Wednesday, September 30, 2015

What A Friend We Have in Jesus


As the school year continues, the students are continuing to learn and grow. This week we really focused on seeing if the students knew their names. This is something that we will continue to do throughout the year, to see their progress. They were able to trace their names, write them, and cut out the letters to spell them. They also had activities that related to the alphabet to better help their understanding of print. 
The water table was open during work time this week! Inside the water table: boats, walrus, and penguins!
Morning Stories:
Fall Mixed Up by Bob Raczka
If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff
Leaves by David Ezra Stein
Creepy Carrots by Aaron Reynolds
Leaf Trouble by Jonathan Emmett
Llama Llama Home with Mama by Anna Dewdrey

Bible Time:
This week the students are focusing on 'God Has a Plan for Joseph' (You will find this Bible story in your child's backpack. If you have time this week, please read it to them each day! It helps them better understand the story.) They have been looking at Revelation 7:17, "God will wipe away every tear from their eye." This is reminding the students, that even when things scare us or worry us - God will be there to strengthen and remind us that he has a plan for us. The students have been learning the song, 'What A Friend We Have in Jesus.' We can find comfort in Jesus, knowing he will always guide us through life and keep us safe.

Movement Time:
During movement time this week the students are focusing on galloping. We are able to start each movement session with a song for the students to dance or listen to instructions. This week we are doing the Popcorn Song. This is a nice warm up for the students. Following the warm up song, they are able to do some stretching while counting from 0 to 10. After getting their bodies ready to move, the lesson begins. The students were able to go around the 'neighborhood' (a term from the SPARK curriculum) while walking, running, and galloping. To help the students understand the different between galloping and skipping, each day it is broken down for the students how to move their legs to gallop. So far the students have shown major progress. We will continue to work on this for the rest of the week, as well as the school year.

Music Time:
The focus of music time this week is keeping a steady beat. The students were able to use rhythm sticks to do this. After reviewing several songs (using the rhythm sticks to keep a steady beat) the students were able to learn a new song of the week. "Seesaw Margery Daw." This song helps the students keep a very steady beat while singing. After using the rhythm sticks, the students were able to switch mid week to rhythm eggs. This helped the students still focus on the concept of keeping a steady beat, but in a new way! We also used the song 'I am Jesus Little Lamb' to keep a steady beat with our instruments. The students are always very excited to be able to use the instruments in music time. 
A student made herself a necklace during work time!
Small Group:
The KDI (Key Developmental Indicator) for this week was Writing and focusing on the Alphabet. The students were able to do this throughout various activities.
Monday- The students were able to take trays of salt and practice writing out their letters using their fingers. This was a challenge for some, but the students enjoyed being able to practice their letters in a new way.



Tuesday- The students were challenged with tracing their names, writing their names, and then cutting out the letters to spell it on their own. Getting the students use to letter recognition is very important at this age. We do not require the students to know exactly how to spell or write their names perfectly. We want them to have a knowledge of which letters are which and do their best to write them out.
Wednesday- The students were asked to find their letter at the table. This helped them to recognize the first letter of their name right off the bat. Some students did need guidance, but that is to be expected. Students were able to have their letter taped onto the table. Using blocks the students were able to place them on the tape to make the first letter of their name. 


Thursday- The students were able to trace different letters of the alphabet. The letters were not specific to the child's name, but just the alphabet in general. The students could choose which letters they would like to trace during the activity.
Friday- Each student received a printed first letter of their name. They were able to fill their letter with stickers. This helped with letter recognition as well as fine motor skills to get the backs off of the stickers.
Creating a picture with shapes during work time!
Afternoon Story:
Bark, George! by Jules Feiffer

Afternoon Table Activities:
During the week - the students also had the option of playing in the water table during the afternoon.
Monday (Math)- The students could work with counting bears to create a pattern. The sorting pie was also an option for the children. This helps them recognize colors and be able to place them in groups. Dominoes were available to the students as well.
Tuesday (Fine Motor)- The students had the option of chain links, beading and also working on their writing with the use of pencils. The students were able to create letters or draw pictures using their fine motor skills to hold the pencil.
Wednesday (Manipulatives)- During afternoon tables, the students could create race tracks for cars and use a marble race as well. The students had to create these tracks/races before being able to use them. The students had to use teamwork.
Thursday (Art)- The students were able to create pictures using watercolors for the first time this year. The students were free to mix and make their colors.
Friday (Sensory)- The students could choose from the water table, sensory bottles or the sensory bags. This provided the students with various options of play.

Snowfall:
The students were SO excited about the snow on Wednesday. I wanted to share some pictures with you all! 






