Christmas Party (with a purpose)!

What a special day. I've been looking forward to this day for a bit, not for the reason most teachers are, but for the moment I could see a Great-Grandma's surprised face as 7 wonderful four/five year-olds present her with a present THEY made.
It started well, the children all arrived happy and eager for their FRIGID walk up the street to Ida Mae's house. Most carried gifts, some (Taryn and Cole) held hands the entire way "cause that's what friends do" - well, at least for now :)
We rang the doorbell, as giddy as 4 year-olds can be, and walked back to her room with smiles and presents in tow. You should have seen Ida Mae's face as these little one's stepped into her room!!! (PS. What kind of teacher doesn't document that moment? One that can't figure out her camera. GRRRR!)
We sang "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" then took turns presenting her with cards and gifts. Her thanks was certainly thanks enough for our feet didn't touch the ground the entire way home.
I thank you for letting us have that moment as a preschool class (one I hope they will remember for a long, long while).

We also:
- finished our Christmas Counting Book and sent it home.
- decorated Christmas Cookies.
- finished cards for our presents to mom and dad (sent home also).
- received gifts.
-warmed up with hot chocolate!

Thanks for a wonderful first half... looking forward to much fun and learning in 2012!

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!

I am so glad that you all said YES to extend the hours. A note will be sent home on Tuesday about new times (because if you're anything like me you KNOW you will remember and then 5 minutes later you're wondering what you were SUPPOSE to remember). So... note home, it is!

Today we were busy; we:
- worked on a counting book
- played/worked in centers
- began work on Tanegrams (putting shape blocks together to create something)
- read Moostletoe
- made gingerbread houses
- enjoyed circle time (learning about patterns, review counting, etc)
- learned a new song to help us remember the days of the week. Here it is:
(To the tune/chorus of: 'Clementine' I think that's the name?? I'm pretty musically challenged but that doesn't EVER stop me from singing my heart out with our little ones)
Lyrics ( get ready... these are crazy tough!)
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

**Today we also started on our service project. (Originally I had planned to donate the blanket to a shelter, but thanks to my sweet husband, I had a different idea.) We'll be giving the blanket to Ida Mae, a GREAT-GRANDMA up the street who can't get out so much anymore and could use the kindness and a visit from our little ones. ** See NOTE below**. Anyway, we worked hard tying knots on the throw blanket for her.

PERMISSION REQUEST:
We will be walking up to IDA MAE's on Tuesday as part of our party (around 10 a.m.) to give her this gift (and return back to school around 10:45.
Do I have your permission to do that?
**Don't forget to have them dress warm for the walk**
***If it's terrible weather I will take it to her later, but I'm sure she'd much prefer to see some MUCH younger faces!

Thanks for a great day!

Our Magic Carpet took us to Denmark Today!

**Happy Birthday Celebration for Cole!

Today we:
- made Cole a birthday book.
- danced, sang, and rang bells for movement and rhythm.
- discovered TWO mystery numbers today (4 & 5).
- read, Santa Are You Grumpy? and discussed how doing nice things for others can help them turn their day around (un-grump-ify them).
- we enjoyed Danish Christmas traditions. We learned that in Denmark they have rice pudding on Christmas Eve - and if someone finds an almond in their bowl, they will have good luck the coming year - so we all looked for our "good luck" hidden in our pudding (even if we didn't want to eat it).
- we also learned that in Denmark they think of the birds on Christmas (they have a lot of stories about people and animals being out in the cold and lonely so maybe it has something to do with that??). So we made 'bird treats' out of cheerios for each child to string on a branch and care for the birds around their home this Christmas.

It was a GREAT day!
Thanks!
jen

Christmas Around the World!

Today was the beginning of some serious Christmas FUN around here. We departed on our magic carpet for Mexico and learned a bit about how they celebrate Christmas in the country just below us.

We had such fun making pinata's and stuffing them with candy - I'm guessing the children will be ready soon to start busting them open - ENJOY!

We also:
~worked on the formation of letter Hh.
~worked hard during centers (today the girls were girls = barbies and marriage, and the boys were boys = crash up cars and blocks). So cute to watch!
~enjoyed rhyming with Rudolph - a fun rhyming activity they will each get to bring home soon.
~read Counting Christmas by Kathryn Katz
~worked hard on our Christmas counting book.
~and of course... loved making pinatas and learning a little about our world.

Looking Forward:
Cole's Birthday Celebration is Thursday.
Show n Tell also Thurs.

