We had a great week practicing for Grandparent’s Day! The kids are excited to share their songs in the performance for their special guests on Tuesday! Also, this week we have explored Thanksgiving and the importance of being thankful.

Here is a look at the week:

Morning Meeting

We read a variety of Thanksgiving stories including; Little Bear’s Thanksgiving, It’s Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving Feast. In these stories we discussed themes, characters and traditions at home.  We also read a nonfiction text with the story of how and why Thanksgiving came about. William was the Star of the Week and was excited to share his poster!

Centers

In language arts we read a Thanksgiving book and searched for letters and the popcorn word, “is.” Also, we matched letters to the turkey feathers in a puzzle. In the fine motor center we made pumpkin pie play dough as a class. We followed the recipe of combining pumpkin puree, cornstarch and cinnamon spice and mixing it together to make play dough. The kids had fun playing with this dough using cookie cutters to make holiday cookies and pies. 

Small Groups

In one group this week we brainstormed all the food we eat for a Thanksgiving feast. The kids cut out pictures of food from a grocery store catalog and glued these on paper plates to make their feasts.  For journals this week the children made a class book. They answered the question, “What are you thankful for?” and drew a picture to correspond with the prompt.  This class book is displayed outside of the classroom for you to read. They did a nice job brainstorming different things they were thankful for. 

Next Week

We will begin our gingerbread theme throughout December with many fun activities planned. There will not be a blog update next week due to a short week and Grandparent’s Day. I hope you have a happy and safe break. I will see you all back at school on Monday, November 24. 

We finished up the Leo Lionni theme this week and the kids enjoyed listening to many of his stories including; The Color of My Own, It’s Mine, The Extraordinary Egg, and Swimmy. The children connected to many of the themes in the story such as; sharing, helping one another, and feeling scared! They were excited to share their own experiences with the class! Here is a look at the week and our activities:

Fun in PK!

Morning Meeting

 The children listened to the story, Turkey Trouble where the turkey was scared to get eaten for Thanksgiving dinner and found numerous disguises as a pig, cow, and a farmer to hide himself. With Thanksgiving around the corner, the kiddos worked hard at home disguising Turkey Tom and Turkey Tina, so they won’t get eaten for dinner! They had a blast sharing these turkeys to the class and asking questions about the costumes, colors, and masks on their friends’ turkeys. These are displayed on the bulletin board in the hallway. 

Centers

In Language Arts, we worked on letter sounds, beginning sounds, and making words with our magnetic letters. The kids were challenged and engaged at their group level. In math we made patterns with colored fish.  In the fine motor center, the kiddos strung beads on pipe cleaners and then made their own patterns. The independent center was trains and trucks. 

Small groups

In Journals, the prompt was, ‘What is your favorite ocean animal?’ This prompt was based on our story, Swimmy by Leo Lionni. The kiddos were quick to discuss different types of fish and sharks! In art we painted with watercolors to create a colorful chameleon from our story, The Color of My Own. These pictures are displayed inside the classroom. The kids took their time on these paintings, making sure they had all the colors on their chameleon. The independent center was magna tiles and puzzles.

Special events

Instead of reading buddies, the first graders visited our classroom to share their writer’s workshop stories. The PK kids did a great job listening and were proud to show the big kids around the room.

Next week

We will discuss Thanksgiving and friendship. William will be the Star of the Week! Also, stay tuned for more information about Grandparent’s Day on November 25^th.  

Frederick!

It was great meeting with you all for parent teacher conferences. Many great conversations and I am excited to see the children’s continued growth throughout the remainder of the year. An exciting event this week was traveling downtown Chicago and seeing the play, Frederick! The kids were attentive and participated by singing and clapping to the music. This trip will be a highlight from this year! Here is a look at the week:

Morning meeting

We read a variety of Leo Lionni stories. We discussed characters and setting in the story and worked on reading comprehension with simple questioning.

Centers

In language arts, we used fishing poles to fish for letters. The kids had a blast pretending to fish. They would match the letter to the beginning sound in picture. In math, the kids used fish manipulatives to practice counting with one to one correspondence. Also, they used play dough to represent the number. The independent center was a variety of table toys. 

Small groups

The art project was based on the story, Pezzettino by Leo Lionni. The shapes in the illustrations were made with many colorful squares.  The children created their own Pezzettino shapes and explained their own interpretation of the art. The journal prompt was, ‘What was your favorite part about the play, Fredrick.’ The kiddos had many creative responses and worked on drawing Fredrick in their journals. The independent center was big blocks and library. 

Circle time

We met our zoo phonics friends for the letters R, S, and T. 

Special events

A new student, Soojin joined our class on Monday! The kids were great in making her feel welcome. Also, we celebrated Lorenzo’s birthday with a celebration at snack! 

Next week

We will continue our literature study with stories by Leo Lionni. Also, next week, you will work at home with your child on disguising a turkey by dressing it up as Captain America, Verb, a ballerina, or even a football player. Have fun and be creative! The kiddos will share these turkeys on Thursday, November 13. 

What a fabulous week we had in Prek! The Halloween centers and Carnival ran so smoothly and the children were engaged in a variety of games, art activities, and even a moon bounce!  It was exciting to see how independent they were and willing to try new activities.  Thank you to the parents who volunteered in the classroom and for bringing in a creative costume for your child. I appreciate all your hard work. The children loved dressing up and sharing what they were to friends.  Many laughs and good times were shared this week.

 Centers

In the language arts center, we practiced letter matching and sounds. Also, we worked on hearing and recognizing beginning sounds. In math, we did a shared reading with the counting spiders book.  Some students were challenged by writing the corresponding number based on the number of spiders in the picture.  We also recognized our popcorn word, “I.” Ask your child to read this book to you at home!  In the fine motor center, we used play dough mats to feed the monster. The monster had a number in the corner and the kiddos used their special tools to pick up the correct number of pom poms to feed the monster the correct amount.  They worked hard independently! 

Small groups

This week in writing, we practiced writing our names. Taking time to slow down and really learn the stroke and shape of the letters. The kiddos practiced this numerous times and we worked on word work activities together. In journals, the prompt was, ‘If I were a spider, I would..’ The children are progressing with their pictures.  I can recognize a spider body and many were sure to add 8 legs and 8 eyes. In the independent center, the children used close pins as spider legs to put on the spider body.  This activity is great for their fine motor skills too!

Morning Meeting

Saul was the Star of the Week and was thrilled to share his pictures.  He shared all about his favorite superhero, Verb, his family, and vacations on the beach.  Many of the kids had stories about their adventures at a pool or beach.  Also, we continued our spider unit.  We did a picture sort with the letter S and many other anchor charts brainstorming all our new knowledge about spiders. 

Circle time

We focused on the zoo friends and letters, Pewee Penguin, Queeny Quail and Robbie Rabbit and closed our circle time session with a variety of fall and Halloween books. 

Next week

We are starting a literature study for the author, Leo Lionni.  We will be reading a variety of his texts including; Fredrick, Pezzetonni, Swimmy, and Little Blue and Little Yellow.  We will see the play, Fredrick on Tuesday!! It should be a fun time!  Please remember to wear your blue Roycemore field trip shirt and bring a packed lunch (peanut free) to school on Tuesday.  Look forward to seeing you then!