Toddler News

Hello and good afternoon. This morning in the toddler room the children have been exploring with some new toys. The favorite so far is the cardboard blocks. Ms. Jessica and the children have been making forts, building houses around the children, and making high towers. The children all get very excited and all help and take turns.

Before lunch today we were finally able to get outside and enjoyed this beautiful weather. The children played in the sand box for most of the time, playing with the new sand toys. They also love playing with the toy car, play house, and going down the slide.

This week the children did amazing on all their art projects. They made a carrot, a strawberry, and a flower garden that we had on our wall all week. It looked wonderful. Yesterday for our project the children finger painted with chocolate pudding it was quite a sight. Some of the children at first didn't realize it was pudding but once they did it was all over their face. Thankfully we had just gotten them cleaned up because we had a practice fire drill.  That could of been a disaster! 

For stories this week we read all about gardens. Floop's Flowers, Quiet in the Garden, Growing Vegetable Soup, A green, green Garden,  and The Surprise Garden. During story time last week not all the children would sit and listen but this week they all must have really enjoyed the stories because they all sat and listened.

Some of our sensory activities this week have been sponge painting, finger painting, play dough, digging in the dirt, and the kids favorite SHAVING CREAM. This might seem like its a messy sensory activity but it actually cleans up really easy.

have a wonderful weekend

pre school

The children had fun playing with Oblick this morning. This was a mixture made of 1 1/2 C. corn starch and 1 C. water. Mix the ingredients together. when pushed together, the mixture will appear dry and solid, as children let go of the mixture, it flows like a smooth liquid. (Science)

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27,2011

This week in the Preschool room we have been working on shapes. The children are enjoying the new centers in the room. We have magazines in one center, where they have to find the shape of the day. Today, Mia had found lots of squares in the magazine! She was very proud of herself. Good job Mia!

The children are all learning so much from tracing shapes and trying to look at the shape and draw it. They reconized how many sides are on each shape. Our writing center is becoming so valuable. Keller has been spending a lot of time in that area. He is able to write all the shapes names by copying the index card that has the shapes name on it.


Today we made shape mobiles. The children had to cut out each shape and write the name of the shape. They all did so well! I was very proud of them working so hard on this project. They all took their time on writing the shapes names. This was great for shape reconition, writing and small motor skills.



The weather has not premited us yet to take our walk to see all the shapes around our community.We were able to go outside to our playground for a little while, and look around for shapes. The children reconize that shapes are all around us! 

 Being silly with our silly putty that we made with Mrs. Michelle!



Rosie being cute!!





Toddler News

Hello Families. We hope every ones week has been going ok so far. The children have been very busy the past days doing alot of sponge painting.  We have created our own little "gardens". Carrots, Flowers, and Strawberries.  The children have really enjoyed learning about gardening and how we grow plants that we are able to eat.

On Wednesday's the center has high school helpers.  In our room is Alex she does great with the children.  They all love playing an chasing her around the room.  Alex has been a good helper for us teachers too.  Thank you Alex.

Alex playing with the children

If the weather is nice we will try to get outside for some fresh air this afternoon.

Tuesday, April 26th,2011

Yesterday morning with Ms. Michelle we planted the following herb seeds. Spearmint, parsley, chives, sweet basil, and cilantro. We will be using these herbs in cooking activities over the summer.

Incorporating gardening into the classroom provides multiple learning opportunities for the children. Gardening can easily be connected to various subjects including math, science, and nutrition. It allows children the opportunity to experience planting seeds, caring for plants, and tasting the results.

Ms. Michelle is in need of empty ice cream buckets. The children will ne making container gardens for their herb plants.

Thank You!

Michelle

MONDAY, APRIL 25TH, 2011

Dear Parents,

   Hello again! Shapes will be the focus of our new unit this week. Our world consists of shapes. The children will become aware of this on an introductory walk around the block on Tuesday. They also will become familiar with the names of shapes and will classify objects according to their shapes. Most of the children already know the names of the shape, this is a good refresher for them. Consequently, the children will be more aware of all the shapes in our world. In addition, the children will be practicing drawing the basic shapes. 

