End of the Year Fun!

Wow!  The past few weeks have just flown by!  The students have been having so much fun celebrating the end of the year.  Lunch at school, Field Day, visiting a first grade classroom, having 5th graders come visit our classroom, and spending time with friends are just a few of the ways we are enjoying our final days of kindergarten.

I am so proud of each and every student and am amazed by the growth I have seen over this year.  I feel so fortunate to have been able to work with your children each day and am so sad to see them go. I know they will all make terrific first graders!  Have a wonderful summer!

Enjoy this slideshow highlighting our end of year activities:

 
End of Year Fun from Heather Coyle on Vimeo.

Highlights From Our Classroom

I can't believe we are approaching our last full month of kindergarten!   Time sure flies when you are having fun, and these kindergarteners having been having lots of fun lately!

Reading Workshop
We have finished our Poetry unit!  During this unit, students learned how reading poetry is different than reading a book.

Students also used the Nearpod app on the iPads to learn more about the elements of different poems. They looked for rhyming words, stanzas, descriptive words, and repeating words and patterns.

The kindergarteners also learned how to make personal connections when reading poetry.  Text-to-Self connections are when the reader connects what he/she has read to something in his/her own life. Text-to-Text connections are when a reader connects what he/she has read to another poem or book.  I was quite impressed with the connections being shared in class!

Students also continue to use RAZ Kids to help practice their just-right reading.  Many of you are using this program at home too, which is great to see!  If you need another copy of the log-in information, please be sure to let me know.  Next week, we will be beginning our Content Literacy unit.  This unit ties into our current science unit on animals, plants, and people.  

Math

In math, we have been learning about a variety of concepts.  Students have practiced their 2-D shapes, while learning about the 3-D shapes as well.  They did a great job sorting spheres, cylinders, cones, and cubes.

We continue to work on adding two numbers together and writing our numbers correctly.

Using counters, students had a chance to solve a variety of comparison number stories.  They did a great job of looking for the differences and being able to solve these challenging problems correctly.

 We also learned about the concept of dividing groups in half.  Students practiced making equal groups and showing their answer in a picture.

Writing Workshop

We have begun a new unit on informative writing!  During this unit, students will learn about the different features of informative books.  We looked at the differences between facts and opinions and students had a chance to write 3 facts about a topic they are an expert in.  These lessons are helping to prepare the students for their first research project!  Each student has chosen an animal that he/she is interested in learning more about.  During the next several weeks, students will be researching this animal using the Pebble Go website.  Their research will be used to write their very own informational book, complete with all of the nonfiction text features we have been learning about! We can't wait to share these books once they are finished!

Guest Readers

We were so lucky to have two ABC/25 Raffle Winners come into our classroom to read some of our favorite stories!  These 4th graders were fabulous readers and we were so happy to have them join us!

Upcoming Events

Please be sure you are regularly checking your child's take home folder, as a few notes have gone home recently highlighting a few important dates coming up.

Friday, May 12:  Kindergarten Musical at 10:25

ALL Kindergarten students attend morning kindergarten on this day.  The three classes will perform together in the gym at 10:25.  You will certainly not want to miss this adorable program!  All parents, grandparents, and loved ones are invited.  Younger siblings may also attend.  After the performance, there will be light refreshments, and then you are welcome to come back to the classroom to see where we work each day.  The morning ends at 11:50, however we are usually finished around 11:30. There will be sign out sheets near the main office, if you would like to take your child home early that day.  

Friday, May 19: Let's Have Lunch 11:00-11:30

Kindergarten students will have a chance to have lunch in the Dryden lunchroom to get ready for 1st grade!  A note was sent home this week with the information about ordering hot lunch for this day. Your child may also bring a lunch from home, if you prefer.  We will be having lunch from 11-11:30 on this day, so our dismissal time will remain the same.  Please be sure to return the note by Tuesday, May 9.  

Friday, June 2:  Field Day- ALL AFTERNOON

ALL Kindergarten students will attend school in the AFTERNOON this day.  There will be NO morning kindergarten this day.  All children at Dryden will participate in Field Day for the entire afternoon.  This annual event takes place in the field and is coordinated by the PTA.  The children participate in a variety of fun outdoor games and activities. Please be aware that there is NO bus service for morning kindergarten students on Field Day.  Parents are responsible for transportation to and from school on this day.  Reminders will be sent home as the date approaches.  

STEAM Night

STEAM Night

Our 2nd annual Dryden STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Math) Night will be taking place on Thursday, May 4 from 6:00 - 7:30 PM.

Try your hand at creating zip lines and marble runs.

Learn to code or create music with Makey Makey.

Take apart old cameras and laptops, and discover how things work.

Make an "Art-bot" or Hot Wheels play mat. 

