This week in FLK-3

Thank you for your diligence in returning mailbags

and the binders!
In Language: We learned and discussed the rhyming words in Hey Diddle Diddle,
Little Miss Muffet, Jack and Jill and Hickory Dickory Dock. By adding in our own
rhyming word pairs, we made our own version of these nursery rhymes and had fun
acting them out. We reviewed that there are 26 letters in the alphabet and that
each letter has a NAME and at least 1 SOUND. In our Jolly Phonics Program we
reviewed the Ss and learned the Aa. We began working in our Jolly Phonics
workbooks. We also began MYSTERY NAMES where a students name is revealed
letter by letter and we guess who it is. It provides opportunity to study letter
formation in an explicit, but intriguing manner.
Miss Evans began her twice weekly morning messages. Through these messages,
the children learn many skills, such as: associating spoken words with written
words, using the sounds we learn in Jolly Phonics to write, using spaces between
letters (spaghetti spaces), spaces between words ( meatball spaces), sight words,
etc.
We completed reading assessments on the 2
nd
year students.
We went to the Library for the first time!!!! Miss Mason is an excellent Librarian
and we work closely with her. Our first visit to the Library is always memorable!!
Ask your child, What does Miss Mason have that no other teacher at St. Mark
has? Yes, she DOES have a tail..after all, she IS the Library Dragon who guards
our books.what would you expect?!?
Binders containing poems and prayers to date are going home tonight (Friday). We
ask that you read them over with your child - your child should be able to show you
more of the actions for some of the prayers/poems. Please return them again on
Monday.


Gym: To help us practice our patterning, we played/sang songs like head and
Shoulders. We played Red Light, Green Light and because our listening was even
better than last week, we played Whistle Stop. One whistle means stop, 2
s=whistles mean take a knee. Then, because we begged, we played Octopus.
In Religion: We continued to explicitly practice The Sign of the Cross. I think
most of us are now looking for the hole we form with our right arm when we
reach across our body for the Holy. We continue to discuss being Bucket Fillers
as opposed to Bucket Dippers. We discussed God and creation. We actually
created our world in 7 screens using the SmartBoard! We concluded that God
loves us very much if He created us to know Him and love Him. We discussed signs
of His love and went on a scavenger hunt to find symbols (hearts) of Gods love.
We also had a popcorn party to help us understand the magic of Gods love. When
we dont feel the love of God we are like an un-popped popcorn kernel yet, when we
embrace the love of God we are able to burst wide open just like a popcorn kernel
and feel all warm and toasty inside.
Science: Miss Evans made some Fairy magic happen using glow sticks and glitter in
a jar. It was like Tinkerbell in a jar!
In Fine Motor Development: Mrs. Hennessey continued her work with select
children to increase fine motor strength and dexterity as well as gross motor
strength.
In Art: Miss Evans reminded the children of their own Fairy name and its meaning
and then had the children create their own fairies using coffee filters and clothes
pins.
In Music, Drama and Dance: We continue to celebrate the end of most days with
a Dance Party! The degree to which we let loose has rocketed substantially!!!!
Look out So You Think You Can Dance! We also began lunch and classics this
week. During lunch the students have been listening to classical music to help them
develop an understanding and appreciation for various forms of music.
In Mathematics: We began sorting. We discussed various ways to describe an
object and how it could be similar to another object, ex. the color, shape, texture,
whether it has laces or Velcro, etc. We started sorting using the color of fairy


feathers and worked up to using shape as our sorting rule. Using the SmartBoard,
we sorted buttons, fairies, blue objects, and we even sorted our own real life
shoes into hula hoops! We talked about DIFFERENT ways to sort the same items.
To develop observation skills, we had fun deciding Which one doesnt belong?
.using fairies of course! We worked with individual children to sort toys various
ways and to discuss their thinking.

In Personal and Social Development: We continued using THE CLASSROOM
DOJO to track good choices during clean-up time. Miss Evans spent a huge amount
of time this week teaching and reinforcing the skill of cleaning up as we go. If we
take something out and then decide on another activity, we must clean up our first
choice before moving on. It made for easier possible DOJO points. She also
worked on social manners verbal and body in space/proximity manners. We
discussed 18 inches of personal spaceour own personal bubble.
We continued using a visual schedule to show the children what is happening during
the day. As we complete a subject, we take it off the board to show the passage of
time. It seems to help alleviate anxiety for some. They can see where we are, what
weve done and when it will be home time.
In Inquiry/Directed Play: We talked a lot about sharing and that sharing means
taking turns. Taking turns is difficult because someone is always waiting and its
hard to wait. Timers helped in some cases.

Upcoming Events:
Tuesday Sept 23- Opening School Mass all are welcome!
****Friday Sept 26 PA Day no school for students.
Wednesday October 29 class trip to Kustermans Farm all three FDK classes
will travel by bus to spend the day at the farm. More information will soon follow,
but, if you are able, mark the date on the calendar and join us there!