In the classroom I have new centers. We have a tracing shape center: where the children are able to recognize each shape and count each side. On the easel I will have a different shape each day for them to paint. I have a table for play dough with shape cookie cutters. I also have a writing area for them to practice writing each shape name. 

AT SCHOOL

Some of the fun filled learning activities scheduled  for this unit include:

• Playing a game called "shape basket upset"

• Feeling and identifying objects by shape in a "feely box."

• Making and baking cookies out of play dough using various shapes 

• Making a shape book and shape mobiles

• Practicing writing each shape name

• Counting how many sides to each shape

• At the end of the week, I will be giving them a quiz and see how much they learned from it. It will be a no pressure quiz, just question and answer quiz.

AT HOME

You can reinforce the activities included in this curriculum unit at home by observing shaped objects in your house. Each day at school we will have a special shape of the day. Your child can bring in an object from home to fit the shape of the day.

Monday- Circle

Tuesday- Rectangle

Wednesday-Square

Thursday- Triangle

Friday- Heart/ Star

. The following finger play can be recited to foster language and memory skill

Circle and square

Close my eyes, shut the m tight.

(close eyes)

Make a circle with my one hand.

(make circle with hand.)

Keep them shut: make it fair.

(keep eyes shut)

With my other hand, make a square.

(make a square with other hand)

Enjoy your child!!

Ms Christine

Toddler News

Hello Toddler parents.  I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend and enjoyed their famliy time.  I'm sure everyone was quite busy.

This week in our room will we be learning an doing activities about Gardening.  All the fun things you find in a garden and the things you can grow an eat. 

This morning the children had story time an were able to do a neat felt board activity with Ms. Jessica.  Which was 5 little Monkeys swinging in the tree.  The children really enjoyed acting out the story with the felt pieces.
( Fine Motor and Language Skills )

We were able to get outside this morning and not only to enjoy the fresh air but to work on a project.  The children and Ms. Tiffiney dug in the ground to gather up some nice dirt to plant our sunflower seeds in.  So we shall see in the long run how well the little seeds will grow.  The children liked digging in the ground.  We also found some worms an bugs that made the ground their home. 
( Sensory and Fine Motor )

This afternoon we hope to get back outside to do some running around and enjoy the nice weather that is finally here.

Toddler News

Hello and good afternoon parents of the toddle room so we are finishing up our Easter week. The children have enjoyed all the fun Easter projects, songs, books, fun activities, and free play. Some of our projects the children loved doing were making bunny ear headbands, marble painting eggs for their Easter basket, and painting the chick in a egg.

During free play this week the children stacked blocks with their friends, read stories on there own, took turns going down the slide, and played with all the toys in the room.

For music and dance this week Ring Around the Rosie was a big hit as was the Bean Bag Dance, and The Wheels on the Bus. we attempted to play Duck Duck Goose but thay didn't quite catch on they just wanted to chase each other around. Well we tried and we will try again.

Have a wonderful Easter weekend

Toddler News

Good afternoon parents early this morning the children started working on their Easter Cards for their parents. They had fun sponge painting bunnies and flowers on their cards and later they will be adding Easter stickers. Two of the children also made up their chick in an egg project the children did yesterday.
(Sensory and Fine Motors)

The children also enjoyed some free play this morning. They played with the toys in the room and played on the little slide. Lately the children have loved playing with these toy cars we have that connect together. We call them the trains.

For story time today we are going to be reading Dora Rainbow Egg Hunt, Easter, and Happy Easter Mouse. Throughout the day during free play child love to pick out a book and either look at it by themselves or bring it to either Ms. Tiffiney or Ms. Jessica to read.
(Listening and Language)

Later today we hope play ring around the rosie, finish up the card project, play with shaving cream, and puzzles.
(Fine Motors, Sensory, Large Motor, and Language)

MONDAY, APRIL 18,2011

This morning in the Preschool room we mixed paints and made very pretty paintings. We used baby blue pink and purple to represent Easter colors. We started talking about Easter and what our traditions are. Jaden and Lily shared how they go on a Easter egg hunt every year.

