Good Morning!

We are having such a good time delving into our Unit of Inquiry.  We are continuing to look at our similarities.  This week we are writing a Who I am book and we created our own Me Puppets. 

As we look into our similarities and differences, we are looking into the various cultures around.  Learning about different cultures, helps us to reflect upon our own.  On Friday, we enjoyed turning our cafeteria into a Chinese restaurant.  We used chopsticks, sipped green tea and enjoyed some Chinese cuisine.

Please continue to practice the sight words, letters, sounds, blending and numbers 1-50. 

Picture Day

Mark your calendars...November 30, 2010 is PICTURE DAY!


We are sending home our Picture Day packet today.  Please fill it out and return it to school on Tuesday, November 30, 2010.

Conferences, Harvest, Mooncakes...oh my!

We must first begin by saying a giant THANK YOU to all of our amazing families for attending our conferences.  We had 100% of our families come and that is outstanding!  The children were thrilled to share their information with you, and we were thrilled to have an opportunity to visit with everyone. 

During the conferences, we introduced the First in Math program to everyone.   We check the students’ progress every day and are so excited be able to celebrate their accomplishments.  Keep up the great work.

Here is the First in Math link in case you need it:

http://www.firstinmath.com

We are sure enjoying our first Unit of Inquiry (Who We Are).  We have begun to take a close look at what makes each of us special and unique.  It is so interesting to hear the children realize and verbalize their unique qualities.  With Thanksgiving upon us, one aspect we have touched upon is our family traditions.  Please continue to discuss your family traditions at home.  The children were very interested to learn that what they may do/eat to celebrate is not what everyone else may do.  J

 Mooncakes

As we have been reading about Thanksgiving and looking more closely into the origin, we discovered that China celebrates their harvest with a Moon Festival in mid-autumn. Although that time has passed, Mrs. Snyder’s class wanted to obtain the traditional Mooncakes to sample at school.  Koko’s Bakery (Payne Ave) had a few boxes left and the class was able to enjoy a small sample on Friday.  What fun!! 

Remember there is no school on November 24-26.  Have a wonderful vacation!

Who Am I?

This week we discovered our first Transdisciplinary Theme-Who We Are.  It was a great deal of fun to see all the pictures that were sent in.  Thank you!  What was even more fun was uncovering all our similarities.  

We have three questions that are driving our theme:

1-    What makes us unique and different?

2-   What can I learn from my friends about the world?

3-   What are my strengths and how do they allow me to lead, or help, others?

We have begun our work by introducing our Know It Notebooks.  These notebooks are reflection pieces that allow the students to share what they know.  They also encourage critical thinking surrounding the question, “How do I know what I know?”  This can be a tough concept.  We would love it if you would encourage this at home through your family conversations. 

This week we also started our All About Me books.  Students are looking critically about themselves and at what makes them so unique and wonderful.  Observing, describing, reflecting and sharing are such empowering skills! J 

CONFERENCE DAY

Conference Day is scheduled for Wednesday.  Our conferences will be student led and will provide another opportunity for you to celebrate with your child.  Thank you for returning the letter with your available times.  Look for a letter on Monday that shares your scheduled time.

KINDERGARTEN WAIVER DAY

No school for Kindergarten (ONLY) on Friday, November 12, 2010.

Applesauce Artifacts

During a conversation filled snack time last week, Mrs. Snyder's group decided they should make applesauce.  What a fun lesson!  

One More Request...

I promise this is it for (today)!

Is there anyone that would be willing to create a set or two of these flashcards for our class?http://www.oneshetwoshe.com/2010/09/leap-frog-letter-factory-flashcards-she.html

Letter Factory is a wonderful resource for our students who need reinforcement with their letters and corresponding sounds.   The flashcards on the site are beautifully done and would be a wonderful resource for our class.

Thank you!

Taking down the October calendar was a hard thing to do yesterday.   This action sparked a great conversation about how quickly time passes with the children. J

This week, we spent a great deal of time beginning our sorting unit.  We used the book Sort it Out by Barbara Mariconda as the base for this unit.  In the book Packy the Packrat sorts his “collection” in a variety of ways.  The children brought up the idea of sorting their candy this weekend.  We agreed this was a great idea.  We will discuss the ways they sorted on Monday.  *If your child does not trick-or-treat, please  encourage another sorting activity in its place (socks, groceries,…).

Our Book Character Parade to CSU was a fantastic success!  The costumes and book connections were OUTSTANDING.  It was also wonderful that the children truly had reflected on which Learner Profile their character best represented and could verbalize this to the group.  This is a great task for our kindergarteners and your involvement is greatly appreciated!

Next week we are beginning our first International Baccalaureate Unit of Inquiry-Who We Are. 

Central Idea: Children can develop an understanding of the uniqueness of others by learning about themselves.

We are absolutely thrilled to begin!  To make this unit of inquiry a huge success, we will be requesting your help.  The link between family, community and school will make it even more special J. 

