Early Childhood Information
2008-2009
Contact information:
Mrs. Beerends can be reached from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Kewaskum Elementary School by calling 626-8427, extension 1123. You may also e-mail me at cbeerend@ksd.k12.wi.us.
Schedules:
Early Childhood meets Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday 9:00-11:40.
We have gym on Tuesday and Thursday at 10:15-10:45. Please help your child remember to wear gym shoes on these days.
We have library on Monday, 10:45-11:15. We go to library to listen to stories. The children will not be checking out books this year.
Monthly Newsletter:
Each month your child will bring home a newsletter. This newsletter will tell you about our activities for the month—books, art activities, songs and finger plays. The newsletter will also tell you about any field trips, special events, and important dates. Please read the newsletter thoroughly every month. The permission slip for our field trips will be included with the newsletter. You need to sign and return it to school.
Home Visits:
A key part of the Early Childhood program is the Home Visit. I will be coming to your home once each semester to show you what your child is learning and answer any questions you might have. A sign-up note will be sent home with your child. When the note is sent home, please fill it out and return to school as soon as possible. Once the Home Visit schedule is set you will be given a date and time. A reminder note will be sent home the week before the visit. Home visits will be on Wednesdays.
Transportation:
If for any reason your child’s transportation to or from school changes, please call and send a note with your child. If someone new is picking up your child, please let me know.
Backpacks:
Please check your child’s backpack when he/she gets home from school. We will be sending home the newsletter and other important papers.
The Early Childhood Classroom:
The Early Childhood Class provides opportunities for young children to explore their environment through sensory activities, manipulatives, and fine and gross motor activities. The Early Childhood classroom is filled with language development activities.
Early Childhood Syllabus for Core areas:
Early Childhood Language Arts Core Syllabus
Prewriting Skills:
o Opportunities to use pencil and crayons
o Trace and copy circle and lines
o Use hand strengthening activities (such as play dough)
Listening/Speaking Skills:
Nursery Rhymes
o Listening to nursery rhymes, song and finger plays
o Reciting nursery rhymes, songs and finger plays
o Listen while others are speaking
Social Development:
o Participates in group activities
o Listen and follows adult directives
o Follows one to two step directions
Fine Arts
- Listening and responding to music
- Participating with music
Fine Motor:
Writing:
o Demonstrates proper pencil or crayon grip
o Formation of straight lines, curved lines and angled lines
Cutting skills:
o Demonstrates proper scissors grip
o Snips paper
o Cuts a straight and curved line
Early Childhood Math Core Syllabus
Number and numeration
o Oral counting 1-10
o Counts objects using 1-to-1 correspondence 1-5
o Counting: How many?
o Counting using fingers: 1-10
Shapes
o Matching shapes
o Pointing to shapes, upon request (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, star)
o Label circle and square
o Putting together simple puzzles
Measurement
o Identify big and small
o Identify short and long
o Essential Learning 3
Data
o Introduction to graphs
o Monthly calendar: Days of the week and months
Attributes
o Sort by size and color
Common Assessments: Home visits, year-end report, and IEP
Early Childhood Reading Core Syllabus
Reading Content
Themes
o Reading books related to the theme
o Listening to the stories
Rhyme
o Reciting nursery rhymes with the group
o Reciting finger plays
o Singing songs
Literacy Links
o Singing the literacy link song
o Begin to vocalize the sound of each alphabet letter
o Begin to give the hand symbol for each alphabet letter
Reading Skills
Text Structure
o Recognize proper handling of books
o Recognize front and back of book
o Begin to understand title and author of books
Reading Strategies
o Asking questions
o Predicting
o Making connections: use of picture cues
Vocabulary Development
o Recognizing picture cards: Match and label
o Answering questions about pictures and/or vocabulary cards
o Answering questions: What happened next?
