Polar Express

I have not told the kids about this yet but next Thursday is Polar Express Day for the younger kids. We will be doing fun Polar Express activities in our rooms in the morning and at noon we will be moving to the gym to watch the Polar Express. During the intermission we will be having hot chocolate and cookies that we decorated during our Wednesday literacy centers with first grade. In our room we will be making a ticket to get on the train and some other fun activities. Mrs. Parsons has given the okay for the kids to wear their pajamas this day so we can feel like we are on the "Polar Express" too. I do want the kids to wear tennis shoes though. I will let the kids know about this next week but I wanted to give you the heads up.

Box Tops

Please save those box tops and send them into school. These box tops earn cash for our school and there is currently a contest going on.

Seeds for Hope

We are at 23 canned food items. Yesterday during math we graphed how many cans we collected and discussed how we were close to being half way to our goal of 50 cans by Christmas break. Please help us if you can.

Adoration

Today I took the children into the chapel at church to spend time with Jesus during Adoration. We entered the chapel in silence, genuflected at the alter, said a prayer, sang Jesus a song,  and then spent time in silence with our friend Jesus. There were a few other people in the chapel as well. Many were some of the older parishioners. Upon leaving one of the women pulled me aside and she said that she was so pleased to see the children come to Adoration and behave appropriately. I thanked her and she proceeded to greet each of the children. At that moment I again realized how each of the children are growing not only academically but socially as well. I was very proud of your children.

First In Math

The First In Math winners this week were Cade, Frances, Allison, Henry and Lucas. Great job kids. The top five players in the room are Lucas, Henry, Frances, Caroline, and Allison.

Surprises

I was shocked to say the least when I got to school this morning to find that my room was a mess with chairs and other things knocked over. Come to find out that the Elf from the Shelf had come to visit for the day to see who has being naughty or nice. He mostly find nice :). Sometime during the evening St. Nicholas stopped by to leave us a treat in the shoes we created on Monday.  Today is the feast of St. Nicholas. We read a story today called Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett and we got to decorated gingerbread friends cookies this afternoon. We ate one of the friends for snack and the other came home in your child's backpack. Each child was instructed to retell the story of Gingerbread Friends to you tonight so you may want to ask if the don't remember.

Listening center

We have a listening center available to the children during Daily 5. Listening to reading is very beneficial to beginning readers. I am always in need of stories on  cassette tape or on CD. If you have anything like this that you would like to donate to the classroom listening center it would be greatly appreciated by me and the children. It does not matter if there is a book to go with it but it is very helpful if it does.

Book Exchange

We will be having a book exchange in our classroom. I am asking each child to bring in a kindergarten age appropriate book (new or very gently used) wrapped to place under our classroom Christmas tree. You might want to indicate if it is for a boy, girl, or both on the package. These are due by Monday, December 17th.

Service Project

Our school wide service project for Lent is Seeds for Hope which is a  shelter for women and their children who are in need. Kindergarten is responsible for bringing in canned food items. I know we just did this but any contribution you can make is deeply appreciated by this organization. Our class goal is 50. We will be able to count those cans by ones, tens, and fives which is a math standard for kindergarten so we are learning to give to others in need as well as practicing some very important math sills.

Building

Thank you to all of the parent volunteers who came in to help the children build their gingerbread houses today. They are all together and ready to decorate tomorrow. Thank you for sending in your child's donation to this project. We had 100% participation and that is greatly appreciated. We will be decorating tomorrow if you would like to join us. Grandparents are welcome as well. The kids are having a ball with this project!

First In Math

The following children were First In Math winners of the day last week.  Caroline, Lucas. Christian, Cade and Henry. Good job kids!

Field Trip

We just got back from the field trip and we had a blast! We got to hear a story about the gingerbread man, go back in time and learn how gingerbread cookies were made long ago,  and search for the gingerbread man in a barn with animals. We finally found him and got to take our picture with him and do a dance. From there we decorated a gingerbread man cookie and eat it for snack. After all of those fun activities we toured the gingerbread houses that were on display to get some ideas. Please ask your child about their favorite gingerbread house. Please join us as we build our houses and decorate them tomorrow and Wednesday. Times were listed on the information sheet sent out last week.

Goals Poster

I got a great idea today form a parent who created a "Goals" poster with her child. Together they put all of the goals from the goal sheets so far that her child needed to work on still. They use it as an reminder of what he needs to work on and when he reaches his goal of knowing something they check it off. I thought this was an awesome idea and the student was so excited to tell me all about it. Mom told me he is really motivated now to reach his goals.

Advent

Advent begins on Sunday and in your child's Friday folder the monthly homework for the month of December will be an Advent calendar to help your child prepare for Christmas. Enjoy this time with your child. I think you will find that you get as much out of the activities as your child does. December is such a busy month and I love the Advent calendar because it requires us to slow down and focus on what is really important. I am combining the December and January goals into one goal sheet to be worked on at home. If your child recognizes all of the letters of the alphabet and knows the letter sounds (progress report sent home last week) they really need to be working on sight words at home. I am really stressing the importance of knowing these words to the children because knowing the introduced sight words are so crucial to reading and writing at this point in kindergarten.

