Wednesday, January 18

Group Meeting:  A few children have started to bring in some simple machines.  We will put them on the tables at arrival time and in the science area during play time for them to explore.  

Story:  The story for today was Hello Goodbye Dog by Maria Gianferrari.  Zara has a dog named Moose.  Moose loves hellos from Zara such as pets, rides in the car, and snuggles.  Moose does not like goodbyes such as staying home and being in his kennel.  When Zara goes to school, Moose escapes and tries to join her in the classroom.  The teacher and principal do not think that Moose should be in school.  What should Zara do?  Ask your child to tell you how she solves this problem.  I read this book today because Zara is in a wheelchair.  When she gets in and out of her van, she needs a ramp (inclined plane).  We talked about how inclined planes make things easier for everyone.

Study:  The children used blocks to make ramps.  I gave them a basket of items to put on the ramps to see if the items would move.  We experimented with raising and lowering the ramps.

Small Groups:  In our Writing and Drawing Journals, we drew pictures of what we would do outside if it was snowing.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was Ff.  We did a "fish dance", found other picture words that began with the F sound, and traced and printed the letter F.

Snack:  The snack for today was Goldfish, string cheese, and water.

Tuesday, January 17

Group Meeting:  We started by singing the welcome song that we have learned at the beginning of the month.  We changed the handshake to a high five to tell our friends that we are happy to be at school together.

Story:  The story for today was Chicken, Chickens by Valeri Gorbachev.  Two little chicks are visiting the playground for the first time.  It is very busy with animal friends.  Several friends invite them to join on the seesaw and the merry-go-round, but they think they are too little.  Then, they see a slide.  They want to try the slide but are a little scared.  Someone comes along to help them see how they can slide.  Ask your child to tell you how this story ends.  I read this story because a slide is an inclined plane.  We will be talking about inclined planes this week.

Study:  We are starting a study of simple machines.  Please take a few minutes to read the note in your child's folder about simple machines.  This week, the simple machine is an inclined plane.  I told the children that a plane is a flat surface like a block.  When I lift one end, the plane is inclined.  I will be using these vocabulary words as we learn about the simple machines.  I read the non-fiction book Inclined Planes for Children.  We saw pictures of ramps, slides, escalators, etc.  We also looked at some pictures of inclined planes that you may have at home.  Ask your child to find one.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was E.  We made the e sound by saying elephant and doing the elephant dance.  Then, we traced and practiced printing the letter.

Small Groups:  The children made snowflakes with diffuser paper and liquid watercolor.  You will see these in our windows soon.

Snack:  The snack for today was apples, Nutella, juice and water.

Wednesday, January 11

Story:  Before reading the story, I showed the children a pizza cutter.  A pizza cutter has a wheel which is a simple machine.  Then, I read the story The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza retold by Philemon Sturges.  This story is very similar to the story I read yesterday.  However, there is a difference.  Ask your child to tell you how this story is different that the one we read yesterday.

Small Groups:  The children were given pictures of the characters in our story.  They named the character and clapped the number of syllables.  They used daubers to make the number of syllables on their paper.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was C.  The children moved to the song "Riding in My Car" by Miss Nina.  They traced and printed the letter C.

Large Group:  The children moved to a song about following directions.

Snack:  The snack for today was yogurt, granola, juice and water.

We will be going outside for play time tomorrow.  Please have your children dress accordingly.  I will be absent in the afternoon attending a funeral.  We do not have school on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Tuesday, January 10

Group Meeting:  We are learning a new welcome to school song called "Rise and Shine".  Perhaps your child can sing it for you.

Story:  The story for today was The Little Red Hen retold by Bonnie Dobkin.  I had read the same book at the beginning of the school year and many children remembered that.  The Little Red Hen finds wheat seeds.  Who will help her plant them, harvest and take the wheat to the mill, mix the dough, and bake the bread?  Not I, says the dog, cat and goose.  Who wants to help her eat the bread?  Ask your child to remind you of how this ends.  

