Crew News February 23rd, 2024

Announcements 

Overnight Voyage Chaperones Needed: This is the time of year when Ms. Bethany and I look ahead to our Voyage (overnight experience) at Camp Elim in Woodland Park on Wednesday, May 15th to Thursday, May 16th. This is a wonderful and culminating Crew Experience for our crew! Please note that our Day of Rest will be Friday, May 17th (which means no school for kindergarten on this day). We need parent chaperones for this Voyage. If you would like to be a chaperone please email me and I will put your name on a Potential Chaperone List. Also, please let me know if you would be willing to drive yourself or students. If we have more chaperones than we need, we put names in a hat and draw out names. We will confirm chaperones before Spring Break.

Spring Climbing Next Week: Our crew will climb in PE next week. The number of climbs the children can do is really contingent on the number of volunteers. Thanks to those who have signed up to help support our crew. We could still use more volunteers so our kids can enjoy their PE time climbing! If you are trained to belay and can help out, please sign up ASAP! Please make sure your child wears comfy clothes (non-restrictive is best) and close-toed shoes. At this time we only have 2 volunteers on one of the days! 

Fieldwork to the Skatepark on 2/27: On Tuesday, we plan to take the Crew across the street to the Skatepark for Expedition. We will be putting all we have learned so far about force, motion, inclined planes, and wheels & axles into practice! Most families filled out a permission slip at the beginning of the year called the REMS Perimeter Permission Form, but I will reach out to you if you still need to complete it. We plan to be there from 9:45-10:30 on Tuesday. We have asked students to bring two items from home to experiment with: one that will roll well and one they want to test out.  We look forward to sharing our learning with you! 

Winter Hike on 3/1- We will be going on a winter hike on Friday, March 1st. Our hike will be along Plum Creek Trail from the Meadows trailhead to Festival Park. I have the following chaperones confirmed to join us: Eliza, Kari, Jason, Zach, Bryan, and Robin. We will be looking at the weather and determining what to wear & bring next week. I will email you an updated daypack list then. Please note: ALL students will need to bring a lunch from home. 

Crayon and Marker Recycling: This week, we learned that Ms. Bethany's Crew is doing a service learning project called the Crayon Initiative. They are collecting broken or old crayons to donate to an organization that will use these to make new crayons for children in hospitals. Please feel free to send in your old crayons! There is a box outside Ms. Bethany's classroom.

 

This inspired our crew to want to collect dried out markers. We have placed a box outside our door. Feel free to send in your dried our markers from home. We will see how many markers we can save from the landfill from now until the end of the year!

Crew Pictures: On March 25th, we will be taking our Crew Picture. This is the first day back after Spring Break. Picture order forms went home in Take Home Folders today. You are welcome to return these ahead of time or send them in on picture day. 

REMS Auction, Save the Date!
When - Saturday, March 30th 
Theme - Red, White, and READ
Where - the Philip and Jerry Library (in Castle Rock)
Time 6 - 10:30 pm
We'll have food and drinks to enjoy while you bid on awesome items and experiences in the Silent & Live Auctions including Teacher Time, Crew Art, theme baskets & more!
Enjoy this adults-only event to visit with other Renaissance parents and our teachers and staff.
Early bird prices area available now! Buy your tickets today! 

Teacher Time: At the auction, one of the favorite items to bid on is "Teacher Time." All staff offer a range of fun activities or outtings. This year, Ms. Martha and I will be doing breakfast at Kneaders with two lucky student winners!  This is such a fun way to support our school and have special quality time with kids. :)

Crew Art: Also check out the beautiful Crew art that was created with Ms. Staci! Each member of our Crew made a pinch pot and stamped a leaf, just for the beautiful sunflower. This will be up for auction!

Lost & Found: Our Lost & Found is overflowing, so now is a great time to collect any misplaced items. The Lost & Found gets donated during Spring Break- so be sure to check soon!

Scholastic Book Clubs: 

Class Order Due Date: 02/28/24 (it is a quick turnaround so that books will arrive before Spring Break if you are interested).

Shop Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/YCRBR
Shop Digital Flyers for Our Grade with Your Child: https://clubs.scholastic.com/kindergarten
Class Code: YCRBR
Place an order of $25 or more and you can pick a FREE $5 book (use code READS at checkout). These are great for Valentine's or Easter gifts. I can put them in backpacks or I am happy to be more discreet to pass them to you at an alterative time to be given as gifts. Just send me a quick email if that is your preference. :)
Place an order of $25 or more and you can pick a FREE $5 book (use code READS at checkout). These are great for birthday or Easter gifts. I can put them in backpacks or I am happy to be more discreet to pass them to you at an alterative time to be given as gifts. Just send me a quick email if that is your preference. :)

Rug Washing Sign Up: Now updated for Second Semester. Thank you and don't forget to log your volunteer hours into Track It Forward. Second Semester Rug Washing Sign Up

News from Our Crews: Thanks for staying informed with Ms. Trena's weekly newsletter. Check it out here: News from our Crews-  There is couple pictures from Community Reading featured! 