Canned Foods

We are still collecting canned foods this week if you would like to send some in. The kids are having fun counting the cans so we are getting so practice with adding.

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful day today. We went to church where Father Chris reminded us to use a simple two word prayer often. That prayer is "Thank you."I hope you hear your child say "thank you" often. Praise them when they do and remind them to if they do not. We made stone soup with our magic stones this am and enjoyed the smell throughout the day. After reading another version of Stone Soup we got together with Mrs. Hacker's class and enjoyed the soup, corn bread with butter and apple cider. Ryleigh Plunkitt found the magic stone in her soup. Congrats to Lucas Lahey for being First in Math on Monday and Tuesday this week. Friday folders are full of important information and surprises so be sure to go through it with your child. We met our goal of bringing in cans of food for the needy of our parish. Thank you!    Towels did not come home because we were so busy we didn't have time to get them in backpacks so do not send one in on Monday.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Mrs. Catton

Chores for Change

WE DID IT!!!!!!!!! The kids met their goal of filling up the jug for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society. As part of religion class today one of our sixth grade students who had leukemia when he was in kindergarten came down to visit us and thank us for working so hard doing chores to help others in need. Putting a face with the activity really was meaningful for the kids and me as well. This student was in my room as a kindergartner and I know the fear he and his family dealt with daily but he is a happy and healthy boy now.( Check out the email sent with the picture of JJ and the kids. It was sent this afternoon.) We then went to see Mrs. Ahonen to present her with the jug and the poster the kids made. She was overwhelmed and really appreciated their efforts to help her team in training. Thank you so much for helping with this activity.

Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

First In Math

Henry, Easton, Mackenzie, Lucas and Allison were the First In Math VIP this week. Good job kids! Towels will not be coming home today due to the short week next week. There is no need to send in another towel on Monday. Contributions to our stone soup are due on Monday so we have time to prepare the potatoes and carrots for our soup on Tuesday. Girls bring in one large potato and boys bring in one large carrot.

Chores for Change

Only two more days to earn change for chores! We are so close to our goal of filling the jug given to us by Mrs. Ahonen, one of our first grade teachers.  Mrs. Ahonen is part of a team in training to run a marathon for the Leukemia &Lymphoma Society. We would like to present her with a FULL jug and a poster that the kids have been creating with their names and what they did to earn their change on Friday. PLEASE help us reach our goal by giving your children a few more chores to earn that change. Today at Mass Father challenged each of us to thank five people today and then thank God as well. I would like to THANK each of you for all you do to support me and your child with school and I thank God each day for your kids and you.

Stone Soup

We read a version of the story Stone Soup with Mrs. Hacker's Class on Monday and we will be reading another version of the story later this week. On Monday we will do a Venn Diagram to discuss the similarities and differences between the two stories which is a state standard in language arts. As an extension of this activity we are going to make stone soup and share it with Mrs. Hacker's class on Tuesday. The children will also make butter during science on Monday. I would like all of the girls to bring a potato and all of the boys to bring a large carrot on Monday as their contribution to our stone soup.

Daily Five and Book Buddies

Daily Five is going really well. My goal is that your child is working on reading for 90 minutes. On Thursdays we will get extra reading practice because we have paired up with Miss Hill's second grade class for Book Buddies. During this time your child will have a second grade book buddy that they will do the part of Daily Five called Read to Someone. During Read to Someone the pair sits EEKK (ask your child what it stands for) with a book from your child's book bag. They are using books from their book bag because it is a good fit book for your child. They will listen to their second grade book buddy read (fluency). Stop frequently to check for understanding (comprehension) from the kindergartener. Because the kindergarten children are all at different reading levels some will be reading sentences with their book buddies, some words, and some may be will be looking for letters but they all can read the pictures when it is their turn to read.  We set procedures during our first time together because we know that when the children take ownership in their learing they will be more successful. Miss Hill and I were so impressed with their ideas about what would make Book Buddies run smoothly and effectively.

Math

We have math centers everyday after Daily Five in the morning. On Wednesdays we have math throughout the school day due to Mass in the morning. We will be finishing up a unit on comparing lengths, quantities, numbers and ordering this week. In this unit the math vocabulary consisted of longer, shorter, same, more, less, fewer, least and greatest. You can help your child at home by using this vocabulary as you are speaking with them.

ENVELOPES

PLEASE put any money sent into school in a sealed envelope or a zip lock bag with  your child's name on it and what it is for. It takes a lot  of time in the morning trying to determine what money is supposed to be used for, tracking down an envelope, and it upsets the students when I ask them what it is for and they are  not sure. I had a student today bring in an envelope with money earned from chores for change with her name on it and a sentence she wrote (with the help from mom) about what she did to earn her change. She not only felt really good about giving she also got writing practice and it did not take very long.

