Thursday, March 30

Group Meeting:  For our last day in March, we reviewed the fairy tales that we read.  We noted that most of them ended "happily ever after" but one did not.  Ask your child to tell you which one ended sadly for it's characters.

Story:  The story for today was a re-read of The Three Little Pigs.  This time, the children said the parts of the pigs and the wolf.  I like this version of the story because it stresses the importance of hard work.  The pigs that made their houses of straw and sticks did so because it was easy.  The little pig who used bricks worked hard and it paid off.  

Let's Find Out:  Our magazine was about beavers.  The video told about several animals that build their own homes such as bees, spiders, mice, etc.  The back of the magazine compared groundhogs to beavers.  For more information, go to letsfindout.com  Login as a student and use the password redeemer.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Mm.  The tub contained a mirror, mouse, mug, mop, milk, and mailbox. The children traced and printed the letter and found it in print.

Snack:  The snack for today was cinnamon bread, milk and water. 

Wednesday, March 29

Group Meeting:  We have been doing a little yoga before Group Meeting.  We act out a story using yoga poses.  It helps us focus and get ready to read the message board.

Story:  The fairy tale that I read today was The Three Little Pigs retold by Bonnie Dobkin.  Three little pigs lived with their mother.  When they grew up, they were sent to build houses of their own.  The first little pig built a house of straw, the second little pig built a house of sticks, and the third little pig built a house of bricks.  The Big Bad Wolf comes out of the forest looking for little pigs to eat.  How will he get into their houses?  Will he be able to catch the little pigs?  Ask your child to tell you.

Small Groups:  The children acted out our story using puppets and a few props to represent straw, sticks and bricks.  I narrated while they added a few lines from the story.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Ll.  The tub contained a lion, lettuce, log, lock, ladybug, and lightbulb.  The children traced and printed the letter and found it in print. 

Snack:  The snack for today was corn chips, salsa, juice and water.

Tuesday, March 28

Group Meeting:  Last week, I read the book, Interrupting Chicken.   I chose this story because interrupting has been a problem during Group Meeting and story time.  I am challenging the children  to not interrupt a friend or teacher and instead wait and/or raise a hand for a turn to talk.  To help us with this challenge, I made a chart with five little chickens on it.  If someone interrupts, I remove a chicken.  If at least one chicken remains at the end of the day, we get to do something fun or select something to take home.  We're doing well!

Story:  Once again, I read the book Jack and the Beanstalk.  This time, the children voiced the words of the giant, "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum!".  We also talked about how Jack became greedy.  He had taken the hen that laid the golden eggs but returned to get the golden harp.  This might be a hard concept for some children.  We talked about being happy with what we have.

Small Groups:  The children planted bean seeds to grow their own beanstalk.  We added a popsicle stick with a castle at the top so that our beanstalks can grow up to reach it, just like the story.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Ff.  The tub contained a feather, fish, fan, four, football, and a fork.  We traced and printed the letter Ff and found the letter in print.

Snack:  The snack for today was Clementine oranges, milk and water.

The morning class had a special guest today.  Isabel's grandfather, Dan Dickens, came at the end of the day to lead us in a few songs.  Mr. Dickens is a retired teacher.  Thank you, Isabel, for sharing your grandfather with us.

Monday, March 27

Group Meeting:  Today was our 100th Day of School!  We counted all of the stickers on our 10 frames.  That means we only have 34 days left.  The school year is flying by.

Story:  The fairy tale that I read today was Jack and the Beanstalk as told by Melanie Joyce.  Jack and his mother have run out of money.  Mother sends Jack to sell the cow so that they will have money to buy food.  On his way, Jack meets a man who buys the cow for three magic beans.  Jack's mother is not happy.  She throws the beans out of the window.  The next morning Jack awakes to a beanstalk that has grown up into the clouds.  Ask your child to tell you what Jack finds at the top of the beanstalk.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Zz.  The tub contained a zebra, zoo sign, zucchini, zipper, zig zag and zero.  We traced and printed the letter Zz and found it in a sentence.

Large Group:  To celebrate 100 days, the children completed 100 movement activities by doing 10 sets of 10 different exercises.  The list of exercises is in their bag today.  

Snack:  The snack for today was cheese slices, turkey slices, and water.

The Lions eye screening was today.  However, my note may have caused some confusion as I had April 27th instead of March 27th.  If your child was not screened today, we will do it tomorrow.  The permission form sent home must be brought or completed at the preschool.

Thursday, March 23

Group Meeting:  Our sticker chart, which keeps track of how many days we have been in school, is up to 99.  On Monday, we will celebrate 100 days of school.