Calendar

Week of Feb 26th: Climbing 2:45-3:35pm: sign up here to belay

Feb 27: Fieldwork to Skatepark

Mar 1: Winter Hike (No Community Reading)

Mar 11-22: Spring Break

Mar 25: Crew Picture

Mar 30: REMS Annual Parent Auction Get your Tickets 

Crew Highlights: 

In phonics, we have been working on the letters "e" and "g." New sight words include: for, no, jump, & one. Students have been doing a lot of work with word families. For example with the -ip family, it is easy to make lip, zip, rip, tip, sip, and so on. Each day, students will practice making words on their whiteboards, including sight words, word families, and sounding out CVC (consonant vowel consonant) words. It is exciting to see their growth, and how students are growing in comfort with sounding out words. Here is our Updated Phonics List.

In reading, the title of this unit is Stories with a Message. We have read The Boy Who Fed His People, which has the theme of small acts of kindness can have a big impact, and we read The Legend of the Cocoi, which has the theme of how hard work makes a big difference. Themes can be tricky to grasp, so this is a great one to practice at home with familiar texts. 

In writing, we have launched a Personal Narrative Unit. Through looking at the mentor text Fireflies, students noticed that these are true stories that have a beginning, middle, and end. Students chose a story from their life to write across a 3 page booklet. We are starting with telling a partner (using 3 fingers to practice saying the beginning, middle, and end), then doing a quick sketch on each page, then adding words to the story, and then going back to fill in the pictures with details and color. Help your child brainstorm at home some fun memories that would be exciting to write about. Or even on the weekend, when something happens, prompt them with "you should write about this!" 

In math, we finished Compose Shapes and have begun Compose and Decompose 10. We have been using 10 frames and counters to make number partners for 10 (1 & 9, 2 & 8, 3 & 7, 4 & 6, 5 & 5). There is a great activity in the Family Letter that suggests using 10 pennies to shake & count the tails/heads. Then say, for. example, 8 and 2 makes ten.

Our expedition is called Move It! We have learned about push and pull. Now we are learning about different Simple Machines. We started with learning about inclined planes, and now we are learning about levers. Students have done an excellent job learning about many different types of levers. Last week, students enjoyed making a catapult with 4th grade buddies, made of popsicle sticks and a plastic spoon. 

This week, students have been given a Lego Challenge to make a seesaw. I posted pictures on Seesaw to show the final product.

Today we did a Seesaw Challenge: How many students does it take to lift a teacher? :) Students predicted that it would take all of our Crew and probably Ms. Bethany's Crew too. It took four! 

Picture Alert!

Thank you again for your support at home to create thoughtful cards! Valentine's Day is such a highlight in Kindergarten, and I certainly acknowledge and appreciate your help in making this day special. Also, I hope you enjoyed the beautiful heart art!

Here are some pictures from when 4th grade buddies came to exchange Vday cards. Look at all those smiles!!!

This week, 4th grade buddies shared with us their learning about Colorado state history, state symbols, and a song from their upcoming musical which will be performed at The Beat in a few weeks. 

Click here to see a video of Kindies & 4th Grade Buddies singing!

Colorado State Symbols

Here are the lyrics. It's VERY catchy! :)

Happy Birthday Ellyana!

Happy Birthday Liam!

It was so good to be back!

Wishing everyone a lovely weekend! 

~Ms. Lauren

Crew News February 9th, 2024

  Announcements 

Snowgear Check: Students came in from recess very wet & muddy. Please wash all gear. Also, please check if you are not missing any items, and all your items continue to have labels. Our Lost & Found is overflowing, so now is a great time to collect any misplaced items. The Lost & Found gets donated during Spring Break- so be sure to collect any items soon!

Wellness: It seems as though a number of different viruses are making the rounds. To highlight Ms. Trena’s message from the School News Blog before break, please refrain from sending your child to school sick. Keep them home until they are well (fever and/or vomit free for 24 hours minimum) to protect our entire school crew. If you feel your child is in need of OTC medicine before school, they should remain home. Students may not bring cough drops/lollipops to self-administer at school. Thank you for your help in keeping everyone well. 

