Poindexter Press for February 19th-22nd, 2008

Dear Parents,
Hi! I hope you have had a good week, because we have had a lot of fun learning about healthy habits! The entire week has been about learning the different things we can do to keep our bodies healthy. We have learned six different habits to keep us healthy: brushing your hair, brushing your teeth, taking a bath, getting plenty of sleep, exercise, and eating healthy food. Ask your child to sing to you our healthy habits song. ☺ We played memory with the different healthy habits and we learned the six steps for washing our hands. We also learned how to brush our teeth by becoming the teeth! Monday, will end our Nutrition/Healthy Habits Unit. All of the students have learned a lot, and I have had fun teaching them how to be healthier!
In Math, we have been practicing with guessing and checking different quantities of numbers. We have practiced the guessing and checking strategy with a partner. We also built a tower with Unifix Cubes then broke down the tower into a cup. This helps the students with number concepts and problem solving.
During Writer’s Workshop we have practiced stretching out words we don’t know how to spell. If we get stuck, we stretch it out so that we can hear all of the different sounds.
We are continuing to collect pennies for Leukemia patients, so bring in those pennies!
I also want to thank Dr. Christopher Potee from Noblesville Oral and Maxillofacial for donating toothbrushes to all of our students.
We have our field trip to Ruth Lilly on Wednesday and Friday. The AM Kindergarten is going on Friday, and the PM Kindergarten is going on Wednesday. Both trips are during the school day. Please make sure you have you child’s permission slip and money in by February 27th, or they will not be able to attend the trip!
I also have attached a survey about my eight weeks in Kindergarten. If you could please fill it out and send it back in with your child I would appreciate it! It is completely anonymous.

Enjoy your weekend ☺ Miss Sweet

Dear Parents,
We have had a fun week in Kindergarten. Thursday was our Valentine’s Day party and we a great time! Thank you to all of the parents who helped out!
Mrs. Poindexter went to a Science workshop on Tuesday and she brought back a greenhouse for our classroom. It is a great learning tool for the students. We have already learned that the light bulb is the sun, and that helps our plants grow.
This week also started our nutrition unit. Monday, we watched video clip of a book titled Gregory the Terrible and learned about healthy snacks that animals eat at the San Diego Zoo. Tuesday, we read a story about the six food groups and then we practiced putting different foods in each group. Wednesday, we each had a food item and we determined whether the food was healthy or unhealthy and which group that food item goes into. Thursday, we took our different food items and picked out what food would make the healthiest afternoon snack. Friday, we had a taste testing of different foods and decided which food we liked the best. Then we graphed and drew our answers. Look for our favorite food item on the bulletin board outside our classroom early next week!
In Math we practice guessing and checking our answers. We used candy hearts to guess how many candy hearts would fill a heart shape on our paper. We also used foam hearts to estimate the length of different items around the room, and the students were very good at estimating!
In Writer’s Working shop we have been practicing planning our writing before we write. We are doing this so we do not forget those important details we want to share.

Here is a great website to check out about how nutritional our children’s snacks are:
http://www.nationwidechildrens.org/gd/applications/snackwise/home.cfm

Miss Sweet


February 18th No School (President’s Day)

February 19th- Mrs. P out (science Workshop)

February 20th- Kindergarten Math Night 6-7 pm

February 27 & 29 Field Trip to Ruth Lilly (during regular class time PM class goes the 27th and AM class goes the 29th)

February 29th- 10 am Convocation


** Please send in your child’s permission slip and $3 for our Ruth Lilly field trip by February 27th**


Notes from Mrs. Poindexter:
-We’ve started collecting Pennies for Patients at area hospitals, so help our class win by sending in those pennies!

-I am in need of some containers for a planting project we will do in the Spring. If you have any of these and could send them in clean, I would appreciate it!!
- clear 2 liter bottles and clear 16 oz. soda bottles
- clear/frosted deli containers (potato salad, deli containers)
- lids from 2 liter bottles or soda bottles

Poindexter Press for February 4th-8th, 2008

Dear Parents,
Hello! I hope you have had good week, because we have had a great week in Kindergarten. Tuesday was our field trip we all had a great time! Thank you to the adults that attended went with us. It would not have been a success without you!
Spring Mill School continues it’s partnership with our sister school in Dalian, China. Thursday marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year and the Year of the Rat. To help the children understand some icons from China, we read a book about a Giant Panda named Hua Mei.. We have learned a lot about how Hua Mei grows in her first year of life. Monday, we introduced the book, and used a picture walk to help us predict what the book might be about. Wednesday, we reread the book and decided who the characters were, where the story took place, and why the author wrote the story. Thursday, we retold the story using sequencing cards. Friday, we celebrated the Chinese New Year by making dragons and participating in Spring Mill’s annual Chinese New Year parade!
In Math we are currently practicing matching the number rolled on a dice to the correct number of cubes. The children are working to develop their number sense by playing this game.
In Writer’s Workshop we are still practicing adding more details to make our stories more interesting. Make sure to help your child try this at home!
Thank you for all of your feedback regarding the field trip and the homework. I appreciate any and all input!
Miss Sweet


February 11th-We start our unit on Nutrition ( a letter will be sent home on Monday)

February 12th-Mrs. P out (workshop)

February 14th- Valentine’s Day party
(9am and 1:30pm)

February 18th-No School (President’s Day)

February 19th-Mrs. P out (Science workshop)

February 20th-Kindergarten Math Night 6-7 (more details to come home later)

February 27th and 29th-Field Trip to Ruth Lilly (during regular class times)
Watch for the flyer to come home next week!