We hope you will join us for a fun interactive evening of hands-on STEAM activities with Dryden teachers and high school volunteers.

Please RSVP by clicking here.

School News

Just a few important announcements to share from Dryden:

• On Tuesday, April 11, award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown will be coming to Dryden! His all-school presentation will focus on his process as an author and an illustrator and will touch on both his picture books and his novel, The Wild Robot.  Although this presentation will take place in the afternoon from 2:00-2:45, all morning kindergarteners are welcome to attend with an adult.  

• STEAM Night donations would be greatly appreciated!  We are in need of paper towel rolls, toilet paper rolls, and newspaper.  If you are able to send in these items, please drop them off in the office for Laurie Wasik, Advanced Learning Facilitator.  Thank you!

• Join us as Dryden goes to the dogs.....and cats! The fifth grade classes have selected two local animal shelters as their service project this year! They will be collecting donations for The Buddy Foundation and Kay's Animal Shelter.  A full list can be found on the PTA webpage, but the most needed things include food, treats, beds, and gift cards. If you can donate any new or unopened items, please have your child bring them to the school and place them into one of our colorful collection boxes.  Donations will be collected through April 13.  

• The ABC/25 Just Move It! Challenge 5k and 1 mile run/walk fundraiser will be held on Saturday, April 22, 2017 at South Middle School. Early registration for the JMI Challenge is now open to all walkers and runners! Please visit the registration link. In order to guarantee that you receive a t-shirt for the race, you must register before April 7, 2017. Volunteers are needed for this fun event! If you would like to volunteer, click here. For suggestions or more information on being a sponsor, contact jmichallenge.org.

Highlights From Our Classroom

Spring is in the air!  We have been having fun and learning a lot in kindergarten these past few weeks!  Read on to see what we have been doing.

Math

Our newest math unit has allowed the students to explore the concepts of attributes, addition and subtraction, patterns, counting, and measuring.  

After learning about the different ways attribute blocks can be sorted, the students had a chance to try it!

We are continuing to practicing counting, ordering, and comparing numbers to help build and strengthen number sense.  Games are such a fun way to practice!

The kindergarteners loved using craft sticks to create and record their own patterns.

The students solved their own addition number story involving a leprechaun!

We practiced measuring using a non-standard unit:  our own foot!

To show how important it is to measure with a standard unit, we measured out "beds".  Each bed was 6 feet long by 3 feet wide, BUT one bed was measured with our non-standard unit- kindergartener's feet and the other was measured with a standard foot.  The students loved trying out each "bed" to see see which one fit them best!

Reading

We are wrapping up on nonfiction unit.  I have been so impressed with the observations, discussions, and sharing that I have been seeing.  These readers have become quite the experts at finding nonfiction text features such as bold words, table of contents, labels, a glossary, and an index.  During independent reading time, I see the students constantly stop and think as they share new information or facts that they already knew that were confirmed by their reading.  After spring break, we will start a poetry unit.

Assembly:

Thanks to our wonderful PTA, the students had a chance to attend an assembly about the importance of taking care of our environment.  Several of our students were even able to go on stage to help out!

Me Bags and Guest Readers

It is hard to believe, but everyone in the class has now had a chance to share a little more about themselves by bringing in items in the Me Bag.  We have loved getting to know our friends even better and we have truly enjoyed having all of our Guest Readers join us this year!

We learned Dominic loves his stuffed dolphin!

Thank you to Dominic's mom for reading us the silly story, Pzonka Lays an Egg!

We loved seeing Sofia's special teddy bear!

It was such a treat to have Sofia's grandma join us to read, My First Sleepover!

We learned that Grace loves sparkly jewels, especially in her bracelet from Disney World!

There was a lot of laughter as Grace's mom shared the fun story, What the Dinosaurs Did Last Night.

Lily shared her special letter that she received from Santa Claus!

Having Lily's cousin read Uni the Unicorn was a perfect ending to our Friday morning!

ABC/25 Just Move It Challenge

The Just Move it! Challenge 5k and 1 Mile run/walk fundraiser will be held on April 22nd at South Middle School.  This is a great family and community event that raises money for ABC25 grants.  Please consider participating as a runner/walker or a volunteer and help Dryden bring home the participation trophy this year!!

Early registration for the JMI Challenge is now open to all walkers and runners!  Please go to registration.  In order to guarantee that you receive a t-shirt for the race, you must register before April 7, 2017.

If anyone would like to volunteer to help make this year's race a huge success, please sign up here.

Special Reminder from the Office

Please remember to call the Dryden Absence Voicemail 

Dial (847) 506-6999 Extension 7100

Leave a message if your child will be absent, late, or leaving early. The office will share that information with the classroom teacher.