Week 2-Beginning school

pkalister

It appears that the students have adjusted very well returning to school.  It was a fast week!

This week we will only have three days, but those three days will be filled with fun things and talking about our emotions.

The question of the week is “What should you do if you get sad or scared at school?”  We will discuss ways that we can tell our friends and teachers how we are feeling.  The students will be working on the Letters C and D along with counting from 0-5 with the use of manipulatives.

Our story this week is Wemberley Worried by Kevin Henkes

It’s a new school year!!

pkalister

This Months theme: Beginning School

This week our questions of the week are : What names do we need to know at school? and when do things happens at school?

We will be focusing on learning each others names and the names of people in the building. Our letters of the week are A and B. We will be doing a literacy and writing activity using Humpty Dumpty.  This weeks math curriculum focuses on shapes.

The kids had a great first week they settled in quite nicely and are all very excited to be at school!!  We hope you are excited about school as we are.  Thanks for making it a super start!!!

Please send in a picture of your family that we can use for a project as soon as possible.  Thanks.

What are balls made of?

pkalister

This week we will be exploring what balls are made of.  If anyone has any balls that have split or are apart that would be awesome. It will save Mr. Bill our custodian from having to cut them in half!! It will be interesting to hear what the students predict what is inside of the balls.

Our letter this week our letters are review: Q, Z, I, F, M, P, and V.  Our math activities will surround addition and subtraction. This week we will attempt to paint with marbles.  It will be great fun.  Again as the weather gets hotter and we spend time outside, please put sunscreen on your child.  Without a doctors script we are not allowed to do so.

PM CLASS:  We are in the process of rescheduling our field trip that we missed this last Thursday. We will let you know when it is scheduled.

As we get closer to the end of the year, we will gradually be sending home clothes,  notebooks, and headphones.

May 26 at 6:30 is the all building end of the year celebration with food trucks galore.  Try to come it will be great fun.

Sink or Float?

pkalister

Sink or Float??

We will continue our ball study by adding water to our centers.  Will they sink or float?

We will be investigating whether or not all balls float and if they don’t why not??

Our letter of the week this week is the letter Z.  Our math this week will focus on the introduction of ten frame and addition. In the sensory table we will have water toys and build tunnels and channels for the water to travel. We may even watch the balls travel down the channels of water!!!

 

PM class only:

Our last field trip is this Thursday.  We will be visiting Music Settlement again this week and we will be visiting their outdoor classroom.  We will have the opportunity to do experiments and play with water. We are asking that your child come dressed for outdoor activity. They will be experimenting with different materials and might get a little wet!

Do All Balls Bounce?

pkalister

This week we will be exploring whether or not all balls bounce.  If a ball is heavy does it bounce?  We will be using tubes and ramps to see if all balls roll and bounce.  We will be reading the book called Bounce and the Fairy Tale, The Three Billy Goats Gruff.  Challenge your child at home to find a ball that rolls.  See if you can roll the ball down many different ramps.  Create your own ramp using paper towel tubes or swim noodles.  Building with your child creates hours of fun.

Our letter of the week is Z and our math lesson is on subtraction and addition.  We will be finishing up our Mothers day Gifts that I know the children are excited to give to you.

A great big Thank you to everyone who honored the teachers last week for Teacher Appreciation week.  Truly it is our pleasure to work with your child.

 

BALLS!!

pkalister

Our study this month is BALLS.  We will investigate how they bounce, roll, size and our favorite.  The students will play with a variety of balls, paint with them, measure them and explore what in on the inside of them.  For math this week we will be measuring and the letters are review , Y, U, J, X, H, N

As we begin to wind down the school year we will try very hard to play outside each day.  It is prohibited for us to apply sun screen to your child at school without a medical statement from your doctor.  If sunscreen is a summer protocol for your family, please apply it to your child before they come to school each day.

If you attended the ice cream social and art show last Friday thank you for coming.  It was a huge success!!

PM Class ONLY:  Our last field trip will be back to the Music Settlement however this time we will be exploring outside and water. We advise you to wear boots as we may be getting WET!!

It is hard to believe that school will be ending soon.  Our last day of DAP is the same as the district June 8, 2017.  The children have learned so very much this year and we are super thrilled to have been witnesses to their success.

We would like to welcome Gwenn Kelly to the morning class and Victoria Smith.  The morning class is very busy and fun with 15 students!!

What is living and non living around us?

pkalister
What is Living and Non Living?
Learning about what is living and non living around us is so very exciting.  Last week we planted Zinnia’s in egg cartons and it will be interesting to see how much they have grown when we return to school.  We watched the video of the  The Caterpillar and the Polliwog by Jack Kent.    https://youtu.be/A3Wo15Sr4vA and wondered how caterpillars became butterflies.  We have caterpillar larva in the classroom to observe over the weeks to see how they turn into caterpillars and then become butterflies.  Did you know that moths sleep in cocoons and butterflies sleep within chrysalis’?

Life Stages

Although they have several differences, butterflies and moths go through the same life stages. The adult female lays eggs, which hatch into caterpillars. As caterpillars grow, they molt and shed their skin four to six times before transforming into pupae. The pupa is the final stage of development, during which metamorphosis takes place over a period of about two weeks, at the end of which an adult butterfly or moth emerges.

