Hi JK parents!  

We hopped through week two with great success, as we introduced a math center and counted candles and cupcakes and discussed the properties of more and less and practiced our numbers along with our negotiating skills.  We continued our introduction to school as well as introduced our "All About Me" theme, with books like Sam's Science "I know We Fight Germs" by Kate Rowan, It's My Turn by David Bedford and Elaine Field, Ms. Nelson is Missing, Skippy Jon Jones and Class Action.  

We welcomed Isra's mom to class to talk to the children about a special festival their family celebrates.  They were interested to learn about the traditions and were able to see Isra's beautiful dress and hear about the holiday and the many ways it is celebrated across the world.  Mason and Fiorella turned five this week!  Show and tell was a success as well and I was impressed with the comfort level of the students who shared their toys with the class and answered questions with ease.  It's the beginning of their public speaking abilities and truly builds their confidence each time they control the content and delivery of their words for an audience.  We were very busy!  Thank you all for visiting and please continue to contact me with sharing you would like to do with the class.  

I spent time with each student practicing hand writing using "Handwriting Without Tears", and began assessing the students with Judy Wahl, our Gifted Coordinator.  We painted and decorated our "Just Like Me" people as we discussed the many ways we are different and how important it is to celebrate the special qualities that make us unique.  We will begin presenting our "All About Me" posters this week, as students learn more about each other and are able to find commonalities and interests to link each other together in more meaningful ways.  Our rainbows have grown and become more colorful as students found many ways to show kindness and exhibit their empathy and compassion toward their classmates throughout the day.  

Reminder:  Picture day is Tuesday, September 13.  The younger classes are typically called first so will do our best to keep them looking photo ready until then!  I will continue to add photos so stay tuned as I juggle photos with everything else surrounding our school day!  If you don't see your child they might have just been moving too quickly for me to catch before the next activity.  

JK-First Week of School!

Wow, what an amazing first week of JK! We have been passing our class mascot, the frog, around our circle at morning meeting to share things with our classmates. This helps us with a great visual of whose turn it is to share and how long until it is our turn. We have been reading many books this week about going back to school to talk about all of the exciting and sometimes confusing feelings about starting school with new friends and feeling comfortable in a new environment. The kids' imaginations at free play and center time has had me laughing out loud every day. My favorite was "I have to go now, my cab's here!"...while carrying a train and a stuffed Cat in the Hat!

We have been reading other stories to introduce our "All About Me" theme. I will be sending home a poster sheet with instructions on completing an "All About Me Poster" they will share with the class. They will be learning more about each "Star of the Week's" favorite things, places, family, games, activities etc. This is an amazing time for friendships to grow as the children find similarities in each other and begin relating on other levels.

The children have learned our weather song and snack time thankful poem. Some were not excited about yogurt and said they were thankful for ice cream after school! Most also said they are thankful for Mommy and Daddy, or "Ma Ma", or cousins, or dinosaurs, or their teachers. They have done so well with their classroom jobs and circle time activities and games. It turns out "The Hokey Pokey" really is what it's all about! JKers love music and movement, so we are actively singing, dancing and making music around the room each day.

The class is working together as a community to earn frogs to fill our frog jar, which will earn a pajama/popcorn party and movie day! As individual students are observed showing helpful and kind behavior, they are also “building their rainbows” and will soon be able to choose a prize from the treasure chest for excelling as classroom solid citizens! Positive reinforcement encourages positive behavior and cohesiveness within our classroom family. They are all excited and working very hard to exhibit the qualities of a leader and friend.

I will have the daily schedule finalized by next week. I am still tweaking it now to adjust to the class and all of their needs. We have already moved snack time up because everyone was getting so hungry early.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions and I will do the same- as I get to know more about each child and cultivate the foundation for a love of school and learning.  I will also be adding photos of our activities to this site, so stay tuned.

I am so lucky and feel I have the best job in the world every single day I am with your children!

Mrs. Massey

I am looking forward to a great year in Junior Kindergarten!  I will see you at the Orientation on Monday from 8:30 am - 9:15 am in our classroom.