Tuesday, December 20th

Announcements:

• Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!  Remember school is off until Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012!

Activities:

• Our healthy kid helper this week was Emma!
• Projects: We worked on a story for our booklets, "I would love to get...."
• We had fun with the parachute today!  We put bells on the parachute and listened to them as we sang jingle bells!
• It was so fun opening our great gifts form our friends at school, thanks for participating in the children's gift exchange!
• The children also got a present from Small Wonders: in the bag there is a blue bouncy ball, the teachers wanted you to know!  They also got a noise maker and some books and a candy cane! :)
• We excused for snack by: matching the bags of toys: small, medium, and large
• Dora's clues were: tree, popcorn, bowl - Dora's backpack was stringing popcorn to decorate the house!  We found a paper with 5 candles hiding on the paper - have fun finding them!
• Books: We read Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer today!

December 15, 2011

Announcements:

• Reminder - We are doing a $5 gift exchange on Tuesday - please bring a wrapped gift to exchange!
• Please read the Winter Carnival information sheet (green paper) sent home in your child's backpack!  This will be held on Friday February 10th, 2012 at the New Prague Middle School!  Please help with silent auction items, tickets to events, or gift baskets if you are able!

Activities:

• Projects: We wrapped our families' holiday presents!  We also made a Rudolph - the children's hands were the antlers! :)  We had lots of fun with this!
• Mortimer the puppet introduced the letter "I" this week - he found an Icky Insect!  See if you can find other words that start with the letter "I" with your child!
• We had fun playing our instruments - we played soft, loud, slow, and fast, and even got to march in a band around the room!
• We've got mail: We found bottle instruments!!  You can also do this at home!  Take a plastic pop or water bottle that has been washed out, put something inside such as: macaroni, rice, sand - screw the cover on tight!  We made different types of instruments - find out which items made loud or soft sounding instruments!
• Dora's clues this week were: red crayon, red marker, and red paper - Dora brought a book about red!
• Excuse for snack: 1) Choose a card with an activity on it: flap your arms, wiggle your hips, etc...  2)  Match the mittens exercise!
• Song:  I'll Be Wearing: (sung to She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain":  I"ll be wearing (two warm mittens) when it snows. (clap, clap), I'll be wearing (two warm mittens) when it snows (clap, clap); I'll be wearing (two warm mittens),   I'll be wearing (two warm mittens),   I'll be wearing (two warm mittens), when it snows! (clap, clap).... repeat with other winter clothing items!
• Books:  Cordoroy's Christmas - what did corduroy get for Christmas? : skates, a sweater, and a doll!; Dream Snow - This is a great story about a farmer who feeds his animals - he puts on his warm red coat, boots, and gloves and decorates a tree for them and leaves them each a gift.
• The Heathy Helpers this week were: Lydia and Laine!
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December 9th, 2011

Announcements:

• Reminder - please send shoes in your child's backpack to wear during school!

Activities:

• Healthy Kid Helpers this week were:  Will and Andrew!
• Projects: We made our family Christmas presents with our own decorated wrapping paper!
• Mortimer the Puppet: Introduced the letter H this week!  He was so Happy and he had a Heart!
• Dora's clues were: hearts - 3 different sizes!  We learned about small, medium, and large!
• What fits inside?  We looked at a bunch of boxes all different sizes and decided what would fit inside the boxes!  
• We dismissed for snack by: 1) Matching the hearts, and 2) Matching the evergreen trees - small, medium, and large!
• We've got mail:  This week we found an experiment in our mailbox called "Curious About Chalk"!  We learned about the characteristics of chalk, and what happens when chalk gets wet through this intriguing investigation!  We described how dry chalk looks and feels and how it is powdery when dry, and how it writes on paper.  Then we dipped the chalk in water and described how it felt and how it wrote on the paper, and compared how it was different than when it was dry.  We figured out that chalk absorbs water and this changes its' texture!  Then we experimented with dipping the chalk in brightly tinted water and described what happened.  Ask your child if the chalk wrote differently after it was dipped in colored water?  We also tried dipping the chalk in more than one color to see what happened when we mixed the colors!
• Books:  This week we read:  Snow Dance and 5 Little Penguins Slipping on the Ice!
• Song: "Wake Up" (sing to the tune of "Are You Sleeping?"):  Wake up fingers, Wake up fingers; Rise and shine, rise and shine; It's time to say good morning, time to say good morning; Wake up fingers, wake up fingers!" (repeat with: fingers, arms, head, eyes"
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December 1st, 2011

Activities this week:

Art projects:  This week we worked on painting a "beautiful tree" and made a bell collage!

