Week of January 31, 2012
Hi!
I have a assignment for you if you so choose... I would love it if you could bring in a photo of your child from home doing their favorite thing. It could be playing with a sibling or pet, cooking in the kitchen, playing outside, anything you think would encourage a conversation. I will laminate them as they come in and get them in a basket on a shelf. The children LOVE showing their pictures to their friends and talking about them. You are welcome to bring in a few! Thank you.
Our school wide Poland study will wrap up next week, our next study will be India! The Poland study ends with a concert Monday morning, which will also kick off our India project! Singers of United Lands will be honoring us with their presence and I am very excited to share this concert with the children.
"I spy" has become a favorite game in the classroom lately. I have a container of various objects that I set on a rug. I give the name of the object and focus on the beginning sound. The children love trying to find the "T" sound which leads them to the favorite word -- truck!
:) Betsy
Week of January 23, 2012
Hello,
We had some great musicians from Interlochen come and perform last week. The children had the opportunity to join the school community for the concert. We heard a oboe, bassoon, piano, clarinet and a french horn. It was a wonderful variety of instruments exhibiting such different, unique sounds. The children were very engaged as each one played a solo.
On Thursday of this week we convened in the gym to celebrate the Chinese New Year with "The Lion dance". The Primary students dressed in the traditional dragon costume and danced across the gym floor to the awaiting bowl of "food". We the audience got to participate by tapping the floor slow and steady to encourage the dragon to dance his way to the "food" and then we hit the floor faster and louder to scare him away! This is always a favorite celebration!
See you next week!
Betsy
Week of January 16, 2012
Hi!
I hope everyone is enjoying all the snow.... Hello winter!!!
We have been "plowing" through the snow on the playground. The children seem to enjoy all the white stuff, sledding and shoveling have been a hit! Agnes has attempted to put a snowman together with the children but we haven't had the best packing snow as of yet. It seems though that toddlers don't mind a small crumbling snowman with missing extremities, it's still fun!
Our new wardrobe was completed just before break. The children love to explore the various items kept in baskets or hung on hangers. The wardrobe contains a variety of things to try on. There is a basket of hats and mittens, a place for socks, a pair of shoes and a baskets of odds and ends such as sun glasses. If anyone has something to donate to the wardrobe that you think the children would have fun trying on such as fun hats, vests, slippers, costume jewelry etc. Let me know, I keep an eye out at Goodwill...
Enjoy the weekend and all the snow!
Betsy
Week of January 9, 2012
Hello!
It seems awhile since I have filled everyone in, let me catch you up!
The start of the new year has added five new friends to our classroom family, Walter, Kaija, Jasper, Gentry and Ty. The children have welcomed them with open arms and have been so helpful in showing them the ropes! It has been a smooth transition. We have also said goodbye to four of our older friends who have moved up (as we call it) to Primary. Jack, Tavo, Carter and Payton have started their new adventures in Primary. We wish them the very best!
We had a Birthday celebration to start off the week, Happy Birthday Max! Their is nothing better than starting the week off with birthday muffins... yum!! Wednesday the children were introduced to orange juicing. It was quite a hit as it always seems to be. Each child is given a turn squeezing a orange half on the juicer. Juicing is such a great sensory experience with many points of interest. During the activity we talk about what we are smelling and what we are seeing as the juice drips in to the container. Hand strength is built with each turn and squeeze of the orange. The reward for all their hard work?? Well a glass of orange juice of course! We talk about how it tastes, is it sweet? Sour? Good? It is a easy activity to do at home as well. We can all use the extra vitamin C this time of year!!
Have a fantastic weekend!
Betsy
Week of December 12, 2011
Hello!
Well, I think we are all set for our sing a long! We have been practicing. I hope to see you there! The fun begins at 2pm today in the barn.
I thought that with the holidays approaching you may appreciate our play dough recipe. It makes a great gift.
Playdough
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup salt
2 Tbs Cream of Tarter
1 cup water
1 tsp veg oil
2 tsp food coloring
Mix together in a sauce pan and cook over a medium heat. When a glob forms remove to a floured surface and knead.
Have a wonderful holiday and I will see you in 2 weeks!
Warmly,
Betsy
Week of December 5, 2011
Greetings!
I have heard a number of stories from the children about their Christmas trees at home, so much so that it prompted me to find a small life like evergreen for the classroom. Now the children decorate their own little tree over and over again. It's a great activity as it requires great concentration with the hands and eyes.
** I found what I needed at Michaels if anyone is interested in a similar activity for home. It's a good way to redirect curious hands from the real Christmas tree. **
We have been singing our holiday songs and it seems that Jingle Bells is the all time favorite! We even have little bells for the children to ring as we belt out the catchy tune! I find that I hum it off and on all day. Now all we need is some snow!
Have a wonderful Weekend!
Betsy
Week of November 28, 2011
Hello!
