Kindergarten @ Scone Public School

Hard at Work!

2012-03-04T21:28:00.000-08:00

PARENT HELPERS!

2012-03-04T21:18:00.000-08:00

Notes have been sent home asking for parent helpers. If you missed out or the note just didn't make it home, then please let your childs teacher know....and they can send home another one.

Thankyou to all the parents who have replied. The teachers can't wait for you to visit the room and help with small group activities. We absolutely appreciate it and it is a great way to get involved in your childs learning!!!

Gross Motor activities are also a fun way to help out next term. This involves the students rotating around several fun games (organised by the teachers but run by the parent helpers) and refining skills such as balancing, running, catching, throwing, bouncing and kicking.

BIRTHDAYS!

2012-03-01T20:01:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrated two birthdays in KC!

Here are a few pics.

Kindergarten Bus Trip

2012-02-29T19:09:00.000-08:00

We learnt all about bus safety and went for a short bus trip.

Kindergarten Bus Trip on PhotoPeach

Online Maths Games

2012-02-28T22:01:00.000-08:00

The students in KC (and I'm sure other classes too) love playing games on the computer and the Interactive Whiteboard.

I have located some excellent Maths games over the years and here are just a few we have been playing at school.

http://www.storyplace.org/preschool/activities/monkey.asp (count the bananas - numbers 2, 3, and 4)

(You can google the following games and they should come up)

Crickweb

Smart Kiddies

Copacabana Public School - Get Smart

Count me in Too

Count Us In

ICT Games

Top Marks

Welcome!

2012-02-28T21:55:00.000-08:00

Welcome new parents and friends to our Kindergarten blog!

The teachers will try and add something to the blog every second or third day - we hope it will be a HUGE insight into what we actually do every day.......because we know when you ask your child what they have done, they always say....."oh, nothing!"

I assure you......we are super busy in Kindergarten and barely have a moment to spare!

Hope you enjoy it! And don't forget....we love hearing feedback about what you would like to see on here (work samples, homework ideas, educational games, etc)

Thanks...

From the Kindy Team

Playtime on our very first day of Kindy!

2012-02-28T21:50:00.003-08:00

KC - Playing on our first day! on PhotoPeach

Travis' Birthday

2011-10-24T21:43:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated Travis' 6th birthday!

Happy Birthday Travis!

Multiplcation

2011-10-16T21:30:00.000-07:00

Today we started learning about multiplication - we call it sorting into groups. We made 2 groups of 5 and then 3 groups of 4. See if you can work out the groups we have made below:

What we did in the holidays....

2011-10-11T23:26:00.000-07:00

K-2 Athletics Carnival

2011-10-10T22:36:00.000-07:00

Scone Public will be holding their K-2 Athletics carnival this Friday14th October @ the Scone athletics fields (where the excercise park and netball courts are).

Students should wear their sports uniform, including running shoes, and will need a hat, sunscreen, drinks, and their lunch (unless they are ordering from the canteen).

The students should arrive at school as normal on Friday and we will walk to the park together. Each child will participate in some running races throughout the day and also have some fun joining in the extra activities such as sack races and noodle javelin. The theme for our sports day is PARTICIPATION and FUN!

The children are able to order their lunch on Friday, however they must have their lunch order into the canteen by tomorrow - with the correct money and clearly labelled with ATHLETICS CARNIVAL, THEIR NAME, CLASS AND AGE GROUP.

Food available to order is:pies $2.50
party pies $1.50
sausage rolls $2.00
Hot Dog $2.00
Sauce sachet (tomato or bbq) 20c
Ham/Chicken Salad Roll $4.00
Drinks will be available for purchase at the carnival (flavoured milk, water, juice and cans of drink).

Parents are most welcome to attend, and if possible, we would love you to help out with some activities throughout the day. Parents and friends will be able to buy their lunch directly from the canteen at the sporting complex.

Other food items and treats will also be available.

Hope to see you all there.....and don't forget to wear your running shoes either.....we like to have a parents race at the end of the day!

Kindergarten Oakvale Farm Excursion

2011-10-09T22:51:00.000-07:00

Well the pictures are finally here! Sorry about the delay - I was unfortunately very sick during the last two weeks of school. But a restful holiday has worked a treat and I'm fighting fit again!

If any parents have some great pictures from the excursion (and wouldn't mind sharing them) just email them through to me at anna.carter5@det.nsw.edu.au and I can upload them on the blog so everyone can see them!

School Closure

2011-09-05T23:20:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder to parents and students that Scone Public School will be officially closed on Thursday 8th September (this Thursday). There will be no teachers and therefore no supervision at school on this day. Parents will need to make alternative arrangements for their childs' care on this day.

