Pre-Kindergarten Classroom News

May 17, 2013

We have had a very busy week getting ready for our play. We are just wrapping up making our programs and costumes.  We have also been practicing, practicing, practicing!  The children designed the cover of their programs based on the artwork on the cover of “I Want My Hat Back.” This is the book our play is based on.  They then cut out the names of all the characters and the names of the actors and actresses in the play.  They used their reading skills to match the names to form the cast of our play in their programs.  This was a great activity to work on reading and pre-reading skills.  And for some children it was a great way to work together with their classmates.

We have also been working on making our costumes in the classroom.  We have all been working together to brainstorm the best ways to make each costume.  At the end of the year it is so wonderful to see all of the social skills we have worked on come together in a culminating project like our class play.  The children are able to take turns, negotiate, use trial and error, express their needs and wants, and be great classroom citizens.  I also wanted to say a special thank you to all the parents who brought in materials for the costumes.  And an extra big thank you to Ollie’s mom for sewing some of our costumes!  We are very excited to share the play and all of the books we have created over the course of the school year.  We look forward to seeing you all next Friday morning for Meet The Authors! 

We also had a fabulous time at the Insectarium! Be sure to check out the pictures from our trip. 

Reminders

• Friday, May 24: 8:30 – 9:45. Meet the Authors.  We will start off in the classroom at 8:45 and then move downstairs to the play room for the play.
• Monday, May 27: No school, Memorial Day
• Tuesday, June 4: Pre-K Fun Day: This is a day of fun in the sun and in the school pool just for Pre-K!  Please make sure that your child has sunscreen on that day and please send them to school with their bathing suits and towels! The rest of the lower school will be at the LS Picnic and we will take full advantage of the swimming pool/ roof/ and playground!
• Friday, June 7: 1:45 – 2:30.  Lower School Closing Ceremony/Last Day of School.

April 25, 2013

What a wonderful Spring the Pre-K class is having.  We have been so busy in and out of our classroom!  We have had two wonderful field trips recently.  One was to Sprout Studios where we got to see a real working TV studio set, meet the puppeteers, and learn all about the jobs needed to make a television show.  I think we have some aspiring stars amongst us!

We were also so lucky to visit the Barnes Foundation! We were the youngest group to visit their amazing collection.  Our class was so respectful and well behaved during our trip.  We had a guide walk us through a few rooms of the museum and we learned a lot about a few pieces of artwork.  When we got back we made a class book about our trip.  Please look forward to seeing your child’s masterpieces and observations on Meet the Authors day in May.

We have been learning a lot about spring, life cycles, and taking care of our Earth.  We started off with a general study of spring and compared and contrasted it to the other seasons that we have experienced and studied so far this school year.  We used triple Venn Diagrams to compare and contrast spring, winter, and fall.  We decided a triple Venn Diagram is pretty tricky!  Then we had two special deliveries to our classroom that kicked off our study of Life Cycles.  We have been studying and observing Caterpillars and the Butterfly life-cycle with our very own Painted Lady caterpillars.  Each child has made a Butterfly life-cycle book detailing the changes they have observed in our classroom butterfly habitat.  At this moment all of our butterflies are in the chrysalis stage and we cannot wait for them to emerge in a week or so!  Ask your child to tell you the difference between a chrysalis and a cocoon.  They will be very happy to share their new knowledge with you!  

Last week we were very excited to have our chicken eggs and an incubator arrive in the classroom.  We prepared for our chick hatching experience by watching videos on our projector of time-lapse films of chick hatching from other schools.  We also read lots of books about the process.  Once the chicks arrived we talked about the importance of keeping them warm and still.  The children were very protective of their eggs just like little mother hens!  We made a prediction chart to try to predict when the eggs would be completely hatched.  We even had two friends guess correctly!  During the days of hatching the children made observational drawings of the eggs, incubator, and eventually baby chicks.  They are posted on the bulletin board in the classroom so come on in and take a look!

This week we have been talking all about what we can do to help keep our Earth, and its inhabitants, clean and healthy.  We started by discussing who and what is on our Earth (people, plants, water, and air).  We then made a big brainstorming list of all the ways we can help to keep the Earth clean.  This started a deeper conversation about the words reduce, reuse, and recycle.  These are tough terms for little ones to understand but we have been really working on coming up with different ways to remember their meaning and use them in our everyday lives.  See if your child can give you an example of each term!  Throughout the week we have been doing Earth-based projects that will come together to make an Earth Book!  Yesterday we used coffee filters, liquid water colors, and eye droppers to made a beautiful tie-dyed effect Earth for the cover of our books.  We have been having such fun making all the books for Meet the Authors Day!

