Gingerbread week

We had a busy and fun week before winter break, full of gingerbread books, crafts and stories! We also made gifts for our families, went to an all-school assembly, and had pajama day. It was a whirlwind week but the kids seemed to really enjoy it. Below are some photos of the projects, as well as a few other pictures from the past month. I hope you have a wonderful winter break and we will see you next year!

Reading buddies

Every Monday starting last month we have reading buddies! A third grade class comes down to join us for reading time, and each kindergartener is paired with a third grader. At this point in the year the older students are reading to the younger students, but as we learn more reading skills throughout the year the kindergarteners can start to read books that they are familiar with, or have written themselves, to their older buddy. It's a great way to practice reading fluency, listen to fun stories, and get to know more members of our school community. Here are some pictures!

Writers Workshop: Learning to craft stories

For the past several months we've been working on learning to plan, write and add details to stories during Writers Workshop time. We read lots of books to see how authors craft their stories, with a particular focus on wordless picture books, since pictures tell a story all on their own, and are often the first and most accessible way that kindergarteners can read and write (since they're still learning letters and sounds). We did a drawing journal for several weeks, and then moved on to writing our own stories. Eventually we chose one favorite to publish, which meant editing it with an editing checklist, coloring the pictures, and making a cover page. Below are pictures of the writers and their writing!