** A note about next week**
Will you please send your children in clothes that DON'T matter next week - your washer will thank me for the warning (that's sounds like we'll be rolling in mud - not that bad, but lots of sticky, painty activities). Thanks!

December 20 - Our Christmas Party
December 22 - no school (Winter Break)
**school resumes Jan 3rd.

What is She Thinking???

{So a change has been on my mind for a while now.}
I want to know what you parents would think about extending our preschool day by 1/2 hour... So we would start at 9:15 and end at 11:45, making it a 2 1/2 preschool day. I would also consider 9:30 - 12, for our little morning snoozers (sadly, my little ones do not qualify for the latter as they continue to torment me with their 5:30 and 6 a.m. wake up screeches! Gotta love it!).
Let me explain a bit more: I have felt for a while that I'm having to hurry the kids along most of the time to complete all that we need to get done in school - so a simple stretch of the time would allow me to teach and work with each child and also allow the children to settle in and not be rushed for time.
~We would begin the new schedule in January (if everyone feels good about it).
~There would be no extra cost each month as I would not be planning anything more, just stretching the length of each activity.

What do you think?

Please, comment here or to me in person. I'm anxious to hear what your thoughts or concerns are.
Thanks for considering!

About Tomorrow!

Our Feast begins at 10 a.m.
Come in through the kitchen doors.
Just bring your assigned food - we'll prepare it there with our kiddos.

A BIG thank you!
Jen

Let me Explain...

That's never a good way to start a preschool post, right?!? No worries, nothing too crazy, just some messy hands that I need to explain:
Did you LOVE the hand turkey? I did, but it came at the cost of stamp ink on our little fingers (it will come off with a good washing... or two... or three). I debated between washable paint that would not look as good, or stamp ink that would not come off very well. After trying both, I had to go with what looked best and what would last - so... HAPPY SCRUBBING! I really want some of these preschool creations to last through the years so as mother's, you can look back on that TINY little hand-print and sit and let the memories of your once three/four-year-old come rushing back. I know for me, these hand-prints are PRECIOUS, so I hope you will forgive me when the bath-water turns "ink-color" and the scrubbing lasts a bit longer than usual. Our little ones are precious!

Today, we also:
-continued our learning of the letter Hh.
- worked on sound spelling words of things we're grateful for.
-had the choice of water coloring or marker coloring.
-practiced first and last names.
-worked hard in centers (today, on their own, the children all found "new" friends to play with).
-began learning our new sound song.
-played outside.
-read a wonderful story called, "I am Thankful Every Day!" by Steve Metzger.
- had a very special show-n-tell where Chloe was able to bring her sister Maclee to show! (Thank you Chloe's mom for the fun treat too.)

It was a great day!

I feel... Grateful!

Our theme is Feeling Grateful (as well as different feelings we have). This is a great time to retouch on not getting upset and remaining calm when things don't go our way (something I still am working on).

So, today we:
~ practiced first and last names.
~ worked hard at centers (meanwhile I worked with 2 children at a time teaching rhyming through a fun game).
~ attended to our calendar (practiced counting, days of the week, singing my FAVORITE song - our Preschool Theme Song).
~ worked on rhyming as a whole group with our Nursery Rhyme "Humpty Dumpty"
~ heard the story, "Turkey Tom and his Terrible Temper". Tom is a turkey that often loses control of his emotions and throws different temper tantrums, like: screaming, pouting, whining,etc) and eventually learns through his colored feathers that HE is the only one that can make his life better and happier. He must do that by controlling his temper, even when things don't go his way. (We took some time to relate this to our own lives... good conversation, they are insightful.)
~ got to paint with turkey feathers.
~ enjoyed ONE last day of nice weather (for 2 seconds before deciding it was NOT that nice of weather).
~ enjoyed a snack.
~ Read the book, "If you're Angry and you Know It" and looked at healthy ways to act when we get upset.
~ then got to work on a grateful book.

Lots of fun!
You'll have your food assignments on Thursday.

Looking Forward:
Thurs - show n tell
Tues - Thanksgiving Feast* (starts at 10 a.m.)
*More info provided on Food Assignment/Invitation

Our Fall Unit Comes to an End...

Today we:
~ completed our "pudding tree" by doing some Rip Art for the leaves (though Carl the Cat came to join us at the back window, making it very hard to for the children to want to concentrate to finish their project, so some trees are a bit sparse; Taryn will be working on her's later).
~worked on the sound F makes, and completed that work page.