Coming up we will be continuing our study of the Earth and also starting a unit on plants and growing.  Along with this will be practicing a special theatrical performance for Meet the Authors day.  We have a lot to look forward to in the last few months of school!

Reminders

• We try to spend as much time outside as possible, so please dress your child appropriately and apply sunscreen before they come to school.
• We will be going on a class trip to the Insectarium on May 10.
• Swimming groups will switch on May 1.  Please make sure to send in labeled bathing suit and towel for you child’s swimming class (in a tote bag).

The Mitten is a favorite Jan Brett book in our classroom.  This week Alina’s mother came in to teach us all about knitting.  She read a book about how yarn is made, we touched lots of different types of yarn, and we looked at different knitting projects she has completed.  The children had lots of wonderful questions to ask her about her hobby.  She even made us a snow white mitten to use when we act out our favorite story.  Thank you!

January 11, 2013

Over the next couple of weeks we will be learning about winter.  We started off with a brainstorming session listing the information that we already know about winter.  As the week has progressed we have continued adding information to our list.

Math:

Many students have been expressing an interest in adding.  We have talked as a whole group about the process and learned the words and symbols associated with adding two numbers.  We have added a new job to our job chart.  Each day, during calendar time, one student will solve a simple addition problem on the board with the help of their classmates.   We have also been playing some simple math games.  A favorite in the classroom is our gingerbread dice game.  The student rolls the die, counts the spots, and then colors in the corresponding section on the numbered gingerbread man sheet.  Once the students have mastered this skill, they move on to using two die and adding the amounts.  This game not only requires math skills but also turn-taking and socializing with peers.

At calendar time, the students have been practicing counting by twos, fives, and tens.  They have been very excited about this new way of counting and we plan to use it often in the classroom.  We have also been continuing to work on our ordinals (i.e. first, second, third, etc.) and will be starting to count numbers beyond 30.

Literacy:

This week we have been reading books about winter.  We read several books about arctic animals.  Before reading the book, “What Penguins Can Do” we shared all the things that we know penguins do.  Then, as we read the book we made note of the things that we had mentioned and the things that we had not previously known.  

Today we read a book called “Mrs. Toggle’s Coat.”  This was a hilarious book about a teacher who got stuck in her coat.  This book used words like “whatchamacallit”, “whoozit”, and “thingamabob” in place of a specific name for an object.  We discussed this as a group and the students have enjoyed being silly with these new words when speaking with their friends.  We talked about how it is important to be specific and clear when talking and writing.  After reading the book, we made a big list of all the winter clothes that people wear.  We will be adding to our list as the week goes on.  

Sensory:

On Monday we made “snowman” play dough as a class.  We then decided that we needed to find arms, noses, eyes, and hats.  A group of children went outside and gathered small twigs to use.  Another group went to Tr. Kellie’s room to ask for small buttons.  The students loved making their play dough snowmen with the help of the props they gathered themselves.

 In our sensory table we have arctic animals and icebergs.  We talked about how ice is made and what type of environment these animals live in.  We filled a plastic container with blue tinted water and put it in the freezer.  We now have an iceberg in our sensory table for our animals to live on and for us to observe!

Special Projects:
On our bulletin boards you will notice two different snowmen projects.  Last week the students studied our snowmen books and painted lovely detailed snowmen.  This week in circle time we graphed how many letters the children have in their name.  Next, they cut out circles of paper and wrote one letter of their name on each circle.  They then drew snowmen heads on a circle and wrote the number of letters in their names on the snowman’s hat.  Before we put our name snowmen on our bulletin board we painted a snowy mural backdrop.  The students loved comparing the height of their snowmen and the number of letters in their names with the friends in their class!  This was also great practice in counting, writing numbers, and letters.