After our morning project we did music and movement. We listen to the CD kids in action and danced. One of the songs is called "bear hunt" the children pretend to go on a bear hunt and they absolutely love this song. 

This afternoon we will be working on letters and going outside if weather permits. The letter this week is R. We will be learning the sound of R and words that start with R.

Toddler News

Early this morning some of the children made up projects they were unable to finish or had missed. Most of our projects this week have been put up in the class room. So parents feel free to come in and look.  Next week we will also be doing Easter projects so there will be lots of art work going home at the end of next week. Also the children played with play dough. They really enjoyed trying to make different shapes out of the play dough.
(sensory)

We were also able to read stories this morning. Easter Babies, Happy Easter Maisy, and Max counts his chickens. The children loved the stories today they all sat down nicely and listened.
(listening and language)

This afternoon we were hoping to start are hand print eggs, some free play, and play follow the leader.
(sensory, language and listening)

Friday, April 15, 2011

Today in the Preschool room we made egg salad for lunch. Food, cooking and healthy eating is great to teach Preschoolers. This offers opportunities to work on counting, color reconition, shapes as well as fine and gross motors. The cooking activites we have been doing is going over great as they love to be little helpers and learning how to make simple meals. It is important to teach the children at a young age about nutrtion.

Mason working hard on smashing the eggs!

After our cooking project the children are able to pick what center they want to play in. Mason and Keller picked the block area where they can build trains and make train tracks together. It is nice to see them working together.  

Arwen wanted to play school. She was practicing writing words in spanish and teaching others how to write them as well.

This afternoon we hope to go outside and play. We will also be coloring eggs and working some more on letter sounds. I do hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! 

Next week we will be talking about Easter and celebrating Earth day!

Thurday, April 14,2011

Today in the Preschool room we did a worksheet on the letter "E". The children learned about some words that started with E. Than they glued them onto an egg!  Malachi inspired the class to do some free art. All the children wanted to make their own design and give it to their parents. I enjoy seeing the children be so creative.

(Fine motor and new vocabulary words, imaginative)

We had lunch early today as we will be doing a tornado drill at 1:30. We had a discussion about what is expected from the children such as lining up nicely, no running or talking when we hear the alarm go off. The children were very curious about this and asked lots of questions. Malachi was asking about what is a tornado and how does it happen. So we did a little mini lesson on tornadoes. 

This afternoon we will be working on sounding out letters and I will be working with the kids to see how much they can write the alphabet on their own. This will help me know what letters each child needs improvement on.

(fine motor, writing)

WEDNESDAY APRIL 13, 2011

This week in the Preschool room we started talking about eggs. We talked about the color of eggs and the difference between an egg that is not cook compared to an egg that has been cook.
(observation)

We compared what would happen if we dropped a hard boiled egg verses a raw egg. We came to the conclusion that the shell would only break open if the egg was raw. The children observed that when the egg was cooked the shell would only break in pieces. The children really enjoyed observing eggs in different ways.

(science)

Today we made deviled eggs for the whole center. Some of the children did not like them at all. the children got to do the whole process in making them. They all took turns stirring the eggs and mayo, and taking a spoon and dropping them into the eggs.
(cooking, fine motors)

In the afternoons we have been having our snack outside and doing story hour as well. Today Keller and Mia were working together as a team and taking turns pushing each other on the bike. It was nice to see them settting an example on how to share and be kind to our friends. Then all of our friends got to take a turn on the bike and work together as a class. It was a pleasant day.
(gross motors, socializing, teamwork)

Toddler News

Hello and good afternoon parents of the toddler room.  Early this morning the children had some free play time. They played puppets with Ms. Jessica.  The kids love to talk to the puppets and they also love to tickle Ms. Jessica with them or be tickled. Some of the children that weren't to fond of the puppets in the beginning are warming up to them. They also played with the kitchen and made lots of food for Ms. Tiffiney to eat.