**Homework - Ff Rainbow Writing -
Capital F strokes: start at 1x "straight down, jump up, straight out, jump to middle, straight out". Help them distinguish between the F (with two lines out) and the E with three.
Lowercase F strokes: start at 1x "up over, straight down, line across the middle - they like to say "give it a belt" instead of being so proper.
Remember to have them pick up to 8 crayons/markers and complete over and over again so they really get the strokes down.

We also:
~ played a game with our Nursery Rhyme to not only work on rhyming, but to work on vocabulary.
~ read, Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Louis Elhert
~ Enjoyed a ::MYSTERY READER:: ~ A big THANK YOU to Peyton's mom for reading the book Curious George goes to the Library and giving us bananas and chocolate covered pretzels to enjoy as a treat!!!

Thank you for letting me know how many people from each family will be attending our Thanksgiving Feast. We'll be sending out food assignments next week (and Thank You in advance for your participation).

Have a good one!!!

Crazy Crazy Life!

Life is getting crazy this time of year, as it does for everyone, but that's no excuse for dropping the ball on this blog... oops! and sorry!

Yesterday we had a great day! I was so excited for the surprise painting project at the end of the day... and it did not disappoint!

We:
~worked on new name plates (some with last names).
~worked hard in centers.
~reviewed our Nursery Rhyme (Humpty Dumpty)
~Read, Going on a Leaf Hunt
~made ourselves a sorting game (sorting is an essential math skill - as they work on this, have them try to sort by different determining factors (not just color) to help them notice subtle differences, which will in turn help them in all aspects of learning (letters, reading, math, numbers, etc).
~were introduced to a FUN FUN FUN alphabet sound song we will be learning.
~worked hard on our lowercase f.
~colored with 'fall' colors
~ ended the day with a fun PUDDING PAINTING project!
**It was so cute to watch the children learn just what they would paint with; and then to see them paint, lick, paint was priceless!

**Please Note:
- Please, let me know by tomorrow (Thurs) how many from your family will attend our Thanksgiving Feast.
- Feast food assignments will be passed out next week.
-Feast is scheduled for Tues, Nov 22nd @ 10:00.

{Preschool Love!}

I am so grateful for Preschool and especially the chance to be uplifted by these little ones. Even a crazy hard day (in my regular life)is made better by the joy and excitement they bring when they are here and learning. Thank you!

Today we:
~ worked on correct formation of the letter Ee.
~ played in centers (It was a day of playing house, I guess, and one where the "mothers" had to leave the "dads" in charge of babysitting. Pretty cute!)
~ Introduced November
~Read Fall Leaves Fall by Zoe Hall. As we read we notice shapes of leaves and what colors they were in the fall.
~ made our own leaves (since our original plans of collecting leaves were foiled by the snow)with red and yellow paint.

** This was a super fun sensory activity where we squished around red and yellow paint to actually see the way the colors combine to form orange. I love the process but having leaf full of mess-making paint just sitting around ready to be "squished" into carpet makes me very nervous! I will LOVE that she did it, but the actual leaf may disappear soon, very soon, and it's ok!

~ we began to learn our first Nursery Rhyme - Humpty Dumpty. We will show and work on reading skills using Nursery Rhymes this year. Today we focused on reading left to right, top to bottom and we focused on building vocabulary:
what is an:
egg
wall
fall
king
horse
men
*all these words, the children probably already know, but may have a hard time explaining in words. Isn't it interesting that no one could come up with "a four legged animal" when I asked for a definition of horse. They sure would be able to point it out, but I hope to challenge them by having to explain in words. It will be a wonderful asset to them.
~ lastly, we played our November Letter Game. These pieces are so versatile, please consider laminating them for continued use.

Thank you for another great day!

What a GREAT Day!

Everything from happy children, to Mystery Readers sharing fun stories has made this a GREAT preschool day. Thank you for sharing in your child's excitement to come to school - when they are here, they are happy and kind (and funny!) - I am so grateful!
Today we:
- got more intense in our letter study - they are doing really well with it
*Don't forget to practice the letter Ee (rainbow writing page in yellow folder) and turn it in on Thursday.
- played and explored in centers.
- practiced our program with our spooky bugs **cross your fingers**.
- Read Happy Halloween Biscuit by
- Made a Free Explore Project (the purpose of the project was to inspire creativity, have practice using liquid glue "A little dab'll do ya!", and to celebrate what they came up with).
- Worked on our class calendar (gives practice counting, patterning, and logical thinking skills)
- Played outside - well, the boys braved the weather, the girls decided to color inside and stay warm.
- enjoyed a Mystery Reader: Tyler's Mom came to share There was an Old Lady who Swallowed a Bat! I'm sure you've heard how fun it was to feed that puppet and to have her burp up some treats! So EXCITING! I heard the comment, "Did that (the suckers) really come out of her?" I had to giggle!