• Read lots of books about Hanukkah, day, night, and nocturnal animals
• Worked together to create a giant 3D moon and sun (that are hanging in our classroom)
• Made a chart of "things you do during the day" and "things you do at night" during a group brainstorm
• Made a list of nocturnal animals - each child then picked a nocturnal animal to draw while referencing pictures on the internet and in classroom books.  They also used their writing skills to write the name of their animal on their scientific drawing (on the bulletin board outside the classroom)
• Drew a picture of "what they do during the day" and dictated a sentence that was written on their drawing
• Had a PJ Party - made hot cocoa, read 15 bedtime stories from home, and made a PJ party class book! (featuring pictures of each child with their books, stuffed animals, and writing by each child)
• Went to the dress rehearsal of the 4th and 5th grade holiday sing
• Had our own Pre-K and Kindergarten sing!
• Visited the book fair
• Walked over to LOVE Park to see the holiday sights

• It is a holiday
• We give thanks
• We are thankful for all the people in our lives
• We have a feast (we then decided upon the definition of a feast - a party with lots of food)
• We watch football
• We see our friends and family that we may not see very often
• We sometimes go on trips

• turkey
• corn
• cranberries
• stuffing
• pumpkin pie
• mashed potatoes
• cornbread
• gravy
• greenbeans

November 9, 2012

It is so nice to get back into the swing of things after our days off for the storm and (cancelled) conferences! This week we have been exploring pumpkins. We started off with our customary brainstorming session. We came up with a lot of wonderful facts about pumpkins and made a list of tasty items that can be made from pumpkins as well.

This unit helped us to learn some new vocabulary words and at the same time we learned more about some of the words that we talked about during our apple unit.

Pumpkin Words:

Pulp

Vine

Ripe

Gourd

Roots

As we were discussing the pumpkin life cycle, we compared and contrasted it to the apple life cycle. The children discussed why a pumpkin might grow on a vine instead of a tree. They also talked about orchards and pumpkin patches. We read many books about pumpkin season.

An exciting addition to our circle time routine is our Scholastic Let’s Find Out magazine. This week the magazines were about pumpkins and the election. These periodicals help us to learn about different types of print media and are a great way to practice pre-reading and problem solving activities. We will send them home in your child’s backpack after we have read them and done the activities as a class. Please feel free to read them with your child and ask them questions about what we discussed in class.

On Thursday, during circle time, we read a book about sinking and floating. We then made predictions and hypotheses about whether a pumpkin and a gourd would sink or float. The children sat on one side of the rug if they thought the object would sink and on the other side of the rug if they thought the object would float. Each child then got to take a turn choosing an object from the classroom and testing whether it would sink or float. Each time the other students would choose what they thought would happen and sit on that side of the rug. We had a great time learning and discussing. Some of the students then chose to continue testing objects during our work time!

Sensory Table: During circle time, we cut open a pumpkin and each child made an observation about what they saw, smelled, or felt. The pumpkin was then placed in the sensory table for further hands-on exploration.

Manipulatives

Pumpkin seed counting: The students used pumpkin seeds to count to ten and then practiced their one-to-one correspondence by matching amounts to written number cards

Pumpkin pie play-dough: Two weeks ago we made pumpkin pie spice play-dough as a group cooking project. We have really enjoyed the sweet smell that fills the room when we play with it. This week, the students have been using play-dough mats that focus on letter formation, counting, and making jack o lantern faces!

Magnetic Letters: Everyone has loved writing their names, their friends’ names, and making the alphabet with our magnetic letters. Soon we will be using “fall word cards” at this table so the children can spell out the words using the letters.

Art

Pumpkin Still Lifes: Using our classroom pumpkin as a model the students painted beautiful pumpkin paintings. They are displayed on the bulletin board outside the classroom. Please come by to admire their work.

Shakers: We have many songs that we listen to during music and movement time that involve the use of shakers. During the apple fest, a student came up with the idea to use the empty apple cider jugs as shakers! This week each child counted 10 beads to put in their shaker. They then decorated the outside with stickers. Peeling stickers is a great way to strengthen small motor skills. We can’t wait to try out our recycled musical instruments!

Pumpkin seed group project: The students worked together to glue pumpkin seeds into the shape of a pumpkin on a large piece of paper. After the glue dried, they painted the appropriate parts of the pumpkin orange and green. They had a great time using liquid glue for the first time and working together to complete a large scale multi-step art project.

REMINDERS

Please dress your child in a warm coat, hat, scarf, and mittens (much easier to put on than gloves.) We love to play outside even when it is chilly. Please label these items with your child’s name.

Please remember to sign up for the parent teacher conferences using the Google doc. This can be done by clicking on the following link:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1e8ax8LFt6YGrXf_5Ormasth62jyIpuyDGOHIRBJQ4H8/edit

October 26, 2012

What a wonderful week we have had! On Tuesday we went on our first field trip.  We rode the bus all through the city to the Morris Arboretum.  We buddied up and explored our beautiful surroundings with the help of our tour guide.  During our tour we saw ducks, swans, a dead snake, a log cabin, statues, ferns, evergreens, stinky gingko berries, and we crossed three bridges!   We can’t wait to go back in the spring to see how things have changed.

