September 26, 2025

WHAT A BUSY WEEK!

MOO! BAA! OINK! NEIGH!

We were so excited that we forgot to mention our new farm unit that we started last week!  We learned some interesting facts about cows. Did you know that cows can sleep standing up? Did you also know that cows have very good eyesight? They can see in front, to the side and even behind them!  This week we learned some interesting facts about ducks. Did you know that male ducks (called drakes) do not quack; only female ducks (called ducks) quack?!  In math, we completed our number sense unit... for now! We will revisit it later in the year.  Your child should be able to build sets of up to 10 objects, put numbers in order and count - forwards from 1 to 20 and backwards from 20 to 1, compare numbers, using one more than, one less than and the same as (equal to) a given number. We have been listening to some silly rhyming books as we learn to identify words that rhyme. We are also counting syllables in words and matching words that begin with the same sound. Some students are struggling with this; please practice with them at home.  In science, we learned about our five senses and how we can use them to describe properties of objects. We sorted objects by color, size, shape and texture. In social studies, we learned about our government leaders.  Following the Gator Way is something that good leaders always do!

GREAT GATOR AWARD

Every month we look for one student who demonstrates the character trait of that month. This month the trait was empathy.  Empathy is being able to understand how someone else feels, even if you're not in the same situation.  Empathy is being able to "put yourself in someone's shoes" and see things from their point of view. 

Empathy is important; it is the first step in having positive relationships because it helps us understand and relate to others.

LETTER ID and SOUNDS

Your child should be able to confidently identify (within 3 seconds, in random order):

at least 20 upper case letters, at least 20 lower case letters & at least 20 letter sounds

AT HOME LITERACY ACTIVITIES

The link below contains some fun activities for your child to enjoy and practice different reading skills!

mCLASS® Home Connect®

https://www.mclass.amplify.com/homeconnect/

SIGHT WORDS

Below are the kindergarten sight words for the entire year. We may not cover them all and we may add in some of our own.  Knowing our sight words will help your child tremendously in reading and writing. Each week we will learn two or three new words. Please review these words with your child. Students are expected to read, write and spell these words.

These are the sight words we learned this week:

by       my

These are the sight words we have previously learned:

by  my  I   see  a   the   

READING and WRITING SKILLS WE WILL LEARN in KINDERGARTEN

By the end of Kindergarten, students should be able to:

• Recognize and produce rhyming words

• Segment words in an oral sentence

• Segment words into syllables

• Segment and pronounce initial, medial and final phonemes in spoken CVC words

• Manipulate phonemes with additions or substitutions in one-syllable words

• Name all letters of the alphabet

• Write all manuscript letters in lowercase and uppercase

• Sequence letters of the alphabet

• Fluently produce sounds of consonants and short vowels when given the letter

• Fluently produce sounds for basic digraphs (wh, sh, ch, th, ck)

• Name and write corresponding letter(s) when given sounds for consonants, consonant digraphs, and short vowels

• Distinguish long and short vowel sounds within words

• Read and spell approximately 200 CVC words 

• Spell other words phonetically, drawing on knowledge of sound-letter relationships

• Read and write our sight words

• Identify and name correct punctuation at end of sentence

• Capitalize words at beginning of sentences and names of people

• Name the author and illustrator of a story and define their roles

• Explain narrative story structure including character, setting and main events

• Use a combination of drawing and dictating to narrate linked events to tell about a story in  sequence

• Re-tell key details of narrative and informational text, using pictures or prompts as a guide

• Identify characters, settings and main events in a story, with pictures or other prompts

• Describe what happened in a story when given a specific illustration

• With prompts, compare and contrast the experiences of characters in two stories

• Explain difference between narrative and informational text

• Echo-read a passage with correct phrasing and expression

• Identify and explain new meanings for familiar words and newly taught words

• Produce and expand complete sentences in shared language activities

Curriculum Objectives

Language Arts: 

I can identify upper and lowercase letters of the alphabet and the sounds they make. 

I can identify words that rhyme.  

I can count the number of syllables in words. 

I can write my name with only the first letter capitalized, followed by all the other letters lower case.

Math: 

I can read, write and represent numbers from zero to 10.

I can recognize instantly the quantity of a small group of objects in organized and random arrangements.  

I can count a set of objects up to at least 10 and demonstrate that the last number said tells the number of objects in the set regardless of their arrangement or order.

I can generate a number that is one more than or one less than another number up to at least 10.

I can use comparative language to describe two numbers up to 20 presented as written numerals.  For example: 8 is greater than 4, 6 is less than 10.

Science:

I can identify and sort objects by properties of size, color, shape and texture. 

Social Studies: 

I can identify leaders in our community.

I can follow rules and routines in the classroom and be a respectful member of the community.

I can identify rules that provide order, security and safety in our home and school.

I can be a good citizen and follow the Gator Way.