Monthly News
May News
The countdown officially begins! This is always a happy time, yet a sad time for us all. I'm sure your children are feeling the same way.
I cannot believe it is already May! The school year has gone by so quickly! I have enjoyed every single minute of being your child's kindergarten teacher. Every single day, your children bring a smile to my face. They greet me every morning with a hug or a huge smile on their faces. They all know that I am here to help them, listen to them, encourage them, and help them feel comfortable and safe. I love listening to their stories and sharing mine with them. Being at a parochial school, we have the wonderful advantage of working with your children on such a personal level. This is one out of the many reasons why our school is so special.
Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to see your children grow academically, socially, and spiritually. I have seen them grow into independent and confident boys and girls. I have tried my best to encourage good choices and being good friends. Looking for the positive really brings out the best in your children.
Thank you for trusting me with your children and allowing me to challenge, nurture, and guide them in the right direction. I have tried to instill a love of learning in every single student that walks through our doors. I hope they always remember our time together and just how much fun we had in kindergarten.
Your children will always be special to me!
Learning can and should be fun!
Mrs. Dina
April News
Easter
During the month of April, we will understand the true meaning of Easter. Through stories, hands-on projects, and attending church children will realize the importance of this holiday.
Spring/Weather
Spring is the time for changes in the weather. We will begin learning about the sun, wind, and rain. These 3 ingredients make up the weather. With different combinations, these 3 ingredients form the various changes in our weather. We will discuss thunderstorms and tornadoes. At this age, many children are afraid of storms. Hopefully, with a bit of knowledge and learning the proper safety precautions will help with fear and anxiety of storms.
Earth Day
We are going to celebrate Earth Day! We will look at what our responsibilities are to our planet, how we can help, and what may happen if we do not engage in eco-friendly habits. There are a variety of projects, songs, and games that will teach your children how essential they are to the Earth's well being. Please continue to reduce, reuse and recycle! Here are a few examples as to how your children can help at home and school...
Recycle Paper
Turn off lights, TV, computers
Turn off water when brushing teeth
Take short showers
Do not liter
Plant a tree
April Skills
During the month of April, we will begin to tell time to the hour and half hour. We will continue to review money, addition, subtraction and all other math concepts taught this far.
For math, we will continue to add and subtract using oral word problems. I tell your children a word problem and they will determine whether to add or subtract. These are really fun to do a home or in the car!
Kali Anastasi!
Mrs. Dina
March News
During the month of March, we will be celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday. All children will bring their favorite Dr. Seuss books to school. We will focus on a different book everyday. Dr. Seuss wrote over 40 children's books. We hope to get through most of them. Reading all these books will engage the children with creativity and a great deal of rhyming.
We will also celebrate Greek Independence Day! Children will understand the meaning behind this significant time in Greek history. We will be full of ethnic pride all month long! We are so excited to perform our songs and poems at our Greek Independence Day Program on Thursday, March 26th at 6:00pm. We will also march with pride on Sunday, March 29th at the Greek Independence Day Parade. We hope you will be able to join us for this memorable event.
We completed the winter MAP assessments. You will receive results at parent/teacher conferences.
Please join me at Parent/Teacher Conferences on Monday, March 16th from 9:00am until 12:00pm. We will not have school on this day. We will also have conferences on Tuesday, March 17th from 5:30-7:30pm. This is a great opportunity to see how much your children have learned thus far, and to get any questions you may have answered. If you cannot attend a conference, please let me know and we can reschedule.
Please let me know if you can donate any of the supplies needed for the month of March.
Have a relaxing an enjoyable Spring Break with your families.
Mrs. Dina
February News
Dear Parents,
During the month of February, we will be covering many short units. February is a busy month
with so many important topics to discuss. We will begin with Groundhog's Day, our 100 Days of School Celebration, the human heart, Valentine's Day, and President's Day.
We will celebrate our 100 Days of Kindergarten! We will be doing many hands on projects to truly understand the quantity of the number 100.
We will then move right along to the human heart. By performing certain exercises, children will become aware that the heart is their strongest working muscle. We will measure our own hearts, listen to our heartbeats, and we will distinguish good vs. bad foods for our hearts.
We will then learn about love in honor of Valentine's Day. We will think about who we love and why. We will discuss the various ways we show love. We will count, sort, add, subtract, and graph using heart candy.
