Jan. 17 - 20

January 17 - 20, 2012

Wow!  What a great week we had.  Upper School Art students lead the Kindergarten students in creating tissue paper flowers to resemble flowers in Spain.  We look forward to displaying them as we work on our cultural study. Here is a look at the week ahead.

Language Arts Skills:

 - High Frequency Words:  review all words

 - Language/Writing: opposites, making lists

 - Phonics Focus:

   -letter /x/

   -words with short i and short o 

   -blending with digraphs (ch, sh, th) and blends (st, bl, cr)

 - Comprehension skill: predictions

Handwriting:

 - sizing & spacing

 - letter review and formation

Math - Fractions and Measuraments:

 -ordinals numbers to the tenth

 - measuring length

 -measuring circumference

Social Studies/Science - Spanish Culture Study

 -Working with Upper School Art students to create an authentic Spanish patio.

Bible - King Solomon:

 - Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-5

 - Memory: "Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city."  Proverbs 16:32

Looking forward to a fantastic week!

January 9 - 13

  How wonderful it was to see everyone this week.  I've enjoyed having all my friends back together!  January will be an exciting month.   We are participating in a cultural study of Spain.  On Friday, we took a "plane ride" to kick off our study.  We had our suitcases packed, our tickets taken up, and our passports stamped!  The Kindergarten classes will be focusing on Spanish holidays.  We will be working with some of Mrs. Miller's Art students to create and present our study to other grades.  

Here is a peek at next week:

Language Arts Skills:

-High Frequency Word: have

-Language/Writing Skills: using position words

-Phonics Focus: /z/; words with short vowels

-Comprehension skill focus: summarizing and personal connections

Handwriting:

-Sentence writing using the headline, midline, and baseline

-Spacing between words

Math: Fractions and Measurement

-Equal parts

-Halves

-Problem solving

-Ordinal numbers to the tenth

Social Studies:  Spanish Culture Study

Bible:

-Samson, God's Strong Man

-Judges !3-16

-Character trait - Humility

December 30th

Dear Girls and Boys,

  I hope you had a wonderful Christmas.  I enjoyed the holidays with Mr. Gary, Wilson, and Mason.  I have missed you very much and cannot wait to give you a big hug.  I want to hear about the special fun you have had!

  Thank you so much for the cards, gifts, and the Teacher Christmas Fund Surprise.  I have enjoyed using everything.  You made me feel so special.

  I am planning many fun, learning activities for January.  You are going to love our Rotation Stations in Reading and Math.

  Also, Scruffy has a surprise for you!  It is his little secret so I cannot tell you what it is!

  Enjoy the rest of the holidays and celebrate the New Year!  Blessings to your family.  I love each of you very much!

XOXO,

Mrs. Hallford

Dec. 5th - 9th

Posted: 05 Dec 2011 10:42 AM PST

Tis the season....
The next two weeks will be full of Christmas fun as we focus on the birth of our Savior!  What a joy it is every day to watch as your children prepare to present their "heart gift" for Jesus.  The excitement is in the air and they are truly a precious example of how "Christmas isn't Christmas until it happens in your heart".
JESUS IS THE STAR!!!!
We will be centering our reading and math activities around "things that remind us of Christmas" and the incredible Christmas literature that we all love. 

*Manger-"The Stable Where Jesus Was Born"
-describing words
-high frequency words-go, here, is, to, it, see, like, my, and
-Journal writing-I can go here to see Jesus.
-Who was at the manger?

*Reindeer Fun-"Olive the Other Reindeer"
-Making Reindeer Sandwiches
-Reader-"Reindeer, Reindeer, What Do You See?
-Reindeer Art-Using shapes
-Reindeer Math


*Candy Cane-"The Legend of the Candy Cane"
-patterning with candy canes-candy cane ornaments and painting candy canes

*Christmas Tree-" The Tale of Three Trees
-ordinal numbers-Journal Writing
-sight word review


*Angels-"Alabaster's Song"
-summarizing, comprehension,
-angel math-counting by twos-problem solving
-angel art

*Stars-"The Christmas Star"
-countdown paper chain
-counting by 10's

Language Arts Skills:

• New High Frequency Word: for
• Language/Writing Skills: using opposites
•  words with short i and short a
• Comprehension skill focus: Text Organization and summarizing

Handwriting Skills: Dd, Mm, Nn, review

Math: Larger Numbers (1 - 50): Look for a pattern, Sequence, Identify, Write, and Count

I am looking forward to seeing you Friday!  You are in for a special blessing!!

