Chicken!

Just for your information, our chicken eggs are expected to hatch on February 7th.  Let's hope I took good car of the eggs and we have 12 healthy chicks on that day.

Cross your fingers for me,
Miss Mynes

today's special event

Today, we will have a fancy tea!  We will have herbal tea and fancy cookies.  The children will see Miss McGregor for drama and dance and then again for physical education.

:)
Miss Mynes

a litttle about tomorrow

Tomorrow, we will have yogurt parfaits with sprinkles.  We will talk about fancy words from the book Fancy Nancy.  We will also discuss rhyming words.

I have plastic parfait glasses and sprinkles and will buy the yogurt tonight after school.

Have a fancy day!

:)
Miss Mynes

Next Week

Next week will most likely be a week preferred by the girl's in the class but the learning will be great for everyone.  Our week will be based on a book called Fancy Nancy.  Nancy is a glamour queen who loves everything fancy.  When she decides to teach her boring family to be fancy the fun begins.  The story is filled with fancy vocabulary.  We will have many fun activities based on the book including a fancy tea with tea and cookies and yogurt parfaits with sprinkles.  There are many things I would love to have for this unit and welcome any donations: a plume pen, cookies for the fancy tea, tiara's, boas, sequined clothes, sequined scarves, fancy shoes, yogurt, parfait glasses and sprinkles.

Thank you so much for your support.

Enjoy the long weekend.  I will be spending tomorrow writing the junior kindergarten summary for my junior kindergarten students.

:)
Miss Mynes

cold weather

The Toronto District School Board has a cold weather policy.  The children have a normal recess and lunch if the temperature is above -20.  From -20 to -28, the children will have a 10 minute recess and 20 minute lunch.  Below -28 the children stay inside.  That being said, it seems Mr. Vlahos has a different cold weather policy for our school where the children stay inside more than the policy dictates.  For that reason, I cannot predict when we will or will not go outside at recess or lunch.  My advice is to dress your child for outdoor play every day.  Snow pants, boots, jacket, scarf, hat and mittens are essential in the winter time so the children can be comfortable outside and can enjoy themselves.  Children love playing outside, especially if there is snow, so please provide them with all they need to enjoy themselves, including a positive attitude about the weather.

:)
Miss Mynes

A little about today

This morning, we will read Edward the Emu by Rod Clement.  We will strengthen our oral language skills by learning more about emus, strengthen our comprehension by discussing the story, improve our letter knowledge by examining the names of the characters ans work together to identify and represent animals and the way they move (your spatial and naturalist learners will love this).  If we have time, I will read with seniors and we all will write in our writing folders.  In the afternoon, we will create dances that have a pattern and juniors will write the number 4 in their math folders.

The children will have drama and dance and physical education with Miss McGregor.

Wit the cold weather, Mr Vlahos may choose to shorten recess to 10 minutes and lunch to 20 minutes.  Remember, there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.

:)
Miss Mynes

Royal Ontario Museum

Today, the primary division is heading to the Royal Ontario Museum.  We will be having a self guided tour.  Thank you to all the parents who have volunteered.  I haven't been to the ROM in years so I am excited to share the experience with the children.

:)
Miss Mynes

Edward the Emu

Next week, our unit will be based on the book Edward the Emu.  It is the story of Edward who is bored of being an emu.  He tries being a seal, a lion, and a snake.  When he gets home, he discovers another emu and he is bored no more.  In support of this unit, visit a zoo.  before leaving, list all the animals Edward tried to be.  Check the animals off as you find them at the zoo.  Examine the habits of each animal.  Ask the children which animal they want to be.

Monday is our field trip to the Royal Ontario Museum.  There are still a few people who haven't returned their permission forms.  Please being your signed form on Monday.  Don't forget the trip is all day so if your child usually goes home for lunch, you will have to send a packed lunch for Monday.

Have a great weekend,
Miss Mynes

Punctuality

Please make every effort to be on time for school - 8:40am.  You should wait with your child outside the kindergarten entrance doors until one of the teachers invites the children into the building.  Punctuality is a healthy habit and following routines at school is the building blocks of our whole education.  I also find that children are significantly less independent when their parent is there is observe or assist them and the kindergarten curriculum expects that the children develop the skills to dress and undress themselves independently.  Mrs McGrath and I are there to teach, encourage and assist with getting dressed and undressed for school.

Thanks for your support,
Miss Mynes

so exciting!!

After school on Thursday, I will be going to Green Acres Farm to pick up our chicken eggs.  We will spend a month caring for the eggs and then enjoying the chicks after they are born.  It will be a memorable few weeks for all the children.

:)
Miss Mynes

The Dot

This week, we will be focusing on the book The Dot.  It is about a teacher's encouragement that helps a little girl find the artist within and the lesson spreads.  In support of this unit, try to visit an art museum.  Look for pictures with dots in them.  Look for works of art that employ the pointillist technique.  Discuss the various types of paintings, asking the children to identify the pictures they like the most.  Ask them about the feel and mood of the painting's and drawings: "Which paintings create a playful mood? Which paintings create a serious mood?  Do colours make a difference?"

Today, we will discuss the book, paint with dots, write our names with dots and begin our patterning unit in Math.

We will also visit the computer lab.
:)
Miss Mynes

Thursday

Thanks to a walk in clinic and Penicillin, I am back today.  Throat infections really hurt :(

Today your child should be choosing new library books.  Please remember, if your child receives an overdue notice and you have returned the books referenced, just return the note, letting me know the books have been returned, and I will remove them from your child's account.  Unfortunately, library books are not always checked in properly.

Today, the children will see Miss McGregor for a health lesson.

:)
Miss Mynes

a few fun ideas

In support of our unit this week based on the book Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, take your child to a park or other spot where pigeons live.  Take food so your child can feed the pigeons.  Ask "What colour are the pigeons? Do they prefer to walk around or fly around? How many feet do the pigeons have? Do they have arms? Without arms, how could a pigeon drive a bus?  You could also take a ride on a bus.  Ask the driver to show you the parts of the bus mentioned in the book - steering wheel and accelerator.

:)
Miss Mynes

a little about this week

This week, our anchor text is Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.  Today, we will work on our oral language skills be talking about the expressions on the pigeons face in the pictures.  We will sing a song called The Pigeon on the Bus.  We will draw pigeons.  We will also go on a number walk and look for numbers around the school and what those numbers mean.

:)
Miss Mynes