Circle Time: We have finished all of the letters of the alphabet. Today,we did a review to see how many we could remember.
Story: We read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. This is a story written in rhyme about lowercase letters that are trying to climb up to the top of a coconut tree. When they all get to the top, the tree bends over shaking all of the letters out. The uppercase letters come to their rescue.
Small Group: We completed another page in "My Book". Today's page was about how tall we have grown.
Art: We are making a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree. We started today by creating the leaves for the tree. Tomorrow, we will add the leaves to the trunk and add a few letters.
Large Group: We began practice for our last day program. We learned a new song and reviewed several old songs.
Snacks: The morning class had granola bars and juice brought by Ryan. The afternoon class had apples, peanut butter, and milk brought by Alexa. Thank you!
The children have permission forms in their backpacks for the field trip on Thursday. We would like to have them back tomorrow if possible. Thank you!
Monday, May 6, 2013
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Pigs!
Circle Time: You may be wondering why we talked about pigs today. Well, it's getting close to the end of the year and since we've finished up the letters of the alphabet, I want to use the next two weeks to highlight some of my favorite stories that we haven't read so far.
Story: I told the children the story of the Three Little Pigs. I used felt board pieces to illustrate the story. Children love this story because they get to repeat the phrases of "Little Pig, Little Pig, let me in", "Not by the hair of my chinny chin, chin" and "then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in". It's got enough danger to be interesting, but the good guys win in the end.
Small Group: We are working on illustrating a book about ourselves and our year of preschool. We will work on this a little every day and have it finished by the last day of school.
We also prepared our snack because it was birthday day.
Large Group: We acted out the story of the Three Little Pigs using masks that were made out of paper bags. The children took turns being the pigs and the big, bad wolf.
Snack: We made pigs in a blanket which were hot dogs rolled in biscuit dough. We also had birthday brownies to celebrate the May birthdays.
Story: I told the children the story of the Three Little Pigs. I used felt board pieces to illustrate the story. Children love this story because they get to repeat the phrases of "Little Pig, Little Pig, let me in", "Not by the hair of my chinny chin, chin" and "then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in". It's got enough danger to be interesting, but the good guys win in the end.
Small Group: We are working on illustrating a book about ourselves and our year of preschool. We will work on this a little every day and have it finished by the last day of school.
We also prepared our snack because it was birthday day.
Large Group: We acted out the story of the Three Little Pigs using masks that were made out of paper bags. The children took turns being the pigs and the big, bad wolf.
Snack: We made pigs in a blanket which were hot dogs rolled in biscuit dough. We also had birthday brownies to celebrate the May birthdays.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Circle Time: We opened the letter Z tub today to find a zucchini, zebra, zipper, zigzag, zero, and zoo sign. We tried to add a few more to the list. Zamboni was probably the word that got a few giggles. It's so fun to say.
Story: How the Zebra Got It's Stripes is an old African tale. At the beginning of the story, we are told that zebras have not always had stripes. This is how it happened. A greedy baboon did not want to share the pond with the elephant, giraffe and zebra. When the animals wanted a drink, the baboon would chase them away. To keep the animals away, the baboon build a fire by the pond. But that didn't scare the zebra. He charged into the baboon who fell into the fire. Now ask your child to tell you how the zebra ended up with stripes and what happened to the baboon.
After the story, I asked the children if they thought this was true. They told me that they thought it was too silly to be true.
Small Group: We played a numeral game to day. The children had to find the numeral cards 1-20 and put them in the correct order. Help was offered when needed.
Art: Because we are sending home so many saved art pieces each day, we decided to do something that didn't need to be sent home. We put shaving cream on the table and let the children make creations by spreading the shaving cream with their fingers. Some made pictures or letters and numbers.
Snacks: The morning class had pretzels, cheese and juice brought by Malynah. The afternoon class had Angry Birds snacks (cheese crackers) and juice brought by Colin Me. Thank you!
Story: How the Zebra Got It's Stripes is an old African tale. At the beginning of the story, we are told that zebras have not always had stripes. This is how it happened. A greedy baboon did not want to share the pond with the elephant, giraffe and zebra. When the animals wanted a drink, the baboon would chase them away. To keep the animals away, the baboon build a fire by the pond. But that didn't scare the zebra. He charged into the baboon who fell into the fire. Now ask your child to tell you how the zebra ended up with stripes and what happened to the baboon.
After the story, I asked the children if they thought this was true. They told me that they thought it was too silly to be true.
Small Group: We played a numeral game to day. The children had to find the numeral cards 1-20 and put them in the correct order. Help was offered when needed.
Art: Because we are sending home so many saved art pieces each day, we decided to do something that didn't need to be sent home. We put shaving cream on the table and let the children make creations by spreading the shaving cream with their fingers. Some made pictures or letters and numbers.
Snacks: The morning class had pretzels, cheese and juice brought by Malynah. The afternoon class had Angry Birds snacks (cheese crackers) and juice brought by Colin Me. Thank you!