(social skills and language)

For our project today, the children used the dot dabbers to color their Easter egg. They did a great job sharing and taking turns using the dotters. They turned out to be very colorful eggs that we will be hanging in the room to enjoy for this week and next week.

(fine motors)

Due to the beautiful day outside we spent a good hour out on the play ground. The sand box was open today and they loved it. Although when we came inside it seemed like they brought half of the sand box with them. But at least they had fun.

(sensory and gross motor)

Before lunch the children helped make their beds for nap today. They did a great job and we always encourage the children's independence.

(fine motor)

Later on this afternoon we hope to have story time. The stories we will be reading are

Jack and the Jellybeanstalk and Some Bunny Loves You. We also hope to play with colored shaving cream as our sensory for the day, play hide and seek as are movement, and sing Do your ears hang low for our music.

(language, listening, sensory, and music and moement)

Toddler news

This week and next we will be doing an Easter theme.  We have alot of fun projects lined up.  Today we did our bunny and egg pictures that we made our names on with glitter.  The children enjoyed using markers along with crayons today.  An of course glitter is a blast to use!
( Fine motor skills )

Our stories today were Happy Easter Little Critter and Peter Cottontail.  All the children really liked the coloful pictures in these books.
( Listening and Language skills )

Later today in the afternoon we hope to get outside and enjoy the great weather.  Also the children will be able to play in our sensory table filled with Easter fun. 
( Gross motor and Sensory skills )

On a side note Thank You to all the parents who bring back the project folder each monday! 

Toddler News

Early this morning the children enjoyed are new singing puzzles. They have been a great hit.
(fine motor and sharing)

We also changed the sensory table for next week and the kids loved playing with that this morning. We put Easter grass, rubber ducks, and plastic eggs in the sensory table. 
(sensory and fine motor)

For story time this morning we read Waiting Out the Storm, Rain, and Diary of a Worm.  The children all enjoyed listening to the stories.
(Language and Listening)

For their project today they just finished up the rain hats and umbrellas to add to their life size portrait.
(Fine motor)

FRIDAY APRIL 8,2011

Today in the Preschool room we went to story hour at the library. Mrs. Sara read stories about camping and hiking! There was also a special guest who came to talk about hiking. She had a bag full of all the things you would need to bring while hiking in the woods. She had glasses, a water bottle, lights and a compass. The children really enjoyed looking in her bag. We also checked out books about bunnies and eggs.

In the morning we  made pink play dough for next week. All the children helped mix it together and find all the indigents.

Here is the recipe to make play dough if you would like to do it at home.

1 cup of flour

1 cup of water

2 teaspoons of cream of tartar

1/4 cup if salt

2 tablespoons of oil

Blend all together in a saucepan.

Cook on stove top until dough becomes harder. Medium heat.

 Then let cool on alumina foil.

This afternoon we will be decorating paper eggs to hang from our ceiling as next week our theme will be about eggs.

Toddler News

Early this morning the children played with some new singing puzzles we got for our classroom. The children loved them and had a blast playing with them.
( sharing, fine motor, and language )

For story time today we read several books. We were all sitting on the story rug and the children just kept bring us books to read. They really enjoyed the story time today. The children love being able to pick out the books they want us to read.
( language and listening )

Today we were able to finish two projects that will be added to the children's life size portraits. The children used the dot dabbers to color their rain hats and they sponge painted their umbrellas. These will also be added to their life size portraits.
( fine motor and sensory )

During free play the children had a great time playing with our puppets. Ms. Jessica also enjoyed getting down with the children and interacting with the puppets.

( sharing and language )

This afternoon we will try to get outside for some fresh air and possibly do some sensory with shaving cream.

