A December to Remember in Kindergarten

December may have been a short three weeks, but our kindergarten classroom was filled with big learning and even bigger fun! The children stayed busy with festive and creative activities, starting with cookie decorating and lots of arts and crafts that helped them practice fine motor skills while expressing their creativity. We also explored learning about leaves through art, connecting seasonal changes to hands-on creative projects.

1of23

1of53

1of14

We danced our way through the month by learning a hip hop–choreographed routine and proudly performing it, showing confidence and teamwork. Literacy came alive as students retold The Gingerbread Man, acting out the story and strengthening their comprehension skills. As a class, we also worked together on a Christmas puzzle, learning the importance of patience, cooperation, and helping one another.

1of6

1of6

1of4

One of the highlights was making Stone Soup with Ms. Steverding’s class. The children peeled, chopped, cooked, and then shared a meal together to celebrate teamwork and community. They also enjoyed open play time with friends, building social skills, imagination, and cooperation through play. We wrapped up the month with cozy moments like movie day, a special pancake breakfast and lots of open play. December was short but sweet, and full of memories we’ll carry into the new year!

1of22

1of10

1of21

We would like to wish all our families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and thank you so much for your generous gifts and continued support—it truly means a lot!

October – Autumn Adventures

This month has been full of excitement, curiosity, and friendship in our kindergarten classroom! As the leaves turned colours, our young learners explored the wonderful themes of apples, pumpkins, and celebrations from around the world.

1of24

We began our journey by discovering apples—tasting different varieties, labeling parts of an apple, and making apple prints with paint. The children loved learning about how apples grow and sharing which kind was their favorite!

1of38

We talked about Thanksgiving—a time to be grateful and to share kindness. The class shared what they are thankful for, from family and friends to food and toys. We made “Thankful Leaves,” where each leaf showed something special that fills our hearts with gratitude. We also had fun painting rainbow turkeys for Thanksgiving!

1of15

Next came pumpkins, we went on our first field trip to the pumpkin patch (see pumpkin patch post), we explored the inside of a pumpkin, their life cycle and tasted pumpkin seeds.

1of19

Our Halloween celebration was filled with costumes and laughter as we explored different ADST (Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies) challenges and math with a Halloween twist.

1of12

We also learned about Diwali, the Festival of Lights. The children listened to stories about how Diwali is celebrated and made colorful rangoli patterns and paper diyas to brighten our room.

1of25

Division 12 learning and exploring hands-on activities in literacy, math, and art.

1of22

During Story Workshop, our classroom came alive with stories from our trip to the pumpkin patch! Division 12 used their voices and imaginations to share their favourite moments — from finding the perfect pumpkin to completing the obstacle course and corn maze. Ask your child to share their story with you.

1of32

Our young artists explored self-expression! They looked closely at their reflections in mirrors to draw detailed self-portraits, noticing the unique shapes and features that make them special.

Pumpkin Patch Field Trip

Our two kindergarten classes had such a fun experience visiting Laity Pumpkin Patch (South side) in Maple Ridge. For many of the students, it was their very first pumpkin patch experience. And for the majority, it was their first school bus ride! The morning began with clouds and a chance of light rain. The students were prepared for the rain with boots and rain gear. The weather held out for us, and our cloudy day turned into a fabulous sun-shiny afternoon!

Students had ample time to explore in small groups, thanks to our parent volunteers. The children were excited to visit the barn and the outdoor areas with many animals! We were able to see and touch some of the animals. We saw goats, a “mountain” of sheep, a village of rabbits, chickens, turkeys, and even the “three little pigs” who lived in their houses of straw, sticks and bricks!

The area was divided into many smaller areas for exploration. The western pumpkin town had creative pumpkin displays. Some of the children’s favourites were the saloon and the sheriff’s office where students could pose as the “town thief” inside a jail. Inside the Garden Glow tent was a walk-through of fluorescent pumpkins and characters. Students also enjoyed the corn mazes and obstacle courses. The large games area featured ball tosses, pinball-inspired challenges, pumpkin tic-tac-toe and other unique puzzles and trick shot games.

Students enjoyed the Laity Launcher pumpkin cannon show; it hurled pumpkins at some large stacked barrels. It was such a huge “hit” with the children. At the end of the trip, we travelled to the pumpkin field and each student chose a pumpkin to take home!

It was a bumpy but quick bus ride back to school. Some children managed to get a quick nap on the bus! Ms. Steverding led us with some fun bus-riding songs!

During our journal writing the next day, students were asked to share about their favourite part of the trip, here are a few things that were said:

“I loved petting the animals.”

“It was hard to pick (a pumpkin)…I wish I could take lots!”

“The pigs – I loved the houses.”

“I liked sticking my head out the holes for pictures.”

“I love bus ride.”

“It was glowing and singing in the tent.”

“I love the cute animals. I love cats and bunnies.”

“I like riding the bouncy animals.” (the inflatable toys)

Please ask your child to tell you what their favourite memory or moment was, and feel free to share their answers below in the comment box.

Thank you so much to our educational assistants (Ms. Lee, Ms. Nguyen), as well as all the parent volunteers, and the parents who were able to join us for this memorable field trip! Also thank you to the parents who helped to take photos.

1of4

1of21

Gymnastics

The children had a blast exploring the different stations led by Lucinda of Gym Sense Gymnastics. Lucinda did a wonderful job of introducing the children to the equipment safely and in a fun way. Many students stated they had never tried Gymnastics equipment before, and some were a little hesitant to start. Students developed their skills in strength, flexibility, balance and coordination, confidence and most importantly, they had fun! Individual photos of children will be sent to you in separate emails.

Some comments from the children:
“I liked the beams.”
“I love swinging and climbing the rope.”
“It was hard to stand on the balancing thing, but I liked it.”
“The monkey bars were hard. But fun.”

1of15

September and October

The Kindergarten year is off to a busy start! We have been learning, playing and establishing our classroom routines. It has been great to see friendships forming among the children as they get to know each other! Here’s a little glimpse of what we have been doing.

1of5

Learning to recognize and write our name

1of22

We learned Terry Fox is a Canadian hero who raised millions of dollars for cancer research through his Marathon of Hope event. Our class participated in the event by running around our field and raising money for cancer research.

1of4

For Truth and Reconciliation Day, we learned the day honours the children who never returned home and survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. We also learned a Powwow dance and saw a Powwow performance.