Literary Devices
o Recognize the setting of a story
o Recognize the characters of a story
Word Recognition
o Class books
o Calendar
Science CORE Syllabus
Seasons and Weather
o Recognize the weather and graph
o Observe of daily weather
o Identify seasons and weather
Sink and Float
o Make observations
o Make predictions
Body Identify body parts
o Label body parts
o Demonstrate hand-eye coordination, strength, control and object manipulation
o Follow safety rules and directions
o Demonstrate self-care routines
Planting
o Sequence the life cycle
o Label parts of the plant
Insects
o Label insects
o Sequence life cycles
Pond (Even Year)
o Label characteristics of a pond
o Identify animals
Ocean (Odd Year)
o Label characteristics of an ocean
o Identify ocean animals
o Locate oceans
Senses:
o Identify senses
o Identify function of senses
Early Childhood Social Studies Core Syllabus
Field Trips
o Nature walks
o Place and businesses in the community
Morning meetings:
o Develop social skills
o Learn peers’ names
o Demonstrate manners
o Demonstrate self-control
o Participates in group discussion and activities
Free Choices
o Demonstrate cooperative play
o Demonstrate manners
o Demonstrate problem solving
o Demonstrate self-control
Holiday
o Thanksgiving
o Christmas
o Easter
Transportation (Even Year)
o Identify vehicles
o Recognize items that sink and float
Farm (Even Year)
o Identify animals/mothers and babies
o Identify products of the farm
o Identify farm equipment
Community Helper (Odd Year)
o Identify roles of business in the community
o Identify careers
o Identify where the student lives
Early Childhood Language Arts Core Syllabus
Prewriting Skills:
o Opportunities to use pencil and crayons
o Trace and copy circle and lines
o Use hand strengthening activities (such as play dough)
Listening/Speaking Skills:
Nursery Rhymes
o Listening to nursery rhymes, song and finger plays
o Reciting nursery rhymes, songs and finger plays
o Listen while others are speaking
Social Development:
o Participates in group activities
o Listen and follows adult directives
o Follows one to two step directions
Fine Arts
- Listening and responding to music
- Participating with music
Fine Motor:
Writing:
o Demonstrates proper pencil or crayon grip
o Formation of straight lines, curved lines and angled lines
Cutting skills:
o Demonstrates proper scissors grip
o Snips paper
o Cuts a straight and curved line
Early Childhood Math Core Syllabus
Number and numeration
o Oral counting 1-10
o Counts objects using 1-to-1 correspondence 1-5
o Counting: How many?
o Counting using fingers: 1-10
Shapes
o Matching shapes
o Pointing to shapes, upon request (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, star)
o Label circle and square
o Putting together simple puzzles
Measurement
o Identify big and small
o Identify short and long
o Essential Learning 3
Data
o Introduction to graphs
o Monthly calendar: Days of the week and months
Attributes
o Sort by size and color
Common Assessments: Home visits, year-end report, and IEP
Early Childhood Reading Core Syllabus
Reading Content
Themes
o Reading books related to the theme
o Listening to the stories
Rhyme
o Reciting nursery rhymes with the group
o Reciting finger plays
o Singing songs
Literacy Links
o Singing the literacy link song
o Begin to vocalize the sound of each alphabet letter
o Begin to give the hand symbol for each alphabet letter
Reading Skills
Text Structure
o Recognize proper handling of books
o Recognize front and back of book
o Begin to understand title and author of books
Reading Strategies
o Asking questions
o Predicting
o Making connections: use of picture cues
Vocabulary Development
o Recognizing picture cards: Match and label
o Answering questions about pictures and/or vocabulary cards
o Answering questions: What happened next?
Literary Devices
o Recognize the setting of a story
o Recognize the characters of a story
Word Recognition
o Class books
o Calendar
Science CORE Syllabus
Seasons and Weather
o Recognize the weather and graph
o Observe of daily weather
o Identify seasons and weather
Sink and Float
o Make observations
o Make predictions
Body Identify body parts
o Label body parts
o Demonstrate hand-eye coordination, strength, control and object manipulation
o Follow safety rules and directions
o Demonstrate self-care routines
Planting
o Sequence the life cycle
o Label parts of the plant
Insects
o Label insects
o Sequence life cycles
Pond (Even Year)
o Label characteristics of a pond
o Identify animals
Ocean (Odd Year)
o Label characteristics of an ocean
o Identify ocean animals
o Locate oceans
Senses:
o Identify senses
o Identify function of senses
Early Childhood Social Studies Core Syllabus
Field Trips
o Nature walks
o Place and businesses in the community
Morning meetings:
o Develop social skills
o Learn peers’ names
o Demonstrate manners
o Demonstrate self-control
o Participates in group discussion and activities
Free Choices
o Demonstrate cooperative play
o Demonstrate manners
o Demonstrate problem solving
o Demonstrate self-control
Holiday
o Thanksgiving
o Christmas
o Easter
Transportation (Even Year)
o Identify vehicles
o Recognize items that sink and float
Farm (Even Year)
o Identify animals/mothers and babies
o Identify products of the farm
o Identify farm equipment
Community Helper (Odd Year)
o Identify roles of business in the community
o Identify careers
o Identify where the student lives