THURSDAY MARCH 7TH, 2011

Today in the Preschool room we started out with circle time reading the story Sloppy Joe. This story was very funny as it talked about a little boy who was always sloppy. We talked about how cleaning up after ourselves makes us not sloppy. The children enjoyed this story and wanted me to read it again, so we did! 

Payton and Mia working hard!

After circle time our morning project was making baby puppets out of paper bags. We had tiny paper bags and decorated them as if they were just babies. 

Then the children wanted to make mommy puppets for the babies so we did. The children spent most of the morning making these.

We also had a cut out of the letter P where the children had to cut out all the words that start with P and glued the words on. This was great for letter recognition and fine motor skills. 

After we were all finished up with our projects we went for a walk outside where we saw a yellow race car! The children were mesmerized by this race car. We finished up our walk and sat down for lunch which was goulash and pears. Mrs. Michelle told them to find the treasure which was golden corn in the goulash. The children become very excited and ate their lunch well! 

During nap time Mrs. Michelle and Mia were being very silly together!

In the afternoon we will be working on our first and last names and going outside. 

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011

Today in the Pre School room we started out the morning with a new friend from the high school. Our new friend read many stories to them. The children loved seeing a new face. After circle time we did our morning project with making paper bag puppets. We talked about how their are many different ways to make puppets.

 After our morning project our new friend played in the dramatic area with them. She pretended that she was baking them cookies and they all sat around the table and ate the pretend cookies. It was really fun to watch! Very good little actresses and actors in the classroom!

Keller, Payton, and I built a house and a train track together in the block area. After we built it one way, we would knock it down and make it another way. We used all the blocks in the area to see how many different ways we could build.

We went outside, and Miss Ruth brought her dog by to show the children. All the children wanted her dog to become our class pet! The children played fetch with the dog and had lots of laughs!

In the afternoon we did music and movement with rhythm sticks. Then Malachi and Mia put on a puppet show for us. It was very entertaning.





We ended the day with practicing the sounds of each letter, and writing our last names. We have been working very hard on writing our first and last names.

Tuesday, April 5th,2011

Today in the Pre School room, the children got to decide what they wanted to do today! The children really enjoyed planning out their day. It gave them the opportunity to have a little bit of independence and to see what the children really enjoy through out the normal routine of each day.


We started the day with circle time as normal. We read the story Spring has Sprung, and talked about the four seasons and how each of them are different.  We made a list of all the differences. Then the children decided their morning project should be making necklaces. We made them out of string and beads, we also made matching bracelets. After our morning project was finished we did some free play inside the classroom. Normally free play is about 30 minutes and today they only did 20 minutes of it, which  I was surprise they did not want to go longer.


Before lunch time, Keller said he wanted to go for a walk, and the whole classroom voted and we went for a walk. During our walk, we were watching for birds and squirrels.  We had counted 10 birds and 4 squirrels that we saw on our walk. We also talked about safety when crossing the road as a refresher.

In the afternoon we traced the letter P and came up with words that have P in it or that started with it. The children are really getting so good at knowing the sounds of letters. I was very impressed with how many words they came up with.

We finished up the day by playing outside. Some of the children were playing kick ball and some were playing house.

Toddler News

Early this morning Ms. Tiffiney took out some musical instruments for the children to play with. The children enjoyed running around the room making lots of different sounds.
(gross motor and sharing)

We also played with some of our new friends in our room. They are puppets Fred, Mary, Bob, and Pippy and the children just adore then and love playing with them.
(social skills and language)

Our project of the day was marble painting rain boots for the kids to add to their life size portraits. Some children were also able to make up their finger painted rain coats that we did yesterday and finish coloring their life size portrait.

(fine motor and sensory skills)

Before lunch the children all sat down for story time. Ms. Jessica read Roger's Umbrella and Rainy Day Rhymes.
(listening and langauge skills)

Later this afternoon we hope to get outside and get some fresh air. We will also be playing with play dough and bring out the felt broad with the shapes.
(sensory and fine motor skills)