Uniforms Girls

Sweat pants are not part of the school uniform when worn under jumpers.  I would suggest that the girls wear tights to keep their legs warm on cold days.  Color blue or white no crazy patterns or colors. Please refer to the student parent handbook if you have any questions. If they wear sweat pants under their jumpers they will need to remove them at the beginning of the school day.
Thank you!

Help from home

Please provide your child the opportunity to do some  chores  to earn  change to bring into school to support our school wide service project the Leukemia Lymphonma Society. The few students who have brought in change so far have expressed how great they feel about the fact that they are helping out others in need.  Only a few students have brought in an item for the fall science center so far. As soon as a few more items come into the classroom the center will be open for the students to explore.

Goal Sheets

Beginning in November I would like you as the parent to initial the goal sheet in the small box of the activity so I know that you are observing your child do the activity. I am finding that some of the goals sheets are checked and when I ask the child who did the activity with them them tell me they did it by themselves. I also really appreciate the few  of you who write some of your child's responses in the box. That really keeps me informed.

Fall Science Center

I would like to do a fall science center for the children to explore over the next few weeks. Have your child collect something in nature to bring in to add to the science center. Some examples are a gourd, leaf, acorn, apple, book about fall, etc. These items will not be returned so what ever you send in consider it a donation.. The Children love exploring God's world so I am hoping to fill up the science center. Items are due by Friday of next week.

Chores for Change

This weekend would be a great time to give your child the opportunity to do some chores around the house to earn some change. I would love to hear every child in the classroom tell me what they did to earn their change on Monday. One student cleaned his room and he told us that it really made his Mom happy. We will only be doing this activity for this charity until November 16th. Today four children gave up their ice cream money for charity. It was so great when one of the kids told me he really loved ice cream but he wanted to share. Now that is making a connection. I told him I gave up my Diet Coke and that was a sacrifice for me too. :) This is not just a one time thing. Your child can bring in change everyday if you are inclined to give them some chores.

First in Math

VIP First in Math winners this week are Lucas (twice), Ryleigh, Max, and Frances. Our class has earned 3,737 stickers so far. The top five players in the room are Henry, Lucas, Caroline, Frances and Max. Great job kids!

HELP!!!!!!!

Yachoo!!!!!! We are in great need of hand sanitizer for the classroom. Any donations are greatly appreciated! I feel so fortunate to have such generous parents of children in may classroom. :)

Chores for Change

Today I explained to the children a service project that is going to be running at Holy Spirit School from November 1-16. We are collecting funds for the Leukemia and Lymphonma Society. Instead of having families just send in money I like  the children to make the connection of service and sacrafice for others in need. I am asking that you give your child the opportunity to help out around the house by doing simple chores and paying them in change. ( If you would like to make a donation as well it would be greatly appreciated). Write down with your child (model writing) what they did to earn their money and then as part of our morning routine I will call up anyone who has brought in change to come up and tell us ( langauage) what they did to earn their money. I will also ask them on ice cream days if they would like to donate their money to our charity. I have do this type of activity for many years and it is powerful to see the children make that connection of sacrafice and service to others. This is a win win activity. You get your child to help out with chores around the house while they are learning a very lesson. Please contact me if you have any questions.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Halloween Party

A huge thank you to Mrs. Weimer and the moms who were able to join us for the Halloween Party and those who sent in Halloween treats for the bags.   The kids had a great time moving through four fun centers which consisted of a memory game, decorating treat bags, making a mask, and bowling with pumpkins. Then the kids had a yummy lunch of cheese pizza, a boo box  drink, grapes and pretzels. After the moms left we put our masks on and set out for a Halloween parade throughout the school, parish office, and Little Ramsies. The kids were great and very well behaved which makes these days where we get out of the routine of school pleasant.
Happy Halloween.

Goal Sheets

After Daily Five today I realized that the children either know the sight words from the goals sheets or they just don't. I decided to do a little community circle to gain some more information. I asked the children to share where they kept the goals sheets at home. I learned the ones who keep them on the refrigerator knew the sight words pretty good! The ones who had no idea where the goal sheets were really struggled with sight words. Knowing these sight words will help your child with fluency and reading. Goal sheets are part of the kindergarten curriculum.

Noah's Ark

Noah's Ark is the Bible story we will be studying for the next week weeks.

First In Math

Madden, Allison and Christian were VIP winners this week in First In Math. Great Job kids!

Mass

Today we went to Rosary and Mass. We were in church for over an hour and twenty minutes. I just had to share with you how impressed I am with your children and their church behavior. I have them use the restroom and get a drink of water prior to leaving so no one asks to leave. They participate appropriately by entering church reverently, joyfully singing, using etiquette, and focusing on all parts of the Mass. I have told the children many times that Wednesday is my favorite day of the week because I get to take them to Mass and share our faith together. I am very proud to be their teacher.