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Pizza Day
Circle Time: Having met our goal of reading 1000 books in one month, we celebrated by making pizza for our snack. Thank you parents for reading all of those books and helping us achieve our goal.
Story: Our story today was Hi, Pizza Man! In this story, a little girl is waiting for the pizza delivery person to deliver a pizza to her house. While she is waiting, her mother asks her what she will say to the pizza man. She answers, "Hi, Pizza Man!" But what if it isn't a pizza man? What if it is a pizza woman? She answers, "Hi, Pizza Woman!" But what it if it a pizza cat? "Meow, Meow, Pizza Cat!" But what if it is a pizza dog? This goes on with many animals. See if your child can remember a few.
Small Group: One group activity was making pizza. The children used an English Muffin for the crust, spread sauce on top and added pepperoni and/or cheese. One child described these as "easy, fun, and delicious!".
The other small group activity was making the letter Z on the wet, dry, try boards.
Large Group: We went outdoors again today, adding the water table due to the warm weather.
Snacks: Pizza and juice! Thank you to everyone who donated the pizza supplies!
Story: Our story today was Hi, Pizza Man! In this story, a little girl is waiting for the pizza delivery person to deliver a pizza to her house. While she is waiting, her mother asks her what she will say to the pizza man. She answers, "Hi, Pizza Man!" But what if it isn't a pizza man? What if it is a pizza woman? She answers, "Hi, Pizza Woman!" But what it if it a pizza cat? "Meow, Meow, Pizza Cat!" But what if it is a pizza dog? This goes on with many animals. See if your child can remember a few.
Small Group: One group activity was making pizza. The children used an English Muffin for the crust, spread sauce on top and added pepperoni and/or cheese. One child described these as "easy, fun, and delicious!".
The other small group activity was making the letter Z on the wet, dry, try boards.
Large Group: We went outdoors again today, adding the water table due to the warm weather.
Snacks: Pizza and juice! Thank you to everyone who donated the pizza supplies!
Monday, April 29, 2013
And Our Last Letter is ...Z!
Circle Time: We are learning about the letter Z this week. The letter Z song is in your child's backpack today.
Story: Z is for Zoom is an alphabet book about stock cars. The letters of the alphabet from A to Z are used to describe all of the aspects of stock car racing. A few of the children shared their knowledge of NASCAR with us as we worked through this book.
Small Group: We played "Mail the Letter" during group time. I placed letter flash cards face down on the table. The children took turns selecting a letter to see if they could identify it. Once they figured out the name of the letter, they could mail it in our large plastic mailbox. Again, a very simple game, but several students said it was the best game ever!
Art: The children used a white crayon to print letters, draw pictures, or just scribble all over a white piece of paper. Then they used small paint rollers to roll paint over the top. The paint does not stick to the white crayon because of the wax.
Large Group: Because the weather was so nice, we went to the outdoor play area until dismissal time.
Snacks: The morning class had Goldfish and juice brought by Kaley. The afternoon class had strawberries, grapes, apples, crackers and juice brought by Sierra. Thank you!
Tomorrow, we will be making pizza for a snack!
Story: Z is for Zoom is an alphabet book about stock cars. The letters of the alphabet from A to Z are used to describe all of the aspects of stock car racing. A few of the children shared their knowledge of NASCAR with us as we worked through this book.
Small Group: We played "Mail the Letter" during group time. I placed letter flash cards face down on the table. The children took turns selecting a letter to see if they could identify it. Once they figured out the name of the letter, they could mail it in our large plastic mailbox. Again, a very simple game, but several students said it was the best game ever!
Art: The children used a white crayon to print letters, draw pictures, or just scribble all over a white piece of paper. Then they used small paint rollers to roll paint over the top. The paint does not stick to the white crayon because of the wax.
Large Group: Because the weather was so nice, we went to the outdoor play area until dismissal time.
Snacks: The morning class had Goldfish and juice brought by Kaley. The afternoon class had strawberries, grapes, apples, crackers and juice brought by Sierra. Thank you!
Tomorrow, we will be making pizza for a snack!
Thursday, April 25, 2013
The Art Show is Here!
Circle Time: We talked about the upcoming art show. I explained to the children that things are going to look a little different when they come into the room tonight...
Story: Before I read our story, Yes Day!, I asked the children to think of a question to which they would always want their parents to say yes. For example, "May we get ice cream?" The children shared their questions. In the book that we read, the boy is allowed to have one day in which his parents have to answer yes to all of his questions. So, he asks, "May I eat pizza for lunch? May I choose what cereal I want at the store?, May I stay up late?" Ask your child to tell you what his/her questions was.
We spent most of our day outside in our outdoor classroom. The weather was a little chilly this morning, so the morning class didn't stay out as long as the afternoon. We are planning to be outdoors more often. Please send jackets if it's cool.
