Week 37: Football Fever in Kindergarten!

Dear Family, hope you all had an amazing week! We had an absolute blast this week. It was filled with excitement as our children eagerly anticipated our annual friendly football match with ICS, and it went wonderfully! Of course, our usual classes were still happening, so let’s take you through our week…

Large Group

Continuing from last week's exploration of word families, this week we dove into new ones: “ent,” “ell,” “and,” and “old.” Our little readers were excited to discover these families and practice forming words with them! With their growing confidence, our children found this activity to be a piece of cake. However, it was still a valuable teaching moment for everyone in class. Just like last time, we wrote sentences on the board using our new word families, and our children eagerly read them aloud. Their enthusiasm and participation made the learning experience even more enjoyable!

“I want to read the first one first” -Abigel

“This one is super easy I can read it so fasttttttt like speed car” -Lucas

“we don’t say and here because this one is not the sight word yeah?” -Adelene

“But old is still old” -Leayene

Literacy

This week's literacy session was an absolute blast! All year, we've been building excitement around comic books, promising our children that as soon as they mastered the basics of reading and writing, we'd dive into the dynamic world of sequential art. Well, that time has finally arrived! We kicked off our comic book adventure with a specially designed worksheet focusing on four-panel narratives. This wasn't just about reading; it was about deconstructing the visual language of comics. The children eagerly analyzed how dialogue, panel layout, and visual cues work together to tell a story. The very next day, armed with their newfound knowledge, they put their skills to the test and created their own sample comic strips. The results were phenomenal! We were blown away by their creativity, their understanding of pacing, and their ability to capture emotion in a single panel. Next week, we're taking it to the next level. Our children will be crafting their own short comic books, complete with original stories and unique artistic interpretations. We can't wait to see what amazing tales they bring to life!

“I can make lots of stories like this” -Lucas

“Look what I made, this is my comic book” -Abigail

“Next time I’ll write more like Lucas” -Umar

“I was busy drawing that’s why I didn’t wrote a lot” -Leayene

“My brother and I will get a comic book for our next birthday” -Adelene

Math

Since we’re in week 37 and on our way to the end of the year, we are now revising the many math lessons we’ve learned so far. This week, we focused on Even and Odd numbers. Since our children know how to determine if a number is even or odd, we introduced a three-digit challenge. They understand that by looking at the last digit, they can tell if a number is even or odd. We provided them with a fun worksheet where they colored the three-digit numbers. If the number is odd, they colored it green, and if it’s even, they colored it blue. It was such a fun activity that allowed them to learn, color, and enjoy themselves all at the same time!

“First let’s circle the odd and we color them yeah” -Abigail

“Even you give us hundred thousand million we will do it cause it’s super easy” -Umar

“Color” -Yichen

“Oh my God Yichen said color guys” -Junior

Science

Continuing our exploration of the skeletal system, this week our children learned about the lower parts of the skeleton. After reviewing the upper parts they had previously covered, we moved on to a hands-on craft activity. We first cut out different skeleton face templates and had our children choose one to stick onto a sheet of hard paper. We then gave each child 27 cotton swabs (Q-tips) and let them build their own skeleton model. Although we provided a demonstration skeleton model on the board for reference, our children each created their own unique and beautiful skeletal structures. We were so impressed by their creativity and problem-solving skills as they used the Q-tips to assemble their skeletons.

“We need 20 cotton swabs for the ribs” -Leayene

“I don’t want mine straight I want my skeleton to look like it’s kicking” -Lucas

“I want mine to make a heart shape” -Adelene

“I want a dancing skeleton” -Hekima

Art

This week, we completed our ninth and final art project! We planned to create a skeletal model on a large canvas to showcase the learning process from our science sessions. When we asked the children what our last art project should be, they chose between skeletons, self-portraits, and comic art, with the skeleton model winning by a show of hands. We then sat down to plan the execution. After painting the background black, we sketched the face and painted it white, with green and black for the eyes. Once the face was complete, we used Q-tips to enhance our artwork beautifully and collaboratively.

Our children loved their project and were eager to bid on it already.

“Let’s make a baby skeleton with 300 bones” -Junior

“If it’s a big skeleton it needs 206 bones” -Yeabsera

“Let’s put glitter on our skeleton” -Abigail

“Yeah, then it won’t be scary for the other kids” -Leayene

“But my dad is not buying this because my sister will scared” -Tang Tang

Football Tournament

The friendly football match between our school and ICS was the highlight of the week! Our little athletes were brimming with enthusiasm and energy, ready to showcase their skills on the field. They gave it their all, running, passing, and scoring goals with infectious joy. It was a sight to behold, and the roar of the cheering team only fueled our children’s competitive spirit.

“Their ball is too big and tricky” -Junior

“They are too big than us” -Tang Tang

“How old are they Phi? They’re bigggggg” -Leayene

“This is going to be my school next year maybe you will see me here like your old students” -Adelene

“Also mine and I’ll practice with them but I won’t score on you guys” -Umar

“We also wont be here Umar, I’m going to China next year” -Lucas

“The one red kid pushed me but they didn’t give him yellow” -Yeabsera

“They are so nice they gave us watermelon” -Abigail

“But I was also tall like them yeah Lucas? They’re can’t push me” -Hekima

Next week’s schedule:

Monday – Math, Literacy

Tuesday – Literacy, Science, gym

Wednesday - Library, Math

Thursday - Science

Friday - Cooperative game

Specials:

Monday- Art

Tuesday - Gym

Thursday - Ethiopian center/ clay

Friday - Football

Reminders and notes:

• Please make sure that our children are wearing suitable clothes on Monday as we have art class and activities get messy sometimes.

• Every Wednesday and Thursday is library day. Our children will be bringing home a book of their choice in their library folder, so please make sure to read the book with them over the weekend. Please return the folder the following Wednesday so they can get a new one.
• Every Tuesday, we have gymnastics, so please ensure that our children come dressed in comfortable and loose-fitting sports attire to facilitate their exercise.

• Every Friday, we have football, so please make sure our children wear their football jerseys if they have them, or any comfortable shorts.

Stay tuned for more adventures from our thriving kindergarten community!