Kindergarten is a joyous learning time. As
such, the primary goal of kindergarten is to learn to absolutely love school.
When children feel safe, nurtured and loved, they thrive academically as well
as socially and emotionally. Early in the year, we work together to create a
safe loving environment for one another. We learn the expected behaviors and
routines, and we learn about one another and how to best care for one another.
Throughout the year we build on these expectations and routines and explore
concepts and ideas in depth.
When designing the curriculum, great care was
taken to weave all of the content areas together in a cohesive way with
special empahsis on the themes we study in science. The four major
topics of science study are as follows: Trees, Fabric, Wood & Paper, Animals 2
by 2. To read more about these topics, please see the Full Option Science
System (FOSS) website.
Once these themes were in place, the language
arts were designed to support them. Stories, poems and activites that
teach many other concepts, are shared during appropriate science themes. For
instance, while studying fabric, we will read "A New Coat for Anna" and
practice sequencing the events of the story. We will sing "Baa, Baa Black
Sheep" and play with sheep puppets. We read Big Books and learn poems from the
Wright Group Publishers. We study each letter of the alphabet and learn songs
in sign-language to involve kinesthetics even when studying language. We
collect words, learn about spelling and write in journals. We learn about
punctuation and capitalization. We learn that the best way to learn to write
is to write! We practice correct letter formation using the Zaner-Bloser
program.
We incorporate the science themes in math
as well. For instance, during the Fabric unit we will reinforce our math
skills of patterning by creating patterns using fabric. We use the "Everyday
Math" series in conjunction with other developmentally appropriate ways to
learn about concepts such as measurement, graphing and counting the number of
days we have been in school. On the first day we count to one. By the last day
we are counting well beyond 150 and count by 1's, 5's and 10's.
We will weave fabric, sew, create items out
of real wool, dye fabric and, after reading "Mrs. Wishy-Washy" we do a little
laundry as well! Throughout each day the science theme weaves the different
subjects together.
As we study religion, we are also able
to tie-into the science theme, such as learning about Joseph and the
Multi-Colored Coat when studying fabric, and reviewing Creation when studying
Animals two by two. We use our curriculum series, faith-sharing and the
archdiocesan curriculum guidelines.
In kindergarten we especially strive to
cultivate a spirit of gratitude to God for our many gifts: the earth, our
school, each other. We pray as we gather and as we leave each day, we pray
before meals, and we are fortunate to attend Mass every week.
For a complete listing of curriculum goals,
please visit the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements
(EALRS) by clicking here
.
Please also access the Proficiency Scale
Grading System Page on this website.
This year, we are continuing a lovely
program, Roots of Empathy, in our Kindergarten class. It is a program
designed to teach empathy - the ability to understand the viewpoint and
feelings of others- to young children. Every month we will have a visit from a
baby, the baby's parent, and a Roots of Empathy Instructor. The instructor
will have a pre-visit with our class to discuss what we will see in the
development of the child. The following week the parent and child join our
class and the instructor and we observe and enjoy the baby. Then, the
instructor comes for a post-visit to discuss what we observed and how the baby
may perceive the world. For instance, we may notice that the baby seemed
frustrated when unable to reach a toy, or happy when making eye-contact with
the children. The same child will visit monthly all year, so we will watch as
a 4-month old baby becomes a one year old!
This program was developed as an
anti-bullying program and has had great success in the schools where it has
been implemented. We are very fortunate to have an anonymous donor supporting
this program for us.
Finally, starting in January we will use the
"Talking about Touching" program to re-inforce safety rules at an age
appropriate level. We will send home information about the program before we
begin.
I hope that this page gives you a strong
overview and deep appreciation for the rich diverse learning that goes on in
the Kindergarten classroom every day.