Chrysalis

The chrysalis is the pupal stage of butterfly development. Just before its final molt, a butterfly caterpillar spins a small disk of silk to attach itself to the underside of a leaf or twig. The caterpillar sheds its skin one last time as the pupa emerges. The outer surface of the pupa hardens into a protective shell, which often takes on a color and shape to help blend it into its surroundings.

Cocoon

Moth pupae don’t harden like butterfly pupae do, so to protect themselves during this final transformative stage, moth caterpillars spin cocoons of silk around themselves before the final molt. This silk hardens into a protective casing, allowing the pupa to go through metamorphosis relatively undisturbed. Some moth caterpillars, such as silkworms, spin cocoons entirely from silk, while others incorporate leaves, plant matter and even hair from their own bodies into the cocoons. Moths are not the only insects that build cocoons. Ants, fleas and wasps are a few of the other insect species whose development includes a pupal stage that must be protected by a cocoon.

This week we will be exploring things that are living and non living.  We will sort items in the sensory table, use clip cards to strengthen our fine motor and work on our art projects that will be on display during the ART SHOW on April 28th.

We will enjoy an Earth day Assembly on April 18th and honor our earth with an Earth Day Project.

The vocabulary for this week and next is living, habitat, grow, food and move.  Our math is patterning and the letter of the week is U.

Our final May field trip for the PM class through the University Circle Initiative is going back to the Music Settlement with a twist in what you think we may do.

May’s field trip is going to take place outside. Please encourage your students to wear boots and outerwear to be outside. There is a water pump included in the outdoor learning space so things may get a little wet.

Botanical gardens and more!!

pkalister

This week we will be investigating and learning about the life cycle of a frog and how we can reuse recyclable items to help study natures growth and development.

For the PM class, our field trip this month will be to the Botanical Gardens and Miss Debbie will visit on Monday.  I wonder what she may share with us that will include the growth of a frog?

We will read the story The Caterpillar and the Polliwog by Jack Kent.    https://youtu.be/A3Wo15Sr4vA

For art this week we will make tadpoles out of egg cartons and plant grass in egg cartons as well.  The sensory table will be filled with black beans/dirt so that the students can pretend to plant flowers in the black bean “dirt.”  We will also be working on our art projects for the Art show on April 28th.

Our letter this week is J and Math will include sorting items from our recycling unit along with spring.  We may include spring items such as eggs, jelly beans, and carrots to sort.  Happy Good Friday and  Easter is April 16th with No School on Monday April 17th.  See you on April 18th!!

We will have an Earth Day assembly on April 18th and celebrate Earth day on April 22.

As we begin to wind down for the year, if you are interested in having a conference about your child’s progress please send an email to the teacher.  We would be happy to sit down with you and talk about your child’s progress and the future.  It truly has been an amazing year with a great deal of educational growth and tons of fun!!.

Reminder***** DAP will be cancelled on May 4th as our whole staff will be attending  the (OAEYC) Professional Development Early Childhood Conference on that day.  Thanks for your understanding!!

 

 

 

 

Reduce, reuse and recycle!

pkalister

The theme for the next few weeks is reduce, reuse and recycle.  We will be learning about how it is important to recycle and take care of our planet.  Throughout the unit we will be building with “garbage” painting with a variety of non-paint brushes and finding ways to feed the birds, grow plants.  It should be very fun and creative.  If you have any empty milk cartons or gallon jugs, please send them in to school.  We will attempt to make bird feeders out of them.  Have your child help you recycle items at home.  This is a great sorting activity along with being socially responsible.

Math this week focuses on counting 0-20 and we will be reviewing the letters W, L, E, V and X.  Have your child try to find an item in the house that begins with each letter.

Please note:  Kindergarten registration is April 5th in the gym from 9-12 PM and 4-7 PM.

The ever changing weather!!

pkalister

This last week before vacation we will visit the topic of our ever changing weather.  Each day the housekeeping corner will be stocked with appropriate clothing that we wear for the weather of the season.  Monday is winter, Tuesday is spring clothing, Wednesday is summer and Thursday is Fall.  Of course we will choose what the weather will be.  The students will measure the temperature through the week and predict what weather.  They can all be meteorologists some day!

The letter of the week is V and the math activities will be around shapes.  Art of course will reflect the weather theme.

Here is a site that has kid friendly weather videos  –    http://www.primarythemepark.com/2016/03/weather-videos-for-kids/

This is a favorite video about stormy weather!!

A few reminders for the week:  Monday night is our Pre-K Literacy night from 7-8 pm.  A surprise guest will be joining us from the Lake Erie Monsters.  Our rescheduled Pre-K math night is Tuesday evening from 7-8 pm.  Both nights will provide a great deal of information for those students going off to kindergarten.

The third quarter ends on Friday March 24th. Spring break is from March 26-March 31.

April 5th is Kindergarten registration for those students going on to kindergarten from 9-12 Pm and 4-7 PM in the gym.  If you have any questions regarding kindergarten please don’t hesitate to email me.