My Thoughts on the Auction Fundraiser: 
Here is my personal plug for the Auction Fundraiser. :) Our school has done an amazing job with narrowing down the fundraisers to two a year- Renaissance Adventure Day (RAD Day) and an Auction Fundraiser. These have become meaningful and celebrated rituals of Renaissance. One of the things that I love most about these is how HUGE of an impact these have for students, teachers, and classrooms. When I first started teaching at Renaissance (2009!), there were only a few computers carts for the whole school--- now we have 1:1 technology for all students! This is so amazing to prepare students as digital learners. Another year, the money was used to purchase our 2 white buses that allow our school to have more opportunities to do authentic fieldwork. WOW! I LOVE THAT RENAISSANCE FUNDRAISING DIRECTLY IMPACTS OUR LEARNERS! So money aside, this is a super fun night, where you get to dress up and connect with other Renaissance parents. Every year, my husband and I look forward to this evening. Please consider coming. It is such a great event for a great cause- your kids! I hope to see you there! Buy your tickets today! 

REMS Auction, Save the Date!

When - Saturday, March 30th 
Theme - Red, White, and READ
Where - the Philip and Jerry Library (in Castle Rock)
Time 6 - 10:30 pm
We'll have food and drinks to enjoy while you bid on awesome items and experiences in the Silent & Live Auctions including Teacher Time, Crew Art, theme baskets & more!
Enjoy this adults-only event to visit with other Renaissance parents and our teachers and staff.
Early bird prices area available now!

Winter Hike - We will be going on a winter hike on Friday, March 1st. Our hike will be along Plum Creek Trail from the Meadows trailhead to Festival Park. Permission slips are coming home today in Take Home Folders. Please sign and return next week. We will need parent chaperones. We will need you from 8:30-12:30. Last call for chaperones! Please let me know by Monday if you would like to join us.

Next Wednesday!

Valentine's Day Card Exchange: Valentine's Day is less than a month away! At REMS and in the spirit of Crew, please make valentines for everyone in our crew. Homemade is encouraged but store-bought is great too. No candy or food please. Small trinkets or crafts are okay. A list of first names can be found HERE, which has the names of students and staff members (optional).  My suggestion is to begin having your child write out 2-3 names each day, rather than a large chunk right before. Your child should also bring a box to school on that day, approximately shoebox size with access to drop in valentines, and his or her name clearly displayed. What a great, authentic opportunity for writing and practicing handwriting! This is another experience that brings our crew close together. Please let me know if you have other questions! We will celebrate on February 14th.

*Please make a Valentine Card for your child's 4th grade buddy.
*Please note: do not send extra gifts, treats, or candies for buddies. There have been a lot of hurt feelings in the past from some buddies giving gifts and other not getting any- so we strongly ask that only cards are exchanged.

Rug Washing Sign Up: Now updated for Second Semester. Thank you and don't forget to log your volunteer hours into Track It Forward. 
Second Semester Rug Washing Sign Up

News from Our Crews: Thanks for staying informed with Ms. Trena's weekly newsletter. Check it out here: News from our Crews

Calendar

Feb 14th:  Valentine's Day

Feb 16th: No School (Professional Development Day)

Feb 19th: No School (President's Day)

Week of Feb 26th: Climbing Week 2:45-3:35pm: sign up here to belay

Mar 1: Winter Hike

Mar 30: REMS Annual Parent Auction Get your Tickets 

Crew Highlights: 

Here are our writers celebrating with peers their published writing!

Learning Highlights in Your Child's Take Home Folder:

There are a number of items to take note of coming home in Take Home Folders today. You can use these items for an informal student led conference. But here is some background, so that you know what you are looking at. :)

-Published Writing: Students have been working very hard on this Unit of Making Pattern Books. These booklets are three or more pages. We worked on making the first words repeat on each page. Some experimented with "breaking the pattern" on the last page, which was similar to our mentor text. As a fun addition, students added an "About the Author" page at the end. It was fun to see what 2-3 facts they wanted to share about themselves. Students selected their favorite pattern book to "publish." With publishing we spent some extra time to revise, edit, and "make it even better!" As a note, most of the book was done independently with some feedback from teachers. We are not looking for perfection but to grow in writing and with the revision process. Please take a few minutes to celebrate!

