Dealing With Disruptive Behavior

Experts from the Child Mind Institute share the techniques they use with kids in behavioral therapy -- so you can use them at home to improve your own child's behavior.

One of the biggest challenges parents face is managing their children's difficult or defiant behavior. Whether children are refusing to put on their shoes, ignoring instructions to turn off a video game, shoving a sibling, or throwing a full-blown tantrum, you can find yourself at a loss for an effective way to respond.
In behavioral therapy, psychologists or psychiatrists help parents maximize the kind of behavior they want to encourage, and minimize the kind they'd like to see less of. There are well-tested techniques that help parents become more confident, calm, consistent, and successful when they interact with their children. These techniques also help children develop the skills they need to regulate their own behavior and have happier relationships with their families, teachers, and friends.
Here are the basics of a good behavioral management plan that you can use at home.

Define Behaviors The first step is to identify the target behaviors that you either want to encourage or discourage. These behaviors should be specific, observable, and measurable (so everyone can agree whether or not the behavior happened). An example of poorly defined behavior is "being good" or "acting up." A well-defined behavior would be "grabbing another child's toy" or "sitting nicely at the dinner table."

Set the Stage Once you've targeted behaviors you want to see more or less of, you should focus on the antecedents, or the preceding factors that make the behaviors more or less likely to occur. These are ways to increase the likelihood of positive behavior and decrease the likelihood of negative behavior.
Adjust the environment. For a homework session, for instance, remove distractions like video screens and toys, provide a snack if your child is hungry, and schedule breaks to help him stay alert.
Make expectations clear. You'll get better cooperation if you think clearly about what you are expecting, and tell your child with words. For example, explain that bedtime is at 8:00 on school nights. It starts with putting on pajamas, brushing teeth, using the bathroom, and a half hour of reading together in bed before lights out. It's even more helpful to write expectations out and hang them up (using pictures if your child can't read yet).
Countdown to transitions. Whenever possible, prepare your child for an upcoming transition. Let her know when there are 10 minutes remaining before she must come to dinner or start cleaning up. Then remind her when there are two minutes left. Be sure that you actually make the transition at the stated time.
Give a choice when possible. Providing two options is a good way to set up structure while empowering your child to have a say. You might ask, "Do you want to take a shower before dinner or after?" or "Do you want to turn off the TV or should I?" The key is that the choice should be presented calmly and politely.
Use "when, then" statements. These are a useful tool that offers a clear expectation as well as a reward for cooperating. For example: "When you complete your homework, then you will get to play on the iPad." Make sure you present the "when, then" calmly and limit how often you repeat yourself.

Give Instructions Effectively Psychologists help parents choose pick the right words to get the results they want.
Use statements, not questions. "Please take out your math worksheet" or "Please sit down" is better than "Are you ready to get out your homework?"
Tell your child what to do instead of what not to do. If he's jumping on the couch, you want to say, "Please get down from the couch" instead of "Please stop jumping."
Be clear and specific. Instead of "Go ahead," say, "Please go start your reading assignment." Instead of "Settle down," say, "Please use your inside voice."
Give instructions calmly and respectfully. This helps your child learn to be polite when speaking to others. She'll also learn to listen to calm instructions instead of listening only when you shout instructions or her name several times.
Say it once. After you give an instruction, wait a few seconds, rather than repeating what you said. Your child will learn to listen to instructions the first time, rather than assuming you'll say them again.

Next:  Choose the Right Consequences

Parenting your strong-willed child

Parenting Tips > Discipline That Helps, Not Hurts
http://www.ahaparenting.com/parenting-tools/positive-discipline/Parenting-Strong-Willed-Child

Parenting Your Strong-Willed Child

Have a strong-willed child?  You're lucky! Strong willed children can be a challenge to parent when they’re young, but if sensitively parented, they become terrific teens and young adults.  Self-motivated and inner-directed, they go after what they want and are almost impervious to peer pressure.  As long as parents resist the impulse to "break their will," strong-willed kids often become leaders. 

What exactly is a strong-willed, or spirited, child?  Some parents call them "difficult" or “stubborn,” but we could also see them as people of integrity who aren’t easily swayed from their own viewpoints.  They want desperately to be right, and sometimes will put that desire above everything else. When their heart is set on something, their brains seem to have a hard time switching gears.  They have big, passionate feelings and live at full throttle.

Often, these kids are prone to power-struggles with their parents.  However, it takes two to have a power struggle.  You don't have to  attend every argument to which you're invited!  If you can take a deep breath when your buttons get pushed, and remind yourself that you can let your child save face and still get what you want, you can learn to sidestep those power struggles. 
Research shows that  parents who pay attention can avoid power struggles, even with strong-willed kids, by empathizing as they set limits, giving choices, and clearly offering respect.  Adopting a policy of looking for win/win solutions rather than just laying down the law keeps strong-willed children from becoming explosive and teaches them essential skills of negotiation and compromise.

Strong-willed kids feel their integrity is compromised if they're forced to submit to a parent's will.  And, really, you don't WANT to raise an obedient child.  Of course you want your child to do what you say.  But not because he is obedient, meaning he always does what someone bigger tells him.  No, you want him to do what you say because he trusts YOU, because you are the parent and have his best interests at heart.  You want to raise a child who has self-discipline, takes responsibility, and is considerate -- and most important, has the discernment to figure out when to trust and be influenced by someone else.  Breaking a child's will leaves him open to the influence of others that often will not serve him.  What's more, it's a betrayal of the spiritual contract we make as parents to nurture our child's unique gifts.