We certainly enjoyed our feasts last week. The tables were pushed together so we could sit as a class to enjoy our huge buffet of food. The children were very excited to point out the dish they had brought to share. It was nice to sit down and talk about what we are all thankful for. Thank you for your contribution to our Harvest Feasts!
The children have a renewed interest in books these days. They were very excited to get so many new books to explore from our Horizon Book day. I have found that I am sitting for a good 20 minutes if not more reading to children. It has been fun for me as well to get to read some new stories!
I have also heard some fun conversations this week... All the buzz is about Christmas trees and decorations... Tis the Season!! We will soon be Practicing for our Holiday Sing a long. I can't believe it's already that time of year!!
Warmly,
Betsy
Week of November 14, 2011
Hello,
It was wonderful to sit down and share with you the wonderful things your child is discovering at school. I really enjoyed conferences, thank you for sharing your children with us!
With the colder weather moving in we have been really working with your children on getting all their cold gear on such as hats and mittens. We are encouraging them to do it all by themselves with just the tiniest bit of help from an adult or peer. This will make life easier for them (and us) when the snow hits and dressing for outside is a bit more complicated. I have also added a basket of mittens and gloves to a shelf in the classroom that will allow them to sit at a rug and practice.
Our new metal tea set arrived last week to the children's delight! Our old one was missing a few cups and was hard to pour successfully, not to mention ceramic. Now they can have a tea party with four friends and I don't have to worry about losing a mug to the floor. They really love it and it allows them to practice their pouring skills and of course learning about polite tea party etiquette. I love watching them sip tea from their dainty cups.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Warmly,
Betsy
Week of October 31, 2011
Greetings!!
We had a wonderful time with our Pumpkin Fun Day on Monday. Pumpkin muffins were made and devoured, a Jack O'Latern was carved and songs were sung! It was fun to hear from the children what they were going to be for Halloween... batman, a witch, a kitty cat, Thomas the Train and so much more . So exciting, I hope Halloween was enjoyed by all.
Our school community is learning about Poland as a part a school wide project. We will study several other countries through out the year. Agnes sat down at our group time to talk about her home country Poland. She had so many wonderful things to show us. We loved seeing the beautiful painted eggs and the wooden toys. We looked at a world map and Agnes showed us how far away Poland is from us and that we would need to take a plane to get there. I have really enjoyed the study and am so thankful to have Agnes in our class to share her culture and really thankful that she is able to read to the children from our Polish book because I would have a really hard time pronouncing many of the words in her native tongue.
Conferences are at the end of next week, please call the front desk to find a time slot. I am offering Wednesday late afternoon/early evening and during the day Thursday. If you will need childcare, please sign up for Thursday, Wednesday childcare is not available unless your child is already in Friends Club. I look forward to meeting with you!
Week of October 24, 2011
Hello,
We decided to carve one of our pumpkins this week on a cold rainy day. The children decided they wanted a spooky face for their Jack O' Lantern, but with a smile. Everyone gathered around the table as I cut off the top, excited to see the inside. I passed the pumpkin around so everyone could see the seeds, which we decided did indeed look like the seeds in our Harvest book. The seeds were scooped and placed aside while I went to work on the face. As I cut out each piece I showed the children so they could see the eyes, nose and mouth all come together to form our spooky face. The end result seemed to please the crowd.
Our seeds made a delicious snack later that morning. We washed them in a colander and spread them out on a tray to dry. After a bit we salted them and placed them in our toaster oven to roast. They turned out perfect! I was surprised at how fast they were gobbled up.
I thought I would share one of our favorite pumpkin songs...
"Pumpkin Song"
(tune: "Have You Ever Seen A Lassie)
Have you ever seen a pumpkin, a pumpkin, a pumpkin?
Have you ever seen a pumpkin that grows on a vine?
A round one, a tall one, a bumpy one, a squashed one.
Have you ever seen a pumpkin that grows on a vine?
Warmly,
Betsy
Week of October 17, 2011
Hi,
With all our walks in the garden lately, I have found that several children have been showing a great interest in seeds and plants and how they grow. We've been reading a book at group about different seeds and the plants and fruits they produce. They love first seeing the seed and then guessing what kind of plant it grows in to...
A few of the older children collected pockets full of pinecones while on a walk. They were so excited to show me every single one. Some were bigger and some were smaller. The children found the biggest and the smallest and the many in between sizes. I found a sorting tray and a perfect spot was found for each pinecone according to size.
Have a great weekend!
Betsy
Week of October 10, 2011
Hi!
The beautiful weather continues and we are soaking it up!
The children have been enjoying their walks and bringing back bouquets of the remaining flowers still hanging on in the gardens. Our classroom has been beautified with several vases placed around by the children, their flower arrangements bring a feeling of summer even though fall is booming outside. The children love cutting the flower's stem with a small pair of scissors to get them just the right length for the vase. Then a small funnel is used to direct the water from their small pitcher into the vase. It's a great process that promotes great patience and hand eye coordination. When the flowers are placed so carefully into the vase, the children get to find the perfect spot to showcase their bouquet somewhere in the classroom.