Finally, we will learn about our Presidents. We will discuss our current president, the importance of a President, qualifications of a President, and the responsibilities of a President. We will understand why Abraham Lincoln and George Washington are such prominent figures of our history.
You can see everything that we have been up to at our Open House on Friday, February 20th from 5:30-7:30pm.
There is never a dull moment in Kindergarten! We are looking forward to sharing our classroom with all of you!
Mrs. Dina
January 2015
Happy New Year!
Welcome Back to Kindergarten! I hope you and your families enjoyed quality time together over Christmas Break! I know I certainly did! Now it's time to get back into our normal routines and prepare for the rest of the school year.
I always love this time of year! I am looking forward to so many more amazing hands-on learning opportunities. You children are a little older now and are capable of so much more. It is so rewarding watching your children grow and prosper throughout the year. I can't wait to see all the things we will accomplish!
During the month of January, we will begin with a discussion on how our Christmas Vacation was spent. We will also make our very own New Year's Resolutions. We will also learn about snowflakes and snowmen. We will briefly discuss Martin Luther King Jr. and what he did for our country.
Our main theme for the month of January will be all about Space Exploration. We will blast off with a space unit featuring our celestial neighbors, the sun, moon, and stars. Your children will become aspiring astronauts preparing for a space adventure through the solar system.
December 2014
Time is going by so quickly in kindergarten! I can't believe it's already December!
During the month of December, we will learn all about the Christmas Season. We will discuss what Christmas is and why we celebrate this holiday. We will discuss the various family traditions we take part in during the Christmas Season. We will read many stories about the religious aspect of Christmas. Children will realize that this is really a religious holiday. We will read many books, write letters to Santa, learn many songs, and create many hands-on projects.
I wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!
Mrs. Dina
November 2014
Food and Nutrition
Our theme for the month of November will be Food and Nutrition. Your children are at a very important age where they should know what foods are good or bad for them. We will discuss the food groups and learn about our bodies. Knowing the food groups is important for obtaining good nutrition and balancing meals. Therefore, with this unit, we will briefly focus on each food group. We will also create our very own food pyramid, we will classify between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and we will analyze each food group. Finally, we will create many yummy snacks for each food group. For the grains group, we will make our very own bread! For the vegetable group, we will have carrots and cucumbers. For the fruit group, we will make another fruit salad. For the meat group, we will graph our favorite thing from the meat group. For the dairy group, we will have some cheese. Finally, for the fat/oil group, we will be making homemade butter!
This should be a memorable learning experience for your children. I hope they will be willing to try something from each food group. An email will be sent home with all the various materials needed for our food and nutrition unit. Please let me know if you are able to donate any of the items needed for our unit.
Thanksgiving
During the month of November, we will also do a mini unit on Thanksgiving. I believe children should know and understand why we celebrate this day with our families. This unit will be filled with valuable history lessons. Our unit will include the meaning of Thanksgiving, why it is celebrated, Pilgrims, Indians, the Mayflower, and what we are thankful for.
October News 2014
FIRE SAFETY
The first few weeks of October will be spent on fire safety in Honor of Fire Prevention Week. Your children will learn the importance of fire safety through various activities, projects, and role-playing. Your children have already had the wonderful opportunity to learn about fire safety from our Elmhurst Fire Department. This year, your children were able to experience the fire trailer. The trailer filled up with fake smoke and your children had to safely escape from the window. What a valuable lesson your children have learned already! We also practiced our emergency exit plans by having our very own fire drill at school. All month long, your children will be practicing their addresses and phone numbers. Please keep practicing at home!
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
During the rest of the month, we will be studying many short themes. October is a busy month with many important topics to discuss. We will discuss the history of Christopher Columbus, where he came from, who he was, and what is he most known for. We will explain what an explorer is and we will map out Columbus' journey to the New World.
PUMPKINS
Following our lesson on Columbus, we will learn all about pumpkins. We will analyze pumpkins, we will compare apples to pumpkins, we will create books on the life cycle of a pumpkin, and we will even carve our very own pumpkin.
NOCTURNAL ANIMAL
Following our pumpkin unit, we will learn about nocturnal animals. We will briefly discuss all the creatures of the night but we will mainly focus on bats. Bats are extremely important to our society and are often very misunderstood. We will discuss various bat facts and hopefully learn to give bats the respect that they deserve. We will be comparing bats to ourselves and other mammals; we will create a bat mural, we will write bat reports, and analyze a bat skeleton. We will read many books to help us understand where bats live, what they eat, and why they are so valuable to our society.