That said, strong-willed kids can be a handful -- high energy, challenging, persistent.  How do we protect those fabulous qualities and encourage their cooperation?

Ten Tips for Positive Parenting Your Strong-Willed, Spirited Child

1. Avoid power struggles by using routines and rules.  That way, you aren't bossing them around, it’s just that “The rule is we use the potty after every meal and snack,” or “The schedule is that lights-out is at 8pm.  If you hurry, we’ll have time for two books,” or "In our house, we finish homework before computer, TV, or telephone time."  The parent stops being the bad guy.

2.  Your strong-willed child wants mastery more than anything.  Let her take charge of as many of her own activities as possible.  Don’t nag at her to brush her teeth, ask “What else do you need to do before we leave?”   If she looks blank, tick off the short list: “Every morning we eat, brush teeth, use the toilet, and pack the backpack.  I saw you pack your backpack, great job!  Now, what do you still need to do before we leave?”  Kids who feel more independent and in charge of themselves will have less need to rebel and be oppositional. Not to mention they take responsibility early.

3.  Give your strong-willed child choices.  If you give orders, he will almost certainly bristle.  If you offer a choice, he feels like the master of his own destiny.  Of course, only offer choices you can live with and don’t let yourself get resentful by handing away your power.  If going to the store is non-negotiable and he wants to keep playing, an appropriate choice is:  “Do you want to leave now or in ten minutes?”

4. Give her authority over her own body. “I hear that you don’t want to wear your jacket today.  I think it is cold and I am definitely wearing a jacket.  Of course, you are in charge of your own body, as long as you stay safe and healthy, so you get to decide whether to wear a jacket.  But I’m afraid that you will be cold once we are outside, and I won’t want to come back to the house.  How about I put your jacket in the backpack, and then we’ll have it if you change your mind?”  She’s not going to get pneumonia, unless you push her into it by acting like you’ve won if she asks for the jacket.  And once she won’t lose face by wearing her jacket, she’ll be begging for it once she gets cold.  It’s just hard for her to imagine feeling cold when she’s so warm right now in the house, and a jacket seems like such a hassle. She's sure she's right -- her own body is telling her so -- so naturally she resists you.  You don't want to undermine that self-confidence, just teach her that there's no shame in letting new information change your mind.

5. Don't push him into opposing you.  If you take a hard and fast position, you can easily push your child into defying you, just to prove a point.  You'll know when it's a power struggle and you're invested in winning.  Just stop, take a breath, and remind yourself that winning a battle with your child always sets you up to lose what’s most important: the relationship.  When in doubt say "Ok, you can decide this for yourself."  If he can't, then say what part of it he can decide, or find another way for him to meet his need for autonomy without compromising his health or safety.

6. Side step power struggles by letting your child save face.  You don’t have to prove you’re right. You can, and should, set reasonable expectations and enforce them.  But under no circumstances should you try to break your child’s will or force him to acquiesce to your views.  Just recently I heard from a mother how she herself refused to take a nap at age four.  It wasn't enough that she finally was forced to get into her bed, her father spanked her until she said she wanted to nap.  This was a defining moment of this woman's life, and she spent the rest of her childhood alternating between rebelling against her parents and considering suicide. 

7.  Listen to her. You, as the adult, might reasonably presume you know best.  But your strong-willed child has a strong will partly as a result of her integrity. She has a viewpoint that is making her hold fast to her position, and she is trying to protect something that seems important to her. Only by listening calmly to her and reflecting her words will you come to understand what’s making her oppose you.  A non-judgmental  “I hear that you don’t want to take a bath.  Can you tell me more about why?” might just elicit the information that she’s afraid she’ll go down the drain, like Alice in the song. It may not seem like a good reason to you, but she has a reason.  And you won’t find it out if you get into a clash and order her into the tub.

8.  See it from his point of view.  For instance, he may be angry because you promised to wash his superman cape and then forgot.  To you, he is being stubborn.  To him, he is justifiably upset, and you are being hypocritical, because he is not allowed to break his promises to you.  How do you clear this up and move on?  You apologize profusely for breaking your promise, you reassure him that you try very hard to keep your promises, and you go, together, to wash the cape.  You might even teach him how to wash his own clothes! Just consider how would you want to be treated, and treat him accordingly.

9. Discipline through the relationship, never through punishment. Kids don’t learn when they’re in the middle of a fight.  Like all of us, that’s when adrenaline is pumping and learning shuts off.  Kids behave because they want to please us.  The more you fight with and punish your child, the more you undermine her desire to please you.


10. Offer him respect and empathy. Most strong-willed children are fighting for respect.   If you offer it to them, they don’t need to fight to protect their position.  And, like the rest of us, it helps a lot if they feel understood.  If you see his point of view and think he's wrong -- for instance, he wants to wear the superman cape to synagogue and you think that's inappropriate -- you can still offer him empathy and meet him part way while you set the limit. "You love this cape and wish you could wear it, don't you?  But when we go to Temple we dress up, and we can't wear the cape.  I know you'll miss wearing it.  How about we take it with us so you can wear it on our way home?"


Does this sound like Permissive Parenting?  It isn't. Here's why Permissive Parenting sabotages your child.
 Need more ideas about How to put Positive Parenting to work with your Strong-Willed Child?

Sight Word Game

When practicing those sight words- keep it fun! Here's an easy to make game for home. Grab a peice of paper (or use the blank game board I've sent home) right some sight words along a "path" and the borrow a die from a game you already own! Your child can use any small object to move along the path such as a cheerio or penny. Start at the beginning, roll the die, move that many spaces, read the word!

