What are we doing in school?
We will continue to learn the letters of the alphabet.
We will continue to count to at least 20. Our yearly goal is 100!
We will continue to read books about our themes every day.
How can I help my child at home?
Read, read, read.
Please check the newletters which are sent home.
The newsletter will tell you what we are studying.
If you go to the public library, you can choose books
about our themes.
Letters:
* Rainbow Letters: Write a letter in each color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and black). Write that letter in capital and lowercase on a piece of paper, index card, or notebook page. Make the letter large enough. Print the capital first, then the lower case. For example- A a. Then, have your child trace the letter with their pointer finger. Be sure that they say the name of the letter as they trace it. First, they will trace the capital letter, and then the lower case. Your child will then write the letter in yellow crayon over the letter that you wrote. Then, trace the letters again, saying the name of the letter as it is being traced using orange, and repeat with all colors. Once all colors have been used, use a black crayon to finish off on top. This is now a tactile letter for your child to trace the next time they would like to practice their letters!
* Letter Search: Find specific letters in magazines or in “junk” mail. Have your child search for a letter and draw a circle around it. For example, tell your child to find “A” and have them circle the letter with a crayon, marker, pen, pencil, highlighters, etc. Repeat with different letters.
* Play Dough Letters: Help your child make long, skinny, “snakes” with play dough. Show your child which letter you would like them to make and have them create it using the play dough. You can write the letter on a piece of paper as a model, or shape the play dough directly on top of the letter model.
* Shaving Cream: In shaving cream (on a tray or something that can easily be wiped away, have your child use their pointer finger to write letters or words.
* Driving: When you stop at a traffic light when driving in the car, look for letters in the words on large signs. Say, “I see an A. Let’s point to it!” You can also ask you child what letters they see.
* Around the House: Look for letters around the house, for example on a cereal box during breakfast! Have your child look for a specific letter or point out the letters they see.
* Magnetic Letters: If you happen to have magnetic letters, you can play them on a refrigerator or cookie sheet. Move the letters around and have your child name the letters. Or, you can tell your child the name of a letter and have them find it. Use the letters to spell your child’s name!
* Out and About: When you go out to a restaurant to eat, your child can practice finding letters in the words on a menu. Have them say letters they see, identify specific letters, or count the amount of a letter that you ask them to find!
Literacy:
* Reading: Read a story to your child. Ask them simple questions about the story. For example, “Who was in the story?” “What happened in the story?” “What was your favorite part of the story?” Spend time in conversation with your child to develop vocabulary and knowledge of the world. Label what you see and explain how things work.
* After Reading: After reading a story with your child, have them draw a picture about the story. Ask your child to tell you something about the story that you read. You can write their sentence under the picture. You can also put together all of the pictures about stories you have read together to create your own book for home titled, “Stories We Have Read Together.”
* Name: When writing your child’s name, spell the letters out loud so they can hear the name o the letters when you write them.
* Sounds: When identifying different letter sounds, have your child sound out a word that begins with a specific letter.
* Play with language: Help your child listen to rhymes and letter sounds. Read nursery rhymes and other rhyming books. See how many rhyming words you can think of together: hop, top, bop, mop, lop, stop, drop, and flop. Use words that start with the same letter and help your child to hear the letter sounds.
* Letters and Words: Notice words and letters all around you. Read cereal boxes and favorite snacks. Post your child’s name in his or her room. Point out the letters in your child’s name or in signs and billboards that you see.
Shapes:
* Find a Shape: You name the shape and have your child find something in your home that is that shape.
* Out and About: Have your child identify different shapes they see. Point out wheels on a car, windows on a car, street signs, etc.
* Drawing: Draw a large circle on a piece of paper. Tell your child to make a picture using the circle. Give your child a crayon and have them draw different shapes.
* Memory: Use the cards with the shapes on one side. Lay cards face down, and have them flip over two cards. Identify the shapes, and if they are the same they hold onto the cards. If they are different shapes have them turn the back over and search again.
* Magazines, fliers, etc: Have your child find different shapes in magazines. They can just identify them, or cut them out to create collages.
Numbers:
* Around the House: Children count everyday. Count the number of stairs as they walk up or down. Count how many plates are on the table. Count the number of items you bought at the store. Count how many pieces of silverware that were used at dinner. Count how many steps it takes to get from the kitchen to the bedroom. Spill some coins out on a table and ask your child to count how many. Your child can count pictures on boxes of food. For example, have your child look at a cereal box and count how many letters it takes to spell the name of that cereal. If there are pictures of children on the box, count how many. Remember: Count, count, count!
* In the Car: If you are going somewhere in a car, have your child count how many cards they can see from their window when you stop at a light or stop sign. Ask, “How many cars do you see?”
* Signs: When you park your car, have your child look around and count the number of signs they can find.
* Memory: Play a memory game using number cards and pictures with a specific number of items on a card. Match the picture card to the number card.
* Play Dough: Using play dough, roll out different numbers and identify those numbers.
* Shaving Cream: Write numbers in shaving cream, use hand to wipe away a number and start over!
Colors:
* Clothing: Your child can name colors in their clothing. Every day when your child gets dressed, have your child tell you what colors they are wearing.
* While Eating: Your child can tell you the colors on a box of food.
* Find a Color Game: You name a color and have your child look around to find what you are looking for. You can say, “Find something red,” and have your child find an item in the house that is that color.
* In the Car: While driving, have your child name the different color cars that they see. When you park your car, have your child look around and find a sign. Have them identify the color that they see on the sign.
* Drawing: Give your child one crayon at a time, and have them draw a picture of something that is really that color. Or, give several crayons and have them draw a picture using those colors.
