The Kindergarten Day

The daily note and work sent home each day is only a small glimpse of our school day. I decided to compose a synopsis of a typical day to help parents understand all of the fun that happens daily.

Each day after morning prayer, our class will walk together down to the classroom. The students will be responsible for carrying their own belongings, and unpacking them upon arrival. They will hang up their coats and bags on their assigned hooks in the classroom. They will also unpack and hand in their folder. At their seat will be “morning work”. This is an independent activity for them to complete as all the other students arrive and unpack. This is also a time for me to take attendance and lunch count, and help students as needed. This is a very consistent and routine. This will help students with their independence and confidence, as they will know what is exactly expected of them. The skills that they work on will reflect the ELA and Math skills we are currently working on in the classroom.

After completing and handing in their morning work, students will have the opportunity to browse our classroom books in Circle Time as they wait for their friends to finish and everyone to join them. They will be able to read books centered around monthly themes, holidays, and books of special interest to them. Whether they get excited about reading a book about apples, Johnny Appleseed, or Peppa Pig, their interest in reading is very important to me! Getting excited about reading in their early learning years is exceptionally important for future reading success. I am constantly buying new books to assist our curriculum and my students’ interests. Please consider ordering from the monthly Scholastic Book Order and see how you can assist in building our classroom library and get awesome books to build your own library at home! I am passionate about fostering an environment that gets your child to love school and reading, setting the stage for success in future grades and life!

Circle Time is a fun way to gather together and begin our day. We sing songs and welcome one another. It is a comfortable time for everyone to participate. We begin with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. At the beginning of the year we say the “Our Father”. After we master that, and learn more about the Holy Family, we begin to learn the “Hail Mary”. The students are little “sponges” and you will quickly begin hearing them reciting their prayers and songs at home! Our weekly calendar helper will help us with the month, day of the week, and date. They will practice counting, as we count along, with a pointer. This is such an important daily activity, as it helps one-to-one counting correspondence, counting to thirty, reading from left to right and top to bottom, etc. We also dress Froggy for the weather each day, and practice our letter of the week. We end each Circle Time with a shared story. I love the shared reading strategy and practice it daily with my students to get them actively involved with the reading process. I pause often and ask comprehension questions and open-ended questions to help develop vocabulary and higher leveled thinking. I ask them to relate experiences in the story to their own lives. I ask for predictions and for them to retell the story to promote involvement, engagement, and comprehension.

After Circe Time, the students transition back to their seats for snack. I usually ask them questions one-by-one. Questions could be what their favorite part of the story was, what letter their name starts with, what color carpet square they’re on, etc. Questions will be catered to their individual learning process and make them feel confident to participate. This year, students will be required to bring in their own snack daily. Before we eat we will say Grace. Food is fuel and I am happy to let them eat as needed. Sometimes students come in hungry and eat while they complete their morning work. I am absolutely fine with this!

Following snack, we transition into Center Time. This is a favorite for my students each year! Each day there will be four centers. Two will be assisted by teachers and two will be independent. There will always be an ELA and Math center. Other centers include art, science, fine-motor, computers, and dramatic play. The students are divided into small groups and rotate throughout the centers, enjoying each one for about fifteen minutes each. This is a great time to work on differentiated instruction; providing the support, reinforcement, or challenge your child needs.

After Center Time is lunch. The students will stop at the bathroom and wash their hands first. Students have the option of purchasing hot lunch or bringing their own. Independence is also encouraged and learned as the year goes on. Lunch money can be applied to their account via the school website, or sent in and applied at school. Lunch money can be sent daily as needed or in bulk in advance if purchasing often. Whatever works best for you! The cafeteria staff will notify me when the account is low.

In the afternoon, we either have religion, science, and/or a special. All of which, my students have always loved. All of my previous classes have absolutely loved learning about Jesus and the Holy Family. So much of Jesus’ teachings are so prevalent to the kindergarten curriculum. His teachings are very relevant to their lives. For example, being a kind and good person, making good choices, establishing a relationship with God, etc. I find that this is a time where they are the most engaged! I am so blessed to be able to foster this relationship for them. We use a curriculum called Promise that is amazing. They apply the weekly gospel in age appropriate ways and activities. It is awesome that they can attend church on Sunday and have heard the gospel in their own terms all week in school. So much of what we learn in religion we apply throughout the day in all that we do.

The students attend Physical Education, Art, Library and Technology, and Music each week. This year we are blessed to attend PE twice a week! At their age, they need lots of large motor! I also try to incorporate that in our daily schedule through the use of fun songs. The students get all their “sillies” out! They love it! The special-area teachers also incorporate what we are learning in the classroom, to make cross curricular connections. We also frequent our library’s “Smart Nook” where we have a touch screen wall that the students can learn on. We also borrow the iPads for centers to support our learning as well. In kindergarten, a majority of their work for technology is done on their very own ChromeBook!

We end each day with play time. When the weather permits, we will use our playground. On rainy or winter days, we use the gym when available or our classroom’s dramatic play center. One of my favorite quotes states, “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.” (Fred Rogers) I couldn’t agree more! It is remarkable what they will learn in pre-kindergarten academically. However, it is without question the social aspect that will help to shape them as a person. Learning to be a kind friend, to share, respect others, and understanding personal space, are just a few of the social skills that your child will practice in kindergarten. Saint Mary’s is the perfect environment to foster these skills, with the help of the teachings of God, Jesus, and the patroness of our school, our blessed Mother Mary. Thank you for investing in your child’s future and for sending them to our awesome school. I am committed to making this a memorable and enjoyable year for them! My goal is to create a comfortable learning environment for all and to assist them in truly loving and enjoying coming to school and learning each day!