Our theme this week was : Friends around the world!

Books: Whoever You Are: This is a great story about children all over the world: smiles are the same, so are hurts, cries, joys, love, and pain.  Can You Say Peace?:  This is a book about all of the different ways children around the world say peace!

We've got mail!  This week in our mailbox we found a book The Color of Us - we looked at our skin and found out that we all have different shades of skin color.  We also looked at a book about Dumbo from Japan.  Children all over the world like to read - we just speak different languages!  We also looked at some things from Norway.

Mortimer the puppet introduced the letter "G"!  He found some Gum, he wants to chew it and have some Gooey Gum!  Ask your children about other words that start with the letter G!

We excused for snack this week by: 1) Finishing the Pattern, and 2) Matching objects!

Dora's Clues: bathtub, towel and soap.  We found out Dora wants to make sure we keep ourselves clean!

Song: "Drink Hot Chocolate" (sung to the tune of "Peanut Butter and Jelly"):  First you take the packet and you rip it, you rip it! (pretend to rip a package) x2 (repeat this verse); Chilly chilly weather.  Hot cocoa! (hug self and then fan self) x (repeat); Then you hold the packet, and you pour it, you pour it! (pretend to pour mix); Then you pour hot water, and you stir it, you stir it! (pretend to stir); Then you hold your mug and you (blow), (blow); Then you take a swallow, and you smile, you smile! (smile)

November 22, 2011

Announcements:

• Happy Thanksgiving!
• Book orders are due by Dec 2nd, they can be done online or bring them in to the school!
• Our carnival date is Friday February 10, 2012.  We are looking for parents that would be willing to volunteer their time to contact (by phone, email or in person) local businesses asking for donations for our silent auction/raffle for our carnival.  
• Also, if you are willing to contact your own place of employment regarding donations (i.e. tickets to sports events, local events, etc) it would be greatly appreciated!  Thank you!

Activities this week (Tuesday only!)

• Our star this week was Jazlyn!
• Art Project: we made a pine cone turkey!
• Dora's clues were: cookie cutters, flour/dough, and cookies - Dora loves to make and eat cookies!  We found a picture to color in Dora's backpack!
• We dismissed for snack by positioning pictures around a turkey!
• Book:  Thanks for Thanksgiving: we learned how children are thankful for everything in their lives!  Ask your child what they are thankful for!
• We've got mail: This week we found an experiment called "Bendy Bones" and we learned about how we need calcium to keep our bones strong!  Here is the experiment we learned about: 1) clean a chicken or turkey bone 2) dry the bone 3) put the bone into a jar and cover with vinegar - this removes the calcium from the bone 4) let it stand in vinegar about seven days 5) remove the bone and it will bend!
• Song: "Mr. Turkey": Who's that struttin' there lookin mighty perky? Looks like it might be old Mr. Turkey!  Strut Mr. Turkey, that's a fancy way to walk!  Strut Mr. Turkey, that's a fancy way to talk!
• Happy Thanksgiving!

November 17, 2011

Announcements:

• Hope you enjoy the Booklet of Experiences and the progress report that is in there also!  Enjoy!  Remember to bring the booklets back to school so we can continue adding to them - thanks!