-Writing Reflection/Self Assessment: We took some time to look at ALL the writing we have done for this unit. Then students completed the Writing Reflection sheet, in which they identified what they were feeling most proud about and an upcoming goal. Then students took a second look at their published writing to self assess on how they are doing on our writing criteria: being able to read own writing, sounding out words, spelling high frequency words correctly, capitals, periods, and using lowercase letters. Please have them share this with you too! Our Crew has come a long way in their writing and their ability to self assess their own writing to see current progress and notice what next steps might be- in kindergarten! Way to go CREW!

-Benchmark Reading Logs: At the end of each reading unit, students take a Benchmark Reading Assessment. This assesses students on the comprehension skills that we are targeting. We review test taking strategies and students select a goal to focus on while they take their test. Samples goals include: listen to the story, listen to the question, listen to the answer choices, go slow, and do my best. Then afterward, I meet with students to record the correct number of questions out of ten. This allows us to check in about if they beat their "score" from the last test or how it went. Then as a whole group, we review the assessment to go over any confusion or misunderstandings. Today the Reading Log came home that shows this information from Unit 1-5. Please have your child tell you about it. 

-Interim Assessment: The Benchmark Unit Reading Assessments are online, so I thought it would be good to try the paper version for the longer midyear interim assessment. We did this as a whole group with me reading the passages and questions out loud. The first parts include two stories with comprehension questions. The second half had students identify the correct CVC word. I don't usually do a percentage, but I thought it might be helpful to inform your child's progress. 

-Phonics Book: The Unit 5 phonics book came home today. There is a combination of texts that we read together and that your child can read independently. Also, there are great games and sample at-home activities to reinforce learning, if you are interested.

As always, if you have any questions or would like to schedule a time for an academic update, please feel free to reach out. I am happy to meet with you! 

Hooray for celebrating all this great learning! 100 days smarter! :)

And now, here are highlights from 100 Day and Expedition.

Tuesday was a very special day...

It was our 100th day of school!

We made festive 100 day glasses!

Happy 100 Day Crew!

Can we read 100 books today?

Individually and as a whole group, we read LOTS of books throughout the day.

Here were some of our fun themed books.

We had some delightful answers to our 100 day writing prompts.

I wish I had 100:

balloons, rabbits, puppies, Squishmellows, remote control cars, kittens, Pokémon cards, big sisters, Golden Retrievers, spiders, Corgis, and elephants. HA!

In math, partners worked together to make a collection of 100 by making 10 groups of 10. Pictures on Seesaw!

Then students did a cut & glue activity counting by tens. 

Guess what?!!

We did it! Our Crew read 116 books!

100 days of smiles.

100 days of laughter.

100 days of learning.

100 days of CREW!

100 days of your favorite kindergarten teachers! :)

In expedition, I gave the Crew a challenge of moving a heavy box of books up the table.

After some discussion and problem solving, students came up with the idea to use a dolly as a ramp to push the box up. YES! I introduced this as our first simple machine: an inclined plane.

Students had exploration time to make their own inclined planes from our classroom materials.

This month, we are learning about SERVICE as one of our Crew Values. 

At the Beat, Ms. Sami's 4th grade crew shared what service meant and several examples of service. They shared that it means being helpful, doing something for others, thoughtful acts of kindness, and helping others in need. They connected this to their service project of collecting cereal boxes for a local food bank in Castle Rock. My favorite part was when they said that doing service for others has a domino effect of others wanting to help. Then with the word CREW spelled out in cereal boxes, we counted down to see the show.

Here is a video if you want to check it out! :)

On Thursday, we joined 4th grade buddies in making Valentine's Day cards for the Denver Children's Hospital. 

What a beautiful act of service!

Please remember to have all Valentines finished and ready to go for Wednesday. Also students will need a box labeled with their name. Some families choose to go all out and some keep this very simple- either is fine! (No stress!)

Looking forward to next week's celebration!

Stay warm, healthy, and safe this weekend.

Love, Ms. Lauren

Crew News February 2nd, 2024

 Announcements 

Winter Hike - We will be going on a winter hike on Friday, March 1st. Our hike will be along Plum Creek Trail from the Meadows trailhead to Festival Park. Permission slips are coming home today in Take Home Folders. Please sign and return next week. We will need parent chaperones. We will need you from 8:30-12:30. Please email me if you are interested. 

Family Night- I want to plug the Family Night next week. This will be a fun night with food and the opportunity to tie-dye a piece of clothing with our school colors (green & blue). Here are the details:

Feb 8, 5:30-7:30

Come in from the cold, and enjoy some REMS Crew fun!

Shirts: Create your own REMS-spirit Tie Dye shirt. We have all the supplies; you can pre-order your shirt for a small fee. To be guaranteed a shirt, submit your order by Jan 22.

