WELCOME TO KINDERGARTEN

Our Lenten Journey Continues

2012-03-04T16:50:00.000-08:00

LENT: We are already enterting the second week of Lent and we continue to find ways to think about Jesus and His journey. Our class will be doing a Lenten Assembly on Friday, March 16 so please look for a note coming home this week about what part they will be doing. Please practice often with them so they feel confident and comfortable, reminding them to speak slowly and loudly. We also continue to focus on ways to sacrifice, through prayer, fasting and almsgiving and we hope that everyone is doing well with their Lenten Promise. At lunch recess, students at C.C.S. have the opportunity to visit the church for a few minutes if they chose to do so and I must say, the Kindergarten students who go often outnumber students from all the other grades!!! We often have about 10 Kindergarten children who go every recess...WOW! I think that says a lot about your children so thank you for helping them to know and love Jesus. You may also want to consider going into the church for a quick visit before or after school as these really helps the students to see how important it is to make Jesus a priority in our lives and in such a simple way.

STUDENT LED CONFERENCES: Thank you to everyone who was able to come to our Student Led Conferences on Thursday and Friday. How wonderful to see the children being the 'teacher' and showing their families around the classroom-they all did great and had wonderful 'students.' It is so nice for the students to be able to share a little of what we do each day with you and I could see how proud they were to have you there so THANK YOU AGAIN!!! I hope you enjoyed it! I also asked parents to complete an evaluation form about their student led conference experience with their child so that they receive feedback from their family. I will be sitting down with each child to discuss what their parents have said so please fill out this form if you have not already done so by Friday, March 9th. There is also a portion on the back if you have any questions or concerns for me. Please know that you can have a student led conference ANYTIME...if you want to come before or after school and have your child show you around, please feel free to do so. The partnership between home and school is so important and I would love everyone to know as much about our classroom routines and activities as possible so drop by anytime.

SPEECH ARTS: Congratulations to all the students who participated at the Local Speech Arts Festival last week...they were AWESOME! I couldn't believe how well our Kindergarten students did and I can see that our children have a lot of talent that they continue sharing in future years. We have two students who were chosen to go on to the Regional Speech Arts Festival on Wednesday, March 7th so a SPECIAL CONGRATULATIONS to GRACE AND LAUREN who can compete in Storytelling. What a huge accomplishment to be able to go to the regional festival so we wish them the best of luck but we also thank all of you for all your work with your children. Speech Arts in Kindergarten was a huge success and that is only because of your support and help!

STAR OF THE WEEK: Evelyn has been a wonderful Star of the Week and our class epecially enjoyed one of her Show and Tells...her new baby sister, Lucy! What a joy to have her visit our classroom! Here are a few things that Evelyn's classmates said about her...

She is beautiful!

She is a good friend.

She sits well on the carpet.

She likes Kraft Dinner.

(Someone tried with the 'apple' but it was discussed that KD was a better choice for Evelyn...I know.)

She is an awesome friend.

We now say a CONGRATULATIONS to Laura who will be our new Star of the Week. Keep shining!

I think that is it...Thank you, everyone and God bless you as you continue your Lenten Journey.

SPEECH ARTS

2012-02-26T16:53:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone has had a wonderful start to our Lenten Season and that it is a time for you and your family to grow closer to God. We have a busy week ahead as it is our Local Speech Arts Festival, which means our class will be saying their poem on WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29th. I'm not sure what time this is happening but I will let you know as soon as I know. This means we only have a few days to practice our whole poem. Please have your child practice our class poem as often as possible with you at home as we only have a few days until our performance and we will be saying it repeatedly over the next few days at school. Thank you to everyone for your time and efforts with this as I have been amazed with how well some of our students know the poem! Wow!

I would also like to say a HUGE THANK YOU AND CONGRATULATIONS to all the students who did a poem and a story at our classroom level as I was thrilled to see how well they all did. I think this is a HUGE thing to do at the Kindergarten level and we had so many students try, which I think is the most important. Of course, this would not have been possible without home support so THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to everyone who has been practicing a poem or a story at home. I also meant to personally contact the families of the students who will be going to the next round and competing on Wednesday at the Local Festival but I realize I left my phone and email list at school :o( It is SUCH a hard decision as I can only choose 3 students for individual poetry and, if it was up to me, I'd choose them all!!! But our three students who will compete on Wednesday at the Local Festival are...

1. Evelyn Wray

2. Christopher Millo

3. Laura Harms

For storytelling, there are not as many students in the primary grades who choose to participate in this category so I am able to choose 5 students to compete on Wednesday at the Local Festival and they are...

1. Anna Kristensen

2. Lauren Hiemstra

3. Grace Taschereau

4. Julia Taruc

5. Daniel Vulcano

Again, thank you to ALL students for competing and I am sure that the children will continue to shine with Speech Arts in the following grades as they are already displaying amazing talent. Speech Arts is only a success because of home support so I once again say thank you to you all for your support and efforts.

Popcorn Wednesdays are back so if you wish for your child to purchase popcorn, please send 50 cents with your child in a labelled bag. THANK YOU!

We say CONGRATULATIONS to Mateo for being a wonderful Star of the Week (or WEEKS as we kept him for both of these shortened weeks to ensure we didn't miss celebrating him). Here are a few things his classmates said about him...

He is handsome!

He is a beautiful friend. (This made me melt!)

He sits well on the carpet.

He is a nice friend.

He is an awesome friend.

We also say CONGRATULATIONS to Evelyn who is our new Star of the Week and we look forward to learning more about her.

On Monday, your child will also bring home their times for Student Led Conferences which will take place on Thursday and Friday. Again, this is a time for you to spend time with your child in our classroom, as they show your around and introduce you to our routines. If you wish to speak to me or would like to have a meeting, please let me know and we can make an appointment at a different time. Your child will have a list of activities to do in our classroom when they come with you to their conference and it should take about 30 minutes in total. If you have any problems with your scheduled times, please let me know as there is more flexibility with this type of conference as more than one student can and will be in the classroom with their family. Please note that there is NO SCHOOL on Friday, with the exception of the few students who have conferences on this date.

I think that is everything. Again, I will let you know when our class is saying their group poem in case you are interested in attending and if your child was choosen to compete at the Local Festival and you have received this blog, please email me so I know that YOU know :o) (Lvanderk@hotmail.com) Otherwise, I will call families on Monday. Thanks again for all your support and hard work. God bless!!!

HAPPY LENT!

2012-02-22T22:41:00.000-08:00

No, I did not give up blogging for Lent and sorry that I have been out of touch...it's been a busy time with our conference and our Carnaval (PS THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME OUT TO THE EVENT!!!) But how wonderful that we have started the beautiful season of Lent. I hope the next 40 days are filled with peacefulness and relection that help all of us grow closer to God. The children were amazing at our Ash Wednesday Mass and we spent the entire day talking about Jesus and what He is calling us all to do. Our focus is on prayer, fasting and almsgiving and each child has made a Lenten Promise that we will be revisiting throughout the next few weeks. Please talk to you child about what this means and why we do it. We also choose a seminarian to pray for (Stephen Ching) so you may want to keep him in your prayers at home as well. I did send home a Lenten note that included a tracking sheet for your child to use, along with a message of the day so please use as you see fit. If you would like any other information or ideas for Lent at home, please let me know.

SPEECH ARTS: On Friday, we will listen to students in our class say their poems or stories for Speech Arts if they wish to participate. This will begin at 2:00pm and you are invited to attend if you wish to see how the children do.  I am usually able to choose 3 or 4 students to compete in the Local Festival and I will contact you personally if your child will be doing this. Our Local Primary Festival is now on WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29th which means we NEED TO KNOW OUR CLASS POEM BY THIS DATE. Please continue to practice ALL the verses with your child. THANK YOU!

STUDENT-LED CONFERENCES: You will be receiving a note about your times for Student Led Conferences, taking place on March 1st or 2nd. This is an opportunity for your child to tour you around the classroom and explain what we do each day, sharing their work and demonstrating our routines. Students should come to their conference in their uniform and while I am there, this is really a time for students to show their families around so we usually only have a 'hello' and 'good-bye.' If you do wish to talk to me, we can set up another appointment time to meet at your convenience. Any questions, please just let me know. Thanks.

CUPCAKES: Thank you to everyone from our class who made cupcakes for the Carnaval...I think MOST of the cupcakes came from parents in our class and it really helped add to the fun and festivities...the more sugar, the better on the day before Lent. Thanks again for your time and support! Kindergarten parents are the BEST!!!

LOST AND FOUND: I always keep a 'mitten' basket in our classroom filled with extra gloves in case of a cold hand emergency but my basket is currently overflowing. This means I have a LOT of mittens and gloves from students in our class and some of them are very nice ones. If you have any mittens or gloves that did not return home, you may want to look in our basket. I also have 3 toques that are looking for owners. On the flip side, we had a pair of black shoes go missing as well as a water bottle. Could you please check backpacks and at home to see if you have anything that may belong to another student in our class. It is very easy for items to get tucked in the wrong backpack so I appreciate if we could have a quick look. THANK YOU AGAIN!

PFG MESSAGE: And finally, here is a message from our Fundraising Friends about our upcoming school auction...

Planning for the year-end auction fundraiser is well underway, but we really need your help. We need:
†         Parents to solicit donations for our fundraiser auction. This can be as simple as taking a letter with you when you go to your neighbourhood grocery store, or recruiting friends for a coffee morning walk-and-talk while blanket-canvassing businesses in a specific neighbourhood. Maybe you know someone who is personally willing to make a donation? Maybe you can make a donation yourself? No donation is too small. The best auction items are those that have a broad appeal – like gift
cards/certificates – or items that best represent what the donor business has to offer … art classes, martial arts classes, beautiful and unique giftware, outstanding service, etc.

†         Parents to assist with the class craft creation. Each class creates one item for the auction and this requires a group of parents to volunteer their time and creativity to help the children create it. You don’t have to be ‘crafty’!! Most times the children just require supervision and assistance to make their masterpieces - all you have to do is offer assistance to them when needed!

If you are able to help with either (or both) of these pressing needs, please contact your class PFG representative(s) at:
individualfootsteps@hotmail.com    OR tnaunheimer@shaw.ca

Thanks so much!

FIVE DAY WEEKEND!!!

2012-02-13T01:43:00.000-08:00

This is always an interesting week...I feel it is a little bit like when all the planets align and 'crazy' things happen...haha! It also seems to give us that 'taste' of Spring Break so perhaps it is a little bit like Spring Fever that seems to surround this week but let me outline some of the reminders and events for the next week...

100 DAYS OF SCHOOL: Tuesday marks 100 Days of school and we will spend much of our day celebrating! Thank you for those who have sent in 100 items as this will help us to explore the number '100' for Math and our 100 Day Activities! If you have not yet sent in anything, please do so by Tuesday so that your child has their own items to use, rather than sharing with a partner (this makes it a lot easier as well as more relevant). THANKS AGAIN!
SAINT VALENTINE'S DAY: Just a reminder to send in any cards so your child can deliver them during the day (We will be seeing our Grade 5 Buddies as well so if they have something for them, they can deliever that as well). Please note that this is also A NON- UNIFORM DAY!!! Our Colour Day is Red, Pink and White so please feel free to leave the uniform at home :o) Colour Days always change the mood in our classroom...it is amazing to see the difference and it also makes me appreciate our uniforms a little more...hahaha! But it is fun and, like the Hokey Pokey, that's what it's all about!
BAKE SALE: The Christian Servers are also trying to spread the love on St. Valentine's Day to help raise money towards supporting Healthcare in Ecuador and Haiti. They will be selling items for $1.00 so if you would like to support this wonderful cause, please send your child to school with their money in a labelled bag. (I will try to make sure I send them back home....they often get thrown in the donation bin and then lost!) THANK YOU!!!
POPCORN SALE: And we are also back to our regular Popcorn Sales on Wednesdays for 50 cents. The money raised from this goes towards our school's Sponsor Child, Catalina-who the Christian Servers have been supporting for the last few years. Catalina sent a Christmas Card that is posted in the office window for anyone interested in reading. Again, thank you!!!
SCHOLASTIC: I sent home an order form last week and any orders will be due on Wednesday, February 15th before the long weekend. Thank you again! We were able to purchase a 'Snack Shop Play Center' using our Scholastic Bonus Coupons that have been earned through your orders and the kids love it!
CARNAVAL: It is ALMOST here! When we return to school on Tuesday, February 21st after our long weekend, we should be ready to go to celebrate Carnaval, Catholic School's Week and our school (along with Shrove Tuesday!). We hope to see you there and just a reminder that this is open to any family, friends or neighbours you might want to bring by to check out our school and some of the things it has to offer. SEE YOU AT CARNAVAL!!!
CUPCAKES: Speaking of Carnaval, we are in need of two parents who would be able to make cupcakes for the evening as we will be having a Cupcake Walk game in one of the classrooms. We would need you to make 24 cupcakes that need to be at the school by 3:00pm on Tuesday, February 21st. Of course, this would count as service hours as well so if you are able to do so, please let me know by Wednesday and thank you in advance for your help and generousity!
LENT: You will be receiving a note along with some information this week about Lent. Please use it as you see fit as I try to include materials that may be useful to your and your family at home. They are just suggestions and ideas for routines that you may want to have at home during the Lenten Season but nothing is mandatory. My note will outline some of the activities we will be involved in at our classroom level but I would encourage you to consider doing things at home as well so that Lent becomes extra special for us all. If you would like further material, for either yourself or your child, please let me know as I have lots of information and ideas about Lent. Lent really is my favourite season because I find there are lots of reminders and opportunities for me to think about my faith so if I can help you in any way with this, please let me know.
LONG WEEKEND: As I won't be blogging until next weekend, I hope that you all enjoy the extended weekend and I hope that I can bring some new learning about education and our faith back from the conference and share it in the classroom. Enjoy and God bless!

WELCOME TO FEBRUARY

2012-02-05T17:17:00.000-08:00

Hopefully, everyone has been having a chance to enjoy the sunshine...perhaps the groundhog who said it would be Spring is right! Now that I have jinxed it, here are a few reminders...

INDIVIDUAL POEMS: I sent home a form for you to indicate if your child would like to try reciting a poem for Speech Arts or if they would rather not...if you have not done so, please return it by Monday as it was due on Friday. Even if your child is not doing a poem, the form helps me to know that you got the notice and knew about this option. Since I had put our class poem on the other side of this yellow form, I sent another copy of our class poem last week so you would have all the words :o) We should be on verse 3 this week and I thank ALL of you who have been practicing with your child at home :o) I can REALLY notice the difference. Please note that they have decided that our Local Festival at CCS will be on FEBRUARY 27!!! That means that we need to have our poem memorized before that so I am hoping that we can try Verse 3 AND 4 this week and bump up the other dates. SORRY! But the students have been doing so well so far, I am not worried and I'm sure they will all be fine. Also, you will be notified on February 24th, after our recitations, to which students will be participated at the next level on February 27th. Again, any questions, please let me know. On a side note, after we are done with Speech Arts, I will begin sending home optional activities for those interested in doing "Homefun" (aka Homework :o) Stay tuned!