Wednesday, September 23, 2015

This Little Light of Mine

Another busy week in the preschool room. The students continue to surprise me each and every day with their knowledge and communication skills. This week the students were doing a VERY good job at cleaning up after work time. They are able to work together and communicate with one another to find where an item went. It is wonderful to see the students forming relationships with one another this early in the year. They continue to play well together and problem solve effectively. What a blessing!
The students enjoy playing Cashier at the grocery store during work time.
Morning Stories:
Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion
Hiccupotamus by Aaron Zenz
If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff
How Do Dinosaurs Stay Safe? by Jane Yolen
The Paperboy by Dav Pilkey
The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn
Another example of shopping at the grocery store!
Bible Time:
The students are learning about Jacob seeing a beautiful dream this week. They are now able to sing through Jesus Loves me as a group and work together to do the sign language portion of the song. They are focusing on Isaiah 41:10, "Do not fear, for I am with you." Throughout this bible story the students are able to understand the importance of having trust in God. He will take care of you and provide for you each and every day. They are also learning the song, 'This Little Light of Mine.' 
A new item in our classroom - a can opener!
Movement:
The students are working on jumping this week. They are working on jumping forward and backward from their homes. The students are also working on using only one leg to perform a jump. They are seeing how far from their home they are able to jump. This seems to be a challenge for some. They are also able to experiment with being able to jump with their legs bent or straight. Will it make a difference? Your child is about to find out this week!

Music:
They are able to focus on long and short sounds this week. They are working on showing this with their hands. They are learning a new song this week called 'White Sand and Gray Sand' which is a great way to learn the long and short sounds. They are also able to review some of the songs from past weeks. This means the students are able to use hand bells when given the opportunity during review time.
Small group this week focused on classifying.
Small Group:
The KDI (Key Developmental Indicator) for this week is classifying. The students are doing this in a different way this week and with different items.
Monday: The students are able to sort the alphabet. I made it their personal goal to find at least the first letter of their name, as many as they could find. The students did this successfully. As a challenge for some, I asked them to spell out their name. A few of the students were able to do this - very impressive!
Tuesday: They are able to sort in a different way. The students were given a piece of paper with a line down the middle. They were asked to sort their shapes by color. They were then able to glue the shapes on a given side as long as they were the same color. The students did this fairly well.
Wednesday: The students were able to sort beans. They were able to take a sensory bin and comb through it to find the different types of beans. They were then able to sort the beans based on size, shape, or color.
Thursday: They were able to sort beads. The students were able to use several different types of beads to do this. They could sort by color, size, and shape. The students were able to make that decision independently. 
Friday: The students were able to sort blocks. They were doing this by color or shape. They were once again able to choose how they wanted to sort their items. They were fairly successful in doing this.
Sorting and gluing shapes in small group.

Afternoon Story:
Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson

Afternoon Table Activities:
Monday (Math): Puzzle game with addition and subtraction through pictures. Unit cubes were another option for the children.
Tuesday (Tuesday):Eyedroppers and water for the students. As well as egg connectors to help the students work on their fine motor development.
Wednesday (Manipulatives): The students were able to play board games. Chutes and ladders and also memory were available for the students. With a smaller group in the afternoon, we were able to teach the students how to play the games.
Thursday (Art): They were able to do leaf printing this afternoon. As well as painting with the leaves. 
Friday (Sensory): The sensory activity for today was shaving cream and cars. The students are able to make different lines (wavy, zig-zag, straight).
Ordering the cars onto the semi!



Wednesday, September 16, 2015

I am Jesus Little Lamb

The students were able to do several activities this week. We were focusing on cleaning up in the classroom. The students have been struggling with cleaning up after themselves, but also putting the items back in the correct place. We are encouraging the students to make sure they clean up throughout their play time so that there is less to clean up later. They have been working hard to do this and continue to work together throughout the week. Each Tuesday, the students are able to have a visit from Pastor Chris Ewings. He bases his devotions on the bible story we are learning about during that week.

Morning Stories:
Fox in Socks by Dr. Suess
From Head to Toe by Eric Carle
The Very Noisy Night by Diana Hendry
A Perfectly Messed Up Story by Patrick McDonnell
Good Morning Little Polar Bear by Carol Votaw
The students enjoy pretending to be the Teacher.
Bible Time:
The students are focusing on Noah's Ark this week. They were able to learn more about Noah and his family. God provided them safety during a time of trouble. They took note of 1 Timothy 2:3,4 "God our Savior wants all men to be saved." During this lesson, the students were able to see a demonstration of the story from Pastor Ewings. They focused on the song 'Noah build an Arky Arky'

Pastor demonstrates Noah's Ark for the students.
Movement:
During movement this week, the students were able to focus on their ability to run. They were able to experiment by running with small steps, big steps, slow steps, and fast steps. By doing this, the students were able to gain more control over their bodies and get the cardio workout they needed to release some of their pent up energy. Especially this week, the weather has not been the great for running around outside. The students are able to focus on running inside during movement instead.