Looking Forward:
Thursday is our Halloween Party
Costumes Welcome!
9:30 - Halloween Performance (you can still practice with your children, but they did really well today)

Next Week's Theme: Fall (Sooo FUN!)

{October 18th}

I made a little change. Instead of focusing on something new, we reviewed and got caught up on some missing things.

Today we:
~finished drawing our preschool friends (and took home the book they've been DYING to show you).
~introduced a new center: MR. PUMPKIN HEAD, where the children create a face on a pumpkin using play dough - we have some very creative souls!
~practiced our parts for our Halloween performance.
~got to know Taryn, worked with her name, and enjoyed her favorite snack: "dip" (so I came up with apples dipped in peanut butter).
~read, It's Pumpkin Time by Zoe Hall.

It was a great day!

Looking Forward:
*No school on Thursday. What?!?
*Halloween bugs due next Tues.
*Next Thursday Halloween Party (costumes welcome) + performance for a SMALL audience at 9:30 a.m.

Planner Hatred (this is really an apology)!

I hate my planner. I have decided that it is the problem! Last year I had a cheap-o walmart teacher planner... and loved it! This year, I missed the planner run at Walmart and had to settle for paying triple the amount at an office supply store. Boo! To make matters worse, it doesn't have exactly what I need and I have to attach lots of sticky notes to remember all the little things that would slip my senile mind otherwise. Well, needless to say, with a curious 2 year old around, it's a constant fight to defend my sticky note-d planner... and I now realize that I have lost that battle - he got to it a while ago and now I realize that a few things have slipped passed. Namely letting you know there is no school on Thursday as it is Fall Break for our school district. Please forgive me (and my 2 year old, and my planner).
I think I can come up with some way to make it up to you!

Should we try it AGAIN?

~ I've triple checked the weather and think this might be our week for FARM FUN!
This Thursday: Oct. 13th.
Same rules apply: let me know today if you are coming or if you will leave a car seat (I will need at least one mom to drive a few children).
Dress warmly!
Cost: $3.50
If you are coming with siblings, please plan a snack for them.
Meet here at 9:45 (preschoolers can still come at 9:30 if that's convenient for you.)
We will be at the farm at 10 a.m. - Done by 11:15 and children not coming with parents, dropped off by 11:30(ish).
We will have lots of fun on the farm!

Today we discussed shapes; we also:
~ made shape rubbings with sandpaper and corrugated cardboard.
~ practiced forming our first and last names.
~ played in centers.
~ got to know Liam and worked with his name (a big thank you to his mom who has offered to bring Liam's favorite treat as a class snack on the Field Trip!)
~ read Color Zoo by Louis Elchert. This is a favorite book of mine to show how shapes make up everything around us.
~ made a shape art piece. We called them Abstract Shape Art and each child named their piece.
~ played outside - still the 'favorite preschool activity'.
~ ate a quick snack :)
~ read Halloween Bugs and discussed our opportunity to put on a play for you (in the newsletter)!
~ played The Shape-y Pokey!
~ learned a goodbye song.

Another day filled with fun and laughter - it was a great day!

Field Trip or BUST.... {right?!?}

All week I have been the queen of positive thinking... "Thursday will be a sunny, beautiful day", even despite what the weather channel said {the dreaded "S" word. "Snow" - I should clarify}. Cause, when are they ever right anyway? But, in the end, I was on the phone, rescheduling the farm trip, and planning an EXTRA SPECIAL {"no field trip today"} preschool schedule.
I know from my kindergarten days that cancelling a field trip because of weather DOES NOT GO OVER VERY WELL with our kiddos, but I also know that all sadness fades when they hear the magic word "movie". So we planned to watch "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" at the end of the day.
All turned out well, here in preschool-land, and it was another wonderful day!

Today we:
- practiced forming the letter Dd.
- played in centers.
- sang our Halloween opening song in circle time.
- talked more about Kye - our star of the week (but we'll draw his picture when all our friends return from their sicknesses).
- read a funny {wordless} book called, The Colors by Monique Felix.
- made colorful Fruit Loop necklaces (introduced patterns during this project).
- watched the movie up in the playhouse.
- had show-n-tell.
- celebrated our first snow day with a LETTER SNOWBALL FIGHT!
This is a fun game that the kids ALWAYS love. {You can play it at home}
Materials:
scrap paper
marker
Write a letter on each page. Wad up paper into a ball (snowball). When music starts, so does the snowball fight - we just try to steer clear of throwing at faces. When the music stops, the child picks up the snowball closest to him/her and says the name and sound. Continue playing until you've worn them right out!!!
**keep this game in your 'bag of tricks' its a fun way to learn sight words, and addition facts!