100 DAYS OF SCHOOL: On February 14th, we will be celebrating 100 Days of School! Thank you to all of you who have already sent in your 100 collections and just a reminder that we need these by Friday, February 10th. THANK YOU!!!

SKATING: This Wednesday, our class will once again go skating. Last week was wonderful and the students had a great time!!! Thank you to all the parents who came to walk with us and tie our skates...your help was greatly appreciated! We will again meet in our classroom at 10:30am.

STAR OF THE WEEK: Congratulations to Lauren for being such a fantastic Star of the Week. Here are a few of the things her friends said about her...

She is a good friend.

She likes apples. (I know.)

She sits nicely on the carpet.

She plays well at recess.

She is a nice friend.

Our new Star of the Week is Zachary and we cannot wait to learn more about him as well. We have a class of stars! Keep shining, everyone!!!

CEC & PRO-D DAY: Just a reminder that the teachers have our annual Catholic Educators Conference on February 16th & 17th so we will not have school on those days, along with February 20th, which is a Professional Development Day. I hope you have a great 5 day weekend and that the weather turns out to be nice for all of you to enjoy the little break.

CARNAVAL: The students are getting very excited about Carnaval and we hope all of you are able to make it on Tuesday, February 21st. Please note that we have run out of wristbands to Charlotte Diamond but you are still encouraged to attend the event as there will be fun, food and games...and maybe even a visit from Bonhomme!!!

LENT: We are also quickly approaching Lent. I will be sending more information about this shortly but during the Lenten Season, I am hoping that every Friday, our class will attend 9:00am morning Mass. These Masses are not class masses, rather they are just the regular Parish Mass but since this is such a special time of year, I would like our class to attend. That being said, I would also like to encourage you (if you are able) to come to Mass with us as well. If you are able to attend with your child, you can simply meet us in the church on Friday mornings or if you can not attend with us, the students will line up with me and we will go directly to the church. Again, I will send home a note soon but please keep these dates in mind in case you are able to share in this special time with us. Our first Mass would be February 24th.

Have a great week everyone and I hope the weather continues to shine on us all!

FUNDRAISER FOR C.C.S.

2012-01-30T22:02:00.000-08:00

Oops...I was asked to add this to my last blog but forgot (THANK YOU, MRS. NAUNHEIMER!) A notice came home with the oldest about our annual fundraiser but we are in need of both donations and volunteers...please consider any way you can help support CCS and thank you for all you do already!!!

Giddy-Up Cowboys and Cowgirls!
SAVE THE DATE MAY 12, 2012

In order to accomplish our goal we need your help in securing product and service donations for both the silent and live auctions.

Can you personally donate goods and/or services? Who do you know who could help?   Perhaps you feel comfortable calling those who have donated in the past?

Letters, on CCS letterhead and signed by Principal Jason Borkowski, are available at the office for pick up. These serve as official donation confirmations and may be used for tax purposes. Please have all product and service donations delivered directly to the school office by April 6, 2012.

The monies raised will be used to further enhance the technology in our classrooms. Additional equipment required to complete this year’s mission includes:

·          SMART Boards for each classroom. - SMART Board interactive whiteboards improve learning outcomes! Combining the simplicity of a whiteboard with the power of a computer, the SMART Board delivers dynamic lessons, writes notes in digital ink, and saves the work – all with the simple touch of a finger.

·          iPads and Netbooks have been purchased so that students of all needs and abilities can access technology in meaningful ways and assist them in developing to their fullest potential.

·          Desktop workstations, software and technology aids for our children. The world is digital and it is imperative we prepare them for the future as best as we can.

We operate our school on approximately 70% of the budget of a public school. This is accomplished thanks to the commitment of our parish, faculty, students, community – and you – our parent and family volunteers and donors!

Craft coordinators are also needed to help each class design and complete their work for the live auction.

Please call or email your classroom representatives for more information or if you can volunteer in any capacity please contact Trish at tnaunheimer@shaw.ca or Sandra at individualfootsteps@hotmail.com

Thank you kindly for your help and support. Let’s make this year’s fundraiser a resounding success!!

GOODBYE, JANUARY! HELLO, FEBRUARY!

2012-01-29T19:27:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that January is practically over and that February is upon us! February tends to go by very quickly and I always find there are lots of things happening so let this be a warning :o) Here are a few things to keep in mind...

SKATING: This Wednesday, our class will be going skating so just a reminder to send any items your child might need to school and PLEASE remember mittens and gloves. If you are able to join us, please meet in our classroom at 10:30am as we will be leaving then to walk over as skating starts at 11:00am. Kindergartens leave the ice at 11:30am so we should be back at school at noon. Our next skating day will be NEXT WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8th and we will follow the same routine. Thank you for your help as it should be a fun day!!!
POPCORN WEDNESDAYS: Our popcorn machine is currently being fixed so last week we had a Hot Chocolate sale (which went very well! We raised $72 for the Christian Server's Sponsor Child). This week, if the popcorn machine is not working, we will have another Hot Chocolate Sale (for 50 cents a cup). Once the popcorn machine is working, we will continue to have that every Wednesday so if you wish for your child to participate, please send them with 50 cents in a LABELLED plastic bag. I can return the bag so that they have it each week but it is a little hard to keep track of money if it's not labelled. THANK YOU!
SCHOLASTIC: Students received their order forms last week and they are due on Wednesday, February 1st. Also, our class is going to be participating in a 100 Book Challenge that Scholastic puts on each year. If our class can read 100 books together, Scholastic will donate books to schools that are in need and will send us a certificate to celebrate our acheivement in helping others. Your child will be receiving a little penguin this week and if you read a book at home, please write your child's name and the title of the book on the belly of the penguin. Send it back to school and your child will get to colour a square on our 100 tracking chart. If they return a penguin, I will put another penguin in their blue folder so they can fill it out when they read another book at home. Hopefully, together we can read enough books to help those who do not have access to the resources we do at CCS. THANK YOU!!!
100 DAYS OF SCHOOL: You child is also bringing home a note about 100 Days of School which will occur on February 14th. I am asking students to bring in a collection of 100 items...it could be ANYTHING, such as toothpicks, straws, pieces of lego, toy cars, pennies, cheerios, etc. They do not need to be mounted...rather, we need them loose as we will be doing various counting activities with them. Please send your 100 items to school by Friday, February 10th and please ensure that they are in a labelled bag or container. THANK YOU AGAIN!
ST. BLAISE: On Friday, we will celebrate the Feast of St. Blaise so we will have a blessing of our throats by Father Mark. Your child may talk about this as Father Mark will use two candles, place them on either side of their throat, and say a blessing so I thought I'd mention it in case you are wondering what we are doing at school (for those of you who are not familiar with this tradition). For more information about St. Blaise, please visit... http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=28
CARNAVAL: Our class wrote a letter to Bonhomme, inviting him to our school for our Carnaval on February 21st and we were SO EXCITED to receive a reply from him this past week. Bonhomme is looking forward to meeting all of us and hearing some of the French we have been learning. Please stay tuned for more information about Carnaval that should be coming home this week.
SPEECH ARTS: Just a reminder that poem selections for those interested in individual poetry recitation are due this Friday, February 3rd. Please let me know if you need any help with choosing a poem or if you have any questions. Our class will begin talking about storytelling this week and I will be sending home individual notes to those who may be interested in this category. THANK YOU!
STAR OF THE WEEK: Congratulations to Siena for being our Star of the Week and for helping us learn more about her. Here are some of the things her friends said about her...

She plays well at recess.

She is a nice friend.

She sits nicely on the carpet.

She likes pink and purple.

She is beautiful!

Our new Star of the Week is Lauren and we look forward to her sharing more about herself so we can celebrate her too.

We will also be hoping that the groundhog does not see his shadow and that Spring is around the corner as it would be nice to have some warmer weather so we can put our mittens and boots away :o) In the meantime, have a great week and Happy February!

GETTING "SMART" IN KINDERGARTEN!

2012-01-25T01:24:00.000-08:00

GUNG HAY FAT CHOY! We celebrated Chinese New Year on Monday and took some time to look at different traditions for those who follow the lunar year. We had fun trying to learn some numbers, reading books about China and the new year as well as opening our fortune cookies and red envelopes. For any of you who celebrate this day, GUNG HAY FAT CHOY!

And perhaps your child has already told you but all of your hard work from our Walkathon has resulted in the installation of our SMARTBOARD!!! (Well, most of it!) The students are so excited to have this technology in our classroom and we are especially grateful to Mr. Sutton who has been busy around the school, trying to install all the Smartboards as quickly as possible (even spending some of his weekends at school...THANK YOU, MR. SUTTON!) Our projector should be arriving shortly and then we will have everything up and running so I will be looking for ways to incorporate this tool into our daily learning.

This week, I sent home some information about our annual Speech Arts Festival, where our class will participate in a class poem entitled, "The Awful A,B,Cs." Please review the words of this poem with child for a few minutes each night. I was going to begin our home program but I will leave that until February so we will have more time to focus on Speech Arts. As well, students are invited to participate in the individual poetry recitation as an OPTIONAL activity. If you would like your child to recite a memorized poem that is 12 lines or longer, please return the form that I sent home, indicating the name of the poem (as well as a copy of the poem for my records.) Those wishing to participate need to let me know by February 3rd. Thank you!!! If you have any questions about Speech Arts or want to know more about how it works or if you just need some poem ideas, please just let me know.

Due to our weather last week, we had to postpone our Skating Day so we will be going on Wednesday, February 1st as scheduled as well as Wednesday, February 8th. Sorry for any inconvenience and thank you for you understanding. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate with us!

Just a reminder that Friday is a FOOD BANK MASS! I am encouraging the students to bring in as much as they can as we continue to focus on our school theme, "Serve with Joyful Hearts" but I thank all of you for your generousity so far this year as we have always had enough food for each child from our class to bring something up to the front.

If you have signed up for my blog updates, you will likely not receive this in time as there is a bit of a delay when I add a post (it usually will only send the email at around 5:30pm, despite the time I actually type on the blog) but on Wednesday, instead of Popcorn Day, we are having Hot Chocolate Day for 50 cents. We will resume popcorn day as soon as our machine is repaired (hopefully, by next Wednesday) but I forgot to send home any reminders about the Hot Chocolate Sale. SORRY!

We also need to thank Julian for being such a terrific Star of the Week last week. Here are a few things his friends had to say about him...

He is a good friend.

He is handsome!

He sits nicely on the carpet.

He plays well at recess.

He is a good artist.

This week, we congratulate Siena as we learn and recognize ways that she is a star. What an amazing group of kids we have in our class!!!

We are also quickly approaching 100 days of school, which should fall on St. Valentine's Day. Please stay tuned for more information about how we will be celebrating this day and I will also be sending home another class list for those of you who wish to send Valentine Cards with your child. I hope everyone is doing well and that you are enjoying January with its variety of weather and temperatures. I should say that the kids were SO EXCITED when the temperature was below zero...we had a great time bringing the thermometer in to our classroom and watch the red rise and then take it back outside and watch it fall. Teachable moments!!! All the best and God bless!

LET IT SNOW!

2012-01-15T15:42:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone has been able to enjoy our winter weather and that the kids have had some fun in the snow. JUST IN CASE, please note that the best place to check to see if our school is closed due to snow is our school website. You may also wish to tune into CKNW 980AM in the morning as they will also announce any school closures so please keep this in mind as snow continues to be in our forecast. I'm sure as most of you, I do not enjoy driving in the snow but there is nothing quite as nice as a SNOW DAY! Haha! I think it reminds me of when I was a kid (I went to I.C. Delta) and to wake up in the morning to snow and NOT have to go to school...well, it still holds the same excitement for me!

On Wednesday, the Kindergartens will be going SKATING (YAHOO!). I know they are predicting snow for Wednesday, which has happened in the past so we were forced to reschedule our skating date but if everything goes as planned, I am asking our parent volunteers to meet in our classroom at 10:30am. We will be ready to walk and I appreciate all the help to tie up skates and get our little ones ready. Skating begins at 11:00am and Kindergartens get off the ice at 11:30am so that we should be back at school by noon. Please note in my last blog, I recommended that the girls wear "PARENTS" under their tunics...Thank you, Mrs. Taschereau for pointing out my type-o...that should say PANTS. Students should all have mittens or gloves as well and an appropriate jacket. Students are also welcomed to wear snowpants. PLEASE LABEL ALL ITEMS! Last year, I had a beautiful snow suit that was never claimed for the entire year because we could not identify the owner so please take the time to write your child's name in anything they bring to school. THANK YOU! We have our Grade 5 Buddies, along with other staff and adults who can help with students who do not know how to skate (I am not helpful...I hold the wall the entire time...and I even took adult lesson...hahaha!)

Another thing I wanted to mention is that I highly recommend sending a water bottle to school with your child. We do not have a water fountain in our classroom and it is hard to find a good time to let students go down the hall to the water fountain as I only like them doing that with an adult supervisor since they are close to the main doors. So students need to wait and often, especially after PE, they are very thirsty. Students are always allowed to go to the coatroom to get a drink of water as needed so it would be great if all students had a water bottle that was easily accessible. Getting into the habit of drinking more water is such a great thing for children to do so I'd like to encourage it. Thank you to everyone who has already been sending a water bottle-it is very helpful!

Thank you also to the families who returned the form that was attached to the newsletter about Carnaval. We are trying to see how many people will be attending as we only have limited space in the gym to see Charlotte Diamond and these forms are helping us to decide if we need to sell tickets or limit the number of people admitted. If you have not returned your form, please do so as soon as possible. The Kindergarten students wrote a letter to BONHOMME and invited him to our Carnaval so we hope he will make an appearance. We have also been trying out more French words and are learning some French songs. Please note that Carnaval coincides with Catholic Schools Week so we are using this opportunity to celebrate our school and invite others to come see some of the things we have to offer. It should be a great evening of fun and games so we hope you all can make it on Tuesday, February 21st.

We also say CONGRATULATIONS to Savannah for being our Star of the Week. Here are a few things the students had to say about her...

She is beautiful!

She is pretty.

She is awesome!

Savannah plays well at recess.

She sits well on the carpet.