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its Mix and juice brought by Carter. The afternoon class had Goldfish and juice brought by Colin Ma. Thank you!
We are hoping to see everyone at the Art Show tonight!
Story: Before I read our story, Yes Day!, I asked the children to think of a question to which they would always want their parents to say yes. For example, "May we get ice cream?" The children shared their questions. In the book that we read, the boy is allowed to have one day in which his parents have to answer yes to all of his questions. So, he asks, "May I eat pizza for lunch? May I choose what cereal I want at the store?, May I stay up late?" Ask your child to tell you what his/her questions was.
We spent most of our day outside in our outdoor classroom. The weather was a little chilly this morning, so the morning class didn't stay out as long as the afternoon. We are planning to be outdoors more often. Please send jackets if it's cool.
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its Mix and juice brought by Carter. The afternoon class had Goldfish and juice brought by Colin Ma. Thank you!
We are hoping to see everyone at the Art Show tonight!
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Circle Time: We opened the Y tub today to find yarn, yellow, a yak, a yo-yo, and a yield sign.
Story: We read the story Farmer Brown Sheers His Sheep. When the farmer sheers the wool from his sheep, he is left with sheep that are cold. Farmer Brown takes the wool to someone who can wash the wool and turn it into yarn. The yarn is taken to a lady who can dye it into many colors. Farmer Browns takes the colorful yarn and knits sweaters for the sheep. Now the sheep can be warm after each sheering!
Small Group: We learned how to tell if a number is an odd number or an even number. I gave the children a grid of two columns and eight rows. We selected a number. The children counted out that number of beads and put each bead into the grid. If each bead in the grid had a partner bead in the other column, that number would be an even number. However, if a bead was left over without a partner in the other column, that number would be an odd number. The children caught on very quickly to this idea.
Art: We painted with Koosh rings. The children selected three colors of paint and put them onto a paper plate. Then they dipped the Koosh ring into the paint and stamped the colors all over the paper. The colors mixed and made pretty designs.
Large Group: We went outside! Hooray! We are planning to have play time outside if it isn't too cold, so please dress warmly.
Snacks: The morning class had apples, peanut butter, and juice brought by Perry. The afternoon class had blueberry muffins and juice brought by Dax. Thank you!
Story: We read the story Farmer Brown Sheers His Sheep. When the farmer sheers the wool from his sheep, he is left with sheep that are cold. Farmer Brown takes the wool to someone who can wash the wool and turn it into yarn. The yarn is taken to a lady who can dye it into many colors. Farmer Browns takes the colorful yarn and knits sweaters for the sheep. Now the sheep can be warm after each sheering!
Small Group: We learned how to tell if a number is an odd number or an even number. I gave the children a grid of two columns and eight rows. We selected a number. The children counted out that number of beads and put each bead into the grid. If each bead in the grid had a partner bead in the other column, that number would be an even number. However, if a bead was left over without a partner in the other column, that number would be an odd number. The children caught on very quickly to this idea.
Art: We painted with Koosh rings. The children selected three colors of paint and put them onto a paper plate. Then they dipped the Koosh ring into the paint and stamped the colors all over the paper. The colors mixed and made pretty designs.
Large Group: We went outside! Hooray! We are planning to have play time outside if it isn't too cold, so please dress warmly.
Snacks: The morning class had apples, peanut butter, and juice brought by Perry. The afternoon class had blueberry muffins and juice brought by Dax. Thank you!
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Circle Time: We took another look at the seeds that we have been trying to grow in our window. Some of the seeds have grown a root, some a root and stem, and some have not changed at all. We talked about why some of the seeds grew and some did not. We did not have enough warm sun to get a good start. I encouraged the children to tape their seed bags to a window at home. Hopefully, they will grow soon.
Story: We read Yummy, Yummy, Food for My Tummy! George is a monkey who lives on banana island. Jess is a monkey who lives on coconut island. They would like to get together to share banana milkshakes and coconut cake, but between the islands swim hungry sharks. The hungry sharks chant, "yummy, yummy, food for my tummy"! The monkeys try to think of ways that they can get from one island to the other. Finally, they happen upon a solution. Have your child tell you what happened at the end!
Small Group: We did wet, dry, try boards today to print the letter Y.
We also played a beginning sounds matching game. Mrs. Hoogheem had toy food items. The children had to find two foods that had the same beginning sound.
Large Group: We put Mat Man together using his usual rectangle body. Then we thought of different shapes that we could use instead of the rectangle. After experimenting with different shapes cut out of construction paper, we traced these shapes in our workbooks.
Snacks: The morning class had yogurt covered pretzels and juice brought by Maddie. The afternoon class had crackers, string cheese and juice brought by Ada. Thank you!