Activities:

• Star of the week: Emma!
• Art Projects: paper bag turkey - Thanksgiving table decoration - enjoy!
• We worked on the numbers 3 and 4 in our numbers book this week!
• Mortimer the puppet introduced the letter F this week!  He had Fun Feathers!  Practice these letter sounds this week with your child!
• Dora's clues this week in our classroom were: brown marker, brown crayon, and brown paper.  We found in Dora's backpack a book about the color brown!
• Our topics this week that we discussed were: forest/woods, hibernation, and camouflaged.  Ask your child about animals that hibernate for the winter, and what animals are camouflaged in the woods!
• Books: Who is Sleeping - a fun book about hibernation, and Chameleon - we explored camouflage!
• We had mail this week:  we found a fun experiment that the children really enjoyed!  It was called "Balloon Blow Up": Put 1 tsp baking soda into a balloon, pour 1/4 cup vinegar into a 10 oz bottle.  Now attach the balloon to the mouth of the bottle.... the baking soda in the balloon will slowly fall into the vinegar at the bottom of the bottle - watch what happens!!  Amazing!  The carbon dioxide gas rises and inflates the balloon!!
• This week we dismissed for snack by: 1) We made a square on the floor with yarn and each child was given a movement direction to do with the square.  2) We stood on a certain shape and reviewed our shapes!
• Music:  "In the Forest", sung to "The More We Get Together": If you're ever in a forest, a forest, a forest; If you're ever in a forest, you might see a (bear).... repeat with other animals such as: skunk, fox, deer, eagle, bug, etc!
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November 10, 2011

Announcements:

• Remember to turn in advent calendar money and any unsold calendars this upcoming week!  We don't have extra calendars, except for any unsold ones that are turned in!  

Activities this week:

• The stars of the week were: Colten and Laine!
• We had our fieldtrip to Lau's bakery this week and had lots of fun!  Ask your child what they learned - we got to see how things are made at the bakery!
• We did a fingerplay song - "muffins in the bakery shop"!
• We worked on our booklets this week - a story called "Surprise Cake"!  You will see this when the booklets are sent home periodically during the year!
• Our puppet, Mortimer the moose, introduced the letter E this week!  He had an Egg and he had to be extra careful so he didn't break the egg!  Practice words that start with the letter E with your child!
• We also worked on a turkey art project!
• Dora's clues were: small, medium and large squares - we found a lot of squares in the backpack so we separated them by size and were excused for snack!
• Our other exercise when excusing for snack this week was matching community helper jobs!
• Books:  Barry's Big Bread, and Early Bird on Sesame Street: When he wakes up earlier than usual, Big Bird observes the morning activities of other early birds in the city.  We learned about all the people working at their jobs early in the morning, such as: the baker, veg/fruit stand, fireman, police, newspaper, and mailcarrier!
• Community helpers song: One little, two little, three little mail carriers; four little, five little, six little mail carriers; Seven little, eight little, nine little mail carriers; Ten little mail carriers bringing mail!
• We've got mail: we found an experiment to learn about weight and texture!  It was called "silly fingers" - we filled several heavy duty gloves with various sensory materials such as oatmeal, flour, water, sand, rice or beans.  The children were invited to life and hold the gloves.  Are they heavy?  How do they feel?  We also worked on describing the various textures: smooth, lumpy, hard, squishy.

November 3, 2011

Announcements:

• Advent calendars were sent home for our fundraiser - please see the red sheet sent home in your child's backpack for details!  This is a great fundraiser, and a great gift idea for grandparents to give their grandchildren at Thanksgiving!  Let us know if you are able to sell additional calendars!

Activities this week:

• Star of the day: Tyler

• We had a fun Fall week!  Besides dressing up, we also played musical carpets & carry the spider - we all had fun and we all got a prize!

• Also, check out our turkey in the entryway of the school - the children told the teachers what they were thankful for, and we wrote this on a feather and then decorated our turkey!

• We discussed night creatures this week, and learned about bats and owls.  Baby owls are called owlets; bats fly but they are not a bird!  Ask your child what else we learned about night creatures!

• Books:  The Spooky Wheels on the Bus, and Flying Bats!