Now please don't be mistaken...someone DID say that she likes apples but Savannah informed us that she's not a big fan of apples but likes macaroni and cheese instead. Haha! We now say Congratulations to Julian who will be our Star of the Week starting on Monday.

On a more serious note, something that I have noticed and has been brought to my attention that I'd like to mention is the way that some of our students have been talking to each other. We sometimes have students saying things like, "I'm not your friend" or "I'm not going to play with you." While these are typical things for Kindergarten students to say, it is something that I wish to address with the students. Over the next few weeks, we will be spending more time looking at how we speak to each other, how we can use our own words and how to be a good friend. I will be introducing to them something called 'red and green thoughts' that point out things that are helpful (green) and unhelpful (red) when it comes to being a good friend. I will share more information about this as we go along but please be aware of this in case your child begins to discuss this at home. We want Kindergarten (and school) to be a positive, safe place for all students and hopefully, learning how to be a good friend to others will help them build a stronger foundation for friendships as they continue through each grade at CCS.

And I'm sorry but I meant to ask this sooner...Ysabella and her family had wanted to send some okra to school for everyone to try since our letter of the week was 'O." The concern was if anyone had an allergy or did not want their child to try it. Of course, the students have the option to try it or not but if you are open to letting your child try some okra, please let me know. Thank you and thank you to Ysabella for the idea. It's always great to try new things!

This time of year, there seems to be lots of things to talk about and celebrate. On January 23, we will celebrate Chinese New Year and we will be talking about what this is and traditions of different cultures. We will also predict if the Groundhog will see his shadow on February 2nd, followed by the blessing of our throats on St. Blaise's Feast Day on February 3rd. We also have St. Valentine's Day on Feb.14, which should coincide with 100 Days of School if we don't have any Snow Days. Then it will be Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Tuesday) as well as Carnaval on February 21st, which brings us to Ash Wednesday on February 22nd. It seems that each week, we will be talking about a different celebration! I will be sending home a list of names if you wish to send Valentine's Day Cards and I would suggest that you simply have your child sign their name on the cards, rather than address them to each of their classmates. This makes it MUCH easier to pass out as it can be challenging for them to read everyone's first names. If you do want to write each child's name, please keep the cards in alphabtical order as this will help with the distribution of the cards. I know it's early but I know some like to start early and it's just for a heads up.

I hope everyone has a great week and remains safe in any more snow that we get. Thanks for all your help and if you continue to look for hours to do at home, please send me a little note as a reminder of who is interested and I will try my best to send things home. GOD BLESS!

WINTER FUN

2012-01-09T01:05:00.000-08:00

Well, we survived our first week back and all the children did very well, even if they were a little more tired than usual...so was I!!! Here's just a few reminders of what is coming up this month...

BABY PHOTOS AND TIMELINES: I asked for Baby Photos to be sent in by Monday as we will be sharing them with the class on Tuesday. Also, the timeline I sent home is due on Thursday as we will be sharing those in the afternoon. Thank you for your help with these activities and I will return all photos by next week.

SUNDAY GOSPEL DUOTANG: Your child brought home their Sunday Gospel duotang for the first time on Friday. Every week, we will discuss the upcoming Sunday Gospel so that the children will know what to expect and will be aware of the story that they will hear. While we colour the page in class, I would encourage you to talk to your child or even bring the duotang to church with them so that they begin to understand some of the readings from Mass. Please return this duotang every Monday morning. THANK YOU!!!

SKATING: Permission slips were due Friday but I think I am still missing three so if you have not returned them, please do so ASAP. Our class will be skating on January 18th and February 1st and I thank the many parents who have volunteered to walk with us to the rink. Students need to remember gloves or mittens and girls are encouraged to bring or wear parents under their tunic. We will be leaving CCS at 10:30 and we will be skating from 11:00 until 11:30am. Our Grade 5 Buddies will be with us and will help any students they can

SCHOLASTIC BOOK ORDERS: Order forms went home on Friday and are due back on Wednesday, January 11th. Thank you for your orders.

CARNAVAL: Attached to the newsletter last week was a form asking for families to say if they were planning on attending our first annual CCS CARNAVAL on Tuesday, February 21st. We need to know numbers in order to prepare and to know how much room we will have as Charlotte Diamond is coming to perform. If you have not done so already, please return the green form by Friday and we hope that you can all make it for this fun-filled evening.

POPCORN SALES: Popcorn is back at CCS! We used to have Popcorn Wednesdays where students could buy a bag of popcorn for 50 cents, with money going towards the sponsor child that our Christian Servers have had for the last few years. This is a fundraising opportunity but also is a fun treat for the students. We've got the machine up working again so we are starting with popcorn this week. If you wish for you child to buy popcorn, please send them with 50 cents in a labelled baggie on Wednesday. I'll return the baggie so that they can use it each week if they want. Popcorn is sold at first recess only but there is a limited number of bags so we ask that students only purchase one bag. Thank you!

STAR OF THE WEEK: Congratulations to Joshua for being our first star of 2012! We were able to celebrate him in many ways and the following is what his classmates said about him...

He is a nice friend.

Joshua is an awesome friend.

He plays well at recess.

He is handsome!

He sits well on the carpet.

YAHOO! No apple sentences this week :o) Haha! We now say congratulations to Savannah who is our new star and we look forward to hearing and learning more about her.

I think that is it for now. Enjoy the week and thank you for all your help and support!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

2012-01-02T19:06:00.000-08:00

I hope that you have had a wonderful start to 2012 and that it is a year of health and happiness, love and laughter for everyone! I also hope you had a terrific holiday and that Christmas has been a joyful season for you all. As much as I LOVE holidays, I really can't wait to see all the kids again and to hear about all the fun they have had over the last two weeks. I always find that they seem to have grown over the Christmas Break so I'm sure I will be amazed when I see them :o) We will certainly take the first few days being back at school easy as it is yet another big transition in the life of a Kindergarten student. I'm sure bedtimes and morning routines are returning to normal and I know how I feel getting back into the swing of things so we will re-introduce our routines at school very slowly. Sometimes coming back in January can be more challenging than coming in September so if you are noticing your child is having a harder time than normal being back at school, please let me know. It's hard to compete against the fun and rest of holidays but I will try to make the next few days as smooth as possible for them.

Just a few reminders that may have been forgotten with the fun of the holidays...We have PE on Mondays, Tuedays and Thursdays and Library Books are due on Wednesdays.

And just a heads-up on a few things...

I will be sending home our January calendar this week but I am just waiting to see when our class will be going skating :o) We have 4 dates for skating-Jan.11, 18, 25 and Feb. 1 and the Kindergarten students will be going for 2 of those dates. For those who are new to our school, usually Kindergarten, Grade 3, 3/4, 4 and 5 go skating on one Wednesday and then Grade 1, 2, 6 and 7 go on the other Wednesday and then we do it again. I will send more information as it becomes available but please be on the lookout for permissions slips which should be coming home this week as well.
I will also be starting our 'Homefun' program this month...we don't call it 'Homework' because our young students are usually pretty eager to do work at home so it's more fun than work :o) (After a year or two of homework, it does tend to lose its magic but we try to go with their enthusiasm while they have it!!!) I will be sending home information about how our program works and what it entails but please know that these activities are work at your own pace and can be done as you see fit for your child. We cover all of these topics in class and anything that is send home is really just for review and extra practice. They are optional activities meant to help support your child and build their confidence but it is not manditory. Please stay tuned for more information and if you have any questions or concerns, please let me know. THANKS!
We are talking about families in Social Studies and will be talking about how people grow and change. I am asking each child to bring a baby photo in by Monday, January 9th. (We'll probably keep photos for a week but they will then be returned.) Also, I will be sending home a worksheet that asks you and your child to fill out a timeline where they draw what they could do when they were 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years old. We're hoping to look at how we have changed over the years and what things we could do at certain ages, such as learning to walk at age 1 or talking in a sentence at age 2, etc. Again, I'll send home a note that explains it all but it will be due on January 12th.

I think that is it! I hope we all have a great first week back and that the children are excited to see all their friends again. Thank you again for all your help and support!!! All the best!

Fourth Week of Advent!

2011-12-18T15:34:00.000-08:00

IT'S ALMOST HERE!!! Christmas is only a few days away and I am sure the children are beyond excited!!! Last week was a VERY busy one in Kindergarten but the students need to be congratulated on 'surviving' the Christmas Concert and for doing so well. They were amazingl!!! It was challenging for them to have the full day of school, the two performances and the late night but they all did wonderfully and I hope that they are now enjoying some rest and relaxation with the holidays. I know there were lots of coughs, sniffles and sore tummies over the last week but I hope that everyone is feeling better and that they are all healthy to enjoy the celebration of Jesus' birth. Our routines went out the window for the last few days as we were busy with all our Christmas preparations but again, the children did so well and they have certainly earned a well-deserved break. Just a reminder that we go back to school on Tuesday, January 3rd but in the meantime, I hope that school becomes a distant memory and that you all are able to enjoy this special time of year :o)

Our last Star of the Week for 2011 was Keira and we made sure we had time to celebrate her and share why we think she is so special. Here is what her classmates said about her...

She is a good friend.

She is beautiful!

She sits well on the carpet.

She is a nice friend.

(AND WAIT FOR IT...) She likes apples. (OH THOSE APPLES!!!)

Congratulation, Keira! Our first Star of the Week for 2012 will be Joshua and we are looking forward to learning more about him and identifying ways he shines like a star. Congratulations to Joshua!

And finally, I would like to take a moment to wish all of you a HAPPY AND HOLY CHRISTMAS!!! I feel very blessed that I get to spend so many days with your child and I think I learn more from them than they do from me. They are such a special group and I look forward to every day that I see them (and I really do feel a little sad when they go home). Please say 'Hi' to your child for me and also thank you for all the wonderful gifts that I received as I feel incredibly spoiled!!! I hope that you and your family are filled with peace, love and joy at the celebration of the birth of Jesus and I hope that you are filled with those same feelings throughout the year. May God Bless You and Your Family now and always! See you in 2012!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Love Miss Vanderkist :o)

Third Sunday of Advent!

2011-12-11T01:05:00.000-08:00

Wow! The last week of school before Christmas Holidays and only a few more days until we celebrate Jesus' birthday! The kids are VERY excited and it is wonderful to see their joy :o) This is a busy week for us (to say the least:o) so just a few reminders of what to expect...

DRESS REHEARSAL: Our dress rehearsal for the Christmas Concert is on Monday and our students have been asked to come in costume. Kindergarten students have been asked to come to school in their 'Sunday Best' (do not worry about PE strip on Monday or Tuesday) but if you are worried about them getting dirty, I would save the Sunday Best for Tuesday and just send them in their 'Monday Best' so that you do not have to be doing laundry Monday night :o) On Tuesday, we will have indoor recess to try to help with us keeping clean. Please do not send them in their uniform as it helps me to know who has received my messages about what to wear and who I need to remind for Tuesday. THANK YOU!

CHRISTMAS CONCERT: There will be two performances of the Christmas Concert at 1:30pm and 7:00pm. On Tuesday, please send your child to school in their 'Sunday Best.' Kindergarten students are then asked to return to THE BUSHEY ROOM IN THE PARISH CENTER between 6:30pm and 6:45pm for our evening performance, again wearing their Sunday Best. The rest of the school will meet in their classrooms but it is safer for us to have the Preschool and Kindergarten students meet in the Bushey Room so they don't have to make the dark, cold walk across the parking lot before the performance. Students will also be picked up from the Bushey Room after the concert and I ask if you could help me with your patience and understanding as we need to dismiss the students one by one, for obvious safety concerns. I know it will be crowded but I ask that you come to the door of the Bushey Room to pick up your child and they will be dismissed to you directly. We also ask that parents do not come into the Bushey Room as it can become crowded and confusing as our room will already be full. Again, thank you for your patience and understanding. I know how excited they will be to see you after the show so we will try to dimsiss as quickly as we can. Also, if you feel like your child is especially nervous about our performance, please let me know so I can do all that I can to ease their concerns. For many, it is a big deal to be on the stage and we have talked about how well prepared we all are since they sing the song daily (with my direction or during random activities...heehee!) We will continue talking about how proud our families are and how proud they should be but it helps me to know if anyone is feeling extra anxious. THANK YOU!

PAJAMA DAY: Due to the late night on Tuesday, we will have a non-uniform day on Wednesday so the students can come to school in their PAJAMAS! So leave the uniform at home and your child can roll out of bed and be ready for school :o) YAY PJ DAY!

FOOD BANK MASS: Just a reminder that we wil have a Mass on Friday, December 16th and it will be our last Food Bank Mass of the year. Thank you for your generousity so far and we are hoping to beat our previous number of 58 items brought in so that others will be able to enjoy a wonderful Christmas dinner too. Thank you again!

NOON DISMISSAL: Just a reminder that we finish at noon on Friday, December 16th. The first day back will be Tuesday, January 3rd.

STAR OF THE WEEK: Thank you to Stephanie for being an awesome Star of the Week and for sharing her Pinkalicious story with us all, as well as some fun Show and Tell (with some special items from our own Parish Bazaar!). Her friends had this to say about her...

She is a great friend.

She sits well on the carpet.

She is beautiful!

She plays well at recess.

She is a nice friend.

Congratulations again, Stephanie! This week, we will be celebrating Keira and looking at how she is so special. Our next star of the week will be in January. Keep shining, all you stars!

TOYS AT SCHOOL: I know we have had MANY students who have been bringing toys to school, specifically BeyBlades and while the students have been quite good about them, I am going to ask in January that we do not bring them (or other toys) to school unless they are the Star of the Week. Often, the toys get lost or broken or can become a distraction as students will take them out during school time or keep them in their pocket. I also believe that recess should be a time when students are moving around as they have often sat too long in the classroom so I will be talking to the students about this during the week and will remind them in January when we come back. If you could also remind them at home, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you again!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and that the third week of Advent is one that is filled with peace and joy for you and your family. If you have any questions or concerns about our last week or anything else, please let me know. God bless!

Second Sunday of Advent

2011-12-03T21:35:00.000-08:00

Thank you to everyone who attended our Three Way Conferences on Thursday and Friday. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to sit with you and your child to discuss their progress and to celebrate their hard work so far in Kindergarten. They truly are an amazing bunch! If you have any other questions or concerns or wish to discuss your child's progress at greater length, please let me know. Again, thank you for your time!