We will be sending home a letter this week requesting a few items, but here is a preview if you would like to plan ahead J:

1.     Baby picture of your child

2.   Current picture of your child

3.   Family picture

4.   1 CLEAR., clean 2 liter soda bottle

**If you have digital copies of your pictures and would prefer to email them to your child’s teacher, please let us know.  We will be doing activities with these photos, so please do not send in the original.

Other items we need in our classroom are listed below.  If you have any of these items around your home and would be willing to donate them to our kindergarten floor, we would GREATLY appreciate it!! J

1.     Walkmans (these are hard to come by these days, but make for great individual listening centers)

2.   Alphabet beads

3.   Buttons, beads

4.   Popcorn kernels

5.   Sand

6.   Plants

7.   Aquarium (we will be observing animals and creating a composting area)

8.   Baby Soda bottles (http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/product/test-tubes)  *These are what a 2 liter is before they have air added. They make fantastic, safe test tubes.  We’d like to make I Spy sight word tubes, name tubes, etc. with them.

Remember-No School Tuesday (Election Day)

Thinker

(to the tune of “Clementine”)

I'm a thinker, I'm a thinker

I can think creatively,

Solve a problem, make decisions,

I can think of different things.

I’m a thinker, I’m a thinker

I can think all by myself.

I can think and choose an action

Choose an action that will help.

It is so hard to believe that the end of October is upon us!  The weather certainly has made exploring our season enjoyable.

Thinker was our Learner Profile for this week, and we will be stretching our thinking for certain this week as our Explorers choose a storybook character to dress-up as on Friday.  We have had quite a few conversations about ideas and the excitement is overwhelming!  Matching the character chosen to one of our Learner Profiles is taking the experience to an IB level J.  Friday is going to be so much fun! 

Check the Campus Communicator that was sent home 10/22/10 if you need more information about Friday’s activities.

Our pattern unit has been so much fun.  Our Explorers are finding patterns in so many things.  They certainly are fabulous observers. 

Becoming authors and illustrators has really excited our students.  In addition to Writer's Workshop in school, many are writing books at home and bringing them in to share with the class.  The retellings are absolutely awesome!  We plan to capture these on video to keep in your child’s portfolio.  Priceless memories J!

Please continue to review the following basics at home:

Ø   Letter names/sounds

Ø Letter formation

Ø Numbers 1-20  

Ø Address

Ø Phone number(s)

Ø Sight words

Celebrating Fall

The Fall Festival yesterday was an unbelievable success!  What a beautiful day to come out and celebrate our students, families and school.  We have such an amazing Campus International family and yesterday proved it once again!  A big thank you goes out to all the families who donated their time and energy to put on such an amazing program.

In the classroom this week, we are also celebrating fall.  Each child brought in their own special leaf to share with the class, and of course, use as a tool for learning.  We compared/contrasted our leaves, sorted our leaves, sang songs about our leaves and used our leaf as a base for our science project My Leaf.  The project should conclude this week.

Everyone received their Chinese names this week in Mandarin.  Ask your child what their name is.  We have all enjoyed learning and using our new names.

Next week, we are going on another field trip.  This time it is to Playhouse Square to see Leo Lionni’s books Swimmy, Inch by Inch and Frederick.  Permission slips will be send home on Monday.

We are Explorers!

This week was filled with excitement as we discovered new places and items to explore!  We ventured to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and learned a bit about the history of music as well as the fundamental elements (volume, pitch and rhythm).  What a blast!  We could have stayed for days exploring the vast museum.

We are in the process of meeting our new classroom friend Twiggle as part of our PATHS curriculum.  The children have been predicting who they think Twiggle may be and have learned only that he helps us.  The predictions are absolutely fascinating!  Look forward to the unveiling of Twiggle next week.  Please ask your child how they have “met” Twiggle so far J.

We are sequencing in Reading, as well as learning basic sight words and the alphabet.  Please remember to read every day with your child to encourage this passion.  I Spy is a fun game to play with the sight words in the books you are reading at home.

In Math we are continuing to focus on our number formations, quantity, various ways to represent a number and calendar time elements (seasons, months, date, days of the week, place value, time, temperature, etc). 

In Mandarin we were introduced to an ancient Chinese writing tool and some “magic” paper.  The children really enjoyed using the tool to write their Chinese numeric characters.

A fabulous week in deed!

Open-Minded Explorers

Open-minded

(to the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle”)

People are different

They do different things.

Not everyone will think like me.

Others I will try to understand,

Listening well as beside them I stand.

Trying new things is important to me

As I become the person I will be.

This week was filled with new experiences that really allowed us to practice our new Learner Profile, Open Minded. 

First, we welcomed our new kindergarten teacher Mrs. Karas.  Wow, is she outstanding! Second, we began learning Mandarin.  The children are really enjoying the classes.  This week’s focus was numbers.  So fun!  Please ask you child to share what they have learned.   Another new experience this week was that we are now moving through the classrooms as continents.  By working in continents the students are able to work with a variety of children in kindergarten while learning skills that best fit their needs. 

What a fun and exciting week!  Our Explorers really are Open-Minded!  They have embraced all these new experiences with enthusiasm and caring.

