2 Weeks Down!

Last week was another busy one in KG-M, with lots of practicing regarding routines and exploration into our senses. One of the highlights was when we went on a senses walk around school during which we recorded things we noticed when using our senses.

The next day we revisited our recordings and created personal graphs to see which senses we used the most and least. We discovered some interesting things, such as when we realized that we use some senses much more than others at certain times throughout the day. During our walk, Taya was the only one who used her sense of taste, which she used when she asked to test the water.

In the area of math we have been exploring the concept of sorting through all sorts of different hands-on activities. We have played different sorting games, and we were even given a sorting challenge which we had to solve with groups. This challenge involved cookies at a party in which four guests each needed three cookies. We had to figure out which attribute (color, size, shape) we could use to sort in order for each guest to have three cookies of equal proportion. It was a challenge but we all figured it out!

 

We will continue exploring our senses this week and will also continue meeting our animal friends, which are teaching us all sort of phonemes (sounds)! Please expect to see your child's red take-home folder coming home soon with a sheet of all of our animal friends' descriptions. Being familiar with these will help as your child begins writing and reading at home.

Reminders:

• We have P.E. on days 1, 3, 5 and 7. Please ensure your child comes to school dressed in appropriate clothing on those days.
• We have Library on days 3 and 8. Your child will need to come to school those mornings with his/her library bag.

Off to a Great Start

Our first week in kindergarten was a great one, full of activities to get to know one another  and learning what it means to be in KG-M. On the first day of school we read the story "The Gingerbread Man", sang the Gingerbread Man song and then decorated cookies. We didn't have enough time to eat them before P.E., so we kept them on our tables and thought all about how delicious they would taste when we returned. To our surprise (and horror!), the gingerbread men had all run away while we were at P.E.!! We went all throughout the school trying to track them down -- eventually finding them in our fifth grade buddies' classroom!

> Later on in the week we met up with our buddies and spent a little time getting to know each other. We will spend more time with our buddies again this week. They will read to us throughout the year and help us in other ways as we explore new material.

Another fun thing we did this week was explore all sorts of different materials, which made us think and wonder. We charted words that described these items and the next day we realized we could sort them into five categories. This introduced us to the five senses, which is what our unit of inquiry is all about for the next six weeks. We can't wait to explore each of our senses in more depth and understand how they might help us better understand our world.

After School Activities

Please see the note below from the Activities Office regarding After School Activities. You can contact Ms. Joya Ambarin with any questions.

ES After School Activities: 

Elementary after school activities (ASAs) are quite popular with our students and parents. We offer a wide range of activities each day for students Kg to Gr. 5. We also offer activities to our PK students on weekends. Each session/quarter of After school activities runs for six weeks and after the completion of each quarter a new brochure will be posted online for registration. Please note the following dates for the first quarter of after school activities for the 2015-2016 school year:

Brochure posted online: August 19th @ 3:00pm

Online Registration: August 20-22. Registrations open at 9:00am on August 20th. 

Website link:  http://www.aisdhaka.org/node/700

If you have any questions of concerns, please do not hesitate to see us in the Activities Office or send us an email.

 

Joya Ambarin

jambarin@aisdhaka.org

 

Welcome to KG-M!

Welcome to kindergarten! This will be an exciting year filled with inquiry, discovery, laughter and fun. We will study many interesting Units of Inquiry, focusing on the five senses, creativity, plants, organization, matter and personal histories.

Let me begin by introducing myself. My name is Kacey Molloy and this is my fifth year at AISD. Prior to moving to Dhaka I taught kindergarten in Montana and then served in the United States Peace Corps in Macedonia with my husband Conor. We have a 2 year-old son named Caelan whom I'm sure your children will hear lots about.

I would also like to introduce another important person. Her name is Shama Mustafa and she is our teaching assistant. She is a valuable part of our classroom and your children's education. I'm sure you will see her often, both in the school and in your children's stories.

This blog has been created as a resource for information on school/classroom events and as a way to stay updated on our learning environment. Please feel free to contact me throughout the year with any questions or concerns by emailing me at kmolloy@aisdhaka.org. I would also be more than happy to set up a meeting with you during non-learning hours. I am looking forward to seeing all parents at Back-to-School Night on Wednesday, August 26.  

I love kindergarten and the incredible growth that seems to happen overnight. I can't wait to see what this year has in store. Thank you for sharing your children with me this year!

Regards,
Kacey Molloy

Kacey, Caelan & Conor Molloy

Shama Mustafa