We also made playdough pretty successfully in a hot wok in the classroom. The children loved watching, they were pretty amazed that we were actually making playdough. They watched as I stirred and stirred all the ingredients into a big lump. I then put it out to cool and they waited so patiently to get their hands in it. It was fun to see the children so enthralled, even though all we had was whole wheat flour so it is a very textured playdough and a sad color but hey, it works!
Warmly,
Betsy
Week of October 3, 2011
Hello,
The weather this week has been such a blessing! Nothing like a week of rain and wind to really make one appreciate the sun and warmth we have enjoyed this week.
In celebration of the fine weather, we have been taking long walks around the gardens collecting pinecones and brightly colored leaves along the way. The children were ecstatic to find a lone pumpkin in the patch still hooked to the vine which they promptly picked. We keep a basket of these findings on a shelf in the classroom to explore and match to our autumn themed language cards.
On Tuesday we made smoothies! It was my first time making smoothies, so in many ways the children were guiding me through the process. I think their favorite part was watching the blender mix it all together creating a purple whirlwind. They were delicious, everyone had seconds and in some cases thirds!
Enjoy the weather this weekend!
Betsy
Week of September 26 2011
Greetings!
I promised last week that I would tell you all about "Down On Grandpa's Farm". If your child was here last year I'm sure you have heard about it. This song continues to be a favorite this year as well. I have a bag filled with a variety of small farm animals that I keep in a special place just for this activity. When the request is made for Grandpa's farm I sit on the floor and wait for a small group to gather, it never takes too long to gather an audience. I then offer the open bag to a child to reach in and find an animal, no peeking! When they grab one I ask if they can tell what it is by touch, sometimes they give a good guess and at times they are too excited to wait and pull out the animal with a big smile. This is where we sing...
Down On Grandpa's Farm
Down on grandpa's farm there is a big brown horse
( the animal changes with each grab out of the bag)
Down on grandpa's farm there is a big brown horse
The horse it goes along like this, NEIGH!
The horse it goes along like this, NEIGH!
We're on our way, we're on our way, on our way to grandpa's farm.
We're on our way, we're on our way, on our way to grandpa's farm.
We have a blast with this song, it's a great vocabulary activity that encourages the children to think of ways to describe each animal. We decide what color it is, the size and other characteristics. Sometimes it's a big brown horse, sometimes its a tall brown mare. Sometimes the pig is round but other times the pig is small. I love hearing what the children come up with. Then we have to decide what sound they make. Ask your child about the buffalo. That one was tricky!
Have a wonderful fall weekend!
Betsy
Week of September 19, 2011
Hello!
Coffee grinding has become all the rage in Toddler South. Agnes brought her roaster from home and the children were able to witness the entire process of taking the green coffee beans and roasting them to a dark brown. They then get to scoop the beans one scoop at a time into our old fashion crank grinder. The adults in the classroom benefit directly, we use a French Press to brew and it really makes great coffee!! The children exercise great patience waiting for the coffee to brew to perfection, and then (their favorite part) they get to push the press down! I offer the children a small taste by filling a little mug with milk and a drop of coffee which the children think is so cool and delicious, although I think they are just pretending as I have yet to have a child finish their taste.
I have found our new extension to our classroom to be a wonderful addition. Our language room (the old large motor space) gives the children the opportunity to have a quieter space to choose work. I often hold small group activities in there whether it be reading a book or singing "Down on Grandpa's Farm" (another fave I will share with you, stay tuned). I love that the children can go in there without an adult hovering and have that independence, even though we have an eye on them they don't feel that direct presence. It really allows them to rely on themselves when it comes to figuring out a puzzle or sharing work with a friend. I feel like I get to be the "fly on the wall" to witness some great stuff.
Have a wonderful Weekend!
Betsy
Week of September 12, 2011
Hello,
I have been having a blast doing yoga with the children this week, it's so funny to see such little people doing the poses. I was even able to step away and let the older children show the younger ones how to do it. I think we may have some future yoga instructors in this class.
Agnes found a wooly bear caterpillar on the playground Monday morning. The children were excited to watch him crawl up and around my arm. With gentle fingers we felt his soft fur which we found to tickle our fingers and make us laugh.
A date for our Infant Toddler Family Picnic has been chosen! It will be September 29th, 5:30-7pm at The Elmwood Township Park (Cherry Bend Road). A flyer is being sent home this week.
Betsy
Week of September 5, 2011
Hello!
We have had a great first week of school! The returning children have gotten right back into the groove of things and the new children are filled with excitement. It has been a smooth transition for all.
We got a chance this week to make cheese quesadillas! We took turns shredding the cheese which many of the children found to be tricky as they had to hold down the grater with one hand and use the other hand to grate the cheese. It was well worth the hard work though. I loved seeing their faces as they lifted the grater to reveal the pile of cheese. Yum!!!
It has been a wonderful week to start of the new school year!
Warmly,
Betsy
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