• We've got mail: We learned all about magnets "instant attraction", and did several experiments with magnets!  Your child brought home a sheet of experiments that you can repeat at home: 1) put paper clips in a shallow pan and put sand over the clips - does the magnet pull the paperclips out of the sand?; 2) put the paper clips in a bottle with water, will the magnets attract and lift up the paper clips?

• Mortimer the puppet introduced the letter D!  He had a delicious donut in his mouth!  Practice some words that start with the letter D at home with your child!

• Projects:  1) Address House - we are learning our address and phone numbers;  2) we made our "Thankful Turkey"!

• Dora's clues: hat, balloon, present....... Dora wants to have a party!

• We dismissed for snack by: 1) Carry a spider on our shoulder and drop it into a container; 2) Scoop up a spider and drop it on a big spider web!

• Songs: 1) "Little Black Spider" sung to "Are you Sleeping": Are you sleeping, are you sleeping; Little black spider, little black spider?; Spin your silky web, spin your silky web; Catch a few bugs, catch a few bugs.  2) "Itsy Bitsy Spider" song

October 27, 2011

Announcements for this week:

• Halloween Dress Up is Tuesday November 1st!  Your child may bring treats or items to pass out but this is not required. (there are 15 children in the class, and 3 teachers)
• **Show and Tell will be on THURSDAY instead of Tuesday due to Halloween Dress Up day!

Activities this week:

• Stars of the week were: Andrew and Norah!
• This week our puppet Mortimer introduced the letter C - he had a big carrot in his mouth!  Ask your child to tell you words that start with the letter C!
• We looked at position cards: in/out, over/under, between, open/closed, behind/in front of, up/down, and on/off. 
• We've got mail: This week we found a science experiment about rain and clouds and we tried it!  We had a bowl of water, and some dry cotton balls - we showed the students how the cotton balls (i.e. clouds) absorb the water like a cloud, and if you squeeze them out comes the rain!  We made a prediction about how many cotton balls it would take to absorb all the water - then we counted aloud to see the actual number of clouds needed to absorb all the water!  We made rain by squeezing the water out of the clouds back into the bowl.  We experimented with a variety of objects to see what other things absorb water?  Ask your child about what items absorbed water!
• Art projects this week:  Owl and acorn man!
• Show and tell: Carol brought a real sugar beet from a relative's farm!  We talked about how we can make sugar from a beet!
• Dora's clues: small, medium and large circles...... we found that Dora had a ball in her backpack!
• The students were excused for snack by: 1) The teachers rolled the ball to each child and they rolled it back to be excused for snack; 2) The children positioned a leaf on the squirrel
• Books:  16 Runaway Pumpkins, and Biggest Leaf Pile: Each leaf color thought they should be on the top of the biggest leaf pile, but the bear came along and jumped on top and so the leaves didn't have the biggest pile anymore!  They figured out that was OK because then they didn't have to argue about who should be on top!
• Music: (sung to the tune of "If You're Happy and You Know it"):  Put your hands on your hips, on your hips. (clap, clap) Put your hands on your hips, on your hips. (clap, clap)  Take your hands off your hips, put your finger to your lips.  Put your finger to your lips, to your lips - Shhhhh!.  We also sang an action song: "Ha Ha This Away".

October 13, 2011

Announcements:

• There is NO SCHOOL ALL NEXT WEEK:  OCTOBER 18, 20 & 21 for MEA break.
• Thank you for helping with our pizza fundraiser - we raised $960.00 for our school - thanks so much!