Music:
This week they are able to focus on long and short durations of sound. They were able to learn a new song, B-I-N-G-O while using handbells to demonstrate their knowledge of long and short notes in a song. They were able to also do this throughout other songs as a review. The previous songs are always able to be applied to the current task for the students. 

Small Group:
The Key Developmental Indicator (KDI) this week is: Classifying
Monday: The students were able to do a food sort. They were able to classifying each item into a certain group (dairy, fruits, vegetables, bread). They were also able to do an activity with a pie which had the students sorting by color using tweezers.
Tuesday: They were asked to do something very similar. The students were taking dried noodles that were colored and sorting them into separate containers based on their color. The challenge they had was using a tweezers to move the noodle from the dish to a container.

Wednesday: The students were again sorting by color. This time with dinosaurs. They focused specifically on the colors red, yellow and blue. The students Were able to place the dinosaurs into a triangle separated into three parts for each color. 
Thursday: They were able to sort buttons. They were able to do this independently. The students had to decide if they wanted to sort by color, size, shape, or number of holes in the button. They were able to decide that on their own.
Friday: The students had to decide whether items were soft or hard using their hands. They were able to place the hard items on one table, and the soft items on another. During this activity the students were able to explore the classroom and bring back items they thought were hard or soft.

Afternoon Table Time:
Monday (Math): The students were able to use number and shapes stamps to create patterns.
Tuesday (Fine Motor): They were able to review the use of tweezers with noodles, this time choosing how they wanted to sort their noodles.
Wednesday (Manipulatives): They were able to review their knowledge of the Alphabet. They students used bananagrams and magnetic letters to sort or spell.
Thursday (Art): The students were able to make hand prints for a project that will be displayed outside of our classroom. After making their hand print, students were able to finger paint.
Friday (Sensory Exploration): The students were able to play in the water table with icebergs floating around. They also had the option of floam.





Thursday, September 10, 2015

With God All Things Are Possible

Our week has flown by! Sorry for the late blog post. I wanted to wait to post the blog until after our in house field trip. The fire department was able to pay us a visit Thursday! It was such a treat for the children to be able to hear and see more about firefighters. This week the children were able to have Pastor Chris Ewings come in for a devotion, have several art projects, and have the fire department visit. Don't forget the picture taken on Thursday - such a busy week!
This week, the students enjoyed challenging themselves to read and write - all on their own!
Working together to write out the Alphabet!
Morning Stories:
Nighttime Ninja by Barbara DaCosta
The Lost Dinosaur Bone by Mercer Mayer
Do Crocs Kiss? by Salina Yoon
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
Farmer Duck by Martin Waddell


During work time, the students were able to create various art projects this week - one being this project!
Bible Time:
The students were able to start the week off with a devotion with Pastor Chris Ewings. He was able to share 'God Saves Adam and Eve' with the children. Throughout the week, the students were able to focus on this Bible story and expand their knowledge on God's Word. We focused on John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son." The song the students have been learning this week is Amazing Grace. They continue to since through Jesus Loves Me at the beginning of their Bible lesson. As you have noticed, the students have been sent home with their bible story each week. We encourage you to read through this story with them to help them become familiar with it.

Movement:
This week the students have been focusing on starting and stopping. The students have been able to exhibit these skills through various movements (skipping, running, walking, hopping). Throughout the week we have also encouraged the students to stay familiar with the specific terms in our Physical Education curriculum (SPARK). The terms they have been continuing to focus on are 'home' and 'walking around the neighborhood.'
During work time, these students chose to use their imaginations to create a dog on a leash.
Music:
The students have been focusing on singing loud and soft again this week. We have been reviewing songs from the previous week as well as introducing a new song. The song this week is 'Hey Betty Martin'. We follow our music curriculum throughout the year (Sing and Make Music). The students have been able to learn actions as well as the topics being covered during the week.

Small Group:
This week the students have been focusing on our Math Key Developmental Indicator. This mean the students are using hands on activities to learn more about basic mathematical concepts.
Tuesday: The students used number cards and items to represent those numbers. In order to do this, the students needed to have a knowledge of which number they were looking at and then had to be able to count out the item to make sure it matched.
Wednesday: We chose to focus the students on patterns during this time. The students had to take the colored bears and follow the patterns on the card. They were then able to make their own patterns once they successfully completed their card.

