
Playing with cars
What can you make (flyer activity)
Literacy table-top activities
Fine motor beading activity

and more!

What is Play Based Learning and questions to ask your child...

What is Play Based Learning?

Play based learning refers to activities that the educator has laid out for the children to engage in. These are to help them to acquire numeracy and literacy skills (etc.). Play based is the "how they learn the skill" ie. rather than pencil/paper repetitive tasks.

What is Inquiry?

Inquiry refers to the topics of conversation and the curiosity the children are researching and inquiring about. Hopefully the children are applying their attained skill set to each inquiry/activity. 

Self-regulation: The ability to monitor and manage your thoughts, feelings and behaviours. It is the foundation for all other learning. Developing the ability to self-regulate such that one can cope well with stress and stay focused on the task as needed, is one of the big jobs of early childhood.

Sometimes, children develop self-regulation naturally from being around stress free, self-regulating adults, from playing and exercising regularly, from being in nature, eating healthy foods, getting plenty of sleep. More often, however, in our current culture, children struggle with attention, learning and impulse control issues due to an inability to self-regulate. 

Items that may help: Quiet corner, deep breathing, yoga, outdoor play, stuffy, squeeze toys, chatting about what to do when we do not 'feel well' and may need a break. 

Please talk to your child about school each day, ask them simple questions like...
1. What was your favourite part of your day today?
2. What did you do today? Let's look at the blog to see...
3. Did you play with a friend today?
4. When you get tired, what do you do?
5. Did you play outside today?
6. What did you make today?
7. Did you listen to a story today?
8. What songs do you sing during the day?

Please use the blog as a tool to help your child learn, remember and discuss FDK with you and your family.

:)

Welcome to the Purple Room at Best!

Dear Families, 
We would like to introduce you to our classroom blog! Here you will get to see your child in all of their glory each day in Mrs. Porto and Mrs. Kimberley's FDK Class!

We will do our best to update the blog daily for you to get a broader picture of what your child has been up to through play.

Please note that 90% of our communication home will be through the blog. We will post classroom needs, schedules, activities etc. for you to keep updated.

Feel free to post and add comments to our blog. For this you may need your own g-mail or google account.

We look forward to working with you throughout the year. 

Always,
Mrs. Porto and Mrs. Kimberley