This month we are working on the first I Care Cat rule : We Listen to Each Other. The students are learning the basics of good listening for example: we listen with our ears, we understand with our brains, we keep our mouths closed, our eyes on the teacher and our bodies still. We are practicing with various listening activities. Ask your child what they are learning in Kindergarten guidance and see what they tell you!!!
The Kindergarten Classroom Guidance focus for the year is designed around the use of five basic rules of learning and friendship that support both social and academic success. The rules are taught through a series of lessons which are part of the I Care Cat guidance lessons adapted from the Peacemaking Skills for Little Kids Curriculum. In the first semester of school, students will learn the basics of listening, helping, cooperation and empathy. They will be taught how to use I Care statements to convey their feelings and to listen to the feelings of others. In the second semester of the school year, the training will continue with opportunities for learning and role playing to demonstrate the skills that have been taught. Additionally a student recognition component will be added which is called the Kindergarten I CARE All-STARS Program. Students will be recognized for demonstrating the skills we have been learning throughout the school year through the I CARE CAT lessons. Once recognized, students will be given a special ALL-STAR to place on a bulletin board in the main school hallway. Every student will be challenged to be caught being an I CARE All STAR.
Throughout the year, I will keep posting the topics that we are currently working on in Kindergarten Guidance. The first lessons of the school year will focus on the concept of building a cooperative environment in the classroom. We will focus on learning about eachother and learning the skills of good listening. Each lesson incorporates story-telling, art activities and singing along with the use of I CARE CAT puppet who teaches the children the content of the lesson each week. Each lesson is correlated to the standards required by Cobb County School System and the Georgia Department of Education for Kindergarten students.
This video shows parents what the skills are that all students will need as learns in the 21st century classroom and afterwards in the world of work. The Kindergarten guidance curriculum will teach students these important skills.
Parents often are looking for good resources to learn more about Attention Deficit Disorders (ADD). I am including some resources that I have found to be useful for parents and am including these links on my blog below:
Susan McCarthy is coming back for her second year at Hayes ES as the Kindergarten School Counselor. She is looking forward to working with the new group of Kindergarten students entering Hayes for the 08-09 school year. Ms. McCarthy is a veteran educator with over 30 years of experience in the public school system in Georgia in a variety of different roles. She has served as a school counselor at the high school, middle school and elementary school levels, a system director of counseling and as a school counseling consultant at the Georgia Department of Education. Additonally Ms. McCarthy has spent many years in leadership roles in the Georgia School Counselors Association including President. These many years of experience as a professional school counselor has given Susan an opportunity to constantly update her skills and stay current on school counselor initiatives and programs. She hopes to use her knowledge and experience in providing counseling services to all Kindergarten students at Hayes Elementary School.