December 5th - 9th

Wow! What a great week we had.  I am so proud of the class for learning and working so hard on their partsin the play.  During our Bible time, we have discussed how this play is ourgift to Jesus.  It is His birthday. We will continue to have fun learning the meaning behind many of our traditions and how they tie into Christ's birth.  We look forward to sharing the Christmas play and the things we learn with you! Language Arts Skills:New High Frequency Word: for Language/Writing Skills: using opposites Phonics Focus: /d/; words with short i and short a Comprehension skill focus: Text Organization and summarizing Handwriting Skills: Handwriting evaluation: formation (top to bottom), "expert                          grip", correct placement using headline, midline, and baselineMath: Larger Numbers (1 - 50): Look for a pattern, Sequence, Identify, Write,           and Count              Number word review: zero - five Social Science: Christmas/Christmas Play Practice and PerformanceBible:  The Reason for the Season Important dates: Dec. 7th & 8th, 9:00, a.m. - Christmas Play for LS and MS/LS Dec. 9th, 9:00a.m. - Christmas Play for Parents Dec. 12th, 12:00 noon - Field Trip to Wadsworth Christmas Tree Farm

Nov. 28 - Dec.3

                        Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope each of you has a wonderful Thanksgiving week.  Know how thankful I am for you and your child. I am blessed each day.  Your children are little rays of sunshine and love from God. Thank you for sharing them.

We have had a busy and exciting week. We’ve practiced for our upcoming Christmas Play, spent time with senior “giants,” met our new 5th grade buddies, attended chapel, and used the school’s new iTouch devices to practice skills.  Finally, on Friday the K4 students prepared our hearts for Thanksgiving by singing some great songs for us in the commons area. Thursday we thanked our SAGE dining staff for all the yummy ways they bless us each day. On top of all of that excitement, we were able to praise God for keeping us all safe from the tornadoes on Wednesday.  This time of year is busy schedule-wise, but for our students it is also busy academically! The students have learned so much over the last few months and I am thrilled to see the progress they have made. Below you will see a peek at our plans for when we return on Monday November 28th. Language Arts Skills: High Frequency Words: practice and review (look for flashcards to come home soon) Language/Writing Skills: action and weather words Phonics focus: /q/; blending words with “-it” and “qu” Comprehension skill focus: Fantasy and Realism Handwriting Skills: Qq, Rr, Hh, Jj                         *spacing between words*  "one finger space" Math: Odd and Even Numbers, Counting to 100, Counting Groups of 10, Patterns on a 100s Chart, Skip Counting by 2 and 5 Social Science: Christmas/Christmas Play Practice (Please help your child practice over the holidays.)  They are doing amazing job!  One of the best first week of practice than I can remember! Bible - We will be focusing on Jesus, The Reason For The Season during the next three weeks.  What   a privilege it is to learn about and spend time reflecting on our Lord and Savior with each child!

November 7th - 11th

KINDERGARTEN GIVES BACK THROUGH OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD Posted: 07 Nov 2011 08:17 AM PST                              BLESSED TO BE A BLESSING We are very excited to tell you about our class service project.  We will be participating in the Operation Christmas Child Shoe Box Ministry.  Since many of you already participate in this ministry through your church, our goal is to put together two boxes (one boy and one girl) as a class.  Please send an appropriate item for the boxes by Wednesday, November 16th. The packed boxes will be sent out Thursday, November 17th.  If you do not participate through your church and would like to put a box together as a family, please let me know and I will send you the box.  Thank you so much for your help with this very special project.  What a blessing to be Gods hands and feet!   This week behind the Red Door Language Arts: *High Frequency Words - to, a, I , like, my, see, and, go, is,          *Blending short i words (-it word family) *Building words with short i or short a *Phonics Focus - Ll (Larry Lion) *Describing Words *Comprehension Skills:  categorize and classify                                          concepts of print Math: *Symmetry *Comparing solid figures *Flat surfaces of solid figures *Making shapes from other shapes *Same size, same shape Handwriting Skills: *Letter formation *Sentence building Bible: *Israel in the Desert  Exodus 15:23 - 16:36 *Target Truth - When we obey rules, we are also obeying God. FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11TH IS A SCHOOL HOLIDAY!   A VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR VETERANS.