May Newsletter 2023

Alyssa Edwards

April 28, 2023

APRIL 2023 NEWSLETTER

In this Article: 

From the Principal

May! Did someone say May? This year has flown by. I think it is safe to say that spring is here as the grass gets greener and the flowers begin to bloom. The weather is all over the place with snow, rain, and wind, not to mention the temperatures with ?O's one day and 40's the next. Please continue to send a jacket for recess. Our handbook states that students must wear a jacket if the temperature is below 65 degrees or below. 


We have many things going on in the month of May, we kicked off our ABC book countdown on April 21 and that will continue until the end of the year. This year we are reading a book via video every day that coincides with a letter of the alphabet. Different staff are reading the books and students get to guess who is reading it. Photos of the reader with the book will be posted outside the off ice each day. 


We have our spring benchmarking on May 2, 3, and 4. This allows us to look at student growth throughout the year and helps with planning for next year. 

The 2nd grade students will be going to visit and tour Genoa Elementary School on Thursday, May 18. The local preschools will also be coming to tour the building on various days throughout the month. 


We will have field day on Thursday, May 25. Mrs. Hale has been working hard on planning the events. Mrs. Hale has already sent home information about volunteering. 


Our last day is Friday, May 26. We will have early dismissal at 1:45 that day. It has been a great year. Thank you for sharing your children with us. 


Please note we always have things pop up for the end of the year; we will send notes and permission slips as they are planned so be on the lookout. We have several great places to find information - the Kingston Elementary Facebook page, check us out on Twitter, and the district webpage. As always if you have any questions feel free to contact me. 

- Sincerely,  Stefanie Hill, principal

Kindergarten

Our little ones are nearly first graders. There are so many things that we still need to learn and we have been working very hard these last few weeks. Fourth quarter assessments will be starting soon and here is what we would like everyone to be working on. 


PHONICS: Students need to independently name all 26 letters of the alphabet, both lowercase and capital. They need to produce all 42 letter sounds taught through Jolly Phonics including the letter teams. They should be writing one to two sentences with brave spelling. The sentences should have correct capitalization, space between words, and ending marks. 


MATH: Kindergarteners should be counting to 100. They need to identify numbers to 20, and write them as well. We are working on math facts with sums/differences to 5 in both addition and subtraction. Students should name the flat shapes: circle, square, rectangle, triangle and hexagon and solid shapes: cone, cube, cylinder and sphere. 


Please remember that we are always working towards independence in all of our skills. Summer reading and writing is super important. 


It has been our greatest honor to be your child's Kindergarten teacher this school year. We would like to thank each and every one of you for your contribution to your child's education in sending them prepared to school each day. We would also like to thank our parents that have come in to help. From party helpers to field trip chaperones. We appreciate ALL of the help! It definitely takes a village to raise a child and we are proud to be members of your child's village. 

Second Grade 

We would like to thank all of the families who have consistently encouraged their child to complete and return his or her homework. It has been very beneficial for your child, and we appreciate the support. Please help us by reminding your student to stay focused and on-task throughout the rest of the school year. These last few weeks can be difficult as summer approaches. 

Have a healthy, relaxing summer. Remember, research shows that students , experience learning losses when they do not engage in educational activities in the summer. To help keep your child's skills sharp, read as much as possible, Practicing math facts and writing would also be beneficial. It has been a pleasure for all of us to work with this year's group of second graders. They have grown so much! 

Summer Ideas

  • Practice math facts in the car.
  • Read a variety of printed materials (comics, magazines, online stories, books ... ).
  • Visit the library or a bookstore.
  • Consider a parent/child conversation notebook to write in daily and leave fun notes for each other about the plans for the day or just to say hi.
  • Get outside and play! Turn off the electronics and use imaginative play.

Good Luck in 3rd grade next year! We wish you all the best at GES!

Physical Education

Welcome back to the last Physical Education portion of the newsletter for the year! I am not entirely sure where the year has gone, but I do know that I have enjoyed working with all the students! With that being said, I do think spring has sprung, and I look forward to spending some nice days outside! 

Since the last newsletter, the students have participated in a variety of movement activities! Some had St. Patrick's Day theme, some were relays, and they played Creature Collectors! The students also learned the correct way to hold and throw a Frisbee using a backhand throw! Currently, the students are finishing some activities that they will see again at Field Day! We will be moving on to throwing/catching before the end of the year with some additional fun activities!

Frisbee is a fun skill that the students can play outside! The focus of Frisbee at KES is on the throw only, so we focused on aiming with some games of Frisbee Horseshoe! The students were able to pick the distance they wanted to throw from and were able to score points based on where the Frisbee landed! I will tell you that the students were excited and improved so much! 

The students are currently finishing some activities they will see again at Field Day! They have played hula-hoop horseshoes, air hockey, and played with the parachute. All activities have gone over well and the students have enjoyed them! It is fun to bring back the old arcade games and see what the students can do! 

Reminders: 

► ALL students must have tennis shoes on to participate in class! Rubber soled tennis shoes are needed. No crocs, sandals, or boots are al lowed!  

► Keeping a pair of shoes in your child's locker/ cubby is a good idea for unforeseen circumstances! 

► Shoes must stay on your child's foot during class. If the shoe comes off during activity, this is a safety issue for your child as well as the others in the class and after one warning, the student will be asked to sit out.

Building Readers

pwhitten@gkschools.org 815-784-5246 ext.8110  Title I funding is supplied by the US Department of Education

Reading Connections 

Summer Time is Reading Time! Keep some books in the car for travel times and appointments. In the pool bag for time spent out of the water. Reading is the coziest bedtime habit.  Let your child choose favorites to read at bedtime. If your child has a later summer bedtime, have him use that time for reading on his own. 

Writing

Writing a little every day keeps students skills sharp. Have your child make lists for the grocery store, of the stuffed animals or toys he has, or of his friends. Try having a written conversation with your child. Write him a one sentence note and have him write a sentence back to you daily. 

Reminders 

Title I Students will receive three summer packages (July, and August will be mailed). Please help your child continue to be excited about reading!

Fun with Words

Looking for some fun ways to practice the high frequency words? Make a matching game with duplicate sets of word cards. Place the words that need extra work on the bathroom mirror or refrigerator where they will be seen and practiced many times a day, Try to write sentences using high frequency words. Read books by authors (like Dr. Seuss) that use a lot of these words. Make word searches using them . What other ways can you  think of??