I found this idea (and SOOO many others) on Pinterest. If you aren't on pinterest and would like to be then let me know and I can send you an invite! Click here to view my "Classroom Board" for more fun ideas!

Alphabet Letter Formation Poems

Alphabet Letter Formation Poems

 

A - Pull down twice from the point to the top. Add a seat to view the apple crop.

a - First make a round apple to eat, then a slide for an ant when he's finished his treat!

B - Big old B has a tall straight back and two big bellies 'cause he just ate a snack!

b - Draw a straight back just like me. Don't forget to add a belly for b.

Cc - Cars can cruise down curvy c. Stop near the ground- that's it you see!

D - Down to the ground, then take a break. Half a circle is what you'll make.

d - First you make a dime to spend. Go way up high then down to the end.

E - Pull straight down for capital E. Then add some shelves 1, 2, 3.

e - A little line start off e. Add a plate for an egg- here's breakfast for me!

F - Big F is a tall flower for you. E has three lines, F has two.

f - This flower grows tall and hangs a little. Add a line right in the middle.

G - Big round circle but don't go too far. Add a garage to park your car!

g - A garden starts with a little seed. The roots grow down that's all you need!

H- Make two lines, high to low. Connect the lines so they can say hello!

h - First start high then take a jump. Little h has a little hump.

I - Big I starts with one side of a door. All it needs is a roof and a floor.

i - Little i goes down, it's an ice cream treat. Add a sprinkle on top and it's ready to eat.

J - Jumping jack J jumps up and down and then curls up. Jack needs a hat 'cause he likes to dress up!

j - Little j is so thin and lean. Jump way down, then add a jellybean!

Kk - K and k have three lines as you can see: a tall straight back and a sideways v.

L - Pull down a line and add a lap. Lie down, lazy! It's time for a nap!

l - Little l looks like a number one. Just draw a line and you are done!

M - Go down, hit the ground, then draw a V. Down to the ground again big M is two mountains for me.

m - Go down, hit the ground then get ready for bumps. Little m is easy to write, just add two humps.

N - Stick a nail in the ground and slant another one right. Add a third pointing up and say “nighty-night”!

n - Go down, hit the ground and your almost done. Little m has two humps, n has only one!

Oo - Oh yum! An orange to eat! Nice and round, it's a healthy treat.

P - Pull down your pencil, then pick it up off the ground. Add a half a penny, nice and round.

p - Pop on down and then up, you see. Finish it off with a little pea!

Q - Big Q is a round quarter to spend. Add a line when you're at the end.

q - A fancy queen with a little pearl. Give q's hair a special curl.

R - First draw a line and then a rainbow. Add a ramp and you're ready to go!

r - Go straight down, then race on back. r has an arm, like a little rack.

Ss - Silly S and s, those slippery snakes. Twisty, turny, ready to shake!

T - Big T is a big tall tree. Add a fort at the top so you can see.

T - Little t is a little tree. Add a fort in the middle for you and me!

U - Big U is just like a cup. Start by going down and then curve up.

U - Curve down and up, then down once more. Little u is a cup that's ready to pour.

V v - Slant down first then up like so. This upside-down volcano is ready to blow!

W w - W and w have two pointy waves. Swim in the water if you're brave!

X x - A criss and a cross and in case you forgot, where is the treasure? X marks the spot!

Y - Capital Y has a V in the air. The pole at the bottom holds it there.

Y - Slant down right, down to the ground. Slant down left and take it underground.

Z z - Zigzag Z and z are easy, you see. Just zig a zag - 1, 2, 3!

Sight words ("Star words" to us)

**This was taken from Ms. Barker's classroom blog. Thanks for helping us!**

If you have not already begun to work on the Dolch Words with your child, please get started now! (Smiles!) These high-frequency words are useful because:

*As readers learn more, having many words that are quickly recognized helps to move the reading along so that problem solving is not necessary on each word; fluency is supported by a large number of easily recognized words.

*Being able to write a small group of high-frequency words quickly without conscious attention helps young writers produce longer and more meaningful messages; they keep the momentum going because they do not have to slow down to puzzle out every word. 

Here's a link to the 220 Dolch Words (arranged according to frequency): http://www.mrsperkins.com/dolch-words-all-freq-printable.pdf

Educational Apps!

I borrowed this listing from this blog: http://aplacecalledkindergarten.blogspot.com/2010/08/i-love-my-new-ipad.html

 

Robot Reader (free) a robot voice tells you the letter, sound, word and definition of something that starts with that letter

1 2 3 Color ($1.99) I love this app! It is basically a fancy color by number, letter or color picture. The letter, number or color only disappears if you choose the right one.

Letters A to Z ($.99) This is the app that I am going to use first. It is letter and sound flash cards with cute illustrations.

iWrite Words ($2.99) Great app for practicing writing upper and lowercase letters, numbers and words. Love how you have to send the letters down a "hole" when you are finished.

Letter Lab ($2.99) Great app for writing upper and lowercase letters.

Pocket Charts! Beginning Sounds ($1.99) Match a letter to a picture of something that starts with that letter. The only thing I do not like about this app is that the pictures are shown in alphabetical order.

Pocket Charts! Vowel Sounds (($1.99) Identify short and long vowels. Great app.

Learn Sight Words ($.99) This is an iPhone app, but it is worth it because you can flag the sight words that you use or sight words that a child is having trouble identifying for practice.

ABC Sight Words Writing ($2.99) Good app for practicing spelling and writing sight words.

Memory Zoo ($.99) Love the pictures on this app. This is an animal memory game.