Story:  The story for today was Henny Penny which is the fairy tale that I read yesterday.  This time, we stopped as the fox was offering to help Henny Penny and made up our own ending so that the friends did not get eaten by the fox.  We also talked about "using your brain".  If a friend tries to convince you to do something that doesn't sound right, use your brain to do the smart thing.  

Let's Find Out:  The magazine for today was about forecasting the weather.  Animals can sense when the weather is changing.  By watching animals, we can predict the weather.  If you'd like to watch the video, go to letsfindout.com  Login as a student and use the password redeemer.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Vv.  The tub contained a volcano, vest, visor, vase, video camera, and van.

Snack:  The snack for today was Belvita bars, juice and water.

Wednesday, March 23

Story:  The fairy tale that I read today was Henny Penny retold by Bonnie Dobkin.  An acorn falls from a tree and hits Henny Penny on the head.  She thinks the sky is falling and runs to tell the king.  Her friends Ducky Lucky, Turkey Lurkey, Goosey Loosey, and Cocky Locky all try to get her to think it over, but she insists.  The friends join her in bringing the news to the king.  Then they meet Foxy Loxy.  He knows a short cut and invites them to join him for dinner.  Should the friends follow him?  Ask your child to tell you how the ends.

Small Groups:  The children played Rhyming Words Memory.  They turned cards over looking for two that rhymed.

Large Group:  The children played the Hoop Game.   With a partner, the children carried hoops down a row of chairs.  The first team to get all of the hoops to the end was the winner.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Tt.  The tub contained a tiger, tomato, turkey, teeth, towel, and turtle.

Snack:  The snack for today was Quaker Oat Squares, milk and water.

A note concerning a free eye screening was sent in your child's folder today.

Tuesday, March 21

Group Meeting:  I read a book to the children called Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein.  This story is about a little chick who is listening to a bedtime story being read to him by his papa.  However, when the story gets exciting, the little chick interrupts his father.  Papa Chicken asks the little chick to be polite and not interrupt him so that he can finish the story. 

I read this story to start a discussion about waiting for a turn to talk.  We've noticed a lot of children interrupting teachers and classmates in a hurry to talk.  We will work on remembering to wait and raise a hand for a turn to talk so that we don't have any "interrupting chickens".😀

Story:  I read Little Red Riding Hood again, today.  During this re-read, I left out a few words for the children to add.  We also talked about how this story could have ended differently if Little Red Riding Hood had listened to her mother.

Small Groups:  The children were given seven clothespins with  different letters printed on the end.  They were also given a piece of paper with the characters from our story printed on it.  Together, we identified the beginning sound of the character's name and selected the correct letter clothespin to attach to the picture.  

Large Group:  The children completed a "Count the Room" activity that corresponded with our story.  They had to search the room for items from the story, count how many, and print the numeral below the picture.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Pp.  The letter tub contained a pink pig, pumpkin, pizza, paint brush, pickle, and pan.

Snack:  The snack for today was pears, milk, and water. 

Monday, March 20

Group Meeting:  It was good to be back to school today!  Our handshake for the week is the Hip Bump.  Ask your child to show you how this works.

Story:  We are continuing our look at fairy tales.  Today's story was Little Red Riding Hood retold by Bonnie Dobkin.  Little Red Riding Hood is going to visit her grandmother on the other side of the woods.  Her mother tells her to to straight to Grandma's, don't talk to anyone that she doesn't know, and to not get lost.  Will Little Red Riding Hood follow her directions?  Ask your child to tell you who she meets and how this story ends.

Small Groups:  The children learned a new paint method today using fly swatters.  They selected a large piece of paper, made little puddles of paint with squeeze bottles, and smacked the puddles with fly swatters.  Your child may have a few speckles this week from this project which will be a choice all week long.

Large Group:  The children played a team game of Pass the Bean Bag.  We made two rows of chairs, all facing one way.  At the beginning of each row, I placed a pile of 10 bean bags.  When I said go, the first child on each team picked up one bean bag and passed it overhead to the person behind.  That person did the same moving the bean bag down the row to the end.  The first team to get all 10 bean bags moved to the end was the winner.  We played several times, getting faster each time.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Kk.  The items in the tub were koala, kangaroo, kite, key, kettle, and kazoo.  The children traced and printed the letter.

Snack:  The snack for today was whole wheat waffles, cinnamon butter, juice and water.

We are starting the last Show and Tell rotation today.  Your child will get one more turn to bring something of their choice before the end of the school year.

Thursday, March 9

I want to thank all of the grown-ups who attended the field trip yesterday.  I understand that everyone had a great time!