Second Quarter Goals

Today we set goals for the second quarter. I was so impressed with how the children  took their time to really reflect when were they were thinking about what they needed to work on in the second quarter. I also noticed that many of the children obviously spoke with their parents after fall conferences to discuss their progress reports and believe me they listened to you and remembered what you said they needed to improve. After we wrote our goals on a chart (model writing from me) together we wrote a note to Mrs. Parsons asking her to read over our goals and respond. I will be sure to let you know what she has to say about our goals. Mrs. Frick and I wrote goals as well. Ask your child what their goal for the second quarter is.  First in Math is something that the children should be getting on as nightly homework as well as all of the things listed in my previous post. Today Mrs. Parsons asked everyone who was on First In Math to stand during announcements. If you have more than one child who needs to get on First in Math ( some of the children have told me that they can't get on because their siblings were on) I suggest that you make up some type of schedule for use of the computer. I had a family share at conferences that they made up a schedule together and it alleviated the conflict.

Homework

Each child at Holy Spirit School has some type of homework every evening including kindergarten. Your child needs to do an activity for the monthly homework calendar, practice goals for the current goal sheet, review goals from past goal sheets, read a book, etc.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Awesome Day

We have had an awesome day in room 23!! I am so pleased with how well the children fell right back into the routine of the school day with Daily Five and Math Workshop. Each child shared this morning during Community Circle what they did over Fall Break and they seemed to enjoy their time off. Thank you to all who signed and returned your child's progress report. I really appreciated you taking the time to write a short comment. I read everything that comes back and it is very affirming to hear what you are going to do at home to help your child succeed in school. If you have not returned the progress report please do so after you have reviewed it with your child.

Conferences

Thank you for coming to fall conferences today. I enjoyed speaking with each of you.  Having the opportunity to share what I see as your child's strengths and challenges are and sharing ideas you can use to help your child succeed in school is something I value.  It is important to me that you know how honored I am to be your child's teacher. I am so excited about the possibilities for the second quarter. Enjoy your break with your child.

First In Math

Congratulations to Ryleigh Plunkitt, Parker St. John and Madden Beriault for being VIP in First in Math this week! Great job kids! Fall break would  be a great opportunity  to get on First in Math if your child hasn't had the chance to spend much time on yet. Mrs. Parsons has been checking to see who is on and who has not.

Conferences

I am looking forward to seeing you tomorrow at fall conferences. I love conferences! I am excited to visit with each of you to share how your child is doing in kindergarten and give you ideas on how you can help your child in succeed in school. Conference times are posted outside the classroom on the welcome board.  Art work is posted outside as well as two classroom books are on display so be sure to check those out. Each conference is fifteen minutes so please be respectful of others and try to be on time to your conference.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Daily Five

The children have done a FANTASTIC job at building stamina during Daily  Five. Beginning tomorrow they will be moving through the Daily Five choices with guidance from me. I am very excited to begin this part of Daily Five because they have worked so hard at building stamina and they all have a sense of urgency about learning to read. Having them work independently through the Daily Five allows me the time to work with small groups on reading and word work. Please congratulate your child on their building of stamina! Being able to work on task is not only beneficial to them it is also extremely beneficial to the class as a whole.

Nightly homework

The children have some type of homework in kindergarten every evening. Do an activity from the monthly homework calendar, work on goals from the current month's sheet, review the goals from last month's goal sheet, read a book to your child,  and have your child read to you. They read daily at school so they know the three ways to read a book. They can read the pictures, read the words (look for sight words or letters that they know) and retell the story after you read it to them. First in Math is a program that the children need to be getting on as well. I check regularly to see who is on and who is not. Have them practice writing the letters of the alphabet and numbers.  You are setting the foundation of how important homework is for your child's success in school right now. It is never too early to start.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Creation

Father Chris came by Wednesday afternoon to listen to the children read their Creation Books. It worked out great that we were doing Read To Someone (part of Daily 5) and he got to listen to the children read and check for understanding (comprehension strategy). He was really impressed and the kids loved that Father came to listen to them read. They also noted that Father begins with the letter Ff which is the letter sound we were working on. :) Father also brought his statue of St. Francis and told them that he was a martyr who loved all of God's creation. A great way to wrap up our study of creation. The children know that everything is a gift from God and that he created everything.

Fall Conferences

Dear Parents,
I can't wait to visit with each of you at fall conferences on the 17th of October. Sign up for your conference time at http://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0F4BAAAA2DA13-student. At Holy Spirit we expect 100% participation but if you have a conflict please contact me ASAP. Mrs. Parsons sent information concerning conference sign up last week in an email. The fall program is next Tuesday, October 16th at 7:00.  The children will need to report to room 4 in the main building  by 6:30. I will meet them there. PLEASE have them go to the bathroom before you bring them to school. 

Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Names

With the weather getting colder the children are starting to wear more sweatshirts. Please put your child's name in their sweatshirts for easy identification.

Creation Books

Creation Book homework is due tomorrow. Please return your child's Creation Book tomorrow along with the homework. Father Chris would like to see the children's books they made.