Week of Oct 31

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News

October 31, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:

The 1^st quarter of school ends this week! There will be no school for students on Friday as this is a teacher work day to complete report cards. Kindergarten does NOT receive a grade for the first quarter. We will have a conference to discuss your child’s strengths and weaknesses next week. As of right now we are scheduling families with multiple students. Once those are complete I will send home your child’s conference time. Remember- this is the sponsor’s “place of duty” at that time. If your commander/1Sgt will not let you off for your child’s conference please let me know.

Unit 1 tests are complete! Math testing is going on this week. All results will be discussed at your conference time.

Donations needed this week: Egg cartons (10-12ct please).

Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:

11/1: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

11/3: End of 1^st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/5: Craft Market Fundraiser

11/9-11/10 Parent Teacher Conferences (no school for Elem. students

11/11: No school Veteran’s Day

11/21: School wide Continuous School Improvement mtg

3pm

Monday 10/17 Art

Tuesday 10/18 Host Nation

Wednesday 10/19 PE

Thursday 10/20 Music (in the AM)

Friday 10/21 PE

!!!REMINDER!!!

Library is on Friday

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

Homework is not mandatory but highly recommended!!

Writing:

Sight words: have, is

Review: am, I, little, it, a, the

KE1a.9: Listen to and say consonant-vowel-consonant (cvc) sounds and blend the

sounds to make words.

KE1a.14: Match all consonant sounds in simple words (such as mad, red, pin,

Science:

Animal Habitats

KSb.1: Recognize what organisms need to stay alive (including air, water, food, and shelter).

Reading:

Letters:  reviewing all

Families: -at

Reviewing character, setting, sequence, and sorting/classifying.

Life in an Ocean

KE1a.14: Match all consonant sounds in simple words (such as mad, red, pin,

Math:

K.M.2c: identify, reproduce, describe, extend, and create color, rhythmic, shape, number, and letter repeating patterns with simple attributes;

K.M.3a: name, describe, sort, compare, and draw two-dimensional shapes;

Books:

3 Billy Goats Gruff

Math math and more math books!!!!

Plus many more!

THIS WEEK’S POEMThis week we focus on the /a/ in the middle of
wordsIt’s Time to Go Camping

It’s time to grab a handy map,

It’s time to pack a bag too!

The ride is long; we’ll take a nap,

It’s time to go camping!

Dad packs all the pots and pans,

Gram packs Sammy, the cat, too!

Ann lines up at the yellow van,

It’s time to go camping!

COLOR OF THE WEEK:

(don’t forget Show-n-Share on Friday! It

must be the color of the week!)

Orange

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt

(Leader)
We're going on a bear hunt!
(Group)
We're going on a bear hunt!

We're gonna catch a big one!
We're gonna catch a big one!
I'm not afraid!
I'm not afraid!
Are you?
Are you?
Not me!
Not me!

Here comes the gate
" " (Group Echos)
Now we're on a bear hunt " "
We're gonna catch a big one " "
I'm not afraid " "
Are you? " " Not me! " "

We're coming to a tall mountain " "
It sure is high " "
It sure is wide " "
Let's climb up it " "
Well, there's nothing over there " "
Nothing over there " "
Nothing back there " "
Hey! Wait! I think I see something
Quick! Everybody run down!

We're going on a bear hunt!
We're going on a bear hunt!
We're gonna catch a big one!
We're gonna catch a big one!
I'm not afraid!
I'm not afraid!
Are you?
Are you?
Not me!
Not me!

We're going thru the tall grass " "
We're going thru the short grass " "
Hey! Look! There's a little tree " "
Well, let's shinny on up it
Whoa! It gets a little skinny up here at the top
See anything over that way? " "
Anything over that way?, Uh, oh!,
Oh, no! Whoa! Agh! let's get down!

We're going on a bear hunt!
We're going on a bear hunt!
We're gonna catch a big one!
We're gonna catch a big one!
I'm not afraid!
I'm not afraid!
Are you?
Are you?
Not me!
Not me!

Oh, no! " "
It's a big puddle of mud " "
Can't go around it " "
Gotta go right thru it " "
Yeuk! " "
Well, let's go.
Squish, Sqwish, Blaaahh.

We're going on a bear hunt!
We're going on a bear hunt!
We're gonna catch a big one!
We're gonna catch a big one!
I'm not afraid!
I'm not afraid!
Are you?
Are you?
Not me!
Not me!

We're coming to a wide river " "
And there's no bridge going over it " "
No tunnel going under it " "
It's just plain old water " "
And we're gonna have to swim " "
All right, dive in!
Start swimming
Do the back stroke
Do the side stroke
Do the doggie paddle
Try the little cat paddle
OK Jump out, shake yourself off

We're going on a bear hunt!
We're going on a bear hunt!
We're gonna catch a big one!
We're gonna catch a big one!
I'm not afraid!
I'm not afraid!
Are you?
Are you?
Not me!
Not me!

Shhh, it's a cave " "
Looks like the kind of cave that B-bears live in " "
I don't know if I want to go in there
You think we oughta go in?
Are you nuts?
There's probably a bear in there
All right I'll go in, You stay here,
And if I find a bear, I'll come out and get you
And we'll all go in and grab him together
Now, quiet, don't make a sound while I'm in that cave,
Cuz if you wake him up, I'll be in trouble
Bears are awful ornery when they first wake up, you know
OK, I'm going on in
Oooo, It's dark in here
It's really dark in here
I can't see a thing
Agh, there's spiders webs
Ooo, what was that???
What's this??.... it's soft, uh oh,it's kind of fuzzy

Ahg!!!!!!!!! Run! Everybody run!!
I saw a bear!!!!
Jump in the water! Swim fast!!
Do the backstroke!
The sidestroke, the doggie paddle
Jump out of the water
Run through the mud!
Forget the tree!!
Go through the tall grass
The short grass
Quick! Go up the mountain
Down the other side
Go thru the gate
Into the house, under the bed
Under the pillow
Hide!!!!!
Uh, it's awful quiet around here
I'm not afraid
I'm not afraid
Are you?
Are you?

