Today Kelcy learned about snowflakes - what they are made of, how they form, and how they appear up close. We discussed the characteristics and watched a how-to video on how to create paper snowflakes!
We made several different snowflakes (which we will use to decorate Kelcy's room before winter break!) and I was able to observe his fine motor skills while making some challenging cuts in the folded paper.
We finished our session by recording what we know about snowflakes in his Wonder Journal!
Today Kelcy and I spent some time talking about future book writing topics. He brainstormed things he knows a lot about (for How-to Books) and good stories he would like to tell (Narrative Books).
We also did some research on subjects he was interested in from the Time For Kids magazine we received this week. He was specifically interested in volcanoes (a topic we may explore further in the next weeks)!
Lastly we practiced sight words, letter sounds, and letter names, AND used "loose parts" I brought today to create a winter scene and a volcano!
Assignment
none
Session Minutes
120
Minutes Student Attended
120
Lesson Comments
great session. Kelcy officially knows all letter sounds and names, and 15+ high frequency words.
Kelcy and I worked on new and existing sight words, adding more to his word wall that he learned over the weekend! We read several books, identifying known words as well.
Today we began an art integration project that will go with his end of year story he is writing! I'm excited to see the new words and existing letter sounds come together for this new writing piece!
Assignment
none
Session Minutes
120
Minutes Student Attended
120
Lesson Comments
Great session. He is memorizing these sight words so fast, he will have a huge word tool box when this year is finished.
Today, I worked with Mila on several early literacy assessments including: letter ID, letter sounds, blending and segmenting, first 25 sight words, and oral language. We also read some emergent reader storybooks that Mila loves!
Most assessments were positive and on grade level for kindergarten. Next week I will begin early kindergarten math assessments! I'm using these first few sessions to get data in order to pinpoint where our time will be best spent!
Today Kelcy and I created his word wall and wrote the sight words he currently knows on the wall. He knows 10 words and I will be sending more home to practice in the next few days! We used those words in our journaling today, creating sentences rather than just labeling. I'm proud of his progress!
We also played concentration (memory) today with sight words/letters. He is very observant and has a great memory!
Today I took time to do a few early reading and literacy assessments with Kelcy, in order to have data that will drive my future instruction in the language arts. We assessed upper and lowercase letters, consonant sounds, oral language, phonological awareness (blending and segmenting), and the first 25 high frequency words.
We spent time reading a nonfiction vs. fiction book about penguins and discussing the differences we noticed. Kelcy journaled about his character Tacky the Penguin, and his favorite part of the story.
Assignment
none
Session Minutes
120
Minutes Student Attended
120
Lesson Comments
great session, will use data from today to drive instruction and content in language arts going forward. Looking forward to having the new room to place Word Wall and other tools for Kelcy as he grows as a reader/writer :)
Kelcy and I spent a lot of time talking about his trip, we recorded his ideas for stories so that he has lots of ideas for journaling in these days leading up to winter break! Kelcy really elaborated on his thoughts when I dug deeper with each story, telling me important details!
Today we also spent time playing a letter matching game, talking about upper and lowercase and letter sounds. We read some old and some new books and journaled about one of his vacation stories - getting a new Star Wars weapon at Disney World! It sounds like you all had a great time :)
Assignment
none
Session Minutes
120
Minutes Student Attended
120
Lesson Comments
Kelcy was MUCH more awake and eager to learn today than usual. I wasn't sure what to expect, but maybe the shorter days are agreeing with him as well.
Today Mila and I spent some time asking each other questions, and sharing about ourselves. We read LOTS of great books and did some counting. At the end, when we had extra time, we made some music together on the piano :) I'm looking forward to assessing her strengths in academics next week!
Assignment
none
Session Minutes
60
Minutes Student Attended
60
Lesson Comments
Today was a good lesson, once Mila got a feel for my personality. I do notice that she is completely lacking confidence in reading (mostly because she has been TOLD that she can't read books unless they have a "white label" etc.) This thinking actually even holds her back from enjoying books that are read TO her. This is a mindset I am hoping to cure her of!!!! I will be doing early reading assessments on her next session, to collect my own data.
Today we expanded on the water shortage in Africa that we talked about yesterday. We read the story The Water Princess and discussed the differences we found between her life and our lives. Kelcy came up with some great observations, which we wrote down to talk about more tomorrow. Kelcy also made an African sunset horizon with watercolors and crayon - based on the illustrations we saw in the story.
