Halloween

Thank you to those of you who sent in treats to share for Halloween.  It is a fun day but you all know how sugar effects children - it makes them crazy.  Please try to limit the amount of candy your child brings to school following Halloween.  A child with a ton of candy often leads to them sneaking and sharing candy at inappropriate times.  And although we do not allow sharing snacks at school, they still do and it isn't fair for the parents who limit their child's sugar intake.

I hope you all have a ton of fun Trick-or-Treating tonight.

See you tomorrow,
Miss Mynes

allergy alert

When sending in food to be shared amongst the children, for example for class parties or birthdays, please do not send in any tomato sauce or eggs.  We have children who are allergic and we want to keep them safe.

Thanks for you support.

A note about tomorrow.  The Halloween Howl is tomorrow.  It should be fun but please do not confuse this event with our class party.  We will celebrate Halloween as a class with a party on October 31st, Halloween, in the afternoon.  The children are free to wear their costumes and bring in food to share with their friends.

thanks,
Miss Mynes

a little about tomorrow

Tomorrow, thanks to a donation from the Luong family, we will be making Bird's Nest Treats!  Using pretzels, shredded wheat cereal, licorice strings, mock peanut butter, crushed graham crackers and marshmallows we will makes birds nests that are yummy to eat!

:)
Miss Mynes

You Tube Stars!

Our grade 6s are You Tube Stars!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LLFCrJ7P2g&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

 

Check it out!

 

:)

Miss Mynes

Tomorrow

Tomorrow, Mr Pate and I will be attending a Kindergarten Professional Learning Community.  This is were kindergarten teachers come together to share best practices.  Mr pate will be attending in the morning and I will be attending in the afternoon so the children will always have one of us with them.  I know we will come back on Monday filled with wonderful ideas.

:)
Miss Mynes

school photos

Just a little FYI before you buy your child's school photo.  Picture retake day is October 27th.  If you child wasn't looking their best in the original photo and you want to try again, just write me a note and I will be sure to have their picture retaken on October 27th.  The children often do better on their second try.

:)
Miss Mynes

Our Next Unit

Our next unit, starting later this week, is based on Lois Elhert's Feathers for Lunch.  We will be learning about birds, animals sounds and bird calls and habitats. 
Here is where you can help:
-empty 2L milk cartons to make bird feeders
- pretzel sticks, shredded wheat cereal, licorice whips, Wowbutter (looks and tastes like peanut butter but made of soy), graham cracker crumbs and marshmallows to make bird's nest treats
- bird seed mixture, small milk cartons and soil to plant bird seed and see what grows

I know it is asking a lot but if we all work together the burden can be lighter.  These activities will be amazing but even if we are unable to get the materials, we will still have a fun and informative unit.

Thanks for your support,
Miss Mynes

Tomorrows Plan

Tomorrow, we continue learning about trees.  We are working together to make a dictionary about tree terms.  We are also going to make a prints and rubbings mural using leaves, twigs and small branches.

:)
Miss Mynes

a bit about tomorrow

Because of my absence this morning and the rain this afternoon, we have postponed our leaf experiment until tomorrow.  Tomorrow we will also collect leaves to sort and graph them.

When you are out wit your child, talk to them about the trees and leaves that you see.  Note changes in the seasons and the growth of the plant life around you.  Look for signs of Autumn.

:)
Miss Mynes

our new tree

Today, we made a tree for all seasons.  It is a permanent display in the class.  We will change our tree to reflect the seasons.  Of course, today we coloured leaves and put them on the tree.  Your child can feel free to bring real leaves or leaves they have made in to add to our tree.  Our tree will be beautiful.

Tomorrow, I am absent in the morning as Mr. Vlahos and I are at a meeting for the Early Developmental Index.  It is a survey I fill out based on each child in the class.  I have completed these surveys many times.  When the time comes for me to complete them this year, you will receive more information about the process.

Have a great evening,
Miss Mynes

Baking Activity - Soft Oatmeal Raisin Delights

Yesterday the children had practice being bakers and using their listening skills. Isata brought in a recipe for Soft Oatmeal Raisin Delights and asked if we could make them. We made a list of the ingredients and checked to see what we had in the school. A small group of children went to Sun Valley to get the rest of the ingredients. In the morning the children took turns measuring ingredients, mixing the batter and following the directions that I read out. We put them in the oven and had a tasty treat in the afternoon. Twenty out of twenty-two children loved the cookies. We had one cookie each, 1/2 cookie for seconds and even 1/4 cookie for those that wanted thirds. If that's not the sign of a delicious cookie I'm not sure what is!

Soft Oatmeal Raisin Delights

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Makes: 4-5 dozen cookies

Ingredients

1 cup - Unbleached all purpose flour

1 ½ tsp - Baking powder

1 tsp - Ground cinnamon

½ tsp - Baking soda

1/3 cup - Light brown sugar

½ tsp - Ground nutmeg

¼ tsp - Ground cloves

½ cup - Butter, softened

1 Large egg

2 tbsp - Fancy molasses

1 1/3 cups - Unsweetened applesauce

1 ¾ cups - Large flake or quick cooking oats

1 cup - Rasins

¾ cup - Toasted almonds (optional)

1 ½ tsp - Vanilla

Directions

1. In bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and cloves; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy.

3. Beat in egg and molasses until combined.

4. Alternate adding the flour mixture and applesauce into the butter mixture (add 3 parts flour and then 2 parts applesauce).

5. Stir in oats, raisins, almonds, if using and vanilla.

6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop batter by tablespoonfuls (15 mL) onto baking sheet.

7. Bake in 375°F (190°C) oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch.

Tip #1: If you don’t have cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves you can substitute 1 ½ tsp (7 mL) of pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t want to use nutmeg and cloves increase the cinnamon to 1 ½ tsp (7 mL).

Tip #2: If you don’t have molasses simply increase the brown sugar to ½ cup (125 mL).

Nutrition information per cookie: Calories: 62, Protein: 1 g, Fat: 2 g, Carbohydrate: 10 g, Fibre: 1 g, Sodium: 39 mg

If you have some time and all the ingredients try making these cookies.
Enjoy the long weekend with your family.
See you on Tuesday.

Cheers,

Mr. Pate

a little help....

Mr Vlahos informed Mr. Pate and I that we are already out of money for the year.  Running an amazing kindergarten program is expensive and $300 doesn't go far.  That means some of the activities I was excited to do may not happen with out a little help.  Anything we may need that isn't already in our classroom, I will let you know.  Please do not feel obligated to donate the requested items but if you can, it would be great.

For our next unit:

nail polish remover (with acetone) for an experiment where we extract the fall colours from leaves

OK.  That's all for the next unit but I will be posting more requests with my hat in my hand as they arise.

:)
Miss Mynes

Our Next Unit

We are just wrapping up our unit focusing on numbers and counting, fish, sea life and imagination.  On Monday, we will begin a unit on seasons, autumn, trees and leaves and growth and change.  We will read Lois Elherts Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf.  We will do art, science, math and language arts activities all linked to our theme.  We will also read the following:

Have You Seen Trees? by Joanne Oppenheim
I Am a Leaf by Jean Marzollo
The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons
Why Do Leaves Change Colour by Betsy Maestro.

:)
Miss Mynes