It is already the second week of Advent and there is exactly 9 1/2 days left of school before our Christmas vacation (not that I'm counting...) We continue to discuss the importance of Christmas and how we should be using Advent as a time to prepare ourselves for the birth of Jesus. We are trying to do good deeds and think about others at this time, focussing on Jesus rather than all the presents and toys :o) We also watched a movie on Friday about Saint Nicholas, who's feast day is this Tuesday, December 6th. (We often have a 'visit' from Saint Nicholas on his feast day as we leave a shoe-as per dutch tradition-in the hallway for a little treat during the day so please stay tuned on Tuesday to see if we were so lucky!) The video explored the life of Nicholas and the children seemed pretty amazed that the word 'Santa' really means 'Saint.' We discussed the connection between Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus but we focused more on how we should find ways to do things for others at Christmas, not just with presents but through prayer and good deeds. And we emphasized how Christmas is a time to celebrate Jesus and when WE get presents for Jesus' birthday, we should be especially thankful because normally we are the ones to GIVE when it's someone else's birthday, not RECEIVE. We talked about how much Jesus loves us and that getting presents on Christmas were just an example of God's love, that WE would receive such wonderful things. Please talk to your child about ways they can give, not simply with material items, but through prayer and good deeds and find ways to emphasize Jesus at this time. It's easy to get caught up in the decorating and the shopping but pausing to create a special Advent prayer time with your family in the evening, stopping by the church after school, collecting old toys or items for donation or just doing good deeds with family and friends are excellent ways to help prepare for the coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ!

On that note, we have three final donations that we are asking for before the holidays begin. We have a Food Bank Mass on December 8th for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and on our last day of school on December 16th. Feel free to send items into the classroom at any time between now and the last day of school as we hope to collect as many items as possible as Christmas is often when the Food Bank passes out the most food. Also, our class is responsible for bringing in BRUSHES for the Catholic Organization, "The Door is Open" who create shoeboxes full of items that are then distributed to men in need who live on the Downtown Eastside. It has been short notice and items are due on Monday, December 5th but, so far, we have only one brush. Please see if you are able to send in more brushes as they are greatly needed and appreciated. Thank you so much for your generousity and thoughtfulness.

We would also like to say CONGRATULATIONS to Stephanie who is our Star of the Week, starting on Monday and we look forward to learning more about her and why she is so special. Our last star of the week was Liam and these were some of the things that were said about him...

He is beautiful!

He is handsome!

He is an awesome friend.

Liam loves soccer.

He loves apples. (Oh those apples!)

Liam was an excellent star of the week and adds so much to our classroom. Great work, Liam!

And just a reminder that CANDYGRAMS are on sale until Wednesday, December 14th for 50 cents and all money collected goes towards our school's Sponsor Child, Catalina. Students can purchase candygrams at lunchtime and then fill our the little card which will be delivered with a candycane on the last day of school. If you wish for your child to purchase candygrams, please send a note with the names so that it is easier for the students. THANK YOU!

And finally, our Christmas Concert is just over a week away and the students are getting excited. We are beginning to practice on the stage this week and then on Monday, December 12th we will have a dress rehearsal. Our class has been asked to wear their 'Sunday Best' so they do not need to come to school in uniform on Monday or Tuesday. On Tuesday, December 13th, they need to come to school in their 'Sunday Best' as they will be performing in the afternoon and then will come back to the school for the evening performance. If you are worried about their clothes getting dirty on Monday for the dress rehearsal, I would suggest sending your child in just regular clothes and save the "Sunday Best" for Tuesday. (On Tuesday, we will have indoor recess no matter what so that we are less likely to get dirty :o) Any questions, please let me know. I will have more information about our Christmas Concert in my next blog, in regards to our evening performance, drop-off/pick-up and how it all works for Kindergarten so please stay tuned.

I hope all of you have enjoyed the weekend and the sun and that you continue to prepare for the coming of Jesus at Christmas. God bless!

HAPPY ADVENT!

2011-11-30T15:45:00.000-08:00

Happy Anniversary, Father Mark! Today we celebrated Father Mark's anniversary of being a priest and we also brought home our Advent chains. Starting on December 1st, your child should take a link off their chain and read the message. (They should have come home with 24 links plus the star for Christmas). We have been talking about ways we can prepare for the coming of Jesus and our Advent chain should help give us a few ideas of what we can do, not just as Advent but throughout the year.

Thank you for everyone who sent in a rock as we are discussing them in Science...if you have yet to send in a rock, please do so by tomorrow (although we can always go out at recess and find one if we need to...THANKS). Also, I am asking each student to bring in a SMALL ziploc bag of soil for us to look at next week. I neglected to say a SMALL ziploc bag for a sample so don't feel you need to bring in a massive truck load...haha!

We continue to ask for your help as we are once again participating in our Shoebox Collection for men in need who lie on the Downtown Eastside. Our class has been asked to bring in BRUSHES BY MONDAY, DECEMBER 5th. I know it is short notice and any type of brush will do but these supplies are meant to last throughout the year so we are trying to collect as many as possible. Christmas is such a wonderful time to give and share in Jesus' name so I thank you all for your generousity. Please also note that our School Masses on December 8th and 16th will also be Food Bank Masses.

You may have heard that our class is also participating in something we call "Secret Santa." Each morning, our student draw a random name and throughout the day, they are asked to do good deeds such as saying a compliment, praying for them or helping in some way. We are trying to send the message of thinking of others at Christmas and the children have been so sweet in saying kind words and sending little messages to each other (in secret, of course!) We will continue to do this until Christmas holidays so if you hear them talk about it, you now know what we are doing.

And FINALLY, your child may have talked about Candygrams for sale that started today and will go until December 14th. A candygram is when someone sends a candycane for 50 cents to someone in the school. Students purchase candygrams at lunch recess and they fill out a paper with the name of the person they wish to send their candycane to but the treats are only delivered on the last day of school. If you wish for your child to buy candygrams, please send their money as well as the names of the people in a baggie so it is easy for them to fill out the little card. Candygrams can be send to people in their class, in other classes or even to their Grade 5 buddy. All money collected goes towards our sponsor child, Catalina. Our Christian Servers started to sponsor a child several years ago and we continue to find ways to raise money to help her. Thank you for your generousity.

Our three way conferences are tomorrow and I'm looking forward to seeing all of you then. I feel like this is a message where I have been asking for MANY things so I appreciate all of your efforts and if you are unable to send anything, no worries. Thank you again and God bless!

PIZZA LUNCH AND BAZAAR JARS

2011-11-24T09:37:00.000-08:00

I forgot to remind everyone that our class will be enjoying a free PIZZA lunch tomorrow as we met our Walkathon goal. YIPEE!!! I believe it is Cheese Pizza for everyone so if your child does not eat that type of pizza, please send a regular lunch. Snacks should be the same as always. THANKS!!! Also, our Parish Bazaar is just over a week away and we are in GREAT need of jars that have been filled and decorated for the jar game. Candy, small toys, puzzles, mittens and anything else you can think of are great fillers. THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!! Enjoy the weekend!

It's Report Card Time

2011-11-24T00:52:00.000-08:00

I missed writing my weekend blog novel to you over the weekend due to illness so I’m trying to make up for it here…I apologize in advance :o)

Report Card Day is Friday and it is time to celebrate your child's many accomplishments over our last few months together. The children are AMAZING and they surprise me everyday with how quickly they learn and what interests them. I try to emphasize with the children that report cards are a way of looking at the things they are good at and the things they want to get better at so I would encourage you to sit down with your child and discuss the report. I have also had the students filling out their own report card, which we will look at during our Three Way Conferences next week. Report Cards are only here to help the learning process and I congratulate all the children for all their hard work so far this year!

We will have the opportunity to discuss your child’s progress at our THREE WAY CONFERENCES next week and you will be receiving your appointment time on Friday. If you are unable to make your ten minute appointment, please let me know so we can arrange another time. If you have other concerns you wish discuss at greater length, please let me know and we can meet separately. Three Way Conferences involve parents, teachers and students and we ask that your child comes in uniform for their appointment time. Due to numbers and timing, there are a few people who have some late appointments on Thursday evening so if you feel it would be too difficult for your child to attend such a late session, please let me know and we will reschedule.

Report Cards in Kindergarten are also a little different compared to the rest of the school as we only use three categories-Approaching Expectations, Meeting Expectations and Exceeding Expectations-to discuss your child's progress. Grade One to Seven have five categories: Exceeding Expectations, Fully Meets Expectations, Generally Meets Expectations, Minimally Meets Expectations and Not Yet Within Expectations. There is an information page in your child's report cards that will explain these categories but please be assured that if I had any concerns about your child at this point, I would have contacted you personally prior to report cards. Also, Kindergarten is a time of exploration and much of our year is simply adjusting to our routines and classroom expectations as so much of this is new. I am now introducing the concept of report cards and assessment to the students and to help, I am comparing the report card categories to a rocket ship.

§ Approaching Expectations is like the “3,2,1…” before the rocket takes off. You’re ready to go but you haven’t quite left the ground. You know what you need to do and you’re preparing yourself to do it.

§ Meeting Expectations is like the “BLAST OFF” where you have just taken off and you’re getting used to leaving the ground. You are flying on your own and starting to figure out where you want to go.

§ Exceeding Expectations is like you’re “FLYING HIGH” as you are well off the ground and you are exploring new things that are taking you up and up and up.

I am only just introducing this language to your child and I am hoping that it will help them begin to have a better understand of report cards and assessment as we continue over our next two terms together. And if your child comes home and says they are ‘blasting off,’ you’ll have a better idea of what that means in the language of Kindergarten. Again, any questions, just let me knowJ.

This Sunday is also the start of ADVENT, which is an especially exciting time for all the children!!! I will be sending home some information about Advent but I would encourage you to take some time to discuss this special season with your child and perhaps incorporate some ideas at home to help make it even more meaningful. I really liked this website http://paperdali.blogspot.com/search/label/Advent for their top ten simple list of home ideas that you might find helpful. And what a wonderful thing if every student had an advent wreath at home to send the message of this important time, rather than just Christmas lights or Christmas trees. It can be as easy as a paper wreath with three purple paper candles and one pink OR you can make use of the many branches that came down in the windstorm the other night and make your own. I use one of those fake evergreen garlands from the dollar store in the classroom and we will talk about it and the significance of Advent over the next few weeks. Thank you for all you do to help prepare your child. It’s wonderful to hear so many children answering the question, “Why is Christmas so special?” with “IT’S JESUS’ BIRTHDAY” rather than “WE GET PRESENTS” or “SANTA CLAUS IS COMING.” Your children know so much about their faith already so THANK YOU!!!!!

FOOD BANK MASS: Please note that we do NOT have a Food Bank Mass on Friday as was indicated on our calendar. Our next school Mass is on December 8^th, the feast of the Immaculate Conception and our next Food Bank Mass is on the last day of school, which is December 16^th. Our record is 52 items of food from our Kindergarten class and we are hoping to beat that in December so please keep this date in mind and thank you in advance for your generousity. We only have 30 students in our class so we’re averaging almost two items per child which is terrific.

CHRISTMAS CONCERT: Our Christmas Concert is Tuesday, December 13^th and our class is singing a song called “Mary Had a Baby” (although perhaps you’ve heard your child sing this one at home already:o) As for costumes, our class has been asked to simply wear their ‘Sunday Best’ for the performance. More information about this event will come home soon but please keep the date in mind. Admission is usually by donation to the Food Bank.

BAPTISM ASSIGNMENT: Thank you everyone who sent in the Baptism Worksheet. The children had a chance to share their drawings and photos and learned about the symbols of this special sacrament. I will keep their papers for the next two weeks but will make sure I send them home by Christmas so you can have your photos back. Again, thank you as I’m sure Baptism photos may not have been readily available but we’re greatly appreciated as they held so much more meaning for the students.

STAR OF THE WEEK: We say Congratulations to Daniel who was our Star of the Week last week and his classmates had the following to say about him…

He is a good friend.

He is handsome!

He is a nice to everyone.

He is a great friend.

He likes red and green apples. (Oh those apples!)

Way to go, Daniel! And congratulations to Liam who is our Star this week…we will be writing about him on Friday.

BIBLE SOCIETY: The children have completed their Colouring Contest Sheets in class and I will be mailing them out on Friday. At this time, if you wish to enroll your child in their Birthday Club, please complete the form I sent home last week and return it by Friday. We have been involved with the Bible Society for the last few years and they always send the children something nice. Thank you!

The next few weeks are sure to be very BUSY but fun. Thank you for your patience and understanding! If there is anything, such as your child is not eating their lunch, a sweater is missing, you want some other ideas for Advent, etc, please let me know. I only want what is best for your child and any information or feedback from you can only help me. Thanks so much and I wish you all a happy and peaceful Advent.

50 Days of School

2011-11-16T00:11:00.000-08:00

I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend and that you were able to take a moment to pause and think about peace in our world.

BLANKETS/TOWELS: Thank you to everyone who returned their weather tracking worksheet today as well as their quiet time towel/blanket that I had sent home on Thursday to be washed. Our quiet time has turned into our Silent Reading time where many students are eager to lie on their blankets looking at books so it is a nice way to begin our busy afternoon. Our blankets/towels also help the students to know what 'space' is theirs so if you have not returned the blanket/towel, please do so as soon a possible. THANK YOU!

PHOTOS: We are still waiting to receive some of our Kindergarten photos so if you ordered a package, please know that they are on their way and will be delieved shortly. Thank you for your patience!

50 DAYS OF SCHOOL: On Friday, the Kindergarten and Grade One class will be celebrating being in school for 50 days. Yahoo!!! Our students have been encouraged to come dressed up '50s style' so they could come wearing jeans and a white t-shirt with slicked hair or they could wear a skirt and top with a pony tail or anything that has to do with life in the 50s. Please note that only our classes will be dressing up and celebrating this day so siblings in the older grades should come to school as per usual (although we encourage everyone to take some time to celebrate being at school for 50 days!) We will be celebrating with ice-cream floats, bubble gum, various activities based on the number 50 as well as a sock hop dance so it should be a fun time! If you have any questions or concerns about this day, please let me know. THANK YOU!

THREE WAY CONFERENCES: Each family was sent home a note today about our Three Way Conferences that will take place on December 1st and December 2nd. This is a great opportunity for the three of us-child, teacher and parent(s)-to sit down and discuss your child's progress this term, celebrating their successes and looking for ways to support their learning for the months ahead. Please complete the form and send it back as soon as possible as it is very difficult for us to know when to schedule appointments if we do not know when you are available. As an entire staff, we will look at the times you have indicated and then try to accomodate all the time requests. You will receive a confirmation notice of your time but if for any reason you are unable to attend this time, please let me know as I feel that these conferences are in the best interest of your child and I am sure we can find some time to meet. Thank you for your flexibility and understanding.