 

Calling all computer techies!

I am trying to insert a book preview for you all to see. It is a word document though and I don't know how to link it so you can open it at home. Anyone know how??

Week of Oct 24

Sorry parents, no fancy newsletter this week!

In language arts we will be reviewing EVERYTHING we’ve learned up to this point: letters, sight words, sequence, characters, setting, writing the sounds we hear in words, etc. Instead of reading groups (during our “centers” block) they will be taking their Unit 1 test this week. We will also be giving the new reading assessment at the end of the week to those children who have already begun reading. As I finish testing your child I will send home results for you to review.

In math we will be reviewing all that we have learned up to this point plus learning shapes. I know most of the children know their basic shapes but we are learning ALL 2-D shapes- trapezoids, hexagons, pentagons, etc! We will take a shape walk through the school to draw the shapes we see and make shape collages.

This week we will also have fun Fall/Halloween activities for the children to do- if they choose to! If they don’t want to do something Halloween related we will have things for Fall- and ALL are fun! I figured with writing/publishing a book and all the “testing” they need to have a little fun!

The children have ALMOST earned a “popcorn/movie” party by filling our classroom bucket (ask your child about this!) so encourage best behavior and I bet we can fill that bucket by Halloween!

Donations needed: candy corn, dried leaves, ribbon in “fall/Halloween” colors

Happy Birthday Kevin!

Week of Oct. 17

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News
October 17, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:
This quarter is flying by! Only 3 weeks left. This week we will finish our first unit of our reading curriculum. We will be taking a unit test at the end of the week. When reading each night, talk with your child about the characters, setting, and sequence of the story. Please review the letter names and sounds. For game ideas please see the class website.
We will create our class book “I am thankful for…” this week as part of journal and reading group time. Talk with your child about what being thankful means and what they are thankful for. Have them draw pictures of what they are thankful for. Have them say the word slowly and write down the letter sounds they hear. Correct spelling is NOT important at this stage in writing!!! Always praise your child for any attempts at writing letters/words. We have practiced this in our journals and they are doing great! Be on the lookout for the order form for your hard back copy of the class book. Thanks for participlating!
Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:

10/20: Bingo/Pizza fundraiser in the MPS @ 1800

11/3: End of 1st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/5: Craft Market Fundraiser

11/9-11/10 Parent Teacher Conferences (no school for Elem. students

11/10: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

11/11: No school Veteran’s Day

Monday 10/17
Art
Tuesday 10/18
Host Nation
Wednesday 10/19
PE
Thursday 10/20
Music (in the AM)
Friday 10/21
PE

!!!REMINDER!!!

You may keep a spare change of clothes in your child’s backpack. We can store them in the room if you don’t want them to carry them back and forth. Accidents (and mud puddles) happen!

Library is on Friday

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:
www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

Homework is not mandatory but highly recommended!!


Writing:
Sight words: to, a
Review: am, I, little, it, is, the

Please review these sight words for our unit test!!!
KE2a.1: Discuss ideas to include in a story.
KE2a.3: Write using pictures, letters, and words.


Reading:

Letters: X, Y, Z, vowels
Review: A-W

Reviewing character, setting, sequence, and sorting/classifying.

Dig, Dig, Dig

KE1c.3: Identify characters, settings, and important events in a story.
KE1a.14: Match all consonant sounds in simple words (such as mad, red, pin, top,
sun) to appropriate letters.


Math:
We are making number quilts!
K.M.1a: identify, write, and name numbers up to 20
K.M.1b: using one-to-one correspondence, count the number of objects in sets up to 20;


Books:
1, 2, 3
Where’s my teddy
Horris and Morace but mostly Delores
Ten, nine, eight
Today I feel silly
Boys and Girls of the world
Today is Monday
Mama, how much do you love me?
Just so thankful
Thanks a million

Plus many more!


Children need to hear and say the words that one day they will read and write. Have fun with the following songs and rhymes… word play leads to word power!
KE3b.2: Recite short poems, rhymes, and songs.


COLOR OF THE WEEK:

(don’t forget Show-n-Share on Friday! It
must be the color of the week!)


Gray


Look at them go
(tune: wheels on the bus)
The diggers dig with a scoop, scoop, scooping
Scoop, scoop, scooping,
Scoop, scoop, scooping
The diggers dig with a scoop, scoop, scooping
Look at them go

V2: The fire hose sprays with a swoosh, swoosh, swooshing
V3: The tractors plow with a squelch, squelch, squelching
V4: Garbage trucks are good at gobble, gobble, gobbling
V5: The cranes carry pipes that are spin, spin, spinning
V6: The dump trucks dump with a rumble, rumble, rumbling

Letter Games/Ideas!

Write your letters in/use:
Sand
Salt
Shaving cream
With glue (and then cover with glitter!)
Pasta
Dried beans
Playdough
Coins
Parents: call out the letter SOUND and let your child make the letter he/she thinks it is. If it is incorrect try saying, “Hmm if I were to make an ‘h’ I’d make it like this” then demonstrate for your child. They’ll want to fix the mistake without you even asking! You can also demonstrate by writing on a magnadoodle or dry erase board.