And also a reminder about our Oakvale excursion on Friday. We will be departing at 8 o' clock and returning at approx 4 o' clock. Students will need to wear their sports uniform and must have a wide brimmed hat. Students will also need a packed lunch and snacks.

Oakvale Farm Excursion

2011-08-29T22:59:00.000-07:00

I have noticed that some students have not paid for the Oakvale excursion next Friday 9th September. The cost is $38 per student. It would be great if those students could please make their payment as soon as possible. Also, let your child's teacher know if they are not attending, so that we don't have to chase them about their money.

We only had 17 seats available for parents, and therefore had to draw names out of a hat.Notes have been sent home letting parents know if if they are the "helper" parents. If you have NOT been notified, then please ask your child's teacher. Parent helpers can send in their money $38 to the office asap. We would like to thank ALL the parents for their offers of assistance......it is always most appreciated.

We are very excited about our upcoming excursion. Here are just a few things to remember:

Each child needs their own packed lunch/recess/snacks/drink - NO SPENDING MONEY
Pack a jumper and sunscreen
The students will be entertained with movies and fun activities along the way, they DON'T need to bring any toys/games/etc
Bus departs Scone Public School at 8am sharp.......don't be late!
Bus arrives back at Scone at 4pm......Kids will not be back in time for buses, so each student must be collected by an adult/family member. If another parent is going to take your child home, then the teacher must be notified in writing before the excursion day.

John Heffernan - Author Visit

2011-08-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, author John Heffernan visited our school. He spoke to us about the books he had written and he even told us about a new story he is writing at the moment. We really enjoyed listening to his stories, especially the one about the sheep that went to the beach with him. We laughed and laughed.

Here are a few pictures from the day.

Fruit Break

2011-08-28T23:24:00.000-07:00

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Every day we stop for 15 minutes (during the morning) and eat some fruit. We love this time....as you can see from the pictures!

Sight Word Painting

2011-08-25T22:25:00.000-07:00

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Today, for Sight Word Smashers, we took our words outside and painted them on the concrete using water! We had a great time!

Maths Groups - Thursday

2011-08-24T23:06:00.000-07:00

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

We have been learning about time and growing patterns. Today we made our own clocks, played time games on the smartboard, made our own growing patterns and did some tricky add ups. Our teacher thinks we are nearly ready for Year 1!

Sight Word Smashers

2011-08-24T00:16:00.000-07:00

In KC and KF we start every day with "Sight Word Smashers"!
We sing our sight word song - Mrs Carter likes to dress up as a Policewoman (maybe one day we will get a photo of her!)

The song goes like this:

We've got so many words to learn
You can't sound 'em out at all.
Learning sight words can be fun
We're gonna smash 'em one by one!

The children repeat it after the teacher (military style) hahaha!

Then we go to our spellephants (at our desk) and write our 3 new sight words.

After that we play a game or do a short activity using our sights words. Today we made the words using magnetic letters! We had fun!

Other days we play sight word bingo, write them on paper with coloured texta's, and sometimes we paint them on the concrete using water and paint brush (as long as it is sunny).

2011-08-24T00:08:00.000-07:00

Learning about Echidna's

Kindy Kids - leave a comment and tell everyone something interesting you learnt about echidna's today! You can leave your comment at the end of the slideshow if you want!

2011-08-22T00:01:00.000-07:00

Savannah's Typing

James' Writing

I love your spelling James! Wonderful sounding out!!!

Gabby's Writing

Term 3 Week 6

2011-08-21T23:51:00.000-07:00

Phonics

This week we are learning

ou & oi

If you have fridge magnet letters at home, then try making some of these words:

Literacy

The children are still learning the same big books as last week.

Author Visit

John Heffernan is visiting our school on Friday. This event is free. The students will be attending an information/discussion session with him throughout the day. We are definitely looking forward to that!

Book Week

This Friday, we are commencing our Book Week Celebrations! Students will be meeting John Heffernan. There will also be a Book fair set up in the Library all week. Parents are most welcome to come in and purchase some great discounted books and items. The profits will go to the Scone Public Library - so that we can buy more books!

Orientation Day

The new Kindergarten students and their parents will be coming next Thursday 1st September. They will spend a bit of time in the Kindy classroom. We are very excitied and can't wait to meet them. Their parents will be finding out lots of info about our wonderful school. If you could help out by providing and/or serving some morning tea it would be much appreciated. Please let your class teacher know if you can be there!

