Dad's Night!

Wow!  What a fantastic turnout we had for Dad's Night!  This evening is a chance for children enrolled in the early childhood classrooms to  bring dad or a favorite uncle or grandpa to school and share what they do on a daily basis. 

We had the pleasure of witnessing dad's working on the Sandpaper Letters, telling time on a clock, helping with the 45 Layout, tonging in Practical Life, creating "parts of ___" books and writing 3 letter words.

After all that hard work, they took a break with their child an dhad a chance to decorate a cookie.

Thanks Dads for sharing the evening with your child at school!

 

 

Room 5 Show-N-Tell

We encourage the children to bring in something from nature, something they have made or something we can learn from.  We are trending toward educational items (please limit it to no more than once per week) so we can learn about new things in our world.

Some of the great things we have learned about so far are:

·         Peacock Feather

·         Praying Mantis

·         Star Fish

·         Shark Teeth

·         Katydid

·         Ultrasound Picture of a future sibling

Show-N-Tell is a great time for children to work on presenting something in front of their peers as well as working on talking in front of a group, using descriptive language, and answering questions.

We all look forward to future items that we can learn about from the children.

Outdoor Environment

Exploring the Planets in the New Year

Welcome back to school !

2012 is going to be a busy time for room 5/6 students. We have begun a study on the Solar System and the continent of Europe--concentrating on the country of France. The children are learning about the 8 planets; which planets can people live on? Which one is the farthest from the sun, hottest, the smallest, etc.



Other things being explored are:  What is life like in France? What language do people speak in France? And numerous other interesting things about this beautiful country.

 

Goats, and Rabbits, and Horses Oh My!

The month of December has been very busy in Room 5/6.  We have welcomed a new friend, Addison, who is three, to our classroom.  We are all working like elves to get out Christmas decorations and presents finished to take home before the holidays.  Every day on line we have been practicing old Christmas songs and learning some new ones for our Holiday Sing-a-long on Friday, December 23.  We are hoping that you will all be able to come and join us.  We have been reading books about other winter holidays, such as Kwanza and Hanukkah, and next week we will begin our class time with the lighting of the menorah.  The children have been fascinated to discover how other cultures and families celebrate their holidays.

We had a lower elementary assembly in the gym on Thursday where we heard all about their trips to Bel Aire farm and how the students learned to care for the animals.  Imagine our surprise when we walked into the gym and saw two horses, two goats and two rabbits waiting for us.  We watched their  "ABC of Farming" presentation while anxiously hoping we would be able to get closer to the animals.  Our patience paid off when all the students were dismissed back to their classes, except early childhood, and we got to pet the animals for as long as we wanted.  The rabbits were so soft, the horses were so big, and the goats were so funny, they like to eat anything!  When we got back to our classroom the older children were excited to think that maybe they could go to the farm when they are in lower elementary.

As this year draws to a close, I would like to once again thank all the parents for entrusting us with the care and education of your children.  We recognize what an honor you have bestowed upon us.  Each child is such a unique gift to our classroom and brings us great joy every day.  May your holidays be filled with love and surprises and we look forward to seeing you in the New Year.

Submitted by: Cindy Shelley, Donna Rockafellow, Karen Klingel

Lunchtime Proceedures for the Full-Day Class

Children are invited from the line or the hallway to wash their hands and proceed to find the chair with their lunch box on it.  Most children sit on the same side of the room each day so there is little confusion of where to go.

After washing their hands and locating their spot, the children pick up their plate, glass, silverware and napkin and set their own table spot.  This may take several trips back and forth, adding in yet more movement to our day.  Emphasis is placed on learning how to set a table, yet another opportunity for the Practical Life curriculum to infiltrate our daily routine.

Children then stand behind their chairs until the whole table is prepared and then everyone sings the "Bon Appetit" song. 

            Look around and you will see a family

Community

            Brothers, Sisters

We are one

Bon Appetit, you may eat!

Some children proceed to unpack their lunches onto the plates, while others participate in the hot lunch program and this stays in the provided container.  Lunch is a time filled with opportunities to work on Grace & Courtesy.  The children remain seated during this portion of the day, raising their hand if help is needed in opening a container.  Manners are re-enforced and please and thank-you are words heard frequently at this time.

Milk and water are on the table in child-friendly pitchers and children ask their friends to 'please pass the milk".  The milk or water is then passed carefully from friend to friend.  Each child pours his own milk or water.

When the child has finished his lunch he asks if he may be excused.  Leftovers are packed in to the lunch box to return home so the parent knows what has not been eaten.  Each child carries their plate, glass and utensils to the wash basins to wash and then stack his/her own dishes into a basin.  They then carry a small bucket & sponge back to the table for cleaning up their own spot.  If needed, they use a broom & dustpan to clean up under the chairs.  A smaller broom & dustpan is used for table crumbs.

Following lunch, the younger children are dismissed to use the bathroom in preparation of naptime, while the older children help load the dishwasher.  Tables are returned to their original locations, chairs are returned to the tables and a last look around is made for any stray crumbs. Children meet at the blue line to wait for story time or movement exercises with one of the teachers.

Submitted by: Cindy Shelley

Pumpkin Songs

Five Little Pumpkins

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate

The first one said, "oh my it's getting late"

The second one said,"there's magic in the air"

The third one said, "but we don't care"

The forth one said, "let's run and run and run"

The fifth one said, "It's Halloween fun."

or

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate

The first one said, "oh my it's getting late"

The second one said,"there's a chill in the air"

The thrid one said, "but we don't care"

The forth one said, "let's run and run and run"

The fifth one said, "I'm ready for some fun."

Ooooo went the wind and out went the lights

and the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.

I'm a Little Pumpkin

(sung to the tune of I'm a Little Teapot)

I'm a little pumpkin, orange and round

here is my stem, here is the ground

when I get all cut up, don't you shout

just open me up and scoop me out.