Make letter writing fun. Try using every color in your crayon or marker collection. See how many colors you can write “a” in and so on.

Make your own letter bingo game by writing random letters on a 5x5 grid. Make several different boards so your child can play many times. Make corresponding letters on cut out squares that you use to draw from. You draw a card with a letter and call out the letter name or sound and they cover the letter if it is on their board. Then let them call letters or sounds for you!

Make your own letter puzzles. Using a dark colored marker, write a letter very large on a piece of paper. Cut the paper in a simple way (into 4 squares, into 4 strips, etc). Have your child put the letter puzzle together and tell you the name and sound. They can save the puzzle to play again or glue it to a piece of construction paper. Increase the number of times you cut the puzzle to make it harder. Let your child try making a letter puzzle.

“Alphabet Soup” place some magnet letters or paper letters into a pot. Use a spoon or ladle to scoop out a letter and name it. If you get it right it goes in your bowl. If not it goes back in the pot.

www.starfall.com has letter games, stories, and movies for children.
www.pinterest.com has ideas for parents. Try searching “letter games” “kids games” or “learning letters”

“Alphabet Hunt” can be played any where! Call out a sound or letter name and your child hunts for it. This is great for the commissary. “Bobby I need a vegetable that starts with the /g/ sound” and let him bring you a can of green beans! Make it hard by leaving out the vegetable clue. This is wonderful to play with more than one child- make it a competition!

Make your own tongue twister using a certain letter. Aunt Annie ate an alligator! Busy bees buy bread! Silliest one wins!

Keep a running list of words that start with a letter. You could write the letter in dark marker at the top of a page on a notepad. As your child thinks of or finds words that start with the letter help them write it on the letter page. Start out by having them write the first letter and you finish the word (while sounding it out slowly for them to hear) but then, as they improve, have them start writing all the letters they hear and know.

Turn those lists into a letter book! Fold a piece of paper in half (“hamburger style”) and write one word from the list on each page and let your child illustrate it.

Google: “letter games” for a LOT of fun online games. “kindergarten letter games” gets you letter songs, online games, and activities you can do at home.

If you would like to, purchase letter stamps, letter beads, or letter games on Amazon.com The possibilities with stamps and beads are endless!!!

Photos

Working hard!

Fire Safety Week:

Week of Oct. 11

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News
October 11, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:

Our IT man, Mr. Voce, would like me to remind you that GradeSpeed is only available for students in grades 4-8. Please do not request an account for a child in any other grades. Thanks!

We will not have a Halloween party. We will do Halloween and fall crafts that week as well as enjoy some popcorn and candy while watching “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown” to go along with our fall and nocturnal animals unit.

Kindergarten does not receive formal progress reports. I will send home checklists and work that shows you where your child is and what they need to work on. Report cards come out the week of Nov. 7.



Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:

10/11-14: Fire Prevention Week

10/13: Flu vaccines for K

10/13: Principal’s Coffee 9-10am

11/3: End of 1st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/9-11/10 Parent Teacher Conferences (no school for Elem. students

11/10: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

11/11: No school Veteran’s Day


Monday 10/10
NO SCHOOL
Tuesday 10/11
Host Nation
Wednesday 10/12
PE
Thursday 10/13
Music (in the AM)
Friday 10/14
PE


!!!REMINDER!!!

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:
www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

Homework is not mandatory but highly recommended!!


Writing:

Sight words: to, a
Review is, it at home!

www.handwritingforkids.com is a great place to get homework sheets!


Reading:

Letters: T, U, V, W
Review A-S

Reviewing character, setting, sequence, and sorting/classifying.

Julius

KE1c.3: Identify characters, settings, and important events in a story.
KE1a.14: Match all consonant sounds in simple words (such as mad, red, pin, top,
sun) to appropriate letters.


Social Studies:

KSS5.b: Describe different kinds of jobs that people do at work and home.
KSS4.c: Explore the role of students in the school community


Math: identify, sort, and classify a set of objects by color, shape, size, number, and other attributes;
identify, reproduce, describe, extend, and create color, rhythmic, shape, number, and letter repeating patterns with simple attributes,


Books:
Leo the Late Bloomer
Words are not for hurting
Flower Fairy Alphabet
Bully Bear
Cliffords Pals
I’m Gonna Like Me
A children’s Zoo
Friends at School

Plus MANY more!


COLOR OF THE WEEK:

(don’t forget Show-n-Share on Friday! It must
be the color of the week!)


Yellow

Week of Oct 3

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News
October 3, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:
We have begun working hard at reading groups. Some groups are working on their letters, others have moved on to word work, and a few are even reading books to/with Mrs. Barr! We all need practice with our names so each group will do a little bit of that as well. Small groups take place during center time. I pull students who need to work on the same skill to my table for 5-10 minutes and then they go back to centers. The time with me will increase as the year (and attention spans!) progresses.
I will be out on Thursday to have some dental work done so if you are able to come in and volunteer I know Mrs. Walker and the substitute would really appreciate it. Note that there is no school next Friday or the following Monday.
Blankets/towels have come home for washing. Please return them on Monday.
Donations needed: buttons and dry pasta of all shapes, sizes, and colors! We need these on MONDAY! 
Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:

10/7: No school for students

10/10: Columbus Day- No school

10/13: Principal’s Coffee 9-10am

11/3: End of 1st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/10: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/8: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/19-1/2: Winter Holidays


Monday 10/3 PE
Tuesday 10/4 Music (in the AM!)
Wednesday 10/5 PE
Thursday 10/6 Art
Friday 9/30 NO SCHOOL


!!!REMINDER!!!
Send a healthy snack every day!