This week we listened to a tale of Johnny Appleseed on our CD player.  We discussed how this is what it would be like to hear the story back in the “old days.”  The children back then would not be looking at pictures in a book but rather using their imaginations to make the pictures in their minds.  We also discussed that in many tall tales the truth is stretched or exaggerated.  We went through our tales and found instances where the truth had been stretched.  As we read books about Pecos Bill and Paul Bunyan it will become very obvious when exaggerations are present.  We have also continued to plot the path of Johnny Appleseed on our map of America.  The students are becoming very familiar with the states where he traveled and are able to point them out on the map. 

Art

This week we have been exploring liquid watercolor.  We taped leaf cutouts to our paper and then used fall colors to paint all around it.  When we lifted up the leaves we could see the negative space left behind!  We also painted on the easel with our fall colored liquid watercolors.   We started making leaf rubbings using placemats with raised leaves on them.  We will continue to do leaf rubbings using real leaves in the coming weeks.

Manipulatives

Peg Boards: small motor skills and patterning

Leaf Patterning strips: patterning practice using both colors and shapes

Alphabet sorting: sorting magnetic letters into designated spots- letter recognition and sorting skills

Small blocks and animals: imaginative play, small motor skills, stacking, and balance

Math

The children have been making their own graphs using pencils and rulers.  They then formulate a question they want to find out the answer to.  They have been asking their teachers, fellow classmates, and even walking around to other classes.  Some popular questions are:

What is your favorite TV show?

How old are you?

What is your favorite color?

How did you get to school today?

It is great to see them applying skills and knowledge that we have introduced during circle time!

We also used stamps and ink pads to count to twelve.  Each child had a paper with twelve numbered boxes.  They then stamped the appropriate amount of times in each box.  It was a really fun way to practice one-to-one correspondence.

October 11, 2012

We have really gotten into the Fall mindset in our classroom this week!  We kicked off our month-long Fall exploration with a unit on apples.  Thank you to everyone who brought an apple into the classroom.  The students love to bring things from home to share in our thematic units.  We had many smiling faces sharing their apples with their friends!

Brainstorm of the week:  What we know about Apples.

• They are crunchy
• The have seeds
• They are yummy
• You can eat them
• They have a stem
• You can pick them off a tree or buy them from the grocery store
• They are juicy
• They have leaves
• Some are one color and some are many colors
• They are red, green, or yellow
• They are healthy
• They are nice and sweet
• They can be tart
• You can eat them raw or cooked
• It is a fruit
• They are ready to be picked when they are ripe
  

Throughout the week we compiled a list of Apple Names and things that can be made with apples.  The students found the answers to these questions from our classroom books and from sharing personal experiences. 

Besides our “fact” books about apples we also read four different variations of the Tall Tale about Johnny Appleseed.  We compared and contrasted the different versions of the tale.  We also talked about the Quaker Values that Johnny Appleseed lived his life by- nonviolence, good work, and helping others.

Classroom Activities

Measuring the Circumference of an Apple - each child estimated the circumference of an apple by cutting a piece of string.  They then wrapped it around the apple and determined whether it was too long, too short, or just right.  Our chart can be found on the bulletin board outside the classroom

Comparing the Weight of an apple using a balance - We used a balance to compare the weight  of classroom objects to an apple.  We discussed whether things weighed more or less or the same.

Apple Taste Test - During circle time we each tasted a Granny Smith, a Braeburn, and a Gala apple.  We then decided that we wanted to graph “Which apple tastes the best.”  Together as a class we made our graph and then each child took a turn graphing their choice for most delicious apple.  Finally, we discussed the results and whether or not or predictions were correct.

Applesauce - On Friday we made applesauce using the apples in our classroom.  The children worked together to cut the apples, measure ingredients, and read a recipe.  We then compared store bought applesauce to our homemade and graphed which one we prefer.

Apple Tree Lifecycle Sequencing Cards - Each child was able to practice sequencing using the lifecycle of the apple tree.  This was also a way to become familiar with apple vocabulary words (apples, seed, sapling, blossom, sprout.) This activity had the children discussing what comes first, next, and last. 

