Welcome to Kindergarten!

There is a wonderful sense of home when you walk through the front doors of Samsula Academy. I deeply believe that your child will find our school to be a warm and friendly place. I am very proud to be a part of the Samsula Academy School family. Once you have opened those doors you are a member of our family too.

I wish to welcome you to Kindergarten. Kindergarten is a new and exciting time for you and your child. It’s a time of change… new beginnings, new friends, new challenges and exciting discoveries! I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation for allowing me to be a part of your child’s life during this precious time of growth and discovery!

This is my honor to welcome you and your child into Kindergarten and into… my life. I will do my best to make this year in Kindergarten enjoyable but also filled with academics. My motto is: “The seeds I plant today will blossom into a flower tomorrow.” It will be my pleasure and privilege to watch your child’s personality and learning abilities blossom and unfold day by day.

I run a very effective classroom which is well structured but allows for fun and growth. I hold high expectations for all my students. Furthermore, I strongly believe in differentiated instruction. Research reveals that all students learn differently. Therefore, I plan my lessons to meet the needs of all students. It will be my honor to expand the growing minds of tomorrow and encourage them to become the great leaders of the new generation.

You will find very useful information on this blog. I will update it with events that are happening in our classroom, student work, and other related events. If you have any questions, you may contact me at cgibbs@readingedgeacademy.org

-Mr. Christopher Gibbs

Thinking our way through Kindergarten!




We just ended another exciting week of kindergarten! The children in Mr. G's classroom are very eager to learn and that makes for a very happy teacher! The children in my classroom have made the transition into 'big' school and are now beginning to learn. We are learning to recognize the letters of the alphabet and their corresponding sounds. We are also learning basic Dolch words. This week we focused on Aa and Mm. The Dolch words this week were: a, and, away, big, and blue. The children in my classroom can also recognize I, can, me, and school. I am so blessed to have a classroom with eager children and fantastic parental support. Remember, you are a vital in the success of our children.


This summer I had the honor of attending several professional development workshops. One of which was focused on Thinking Maps. Thinking Maps are a set of graphic organizer techniques used in K-12 education . There are eight maps that are designed to correspond with eight different fundamental thinking processes. This week, we completed several circle maps. The circle map is one of the eight maps and is used for defining in context. This week, we learned color words. Students had the opportunity to look through magazines and cut out pictures that contained a particular color. Students loved this activity! We made a thinking map for each color learned: yellow, red, blue, green, orange, brown, purple, black and white. These are displayed in our classroom. Please take the time to come in and check out them out. Your children worked very hard and you should be proud. We also made a circle map for the letters Aa and Mm. We put the letter in the middle and the outside circle contained pictures that began with the corresponding sound. We will be doing this for each letter.


Lastly, I am so thankful for your help. Today, your child was tested on his Book-In-A-Bag words. I couldn't be more proud! Your children did an amazing job. Most of them are moving on to the new set of words; however, there are some that will need to revist the words from this past week. The most difficult words for students were: and and away. Remember, just because your student knew these today doesn't mean they will remember them tomorrow. Continue to practice the WHOLE book - even if your child moved on to the new set. Remember to schedule a conference with me so that we can talk about your AMAZING child!
Thanks for everything!
-Mr. Christopher Gibbs

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