BAPTISM: Thank you again to everyone who completed their activity sheet about parent jobs as well as the weather tracking sheet as it has been wonderful to see the children beginning a routine that is done throughout all the other grades of completing work at home and then bringing it to school on time. The children have been great about knowing what is due and handing it in, which is very important at school so I thank all of you as these activities would not be possile without your help at home. We have just one more to do and then that will be it until the New Year. This time, I am asking for information about each child's Baptism. Your child is asked to write their full name (first, last and any middle names) as well as their Baptismal date on the worksheet. There is also an areas for you to submit a photograph (they will be returned) about their Baptism or, if you would rather not send a photo, they can draw a picture about their Baptism. This activity is due Wednesday, November 23rd. If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.

CANADIAN BIBLE SOCIETY: Each Christmas, the Canadian Bible Society sends our school a Colouring Contest for the primary student to enter so our Kindergarten students will be completing their page sometime in class over the next two weeks. All students who send in a coloured page receive a free gift (usually a little book about Jesus) and they also invite each child to become a member for the year (it's free) and then they send a little gift for the child on their birthday. You child will be bringing home a form to be completed if you would like them to becoming a member and I ask that it is returned by Wednesday, November 23rd as well so that we can mail them in as soon as possible. This is completely optional but I have been impressed with the Canadian Bible Society for their efforts in having children think about the Bible, especially during the Christmas Season and for their generousity in sending the students little gifts to congratulate them on their work.

FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING: This Sunday marks the end of the liturgical season and we will be talking about this special day in our classroom during the week. We are also making paper crowns and I am encouraging the students to wear their crown to Mass on Sunday to help celebrate this geast day so you may want to remind your child or even make crowns for the entire family to wear to mark the end of the liturgical year :o) Our new year is almost here as Advent is just around the corner...please stay tuned for more information about Advent as well as our Christmas Concert that will be on December 13th. Our students have already begun to practice their song, "Mary Had a Baby" with Mrs. Mar and I'll be sending a note home with further information soon.

BRRR!!! It was cold today and I would encourage families to send scarves, mittens and toques with your child on days like today. The students do not need to wear them but it is nice to have the option and to have these things available for them in their backpack. We had lots of cold hands outside today and while I try to keep extra mittens in the classroom for those who want them, it would be great to have a pair in their backpack just in case. Toques and hats are also a great idea, especially to protect their ears from the cold! And just a reminder...PLEASE LABEL ALL ITEMS! Thank you!

LEST WE FORGET

2011-11-10T19:27:00.000-08:00

It was a special day today...having both a Mass and an Assembly about Remembrance Day as well as having a veteran speak to our school. Our focus was on peace and finding ways to live together happily but also to remember those who fought for our freedom. Please spend some time this weekend talking to your child about Remembrance Day and to pray for all those who have had to suffer through war.

I sent a note home as we have some uniform pieces missing so PLEASE check all the labels on your child's uniform and if you have someone else's or you are missing something, please let me know. Also, I've noticed a few labels where the name has washed off so please double check that we can still read your child's name. Also, I sent home your child's blanket/towel that they use for quiet time as I thought it would be a good idea to have them washed and then sent back to school on Tuesday. THANK YOU!

I also had some families asking about photos but for some reason, I do not have all the Kindergarten photos so I will look into why ours are missing and hopefully we will have them soon.

Congratulations to Julia for being a lovely Star of the Week and for sharing some of the things that make her special. Her classmates also found wonderful things to say about her...

Julia is great.

She is very nice.

She is beautiful!

She likes apples.

She listens very well.

Thank you, Julia and next week we will be celebrating Daniel! We have a class of stars!

Just a reminder that our Weather Tracking Sheet is due on Tuesday and thank you SO MUCH to everyone who sent back their worksheet about their parent's jobs. We ran out of time to share them today but we will do that on Tuesday so we can think about what YOU do while we are at school :o)

And in case you need a reminder, there is no school on Monday so we will see all of you again on Tuesday! Enjoy the weekend and may God bless you all!

A FEW NOTES AND REMINDERS :o)

2011-11-07T23:07:00.000-08:00

I sent home a weather tracking sheet for your child to complete over the next week and I mistakenly said in my last blog that it was due on November 10th when REALLY, it is due on Tuesday, November 15th. Sorry about that! Your child just needs to check off one box each day and if they REALLY want, they can also write the temperature (They are REALLY fond of doing this at school as we keep a thermometer outside of our classroom.)  Our parent job worksheet is the only thing due on Thursday, November 10th and I thank everyone who has already sent in their sheet :o)

I also sent a Scholastic Book Order form home today...it is the last order before Christmas and orders are due on Tuesday, November 15th. If any of the items you order are a surprise, please write 'SECRET' at the top of the order form and I'll let you know when it comes in :o)

AND on our November Calendar, I wrote down the wrong days for PE (my brain was taking a nap when I wrote it) and I thank those of you who pointed out the error of my ways ;o) PE is STILL Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

I have also talked to the students about ensuring that they always have a jacket at school for the next few months as the weather is often unpredictable and we often need to go outside to get some fresh air, even on rainy or cold days. They should always be prepared as sometimes it can be sunny in the monring but cloud over by afternoon recess.  Your child should always bring their jacket to school and I have told the students that they can not go outside if they do not have one, which could mean them missing recess as I usually have jacketless kids sit on the blue bench :o( Please help your child in this area by reminding them to have their jacket on when they leave the house. Also, thank you to families who have been sending their students in toques and mittens as it can get quite chilly at recess and the extra clothes have helped them keep warm. Just a reminder to make sure all items are labelled and I often encourage families to put a cheap pair of mittens in the front of their backpack 'just in case.' I also keep a basket of extra mittens in our class for those who need it as the metal playground equipment is often very COLD! Thanks for your help in this area!

Poppies continue to be sold at school and any donation is welcome. If you have already purchased poppies, please have your child wear one on Thursday for our Mass and Assembly...I have been safety-pinning them on in class so they don't get lost :o)  Thanks again!

And just to brighten your day...I have had several students tell me about http://www.xmasclock.com/ which is telling me that there are only 47 more days until Christmas. Haha! ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR DAY!

Remembrance Day

2011-11-06T00:04:00.000-07:00

It's almost Remembrance Day and we will spend the next week discussing this special time of year and what it means. Our focus will be on peace and finding ways to get along with others in our daily lives but we will also talk about those who have had to fight in wars to bring peace and freedom to others. Please take some time to talk about Remembrance Day with your child as the thought of war and the destruction it can cause can be one that is scary for children. However, my hope is that they begin to understand just what can happen when people choose to disgree but also there are ways to solve problems and live in peace.

POPPIES: Our school will be selling poppies all week and we are encouraging all of our students to wear one for our Mass and Assembly on Thursday. Please send your donations to school and your child may purchase a poppy at recess until Wednesday. We also have a veteran who will come to speak at the assembly so it would be a wonderful symbol of support if every child wore a poppy. Thank you!

LONG WEEKEND: We do not have school on Friday due to Remembrance Day but it is also a Professional Development Day on Friday so it will be a four day weekend for our students. I am hoping to REMEMBER to leave our toy bins on the blue bench after school on Thursday so if anyone wishes to take some toys home to wash, that would be wonderful :o) Thank you for you help in advance!

PARENT JOBS: I sent home a worksheet on Friday that asks students to find our what their parents do for their job. Please note that this activity is due on Thursday, November 10th. If you need any help or have any questions, please let me know but I am hoping for our students to share what they know about their parents on Tuesday, November 15th and it would be great if all the students have their worksheet to show the class.

WEATHER TRACKING SHEET: I am also sending an activity sheet home on Monday that asks each child to track the weather by checking off a box each day. Please return this on Thursday, November 10th as well. Thank you for your help and support with this activity.

BULBS: THANK YOU to everyone who sent in bulbs for our outside area. I am hoping to plant them the following week if our weather holds up so you can still send bulbs if you wish. We do have enough for every child to plant a bulb but you can never have enough flowers. Thank you for your generousity!

PARISH BAZAAR: Please keep December 3rd in mind as it will be our Parish Bazaar. There will be games and fun for the kids and they will also be selling the crafts that they make in class at this event. Please begin saving jars to fill and decorate or any games/toys/stuffies that may be donated for the White Elephant Sale as this is a wonderful way to support our parish and have the children involved in both preparing as well as playing. Our class will make their crafts on November 16th.

I hope everyone is enjoying our autumn sun this weekend and I hope it's a fun and relaxing one. God bless!

MISSION POSSIBLE ... Children Helping Children

2011-10-30T17:49:00.000-07:00

THANK YOU to everyone for making Missions Week a great success! From our Bake Sale to our Band-Aid Sale to our Bottle Drive to our Coin Drive to our Food Bank Donations, we have helped SO MANY PEOPLE! The students have been praying and thinking about kids all over the world and understand that many children face challenges just to survive daily. It has been wonderful for the children to see that they CAN make a difference and we have succeeded in our mission of children helping children. Of course, none of this would have been possible without your support so THANK YOU! For those of you who have also been collecting coins in the Holy Childhood Association boxes, please note that all boxes are due no later than FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4^th. We hope to continue looking for ways to ‘Serve the Lord with Joyful Hearts,’ not just with helping others around the world but even with the people we see each day. We also have talked about how we do not need to wait for Missions Week, just to help others…it is something we can do throughout the year and I know at CCS, we are involved in many activities and fundraisers but we do so to help our students understand that we are all called to do God’s work and put others before ourselves. Thank you to everyone for being so committed and involved in all of our activities!

I know the students are VERY excited with Halloween tomorrow but I am hoping that we can also capture some of that excitement for All Saint’s Day on Tuesday. As we’ve talked about the word Halloween or Hallow’s Eve, I asked the children where they have heard the word ‘Hallowed’ before and we realized that the word is in the ‘Our Father.’ We then discussed how ‘Hallow’ means ‘Holy’ so Halloween really means the evening before a holy day, which is ALL SAINTS DAY! The students are asked to come dressed as their favourite saint and I will send a little note home on Monday for you to write down the name of who your child is dressed as so we will know who they are (in case they forget :o) Also, it would be WONDERFUL if you could talk to your child about their saint so that they can share one fact about them. We will go around in our circle to share about our costume so it would be great if they can share a little more information about their saint too

We will also have a Mass on All Saints Day, where we will once again collect for the Food Bank. During Missions Week, we spent time talking about ways that children can take action, such as by praying, collecting money and food or other activities. While we did collect 58 items of food on Friday (WOW!!! THANK YOU!!!), we have told the children about an idea started by the ‘Feed the Children’ organization. They started ‘Halloween for Hunger’ where children go around trick or treating but they also can use this opportunity to collect food for others. Children are encouraged to say, “TRICK OR TREAT OR FOOD TO EAT” and they have little cards they can pass out to explain what they are doing. This activity is more aimed at older children but we wanted to put it out there to everyone, in case they want to try it. I will be telling the children that they might just want to try it at one house, perhaps someone they know very well, and see if they could collect even just one item on their trick or treat travels. Please do not feel like you MUST do this as it is completely optional but it may be something to keep in mind as your children get older. We have registered our school for this activity and more information (as well as more cards to print) can be found at http://www.freethechildren.com/getinvolved/youth/campaigns/campaigns.php?type=halloweenforhunger THANK YOU!

An annual tradition after Halloween at CCS is also collecting extra candy for Agape Street Ministry. This group, started in 1996, reach out to ladies in need on the downtown east side of Vancouver as they pass out bags of candy with the simple message that God loves them. Each bag contains some candy as well as prayer cards, including contact numbers for organizations that can aid them in getting off the street. Agape-meaning God’s love-does something little but with great love and sending in some extra Halloween candy is something that may seem very small but can bring great joy to others. So whether you send in the candy you have left over from the trick or treaters OR your child goes through their own collection and picks out some items to donate, it would be wonderful if each child brings in something. It can be as little or as much as your would like and we will see how much candy we can gather by FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4^th.

I also sent a paper home on Friday but FORGOT to explain to the children what it was for…SORRY! On one side of the paper, it had a pumpkin carving prayer that I thought some families might want to try with their child and on the other side, there was an activity page for students to track and count how much candy they get on Halloween. It is completely optional but I know how excited the children get about their candy and they often LOVE to count what they have so, to take advantage of a teachable mathematical moment (sorry, it’s the teacher in me), your child can count what they have, fill out the paper and send it back to school for a treat from me :o) The Halloween Haul Tracking Sheet is due by FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4^th if you wish to participate :o)

Our Star of the Week has been Grace and we have found many ways to celebrate why she is so special and unique. Some of things that we noticed about Grace was that…

She sits nicely and she is a best friend.

She is nice.

She is a good friend.

She likes fruit loops. (We are a food-oriented class :o)

She has great manners.

Unfortunately, since I was away a few times this week, I FORGOT to have Grace choose our new star so we will make Sebastian the Fish our star for next week :o)

And just so you know, Hailey should be back on Monday and we continue to keep Julian’s family in our prayers. Thank you to those of you who offered to prepare meals…our school’s Social Committee may be contacting you by phone if more help is needed as this is something we try to do when we know a family if going through a challenging time. In the future, if you or a family you know at CCS, is going through a difficult time, please let us know as we can check to see if preparing meals can be of service. Thank you again!

The week of Halloween can always be one of excitement but also one where we can be extra tired after all of the activities so we will try to take it a little easy. The children continue to do well and our Letter of the Week continues to be a favourite activity as they are constantly looking for words that start with that particular letter. We are now on the Letter ‘Gg’ and I would encourage you to ask your children about the sounds and words that go with letters Aa to Gg as a way to review at home. I will send home our November calendar this week as well so you will know what is coming up this month, including REPORT CARDS! We will be having conferences after report cards to discuss your child’s progress but if you ever have any concerns or issues, please do not feel like you have to wait to come and speak to me. I would much rather you let me know sooner than later and we do not need to wait until report cards to discuss a child’s progress. Also, just so you know, I also would not wait until a report card to share with you a concern I have about your child. If there is anything I think should be addressed that goes beyond what I would expect in Kindergarten, I will contact you personally and set up a meeting. Thank you!

Happy Halloween

to all of the trick or treaters and

HAPPY ALL SAINT’S DAY

TO ALL OUR HOLY HEROES

IN THE MAKING!!!

THE IMPORTANT BOOK

2011-10-23T19:29:00.000-07:00

THE IMPORTANT BOOK

Created By KINDERGARTEN

Cloverdale Catholic School 2011-2012

The important thing about Kindergarten is that we go to school all day.

The important thing about Alexander is that he helps his uncle.

The important thing about Anna is that her mom and dad give her hugs and kisses.

The important thing about Christopher is that he is five.

The important thing about Crissa is that she helps her sister.