Potluck: Bring in and share your favorite chili dish! Sign up for chili or a side, so we can plan accordingly.

Spring Climbing: Mr. Doug announced Spring Climbing dates. Our Crew will be climbing on February 26, 27, 29th, & March 1st. (Don't worry, we will return from our hike on March 1st in time to be back for climbing). Our climbing time is from 2:45-3:35. If you have been trained, please sign up to belay. Thanks!

Repeated for Reference

Scholastic Book Clubs: 

Class Order Due Date: 02/5/24 (please submit your order by Monday night, if you are interested.
Shop Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/YCRBR
Shop Digital Flyers for Our Grade with Your Child: https://clubs.scholastic.com/kindergarten
Class Code: YCRBR
Place an order of $25 or more and you can pick a FREE $5 book (use code READS at checkout). These are great for Valentine's or Easter gifts. I can put them in backpacks or I am happy to be more discreet to pass them to you at an alterative time to be given as gifts. Just send me a quick email if that is your preference. :)

Valentine's Day Card Exchange: Valentine's Day is less than a month away! At REMS and in the spirit of Crew, please make valentines for everyone in our crew. Homemade is encouraged but store-bought is great too. No candy or food please. Small trinkets or crafts are okay. A list of first names can be found HERE, which has the names of students and staff members (optional).  My suggestion is to begin having your child write out 2-3 names each day, rather than a large chunk right before. Your child should also bring a box to school on that day, approximately shoebox size with access to drop in valentines, and his or her name clearly displayed. What a great, authentic opportunity for writing and practicing handwriting! This is another experience that brings our crew close together. Please let me know if you have other questions! We will celebrate on February 14th.

*Please make a Valentine Card for your child's 4th grade buddy.
*Please note: do not send extra gifts, treats, or candies for buddies. There have been a lot of hurt feelings in the past from some buddies giving gifts and other not getting any- so we strongly ask that only cards are exchanged.

Rug Washing Sign Up: Now updated for Second Semester. Thank you and don't forget to log your volunteeer hours into Track It Forward. 
Second Semester Rug Washing Sign Up

Calendar

Feb 6th: 100 Day! (In class celebrations)

Feb 7th: Cereal Box Challenge- please send in a cereal box before

Feb 14th:  Valentine's Day

Feb 16th: No School (Professional Development Day)

Feb 19th: No School (President's Day)

Week of Feb 26th: Climbing Week 2:45-3:35

Mar 1: Winter Hike

Mar 30: Save the Date: REMS Annual Auction

Crew Highlights: 

Our highlight of the week was leading The Beat! Our Crew worked hard to prepare by memrizing their lines, remembering where to stand, and learning the order of speaking parts. Their preparation paid off! Everyone did such a fantastic job! Our Crew received abundant praise and recognition for their impressive performance. 

When we debriefed about how it went, students reflected about how they felt at the beginning, how they felt at the end, what was a surprise (or something they didn't expect), and what advice would you give to another student who felt nervous about leading The Beat. It was an uplifting discussion, so please ask your child about their personal reflections.

It is no easy task to talk and sing in front of an such a great audience, and our crew displayed incredible bravery. For this reason, our Crew earned their "Courage" crew value stick. Ms. Lisa passed these out at the end of the day on Wednesday. What a great way to end this milestone day! Again, I cannot say enough how proud I am of every member of our crew- each overcoming their personal nerves and ending the day with an ear to ear smile. It was a day to remember!

Here is a link with videos and group pictures. 

Individual pictures were shared on Seesaw. 

A big thank you to Lindsey for taking pictures!

We began our new expedition called Move It, a study of force and motion. Students were learning about push and pull in a fun interactive challenge. Our focus question was: Is it easier to push or pull? Then, to the delight of our learners, they got to take turns pushing and pulling each other in laundry baskets across the room. Students compared their predictions to their results, and we noticed that most found it easier to pull than push. 

Check SeeSaw for more pictures of this activity.

Today is Groundhog's Day. With 4th grade buddies, we learned more about groundhogs and this tradition. Students made predictions (pretty evenly split) about whether he would see his shadow. Today we found out that he did NOT see his shadow. :)

 

Whoosh! And just like that, it is February!

Next Tuesday, we will be celebrating our 100th day of school.

Can you believe that your child has been in kindergarten for one hundred days?!?

It seems like just yesterday we were doing home visits and setting up the classroom. :)

We will be doing some fun activities throughout the day to celebrate our 100th day. 

Stay warm this weekend!

~Ms. Lauren