Celebrating

Dear Parents,
We celebrated those who brought back their September homework calendars today with a certificate and a treat. Homework calendars are due the last day of the month. The activities on the homework calendar are developmentally appropriate and fun. Please help your child with their homework and goal sheets. We finished our Creation Book and the children understand that God created everything and they should thank him often. They have been practicing the song This Little Light of Mine. Have them sing it for you.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Alphabet Books

Dear Parents,
The best thing you can do for your child in regards to their literacy journey is to read to them everyday. Read the book then let your child retell the story to you. Have them read the pictures and try to read some of the words. These are all ways for them to read a book. It is important for them to have "Good Fit Books." Good fit books for kindergarten students are picture books, books with a few words to a few sentences on each page. I have asked the children if they have alphabet books at home and many have told me that they do not. I encourage you to have alphabet books available for your child at home to read.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Information

Dear Parents,
We have had a great week building stamina in reading and writing during Daily 5. We are up to 17 minutes in reading and 15 minutes in writing. This means that as a whole group with children are working on these skills uninterrupted.WOW! I am really proud of the kids! I hope that you have had a chance to introduce your child to First In Math the online program that makes learning math fun  and enjoyable. Your child's information was sent home last Friday in your child's red folder. Some of the kids told me that they have been working on  it at home. That is awesome! September homework is due on Monday and we will be celebrating next week those who turned in their homework. October homework calendars and goals are in your child's Friday folder. The expectation is that you are working with your child at home on these activities and goals.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Great Week

Dear Parents,
We had a great week in room 23. I am so pleased with how well the children are doing. Many important items are in your child's Friday folder so be sure to read it with them.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Great Week

Dear Parents,
We had a great week in kindergaten. I am so excited with how well we are doing.
Have a great weekend.
Mrs. Catton

Items

A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Soultz and Mrs. Gillihan for sending in some items to put into our "store" so the kids can go shopping on Friday. They are going to be so excited to see some new items to choose from.  We will be doing this activity all year long so feel free to send in items anytime that you are willing and able. Be sure to look through your child's Friday folder this week as Progress Reports are inside.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Great Morning!

I just had to tell you about our great morning. The kids are doing a great job with the morning routine and we are quickly moving on to Daily Five. We reached our Reading to Self goal of 11 minutes today and I was able to work individually with three children on letter recognition. I encourage each of you to have alphabet books for your children at home to read! We ran out of time during Writing because we had to go to lunch. When I rang the chimes to have the children put up their journals I heard "I'm not done yet." That was music to my ears so we will go back to writing after recess. Any prizes for our "store" on Friday is GREATLY appreciated.
Have a lovely day as we are here in room 23.
Mrs. Catton

Library Books

Dear Parents,
Please encourage your children to keep the library book that they checked out more than one day. Many books  come back the next day and when I ask them who read them the book. They say no one has read it  to them yet.  Library is on Wednesday and the books do not have to be returned until the following Wednesday. I also encourage them to practice building stamina by reading the book at home. They chose the book so it is obviously something they wanted to read.  If you read them the book they can retell the story, read the pictures, and read  some of the words. You could look for sight words in print, read a sentence and have them repeat it, etc. We did this today with the big book Buttons Buttons and they were so excited to be reading! We are busy building stamina. We are up to 9 minutes in reading and 6 minutes in writing. I am so excited about their progress. We made a list of possible fish names for our new class pet (model writing)  and Mrs. Parsons got to choose her favorite. Its name is Happy Feet.  HELP!!!!!!!I am looking for donations of prizes for the children to "buy" at the end of the week if they earn 5 sticks (one for each day of the school week) for following classroom procedures. Some suggestions are toys from fast food kids meals, small toys from the dollar store or dollar sections, etc. I am really pleased with how this is working with this class. Many of them are earning 5 sticks and the ones who are not are quickly figuring out that they can if they choose to do the right thing. I would greatly appreciate your joining  me as a friend on my blog so I know who is reading them. As of right now this is the only way to communicate in mass to my parents.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Next Week

I am going to be out of town next Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. My assistant Mrs. Frick will be taking the lead while I am gone. I have a few parent volunteers coming in to give her a helping hand. A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Manley, Mrs. Gillihan and Mrs. Lahey for volunteering to come in and assist her. If you would like to come in just let me know and we will get you scheduled. On Tuesday we learned about Music Smart and today was Body Smart. Tomorrow we will learn about Nature Smart. I have a surprise for the kids in celebration of learning the 8 Smarts. The 8 Smarts are Art Smart, Self Smart, People Smart, Music Smart, Logic Smart, Word Smart, Nature Smart, and Body Smart.  You will want to ask them Mrs. Catton brought in for them to observe. The Daily Five is going great. We are busy building stamina and we are up to six minutes.  Please do not send in ice cream money until Friday. Thank you
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

IMPORTANT

Dear Parents,
Our email is down at this time so if you need to contact me please call the  school  office at 352-1243. Today I explained a positive behavior program to the children that I will be using this year.  The children will have the opportunity to earn a stick if they follow the classroom procedures that day.  (You received a copy of the classroom procedures in the Friday Folder sent home last Friday.)  Each child has an envelope with their name on it displayed in the religion center.  At the end of the week if they have five sticks in their envelope they will get to choose a small gift from a prize basket. I conference with each child as I hand out Friday folders to discuss how their week went and at this time they will get their prize. Beginning this Friday, weekly progress reports will be in Friday folders and I will note on the report how many sticks your child earned to help you  a facilitate discussion with your child. No child will ever lose a stick! They can only EARN sticks.  I believe in postivie reinforcement. The children were so excited when I explained this program to them. Please contact me if you have any questions.
Mrs. Catton

Off to a great start!