Coming up this week:

Monday- Assessment on September’s Everyday Homework

Tuesday and Wednesday- Vision First

Wednesday- Shake, Rattle and Roll Field Trip (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

So Much to Do…

We must first begin by thanking all of you for coming to our official Grand Opening and Open House on Tuesday.  It was a very special night! The news clip was posted on Channel 5 on Wednesday.  Please check it out if you have not done so.  It is adorable!

Kindergarten was all a buzz this week with lots of fun activities! Our interactive boards have provided another wonderful avenue for learning.  We have explored writing and matching letters and words to sounds and pictures.  The children are determined to figure out the science behind how the “magic wand” will move the objects, but not their hands. Simply fascinating! 

This sense of discovery tied right into our Learner Profile for the week-Knowledgeable. When we are Knowledgeable, we are learning as much as we can about the world. Kindergarten students are masters at this profile for certain! J

As we discussed, we conducted our first experiment…”Milk Rainbows.”  This was a wonderful learning experience and provided a great opportunity to practice predicting, observing and recording! 

Also this week, the boys and girls explored Cleveland State University as they walked to the pool and recreation center. This was quite an adventure and was enjoyed by all.  Swimming lessons will begin next week for the first group (Mr. Ogilvy’s).

Other BIG news for our Kindergarten family is that we have hired a new teacher to join our team.  Her name is Mrs. Karas and she is FANTANSTIC! J We will introduce her to our students on Monday.

We Are All Scientists!!

Risk-Taker

I am always

doing that

which I

cannot do, in

order that I

may learn

how to do it.

–Pablo Picasso

           

What a creative week!  In combination with our MANY activities this week, we took a close look into our science room and investigated what science is.  After we felt comfortable with that, we moved into learning about MANY different scientists (Ask your child what a volcanologist does.  We bet they’d love to share that with you.J).  Uncovering that we are ALL scientists was an exciting moment!  It went right along with our Learner Profile of being a Risk-taker.

To help us prepare for our first experiment next week J, we have spent a lot of time figuring out what tools scientists use and how they stay safe.  We even signed a safety contract!

The teachers would like to thank everyone for going over the Everyday Homework with your son/daughter.  They have been sharing all their information with us regularly.  How wonderful!! 

We look forward to seeing everyone at Open House from 6-8 on Tuesday, September 21!

          

We are Inquirers!

Our Learner Profile this week was Inquirer.  We learned a great song to help us remember what that unusual word meant.  You may want to sing it at home too.

Inquirer (to the tune of “The Farmer in the Dell”)

Inquirer am I

Inquirer am I

Hi, ho, I’m curious

I learn by asking why.

We continued to explore our names this week and are really practicing using capital and lowercase letters as we write it.  Please encourage this at home as well J.

We explored tools in all of our rooms and inquired about how and why various professions use them (engineers, artists, mathematicians, authors, scientists, etc.) while we explored their uses as well.

Our new technology is arriving and getting ready for use.  We are excited to use our interactive boards as an additional way to enhance our lessons.

 

One last note, Kindergarten does not have school this coming Friday 9/17/10.  

**NO SCHOOL for KINDERGARTEN on 9/17/10**

Friday, September 17 is a Waiver Day for kindergarten students. There is NO SCHOOL for kindergarten on this day. 

Busy times...

Our first full week flew by!  We began our week exploring our names, and decorating our hallways with our beautiful name creations.  We also learned our next Learner Profile-Reflective.  Please ask your child what that means.  As Explorers, we know that in order to learn as much as we can (Plus Ultra) we must reflect.  

The Explorer's Creed was also introduced Monday morning during our weekly whole school meeting.  

Explorer's Creed

I am inquisitive, open minded,

knowledgeable and caring.

I will help to create a better and

more peaceful world.

I am proud to be a Campus

International School Explorer!

Basketball Jones came by for a visit on Thursday.  He wowed us with his wonderful skills, had us doing tricks we never imagined we could accomplish and taught us a valuable lesson:  “I can…, I will…I won’t quit!”

Friendship Salad was another highlight of our week.   Our salad was made with caring (fruit), sharing (fruit), kind words (marshmallows) and love (cool whip).  Ask your child which ingredient we decided not to use.  We bet they'd love to share this with you!

What a fantastic, busy week!  

Our First Week...

Exploring Our Way...

What a wonderful first week at Campus International for all of our beautiful kindergarten students!  We have spent the last few days getting to know each other and exploring our new surroundings.  Please ask your child what being a Bucket Filler/Dipper means, what it means to be caring, how to speak Giraffe and of course about being an Explorer.

A huge thank you too for attending our Family Picnic on Wednesday.  It was amazing to see our new family come together and celebrate the start of a glorious school year.  

Welcome to the First Kindergarten Class of Campus International

We cannot wait until Wednesday, August 25, 2010!  That will be our first day together as a kindergarten family.  What an exciting time!!  We have really enjoyed meeting our families at Open House and during the Kindergarten Phase-in.  We have absolutely amazing learners who are full of energy and a great desire to learn.  What more could we ask for?
As we look forward to our first full day of school, please don't forget to come to Campus International's Family Picnic on Wednesday at 6:00pm.  We look forward to seeing you all there!