School Activities this week:

• Projects: We worked on describing our feelings in our "booklet of experiences"; and the children told a story "On Halloween I'd like to......."
• Stars of the Week:  Laine and Molly!
• We've got mail:  This week we found a pumpkin and a bowl of "Mr. Potato" pieces and hats!  We made lots of fun faces on the pumpkin!!  Ask your child to describe this project to you - we had fun being creative!
• Mortimer the Moose (our puppet) introduced the Letter B - He told a story about how he had a Big Balloon tangled in his antlers!  The children learned about the words that start with the "B" sound!
• Books this week:  1) Growing Pumpkins: The farmer plants pumpkin seeds in a field and they sprout and grow into very large vines!  A yellow flower grows and turns into a tiny pumpkin.  The pumpkin grows bigger, bigger and turns orange, then a family comes to pick some for Jack-O Lanterns!!          2)Pumpkin Patch Puppy: Emily told Clifford they get to go to the pumpkin patch!  Clifford didn't know what a pumpkin patch was - he imagined lots of silly things: playground, beach, laundry room.  When they got to the pumpkin patch Clifford fell asleep in a large carved pumpkin!
• We talked about growing pumpkins in a garden, what else grows in a garden?
• Excused for snack exercises: 1) Place a pumpkin above, below, on, and beside another large pumpkin! 2) We had a pumpkin on the floor and each child got to walk around OR jump over, or walk backwards, etc. around the pumpkin!
• Music: "The Pumpkin Song" (sung to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell"): "The seed is in the ground; The seed is in the ground; Hi-ho the pumpkin patch!; The seed is in the ground."  Continue with these lines: "the seed grows a sprout", "the sprout grows a vine", "the vine grows a bloom", "the bloom grows a pumpkin", " we made a pumpkin pie!"
• Look at the Friday PreK section and photos section for more updates on our activities!!

October 6, 2011

Announcements this week:

• Pizza pickup will be October 13th at the school, from 5:45 to 6:15 PM.  Please make arrangements for someone else to pick them up for you if this doesn't work, as we don't have freezer storage for orders that are not picked up!  Thanks so much!
• The carnival date has been set at Feb 10, 2012 - this will be held at the New Prague Middle School - it is a fun family event - more details will follow!!!

School Activities this week:

• The stars this week were: Brandon and Catie!
• We started working on the letters of the alphabet - Mortimer the Moose introduced the Letter A - he had an apple in his mouth - apple starts with the letter A!!
• Dora's clues were: firetruck. ladder, water bucket...... Dora loves hearing about the fire station!
• We've got mail: There was a blue cob of corn and some blue corn chips (we learned that the blue chips came from the blue corn), and there was a white cob of corn and white corn chips (and we learned the white chips came from the light colored corn)!  We had a taste test to see which type of corn chips we liked the best - blue or white?  Ask your child which they liked - the blue or the white?
• We had a visit from the New Prague Firefighters!  They brought us each a book about fire safety.  We got to see and feel a real firefighters uniform.  Do firefighters wear alot of heavy equipment at a fire?
• We learned to STOP, DROP, and ROLL if our clothes catch on fire, and we also learned if there is smoke in a room you should crawl on your hands a knees so you can breathe and see more easily.
• We had a fire drill - the teachers blow a whistle and when the children hear the whistle they know they have to get outside!  We don't stop for our coats or our school bags, we just get outside and to to the meeting spot outside and wait for the teachers to come.
• Please take some time to discuss important safety measures that apply at home!  Knowledge of fire safety procedures could save your child's life!
• Books this week: "Firetruck", and "I Want to Be a Firefighter"
• Projects: Bouncy cutting art project - we worked on our fine motor skills with this project - ask your child to show you how it works!  We also made our firefighter hats which the children enjoyed wearing!
• This week we dismissed for snack by: 1) Separating small, medium, and large firetrucks, and 2) matching the fire equipment
• Music:  We sang:" Hurry Hurry Drive the Firetruck" - ask your child to sing it for you!  We had some fun actions too!  The words were: Hurry, hurry, drive the firetruck; hurry, hurry drive the firetruck; Hurry, hurry, drive the firetruck; ding, ding, ding, ding, ding!  Repeat this with: "turn the corner", "find the fire", "climb the ladder", and "squirt the water"!
• More photos are updated in the photos section!  Don't forget to look at the Friday pre-K class page! Have a great week!

Pizza sale prize winner!

Congratulations to Braxton's family, they sold 42 pizzas and won the gift card prize!  Way to go!!!