Fantastic Maths Websites

2011-08-18T22:54:00.000-07:00

Recently, some parents and other teachers have been asking for the websites that I use to integrate technology and mainly the Smartboard into my lessons. Well I've tried to find and collate all my favourites and list them here for you.

Let your child loose on the computer with some of these terrific games.

If they are in my class then they should know how to navigate most of the pages and should also know many of the games already!

Have FUN!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/learning/

http://www.crickweb.co.uk/

http://www.studdyladder.com.au

http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Smart.htm

http://au.ixl.com/

http://www.abc.net.au/countusin/games.htm

http://www.ictgames.com/resources.html

http://pbskids.org/whiteboard/

http://www.uen.org/k-2interactives/

http://www.topmarks.co.uk/Interactive.aspx

http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/DogBone/gamebone.html

http://www.coolmath4kids.com/

http://www.mathplayground.com/games.html

http://www.primarygames.com/math.htm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks2bitesize/maths/

http://www.abc.net.au/countusin/default.htm

http://www.eduplace.com/kids/mw//manip/mn_1.html

http://illuminations.nctm.org/Activities.aspx?grade=1

http://nlvm.usu.edu/

http://nrich.maths.org/public/search.php?search=&filters[type]=2

Australian money manipulatives - http://www.rosettaprimary.tased.edu.au/mathsobjects/

Printable resources – www.teachthis.com.au and http://www.sparklebox.co.uk/australia/

2011-08-18T00:19:00.001-07:00

Thursday 18th August on PhotoPeach

2011-08-17T00:17:00.001-07:00

Sequencing events in the day on PhotoPeach

2011-08-16T04:10:00.001-07:00

"Rappin' it up!" in Kindy

2011-08-15T22:53:00.000-07:00

Kindergarten have been learning about -teen numbers this term. We found a great song on YouTube and we love to rap along with it!

Some of our rapping superstars!

Term 3 Week 5

2011-08-15T20:31:00.000-07:00

Phonics

This week we are learning QU

Literacy

KC and KP are reading an Aboriginal story "How the Kangaroos got their tails"

KP are reading "Possum Magic"

KW are reading "McBungle Downunder"

2011-08-10T22:57:00.003-07:00

Gross Motor on PhotoPeach

Our Writing - Tuesday 9th August

2011-08-08T23:12:00.003-07:00

Our Writing on PhotoPeach

Term 3 Week 4

2011-08-08T23:04:00.000-07:00

Phonics

This week we are learning about:

     th (loud)      &      th(soft)
      mother               thick
    then                    thin
      this                     moth
      they                   teeth
      the                     thumb

Literacy

Each class are studying the same books as last week.

Sight Words

If there is one thing you can do to improve your child's reading - it is learning sight words. Please continue to practise those sight words over and over again. I have been checking each child's reading lately and cannot believe that some children have forgotten words they knew last term!!!! We will be having an extra huge focus on sight words at school for the rest of term.

Oakvale Zoo Excursion

Notes have been sent home about our upcoming excursion to Oakvale Farm and Fauna World. The cost is $38 per child, and this covers bus travel and entry to the zoo. If you did not receive the permission note please contact the office or your child's teacher. The excursion is planned for Friday 9th September. There is space on the permission note to let the teachers know if you are interested in coming along to help out. Once we know how many students are attending we can let you know how many "extra" seats we have available. It is a long, but enjoyable day and I hope we will have lots of extra hands to help us out on the day.

Birthdays

2011-08-04T23:03:00.000-07:00

3D Shape Hunt on PhotoPeach

We have been learning about 3D shapes this week. So today we decided to go on an adventure around the school...looking for 3D shapes. We took our cameras with us to get some great photos. We found cylinders, cubes and spheres......but we couldn't find any cones or pyramids.

We sang a song to help us remember the names. Here it is:

Sphere, sphere, what's your clue? - I look like a ball you kick with your shoe.

Cube, cube, what's your clue? - I look like the ice you drop in your mountain dew.

Cylinder, cylinder, what's your clue? - I look like a can of chicken noodle soup.

Cone, cone, what's your clue? - Don't let the ice-cream drip on you!

Pyramid, pyramid, what's your clue? - I look like the house the Egyptians walked through.

Reading To Learn - "Possum Magic"

2011-08-01T23:45:00.000-07:00

We found places on the map of Australia that Grandma Poss and Hush visited. We even matched up the food that they ate while they were there! Minties in Melbourne, pavola in Perth........

We deconstructed one of the sentences from the story! We are very clever and even know about doing words!