Fall Counting - On our manipulatives table this week we had numbered cups from 1-20.  The students practiced counting and then putting the cups in order.  We saw lots of great communication and cooperation.

Reminders:

Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up.  Please make sure to sign up on the school Google Doc that was emailed to you.

The Halloween party sign up sheet is on our parent info board as you enter the classroom.

October 5, 2012

This week we explored the topic of families in the Pre-K classroom. Thanks to all of you for completing your family book pages with your children. They loved the chance to get up in front of their classmates and share a little about themselves and members of their family. During this unit we came up with a list of things that we know about families and what the word “family” means to us. Each time we start a new unit of study we will make a brainstorming list of ideas around the central topic. Throughout the week we refer back to this list, revise it, add to it, and discuss each point of interest.

What is a Family?

Zoe - It’s like everyone together in a home.

Josh - Who you live with.

Kiva - Everyone has cousins.

Reina - Daddy and Mommy.

Ollie - Some families don’t have kids.

Jude - A house or a home and cousins.

Collin - People to do fun things with.

Jonathan - Brothers and sisters.

Ben - Some families have kids.

Ellie - Some families don’t have a lot of toys.

Bryson - A family is a lot of people.

Aidan - People who watch so you don’t get hurt.

Tara - A family loves each other.

Alina - Babies in your tummy.

Rafi - Some people don’t have a family.

After this discussion we decided that our classroom definition is:

Who you live with and who you love.

Our reading this week focused on books by Todd Parr. His books led us to discuss how different each family looks and acts. We learned that each family is different but they all love each other! We also showed the movie “That’s a Family!” in class on Thursday. We watched it with Tr. Kellie’s Pre-K class and discussed it afterwards. The rest of the Lower School will be watching the film during an assembly next week.

Also, our first Field Trip of the school year is to Morris Arboretum to look at the fall colors and will take place on Tuesday, October 23.

Todd Parr Books:

• The Family Book
• The Mommy Book
• The Daddy Book
• The Grandpa Book
• The Grandma Book

Manipulatives - Geo Boards: Shapes, Geometry, Letters (we practiced making letters out of the rubber bands), and cause and effect.

Art: Family Portraits. Each child created a family portrait with markers and wrote the name of each family member on their paper. What a wonderful way to practice writing the names of the ones we love. The family portraits, our interview project from last week, and our favorite food collages can all be seen on the bulletin boards outside our classroom. Come and take a look!

Graphs: This week we used Unifix cubes to make a graph comparing the number of people in our families. We talked about least and most, made predictions, and counted.

Reminders:

As the days are getting cooler please switch out the summer clothes in your child’s cubby for warmer ones.

We do not have school on Monday 8th for Columbus Day.

Please sign up to bring a snack or paper goods for our Halloween Celebration. The sign up sheet is on the Parent Info Board as you walk into our classroom.

If your child wears dress shoes or rain boots to school, please always send in a pair of sneakers with them. We do lots of running and climbing every day.

Important Dates:

• October 13th. Linvilla Hayride outing reminder. RSVP date is this Thursday October 4th. Check the FSS website under Parents-Parents Association for a form if necessary.
 
• October 20th, Saturday Afternoon Pre-K Social. Tr. Kelley’s and Tr. Lucien’s classes will get together for an informal playdate at Smith Memorial Playhouse and Playground. More details to follow. Consider making a $5 donation to Smith on your visit to help support this wonderful FREE playspace for all city kids. Keep in mind if you are bringing older sibs that the playground is intended for children 10 and under and the house for kids 5 and under. The playground will be closed in the event of rain.
 
• October 31st Halloween Party and Parade!! 8:30 a.m. Join us to watch the lower school parade in the gym at 8:30 a.m. followed by a party in the class. We need families to bring (meatless) treats (healthy and mildly wicked) as well as drinks, napkins, paper plates, etc. A sign-up sheet for supplies will be posted in the classroom.

September 21-28, 2012

Over the past two weeks we have embarked on a unit of self-discovery. We started our discussion by brainstorming what about us is the same and then moved on to what makes each one of us a unique and different person (inside and out.) Mirrors and crayons in hand each child created beautiful self-portraits that are now proudly displayed in the hallway. As you can see we are all our own “me”!

Throughout this unit we have been asking lots of questions in order to find out about each other and ourselves. We have been collecting information by making charts. We then take that information and put it into a graph. We learned that graphs help us to answer important questions about our collected information. We can make predictions, count, estimate, and talk about which column has the most, least, and if any are equal. Please come look at the charts and graphs we have made. They are displayed in the hallway. Making charts and graphs are ways that we incorporate everyday math into our curriculum.

