The Daily Five...In Action

With a brand new school I have decided to introduce a brand new reading structure in the classroom.  This structure removes all of the guesswork from the children concerning classroom routines and procedures and allows them to concentrate fully on learning.

The structure I have introduced is called the “Daily Five”. Soon your child will be talking about “The Daily Five” at home. This literacy structure teaches independence and gives children the skills needed to create a lifetime love of reading and writing. It consists of five tasks that are introduced individually.

• Read to Self
• Read to Someone
• Listen to Reading
• Work on Writing
• Word Work

When introduced to each task, the children discuss what it looks like, sounds like,
and feels like to engage in the task independently. Then, the children work on building their stamina until they are successful at being independent while doing that task.

When all five tasks have been introduced and the children are fully engaged in reading and writing activities, I am able to work with small groups and confer with children one on one. This structure is proven effective, the results are amazing, and the children really look forward to Daily Five time. Ask your child about Daily Five and see what he/she has to say. I anticipate your child will tell you about the class stamina, how we are working towards independence, and maybe you will even hear about some of the fantastic things your child has written, read, or listened to during our structured reading time (www.dailycafe.com).

Here are a few pictures of our "Read to Self" time as we are building our stamina to read independently.

First Week Success

We are settling in after three extremely successful days of kindergarten.  Rules and procedures are being learned quickly, which means we can jump right into curriculum this upcoming week.  We are still ironing out some wrinkles with behavior, but that is to be expected in a brand new environment.

We got acquainted with our room this week.  I allowed all of the kids to explore the various areas and the materials they will be using in those areas.  Learning how to use them properly and taking care of them will be included in this week's lesson plans.

Please be checking your child's green take home binder this week for new information, notes from me and a new homework calendar.  I will be keeping you informed as much as possible on what we are learning in the classroom and the exciting activities we have planned.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Welcome to Kindergarten

Hello Parents/Guardians,

My name is Amanda Stinnett and I am going to be your child's Kindergarten teacher this year!! Kindergarten is a time of new beginnings, of making friends, and of learning lots of new things each and every day. Our days and weeks will be filled with many wonderful experiences and opportunities for learning and growing.

We will learn all about letters and sounds, and will be doing lots of writing activities, too. We will also be learning all about numbers, building on important math concepts including sorting, counting, graphing, classifying, patterns, time and money, measurement, and addition and subtraction. The children are always proud of the work they create and are anxious to share their new skills. Families can help at home by reading to and with their child daily, and encouraging them to write and draw. Young children learn as they play and their play is their work. Research has proven this so. In this context, your child will be learning all of the time this year as he or she joins in the tasks ahead.

You are welcome to visit our classroom at any time. I can always use an extra pair of hands and another smiling face when I am working with the children. I am in need of helpers who can come on a regular schedule, whether weekly, biweekly, or monthly, as well as helpers who would just like to drop by when they can. I also need helpers who are willing to do simple things for me at home. Please let me know if you would like to help us!

Throughout the year, we will need all kinds of materials to complete our projects. Please save any items from home that we could use at school. For example, toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, film canisters, containers, etc. You can donate these items any time during the year. I will also send home letters asking for specific items as we need them.

I believe that a good parent-teacher relationship is necessary for maximum school success. Throughout the year I will communicate with you through notes, telephone calls, weekly newsletters, quarterly reports and parent-teacher conferences. I encourage you to contact me if you have any questions or concerns at any time. Please feel free to call me at 919-358-4198 (but not after 8 pm), send me a note or email me at astinnett@theacademyofhope.org. I'm looking forward to a wonderful year with you and your child!

Week 37 - FINAL WEEK

We are in the final stretch!  We've had a couple of changes to our schedule, so please advise.  Tomorrow (Wednesday) will now be game day AND pajama day.  Your child may bring a game of their choice and come in their pajamas. 

Thursday is now FIELD DAY!!  The entire school will participate in field day at the Conway Recreation Center.  Please make sure your child is in uniform and wearing sneakers.  No slip on shoes - we prefer ones that tie.  We will have bag lunches available for all students unless they plan to bring their own bag lunch.

The weekly schedule is as follows:

Wednesday - Game Day & Pajama Day
Thursday - Field Day
Friday - End of Year Program & Last Day

Please join for the End of the Year program on Friday.  Refreshments will be served for parents and guests at 8:00 am with the program following at  8:30 am.  Students will be served breakfast in their classrooms beginning at 7:30 am.

Report cards and summer work packets will go home on FRIDAY.  If your child is not going to be here for any reason, please notify us so we can make sure these documents get home.

Congratulations to Casey Soisson!  He is this week's Student of the Week. 

Week 36

I am out today with a yucky bug of some sort, but want to make sure I update everyone for this week.  Wednesday is GRADUATION!  Can you believe it?  It will take place in the Muli-Purpose Room beginning at 9:30.  There is a reception that will follow.  We hope to see everyone there.

There is NO HOMEWORK this week.  Instead, we will be sending home a summer packet next week full of great activities that will hopefully keep your child in the "school state of mind" and will further prepare him/her for 1st grade.

Don't forget that Monday, May 28th there is no school.  School is closed for the Memorial Day holiday.

We were so busy with DIBELS testing last week (everyone did AWESOME) that I never got around to posting to the blog, which means last week's Student of the Week went unrecognized.  Congratulations to Jamauri Davis for receiving that honor.  This week's Student of the Week is DerryIana Holmes.  She has done an amazing job in the classroom and works very hard academically.

Week 34

Please do not forget to turn in all permission slips and money for our field trip on Thursday.  Your child will not be able to join us if we don't have those items.  Also, those children that ended in their day on orange or red the days leading up to field trip day, must stay home.  Thank you to those parents who have volunteered their time to chaperone.  You can meet us at school by 9:15 am for our 9:30 am departure.

DIBELS UPDATE:  Our class will do DIBELS assessments on Wednesday, May 16th and Thursday, May 17th.  We had to switch days with Ms. Neuman's class to accommodate a conflict in her schedule.  Please make sure your child is rested and ready!

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful mothers!  Because of you, our class is full of love and life that the children bring in with them every morning.  Thank you for all you do in making your child who they are!

Congratulations to Tyonna Butler, this week's Student of the Week.  Tyonna's dimpled smile brings warmth and fun to the classroom - she is a star in the making!

Week 33

Thank you so much for all of your contributions towards the spring festival.  We had such a great turnout and had such a wonderful time.  We could not have done it with out you!

DIBELS testing has been scheduled for Monday, May 14 and Tuesday, May 15.  Please make sure your child is fed a hearty breakfast and comes to school well rested.  We want to get the best we can out of each child so we can get the most accurate assessment of their progress.

Permission slips are going home this week for our field trip to Thompson Farms.  It has been made abundantly clear to the students that if they end their day on orange or red between now and the day of the field trip, they will be staying home.  Simple rules, such as staying in their seat, listening, raising their hand, etc. are expected to be followed as well as the more serious offenses.  Please encourage your child to be on their best behavior so that they are able to experience this fun opportunity.

The Conway Fire Department will be here tomorrow to speak with our students about Fire Safety/Careers. They are bringing their Safe House and the presentations will take place inside of the Safe House.  Our class is scheduled for 1:30 pm.  Talk about fire safety with your child tonight to prepare them for tomorrow's presentation and to reinforce the significance of this topic.

The Student of the Week this week is Mahala Storm.  Her kind and sweet demeanor is a constant ray of sunshine in our class.  Congratulations to her!!