Term 3 Week 3

2011-07-31T23:41:00.000-07:00

We've got a very busy, but exciting week planned. Keep reading to find out what we are up to this week!!!

Phonics

This week we are learning about:

ch & sh

Literacy

KC & KF are reading: Possum Magic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BboBeS-vhjg

KP are reading: How the Kangaroo's got their tails (Aboriginal story)

KW are reading: Sebastian lives in a hat.

Visiting Performance

Alphashows are doing a performance of Aladdin on Thursday 4th August. It costs $8 and students are sure to enjoy it! Please make sure you get your money in asap!

Education Week Awards

Our school will be celebrating Education Week on Thursday with a special "Success at SPS" Assembly at 12:30pm. The assembly will feature our dance groups, band, choir, public speakers, sporting teams, debaters, poetry competitors, artists and more! Parents are invited to attend!

Birthdays

Healthy Harold

2011-07-28T23:22:00.000-07:00

2011-07-27T23:39:00.001-07:00

Literacy Groups - Thursday 28th July on PhotoPeach

Term 3 Week 2

2011-07-27T01:18:00.000-07:00

Welcome back for another exciting term! I know the teachers had a restful holiday - well mostly. We have many things planned for this term - including an exciting excursion to oakvale Zoo in week 8. The teachers started this term with some specialist Kindergarten training at Muswellbrook. We learnt many new things and I must say we were very keen to get back to school on Wednesday and start implementing some of our new ideas! Gross motor starts back this week - we are looking forward to seeing all our helpers back again for (hopefully) a warmer term.

Phonics

This week we are learning about:

X and Y

This website has a great collection of activities about all the letters of the alphabet: http://www.starfall.com/n/level-k/index/load.htm?f

Literacy

The Kindergarten classes are learning about Australian animals this term, so most of our books will have an "Australian" theme to them.

KC and KF are reading "McBungle Downunder". This is a story about a Professor who goes looking for a pet in the Australian outback. He tries to catch many Aussie animals with limited success. We watched a few clips about Steve Irwin. Go onto the Australia Zoo website and watch some clips of young Bob Irwin catching some animals - he's very funny!

KP are reading "Sebastian Lives in a Hat"

KW are reading "Possum Magic"

Watch the Story

Maths

Both last week and this week the students have been learning about money. Encourage your child to use and familiarise themselves with the coins. Provide them with different denominations to use at the canteen and explain how the different denominations work. Eg; two fifty cent coins are the same as a one dollar coin, etc

A great website that I use a lot in KC is Studdyladder - http://www.studyladder.com.au/
You do have to subscribe to the website to get access to all of the games, but you can also sign up for a trial access to see if your child will like it. It has some great money activities that are targeted at younger children. Check it out!!!

Alpha Shows - Aladdin

The AlphaShows team are coming back to Scone next week - Thursday 4th August. They were here last year, perfroming Cinderella. The show is just amazing. They have professional lighting, sound and even smoke machines. I was even amazed last year and definately don't want to miss this performance! Be sure to get your $8 and permission note in as soon as possible. Click on the link below to watch a short preview!

Watch some of the show!!!

Healthy Harold

2011-07-27T01:10:00.001-07:00

Healthy Harold on PhotoPeach

2011-07-27T01:02:00.001-07:00

KC's Amazing Patterns on PhotoPeach

Term 2 Week 10

2011-06-26T15:55:00.000-07:00

It's the last week of school! I have been hearing some wonderful stories about what the children are doing in the holidays - Disney on Ice, travelling to Melbourne, going to Sydney, visiting family, friends coming over, and just staying at home to play! The teachers hope that everyone has a wonderful but restful holiday and return again safely on the 12th July.

Phonics:
This week we are learning about:
oo and oo
(book) (moon)

If you would like to access some games and activities over the holidays don't forget that Copacabana Public School has a great page with access to lots of educational games! Click on the Stage 1 link.

http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Smart_Pages/Get_Smart.htm

Literacy/Maths Groups and Gross Motor:
Please note there will be no group activites in KC and KF this week. Last week was the final week of Gross Motor also. These activities will be recommencing week 2 next term. Hope to see you all then!

NAIDOC Assembly:
Scone Public wil be holding their NAIDOC Assembly this Wednesday 29th June at 10:45am. Parents are most welcome to attend. The Kindergarten students will be performing a special item as well as the Year 2 choir. Parents are also invited to stay afterwards for a sausage sizzle.

Happy Birthday:
We have lots of birthdays during the holidays, so Happy Birthday to all these great Kindy kids!