Story: We read Yummy, Yummy, Food for My Tummy! George is a monkey who lives on banana island. Jess is a monkey who lives on coconut island. They would like to get together to share banana milkshakes and coconut cake, but between the islands swim hungry sharks. The hungry sharks chant, "yummy, yummy, food for my tummy"! The monkeys try to think of ways that they can get from one island to the other. Finally, they happen upon a solution. Have your child tell you what happened at the end!
Small Group: We did wet, dry, try boards today to print the letter Y.
We also played a beginning sounds matching game. Mrs. Hoogheem had toy food items. The children had to find two foods that had the same beginning sound.
Large Group: We put Mat Man together using his usual rectangle body. Then we thought of different shapes that we could use instead of the rectangle. After experimenting with different shapes cut out of construction paper, we traced these shapes in our workbooks.
Snacks: The morning class had yogurt covered pretzels and juice brought by Maddie. The afternoon class had crackers, string cheese and juice brought by Ada. Thank you!
Monday, April 22, 2013
Yellow
Circle Time: We will be learning about the letter Y this week. We practiced making the Y sound and learned the Y song.
Story: Hello, Yellow is a story of children watching a parade. They pick out all of the things that they see that are the color yellow such as candy, balloons, clowns, etc.
Small Group: We played Alphabet Bingo during small group today. As we finish up the letters of the alphabet, we will be doing a lot of review and will be matching lower case letters with upper case letters.
Art: We are getting ready for our upcoming Art Show on Thursday night. Today, we made flowers to put in the windows to make our classroom look more like spring. We glued tissue paper squares onto clear sheets of lamination. Then we glued this to a flower cutout. When placed in the window, the tissue paper "lights up".
Large Group: We made Yellow Jackets to fly around the room. First, we learned that a Yellow Jacket is a type of wasp. Then, we cut half circles out of yellow paper. We added eyes and stripes. The teachers taped the paper into a cone shape to resemble a Yellow Jacket. The children used straws to blow the Yellow Jackets up into the air.
Snacks: The morning class had Goldfish and juice brought by Sunny. Thank you! The afternoon class had a cereal mix.
As of today, we have nine pizzas on our bulletin board. Only one more to go!
Story: Hello, Yellow is a story of children watching a parade. They pick out all of the things that they see that are the color yellow such as candy, balloons, clowns, etc.
Small Group: We played Alphabet Bingo during small group today. As we finish up the letters of the alphabet, we will be doing a lot of review and will be matching lower case letters with upper case letters.
Art: We are getting ready for our upcoming Art Show on Thursday night. Today, we made flowers to put in the windows to make our classroom look more like spring. We glued tissue paper squares onto clear sheets of lamination. Then we glued this to a flower cutout. When placed in the window, the tissue paper "lights up".
Large Group: We made Yellow Jackets to fly around the room. First, we learned that a Yellow Jacket is a type of wasp. Then, we cut half circles out of yellow paper. We added eyes and stripes. The teachers taped the paper into a cone shape to resemble a Yellow Jacket. The children used straws to blow the Yellow Jackets up into the air.
Snacks: The morning class had Goldfish and juice brought by Sunny. Thank you! The afternoon class had a cereal mix.
As of today, we have nine pizzas on our bulletin board. Only one more to go!
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Circle Time: We finished up the letter X today. We also did a few activities with rhyming words.
Story: The story that we read today was The Hungry Thing. The Hungry Thing walked into town one day with a sign around his neck that said Feed Me. When the townspeople asked him what he wanted to eat, he replied, "Feetloaf". The wiseman and cook could not figure out what feetloaf was, but a little boy said it sounded like meatloaf. So they gave him some. When they asked again, he said, "Tickles". Again the wiseman and cook were confused, but the little boy said that it sounded like pickles. This story goes on and on with words like wollipops, boop and smackers, fananas, etc. The children enjoyed trying to figure out what the Hungry Thing wanted.
Large Group: After the story, we decided to make a Hungry Thing book of our own. Each child drew a picture of their favorite food. Then they had to think of a nonsense rhyming word to help us guess what the food was. These pages will be put together into a book for us to read.
Small Groups: Today was Birthday Day. Since we are learning about the letter X, we decided to make a trail mix. We used Kix, Chex, raisins, peanuts, and pretzels. The children scooped up the ingredients that they wanted to make a snack.
We also played Rhyming Words Bingo.
Snacks: We ate our trail mix and had birthday brownies to celebrate the April birthdays.
As of today, our bulletin board has 8 pizzas on it which means we have read 800 books! Wow! We are on our way. We have one more week to reach our goal.
Story: The story that we read today was The Hungry Thing. The Hungry Thing walked into town one day with a sign around his neck that said Feed Me. When the townspeople asked him what he wanted to eat, he replied, "Feetloaf". The wiseman and cook could not figure out what feetloaf was, but a little boy said it sounded like meatloaf. So they gave him some. When they asked again, he said, "Tickles". Again the wiseman and cook were confused, but the little boy said that it sounded like pickles. This story goes on and on with words like wollipops, boop and smackers, fananas, etc. The children enjoyed trying to figure out what the Hungry Thing wanted.