September 29, 2011

Announcements:

• Picture day is on Tuesday, October 4th - our next day of class!
• On October 6th, a New Prague Fireman will be visiting our class.  He will bring in some of the equipment that firefighters wear when fighting fires.
• Pizza pick-up will be October 13th!
• October newsletters were sent home this week and will be summarized on the website.

School Activities this week:

• Our stars this week were: Cameron and Braxton!
• We had mail!!  We found several kinds of nuts: walnuts, chestnuts, acorns and peanuts.  We opened them and found the nuts inside!  All of the nuts grow on trees except the peanuts.  One of the chestnuts even had 2 nuts inside!!
• Dora's clues this week were: red leaf, orange leaf, yellow leaf - Dora likes colored leaves!  Can you find any of these outside at this time of year?
• Projects: We drew a picture of "my family", and worked on our number book in our booklet of experiences.
• The children were excused for snack by: 1)  The children had to scoop a nut out of a bowl and carry it on a spoon to another bowl - this worked on our fine motor skills! 2) The children matched leaves!
• Books: 

1.  Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf:  This book examines the life of a sugar maple tree from the point of view of a young child. One day the wind blew leaves and seeds off the maple tree, they fell to the ground and after a while got covered with snow.  In the Spring, sprouts came up and the workers came and took them to a garden center.  A little boy got to buy one and planted it.  He learned about all of the seasons, and he decides he likes Fall the best because of the beautiful leaves.
2. When a Leaf Blew In:  This is a fun story about the way one leaf turns an entire barnyard upside down!  For example, the cow sneezed "ah-choo" and made a spider land on an owl!

• Music:  1) "My Seasons" song, (sung to "The Muffin Man", act out actions in the song... flutter like leaves):  Leaves are turning, falling down; falling down, falling down; Leaves are turning, falling down; On this autumn day!  2) "Ten Little Red Leaves" Song (count along on fingers and name different colors): One little, two little, three little red leaves; Four little, five little, six little red leaves; Seven little, eight little, nine little red leaves; Ten little red Fall leaves!

Check out our garden/flower shop, creative play area this week!  More pictures on "photos" tab!

September 22, 2011

We had another great week!

Announcements for this week:

• Pizza orders due next week on Thursday!
• Pictures will be taken on Tuesday October 4th during class!

School activities this week:

• Dora's clues this week were:  a red apple, a basket, an apple tree.... We found out that Dora loves to pick apples, and she put a coloring page for you to color in her backpack!
• We had mail!  In our mailbox this week we found apples and some water.  We did an experiment, we put the apples in the water - ask your child if the apples sink or float?
• Our topic this week was "Apples Everywhere".  We talked about apples: they are crunchy, red, green, yellow, and they are good for you!  You can eat them in many different forms - apple pie, applesauce, apple juice - can you think of some more ways to eat apples?  Maybe you have an apple tree by your house or have visited an apple orchard!
• Art projects this week were: a "self portrait" drawing for our booklets (which will be sent home to view later in the year), and a sponge painted apple tree!
• This week the children were excused for snack by: 1) each child had to position a picture on the apple; 2) children practiced their colors by dropping a red, yellow, or green ball into a container!
• Books this week were: Ten Little Apples, Apple Countdown, An Apple a Day, and Amazing Apples.  Through reading "An Apple a Day" we discussed the whole process of growing an apple: the apple blossoms in the Spring, bees pollinate the flowers, and then inside the flower the apple begins to grow!  During the summer the tree gets sun & rain to help the apples get bigger!  We discussed the different colors that apples can become, and when they are ripe and ready to pick and eat!  We also learned about counting when reading about a fieldtrip to the Applebee Farm in "Apple Countdown" ! Count 20 name tags, 19 kids on the bus, 18 miles to the farm.  There are 14 cows and 13 ducks, and 12 rows of apple trees.  Count the apples in your sack, count 3 pies to eat (divided into 20 pieces), and all too soon it's 2 o'clock, time to go!  But wait - Lee has a number 1 surprise - when he crunches into his apple he lost 1 tooth! This book includes grouping and simple addition! 
• Music: We sang "Ten Little Apples": One little, two little, three little apples; Four little, five little, six little apples; Seven little, eight little, nine little apples- Delicious as can be. Crunch!  See if your child can sing it for you!