I am so pleased with the first two weeks of school. We will finish introducing the Eight Smarts this week. To date we have introduced Word Smart, People Smart, Self Smart, Picture Smart and Number Smart.  I want the children to understand that everyone is smart in their own way. We learned a song that we have been practicing at the beginning of each morning. Ask them if they can sing some of it for you.  PLEASE go through your child's backpack daily and Friday folder with them. There is some very important information in there this week. Thank you so much for sending lunch money for tickets in an envelope with what you are wanting to purchase.  It makes it some much easier for the volunteer to figure out what you are wanting for your child. Keep track of how many tickets were purchased and used. If you have any questions about what your child has left just email me or send me a note.  I encourage you to start letting your child walk into the building independently. If you drop your child off before 7:20 they will need to walk to the office and wait there. The tardy bell rings at 7:30. The children are counted tardy if they are not in the room. If you are running late and know your child is tardy, they will need to go to the office to get a Late Slip.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Three Ways to Read a Book

This week during the Daily 5 I taught the children the three ways to read a book. They are: Read the Pictures, Read the Words (listen to someone read you the words), Retell the Story. We review these three ways daily and the children are building stamina by practicing reading to self. We are up to three minutes and the ultimate goal by the end the year is thirty minutes. I think we are off to a great start. Each child has a personal book bag with five appropriate books. Next week I will be adding three more books to each bag. I wish that you could all be a fly on the wall during Daily 5 to observe your child sitting still and reading their books. Today one of the children brought back her library book and she told me that she read the book to her Mom. When I asked how she read her Mom the book she replied "I read her the pictures Mrs. Catton." A wonderful kindergarten moment! Use these three ways to read a book with your child at home when you are reading with our child.

Daily 5

• Read to Self
• Read to Others
• Listening to Reading
• Word Work
• Writing

Another Great Day

We had another great day in  room 23. The day  started with a prayer and a song about the Multiple Intelligences. The smart we focused on today was People Smart. We read a great book about teamwork and had a wonderful discussion about the times we have used teamwork in school as well as home. We then signed our names to a card that we made for Mrs. Parsons thanking her for taking time to tell us about the school theme of Keeping the Light of Jesus lit. We are building stamina during the Daily 5and the children are loving their book bags. Tomorrow we will see who is Self Smart when we go to church.
Thanks for letting me have your children. I am really enjoying this class!
God Bless,
Mrs. Catton

Daily 5

What a great day in kindergarten. The children were introduced to the multiple intelligences this morning and we will be focusing on one intelligence a day until all eight have been introduced. Today was Word Smart. It went along great with our focus today during the reading block.  I  introduced the children to the Daily 5 which is a structure that will help students develop the daily habits of reading, writing, and working with peers that will lead to a lifetime of independent literacy. The focus lesson was Reading to Self.  Today I introduced two ways to read a book. One, read the pictures and two, read the words. Tomorrow I will introduce the third way to read a book which is to retell the story. These are terms you will be hearing your child using as you read to them and they read at home. Looking at the pictures and talking about them is reading for a kindergarten child.  Encourage your children to look at the pictures and talk about what they see and think about the story. We are off to a great. I was so proud of the children as they came in today and remembered to get their things out of their backpacks and they had a lot to be responsible for.  I believe you teach a child how to do something and then get out of their way and let them do it. :)

God Bless,
Mrs. Catton

Fantastic First Day

WOW! We had a great first day. I know that the children must be tired because I am worn out. We had a full day of getting to know our new friends and visiting with old friends. We learned procedures for the classroom, hallway, lunch, restroom and recess. The children did a great job and I was very proud them. We even earned some compliments from other classroom teachers. Don't be surprised if they are moving slow tomorrow AM. Feel free to walk them in but start the process of encouraging independence of walking in on their own. Tomorrow we will walk out to carpool at 2:30 and then on Wednesday we will begin to walk out at regular dismissal time with the rest of the school. PLEASE remember to send in a snack for your child everyday. DO NOT send in drinks as they can get a drink from the drinking fountain in the hallway. The children who were so excited to show me their bag of snacks for the week. PICTURES are on Friday and I sent home the order form in your child's backpack today. I think it is going to be a great year and I am excited about the possibilities.
God Bless,
Mrs. Catton