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:
www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

**NEW**
I have sent home a “homework” calendar. This is not mandatory but highly encouraged. If your child wants me to “check” any of their work I’d be happy to do so. You will receive a simple homework assignment most nights. Some nights you will receive work we were not able to finish in class. Again homework is never mandatory but it will help your child progress quicker!


Writing:

Sight words: is, it
Review the, little at home!

www.handwritingforkids.com is a great place to get homework sheets!


Reading:

Letters: P, Q, R, S
Review A-O

Reviewing character, setting, and sequence. Introduce sorting and classifying.

Miss Bindergarten Goes on a Field Trip

KE1c.3: Identify characters, settings, and important events in a story.
KE1a.22: Identify and sort common words in basic categories.


Math: identify, sort, and classify a set of objects by color, shape, size, number, and other attributes;
identify, reproduce, describe, extend, and create color, rhythmic, shape, number, and letter repeating patterns with simple attributes,


Social Studies:

KSS5.b: Describe different kinds of jobs that people do at work and home.
KSS4.c: Explore the role of students in the school community


Books:
Have you filled a bucket today?
The crayon box that talked
My mouth is a volcano
Boys and girls of the world
Bernstain bears forget their manners
It’s ok to be different
Horace and Morris but mostly Delores
Beep Beep Vroom Vroom
Secret Birthday Msg


Children need to hear and say the words that one day they will read and write. Have fun with the following songs and rhymes… word play leads to word power!
KE3b.2: Recite short poems, rhymes, and songs.

COLOR OF THE WEEK:Green

(don’t forget Show-n-Share
on Friday! It must be the color of the
week!)


Baby Bumblebee
(song)
I’m bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Won’t my Mommy be so proud of me?
I’m bringing home a baby bumblebee,
OUCH! It stung me!

I’m squashing up my baby bumblebee,
Won’t my Mommy be so proud of me?
I’m squashing up my baby bumblebee,
EWWW! It’s yucky!

I’m wiping off my baby bumblebee,
Won’t my Mommy be so proud of me,
I’m wiping off my baby bumblebee,
UGGHH!! It’s all OVER me!

I’m washing off my baby bumblebee,
Won’t my Mommy be so proud of me,
I’m washing off my baby bumblebee,
*Sigh* That’s better!

Apple Week photos!

New Information!

Parents:

We were just informed that the new kindergarten class will be starting next Thursday! While we will be saying goodbye to four of our friends it’s hard to be sad because they are going to an awesome teacher. Mrs. Tracey is a new teacher with her master’s degree in education. She has been subbing for the last year. I am very excited to be working with her and to be her “neighbor.” I’m sure we’ll be working together with our classes in many ways over the year. What does this mean for you? Not much! You can rest assured that now our class sizes will be smaller (for now!) which means more individualized instruction for your child. However because we’ve added a new teacher into the schedule, the specials classes have had to change. Therefore beginning on THURSDAY we have new specials and times (12:10-12:45) so your newsletter is no longer correct. Here are the new specials:

Thursday 9/29: Art
Friday 9/30: Host Nation

The specialists schedule for Kindergarten is on a five day rotation (A-E). It is NOT scheduled by day (i.e. PE is always Monday, etc). Here is our schedule:

A day: Music with Mrs. Grace (we will have this right before lunch time 9:55-10:30)
B day: PE with the new half time PE teacher
C day: Art with Ms. Oliverson
D day: Host Nation with Frau Hohenhaus
E day: PE with the new half time PE teacher


PS: For parents whose child is moving to Mrs. Tracey, her specials on Thursday (C) AND Friday (D) will be PE with Ms. Steele just so you know to send them in comfortable clothes! :-)

Week of: September 26, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News
September 26, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:
I apologize to those of you who were not receiving the newsletter through your email. Always check our class website on Friday or the weekend for updates concerning the next week.
We have started our classroom jobs to help us learn responsibility. The jobs in our room are: door holder, center checker, bathroom checker, nap checker, lunch checker, calendar, weather, supply person, scrap monster (cleans scraps off the floor), and desk checker. We are rotating through jobs daily until everyone has gotten to try each job and then we will rotate jobs weekly. Ask your child what job they had each day!
Volunteers are always welcome. Advance notice is not needed but appreciated (so we can plan for you)! Mrs. Walker always has projects needing to be completed and I can always have you work with students who need extra practice.
Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:
Sept. is National Honey Month!

9/26: Johnny Appleseed Day!

10/10: Columbus Day- No school

10/13: Principal’s Coffee 9-10am

11/3: End of 1st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/10: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/8: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/19-1/2: Winter Holidays


Monday 9/26
Host Nation (German class)
Tuesday 9/27
Music
Wednesday 9/28
PE
Thursday 9/29
Art
Friday 9/30
Host Nation

!!!REMINDER!!!

Send a healthy snack every day!

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:
www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

**NEW**
Each week we will work with a different color. On Fridays I would like to have “Show N Share” BUT the item must be something that is the color of the week to participate.

This week our color will be: Blue


Writing:

Sight words: the, little
Review I, a, and am at home!

www.handwritingforkids.com is a great place to get homework sheets!


Science:

None


Reading:

Letters: K, L, M, N, O
Review A-J

Reviewing character and setting and introducing “retelling”- first, next, last

Plaidypus Lost

KE1b.2: Use pictures and context to aid comprehension and to draw conclusions or
make predictions about story content.
KE1c.2: Retell (beginning, middle, end) familiar stories.


