December is Here!

There is no better way to welcome in the new month than with a new friend to round out our now full class. Please take a moment to welcome the newest members of the Cottontail family, Teddy Kim and his parents, Teddy and Bomi.

WInter is definitely in the air as we enter the last few weeks of Fall. The temps are falling, the days are getting shorter and shorter, and the Cottontails are keeping their eyes open for that first measurable snowfall. While we anxiously await this exciting occasion I wanted to take just a moment to remind you of a few "Winter Weather" expectations.

~ Please take some time to switch out your child's spare set of clothing in their cubby. Most cubbies are equipped with a spare set of t-shirts and shorts. Swap out that summer spare set for something a bit warmer like pants and a long sleeve.

~ Is your child prepared for the winter weather at recess time? Please see the that your child is appropriately dressed for the cool temps as we will continue to play outside unless the air temp or windchill drops below zero. Students are expected to have jackets, hats, and mittens each and every day. When the snow sticks, students will need snow pants and boots to play in the snow. Please see that your child is prepared.

~ Remember, Willowwind follows ICCSD's lead in early dismissals, late starts, and cancellations. There is no BSP when late starts occur and there is no ASP following an early dismissal.

November ended in a magical way with a wonderful Willowwind event, the Thanksgiving Feast. Thank you to all of the parents that contributed their efforts through time and supplies to make this special day such an incredible success. It was a pure joy watching the Cottontails put so much love into our table decorations and cornbread muffins. Enjoy the recipe. The muffins were a sweet addition to the rest of the delicious Feast foods.

An additional thanks goes out to the drivers for our recent Eulenspiegel Puppet Theater field trip. Preparing for our field trip, the class has been reading The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen. Purposefully, we did not finish our chapter book read aloud prior to our field trip. It was fun to head to Eulenspiegel and watch the puppet show with suspense as we were eager to see the ending unfold. We continue to focus on comprehension as we read together. While reading The Snow Queen, the students asked many great questions that allowed us to focus on our inferencing skills as we asked student driven questions like, "Do you think Gerda still loves Kip even with his frozen heart?"

Our literacy skills continue to grow beyond our reading time, the Kindergarteners have been working hard on writing their Partner Books. Partner Books are a wonderful Willowwind tradition allowing students to use their creative writing skills and the writing process to create a story for one of their partners. I worked with each Cottontail individually to help them write a wonderful partner book. Students dictated their stories as I typed their words. As the authoring phase comes to an end, the Cottontails are eager to work with Ms. Buffy to create beautiful pictures that will bring their words to life. Thank you to Gretchen Rice and Ms. Christine who also helped with the partner book writing process. Willowwind students will exchange Partner Books on Tuesday, December 20th. As your child brings home their Partner Book, written and illustrated with love and created especially for your child, remember that this is a special keepsake your child will enjoy looking back on for many years to come.

In addition to our Partner Book busyness, the Cottontails continue to stay busy in Math and Science, too. Prior to Thanksgiving, the Cottontails finished up our Pumpkin unit. We enjoyed using our own pumpkins to measure their height and circumference. We also used them to decorate our Thanksgiving Feast tables. One fun activity was ordering the life cycle of the pumpkin. What comes first the vine or the blossom, the jack-o-lantern or the pie? Here is one Cottontail conversation I overheard during this fun activity.

Student 1: Does the Jack-o-lantern come before the pumpkin pie?
Student 2: Yes.
Student 1: Really?
Student 2: Yes.
Student 1: Really?
Student 2: Yes. Really yes.
Student 1: Yes, I knew it!

In Math, the Cottontails have recently completed Math in Focus's chapters 3 and 4. These chapters highlighted length and weight and the basic ideas of addition and subtraction. Chapter 4 in particular prepares our Cottontails for our upcoming basic math facts routine that will be introduced after Winter Break. Look to the upcoming December Newsletter for more information regarding our upcoming math units. Last week, the Cottontails learned a new math game, Magic Number 6. This is an easy math game you can play at home using a dice and a handful of counters (pennies, dried pasta, beans, etc). A player rolls the dice, and the first player to show with fingers and says how many more are needed to reach six receives a counter. The winner of the game is the first child to get five counters. In addition, Math in Focus's online component has a new activity. Login in using the Math In Focus website to see and interact with the new virtual manipulatives. Your kindergartener can use these manipulatives to further work on patterning, number sense, and numeric relationships. Remember to use your child's first and last name (all one word) of your child's login and their six digit birthdate (mmddyy) for the password.

It is a true joy to work with your child each and everyday. I am so grateful to have the honor to work at such an amazing school. Please spread the WIllowwind Kindergarten word to all your friends and family members with preschool children that are age eligible for Kindergarten 2012 - 2013. This Thursday, December 8th is Kindergarten Transition Night. At 6:30, in the Cottontail classroom, Carly, Amy, and I will be on hand to discuss the uniqueness of our Kindergarten Program. We will share our thoughts on the dynamic curriculum including our Singapore Math program, the arts and language programs, the use of the IC community and field experiences, and the traditions that build confidence and curiosity in our young learners. If you know of someone that maybe interested in learning more about how their preschooler could truly benefit from Willowwind's Kindergarten program please have them RSVP to our Director of Admissions, Amy Conyers, by emailing her at amyc@willowwind.org or by calling 319.338.6061. Thanks for your help!

Lastly, another thing I love about teaching at WIllowwind is the ability to involve our students in wonderful community events. By participating in a variety of service learning projects we can help our children become more globally aware of current event that occur outside Willowwind's walls. During the season of giving, the Willowwind community is participating in two very important drives. Please help out in any way you can. Your participation is much appreciated!

Pages for Patients
The Willowwind community is working with Willowwind alumnus, Meg Richardson, and the City High Ambassadors to collect as many pages as possible by donating new and very gently used books for all ages, 0-99. These books will be donated to the UIHC library and in-patient book cart. As we can all only imagine, time spent in the hospital can be full of anxiousness and worry. The Pages for Patients Book Drive provides patients with books to keep them entertained while visiting UIHC. City High Ambassadors' goal is to collect 20,000 pages. If you are interested in participating there is a drop off bin by the Front Desk and outside our classroom door. Willowwind will collect books until Tuesday, December 21st. Please help bring a smile to the patients staying at UIHC.

Willowwind Food Drive
Please take a moment to donate a non-perishable food item, or two, or more. Students often enjoy raiding their own cupboards for non-perishable items they can bring in to donate. Food donation bins are located upstairs near the Front Desk, by our classroom door, and downstairs near the Preschool Lost & Found. Willowwind will collect nonperishable items until December 16th. Please help stock the River Church Food Drive shelves. Your participation will help many families throughout the Winter months.

Cornbread Muffin Recipe
Math in Focus Website