Group Meeting:  I started the day by asking the children to tell me about the field trip.  I was happy to hear that they were able to find several simple machines at the fire station.  Today, we are going to talk about St. Patrick's Day.  This day falls during Spring Break so we are getting a jump on the holiday.

Story:  The story for today was Looking for Leprechauns by Sheila Keenan.  Kevin and Devin love to get into mischief.  One day they decide to look for a leprechaun.  They know that if they catch one that they will be able to get his gold, but only if they can make him laugh.  Ask your child to tell you what they must do to get him to laugh.

Small Groups:  The children made Rainbow Toast for their snack.  Rainbow Toast is made by brushing milk that has been tinted with food coloring on to pieces of bread.  We put the bread in the oven and the milk dries leaving the beautiful colors behind.  This is a fun activity to do at home.

Let's Find Out:  Our magazine was about leprechauns and pots of gold.  We did not have time to finish it in class.  Please help your child to it at home.

Snack:  The snack for today was Rainbow Toast, Birthday Brownies, milk and water.

PM book:  I'm Happy-Sad Today by Lory Britain brought by Favour

We are now done with book show and tell.

Have a great Spring Break!

Tuesday, March 7

Group Meeting:  I displayed puppets from the story Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  We thought of things that the bears and Goldilocks would say.  I encouraged the children to find things in the classroom to use to make beds, chairs, and bowls for the bear's house so that they could act out the story.

Story:  When I read fairy tales, I usually repeat the story on the next day.  This gives the children a chance to see things that they might have missed the first time.  Today, I read Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Bonnie Dobkin.  This time, I left out some of the words to see if the children could fill in the missing parts.

Small Groups:  Goldilocks and the Three Bears gives us the opportunity to use the words large, medium, and small.  The children were given a emergent reader book of the three bears and things from their home.  We "read" the book by running our fingers under the words.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Dd.  The Dd tub contained a dolphin, dinosaur, duck, dog, donut, and domino.  We traced and printed the letter Dd and circled Dd in words in a sentence.

Large Group:  We prepared for our trip to the fire station.  The children are ready to look for simple machines that the fire fighters use.  A note was sent home with some more information about the trip.

Snack:  The snack for today was apples, peanut butter or Nutella, milk and water.

AM Book:  The Book With No Pictures by B.J. Novak brought by Maverick

PM Book:  Spend It! by Cinders McLeod brought by Roxy

Monday, March 6

Group Meeting:  A new week means a new handshake.  We are doing the Thumb Handshake this week.  Ask your child to show it to you.

Story:  The fairy tale for today was Goldilocks and the Three Bears retold by Bonnie Dobkin.  Goldilocks gets lost in the woods and comes to a cottage while trying to find her way home.  The three bears that live in the cottage are out on a walk, waiting for their porridge to cool.  What will Goldilocks find in the house?  Ask your child to tell you the rest of the story.

Large Group:  The children searched the classroom to find cards that the teachers had hidden.  On each card was a picture.  Some of the pictures were from the story, Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  Some were not.  After finding a picture, the children placed them in the correct category; In the Story or Not In the Story.

Letter Learning:  For this round of letters, I have letter tubs that contain six little toys that start with the letter sound.  I give the children clues to see if they can guess what is in the tub.  The letter for today was Bb.  In the tub were a bat, basketball, banana, boat, bottle, and bell.  The children traced and printed the letter Bb and found those letters in a sentence.

Snack:  The snack for today was Wheat Thins, cheese slices and water.

AM Book:  The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Manners by Jan and Stan Berenstain brought by Killian

PM Book:  Blippi 5 Minute Stories by Marilyn Easton brought by Rudra

Wednesday and Thursday, March 1 and 2

Group Meeting:  We are beginning a new unit on Fairy Tales.  To get us started, we watched a PBS video titled "What is  Fairy Tale?"  We learned that fairy tales usually take place a long time ago, have unusual characters such as trolls and talking animals, and sometimes include magical powers.  I know that we will have fun with this unit!

Story:  I read The Knight and the Dragon by Tomie DePalola.  In this story, a young knight decides that he wants to fight a dragon.  At the same time, a young dragon wants to fight his first knight.  The knight makes a suit of armor and practices his jousting.  The dragon practices using his fiery breath.  When they meet, things don't go as well as planned.  A princess comes along with a great idea.  Ask your child to tell you what it is.

Let's Find Out Magazine:  The magazine for this week is about books; fiction and non-fiction.  The children learned how to tell the difference between a book about real things and a pretend story.

Snack:  The snack was white cheddar rice cakes, milk and water.

AM book:  That's Not My Tractor by Fiona Watt brought by Elijah

PM book:  Pete the Cat's Groovy Imagination brought by Jayden