Large Group: After the story, we decided to make a Hungry Thing book of our own. Each child drew a picture of their favorite food. Then they had to think of a nonsense rhyming word to help us guess what the food was. These pages will be put together into a book for us to read.
Small Groups: Today was Birthday Day. Since we are learning about the letter X, we decided to make a trail mix. We used Kix, Chex, raisins, peanuts, and pretzels. The children scooped up the ingredients that they wanted to make a snack.
We also played Rhyming Words Bingo.
Snacks: We ate our trail mix and had birthday brownies to celebrate the April birthdays.
As of today, our bulletin board has 8 pizzas on it which means we have read 800 books! Wow! We are on our way. We have one more week to reach our goal.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Dreary outside...cozy inside!
Circle Time: We opened the X tub today to find a xylophone, x-ray, box, fox, six and ax. We tried to add a few words such as exit, ox, chicken pox, and X Box.
Story: Fox Makes a Friend is the story of a young fox who is bored. His mother tells him to go out and make a friend. He takes this literally and attempts to build a friend out of an apple, sticks, and nuts. He finds that this friend isn't much fun. Along comes Rabbit. Fox asks Rabbit to help him build a better friend. When that doesn't work, Squirrel offers to help. At the end, Fox finds that he has made two new real friends, Rabbit and Squirrel.
Small Group: The children were given a snack size bag of M&M's to sort by colors using a chart that they created. When they finished, we shared our results using the words most and least. We discovered that every bag of M&M's is different. Please ask them to share this with you at home.
Art: The children made pictures using shaving cream, liquid watercolor, and paper circles. First, Mrs. Hoogheem put shaving cream into a aluminum cake pan. The children used eye droppers to drop liquid watercolor onto the shaving cream. Then, they took Popsicle sticks to swirl the colors into the shaving cream. Next, they placed the paper circle on the shaving cream and pressed lightly. After they removed the circle, they scraped the shaving cream off and swirled colors stayed on the paper.
Large Group: We did relay races again today adding bean bag and buckets.
Snacks: The morning class had Mini Cheez-its and juice brought by Ava. The afternoon class had banana break and milk brought by Richie. Thank you!
Story: Fox Makes a Friend is the story of a young fox who is bored. His mother tells him to go out and make a friend. He takes this literally and attempts to build a friend out of an apple, sticks, and nuts. He finds that this friend isn't much fun. Along comes Rabbit. Fox asks Rabbit to help him build a better friend. When that doesn't work, Squirrel offers to help. At the end, Fox finds that he has made two new real friends, Rabbit and Squirrel.
Small Group: The children were given a snack size bag of M&M's to sort by colors using a chart that they created. When they finished, we shared our results using the words most and least. We discovered that every bag of M&M's is different. Please ask them to share this with you at home.
Art: The children made pictures using shaving cream, liquid watercolor, and paper circles. First, Mrs. Hoogheem put shaving cream into a aluminum cake pan. The children used eye droppers to drop liquid watercolor onto the shaving cream. Then, they took Popsicle sticks to swirl the colors into the shaving cream. Next, they placed the paper circle on the shaving cream and pressed lightly. After they removed the circle, they scraped the shaving cream off and swirled colors stayed on the paper.
Large Group: We did relay races again today adding bean bag and buckets.
Snacks: The morning class had Mini Cheez-its and juice brought by Ava. The afternoon class had banana break and milk brought by Richie. Thank you!
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Circle Time: We are getting close to meeting our reading goal. On our bulletin board, we have 6 1/2 pizzas. We figured out how many more pizzas we will need to reach our goal. I'm sure that we will get there. Keep reading!
Story: We read Christina Katerina and the Box. Christina loves to play with boxes, so it is an exciting day when her family receives a new refrigerator which is covered with a wonderful box! She immediately claims it for her own. She turns it into a castle, a clubhouse, and two more things. See if your child can tell you what they are!
Small Groups: We practiced counting items and identifying numerals. The children were given a number of items on a tray. They were to count them and find the numeral card to match.
We also practiced making a letter X on our wet, dry, try boards.
Large Group: We learned how to run relay races. We practiced waiting and moving up in line for our turn to run, jump, skip, and walk backwards.
Snacks: The morning class had granola bars and juice brought by Katelyn. The afternoon class had Cheddar Bunnies, cheese sticks, and juice brought by Brett. Thank you!
Story: We read Christina Katerina and the Box. Christina loves to play with boxes, so it is an exciting day when her family receives a new refrigerator which is covered with a wonderful box! She immediately claims it for her own. She turns it into a castle, a clubhouse, and two more things. See if your child can tell you what they are!
Small Groups: We practiced counting items and identifying numerals. The children were given a number of items on a tray. They were to count them and find the numeral card to match.
We also practiced making a letter X on our wet, dry, try boards.