Small Groups:  After hearing the story, the children used picture cards to put the story in proper sequence.  They helped me retell the story.

Large Group:  Before the story started, I showed the children a loaf of bread similar to the one that The Little Red Hen was going to bake.  I used a knife (simple machine, wedge) to cut it.  We shared the bread.

Letter Learning:  The letter for today was B.  We danced to the boot song, found the B pictures on the Promethean board and traced and printed B.

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

Monday, January 9

Group Meeting:  We are exploring a topic for a study.  This week, I will be introducing some simple machines to the class.  If there is an interest in learning more, we will do a simple machine study for the rest of January and into the beginning of February.  I'll share more information soon.

Story:  The story for today was My Neighbors and Their Simple Machines by Erin Seagraves and Heather Baker.  Before I read the story, I showed the children three items; a screw, a spatula, and a wrench.  These are three simple machines.  In the story, a girl is walking through her apartment complex and is noticing the neighbors that are using a simple machine.  The window washer is using a pulley, Mrs. D'Angelo is cutting bread with a knife (wedge), and the repair man is fixing the door knob with a screw.  We use simple machines every day.

Small Groups:  In their Writing and Drawing Journals, the children were asked to print as many letters as they could.  Most children could write the letters in their name.  Some were able to draw more letters and some made pretend letters.  

Letter Learning:  We are starting another round of the alphabet.  This time, we will be doing them in alphabetic order.  For the letter A, we saw a picture of an alligator and did the "Alligator Stomp" with Jack Hartman.  After that, the children traced the letter A, upper and lower case, and tried to print it by themselves.

Large Group:  The children played with Stomp Boards which are levers.  They placed bean bags on one end and stomped on the opposite end to make the bean bags fly in the air.  They played with a partner taking turns stomping and catching.

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

Thursday, January 5

Group Meeting:  I was glad that it snowed this morning.  While I didn't enjoy driving in it, our Let's Find Out magazine was all about snow and snow people.  It worked out perfectly.

Story:  The story for today was The Mitten Tree by Candace Christiansen.  In this story, a lady notices that some of the children who wait for the bus by her home do not have mittens.  She digs out her scrap yarn and begins to knit mittens.  She hangs them on the tree by the bus stop so that the children will find them.  One day, she discovers that something has been left on her front porch.  Ask your child to tell you what it is.  We talked about how doing something kind for someone can cause them to be kind to someone else.

Small Groups:  The children printed their names in the Writing and Drawing Journal.

Let's Find Out Magazine:  We watched a video about how snow is formed and the fun things that we can do in the snow.  The magazine described how to make a snowman.  For more fun activities, go to letsfindout.com and sign in as a student.  Use the password redeemer.

Large Group:  We learned the song "Hot Chocolate".  Today would be a good day for hot chocolate!

Snack:  The snack was Wheat Thins, turkey slices, and water.

 

Wednesday, January 4

Group Meeting:  It's good to be back at school!  We started the day by looking at a new schedule.  I decided to switch a few things around on our daily schedule.   I posted the new schedule on the wall so that the children can keep track of what happens next.

Story:  The story for today was Meet January by April Martin.  January is a girl who loves to cuddle in blankets, make s'mores, and read books.  She did a lot of those things during winter break.  Now, it's time to go back to school.  January likes school because of her friends, but she does not like being cold.  Walking to school is a challenge for her.  Her nose, toes, and even her hair are cold.  When she gets to school, her friends help her warm up by doing something special for her.  Ask your child to tell you what it is.  

Small Groups:  The children started a Writing and Drawing Journal.  Today, they drew a picture of a person on the first page of their journal.  We will use these writing journals to draw pictures and later will add words to our drawings.

Letter Learning:  We will start to print the alphabet again next week.  Today, we did Jack Hartman's "Act Out the Alphabet" video.  We saw a letter, made the sound and acted out a word that started with that sound.

Large Group:  The children practiced throwing and catching with a bean bag.

Snack:  The snack was bagels, cream cheese, juice and water.