Ms. Carmen’s Kinder
Welcome to the Chickadee Kindergarten page! My name is Carmen Guzman and this will be my third year as a Kindergarten teacher, my first here at NCSA. I worked here as a classroom aide a few years ago and it feels so good to be back as a teacher! I received my BA in Spanish from Humboldt State University where I was able to study abroad for a year in Costa Rica and travel to see much of Central America. I obtained a multi-subject credential and a Master’s degree in the Art of Teaching from Western Governors University. My first two years teaching were spent at Bell Hill Academy. I loved teaching in the Dual Immersion Program and will continue to implement bits and pieces of Spanish vocabulary into our day. The focus here at NCSA is art integration and my creative side couldn’t be more excited about that! My teaching style is hands-on and encourages curiosity. My beliefs as a professional educator about teaching and learning are that every child needs to feel loved, seen and have a sense of security at school in order to succeed. By the end of the year your child will feel empowered by their growth! Off campus, I love my family time, dinner with friends, hiking, camping, embroidery, and am awaiting my next adventure abroad.
All About Kindergarten
The kindergarten school day begins at 8:30 am and ends at 2 pm. There are 20 students in each kindergarten class. We begin each day with a greeting time during which the children sing, share ideas, perform calendar activities and discuss events of the school day. Our language arts curriculum includes the appreciation of rich literature through daily read-alouds, practice in letter/sound identification, rhyming, wordplay, and conventions of print. Language arts time is conducted in a workshop model which allows for children to practice skills at their varying levels. The kindergarten mathematics curriculum includes counting skills, measurement, patterning, addition and subtraction operations, and geometric shapes. Kindergarten classes also have regular instruction in art, music, and creative movement taught by our wonderful specialist teachers! Science and social studies themes will be woven throughout the school year.
In fall, we will learn about friendship and celebrate the similarities and differences between us. We will have a “Special Persons Day,” inviting someone who is meaningful to us to share pie and a small in-class performance. We will become engineers as we participate in a variety of STEM activities. We will also learn about plants and seeds enriched by a field trip to Food, Love Farm and the planting of tulip bulbs in our school garden.
In winter, we will learn about the traditions, celebrations, and lifestyles of other cultures. We will also learn about the water cycle and become weather watchers. Finally, we will learn about hibernating forest animals. Our winter field trip will be to the Mud Hut to make our own pottery!
In spring, we will study the habitat of forest animals as we explore the trails on our school site! We will learn about and witness the life cycles of frogs and butterflies. In honor of Earth Day in April, we will talk about ways we can help care for the Earth. We will see the tulips we planted in the fall come to life and take a field trip to see local flowers & butterflies! We will also learn about force & motion through fun experiments, such as building ramps and simple machines. Finally, we will take a trip to the library and Rood Center to see our art on display! At the end of the year, we will have a Kindergarten Musical Production & Portfolio Night to celebrate all of our hard work!”