Term 2 Week 9

2011-06-21T00:20:00.000-07:00

We are nearly half way through Kindergarten! Wow, hasn't that gone fast!
The teachers have been preparing the student reports, which will go home next week.
If you would like to meet with the teacher regarding your child's progress simply phone the office to make an appointment or just drop in and organise a convenient time to have a chat.

Phonics:
This week we are learning about

ng and v

The children are getting quite confident with the sounds now. Continue blending them together to make simple words, and even some tricky ones too!
Here are a few to get you started:
zip, wind, black, crib, jump, plum, paint, boats, horn, keep, ring, swing

Literacy:

KC & KF: How the birds got their colours

This is an Aboriginal Dreamtime story. Although I couldn't find it online, I did find some links to other Aboriginal stories. Check them out below by clicking on the link!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCuuRRrfOXo&feature=related

http://www.abc.net.au/dustechoes/dustEchoesFlash.htm

KW: Mrs Wishy Washy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3lPl26wO_4

KP: The Hungry Giant
I couldn't find the story of the hungry giant, so I have included a story about another ginat - Jack and the Beanstalk!

http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/short-stories/jack-and-the-beanstalk

Assembly
KF will be running the assembly this week. They will also be performing a special dance item! Parents and friends are most welcome to attend. The assembly starts at 12.10pm.

NAIDOC WEEK

Next Week Scone Public School are celebrating NAIDOC week.
Today, NAIDOC is a celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and an opportunity to recognise the contributions of Indigenous Australians in various fields. There will be a special asssembly on Wednesday morning. Parents and friends are invited to attend. The kindergarten students will be performing a song! Parents are invited to stay afterwards for a sausage sizzle with the students.

Happy Birthday

Term 2 Week 7

2011-06-06T20:41:00.000-07:00

Sorry, we had no updates last week as the computer system at school had crashed! I know.....how ever did we cope? With the technology of today our entire school day pretty much runs on the smartboard. Oh well....we did seem to manage!

Phonics:
This week we are learning

ee or

During my internet browsing I found a wonderful site dedicated to jolly Phonics. It has a great video outlining why we teach Jolly Phonics. Check it out if you like:

http://jollylearning.co.uk/overview-about-jolly-phonics/

Literacy:
This week students are reading:

KC & KF: The Hungry Giant

I couldn't find the story about the Hungry Giant, so I included a story about another giant......Jack and the Beanstalk.

http://learnenglishkids.britishcouncil.org/en/short-stories/jack-and-the-beanstalk

KP: Rosie's Walk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIQDo0n4mLk

KW:Dear Zoo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kzl9IyeMWto

School Photos
Tomorrow Wednesday 8th June will be School Photo Day. Students should come dressed in their winter uniform. Students will need to take their jacket off for the photo and they can put it back on straight afterwards. Please remember to send the photo envelope back in with your child, even if you do not wish to purchase any photos. The company use them to collate and assign each students name. I'm sure we will have some beautiful girls and handsome boys!

2011-05-26T00:47:00.001-07:00

Make your own picture slideshow

Scone Horse Festival

2011-05-26T00:35:00.001-07:00

I've finally had the time to experiment (a little) with smilebox! Hope you enjoy this snippet from the Scone Horse Festival! Don't they look like creative little artists!

Scone Horse Festival 2011

2011-05-26T00:31:00.001-07:00

Customize a slideshow

Term 2 Week 5

2011-05-25T23:49:00.000-07:00

Wow! We have had a very busy week! Kindergarten have been doing lots of assessments and showing their teachers all the tricky things they have learnt. This is in preparation for the upcoming school reports.
Every year the children continue to amaze me with their skills! To watch them sit and down and be able to write a sentence about absolutely anything (and for me to be able to read it) is fascinating! Look out because I'll be sinding home some terrific writing samples soon! I hope it's yours!

Phonics:
This week we are just learning about "ie" as in pie.

The children are remembering so many sounds now! Try saying some words and getting your child to write them down. Here are a few to get you started:
tie, boat, pat, rob, frog, stick, drip, tram

If your child is managing these words then try some more words that have two consonants at the beginning. Such as: black, crab, drip, from, groan, train, club, flap, plain, slap, skin, spud, step

Lots More Games

I found this terrific website the other day when I was looking for some more fun maths games. I've also included the links for some of my favourites too!

http://au.ixl.com/

http://www.crickweb.co.uk/

Simultaneous Reading
On Wednesday morning all of the Kindy students walked down the street to the town library. We had been invited by Mrs Walton for the annual Simultaneous Reading Day. At 11 o' clock Father Glen started reading "Feathers for Phoebe". At precisely the same time, in libraries all around New South Wales, other students were also listening to the same story! It was a great story about accepting people just as they are! We had a great time and were so glad that it sisn't rain on us while we were walking!
Thankyou Mrs Walton and Father Glen!

