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Mrs. Jennifer MacRitchie » Welcome to Kindergarten!

Welcome to Kindergarten!

Welcome to Mrs. MacRitchie's Kindergarten!


I am so excited to join the St. Joseph Catholic School community. After receiving my bachelor’s degree and doing the master’s program at St. Mary’s University in Minnesota my first teaching job was at St. Joseph Catholic School teaching kindergarten. I taught at St. Joseph for 7 years and then stepped away after my first child's birth. When my children were in school I returned to teaching at a public school in Geneva, working with children with special needs. After 6 years in the public school system, I decided to return to the Catholic School Community and started teaching kindergarten at St. Mary School in Elgin. This summer I moved back to the northern suburbs and feel so blessed to be back at St. Joseph Catholic School.

We are fortunate to have a full-time instructional kindergarten aide, Mrs. Graziella Bosco, working in our classroom this year. Mrs. Bosco has been a kindergarten aide at St. Joseph School for 17 years!

Together, we will develop a caring classroom community that will foster growth and develop a love for learning. We are both very excited to work closely with each student to ensure a successful Kindergarten year!

 




 

Posts

In math, we learned about symmetry lines and discovered that butterflies are symmetrical. We then used water color paints to paint symetrical butterflies. 
Today, we read an informational book on North America to complement our social studies unit on American symbols. 
In Religion, we talked about God's promise of new life in heaven forever and how, at this time of year we see new life all around us, reminding us of this promise. Then, we went to see the duck sitting on her eggs in front of the school. 

Week at a Glance April 28th - May 2nd

Math Objectives: The students will be able to identify, name, and describe spheres, cylinders, and cones. The students will analyze and compare solid shapes to determine which can roll, slide, and stack. The students will also learn about lines of symmetry and create a symmetrical butterfly.

Science Objectives: The students will be able to identify the major parts of a plant (roots, stems, leaves, flowers) and understand the basic function of each part. The students will observe the growth of the seeds they planted. 

Reading Objectives: To be able to recognize, write (upper and lowercase), and produce the correct sounds for all 26 letters plus all the long vowel sounds. The students will be able to identify and produce the sounds of the digraphs ch, sh, th, wh, and ck. The students will continue to work on blending the learned sounds to read and write words. The students will be able to identify the correct initial sound, middle sound, and ending sounds in words. The students will be able to read the 47 sight words. The students will practice being able to identify and produce words that rhyme. The students will work on being able to sequence events that occurred in their reading, as well as being able to identify the main topic of a story.  The students will work on being able to observe, wonder, and ask questions when reading. The students will practice reading fluently with the expression. 

Social Studies Objectives: The students will be able to identify and recognize key American symbols and understand how they represent the United States of America. The students will also learn about the two new continents, Europe and Asia. 

Religion Objectives: The students will be able to describe the Easter candle as a symbol of new life and a reminder that Jesus is the Light of the World. The students will understand that May Crowning is a special way to honor Mary, the Mother of God. 

Writing Objectives: The students will continue to work on developing writing skills, starting with capital letters, stating a complete thought, using the correct punctuation, and adding spaces between words. The students will continue to learn about information writing.

We had an amazing day! We planted and watered marigold and sunflower seeds so we can observe them over the next three weeks. We are VERY excited to see what happens. We also planted beefsteak tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and peppers. When they are seedlings, we are going to plant them in the Church's garden, and their vegetables will be given away at the food pantry. To top it off, we went upstairs to the science lab to see the chicken eggs in the incubator. They should be hatching in about 4 days. We can't wait to visit them next week!
Today in science, we learned that all living things have needs.  We talked about some things animals need to survive. We learned that plants are living things also and have needs. We learned that plants need water and light to survive. Tomorrow we are going to plants some seeds and see if we give them water and light if they will grow.  We are also going to see what happens if we do not give them water or light what happens. 
Today we worked on learning how to read an informational article and then how to take what we learned from our reading and write an informational paragraph.  We read about dolphins and then wrote what dolphins can do, what dolphins have and what dolphins are. 

Week At A Glance April 22nd - April 25th

Math Objectives: The students will use the words next to and beside to describe or place an object with respect to another object. Review and test on all objectives in Chapter 10: Position.

Science Objectives: The students will observe and describe patterns of what plants and animals (including humans) need to survive. The students will learn about Earth Day to develop an understanding of the Earth as a special place and recognize the importance of taking care of it.  

Reading Objectives: To recognize, write (upper and lowercase), and produce the correct sounds for all 26 letters plus all 5 long vowel sounds. The students will be able to identify and produce the sounds of the digraphs ch, sh, th, wh, and ck. The students will continue to work on blending the learned sounds to read and write words. The students will be able to identify the correct initial sound, middle sound, and ending sounds in words. The students will be able to read the 47 sight words. The students will practice being able to identify and produce words that rhyme. The students will work on identifying how many syllables they hear in a word. The students will work on being able to sequence events that occurred in their reading, as well as being able to identify the main topic of a story.  The students will work on being able to observe, wonder, and ask questions when reading.

Social Studies Objectives: The students will be able to identify and recognize key American symbols and understand their basic representation of the United States of America. The students will learn about the history of the first Earth Day. 

Religion Objectives: The students will be able to identify Easter as the celebration of Jesus' rising from the dead. The students will understand that Jesus promised to be with us always. 

Writing Objectives: The students will continue to work on developing their writing skills, starting with capital letters, stating a complete thought, using the correct punctuation, and adding spaces between words. They will also be introduced to information writing.

Josie used her behavior calendar reward tickets to buy bubbles at recess. The children had so much fun chasing the bubbles around the playground. 
At recess, we always have fun looking for signs of spring. We are amazed at how quickly the buds on the trees are opening into beautiful leaves. 

Week at a Glance April 14th - April 17th

Math Objectives: The students will use the words above, below, in front of, and behind to describe or place an object with respect to another object. The students will be introduced to lines of symmetry. The students will create symmetrical patterns on butterfly wings, demonstrating an understanding of lines of symmetry.

Science Objectives: The students will review the four seasons and be able to describe some of their typical characteristics and associated weather patterns for each season.

Reading Objectives: To be able to recognize, write (upper and lowercase), and produce the correct sounds for all 26 letters plus all the long vowel sounds. The students will be able to identify and produce the sounds of the digraphs ch, sh, th, wh, and ck. To continue to work on blending the learned sounds to read and write words. To identify the correct initial sound, middle sound, and ending sounds in words. To be able to read the 47 sight words. The students will practice being able to identify and produce words that rhyme. The students will work on identifying how many syllables they hear in a word. The students will work on being able to sequence events that occurred in their reading as well as being able to identify the main topic of a story.  The students will work on being able to observe, wonder, and ask questions when reading.

Social Studies Objectives: The students will be able to identify and recognize key American symbols like the Bald Eagle, the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial and understand their basic representation of the United States of America.

 Religion Objectives: The students will continue to focus on Lent as a time for prayer, reflection, and helping others. Using a visual aid, the students will be able to retell the key events of Holy Week.

Writing Objectives: The students will work on developing writing skills, starting with capital letters, stating a complete thought, using the correct punctuation, and adding spaces between words. The students will write an expository paragraph on a subject of their choosing.