CURRICULUM NIGHT
Thank you for attending Curriculum Night and making school a priority. This was a very informative night. You received a lot of information that I hope you are slowly reading. If you would like to sign up for a classroom party or a field trip, please contact are Room Mom. If you have any further questions regarding your Curriculum Night packet, please feel free to contact me.
ROOM MOM
I would like to thank our room mom, Theo Alexadrakis, for volunteering her time to help make things run a bit more smoothly in our classroom. Look out for notes, emails, or phone calls from our room mom regarding our classroom parties, field trips, or anything else we may need along the way.
Happy October!
Mrs. Dina
August/September News
The countdown officially begins! This is always a happy time, yet a sad time for us all. I'm sure your children are feeling the same way.
I cannot believe it is already May! The school year has gone by so quickly! I have enjoyed every single minute of being your child's kindergarten teacher. Every single day, your children bring a smile to my face. They greet me every morning with a hug or a huge smile on their faces. They all know that I am here to help them, listen to them, encourage them, and help them feel comfortable and safe. I love listening to their stories and sharing mine with them. Being at a parochial school, we have the wonderful advantage of working with your children on such a personal level. This is one out of the many reasons why our school is so special.
Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to see your children grow academically, socially, and spiritually. I have seen them grow into independent and confident boys and girls. I have tried my best to encourage good choices and being good friends. Looking for the positive really brings out the best in your children.
Thank you for trusting me with your children and allowing me to challenge, nurture, and guide them in the right direction. I have tried to instill a love of learning in every single student that walks through our doors. I hope they always remember our time together and just how much fun we had in kindergarten.
Your children will always be special to me!
Learning can and should be fun!
Mrs. Dina
April News
Easter
During the month of April, we will understand the true meaning of Easter. Through stories, hands-on projects, and attending church children will realize the importance of this holiday.
Spring/Weather
Spring is the time for changes in the weather. We will begin learning about the sun, wind, and rain. These 3 ingredients make up the weather. With different combinations, these 3 ingredients form the various changes in our weather. We will discuss thunderstorms and tornadoes. At this age, many children are afraid of storms. Hopefully, with a bit of knowledge and learning the proper safety precautions will help with fear and anxiety of storms.
Earth Day
We are going to celebrate Earth Day! We will look at what our responsibilities are to our planet, how we can help, and what may happen if we do not engage in eco-friendly habits. There are a variety of projects, songs, and games that will teach your children how essential they are to the Earth's well being. Please continue to reduce, reuse and recycle! Here are a few examples as to how your children can help at home and school...
Recycle Paper
Turn off lights, TV, computers
Turn off water when brushing teeth
Take short showers
Do not liter
Plant a tree
April Skills
During the month of April, we will begin to tell time to the hour and half hour. We will continue to review money, addition, subtraction and all other math concepts taught this far.
For math, we will continue to add and subtract using oral word problems. I tell your children a word problem and they will determine whether to add or subtract. These are really fun to do a home or in the car!
Kali Anastasi!
Mrs. Dina
March News
During the month of March, we will be celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday. All children will bring their favorite Dr. Seuss books to school. We will focus on a different book everyday. Dr. Seuss wrote over 40 children's books. We hope to get through most of them. Reading all these books will engage the children with creativity and a great deal of rhyming.
We will also celebrate Greek Independence Day! Children will understand the meaning behind this significant time in Greek history. We will be full of ethnic pride all month long! We are so excited to perform our songs and poems at our Greek Independence Day Program on Thursday, March 26th at 6:00pm. We will also march with pride on Sunday, March 29th at the Greek Independence Day Parade. We hope you will be able to join us for this memorable event.
We completed the winter MAP assessments. You will receive results at parent/teacher conferences.
Please join me at Parent/Teacher Conferences on Monday, March 16th from 9:00am until 12:00pm. We will not have school on this day. We will also have conferences on Tuesday, March 17th from 5:30-7:30pm. This is a great opportunity to see how much your children have learned thus far, and to get any questions you may have answered. If you cannot attend a conference, please let me know and we can reschedule.
Please let me know if you can donate any of the supplies needed for the month of March.
Have a relaxing an enjoyable Spring Break with your families.
Mrs. Dina
February News
Dear Parents,
During the month of February, we will be covering many short units. February is a busy month
with so many important topics to discuss. We will begin with Groundhog's Day, our 100 Days of School Celebration, the human heart, Valentine's Day, and President's Day.