Thursday: The students were able to choose from several activities this day. They could choose to continue making their own patterns using the bears, a sorting the pie game (certain shapes go into the pie), or a ball that can store shapes using a certain opening. 
Friday: They were able to go on a shape find. The students were tasked with finding a specific shape inside our sensory bins. The students had a bag to place their shape in. After a certain amount of time, the students were able to share their items with their classmates.

Afternoon Table Activities:
Tuesday: The students were able to choose from a game called ZOOB. They were able to construct various types of structures using this item seen below. They were also able to play with shaving cream in the afternoon.

Wednesday: They were able to create a marble run. The students love to do this activity. They could also choose to do the architetrix construction set. 
Thursday: Due to several activities this day (firefighters and group picture day) the students had rest time a little bit longer. The table options for the children were limited: puzzles or snack time.
Friday: The students were able to use straws to make bubbles in their own personal cups. The students were able to play with various manipulatives if they were not interested in the bubbles.


Here are some pictures from our Firefighter Visit!







Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Faith - Hope - Love

The students are finishing up week 3 of preschool. This week, the students have been able to explore different areas of the classroom with a better understanding of where items are. The students continue to learn the rules of the classroom and how to play with others. Friendships are being formed between the new and returning students, which is wonderful to see.


Chapel day means polo day! 
Morning Stories:
Chewy Louie by Howie Schneider
Lets Do Nothing! by Tony Fucile
Don't Be Silly Mrs. Millie by Judy Cox
Clark the Shark by Bruce Hall

Bible Time:
The students were able to hear the bible story "God creates Adam and Eve." In this lesson, the students were able to learn more about God's almighty power and the reasoning behind creating man and woman. The students were able to focus on Psalm 146:2, "I will praise the Lord all my life." The song for this week was 'Jesus loves the Little Ones.' This is a new song for all of the students, they were able to hear the song on Monday and join in when they felt comfortable. On Tuesday, the students were able to have a devotion with Pastor Chris Ewings. He spoke to the children about God creating Adam and Eve. The students were able to sing 'I am Jesus Little Lamb.' Chapel is this Thursday with the focus of Faith.
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Devotion with Pastor Chris Ewings
Movement:
The students were able to work on listening to directions and moving their bodies as they are told. They are working on stretching and moving their bodies to and from their 'home.' The students are also recognizing the importance of being able to move their bodies but also have control over their bodies.

Music:
In music this week, the students are focusing on using their voices to be loud and soft. The students are learning a song called "Clap Your Hands." This song is useful for the students because they are able to keep a steady beat while singing along. They are also reviewing several songs for the past weeks. The students are also able to review the songs from the bible lessons during music too. 

Small Group:
This week the students have been focusing on fine motor skills again. On Monday, the students were able to focus on the proper way to use a scissors. As a challenge, the students were asked to cut strips of their paper. This was difficult for some, but the results were wonderful! They students did a great job. 



On Tuesday, the students were able to work on beading. This proved to be difficult for some. The concept of taking a bead and placing a string through the holes was hard. The students worked hard to do this correctly. After some time, each student was able to successfully place beads onto the string. 

On Wednesday, the students will be taking the strips of paper from Mondays cutting project and creating a picture. The students will have to use glue sticks, stickers, and paper to do this. On Thursday, the students will have the opportunity to work on connecting puzzle pieces. This may seem like an easy task, but several of the students have struggled with this during work time. On Friday, the students will be working on hole punching and using a stapler. All of this will help the students with their fine motor skills and give them an opportunity to use these skills during work time and outside of school.
The students worked together to create a giant track during work time!
Afternoon Table Activities:
During the afternoon, the students have the opportunity to freely play in the water table. This week the water in our table is green and includes measuring cups, spoons, and funnels. With the water table, the students are given a different hands on item each day. On Monday, the students were able to play with magnetic people that have clothing to dress them in. They were able to make the people any type of profession they would like. Tuesday gave the students the opportunity to draw different types of lines. (Curvy, zip-zag, straight, etc.) On Wednesday, they were able to explore with various items through the use of magnifying glasses. Thursday brought on the use of stamps and stickers. On Friday, the students will be able to make an art project with a different type of mixture. They will be using shaving cream mixed with food coloring and glue. This will create a puffy texture once the projects dry.

Outside Time:
The students have been able to make use of our outside play area. They have demonstrated a love for running throughout the whole area and playing with one another.