The important thing about Daniel is that he loves his mommy and daddy.

The important thing about Evelyn is that God created her.

The important thing about Grace is that she can go under water.

The important thing about Hailey is that God made her.

The important thing about Isabella is that she helps her baby brother.

The important thing about Jackson is that he likes fish.

The important thing about Jacob is that he helps his family .

The important thing about Joshua is that he is good at soccer.

The important thing about Julia is that her family gives her things.

The important thing about Julian is that he is a very good hockey goalie.

The important thing about Karch is that he shares with his sisters.

The important thing about Keira is that she God made her.

The important thing about Laura is that God gave her beautiful hair.

The important thing about Lauren is that she helps her big sister, Lily.

The important thing about Liam is that he helps his mom.

The important thing about Mackenzie is that she helps everyone.

The important thing about Macram is that he helps people.

The important thing about Mateo is that he is good at soccer and baseball.

The important thing about Mikayla is that she is good at swimming and soccer.

The important thing about Miranda is that she helps her sister.

The important thing about Miss Easterbrook is that she likes pigs.

The important thing about Miss Vanderkist is that she loves teaching about God.

The important thing about Samuel is that he helps his mom.

The important thing about Savannah is that she loves to swim.

The important thing about Siena is that she God made her.

The important thing about Stephanie is that she is good at swimming.

The important thing about Ysabella is that her mom loves her so much.

The important thing about Zachary is that God made him really special.

But the important thing about Kindergarten is that we go to school all day.

MISSIONS WEEK

2011-10-23T19:26:00.000-07:00

This week, our school will be celebrating Missions Week where we will spend time thinking about those around the world who need our help. We had an assembly on Thursday to explain some of the challenges people, especially children, face each day due to poverty, disease, exploitation and lack of clean drinking water. Each day this week, we will focus on a particular area in the world and say a decade of the rosary for their intention. We will also have activities we do in class as well as a daily fundraiser, where the money raised will go towards the Holy Childhood Association. This organization is dedicated to "children helping children" and there is a great website http://www.hcakids.org/ that explains what they do and how kids can make a difference, along with some games and activities. Please note that this particular website is U.S. based but they are just as involved in Canada-their head office is in Toronto although it once was based out of St. Patrick's in Vancouver. Each child will bring home a Holy Childhood Association Box on Monday and we are encouraging the students to find ways to earn money for this fundraiser. Perhaps they can earn 25cents for setting the table or a loonie for folding laundry, etc. As wonderful as it is to fill our boxes, it would be much more meaningful for the children to see how their actions can help others around the world and how they can really make a difference in the lives of others. These boxes will be due back on All Saint's Day. If you would like your child to participate in the other school fundraisers and wish to send money to school, please do so in a LABELLED ZIPLOC bag and put it in their blue home-school folder. Items are sold at recess so I will make sure our students have their money and know where to line up. Our upcoming week looks like this...

MONDAY:

Prayer Focus: AFRICA
Theme: FREEDOM FROM POVERTY
Fundraiser: BAKE SALE (Cost per item between 50 cents and $1.00)

TUESDAY:

Prayer Focus: EUROPE
Theme: FREEDOM FROM DISEASE
Fundraiser: BAND-AID STICKER SALE (Cost 25 cents per sticker)

WEDNESDAY:

Prayer Focus: ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC
Theme: FREEDOM FROM THIRST
Fundraiser: BOTTLE DRIVE (Please bring in your empty bottles in the morning)

THURSDAY:

Prayer Focus: ASIA
Theme: FREEDOM FROM EXPLOITATION
Fundraiser: PRAYER BEADS (At this time, I don't believe they are charging for these.)

FRIDAY:

Prayer Focus: AMERICAS
Theme: FREEDOM TO ACT
Fundraiser: FOOD BANK MASS (& HALLOWEEN FOR HUNGER)

"Halloween for Hunger" suggests that children go around on Halloween Night and say, "Trick or Treat OR Food to Eat" as a way for people to have the option of also giving food items for the Food Bank. There are cards that can also be passed out so that people will know more about this event. We have a Food Bank Mass on Friday but we will also collect food on All Saint's Day (November 1st). Our class has been very generous with items during our last two collections so I thank you in advance as the Food Bank is in desperate need, especially as we approach the Christmas Season.

Just a few other things while I have you here :o) ...

Photo Retakes are on Thursday, October 27th. I only know of two people who would like retakes at this time so if you would like a retake, please let me know-either by returning the samples with the 'retake' box checked or please send me a note. Also, Photo Order Forms were due last week...if you did not get them in, PLEASE send them by Monday morning. THANK YOU!
All Saint's Day is on Tuesday, November 1st and I really encourage EVERY child to dress as their favourite saint. This can be as simple as using a towel or pillow case or even just wearing a bathrobe :o) If you need help with ideas, please let me know!!!
YAHOO! Thanks to Mrs. Sturgeon and her many hours of counting, we have learned that our class raised over $1900 for the Walkathon! THAT IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you SO MUCH as we well surpassed our goal of $1500! It was great to see so many people making an effort to support our school as every dollar helps!
Thank you to Isabella for being a wonderful Star of the Week! Some of the things that her friends said about her were...

She is a good aritist.

She is beautiful and good.

She is a good friend.

She listens well.

She likes apples.

(Apparently this is a big thing in Kindergarten :o)

We celebrate Isabella for being such a special person and we encourage her to keep shining! We also say congratulations to Grace who is our next Star of the Week.

We are lucky to have our own Kindergarten outside space and we are looking to do some planting in November. I am going to be asking students to bring in a bulb (or more if you would like) that they will be responsible for planting and then we will wait until Spring to see the result of our labour :o) I will have extra bulbs for students who are unable to bring any in but I thought it would be fun to ask students to bring in their own so we might get an array of flowers. Thank you in advance!
Our letter of the week is 'Ff' and I would again like to say thank you everyone who cuts, draws and sends in pictures for our letter wall. I would also encourage you to ask you child what sounds and words the know from Letter Aa to Ff as a review as they should be quite comfortable in doing this for the letters we have already focused on over the past few weeks. Please note, for 'Aa,' 'Cc' and 'Ee,' there are two sounds that these letters make so you may want to ask your child, "The first sound of Aa is..." and "The second sound of Aa is..." The letters that make more than one sound (like vowels) are always the trickest but I'm impressed with how well the students have been doing so far! They are also great at thinking about words that start with particular letters! Well done, Kindergarten!

I am also going to post our own version of "The Important Book" where each child said why they were so important. It is fun to see what they came up with and I've put their pages together into our own classroom book for them to look at during Book Time. What a great class!!! See you soon!

Kindergarten News

2011-10-17T23:24:00.000-07:00

We have a short week ahead of us as Friday is a Province-Wide Professional Development Day so there is no school...for our students! I'm spending the day at the Langley Kindergarten Conference where I hope to learn about different strategies and gain new ideas that I can bring to the classroom (plus they always give teachers something FREE so it's always fun to go.) I hope you are able to enjoy another long weekend with your child, especially if the good weather continues :o)

I sent home a Scholastic Book Order today that is due on Wednesday (I hope that's enough time...you can always send it later if that doesn't work as I know lots of people are looking into using Scholastic for Christmas Gifts). Again, if you wish to place an order that you don't want your child to see, please indicate 'SECRET' at the top of your order form and I'll just let you know when it arrives and we can arrange a pick-up.

Also, I believe I said that I would leave some of our toy bins outside on the blue bench for anyone who is looking for service hourse to take home and wash but I keep FORGETTING to put them out there. I will TRY to put the bins on the blue bench on Thursday so if you'd like to earn some service time, please feel free to take a bin and return it on Monday. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!

We also thank Jacob for being our Star of the Week last week and some of the things his friends said about him were...

He is very quiet.

He sits nicely on the carpet.

He is a special friend.

He likes chicken and apples.

Jacob is handsome!

And we say congratulations to Isabella who is new star this week and we will be finding ways to celebrate her for being so special and unique throughout the week! Keep shining, Isabella! Last week, we also read a story called "The Important Book" that talks about why various things are important so that inspired us to create our own Kindergarten Important Book where each child picked one thing that was most important about them! I will share their answers in my next blog as it was lots of fun to see why THEY think they are important :o)

Today, we also started to practice our Earthquake Drill in Kindergarten (not to mention some integer counting but that's another story...) so your child may have mentioned this when they got home. Fire Drills and Earthquake Drills can sometimes make some students a little anxious, especially as it's something new and we are talking about safety. I always tell our students that if we know what to do in an emergency, we don't have to worry because we will be prepared. We also talk about how unlikely such an event can be but how important it is to always practice, just in case :o) The students practied our 'earthquake position' which involves them kneeling down and then making themselves into a little ball with their arms covering the back of the head. We then count "1 Hail Mary 2 Hail Mary 3 Hail Mary etc..." and would then line up to go outside as we do in a Fire Drill. If we are near our tables, we would assume the same position underneath as the safest place in an earthquake is under something like a desk or table (not a doorframe as some people think!) I mention this because I would highly recommend that you practice the same drill at home. We will continue to practice, at our tables, on the carpet, in the hall, at PE, at Computers, etc as I want them to be very familiar with this procedure. I hope they realize the importance of this activity and that it helps them to feel safer as they will know what to do in an event of an emergency.

And just a heads up for next week...it will be MISSIONS WEEK! We are doing things a little different this year (for those of you who know about Mission Aid Fun Day) as we are hoping to focus more on the actual cause and the importance of missions around the world. Each day, there will be a different activity and a different opportunity to raise money for the Holy Childhood Association who are known because they involve children who raise money for other children. We will have an assembly on Thursday to introduce the activities for next week but stay tuned for more information about what will happen and how we can work together to raise money for those in need around the world. This will involve collecting food items for the Food Bank as well as a Bottle Drive but please look for the note on Thursday to see different ways you and your child can help and participate. We continue to look at how raising funds can be one ways to 'Serve with Joyful Hearts' but we will also be focussing on the importance of prayer, particularly the Rosary as we can help others in many ways-not just with money:o) Thank you in advance for your help and generousity!

And stay tuned for information about our walkathon prize draw coming soon! Thank you for all the donations that have been sent in...we are truly blessed and it is amazing to see what we can accomplish when we work together!

Please keep in mind that Tuesday, November 1st is also All Saint's Day where each child is asked to come dressed as their favourite saint...I did post a list of costume ideas but if you need more information, please come and see me. THANK YOU and enjoy the rest of your week!

All Saint's Day Costume Ideas

2011-10-10T16:27:00.000-07:00

All Saint's Day is on November 1st and we invite all students to dress up as their favourite saint. If you are starting to think about some ideas, here is a list that may help you...

COSTUME IDEAS FOR ALL SAINTS DAY

Use pillow cases, adult t-shirts, fabric pieces, sheets or dresses as the basis for most costumes.

Mary, Queen of All Saints: Any combination of white & blue. (Dress or adult T-shirt, sash, & a shawl or material for a veil)

Archangel Gabriel: Robe, sash/belt and sandals with a horn at the belt. For wings, use cardboard and tin foil.

St. Dominic Savio. Died age 15, patron saint of boys, altar boys, & choirboys. Dressed as altar boy or in suit with bow tie.

St. Michael: Angel costume with sword in belt. St. Peter: have keys or net hanging at his waist St. Francis: cut out a bird and safety pin it on his shoulder, put on some patches St. Constantine, St. Benedict and St. Anthony the Abbot (from Egypt) were monks, rosary in belt St. Joseph: foster father of Jesus, carpenter by trade, hang a hammer from the belt

St. Patrick: Wear a robe and cape and make a miter from cardboard and paint green & white (shamrocks) St. Nicholas: Santa Claus was actually a bishop from Myra: Wear a robe, cape and miter with colours white, gold & red St. Isidore: of Seville leading candidate for patron saint of computer users & the Internet. Wear a robe, cape & miter. St. Valentine: (Yes, the Feb.14th one!) Wear a robe, cape and miter in reds/whites

St. Vincent de Paul, ragged clothes with chain (captured by Pirates, sold as slave)

St. Isidore (Farmer) loose peasant blouse, pants, don't forget a sombrero for the sun!

St. Joan of Arc, St. George and the Dragon, St. Gengulphus: Buy plastic armour or make from cardboard & tin foil. St. Sebastian was officer of the Imperial Roman army, and captain of the guard. Wear armour.St. Martin joined Roman army and gave a beggar half of his heavy officer's cloak. Later had a vision of Christ wearing the cloak. St. Zita (Maid) servant in

Italy

at age 12--- apron, simple dress, hair kerchief

St. Juan Diego, our Lady of Guadalupe's image is still on his tilma. Use rough material such as canvas (or use poncho)

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha Dress as a Native American. Cut fringe on adult brown T-shirt. Add a wooden cross around neck.

Nuns/Sister: For habit, cut a hole at the top of some material folded over or use an adult T-shirt. Wear turtleneck underneath, use a square of material over the head as a veil, wear crucifix.
     St. Teresa: of Avila. Brown habit. Carmelite, Doctor of the Church!
     St Brigid: of Ireland- often pictured in Celtic colors, began life as slave & heard St. Patrick preach
    St. Scholastica: (black habit) Twin sister of St. Benedict often seen with a crosier, use a walking cane
    St. Therese: of Lisieux, France (the little flower) Carmelite at age 15. (Brown habit, white cape, black veil)
    St. Clare: of Assisi, friend of St. Francis, (grey, brown, white) patron saint of television
     Blessed Mother Teresa: of Calcutta (white, blue stripes along edge) missionary to the poor & sick

St. Bernadette: Lourdes, France, saw Our Lady: dark skirt, apron over the top, blouse and veil over the hair.

St. Ignatius of Loyola (Priest) founded the Jesuits (often seen in black) St. John Bosco- He wore a black cassock. Perhaps use a large black T-shirt, with a white turtleneck underneath.

St Philip Neri: wear black T-shirt or sweater with white collared shirt underneath. Wore 3 pointed black hat (use posterboard)St. Martin de Porres: He helped the sick & poor. White robe with black on top, like a T.

St. Maximillian Kolbe, blue striped prison uniform & glasses, priest died at Auschwitz so a man with a family could live.