During our small group time this week we discussed interviews. The students partnered up and we brainstormed questions that we could ask our friends to find out more about them. While making our list of possible questions we learned about question marks and periods and the difference between a statement and a question. Each child will interview their partner and then draw a portrait of them. The partners will dictate their interview to a Teacher. Dictation and discussion of the written word are first steps towards reading and writing.

Finally, we have started growing "Popcorn Rocks" in the classroom as a science project.  We are carefully looking at the experiment and recording our observations.

Table Activities For the Week:

• Lego Math: counting, patterning, writing numbers, 1:1 correspondence

• Wipe off Alphabet Cards: practice letter writing lowercase and uppercase

• Puzzles: small motor, logic, planning, trial and error

• Guided Discovery: cutting, glue sticks, and collage skills

Books:

• Chrysanthmum by Kevin Henkes

• Me I Am by Jack Prelutsky

• Bright Eyes Brown Skin by Cheryl Hudson and Bernette Ford

• Horace and Morris But Mostly Delores by James Howe

• You Will Be My Friend by Peter Brown

• Lilly’s Secret by Miko Imai

 

Reminders:

No School October 5th and October 8th

Please remember to bring in your family pages if you have not already.

SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB INFORMATION

Dear Parents,

Sometimes the right book is all it takes to nurture a child's love of reading. That's why I'm pleased that our class will be participating in Scholastic Book Clubs this school year.

The Book Club flyers I'll be sending home each month are full of just-right, affordable books and Storia(TM) eBooks for every age and reading level. Please have your orders in by September 28.

Thank you for helping grow your child's love of reading and for supporting our class.

We will be using online ordering! Please do not send in a check. Everything can be ordered online (we love it when parents order new books for their child! Each order help our classroom earn new books!) PLEASE EMAIL ME WITH ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE. ACTIVATION CODE: JXW6J

Tr. Lucien

P.S. When you place your order online, you'll help earn FREE Books for our class and you also get a $5 FREE Book Pick Coupon to use on your next online order!

Ordering online is fast and easy:

REGISTER at https://orders.scholastic.com/JXW6J

ENTER the Class Activation Code

CHOOSE from thousands of print titles, value packs, and Storia(TM) eBooks

SUBMIT the order

EARN FREE Books for you and the classroom too!

September 14, 2012

What a wonderful first week of school! We have been focusing on our hopes and dreams (goals) for the school year. The first two days of school we shared our feelings and our favorite school activities. We have also been noticing, through our reading of school themed books, what other children and characters do at school.  Then, we shared in circle what we know about school.  From this came each child’s individual goals and dreams for the school year.  Discussing, sharing, and documenting our thoughts (on the class board) are great ways to learn class rules, pre-reading skills, and how to listen to and absorb new ideas.  We will revisit our list of both classroom and individual goals many times throughout the year. You will be able to see your child’s hope and dreams at Back To School Night next Wednesday (September 20th) at 6:00PM.  You will also be invited to write your own hopes and dreams for you child at this event.

We have had many wonderful discussions about classroom rules and guidelines.  Each time we introduce a new concept, project, activity, or area of our classroom we sit and discuss what rules we should keep in mind.  The students are all responsible for coming up with our classroom rules.  This gives them a sense of responsibility and they know exactly why we have each rule in our class.  The number one rule in the Pre-K room is to keep everyone safe and happy!

What Pre-K knows about school:

•     we learn
•     we have circle time so we can learn
•     we have rules to stay safe and happy
•     we have rest time to keep our bodies healthy
•     we have lunch to feed our bodies
•     we will learn about:

counting

calendar

swimming

letters

numbers

reading books

writing books

math

     We will learn to be FRIENDS!

Some questions to ask you child about school:

(Sometimes it’s helpful to have some conversation starters when your little one doesn’t remember what happened at school each week.)

         1)     What are your teacher’s names?

        2)     What specials did you have this week?

        3)     What did you do in specials?

        4)     What are some rules that you have at school?

        5)     What animals did you see in science this week?

What to look forward to next week:

Next week we will be starting a unit of study that is “All About Me!”  We will be sharing all about ourselves at circle time.  We will be making lots of graphs, charts, and even drawing self-portraits!

Reminders:

Please remember to bring in your child’s completed family page if you have not already.  They will be sharing them during our family unit!