Large Group: We learned how to run relay races. We practiced waiting and moving up in line for our turn to run, jump, skip, and walk backwards.
Snacks: The morning class had granola bars and juice brought by Katelyn. The afternoon class had Cheddar Bunnies, cheese sticks, and juice brought by Brett. Thank you!
Monday, April 15, 2013
X marks the spot!
Circle Time: We are learning about the letter X this week. Because there are not many words that begin with an X, we usually learn about words that end with an X. It will be interesting to open the X tub and find out what is in it.
Story: Jessica's X-ray is the story of a girl who falls out of a tree and breaks her arm. She must go to the hospital for an x-ray to see where her arm is broken so that the doctor can put on a cast. The story takes us through various parts of the hospital to show us how x-rays are used. It had several x-rays in it as well.
Large Group: Following the story, we took a few minutes to look at x-rays that Will brought from home. His mom is a dentist and had some great x-rays for us to see and touch. Then, we created an x-ray of our hand using black paper and chalk.
Small Group: We drew the faces for our T-shirts today. The extra practice paid off. I can't wait for everyone to see them. I will take them to the print shop tomorrow afternoon.
Art: We created an abstract picture using bottles of paint and paper. The children folded a large piece of white paper in half. Then they opened the paper and used little bottles to squirt paint dots all over the paper. Then they folded the paper again and rubbed the paint around. It was fun to see the picture when we opened the paper again.
Snack: The morning class had pretzels and juice bought by Sarah. The afternoon class had bananas, muffins, and juice brought by Joey. Thank you!
Story: Jessica's X-ray is the story of a girl who falls out of a tree and breaks her arm. She must go to the hospital for an x-ray to see where her arm is broken so that the doctor can put on a cast. The story takes us through various parts of the hospital to show us how x-rays are used. It had several x-rays in it as well.
Large Group: Following the story, we took a few minutes to look at x-rays that Will brought from home. His mom is a dentist and had some great x-rays for us to see and touch. Then, we created an x-ray of our hand using black paper and chalk.
Small Group: We drew the faces for our T-shirts today. The extra practice paid off. I can't wait for everyone to see them. I will take them to the print shop tomorrow afternoon.
Art: We created an abstract picture using bottles of paint and paper. The children folded a large piece of white paper in half. Then they opened the paper and used little bottles to squirt paint dots all over the paper. Then they folded the paper again and rubbed the paint around. It was fun to see the picture when we opened the paper again.
Snack: The morning class had pretzels and juice bought by Sarah. The afternoon class had bananas, muffins, and juice brought by Joey. Thank you!
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Bring a Grown-up Day!
We had a wonderful day with our grown-ups. We want to thank everyone for attending. We completed our whales and did some water experiments during play time. We enjoyed waffle pretzels and peanut butter, read the story Whistle for Willie, completed the W page in our workbooks and played bean bag catch. Wow, we really got a lot done in one day. Thank you Grown-ups!
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
A Windy Day/Whales Tales
Circle Time: Since we missed a day of school yesterday, we tried to combine yesterdays activities with a few from todays plans. We talked about whales during group time. We read a book titled Whales that gave a few facts.
Art: The children are making a whale out of a flower pot and fun foam. This will be a two day project that they will complete with their grown-up tomorrow.
Story: The Wind Blew is a story of a windy day. The wind blows many things from people in the city. See if your child can remember the items that were blown. At the end, the wind drops all of the items and blows out to sea.
Large Group: Following the story, the children got out the plastic bags that they had brought to school. I had planned for them to take them outdoors with strings attached to make kites. We have done this activity many times in the past and are always amazed and pleased at how much fun the kids can have with a bag and string! However, because of the rain. We used them indoors to conduct some wind experiments.
Small Group: We are preparing to draw our faces for the T-shirts that we are designing. The children practiced drawing their faces in a 2" square of paper.
Snacks: We combined snack helpers from Tuesday and Wednesday. In the morning, we had granola bars, Chex-mix, juice and milk brought by Will and Jayla. The afternoon class had apples, peanut butter, and milk brought by Taylor and Alivia. Thank you!
Art: The children are making a whale out of a flower pot and fun foam. This will be a two day project that they will complete with their grown-up tomorrow.
Story: The Wind Blew is a story of a windy day. The wind blows many things from people in the city. See if your child can remember the items that were blown. At the end, the wind drops all of the items and blows out to sea.
Large Group: Following the story, the children got out the plastic bags that they had brought to school. I had planned for them to take them outdoors with strings attached to make kites. We have done this activity many times in the past and are always amazed and pleased at how much fun the kids can have with a bag and string! However, because of the rain. We used them indoors to conduct some wind experiments.
Small Group: We are preparing to draw our faces for the T-shirts that we are designing. The children practiced drawing their faces in a 2" square of paper.
Snacks: We combined snack helpers from Tuesday and Wednesday. In the morning, we had granola bars, Chex-mix, juice and milk brought by Will and Jayla. The afternoon class had apples, peanut butter, and milk brought by Taylor and Alivia. Thank you!