Meeting

Dear Parents,
Thank you to all of you who attended the orientation meeting. I really enjoyed speaking with each of you and I am so excited to start on Monday. Please call me if you have any questions before Monday.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Welcome to Kindergarten

Welcome to Room 23! I am so excited about the possibilities this school year.  In conjunction with the Olympics, our school wide theme is Faith in Action Winning With Team Spirit. Our "torch" is the light of Jesus and we will keep our flame lit by Doing The Right Thing - Treating People Right. We will talk frequently about how our words and actions can either pass the torch or blow out the torch. In kindergarten we will be Exploring God's World. This theme fits nicely with our religion standards and  the Indiana  core standards.
God Bless,
Mrs. Catton

Notes

Dear Parents,
Thank you for taking the time to jot me a note about your experience reading the book I sent home with your child on Friday. I read each one during carpet time and the children were so proud to hear what you had to say about their reading.  Today we did a predictable chart where the children had to tell me one thing they learned in kindergarten and almost all of the children said "read."
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Mother's Day

I would like to extend a Happy Mother's Day to each of my student's mothers and I would like to thank you for allowing me the honor of teaching your child and spending time with them. Each child is unique and so special. They have prepared somethings for you for Mother's Day so be sure to check their Friday folder and ask about each item inside in case they forget.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

The Hungry Little Catepillars

Hopefully your child came home and told you about the four living caterpillars we have  in our classroom.  We will be observing them and discussing the changes and if all goes as planned,  by the last week of kindergarten we will have butterflies. This week our shared reading is I'm a Caterpillar by Jean Marzallo. As you may have heard also, one of our hermit crabs died over the weekend. While it was sad, it lead to a nice discussion about the cycle of life. I heard that many of the children remembered Hermie in their nightly prayers. Today I had the honor of writing with the children a letter to St. Elizabeth / Coleman telling them that the kindergartners had earned over $348.00 in the Kindergarten Challenge. We had alot of fun estimating how many diapers and how much formula that would buy for the babies. We have been observing the classroom garden we planted and are writing about the changes that are occuring. We are checking on the chickens as we move about the school and on our way out to recess. They seem right at home here at Holy Spirit.
Hard to believe that we are into the last month of kindergarten. We will be visiting one of the first grade classrooms soon  and them we will be discussing similarities and differences between the two grades.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Spring

Wow. Spring is such a fun time in kindergarten. We planted a garden with peas and green beans ten days ago and we will be observing, discussing, and recording the changes in our garden. We have discussed  the differences in living and non-living things and will have a great opportunity over the next few weeks to take this discussion further. I am sure your child will come home and tell you all about it on Monday. If not, be sure to ask. Monday is our field trip to Survive Alive to learn fire safety. I did a questionsing activity to find out how much prior knowledge the children had about fire and home safety and they had some interesting answers so this will be a good fieldtrip experieince for them . They will hear again  why knowing their address is so important  We are practicing counting to 100 at school as that is our new goal for the last report card so please reinforce at home. Remember a sack lunch and drink on Monday. Our Early Childhood team had a great conference on Friday. Got alot of new ideas to use in reading as well as reinforcement that we are doing what is good for kids. Huge Thank you to Miss Hurst, Mrs. Emmert, and the children for doing their Personal Best while I was gone.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Thank you

I want to thank each of you who came to spring conferences. I love spring conferences as it gives me the opportunity to speak with you about the growth your child has made as well as my goals for them the remainder of the school year and what you can do at home to help your child reach those goals. Please sign and return your child's report card in their Friday folder tomorrow. We will be learning about Jesus' journey to the Cross during Holy Week. Father Chris came to talk with us about Lenten symbols the week before Spring Break.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Weather

This week we are learning about weather.  Our shared reading is the book What's the Weather Like Today.I love doing a   unit on weather during the month of March because we will experience all types of weather this month. Today I did a Circle Map with the children to check their prior knowledge of weather and where they have learned about weather. I was very pleased with how well they did answering my questions. Today we made a tornado in science. Please ask your child to tell you about it! Our guest readers last Friday were Joe Fought and Emily Shea and today Aiden O'Brien read. I would love to have everyone in the class be a guest reader by the end of the school year. Practice a book at home and have them bring it in and I will read with them. When I feel they are ready to read in front of the class they will be a guest reader. PLEASE send in a snack for your child daily.
Mrs. Catton

Dr. Suess' Birthday

What a great day to be in kindergarten at Holy Spirit School! Today we celebrated Dr. Suess' birthday with Miss Hill's class and Mrs. Flynn's Preschool Class. Each teacher chose their Dr. Seuss book and planned an activity. We divided the three classes up and put them in three groups to visit the rooms. Ask your child what Dr. Seuss story they heard in each classroom and to describe the activity in each room. Also, ask your child to describe what the author and illustrator of Dr. Seuss books really looks like and what his real name is. Hint- Theodore Seuss Geisel. We had a great time enjoying these wonderful children books together with all of the "Early Childhood" teachers and students. 
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

