We have had a great week and boy it went by fast with only 4 days. This week we spent time reviewing all of the letters and sounds we have learned thus far. The kids have mastered most of them and you should have all seen a "Book in a Bag" come home. Information went home about how the program works, however, I ask that you work with your child at home to practice reading the book nightly and turn it in when your child has mastered it. While every student is at a different reading level, as a class we are ready to "go to town" with reading! Thanks in advance for your support with this!
Next week we will be focusing on letters O and W. Please reinforce mastery of these letters at home by "quizzing" your child about words that begin with a specific letter or words that have a specific beginning sound. We have also started to learn a sight word once a week. This week we learned the word LIKE, ask your child to give you a sentence using this word. We have spent a lot of time this week working on skip counting by 2's and 5's. Please review this concept at home. Don't worry if your child is a bit confused. We will work on this skill for the remainder of the year during calendar. In math we will spend the next 2 weeks finishing up Chapter 5. We have spent a lot of time on numbers 0-30. Hopefully your child is able to recognize these numbers and is starting to write them as well.
Next week is full of "Harvest Fun". Wednesday will be our "Read to Kids Day". We still have openings if you would like to attend. Thursday all kindergarten students will be doing a pumpkin investigation with lots of pumpkin tricks and treats. Finally, Friday will be our Harvest Party. Thank you to all of you who have donated items. I will be collecting until Wednesday, so if you have not had a chance to bring something in, don't worry. For our party we will be doing pumpkin tasting, fall crafts and will show off our costumes in the school parade at 1:30 pm. You are all invited to attend! Please remember that costumes should be a historical figure or book character. There will be no scary masks or weapon props allowed.
I hope to see all of you at our Fall Festival tomorrow. As always thank you for your support with our class!
Mary Wolters
Hi! My name is Mary Wolters. This is my seventh year teaching at Simonton. I taught second grade for four years and this is my third year teaching Kindergarten. I have 3 children; ages 22, 20 and 17. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education, a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, a Reading Endorsement and an ESL Endorsement. I am looking forward to an awesome year with your children!
Trisha Wright
Welcome to kindergarten students and parents. It is my pleasure to introduce myself to you. My name is Trisha Wright and this is my sixth year teaching kindergarten at Simonton. I am a graduate of Arizona State University with my bachelor’s in Early Childhood Education. Kids and teaching are my passion and I look forward to working with each and every one of you. I am excited to start a fun filled school year with your child and would like to thank you for allowing me to be a part of your child’s first year in school.
Kelly Trowbridge
Welcome to Kindergarten! My name is Kelly Trowbridge and I was born and raised in Tempe, Arizona. I graduated from Northern Arizona University with a degree in Elementary Education in 2006, a Masters degree in Early Childhood Education in 2008, and a Masters degree in Elementary Education with a Reading Endorsement in 2009. This will be my third year of teaching at Simonton. This is my second year of teaching kindergarten but my first year of teaching an am/pm session. Teaching is my passion and I cannot imagine doing anything else. I am very excited and enthusiastic about getting the opportunity in helping your child start or continue his or her educational career.
Joline King
Welcome Kindergarten at Kathryn Sue Simonton Elementary School. We are so excited to be your partner in educating your child. My name is Joline King and this is my twenty-first year teaching, my eighth for the J.O. Combs District. I am a fourth generation Arizonian and have made the East Valley my home with husband, three children and our beloved dog Salvador for the past twenty-three years. I graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Early Childhood after completing an Associates Degree from Eastern Arizona College. I also have a Master's Degree in Adult Education and Distance Learning. My children, both at home and at school are my greatest joy! I have three children that are almost grown: Matthew 24, Jennifer 20 and Bryant 18. I look forward to a great year full of fun and lots of learning.