Welcome to Our Blog

Thank you for visiting our class blog! The purpose of our blog is for families to see all the exciting learning that takes place in our classroom. In a play based Kindergarten program students don't bring home a lot of "work", however they are constantly working as they figure out how to make their tower more stable or why the their playdough has changed from yellow to green. Our hope is that this blog will keep you up to date with what is going on in our class and give you a peek into your child's days at school. We hope you enjoy it!

Monday, 1 February 2016

Using Whiteboards
Whiteboards are always a popular writing tool in our classroom.  Sometimes we put them on a table and invite students to use them.  Often they just help themselves to record a message or take a survey of their friends' favourite colour.  Students feel comfortable taking risks when writing on whiteboards because they can simple wipe the boards off and start again, making them an excellent tool for beginning writers.  They are also fun because students get to use "the teacher" markers.

Here we are using information from our non-fiction texts about pets to gather and record information.



 Writing begins with pictures.


Students have enjoyed using whiteboards to conduct surveys of their friends.




Then students begin to understanding that letters are symbols that convey as message.  

Understanding that letters convey a message is an important step in writing.
 Here are students using whiteboard to explore shapes:
 








 
Ask your child to tell you what they are up to in these pictures and to identify some of the important places and faces from around the school.
 








 
The snow has been a welcome addition to the playground.  It has given students new opportunities to play and explore.
 



When it warmed up one day last week we posed this question to the class:




We rearranged tabled in front of the windows so students could record their ideas.


Students asked for help writing some of the words they needed to label their pictures so we made this chart. 




Here is what they came up with:




 
 

 
Welcome to our Pet Shop!
Thanks again to the generous contributions of our families our pet shop has been a busy place for students to explore during activity time.  Aside from the feeding and grooming, the Dramatic Play centre is providing opportunities for students to role play, as well as develop their social skills as they negotiate with their peers how to use the space and materials, take turns, and consider the opinions and needs of others.
 
Feeding Time!


Keeping our coats in good condition!



Putting on a collar for a walk.
 
Students make posters of the pets for sale.










 
 
Students show their creativity by making their owns props to use during play.  These puppies needed blankets, and then they had to be labelled so they wouldn't get mixed up.

Meet Goldie and Shimmer




Students are also using their pictures from home and their knowledge about pets to share their ideas.


"My fish just swims."

"Fish. Goldfish can swim."

"My pet dog loves me and I love him."