Term 2 Week 4

2011-05-16T21:12:00.000-07:00

Phonics

Our new sounds for this week are:

J and oa

Games, games and more games!
There are so many fun and educational games out there to help children learn and use sounds! I've added the links below for some computer/internet and some IPOD/IPAD games as well! (Please note: we don't have ipads or ipods in the classroom......yet. Ahhhhh...maybe one day! I wish!)

Internet

I love this website. We like to use it a lot in KC. It has some great games to do at home too!
http://www.familylearning.org.uk/phonics_games.html

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/kids/phonics/index_obtree.html

http://www.funfonix.com/games/
The Fun Fonix website has a great range of activities....including games for lower and upper case letters, beginning sounds, 3 letter words and vowel/letter digraphs.

ipad/ipods

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/make-a-word/id405949771?mt=8

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/a-phonics-introduction-app/id413405474?mt=8

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kinderspell/id413450502?mt=8

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/alphabet-car-hd-lite/id405213122?mt=8

Reading To Learn

Each class is reading a new book this week: Check out your class' book below!

KP: Mrs Wishy Washy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3lPl26wO_4

KW: Meanies (sorry KP, we don't have a recording of meanies yet)

KC & KF: Dear Zoo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kzl9IyeMWto&playnext=1&list=PL254DC34D3CD6EA49

National Simultaneous Storytime 2011

The Kindergarten students will be walking to the town library on Wednesday 25th May to participate in Simultaneous Storytime. This is a nation-wide event where students all around Australia will be reading the same book at the same time! We will be reading "Feathers for Phoebe" by Rod Clement. The story is a wonderfully illustrated Australian story about self-esteem, self-acceptance and learning that appearances aren't everything!

Birthdays

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Emma Simpson KW

Rubina Davis KP

Marshall Hutchison KW

Walk Safely to School Day
This Friday Scone Public School is promoting Walk Safely to School Day! The purpose of the day is to encourage students who already walk to school and try and encourage other students to walk (where possible). There will be a free breakfast provided, including fruit and cereal, however it might be a good idea to have breakfast at home and then have a "extra" breakfast snack at school. Happy walking everyone!

Term 2 Week 3

2011-05-09T20:05:00.000-07:00

Phonics:

We will be starting to learn some blends this week. A blend is when two letters or sounds join together to make one sound.

Our new letters for this week are:

L and ai

Must: Students must revise and practice all sounds learnt so far. They must also practice hearing the starting sound for a range of words. Try these ones: dog, kitten, bat, nut, mouse, lollipop, horse, girl, fish, snake, possum, ink, turtle, run.

Should: Students should know the sound and action for all letters learnt so far. They should also be able to write simple 3 letter words. Focus on hearing the middle sound in words.

Could: Students could practice hearing a word and then verbally sounding it out themselves. Eg; mum or dad says “cat” and the child says “c----a----t”

Literacy:

We study a book in class for two weeks. Therefore, each class will be studying the same book as last week. Click on the links in the previous blog to hear the stories online.

Jack Johnson Gala Day:

On Wednesday, students in kindergarten will be walking to White Park for some farm experiences. They will see some sheep shearing, horse shoeing and cattle dog trials. They will be leaving at 11:30 (straight after eating their lunch) and returning at 1:30 (just in time for recess).

Click here to access the program for the day

Horse Parade:

Thankyou to all the Kindy parents and friends who came along to the Horse Parade on Saturday. The kids looked fantastic and had a great time walking in the parade!

Happy Birthday:

Grace Venables – Saturday 14^th May

Term 2 Week 2

2011-05-01T23:54:00.000-07:00

Welcome back for the start of Term 2. I hope everyone had an enjoyable break and got lots of rest and relaxation…..I know the teachers did!

But….we are so excited to be back at school, ready for another busy term. We have a lot in store for your child, including the start of literacy and numeracy groups, exciting events such as the horse festival, interesting themes/units and, most of all, some FUN!

Some parents have expressed an interest in establishing a “kindy” parents and friends register. The organising parents are interested in getting together for play dates, social outings, parent coffee sessions, and emergency contacts (if needed). If you are interested in being involved in upcoming “Kindy” social events just fill in your details on the white information sheet (sent home last week) or contact Catherine Bath or Makaala Bogaard (parents of students in KC). Alternatively, you can let your class teacher know and they will pass on your expression of interest.

