Prekindergarten B

Hi Everyone!
This week we wrapped up our in-depth look into The 3 Billy Goats Gruff. After reading different versions of the story, telling it with puppets and using felt board pieces, we acted it out for PK-A. Here it is:

Last week we planted wheat grass for the billy goats. We were so excited to see that the seeds not only sprouted, but grew, grew and grew!

We also put the finishing touches on our B.G.G. display.

We also did a shared writing piece for the story. Stop by the display to read it! Thanks!

Hello!
The children in PK B have the opportunity to be Person of the Week. This is a week-long event involving sitting in a special chair everyday during group time, bringing in a show n’ tell toy everyday, getting interviewed by classmates who then make them a book and bringing in their family for show n’ tell. This is a great community building event. Family show n’ tell has been such a wonderful experience for all of us. We’ve met siblings, grandparents and pets! It’s also been a great opportunity for us to learn about jobs that people have. For instance, one child brought his mother, a dentist and his father, a spinal injury specialist. To help us understand more about our bones and teeth they brought in Floyd, a skeleton with real human bones! We got to listen to our hearts with a stethoscope and they got a chance to look inside Floyd’s skull!

Thank you to everyone for all that you have done to make family show n’ tell a wonderful learning experience!!

Stacy

Today Senora Margarita made a special visit to our classroom! She brought her guitar and maracas and taught us a new song, Guantanamera. Here is a video clip of singing together. Ole!

The children have been studying all about castles, princesses, dragons, knights and other royal people. We will have a Valentine’s Masquerade Ball tomorrow! In preparation, we have been learning to dance like they did back then. Here is a clip of us practicing!

Hi Folks!

Monday we read The Paperbag Princess by Robert Munsch. They really enjoyed it. I thought they might get a kick out of seeing an animated version of it. Here is the link:
Part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-O-3Gbl6VE

Part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWzRpb4kLSY&NR=1

Good morning!

This past week was filled with glue, glitter, watercolor, cornbread, clay and molasses. Was yours?

The potluck was oodles of fun, too. Thank you to all of you for sharing your yummy food with us. There was plenty for all. Thank you to all who helped set up, clean and help maintain order throughout the event. I am extremely grateful!

Here are some activities your child had an opportunity to participate in this week:

Create: Many of our projects this week were community driven; children worked together to create one large piece of art. They are displayed throughout the room.

Used paint swatters with paint (fly swatters are in the shape of hearts, butterflies and flowers), Moved paint around with straws, Glue/glitter/tissue paper, Free art construction with recyclables using tape and glue, Worked with clay and then children painted it when dry, Used wine corks to paint acorns with stencils and Created Thanksgiving art using leaf stencils and watercolor.

Science: Made a water sandwich. In a jar we poured water, oil and molasses. We observed how the water gets sandwiched in the middle by the oil and molasses. This was such a fun activity. We then decided to add liquid watercolor to see what would happen. Their eyes lit up when they saw the watercolor droplets stay intact like little fish eggs slowly laying on the bottom of the oil layer. This is a really easy activity to do at home. Use equal parts of each ingredient.

Songs: Cherokee Morning Song (Wen Day Ya Ho): This is a Robbie Robertson song off of his album Music for the Native Americans–highly recommended. We also sang 1 Little, 2 Little, 3 Little Turkeys, Green Circle, Yuck, Days of the Week song and The Earth is our Mother.

Books: Brother Eagle, Sister Sky, Thank you, Thanksgiving and When Mama Comes Home Tonight. The children also heard an excellent kamishibai story entitled, The Dragon’s Tears.

Prepared: We were inspired by the cornbread at the potluck. It had apples in it. Yum! We made our own apple cornbread. The children also buttered their own toast with jam.

Math: The children sorted unifix cubes by color. We also talked about circles and rectangles. We graphed who could zip their coats. Speaking of coats, we are working with children to put on and take off their own coats. Please encourage your child to do this at home as well. Children put their coats on by laying them on the floor, upside down. Then the child puts his/her hands in the arms and then flips the jacket over their head. If the child can’t zip, then we start the zipper for them. We always encourage the child to zip the rest. This helps your child feel self-sufficient and independent.
Jack was Person of the Week. His Mom and Dad came in for family show n’ tell. Mom read us I Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. Dad showed us how to play charades. It was so much fun. We truly love family show n’ tell. The children are so engaged during this time.

We only have 2 days of school this week. School will resume on November 30th. Have a wonderful time with your families over the Thanksgiving break!

Have a great day!
Stacy Buehler

Ever had a water sandwich? The children made one in class last week. All you need is equal parts water, oil and molasses. To begin, the children gladly got the ingredients ready. They took off the packaging and opened the bottles all by themselves. We observed what would happen when the ingredients were together in the clear container.

We discovered that the heavier ingredient, molasses, sank to the bottom and that the oil stayed at the top. The water stayed right in the middle. The scientific reasoning? Since the three different liquids have different densities, they separate into layers. The children suggested that we add more of some of the ingredients to see if the sandwich would change. They discovered that the ingredients remained separated. That is, until we stirred. They could feel the molasses on the bottom. “It’s hard to stir,” said one child. “The molassa stinks! said another. Oh, I should mention that the children kept referring to the molasses as molassa.

Next, I suggested that we add liquid watercolor to the mix. What would happen? We all discovered that the watercolor pellets stayed in bubble form and floated to the bottom of the oil layer. That was definitely the coolest thing!

These next few months we will be discussing our families and family traditions. One way we are learning about each other and our families is during family show and tell during Person of the Week. The visits have been super. So far, families have shared vacation videos, their own favorite childhood stories, family quilts and story dramatizations. We’ve met siblings, grandparents and parents. The children have been fascinated with these visits. During the next two months families are invited to share a family tradition with us. How will you share with us? With a family recipe? A holiday tradition? Please let me know how you would like to celebrate these upcoming holidays with us!

Another way we’ve been learning about each other is through interviews. I interviewed each child about their families. This is a great way for me to assess their language, vocabulary and understanding of their world. It also shows them that I care about what they have to say. As I listen, they see me writing their words down. Afterward, I read it back to them to see if I got it right. The interviews, along with their photos are displayed outside of the classroom in the hall. Take a peek when you can.

Here is an example of how we are learning to be a part of the classroom community. This week I unveiled this climbing structure to the children. The children were ecstatic, to say the least. It was the perfect opportunity for the children to take turns, use their imaginations, work alongside each other and to coexist in a small space successfully. And they did it!! I was so proud of them.