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