New in Room 23

I hope that you heard last night about our new class pet- Hermie the Hermit Crab. The children are excited to say the least and I know they will take good care of him. Nathan even went home and did some research to about hermit crabs and wrote about it which we shared during morning carpet time. I am so excited about the writing that the children are doing. Yesterday some of the children were writing prayers to put into the prayer box. Please if you have someone you would like us to pray for write it down and send it in with your child. We check the prayer box every morning. Our jug from the challenge is already half full. The children love to tell us what they did to earn their money to share and I love to hear them tell us how good they feel inside. Ella Quiesser was our guest reader last week. A few students have brought in a book to share and we are still practicing but they will be reading for us very soon.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Charity Challenge

After Mass today we presented each grade level their Faith In Action jug to collect funds for their charity of choice. Together with Miss Hill we have decided that our charity will be the St. Elizabeth/Coleman Pregnancy Adoption Services. Please give your child the opportunity to earn change to bring into school reinforcing service to others and sacrifice. Spring pictures are tomorrow so your child will not have to wear their gym uniform but they will need to bring their gym shoes to change in to if they are not wearing them in their picture.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Prayer Box

Dear Parents,
We now have a prayer box in the classroom. I have told the children that they can write down a prayer for someone that they would like us to pray for every morning as part of our morning routine. This would be a great opportunity for you to see how their kindergarten writing is developing. We are writing everyday in school and hopefully you are seeing your child writing at home. I encourage you to remind them to stretch out the word listening for the sounds as they are writing. Also, encourage them to use their popcorn words. Thank you Miss Hurst for the donation of the mailbox.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

WOW!

It sure was a busy morning in kindergarten. Our 100's Day stations were a blast. We counted, moved, read, wrote, drew,ate, built and just had a great time! I would really like to give a special thank you to Mrs. Schene, Mrs. Welty, and Mrs. Emmert for their help today. Stations are such fun and a great learning opportunity when they are monitored. If you would ever like to come in and help at stations it would be welcomed and I know you would enjoy it. It gives you a great opportunity to see what is going on in your child's classroom as well as connecting with their classmates. Your child would love it too! Please let me know if you would like to volunteer. Thank you for helping your child prepare for 100's Day and Catholic Schools Week. Sad to say that we didn't make it to 100 canned foods but we got close with 65 so thank you for sharing.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Next Week is a busy one in kindergarten

Please read the school newsletter for information on Catholic Schools Week. We will be actively participating and having all sorts of fun. It is also the 100's day of kindergarten on Thursday, Feb 2nd. I would like to incorporate the two very special events. Part of our Catholic faith is service to others and I know that Mrs. Parsons was contacted by a past student who is in need of medical supplies. I was going to have you help your child count out 100 items to bring into school to share at a community circle on Thursday. If you would like to count out band aids, Q-Tips, cough drops, cottons balls, etc. that would be awesome and we will forward those to her to use with her service to the community. If you don't want to count out those type of items, please help them count out 100 of something else to share.  Ideas- M&M's, pennies, rubber bands, straws, etc. As you are counting the items out with them model count by ones, twos, fives and tens. Also, please send in a canned food items as we are working with Miss Hill's class to see if we can collect 100 cans by Thursday. These will be donated to a food bank. You may start bringing in canned foods on Monday.  I am in need of a three volunteers on Thursday for stations from 8:15-10:00 if you would like to help out just let me know.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Guest Reader and Harmony

We had a guest reader this week in kindergarten- Miss Emily Shea. Emily read us the book The Big Box. She did a great job. Emily asked me if she could read to the class one day. I told her that I wanted her to choose a book from home ( appropriate reading  level), practice with someone at home, and then bring it into school.  She read the book to me and I was able to give her some reading instruction. Once we did that she read to the class with confidence.I was able to video her on our IPAD and shared it with the other kindergarten class.  Many of the children asked me if they could be the "Guest Reader" in kindergarten. So here is the challenge. If your child would like to bring a book into and read to the class they will need to do the above mentioned steps and I will schedule them to be the "Guest Reader." The greatest thing you can do for your child on their journey to literacy is to read to them daily. This week we focused on the word "harmony" during our study of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Please ask your child what the word harmony means and what they can do to help our classroom live in harmony.
Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton

Riley Kids

Dear Parents,
Today as part of our Martin Luther King prayer service we were given the opportunity to do service for the kids at Riley Children's Hospital. We had a wonderful presentation about Riley and as a school we are trying to earn $100.00 to donate to Riley. I am asking that you give your child the opportunity to help you out around the house to earn some change. Chores for Change is what we call it and the kids love to help you and help others at the same time. The children can start bringing their change in tomorrow. Thank you for helping your child with this activity about service to others.

Here is another copy of the sight words introduced so far. Please practice them at home along with reading to your child daily (Book-It) and the homework calendar.
and, the , I, go, is, me, at , the, to, it, we, my, am, a, be, on, in, up, this, like, had

Respectfully,
Mrs. Catton