We had a great week diving into our polar bear unit. The children enjoyed learning about these Arctic creatures. Also, we welcomed Ms. Wang into the classroom for the Upper school January Short Term program. Here is a look at our week:

                                             Morning Meeting

At the beginning of the week, we made a list of all the things we already knew about polar bears. This drives our learning as we explore more facts about these gigantic creatures. Throughout the week, we added one new fact a day to our polar bear picture. We watched a video of a polar bear hunting seals, and a zookeeper feeding a polar bear in the Lincoln Park Zoo! There are many more videos and books to continue exploring. 

Centers

In language arts the children completed a polar bear letter match with uppercase and lowercase letters. We extended this activity by looking at pictures and listening to beginning and ending sounds in the word. In math the children had a polar bear cut out. They estimated how many marshmallows it would take to cover the entire polar bear. The numbers ranged from 5 to 500. This activity was challenging, but they liked counting out the marshmallows to see if they were right and eating them at the end! At the sensory table the kids made their own arctic slime. They mixed together cornstarch, water, and blue food coloring together to get a slimy concoction. They enjoyed getting messy and experimenting.

Small groups

In reading groups the children worked on making words using letter manipulatives and pictures. In art the kiddos used cotton balls, pipe cleaners, pompoms to make fluffy polar bear faces. For the fine motor center, the children rolled play dough into “snowballs.” They used snowman play dough mats with tens frames to count the remaining number to reach 10. It was a bit tricky at first, but they got the hang of it and it was a fun way to practice counting. In the independent center, the children played with trains.

  

Next week

We will continue our polar bear unit. Also, the Lower School Family Night is coming up on Friday, January 30, from 6 to 7:30. The cost is $5/person, which covers dinner and the DJ. Let Melinda or I know if you can come, hope to see you there!    

We had a fun first full week back at school. The weather cooperated with us this week and the kids enjoyed playing outside building snowman and running around! Here are a few pictures of the outside adventures:

Morning Meeting

This week we focused on the stories The Mitten and The Hat by Jan Brett. We worked on sequencing and recognizing the characters in the stories. The kids enjoyed sharing their predictions as they followed along with the story. 

Centers

In the language art center we worked on retelling the story of the mitten. The kiddos colored the animals from the story and used them to retell with their friends. In math, we used felt mittens and snowflakes to practice counting. Also, I stretched their learning by practicing addition and subtraction. The children used plastic tweezers to pick up and count snowballs (pom poms) and make a picture for the fine motor center. 

Small groups

In reading groups, they got their own mitten books. The children searched for specific letters, popcorn words, and colored their favorite animals. It was fun to see them get so excited when they found the letter or word. They are getting more confident in their abilities and are picking up things so quickly! In art we made a mitten collage using colorful tissue paper. These mittens can be seen on the windows in the classroom. In journals, the children picked their favorite animal from the story, The Mitten. This week we really focused on our pictures by discussing what shapes you see in the animals, adding faces and seeing how well the children could use these skills in their drawings. 

Next week

We will continue with the winter activity backpacks next week. I have heard good things thus far. Also, we will jump into our polar bear unit! 

Monday we will not have school for Martin Luther King Day. On Tuesday we will welcome a JST student, Christina to help in the classroom. 

Snow Much Fun!

It has been a great first week after break. The kids were excited to see their friends and be back at school! They were eager to share stories about their trips and new toys they got from Santa. The theme this week was winter.

Here is a look at the week:

  

Morning Meeting

We read many winter books including The Snowy Day by Jack Ezra Keats and Snowman All Year. The kids loved imagining what they would do if they had a snowman friend all year. We brainstormed many activities you could in the winter and adjectives to describe this cold weather! In the morning message, we are learning to recognize the popcorn words, “is,” “the” and “I”. The kids love searching for these words and helping me find them.

Centers

In language arts the kids looked at pictures and recognized the beginning sounds. Also, we had a snowman letter match. The kids matched the capital and lowercase letters. In math this week, they counted snowballs using one to one correspondence. In the fine motor center the students used tweezers to pick up cotton balls, which needed to match the corresponding number. This was a good independent activity for them. 

Small groups

In reading groups the kids worked on the their Bob Books and also practiced their letter matching. The kiddos got messy and had a lot of fun playing with shaving cream in art. They could draw pictures and write their names in it. Next, we mixed shaving cream and glue to make a fluffy snowman. They added hats, scarves, buttons, arms, and a carrot nose to complete their artwork. You can see these pictures displayed on the outside bulletin board. ‘What was your favorite memory from winter break?’ was the journal prompt this week.

Next week

Soojin will be the Star of the Week. We are eager to see her picture collage of her favorite things. Also, we will read The Mitten and The Hat, both stories by Jan Brett. Sequencing and beginning, middle, and end are two literacy skills we will focus on this upcoming week.  Hopefully, we will make it outside for recess once this week!