We will celebrate our 100 Days of Kindergarten! We will be doing many hands on projects to truly understand the quantity of the number 100.
We will then move right along to the human heart. By performing certain exercises, children will become aware that the heart is their strongest working muscle. We will measure our own hearts, listen to our heartbeats, and we will distinguish good vs. bad foods for our hearts.
We will then learn about love in honor of Valentine's Day. We will think about who we love and why. We will discuss the various ways we show love. We will count, sort, add, subtract, and graph using heart candy.
Finally, we will learn about our Presidents. We will discuss our current president, the importance of a President, qualifications of a President, and the responsibilities of a President. We will understand why Abraham Lincoln and George Washington are such prominent figures of our history.
You can see everything that we have been up to at our Open House on Friday, February 20th from 5:30-7:30pm.
There is never a dull moment in Kindergarten! We are looking forward to sharing our classroom with all of you!
Mrs. Dina
January 2015
Happy New Year!
Welcome Back to Kindergarten! I hope you and your families enjoyed quality time together over Christmas Break! I know I certainly did! Now it's time to get back into our normal routines and prepare for the rest of the school year.
I always love this time of year! I am looking forward to so many more amazing hands-on learning opportunities. You children are a little older now and are capable of so much more. It is so rewarding watching your children grow and prosper throughout the year. I can't wait to see all the things we will accomplish!
During the month of January, we will begin with a discussion on how our Christmas Vacation was spent. We will also make our very own New Year's Resolutions. We will also learn about snowflakes and snowmen. We will briefly discuss Martin Luther King Jr. and what he did for our country.
Our main theme for the month of January will be all about Space Exploration. We will blast off with a space unit featuring our celestial neighbors, the sun, moon, and stars. Your children will become aspiring astronauts preparing for a space adventure through the solar system.
December 2014
Time is going by so quickly in kindergarten! I can't believe it's already December!
During the month of December, we will learn all about the Christmas Season. We will discuss what Christmas is and why we celebrate this holiday. We will discuss the various family traditions we take part in during the Christmas Season. We will read many stories about the religious aspect of Christmas. Children will realize that this is really a religious holiday. We will read many books, write letters to Santa, learn many songs, and create many hands-on projects.
I wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!
Mrs. Dina
November 2014
Food and Nutrition
Our theme for the month of November will be Food and Nutrition. Your children are at a very important age where they should know what foods are good or bad for them. We will discuss the food groups and learn about our bodies. Knowing the food groups is important for obtaining good nutrition and balancing meals. Therefore, with this unit, we will briefly focus on each food group. We will also create our very own food pyramid, we will classify between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and we will analyze each food group. Finally, we will create many yummy snacks for each food group. For the grains group, we will make our very own bread! For the vegetable group, we will have carrots and cucumbers. For the fruit group, we will make another fruit salad. For the meat group, we will graph our favorite thing from the meat group. For the dairy group, we will have some cheese. Finally, for the fat/oil group, we will be making homemade butter!
This should be a memorable learning experience for your children. I hope they will be willing to try something from each food group. An email will be sent home with all the various materials needed for our food and nutrition unit. Please let me know if you are able to donate any of the items needed for our unit.
Thanksgiving
During the month of November, we will also do a mini unit on Thanksgiving. I believe children should know and understand why we celebrate this day with our families. This unit will be filled with valuable history lessons. Our unit will include the meaning of Thanksgiving, why it is celebrated, Pilgrims, Indians, the Mayflower, and what we are thankful for.
October News 2014
FIRE SAFETY
The first few weeks of October will be spent on fire safety in Honor of Fire Prevention Week. Your children will learn the importance of fire safety through various activities, projects, and role-playing. Your children have already had the wonderful opportunity to learn about fire safety from our Elmhurst Fire Department. This year, your children were able to experience the fire trailer. The trailer filled up with fake smoke and your children had to safely escape from the window. What a valuable lesson your children have learned already! We also practiced our emergency exit plans by having our very own fire drill at school. All month long, your children will be practicing their addresses and phone numbers. Please keep practicing at home!
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
During the rest of the month, we will be studying many short themes. October is a busy month with many important topics to discuss. We will discuss the history of Christopher Columbus, where he came from, who he was, and what is he most known for. We will explain what an explorer is and we will map out Columbus' journey to the New World.