Phonics

This term, the students continue to learn letter sounds and will also learn some letter blends. These are when two vowels or a vowel and consonant are together in a word, and make a different sound. Eg: ‘ai’ in snail, ‘oa’ in boat and ‘or’ in horse.

By the end of this week, your child:

MUST: Revise previous sounds and continue to learn new sounds (L and F).

SHOULD: Recognise and immediately recall all letter sounds learnt so far. Practice writing both the lower and upper-case version of each letter. Some children still write their whole name in capital letters. Please encourage them to only use a capital for the beginning letter, and lower-case for the others.

COULD: Say some simple 3 letter words aloud and have your child s-t-r-e-t-c-h the word out by saying each sound they can hear. They can clap the sounds as they say them. Some easy 3 letter words to use would be cat, man, ten, pin, den, gap, him, rock, sap.

Literacy

The Kindergarten teachers are looking forward to the start of literacy/reading groups this week. The children just love having their parent or relative come into the classroom and help out! It also promotes and models the value of education!

This week, students will be studying the following texts. Click on the links to listen to the stories.

KW: Rosie’s Walk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIQDo0n4mLk (please excuse the strange, but funny accent!)

KP: Meanies (sorry KP, your book is not online this week)

KC & KF: Mrs Wishy Washy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3lPl26wO_4

Home Reading

Each student has been given a clear plastic case with a reading record and a small reader. Students should spend at least 5mins reading to an adult or older sibling each night. You should try and read the same book for several nights – this allows time for your child to become confident with the text. Encourage them to look at the pictures and follow the words with their fingers.

The readers need to be returned each Monday and Thursday so that a new reader can be given. Please keep a record of the books your child is reading each night, as they receive stickers for each level they achieve. Encourage your child to take care of the books by keeping them in the clear protective cases provided and transporting them in a suitable pocket of their school bag.

If you have any questions regarding your child’s reading, please contact your class teacher.

Here is a link to a great Australian clip about helping your child with reading at home:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UG-FOstzjAY

Birthdays this Week

Happy birthday to the following Kindergarten children!

KC: Cody Wattus (3rd May)

KF: Brock Shone (23rd April)

Horse Parade

Saturday 7^th May is the annual Scone and Upper Hunter Horse Parade. The school will be participating in the parade and the costume theme is ARTISTS! Any students can participate, they just need a costume! Students will need to meet at Scone Public School on Saturday morning at 10am. Parents may leave their child with the supervising teachers so that they can head down the street to get a great viewing position. At the end of the parade, students must be collected promptly from Scone Public School. Hope to see you there!

Some work from KC & KF

2011-04-06T23:31:00.000-07:00

Here are a few snapshots of work that we have been doing this term.

Braith KC

Lexie KC

Ziggy KC

We learnt about the letter U.

So we made some umbrellas in the rain!

Maths in KC

2011-03-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

Last week, KC learnt about graphs.

We found out what our favourite fruits are. Most people liked apples! And I must agree.....I think I peel and cut about 8 apples every day in fruit break.

We also found out how the kids in KC come to school. Only two people in KC ride their bike to school. Most kids come in a car or bus.

And we also moved into lines to make a 3D graph of our favourite colours. Most people liked blue.

MORE GAMES AND ACTIVITES

2011-03-28T00:46:00.000-07:00

Copacabana Public School (on the Central Coast) have a terrific website with links to many educational games. To access the games, click on the "get smart" link below:http://www.copacabana-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/Get_Smart_Pages/Get_Smart.htm

Term 1 Week 10

2011-03-27T02:13:00.000-07:00

Another week has flown by, and we are fast approaching the end of term 1. Just a reminder that parent interviews are this week – the interviews will be conducted in your child’s classroom. The teachers are looking forward to showing and discussing all the wonderful things kindergarten have learnt.

Phonics

The children are really enjoying the Jolly Phonics program. They are quickly grasping new sounds and most are starting to recognise and use them in their writing. Well done Kindergarten!

By the end of this week, your child:

MUST: Revise previous sounds and continue to learn new sounds (O and U). An easy way to help your child learn the sounds is to make little flashcards with each sound written on one. When you have a minute to spare (I know this is a rarity for most mums and dads) you or your child can quickly flip through them. If they are still having difficulty then reduce the amount of letters by focusing on just 3 or 4 at a time. Doing this just two times a day will greatly improve their recall and knowledge of letter sounds, especially when it comes time for more independent writing.