Monday, April 8, 2013
Wonderful worms!
Circle Time: We are learning about the letter W this week. Today's word was worm. The children told me everything that they know about worms. By the end of the day, they knew a few more facts.
Story: The Diary of a Worm is a book written by a worm describing his daily adventures. He says that the best things about being a worm are that you don't have to go to the dentist, your mom never yells at you for tracking in mud, and you never have to take a bath. See if your child can remember the worst things about being a worm.
Small Group: I brought worms in from outdoors. We viewed them and held them in our hands. The children made lots of observations about worms.
Art: We painted with long pieces of yarn today. The children were given a piece of black paper. They dipped a piece of yarn in gold paint, arranged the yarn on the paper, folded the paper in half, and pulled the yarn out. The paint that rubbed off on the paper left a neat design. They repeated this process with silver paint and a color of their choice.
Large Group: We played a game called "Wiggle Worm". The children took turns selecting game pieces out of a can. Some game pieces had shapes on them and some had a picture of a worm on them. If the child selected a game piece with a shape, they had to name the shape. If they picked out a worm, they had to yell "wiggle worm" and everyone wiggled.
Snacks: The morning class had granola bars and juice brought by Talal. The afternoon class had grapes and milk brought by Carter. Thank you!
Story: The Diary of a Worm is a book written by a worm describing his daily adventures. He says that the best things about being a worm are that you don't have to go to the dentist, your mom never yells at you for tracking in mud, and you never have to take a bath. See if your child can remember the worst things about being a worm.
Small Group: I brought worms in from outdoors. We viewed them and held them in our hands. The children made lots of observations about worms.
Art: We painted with long pieces of yarn today. The children were given a piece of black paper. They dipped a piece of yarn in gold paint, arranged the yarn on the paper, folded the paper in half, and pulled the yarn out. The paint that rubbed off on the paper left a neat design. They repeated this process with silver paint and a color of their choice.
Large Group: We played a game called "Wiggle Worm". The children took turns selecting game pieces out of a can. Some game pieces had shapes on them and some had a picture of a worm on them. If the child selected a game piece with a shape, they had to name the shape. If they picked out a worm, they had to yell "wiggle worm" and everyone wiggled.
Snacks: The morning class had granola bars and juice brought by Talal. The afternoon class had grapes and milk brought by Carter. Thank you!
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Name Day
Because it was such a nice day, we decided to spend our play time outdoors. But before we went out, we wanted to try our seed growing experiment again. Back in March, we had put green bean seeds on a wet paper towel in a plastic bag. We hung the bags in the window to get warmth from the sun. I have been doing this experiment for many years with the preschoolers. This was the first year that the seeds did not grow. The weather was just too cloudy and cold. So, we planted more seeds today. We'll keep you posted.
Story: We read My Name is Elizabeth. Elizabeth loves her name, but many people give her nic names like Lizzy, Beth, and Betsy. She tells everyone that she loves her name and they respect her wishes and call her Elizabeth. However, her baby brother calls her Wizabef and that's just fine with her!
Large Group: After reading the story, we shared the papers that were brought back about names. It was fun to read the stories about why they were given the names that they have. It was also fun to hear what names they would chose for themselves.
Finally, we named the fish. This fish is going to have two names, one for the morning and a different one for the afternoon. We put all of the names in a box and pulled one out in each class. In the morning, the fish will be called Mr. Bubbles. In the afternoon, the fish will be called Redeemer Ralph. We loved all of the suggestions!
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its and juice brought by Jake. The afternoon class had Cheez-its, string cheese, and milk brought by Jack. Thank you!
Story: We read My Name is Elizabeth. Elizabeth loves her name, but many people give her nic names like Lizzy, Beth, and Betsy. She tells everyone that she loves her name and they respect her wishes and call her Elizabeth. However, her baby brother calls her Wizabef and that's just fine with her!
Large Group: After reading the story, we shared the papers that were brought back about names. It was fun to read the stories about why they were given the names that they have. It was also fun to hear what names they would chose for themselves.
Finally, we named the fish. This fish is going to have two names, one for the morning and a different one for the afternoon. We put all of the names in a box and pulled one out in each class. In the morning, the fish will be called Mr. Bubbles. In the afternoon, the fish will be called Redeemer Ralph. We loved all of the suggestions!
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its and juice brought by Jake. The afternoon class had Cheez-its, string cheese, and milk brought by Jack. Thank you!
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Noodles!
Circle Time: We used the word "noodle" today as a theme to go along with the letter N. The children could tell me that noodles come in all shapes and sizes. They like to eat them plain, with butter, cheese and sauce.
Story: Oodles of Noodles is the story of Mrs. Mungo who received a pasta machine for her birthday. She prepares the dough and turns on the machine. She says, "Now I can make oodles of noodles." This causes the pasta machine to go out of control. Noodles are all over the house and neighborhood. There is only one way to make it stop. Can you guess what it is?
