Goodbye Miss Benitha 💔

A big part of our team is leaving us today. I've learned so much from her and I know that the kids have too. We wish her nothing but the best in her new life. Thanks to all the parents who brought gifts, cards and their well wishes today.

A very special thanks to Keira, Minkey, Raphael & Anya's moms who brought us some very yummy treats to help us say goodbye to our friend. A little chocolate helps make everything ok la!

 

See you later alligator - we will miss you Miss Benitha!

Pink Shirt Day

The pink shirt has now become the symbol for the fight against bullying. Let's create our very own 'Sea of Pink' at Sunway this Wednesday, Febraury 28th to open up a dialogue about bullying.

Watch the video below to find out how this movement got started.

 

Yee Sang Prosperity Toss

Sodexho hosted our Yee Sang Prosperity Toss to ensure good fortune in the new year for all. Once our yee sang was served, everyone got up, chopsticks at the ready and the tossing began! We tossed high and made a mess so our luck, wealth, good opportunities and our general standing in the world improves.

The higher you toss, the better your luck! 

Puzzle Me Words

Phonemic awareness—or the sounds letters make—is an important skill for early readers. This game makes spelling words fun and rewarding. Just like solving a puzzle, only the correct letters will fit in each slot. Children feel success as they spell words and watch the school bus cross the finish line and reward them with a prize!

Can you solve the puzzle?

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentine's day and have a wonderful Chinese New Year holiday! See you back in class February 22nd!

A Sweet Day

We had a blast celebrating Valentines Day! We made a mess painting fizzy hearts while learning how to use eye droppers and ingredients like baking soda and vinegar.

We went outside to do an alphabet letter hunt and tried to put all our letters in order!

We made beaded hearts and gave them away to a special friend. It was really sweet watching how much thought went into choosing the perfect person to give their heart away too. It was a hard lesson for some who really wanted to keep their own or give it to mom, or maybe didn't get one that was as nice as the one that they made, but I think everyone learned a valuable lesson on giving today.

Cooking with Sodexo

We were lucky to have so many moms on hand for our first cooking class of the year. We made dumplings to help celebrate Chinese New Year, and they looked delish!

Happy Chinese New Year

Today we celebrated Chinese New Year with a special guest, Jamie A's mom! She did an amazing job teaching us all about the traditions and customs of the new year celebrations. We learned about the monster Nian and all the ways we can scare him away! We talked about lion dances, firecrackers, food, the color red and the importance of family & friends in Chinese culture. My favourite part of the day was seeing the kids all wearing a pomelo on their head! Jamie's mom also left everyone a special treat in their lockers to find at the end of the day!

Ms Benitha helped us make hóngbāo or red envelopes for prosperity and good fortune. She taught us all about the Chinese zodiac and that this year, is the Year of the Dog. Thanks to Jinu and Arthurs moms for helping with our craft today.

To learn more about Chinese New Year, please click on Jamie Y's Dragon picture at the bottom.

Pictionary

We have started making our very own pictionaries or alphabet journals in class to help re-enforce the letters of the week and increase our vocabulary. Having students draw their representation of a word allows for deeper understanding of the meaning of the word.

Rapheal has drawn the sun, a snowman and his son in a snowstorm, a pair of socks and his favourite superhero Spiderman!

Eva has chosen to draw a snake, a smiling snowman face, a scoop of ice cream, a school and the sun!

Letter of the Week

This past week we have been learning all about the letter 'S' in many different ways; through songs, actions, sorting, books and centers.

For fun re-enforcement of all the letter sounds, try this Jolly Phonics song.

Curriculum Night

Come join us this Thursday February 8th for Curriculum Night. It's a chance to meet your child's teacher and learn more about the Ontario play-based Kindergarten curriculum. Mr Petitti will start us off in the multi-purpose hall at 7:00 and you will follow your teacher to their room shortly after.

We look forward to seeing you on Thursday!

Fuzz Bugs

Sorting by color on the parachute was a great way for our kinesthetic or more active learners to engage in our math lesson. If you want more practice sorting, counting and comparing at home, try this Fuzz Bugs game!

Outdoor Centers

Today we brought out our water table and other outdoor centers. We played bean bag toss, sponge race, chalk drawing and created a small obstacle course! Playing freely outdoors helps children with the development of their motor, sensory, social and cognitive development. Outdoor play is great fun and promotes happy, healthy and strong children.

  

 

Reading Buddies

This week we were so excited to meet our Reading Buddies! Each kinder was paired with a grade 5 student from Mr. Thorne's class who will read to them each week.

Our little buddies benefit from hearing stories read-aloud, having conversations with an older student and enjoying fun, positive experiences with a ‘big kid’ who is now a recognizable face in the school community. The big buddies benefit from further developing their own literacy skills, fostering leadership and improved self-confidence that comes from being looked-up to.

I'm looking forward to seeing how these relationships grow throughout the year!