PUMPKINS
Following our lesson on Columbus, we will learn all about pumpkins. We will analyze pumpkins, we will compare apples to pumpkins, we will create books on the life cycle of a pumpkin, and we will even carve our very own pumpkin.
NOCTURNAL ANIMAL
Following our pumpkin unit, we will learn about nocturnal animals. We will briefly discuss all the creatures of the night but we will mainly focus on bats. Bats are extremely important to our society and are often very misunderstood. We will discuss various bat facts and hopefully learn to give bats the respect that they deserve. We will be comparing bats to ourselves and other mammals; we will create a bat mural, we will write bat reports, and analyze a bat skeleton. We will read many books to help us understand where bats live, what they eat, and why they are so valuable to our society.
CURRICULUM NIGHT
Thank you for attending Curriculum Night and making school a priority. This was a very informative night. You received a lot of information that I hope you are slowly reading. If you would like to sign up for a classroom party or a field trip, please contact are Room Mom. If you have any further questions regarding your Curriculum Night packet, please feel free to contact me.
ROOM MOM
I would like to thank our room mom, Theo Alexadrakis, for volunteering her time to help make things run a bit more smoothly in our classroom. Look out for notes, emails, or phone calls from our room mom regarding our classroom parties, field trips, or anything else we may need along the way.
Happy October!
Mrs. Dina
August/September News
Welcome to the beginning of an exciting school year! I'm sure that you and your children may have met this day with excitement or apprehension (or a little of both).
Our classroom is a cooperative learning environment that gives children the unique advantage of learning from each other. Kindergarten is a special time for new beginnings, making friends, and for learning many new things each and everyday. Be prepared for a fun journey through a year long adventure in kindergarten. Kindergarten is a wonderful time for your children to grow socially and academically.
This year will be interesting and stimulating for your children. We will travel through many diverse themes that are integrated into our curriculum. All of our themes such as "Space" include activities in language arts math, science, social studies, art, music, and life skills. These activities encourage cooperative learning, critical thinking, and problem solving skills. Each month we will focus on a new theme with new goals and objectives that incorporate the common core state standards.
During the first two weeks of school, we will be doing many getting to know each other activities. This will allow the children and I to become comfortable with one another and to begin to form friendships that will last a lifetime. We will also be doing many Back to School activities. These activities will help your children adjust to school and being away from home. Activities will include making collages, name games, reading books, making our own snacks, singing songs, and playing games.
Our themes for the month of September are All Abut Me, Families, and Apples. These are captivating whole language units that deal with the child, family, and friends.
Please be sure to check our link about Important Reminders. There you will find our church days and any special events planned for the month. Also, be sure to send any supplies needed for the month. You can find all supplies needed under the Supplies Needed link.
I am confident that this school year will be successful and rewarding for your children. Your children are in a safe environment where trust and respect are modeled. In our classroom, making good choices and positive feedback are key elements for a comfortable and productive learning environment.
Please feel free to contact me at any time.
Mrs. Dina
Our classroom is a cooperative learning environment that gives children the unique advantage of learning from each other. Kindergarten is a special time for new beginnings, making friends, and for learning many new things each and everyday. Be prepared for a fun journey through a year long adventure in kindergarten. Kindergarten is a wonderful time for your children to grow socially and academically.
This year will be interesting and stimulating for your children. We will travel through many diverse themes that are integrated into our curriculum. All of our themes such as "Space" include activities in language arts math, science, social studies, art, music, and life skills. These activities encourage cooperative learning, critical thinking, and problem solving skills. Each month we will focus on a new theme with new goals and objectives that incorporate the common core state standards.
During the first two weeks of school, we will be doing many getting to know each other activities. This will allow the children and I to become comfortable with one another and to begin to form friendships that will last a lifetime. We will also be doing many Back to School activities. These activities will help your children adjust to school and being away from home. Activities will include making collages, name games, reading books, making our own snacks, singing songs, and playing games.
Our themes for the month of September are All Abut Me, Families, and Apples. These are captivating whole language units that deal with the child, family, and friends.
Please be sure to check our link about Important Reminders. There you will find our church days and any special events planned for the month. Also, be sure to send any supplies needed for the month. You can find all supplies needed under the Supplies Needed link.
I am confident that this school year will be successful and rewarding for your children. Your children are in a safe environment where trust and respect are modeled. In our classroom, making good choices and positive feedback are key elements for a comfortable and productive learning environment.
Please feel free to contact me at any time.
Mrs. Dina