Small Group: We made patterns with colored noodles. We made ABAB, ABBA, and ABC patterns. Some children came up with a few of their own.
Art: We made pictures with colored noodles and glue. The children found that noodles can get sticky when they get wet with glue.
Large Group: We played a music game called "Walk Like a Rhino". The children liked this game because it involves lots of movements and animal noises.
Snacks: The morning class had cheese, crackers, and juice brought by Dalton. The afternoon class had graham crackers. Lukas was supposed to be the snack helper, but was ill. Get well soon, Lukas!
Tomorrow, we are going to talk about names. Your child has a paper in his/her backpack to complete about names.
Story: Oodles of Noodles is the story of Mrs. Mungo who received a pasta machine for her birthday. She prepares the dough and turns on the machine. She says, "Now I can make oodles of noodles." This causes the pasta machine to go out of control. Noodles are all over the house and neighborhood. There is only one way to make it stop. Can you guess what it is?
Small Group: We made patterns with colored noodles. We made ABAB, ABBA, and ABC patterns. Some children came up with a few of their own.
Art: We made pictures with colored noodles and glue. The children found that noodles can get sticky when they get wet with glue.
Large Group: We played a music game called "Walk Like a Rhino". The children liked this game because it involves lots of movements and animal noises.
Snacks: The morning class had cheese, crackers, and juice brought by Dalton. The afternoon class had graham crackers. Lukas was supposed to be the snack helper, but was ill. Get well soon, Lukas!
Tomorrow, we are going to talk about names. Your child has a paper in his/her backpack to complete about names.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
It Gets a Little Noisy!
Circle Time: We are learning about the letter N this week. So today, we talked about noise. Children like to make loud noises, but we also found that we could make soft, quiet noises as well.
Story: The Noisy Book is the story of a dog named Muffin. Muffin gets a cinder in her eye and has to wear a bandage over her eyes until they get better. While wearing the bandage, Muffin can hear noises in the doctor's office such as the clock and the doctors sneeze. When Muffin walks home, he can hear car noises, construction noise, birds, etc. At the end of the story, Muffin hears a squeak, but can't figure out what object is making that noise. Ask your child to tell you what he discovered.
Large Group: We used the percussion instruments to make noises. We used maracas, castanets, rhythm sticks, egg shakers, and tambourines to make sounds.
Small Group: One group activity was N wet, dry, try. The other group activity was using a balance scale to measure weight. The children had a number of items to put in the scale, but first they had to guess which one would be heavier or lighter.
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its, apples, and juice brought by Andie. The afternoon class had apples, peanut butter, and milk brought by Madison. Thank you!
The children are bringing home notes about two end of the school year activities. Please take a few minutes to look them over. If you have any questions, let me know.
Story: The Noisy Book is the story of a dog named Muffin. Muffin gets a cinder in her eye and has to wear a bandage over her eyes until they get better. While wearing the bandage, Muffin can hear noises in the doctor's office such as the clock and the doctors sneeze. When Muffin walks home, he can hear car noises, construction noise, birds, etc. At the end of the story, Muffin hears a squeak, but can't figure out what object is making that noise. Ask your child to tell you what he discovered.
Large Group: We used the percussion instruments to make noises. We used maracas, castanets, rhythm sticks, egg shakers, and tambourines to make sounds.
Small Group: One group activity was N wet, dry, try. The other group activity was using a balance scale to measure weight. The children had a number of items to put in the scale, but first they had to guess which one would be heavier or lighter.
Snacks: The morning class had Cheez-its, apples, and juice brought by Andie. The afternoon class had apples, peanut butter, and milk brought by Madison. Thank you!
The children are bringing home notes about two end of the school year activities. Please take a few minutes to look them over. If you have any questions, let me know.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Reading Month
Circle Time: We're back from Spring Break and ready to move on to a new challenge. Today, I told the children that we are going to set a goal for reading in April. We are going to see if together, the AM and PM class can listen to or read 1000 books by the end of the month. If so, we will celebrate with a pizza party on the 30th. Please read the note in your child's backpack for more information.
Story: I found a book at the library titled I Like Books. The character in the story tells of all of the kinds of books that he likes to read. Following the story, we discussed fairy tales, nursery rhymes, comic books, scary books, funny books, etc.
Small Group: We looked at several books to learn some new vocabulary words about books. We learned about the cover, title, author, and illustrator. We learned that the words in the book tell the story or give us information, but that if we can't read, we can make up our own words. We learned how to care for a book by turning the pages carefully, keeping it clean, and putting it away when we are done reading it.
Large Group: We sang the Pizza Song. See if your child can show you how to make a pizza with this song.
Art: We painted using our finger tips. The children made spots by dipping their fingers into paint. Some put spots randomly all over their paper and some used the spots to create a picture.
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