**DON'T FORGET TO CHECK THE FRIDAY PRE-K PAGE FOR THIS WEEK'S UPDATE!
*PHOTOS PAGE WILL BE CHANGED TO NEW PICS ALSO!

September 15, 2011

We had a great second week of school!

Announcements for this week:

• Picture day is Tuesday October 4th!
• Fall Fundraiser September 15-29 : Information was sent home in your child's backpack regarding our pizza sale fundraiser!  We are working with Stone Oven Pizzeria selling their real italian stone oven pizzas - they are delicious!  We are hoping that each family will be able to sell 15 pizzas to help us reach our goal.  If you sell 40 or more pizzas, you will be entered into our drawing for a $25 gift card to Wal-Mart/Sam's Club!  Estimated delivery for the pizzas are the week of October 13th - more details are on the fundraising form!

This weeks school activities:

We have a mailbox at our school - when the flag is up, we check inside the mailbox!!  Today we found an experiment with directions and we tried it!!  You can also try it at home!

• Magic touch bags:  In a large ziploc bag we combined: 5 Tbsp of cornstarch, 1/2 cup of water and a few drops of liquid watercolor and mixed it all together.  Now add 1/2 cup of oil, reseal the bag, and lay it flat on a tabletop for touch exploration!  Best to tape it to the table so it stays in one place!!!

Dora's clues in the classroom this week were: 1) yellow crayon, 2) yellow paper, 3) yellow marker.  When we opened up Dora's backpack we found that Dora had a book and a game about yellow!  Everyone got a yellow smile sticker!

Our art projects this week were marble painting and coffee filter painting!  Ask  your child how we did these paintings!

The children were dismissed from group to go to snack, each child had to: 1) match an animal to its' home, 2) roll a ball to a friend and say their name!

Stories the children listened to this week were: "This is My House", "There's No Place Like Home", and "Where Do You Sleep Lttle One?"

Songs we sang were: "Yes I Can", and "I'm growing up".  Song to try at home = "Yes I Can!"- (sung to the tune of "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands")

• I can (nod my head) - Yes, I can! (repeat this line 2 more times)
• I can (nod my head) right now!
• repeat with (shrug my shoulders), (wave my hands), (wiggle my nose), (blink my eyes)

Be sure to check out the Friday class section to see what our pre-K students did on Friday!  See you next week!
Some photos below, check out the "photos" tab for additional pictures from this week and last!

September 8th, 2011

We had a great first day - it was fun to see all of the smiling faces - smiles bloom here! :)

This year Dora will have clues throughout the classroom so the children can figure out what is in her backpack, which is on the wall of the classroom!  This week the clues were: a jar with bubbles inside, a bubble wand, and bubbles! We found a picture in Dora's backpack of Dora's friends blowing bubbles - have fun coloring the picture!

For art, the children painted this week - paintings will be coming home in their backpack!  We learned where to hang up our paintshirts when we were done, rather than leaving the shirts on the floor! :)

The children were dismissed for snack by matching the colored houses!  We learned about washing our hands before snack, found our name at the snack table, and discussed good table manners!

The books we read were: "Hands are Not for Hitting", and "Itsy Bitsy Spider".  Ask your children what they learned!

The songs we sang this week were: "Itsy Bitsy Spider" - fingerplay and song; and "Way up in the Apple Tree": "Way up in the apple tree, 2 little apples looked down at me, I shook that tree as hard as I could, down came the apples 1,2,3!"  Ask your child to sing it for you!

*Please note* One of the children in our class has a peanut allergy, please be sensitive to this allergy when bringing snacks and treats to Small Wonders - thank you!

It was great to see all of the fun "show and tell" items - see you again next week! We will have show and tell again on Tuesday!

September 6, 2011

Welcome back!!

We are looking forward to another fun year with you and your child!