Math:
K.M.4a: compare and order objects according to length
K.M.1a: identify, write, and name numbers up to 20;
K.M.2b: identify, sort, and classify a set of objects by color, shape, size, number, and other attributes;


Social Studies:

KSS5.b: Describe different kinds of jobs that people do at work and home.
KSS4.c: Explore the role of students in the school community


Books:

Johnny Appleseed
Shiver Me Letters
A tree can be
Bernstain Bears Go to School
I Knew You Could
Friends at School
Sheila Rae the Brave
When Sophie Gets Angry
Just the Way You Are
Bad Case of Tattle

Plus MANY more!


Children need to hear and say the words that one day they will read and write. Have fun with the following songs and rhymes… word play leads to word power!
KE3b.2: Recite short poems, rhymes, and songs.


THIS WEEK’S POEM

We have been unable to complete poems of the
Week so we will resume this later in the year.


COLOR OF THE WEEK:


Blue


Purple Platypus
(tune: Baby Bumblebee)

I lost my purple platypus today,
Searched around the market,
Couldn’t find him anywhere,
My grandpa peeked in a bag of groceries,
Look! We found him!

Poem:
Platypus, platypus touch your nose.
Platypus, platypus touch your toes.
Platypus, platypus touch your head.
Platypus, platypus go to bed.

Oh my! Oh No!
(tune: Rockabye Baby)

“Oh my! Oh no!” Little Duck quacked.
“Someone has moved my little pink sack.”
“Oops! I’m so sorry!” Mother Duck said.
“Your little pink sack is right over your head!”

Week of Sept 19

Mrs. Barr’s Shining Stars News
September 19, 2011

Mrs. Barr’s Message:
This is APPLE WEEK! We will be learning all about apples, life cycles, and using apples for math such as graphing and patterning.
Please send 1 apple with your child by WEDNESDAy. It can be any color and any type of apple. We will use the apples for different activities Wednesday-Friday.
Donations are needed for apple week! I would like to do caramel apples with the children on Friday. Individual caramel candies/melts or caramel sauce is needed as well as toothpicks. If you could help with this it would be greatly appreciated. Please email Mrs. Barr.
This week we are reviewing the letters A-J and really focusing on handwriting. I thought something fun to do would be having a snack that starts with the letters we are doing that day. If you would like to participate this week then please send something that starts with the letters A-J. Original packaging is preferred so we can add to our word wall!
Thanks for all you do!!!

IMPORTANT DATES:

9/19-9/20: Picture Day!

9/26: Johnny Appleseed Day!

10/10: Columbus Day- No school

10/13: Principal’s Coffee 9-10am

11/3: End of 1st Quarter

11/4: No school for students

11/10: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/8: Principal’s Coffee- 9am

12/19-1/2: Winter Holidays


!!!REMINDER!!!

No uniforms on Picture Day (Tuesday)!!!

Check out information, resources, kid web sites, and pictures on our classroom blog:
www.mrsbarrshiningstars.blogspot.com

**NEW**
Each week we will work with a different color. On Fridays I would like to have “Show N Share” BUT the item must be something that is the color of the week to participate.

This week our color will be: RED


Writing:

Sight words: I, am, a

Make sure you are FORMING the letters correctly!
That means letters start at the top or middle if they are supposed to.
Watch your child write!


Science:
KSb.5: Recognize that all organisms go through stages of growth and change called life cycles.
KSe.1: Classify objects by observable properties


Reading:

Letters: REVIEW WEEK!
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J

KE1a.5: Distinguish letters from words.
KE1a.6: Recognize and name all capital and lowercase letters of the alphabet.


Social Studies:

KSS1.a: Follow rules, share, take turns, and cooperate.
KSSK1: Follow directions.

Following directions the FIRST time is key! Homework: practice this at home!


Math:

K.M.1a: identify, write, and name numbers up to 20;
K.M.2b: identify, sort, and classify a set of objects by color, shape, size, number, and other attributes;


Books:

10 apples up on top
I am an apple
Arnold’s Apple Tree
Life Cycles: Apple Trees
How do apples grow
Picking apples and pumpkins
The Apple Pie that Papa Baked
An apple’s life
10 red apples


Children need to hear and say the words that one day they will read and write. Have fun with the following songs and rhymes… word play leads to word power!
KE3b.2: Recite short poems, rhymes, and songs.


THIS WEEK’S POEM

We have been unable to complete poems of the
Week so we will resume this later in the year.


COLOR OF THE WEEK:


Red


Tune: If You're Happy and You Know It
“b” would be said “buh”- “c” would be said “kuh”-etc

If you're happy and you know it,
Bounce around "b" "b"
If you're happy and you know it,
Bounce around "b" "b"
If you're happy and you know it,
Then your face will surely show it
If you're happy and you know it,
Bounce around "b" "b"

Catch a ball "c" "c"...
Dance with me "d" "d"...
Fall down "f" "f"”...
Gallop like a horse "g" "g"...
Hop on one foot "f" "f"...
Jump so high "j" "j"...
Kick in the air "k" "k"...
Laugh out loud "l" "l"...
March in place "m" "m"...
Nod your head "n" "n"...
Paint a picture "p" "p"...
Run in place "r" "r"...
Sit on the floor "s" "s"...
Talk to me "t" "t"...
Vacuum the rug "v" "v"...
Walk around "w" "w"...
Yawn right now "y" "y"...
Zip your zipper "z" "z"...