For any royal saint, buy or make a crown (cardboard with tin foil, gold/silver Poster-board) Wear robes or dresses.
St. Queen Elizabeth of

Hungary

: carry a basket of bread
     St. Margaret: Queen of Scotland, Scottish tartan clothing.
    St. Ursula: Legendary princess, the daughter of a Christian British king
     Good King Wenceslas: Bohemia. He could also wear armor along with his crown.
    King Louis IX: France (13th century-crowned at age 12) Shown wearing: a crown of thorns
    King Solomon and King David (Old Testament garb)

David (Shepherd): as a young boy, sash around the head, sandals, slingshot & bag for pebbles at waist St. Veronica: (Who wiped the face of Jesus.) Wear a dress or adult T-shirt tied at the waist, sandals, & veil with Jesus' face

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

2011-10-10T16:22:00.000-07:00

I hope all of you have had a wonderful long weekend and were able to take the time to thank God for the many blessings in our lives! We spent a great deal of time this week talking about things we were thankful for and even got together with the Grade 1s on Wednesday to complete some thanksgiving activities. One of the things we did was to make turkey magnets that were then passed out to people at Mass on Thursday morning as well as to some of our Senior Citizens across the street at Bethshan Gardens. It had a message on the back saying that Kindergarten and Grade 1s at CCS were thankful for them, for being part of the community where we live so we received many smiles and thanks in return. This was one little way to live our theme 'Serve with Joyful Hearts' and we had fun making our turkeys too :o)

And thank you to everyone for making our walkathon such a huge success! What a great day and I am very thankful to all our parent helpers for walking with us and keeping us safe. I believe we surpassed our classroom goal of $1500 (WOW!) and I know our school beat their goal of $15000! INCREDIBLE! Of course, we could not do any of this without all of you so THANK YOU (in a big way!) We ask that pledges are sent in at some point this week as they will be putting names of students in for our prize draw that will happen soon. If your pledges come in after Friday, students will not be entered into the draw. THANK YOU AGAIN!

We also had an exciting visit on Monday from Baby Elena during our Roots of Empathy lesson with Mrs. Tyrrell, our Grade Three teacher. In the hopes of teaching children how to treat others and address the social and emotional learning of students, we have a baby come into our classroom once a month so we can...

"observe the relationship between baby and parent, understanding the baby’s intentions and emotions. Through this model of experiential learning, the baby is the “Teacher” and a catalyst, helping children identify and reflect on their own feelings and the feelings of others."

(See http://www.rootsofempathy.org/ for more information.)

We had a great time meeting Baby Elena and talking about babies, what they do, what they need and how we care for them. This program continues throughout the year and we are very thankful to Mrs. Tyrrell for sharing her time and knowledge with us for this program.

This week, we will be looking at the Letter 'Dd' and continue to work on sounds and printing in class. We have introduced more of our regular routines and I am hoping for the Kindergarten students to join the "big kids" at recess at some point this week. We will do this gradually to see how our students are able to manage the playground with everyone else but please be assured that Miss Easterbrook will always be out there so they have a familiar face, along with our other supervisors. I know that some students like to seek out their sibling(s) and sometime want to spend recess just with them but I would encourage you to talk to your child about playing with people from our own class in order to build stronger social relationships. Sometimes students who only play with their brother or sister at recess do not get to know their classmates as well and can have a harder time socializing so please keep this in mind. I do tell students to say Hi to their siblings as well as their Grade 5 Buddies who are usually eager to find them and get a hug :o)

It is also Fire Safety Week so we will continue to talk about Fire Drills at school but I also would encourage you to develop a Fire Safety Plan at home. I will send home a note from the Fire Department this week so please review it with your child as this is such an important topic to discuss with your child. I always tell students if we know what to do when we practice, you will know exactly what to do in an emergency so please discuss often and practice, practice, practice. This is also a great topic to discuss as we approach the Firework season of Halloween.

Thank you also to everyone who has been sending play dough to school as we LOVE play dough but it seems that a few people have found it a little sticky so please feel free to add less oil or a little more flour so it is the right consistency. Play dough can be sent any time through the year if you feel the need to make some or need some service hours :o) Thank you again for your help and generousity!

Our individual photos have also come in but they came after we had packed up on Thursday and then with our Walkathon, I haven't managed to pass all of them out. If you did not receive yours yet, it will come home on Monday and please note that if you would like retakes, they will be on October 27th. Please send me a note if you would like retakes so I know which students to send-otherwise, they might miss this final photo opportunity. Thank you!

And thank you to Hailey for being a wonderful Star of the Week. This is what her classmates wrote about her...

"She likes apples. She is a good firend. Hailey is special. She follows the rules. She is beautiful."

Congratulations again, Hailey! Our Star of the Week starting on Tuesday is Jacob Fonseca! We look forward to celebrating him and learning about what makes him so special.

Well, another epic blog but I hope you have enjoyed a restful and happy weekend! God bless and see you soon!

Walkathon

2011-10-06T21:22:00.000-07:00

SO SORRY for the late message (I had a class tonight and I only just got to a computer) but Mr. Borkowski said we do NOT need to wear our uniform for our walk tomorrow so students may wear "regular clothes." (But I think it's great if we wear our uniform to show that we are PROUD CCSers, especially if you don't get this message in time :o)

Also, students needed to return the signed permission slip to participate in our walkathon but I am still missing forms from four students so if you have not returned yours, please do so tomorrow. They are hoping to announce our class totals tomorrow at our assembly so if you have not done so, please send in the yellow paper that indicates your total pledge amount.

And THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all of your hard work and support in getting pledges as each dollar only helps our school become a better place. We could not do this if it was not for all of you so THANK YOU!!!

Our students are VERY excited about our walk but I would remind you to send your child in a jacket with a hood in case of rain. Thank you to everyone who has offered to walk with us as it is a great day to spend all together and I hope the sun shines on us :o) Please note our noon dismissal so we can start the long weekend early. Thanks again!

Get Ready to WALK!

2011-10-02T20:00:00.000-07:00

Another epic blog...sorry, folks! I'm going to try to do this over the week so it's not so much all at once, especially on a Sunday Night :o)

But I hope everyone enjoyed the weekend and our autumn weather! It's October (my favourite month) and we have lots going on in Kindergarten! Last week, we spent time looking at leaves, their shape, size and all the colours! We also talked about stories, in particular the ones we find in the Bible so ask your child if they can remember one of Jesus' miracles. You may also want to ask your child to name some words that start with the letter 'Bb' because we were finding words EVERYWHERE! One day, we found 48 'Bb' words so I think we have a class of 'Bb' experts. Thank you to everyone who has been drawing, cutting and finding pictures to send in for our letter of the week as well. It helps make it more exciting for our students. Speaking of exciting...we also had a pep rally because it is almost time for our WALKATHON! So far, our class has over $1100 which is AMAZING! Our goal is $1500 so I am hoping for our last week, we can try to get those last few pledges and reach our target! Thank you so much already for your hard work and generousity! I know much (if not all) of our Kindergarten pledges comes from the help of parents but we TRULY appreciate it because this is our school's major fundraiser and it goes directly to items that make our classroom a better place. On that note, a few reminders...

Our WALKATHON is this Friday, October 7th and we are need of PARENT HELPERS who will walk with our class on this day. If you can help, please let me know, either with an email or a note in their home-school folder as I need at least 4 more supervisors. Thank you!
We will also have a NOON DISMISSAL on Friday, October 7th, right after lunch so please note this early dismissal time so students are picked up on time.
Our Walkathon usually occurs rain or shine so please have your child dressed appropriately. They should be in school uniform but girls may wear pants under their tunic if necessary. I strongly encourage children to wear rain boots if it is at all wet (Kindergarten feet seems to be attracted to big puddles) and a jacket with a hood. No umbrellas please.
On Wednesday, October 5th, in preparation of our Thanksgiving weekend, students in Kindergarten and Grade One will be getting together to complete four thanksgiving related stations from 1:00-2:00pm so we are in need of a few parent helpers to lend a hand. If you are available, please let me know :o)
October is the month of the Rosary!!! Attached to your October calendar was information about the rosary and I would encourage all of you to take some to talk about the rosary with your child during the month. We will begin looking at rosaries in class this week but it would be wonderful for families to also discuss the importance of this means of prayer at home. Even if you are only have time for a decade on the way home in the car or an extra Hail Mary before dinner, please take some time to teach your child the importance of prayer. We will also be talking about the different mysteries of the rosary so ask your child if they can remember any of them as the month goes by. Thank you and happy praying!
Scholastic Book Orders are due on Tuesday, October 4th. If you purchase any items as presents for birthdays or Christmas and would like them to be a surprise, please write on the top of the order form "SECRET" and I will let you know when the order arrives and you can pick it up yourself so your child does not see it. Otherwise, I will put the book order in your child's backpack when it arrives.
Service Hour Opportunity: We have a class who LOVES Play Dough! One way to earn service hours at home would be for you to make some play dough for our class and then send it to school. If you would like to do this, please use the following recipe (THANKS, MRS. FONSECA!) as it seems to last the longest.

Mix 2 cups of flour, 1 cup of salt and 1 cup of water in a bowl. Add 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil as this keeps the dough from hardening. You may also add some food colouring at this time. Knead the dough (your child may want to help with this one) and then store in an airtight container such as a plastic yogurt container. Then send it to school for hours of entertainment.

More Service Hours Opportunities: At the end of each month, I also send home some of our toys and bins to be washed as we have many little hands touching many of our objects and we want to avoid the spread of too many germs. On Friday, after the walkathon, I will leave the bins on the blue bench so if you would like to pick one up, wash the items at home and then return it on Tuesday, I would REALLY appreciate it. I will let you know each month when they will be on the bench so you may take them if you need the hours. Thank you in advance!!!
We are starting our Star of the Week routine with students from our class and our first Kindergarten star is going to be HAILEY OROSZ!!! We will spend the week learning more about Hailey and celebrating why she is so special! Each child will have a turn so keep your eye open for the Star Folder, which I try to send home on a Thursday so you have lots of time to fill out the forms by Monday. And don't forget your child can bring in three Show & Tells when they are the star! Yay!
LABELS: Thank you to everyone who has been ensuring that all belongings that come to school are labelled but we still have some missing items, some found items as well as items that still do not have labels. I can not emphasize how important it is to label EVERYTHING and I also ask if you could check items from time to time to make sure you have the right belongings. Evelyn Wray is still missing her sweater (her name is in it...please check at home if you have it), I have a pair of pants with no name in them on my desk and a few tunics being worn by different people. Ms. Easterbrook, myself and Mr. Klaponski try our best to help students at PE time with their uniform but without names, it can make it very challenging. Again, many items are now being labelled but it would be so helpful if we could make it EVERYTHING! Thank you for your help and support!

As William Wordworth once said, "All that we behold is full of blessings." This week we will be spending time thinking about all of the blessings that God has given to us and finding ways to show our thankfulness. Please take the time to think about your own blessings as it can be easy to get caught up in the busy-ness of everyday life and I think we would all agree that we each have many, many things to be thankful for-especially the gift of your child. Thank you again for letting me be a part of their education and I am thankful for all your help and support so far this year. Enjoy your week and God bless!

HAPPY AUTUMN!!!

2011-09-25T15:48:00.000-07:00

It's officially 'Fall' and we have almost survived our first month in Kindergarten! YAY! The students have been adjusting well to the full day of school and they are becoming more familiar with the routines and expectations of our classroom. I am SO IMPRESSED! We continue to introduce new activities and are beginning to follow some of the activities on our regular timetable. By the end of October, we should be following the complete timetable and I am hoping that the students will be able to join the rest of the school for recess and lunch times. Thank you again for all your help and support! What a great start to the year!

Just a few reminders...

WALKATHON: Our Walkathon is Friday, October 7th and each student in our school has been asked to try and raise $50 each. Our class hopes to raise $1500 in pledges so we need your help in achieving this goal. Our school is trying to raise money for information technology items (such as SmartBoards for the classroom, laptops and IPads, Document Readers, etc) but we are also encouraging the children to provide service to others. If you child receives a pledge, we encourage them to do something in return. For example, if they receive a pledge from a grandparent, perhaps they can make them a card in return. If they receive a pledge from a parent, perhaps they could do something around the house such as setting the table or sweeping the floor. If they receive a pledge from a neighbour or maybe someone that they do not really know, perhaps they can say a prayer for them. While the walkathon is our school's major fundraiser for the year, it also provides us with the opportunity to live our school theme, "Serve with Joyful Hearts." I would encourage you to talk to your child about their pledges as it is a wonderful learning opportunity and I would much rather them bring in $5 where they provided a service in return than bring in $500 that they had no involvment in. I understand that parents are the ones who are most involved in asking for pledges for Kindergarten students so I thank you for your effort and help in this matter as it so greatly helps our school. THANK YOU!!!
PLEDGE TRACKER: We are also tracking how many pledges each class has so far so I will be sending home a little note on Wednesday that needs to be returned by Friday, asking how many pledges your child has so far. We have an Assembly on Friday where a representative from each class will go up to say how their class is doing. We did this on Friday as well and it was amazing to see how many classes have almost acheived their $50 per child goal. If a class reaches their class goal, they automatically win a free pizza party, not to mention the other prizes that can be won for those bringing in pledges. Please send the note back with your total so far so we can see how our class is doing. THANK YOU!
LEAVES: This week, we will be talking about leaves and will be going on a leaf hunt to celebrate the beauty of autumn. I invite all the students to gather some leaves and bring them to school. We will be trying to find leaves of different colours and shapes so if you find any around your homes, please send them to school any day this week. We will be using them for an art activity on Friday. Thank you!
BIRTHDAY INVITATIONS: Please read the following from our policy and procedure manual about Birthday Party Invitations as we ask all families not to send invitations to the classroom to be distrubuted. We have had some problems in the past and invitations can only be passed out in the classroom if every child is invited. If students bring invitations in the classroom, I will only send them back home to you so please be considerate of our school's policy on this matter. I appreciate your help and support with this matter.
"Please use consideration for others when distributing birthday party invitations. Usually it is impossible for your child to invite the whole class to a party. Rather than having hurt feelings, we ask that you either mail the invitations or distribute them yourself to the parents of the children who are invited."
ABSENTEE NOTES: If your child is away from school, please send a note explaining their absence. You can send the note in their blue folder or you can simply email the office at office@ccsunited.ca These notes are very important so please send them the day your child returns to school. I may also send reminders for the notes as needed.
LETTER OF THE WEEK: It's Letter 'Bb' this week and thank you to everyone who sent in some 'Aa' pictures last week. We talked about how Letter A makes two sounds: a short /a/ sound (like in 'apple') and a long /a/ sound (like in 'acorn'). Letter 'b' only makes one sound but it likes to trick us because it looks so much like the letter 'd.' One way I explain it to the students is that to make a 'b' you draw a BAT and then the BALL. This way, they draw the line first and then the circle. For a 'd' you draw a DRUM and then the STICK so first they draw the circle and then the line. This can help students with remembering which is a 'b' or 'd' so you may want to remind them of this rule at home too. Please send in any Bb pictures you may have (fliers and newspapers are a great source or even internet pictures.) Thank you in advance.
LABELS: We still have some sweaters, shirts and pants with no labels in them which can make changing for PE challenging. PLEASE LABEL ALL ITEMS, including plastic lunch containers and water bottles. Thank you to everyone who has been sending water bottles so that the students have easy access to water when they need it.
LUNCHES: I'm still trying to ensure that the students are eating what they should at snack and recess. If you feel your child is not eating or drinking enough, please send me a note or email so that I may watch them more closely. They are suppose to show me their lunches before they put them away so please remind them to do so as well.

