Dogs Dreaming of Patterns

The Kindergarteners are almost done with their doggy drawings in art. We do a "guided practice" drawing where I draw a dog using a series of simple shapes and the students try to copy me.  Then they watercolor the dogs and fill their backgrounds with patterns. They all get really good results and even though they are all drawing the same thing they each have their own unique style and personality.

It has been a busy couple of weeks for us here in Kindergarten! We have been gearing up for the break with all things Thanksgiving. We spent time talking about why we celebrate the holiday and what it means to be thankful. We made our very own hallway turkey with feathers of the things we are most thankful for. Stop by and take a look!

Last week we took a trip to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The theme of the performance was "Surprise Party" in honor of the 125th anniversary of the CSO. We listened to beautiful music and learned about many of the instruments. It was so much fun!

Levi's mom came in last week as our Mystery Reader and read "The Little Boy Who Lost His Name" a personalized storybook with Levi's name in it!

In math, we are continuing to work on addition number stories. The kids have been making wonderful stories to represent their ability to add one digit numbers.

On Monday morning, Sam's mom came in as a mystery reader and read "Wemberly Worried" by Kevin Hankes. 

To celebrate Thanksgiving in our classroom, we talked about how grateful we are for each other! Each student drew popsicle sticks with another students name written on them and wrote a kind note to that person. We spent time reading and delivering them to one another. Our buckets were over- flowing!





















Then on Tuesday, Ada's mom, brother, and grandmother came in as mystery readers. They read "Goldilocks and the Three Bears".



As a reminder, there is no school tomorrow and Friday for the celebration of Thanksgiving. We hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday. We are grateful for you and your children every day! Be safe and happy Turkey Day :)

Ms. Ardito

Technology in Your Daily Lives

Do you use technology in a creative way on a daily basis? Is there a robot that builds things in your industry? Are you able to provide better care to your patients because of technology? We want to hear from you!
We would like to connect the NPES theme of Humans of Chicago and our Hour of Code experience by bringing in guest speakers that use technology in a creative way. NPES hopes to inspire our students to change the world. From Anthony Atala who is exploring 3D printing as an alternative to organ procurement programs to Brittany Wenger who at the age of 17 turned her love of asking questions in to an award winning cloud based artificial intelligence program for diagnosing breast cancer, technology is changing the way we live our lives and experience health and happiness.
NPES students are our future. Exposing them to humans of Chicago who utilize technology everyday, gives our students the opportunity to look towards that future. Please contact Kim Smith or Brad Riggs if you would like to share your story.

Hour of Code is Coming

The Hour of Code experience at North Park needs you! The kindergarten event will be held  the afternoon of December 11, 2015. Beyond the desire to create and explore with some really great kids,  there are no specific skills required of volunteers. Everything we will do with the kids is something that you can do too. Please sign up for a time that works with your schedule. We would love to have you with your own child's class or with another class. 

What an eventful week we've had here in Kindergarten! We have been singing fall songs, reading Thanksgiving stories, and bundling up as the weather starts to make its shift. As the days begin to get colder, please make sure to send your child to school with weather-appropriate clothing. Coats, hats, scarves, and gloves. Our school policy is that we go outside unless the windchill is below 20 degrees- so we want them to be prepared!

Did you know that today is World Kindness Day? As a class we brainstormed ideas of how we can be kind not only today, but every day! We even buddied up with preschool to leave "kindness notes" around the school.

On Tuesday, we had a visit from Mad Science. Our scientist taught us all about energy and movement. We had so much fun exploring the way things move and the energy is takes to make it happen.

Next Friday, Nov. 20th we will be going on a field trip to the Chicago Symphony! They are celebrating their 125th anniversary so the title of the performance is "Surprise Party". We will be gone during the morning but will be back in time for lunch. Please send your child to school that day in their North Park tee-shirt. There will be a lot of schools there so we want to make sure our kids can be distinguished for their safety. 

In preparation for the big day, a docent from the orchestra came and told us all about the Symphony. We had an opportunity to listen to music, act as conductors, and move to the beautiful sounds! 

Jack McNally's mom came in as our Mystery Reader. She read a selection of funny poems from Shel Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends". 

Lily's mom came in on Veteran's Day to tell us about the work she does with veterans. She is as a speech therapist at the Jessie Brown VA hospital. She helped us brainstorm letters to write to the Veterans to thank them for all they have done for our country. She collected the letters from our class  to give to the exceptional people that she works with! We were so glad to have her in our classroom.











This week we began our Writing Workshop program.  We discovered that we are not only readers, we are writers too! The kids started their first writing pieces, writing about things they know. We discussed that authors often write about topics they know a lot about. This is the first unit of study in our curriculum. Whether they are just drawing pictures, adding a few letters, or creating entire words, writing workshop allows kids to get excited about their work no matter their skill level.

On Thursday, Mili's mom, Vikrant's mom,  as well as a preschool mom came into teach us about the Indian holiday Diwali. We heard about the traditions, the reason it is celebrated, and were able to decorate our own beautiful artwork in honor of the many vibrant colors that represent this holiday. 

We hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend. 

See you Monday, 

Ms. Ardito 

Hi Families,

Last week was very busy and I was gone Thursday and Friday. Here are some highlights that we were able to capture!

Ms. Woltmann taught a social studies lesson this week on being an American citizen and the American Flag as a symbol of our country. The kids observed the flag, learned about the stars and stripes, and then colored their own flag to take home!

In math this week we learned a new game called "top it". In this game, students flip over a card from each of their hands and see who's card has the bigger number. The goal is to collect the most cards. Many of you may know this game as "war". You can play this at home with your child! 

Kate's mom came in for her Super Kid Day this week. She brought cupcakes and read "My Very Own Name". We even had Kate's Dad on FaceTime!














This week we also began to tell "number stories" in math. Number stories provide a natural bridge from spoken to mathematical symbolic language. Children use concrete materials and pictures to represent and solve addition and subtraction stories.



Stay tuned for more this week :)

Ms. Ardito

Scooters in PE

"We really liked playing the games on the scooters, because we didn't have to run or walk. In one game we dumped balls all over the floor and then had to pick them up 1 at a time and bring them to our team's basket. We also liked playing the racing game around the gym."
- Lila & Mili