SHOULD: Recognise and immediately recall all letter sounds learnt so far. Play simple sound games with your child, such as:

· Saying lots of simple words and the child states what sound it started with. Eg; horse, snake, ink, turtle, etc

· Eye-spy using beginning sounds

· As you are driving, look for words in the environment that start with letters the children know. Eg: signs on buildings, road signs, car number plates, etc

COULD: Say some simple 3 letter words aloud and have your child write down the letters they can hear. Encourage them to s-t-r-e-t-c-h the word out by saying it very slowly, then write down each letter as they hear it. First and last sounds are usually the easiest to hear. Encourage and help your child to hear the middle sound. Some easy 3 letter words to use would be cat, man, ten, pin, den, gap, him, rock, sap.

Sight Words

The new sight words for this week are:

Look the baby

Make sure you get the little word cards included in your child’s homework. Add these to your collection at home and use them to make simple sentences. Eg: Look at the baby, The baby is little. I can see a baby, etc.

An easy way to help your child remember these words is to immerse them into your home environment. Have them displayed at all times. Get the children to make them on the fridge using magnetic letters. Type them on the computer and change the font, etc to make them pretty. Have a word hunt! Hide some words around the house and tell your child to go and find specific words, one at a time. Eg: Go and find the word “baby”.

Easter Activities

Scone Public will not be holding any “official” Easter events this year, due to Easter being at the end of the upcoming school holidays. However, the Kindergarten classes will be participating in and creating some delightful Easter crafts next week. We are also hoping the Easter bunny will visit us a little bit early this year. He has never let us down before!

Birthdays this Week

Happy birthday to the following Kindergarten children!

KC: Jessica and Bree

***Please add comments to our blog and let us know what is working and even the things that aren’t working. The teachers and other families who are logging on may be able to help you out!

2011-03-14T01:46:00.000-07:00

Reading

Some children have been reading "Who Sank the Boat?"
Click on the link below to watch and listen to the story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsYb1YSYR34

Welcome!

2011-03-14T00:40:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our very own blogging page!
Parents and kindergarten children can log on here and find out everything they need to know about what has been happening in class each week.
We will also add information here about any upcoming events.
You will also find links to some fun games which will support what each child is doing in their class.

So here we go:

Jolly Phonics

Our new sounds for this week are: D and G

By the end of this week your child:

MUST: Consolidate all sounds learnt so far (s,a,t,p,i,n,c,k,h,e,r,m,d,g)
SHOULD: Begin listening for and writing simple 3 letter words using the sounds they already know (cat, pin, sat, him, pig, leg)
COULD: Discuss words that end in 'ck and begin writing these words (duck, kick, sack, pick) *** When the "C" sound is at the end of a word it nearly always has both c and k.

Here are some links to some great phonics games:

1. Beginning sound "memory match" game
http://www.letters-and-sounds.com/phase-2-initial-sound-game-1.html

2. Letter Pop - Choose the group of phonemes (sounds) you want the child to practise. The sound is spoken clearly and the child has to pop the bubble containing the matching sound.
http://www.ictgames.com/phonemeFlop_v4.html

3. Wild West Phonics - Choose from three levels - Medium, Hard or Really Hard. Listen to the word and choose the correct sound to fill the gap. This game may be a little bit hard for some, but great if you want a challenge.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks1bitesize/literacy/phonics/fs.shtml

4. Many more games can be found here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks1bitesize/literacy/phonics/fs.shtml
and here:
http://www.starfall.com/n/level-k/index/play.htm?f

Sight Words

Our new sight words for this week are: can, see, and, in

If you may have misplaced some, here is a list of all the words we have learnt so far:
a               boy          girl          went          to
mum        is             little        he               she
big            here       comes     dad            awake
asleep     up           are

By the end of this week, your child:

MUST: Revise and practice all the sight words learnt so far
SHOULD: Make simple sentences using these words (mum is awake) and read them to someone
COULD: make simple sentences using these words, write them on paper and illustrate them. Your teacher would love to see this!

How are you doing with the high frequency words? Remember not long until we finish for the term and the children need to really have them under their belts to give them the best head start for independent reading. Keep on going! You could buy some foam letters from the supermarket to practise spelling them in the bath. Your child may be more interested in them then and you get to save time.

Here is a link to games that use most of the sight words we know:

1. Many games on this site (only choose basic ones like the octopus listen and match game
http://www.familylearning.org.uk/sight_word_games.html

Information for parents

Remember if you have any questions....please ask.
You may even blog us on here.....but sometimes it may be quicker to just ask us in person!
Have a wonderful week!

Mrs White, Miss P, Miss Fitzgibbon and Mrs Carter