Any other questions or concerns, please let me know. I hope you all enjoy the last week of September and please keep your eye open for our October calendar that will be sent home this week. Our October Parent Volunteer Sign Up Sheet is also available outside our door. Thanks again!

A Kindergarten Novel...by Miss V.

2011-09-18T17:22:00.000-07:00

WE SURVIVED OUR FIRST-FULL-DAY-OF-SCHOOL-WEEK!!! YAY!!!

I thought I'd take a 'blogging break' after our Meet the Teacher Night but that only means that each day I've just been storing up more items to share :o) We had a FABULOUS week in Kindergarten where everyone did SO WELL with the full-day of school. I thought it would take a lot longer to adjust to I'm really pleased with how everyone has been able to manage the days. We continue to have a quiet time in the afternoon, which really looks like a bunch of kittens, lying on a blanket, playing with balls of yarn (aka stuffies!) I don't think those stuffies ever get a moments rest and I should call it "QUIETER" time because it's not really THAT quiet but everyone seems to enjoy the little pause in our day to just relax. We also spent some time talking about apples this past week and on Friday we were able to make apple sauce. YUM! The students cut the apples into pieces, we microwaved our bowl with some water for about 10 minutes and then used Mrs. Mahussier's apple mill to ground it all up (a blender works fine too.) We added some cinnamon and then sampled. It has the Kindergarten stamp of approval for being a good food to eat and you may want to try making it at home :o) Our theme next week is 'Autumn' so we will be talking about some of the changes we might be noticing outside, such as the cooler weather, changing leaves and the earlier sunset.

Just a few reminders abour our week ahead...

We have our Terry Fox Walk on Monday so we ask that all students can bring in some change for a donation. They will put it in ice-cream buckets as we come in for our Assembly in the afternoon, just like they did with Terry Fox himself. We will talk about Terry Fox all week as he is a perfect example of our school theme, 'SERVE WITH JOYFUL HEARTS.' Thank you for your generousity.
Scholastic Orders as well as Highlights, Chickadee and Puzzlemania forms are due Monday. Please note that for the magazine orders, they send us free items, even if you do not wish to subscribe. Please indicate your response, sign the form and return it, even if the answer is 'no' and these companies will send items for the classroom and the students. Thank you to everyone who has already handed in the forms.
We are starting LETTER OF THE WEEK! That means that Monday, we will start looking at Letter 'Aa' so if you have any photos or pictures of items that start with the letter Aa, please send them to school with your child and we'll add them to our letter wall. THANK YOU!
We are also starting a few more of our regular routines this week and I expect to be completely following our timetable by October. One thing that we are also practicing for is a Fire Drill. Fire Drills can sometimes create some anxiety in students as it is loud and talking about emergencies can sometimes be a little scary. Please talk to your child about the importance of Fire Drills as well as why we have them. The two most important things I try to get across to the students is that if we practice and know what to do in an emergency, then we will be safe because we have a plan AND that the most important thing to think about in a fire drill is your OWN SAFETY! We don't worry about jackets, stuffies, schoolbags or even teachers...they should only worry about getting out safely (then we can worry about those teachers :o) I would also encourage you to talk about a safety plan at home and having a designated safe meeting place outside. Thank you for your help with this!
We were able to take out our first Library Book this week and that book (along with the bag) is due back on WEDNESDAY. Wednesdays will be our return book day and Thursdays will be our choose a book day. We will have a bin in the classroom on Wednesday for the students to put their book and bag in. If they do not return the book, they will not be able to take out a new book. Thank you!
Photo Day has been moved to this Friday, September 23rd so please make sure your child is in complete uniform, including their sweater.
I believe that Friday is also our first Food Bank Mass so please send items with your child that you wish to donate. This is yet another way for our students to live our theme, "Serve with Joyful Hearts" and is especially appreciated as we approach the Thanksgiving Season.
WALKATHON! Our walkathon is October 7th and students have all received their pledge forms. Our goal this year is for each class to bring in $1500!!! (Our class gets a pizza party if we make it plus there are other prizes to win as well for anyone who brings in pledges :o) We are trying to raise money for information technology items such as Smart Boards and IPads that can be used in class but we don't have a lot of time to get all the pledges we need. We are encouraging our students to ask anyone they can but we are also encouraging them to offer service projects to those who may pledge them. This could be helping to rake the leaves at a neighbour's house or setting the table at an aunt or uncle's home. It could be making a card for grandparents who pledge them or even saying a prayer for the people at your work that your child may not have met. Talk to your child about things they can do in return for those who pledge them because as much as we need those pledges, we would much rather have our students finding ways to help others, just as God would want us to do.
Speaking of our school theme and service, I am talking to the students about joy as well as J.O.Y. which stands for JESUS, OTHERS, YOU. We have been talking about joy as being very happy but we are also thinking about service and doing God's will which means that we need to have certain priorities in our lives. We should put JESUS first in all that we do, then think about other people. Finally, we should think about ourselves. If we remember our priorities, we will have true joy so you may also want to talk about this with your child at home.
If you do not send a water bottle with your child to school, I would encourage you to do so since we no longer have a water fountain in our classroom. If your child has a water bottle, they are able to get a drink after PE, recess or any time they need one plus we can refill it in the classroom at one of our sinks. I have had a few students who have asked for drinks and we have to go past the office to the water fountain which takes a long time and requires an adult to go with them so it would be very helpful for them to keep a water bottle in their backpack. THANK YOU!
And FINALLY, Hailey has been missing a ziploc baggie of items since the very first week of school and we have looked EVERYWHERE for them with no luck. All of her items are labelled so I am asking that everyone has a look at home as well as in their child's backpack, just in case it got in there somehow. I would remind everyone to label EVERYTHING, especially white shirts and pants as things can easily get mixed up on PE days and I have found several items with no names already. Thank you to everyone who has been so diligent in labelling items...it's a big help!

Well, you can see how I spent my Sunday...I have Kindergarten on the brain but I must say that I have enjoyed every minute in Kindergarten so far! They really are a fun group of students so I feel very blessed to spend each day with them. I think I'll go back to blogging everyday so maybe I don't overwhelm you with SO MUCH information all at once but I appreciate your patience with me as well as your support. I hope everyone enjoyed the weekend and Week Three...here we come!!!

Photo Day

2011-09-11T19:32:00.000-07:00

Please note that Photo Day has been moved to September 23...sorry for the inconvenience! Also, we are talking about apples this week in Kindergarten and you are welcome to send in an apple from home as we are going to be comparing different varieties, tasting them and then turning them into apple sauce :o) I have enough apples for the class but sometimes children find more meaning to it when they bring in their own items so feel free to do so by Wednesday. THANK YOU! See you in the morning :o)

The First Week

2011-09-10T18:31:00.000-07:00

Whew! We made it through the first week and I was VERY impressed with how well everyone did in adjusting to being at school. Way to go, Kindergartens!  They also did a WONDERFUL job at Mass on Friday with their Grade Five Buddies so we have had an excellent start to our year.

On Monday, we will begin our full-day of school until 3:00pm so I expect many new adjustments as we start this transition. We will have two quiet time periods during the day for students to rest and relax as well as activities that they are familiar with in the classroom. We spent the first week visiting 10 different centers and we will do this again so a great deal of our day is play-based. We will also have both a snack as well as lunch but please note, despite the 15 minutes that is allotted in the schedule, I allow children to eat until they are finished so there will always be enough time. I am also doing lunch checks to encourage children to eat what they have but if you find your child is returning food that you want them to eat during the day, please let me know. I really appreciate so many students bringing re-useable containers and water bottles as our garbage so far has been minimal. What a great lesson to learn at such a young age!

While I do not start all of our regular routines until October, we will have Music, Computers AND PE on Monday which should really help break up our first full-day. When we change for PE, we leave our uniform on our tables but it is easy for items to get mixed up so I REALLY encourage you to ensure that EVERYTHING is labelled, including shirts, pants and tunics. Please check your child's clothes and backpacks frequently to ensure they have the rights items, especially at the beginning of the year. Thank you also to everyone who is making sure our blue home-school folder is in their backpack each day-that is a HUGE help to me!

On Tuesday night, we will have our Meet the Staff Night so parents are invited to meet in our gym at 6:30pm. If you require babysitting, please call or email the office as they need to know how many children will be attending. After a brief meeting in the gym, parents are then invited to come over to the school and sit through an information session by their classroom teacher. There are two sessions that evening, which are usually about 15 minutes so you may attend the first or the second, depending if you have other children in the school and need to visit their classrooms as well. At our information session, I will pass out a parent package that has more information about our year together. If you are unable to attend, I will send the package home on Wednesday. I hope to see you all on Tuesday night :o)

We also have a Walk-a-thon Assembly on Tuesday afternoon (I hope to bring our Kindergarten class but it can sometimes be very loud so I am waiting to see how most of our students are feeling that day) and your child will be bringing home a pledge sheet. Please keep a lookout for this information as our Walk-a-thon is our major fundraiser for our school and we are encouraging all students to participate in whatever way they can.

Did I ever mention I like to write? I apologize for writing so much but I would rather write too much than have families have questions about what is happening in Kindergarten, especially as many of our routines and activities are new to families coming to CCS for the first time. Feel free to use these blogs as reading material to help you fall asleep at night :o) Thank you again to everyone for such a great first week and I look forward to the weeks ahead. God bless!

Food Bank Mass

2011-09-08T21:10:00.001-07:00

Sorry! Tomorrow is NOT a Food Bank Mass but if you do have items, I can kept them in the classroom until we do have a collection. Thank you for your generousity!

The first 'REAL' day...

2011-09-07T22:55:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is getting a good night sleep tonight because it was a busy day with lots of new things to take in. Wow! But I was amazed with how well everyone did for the first day and I hope each day will get a little easier from now on as the children become more familiar with the routines and rules. Then we can have some more fun!

Thank you to everyone who has returned their student information form, their family photo and the phone list note so far and also for those who have sent their child's gym shoes, stuffie, and towel/blanket. I have also seen some baggies of extra socks/underwear/shorts that I will ask the kids to keep in their backpack, just in case as accidents can very easily happen :o) I realized today that many of them are used to their daily group trip to the bathroom that was the routine of our Wee Saints Preschool so I reminded them that we have our own bathrooms in the classroom that can be used at any time. This made everyone want to go to the bathroom all at once. A learning lesson for me :o)

Thank you also to everyone who had the blue folder in their child's backpack today. I am hoping for the children to get used to handing it in every morning when they first come in but for the first little while, I will go through backpacks to check they I have them all. This lets me add any notes or forms and to see if you have sent me any notes. Whenever possible, please use the blue folder as it's the best way for me to track paper. And today, I received Hot Lunch forms in the afternoon so I will send them home on Thursday but please note that they are due on FRIDAY by 3:00pm. If you would like your child to have Hot Lunch, please ensure your forms are in by Friday or they will not be able to order until next month.

We are also having a CCS Used Book Sale on Friday. For anyone interested, books will be sold for 10 cents each and we also have some toys and stuffies. The Used Book Sale will happen at noon on Friday so you could purchase any items then when you pick them up if you are interested. Thank you!

We also have a family who is looking for a carpool, living in the area of 182 Street and 64 Avenue. Please look under announcements on our school website for contact information or please come and see me if you are able to help. THANK YOU!

Our First Day Open House

2011-09-06T22:01:00.000-07:00

Thank you to everyone for coming to our Kindergarten Open House and for becoming more familiar with our classroom. It was so wonderful to see everyone and to have so many smiling students!

On Wednesday, we will line-up outside at 8:50am when the bell rings. Just look for the 'K' written on the cement near the zipline. We will say good-bye to all our families and then enter the school to begin our day :o) Miss Easterbrook and myself will be there to help them find their place, hang up backpacks and take out any belongings to be left at school. We will be having a snack and hopefully meeting Mrs. Mar for Music and Mr. Sutton for Computers during our time together.

Dismissal is at noon for our Kindergarten students for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday this week but please note that this is always our school recess time so there will likely be a lot of other students flooding out the door. Please wait outside as I will come to the door but it would be very helpful if you (or the person picking up your child) can come to me and tell me who they are waiting to pick up. This really helps me with names and faces and I apologize if it takes me a few tries to recognize you. Kindergarten students can only be released directly to their pick-up person so please come by the door at dismissal and thank you for your patience (both in waiting to pick up your child and in helping me know your name).

I'm sure many parents are concerned about how their child will adjust to being at school as our days can seem long but I am certainly trying to make our transition as smooth as possible. I do not start our regular routines until October as September is really a time for us to adjust to being at school, learning about expectations and meeting new friends. Much of our day will be filled with social opportunities and playtime with quiet times in between. If you have concerns as the next few weeks go by, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am hoping to make our days enjoyable and fun as Kindergarten is a time of exploration and hopefully our students will be able to quickly adjust to being at school.

Thank you also to everyone who has sent in their student information form...you can send it in whenever you have completed it but it is very helpful for me to learn a little more about your child as well as your family. If you have not already done so, you can also submit your email address on this blog so that when I add something new, you will be notified by email. This way, you do not need to keep checking in to the website and you will be updated as soon as I add something. Oh technology!

I appreciate all the support and kind words today and I'm looking forward to our days ahead together. Thank you and God bless!

BACK TO SCHOOL

2011-09-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has a good sleep tonight and I'm looking forward to seeing you all on the first day of school. Yay! Any questions, please email me at lvanderk@hotmail.com :o)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

2011-08-29T19:12:00.000-07:00

Wow! Summer is almost over and we are quickly approaching the first day of school. I hope your child is as excited as I am as I am looking forward to getting to know them during our year together. I have mailed information home to each family so that you will know what the first week of school will look like for Kindergarten students.

Our first day on Tuesday, September 6th is an Open House and parents are invited to bring their child between 8:50am and Noon to spend about 30 minutes completing a few activities and looking around the classroom.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, we will have class from 8:50am until Noon. We will begin our full-day on Monday, September 12th.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me but I look forward to seeing you all very soon. Enjoy the last few days of summer and God bless!

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER!

2011-06-29T12:28:00.001-07:00