In spite of the weather, we did have a GREAT day!

PS... Stay tuned for Field Trip info, it will either be the 13th or the 20th.

Today we: {+ Field Trip Info}

~ Worked on forming our names (first AND last) correctly.
~ Enjoyed centers (while Mrs. Jen worked with and tested children - got 1/2 way done with first term testing - looking good -the children are so smart... and funny!)
~ Learned about Kye (our Star of the Week) and worked with his name.
~ Began learning a Halloween song
~ Read Mouse Paint
~ Discussed Colors (our theme)
~ Had a special surprise... SURPRISE PLAY DOUGH! It was play dough with no color and as the children worked with it, it changed to a color. We discussed what color each child got. The children we SOOO excited about this... please encourage them to play with it at home as it will work their little muscles (store in plastic bag or airtight container).
~ had a COLORFUL snack that we had to name before eating (fruit snacks).
~ ran and played outside.
~ Learned about the letter Dd.
~ Played our October Learning Game. We called it, "Dancing Caterpillar". The children LOVED it! Dancing and moving, then freezing when the music stopped. Picking up the letter closest to their feet, saying the letter to me, and forming a caterpillar body with that letter - what a fun way to close the day!

Looking Forward: Thursday Field Trip!
**If it's raining or snowing on Thursday, it will be a regular day here, and we will reschedule for next Thursday (The Country Farm has been wonderful to work with).
** We will have show-n-tell first thing so Kye gets to share his SPECIAL item.
** Please read the note home about the field trip - any questions, please call!
Thank you for letting me know if you are coming or not, you make this all so easy!

Have a great one!!!

Today was a great day!

Before I review our day, I want to explain a fun game to review names that you can play with your newly painted apple trees:
Place apples on (dried) painted apple tree (found in folder). These are the letters of each child's name. Place them randomly in the tree. Let the child "pick" the apple that comes first in their name... and so on. Play it as many times as they would like.
**An extension: make more apples by tracing and cutting one of the apples and work on last names (you may have to draw more black lines on the tree paper for this).

::Field Trip::
Oct 6th (Thursday)
A COUNTRY FARM
$3.50 per person {includes: hay ride, small pumpkin, witch craft and maze}
Please let me know ASAP who is coming from each family (also, if you're not planning to attend so I can get a car seat)
::more info to come::

Today we:
*made an apple puzzle to put together at home - and finish coloring if needed. (cutting skills are crucial in kindergarten and beyond, so we practice them a lot)
*played/worked in centers
*Sang our Apple Song (below)
*Drew a picture of our friend Cole
*Read "Johnny Appleseed"
*Painted our own apple trees with egg cartons
*Enjoyed Cole's favorite snack of Blueberry/Raspberry muffins and sliced peaches
*Played outside
Worked on forming the letter C correctly
*Had show-n-tell
*Played Pass the Apple (when all the children were in the center, we pretended to make applesauce with them!)
*Learned a good-bye song

PHEW! WHAT A DAY... WE ACCOMPLISHED A LOT!

Looking forward:
Kye is Star Student next week (then Liam, then Taryn)
We will study Colors
Field trip on Thursday

Apple Song (to I'm a little Teapot):
I'm a little apple, red and round.
High up in the tree is where I'm found.
When I'm ripe and ready, come pick me,
An apple orchard is where I'll be.

Please let me know if you have any concerns or suggestions.
Enjoy your day!
Jen

Apples Apples Everywhere!

So, another fun day at preschool, where we:
~wrote and practiced letter Bb
~played and worked in centers
~drew a picture of our friend, Peyton
~Enjoyed her favorite treat of zuchinni bread and grapes (seriously, gobbled up by the children!)
~painted and stamped with apple halves - we also learned how to put on and take off paint shirts, so it's easier for them to get ready for a project when their in kindergarten (AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT SKILL WHEN TEACHER TO STUDENT RATIO IS NOW SOMETIMES 30 TO 1).
**My goal is always to do what I can now, to help them feel successful in kindergarten. And it's in the big things like letters and numbers, but equally important is the little things, like listening to instructions and cleaning up after ourselves.**
~played outside
~and, of course, show-n-tell!

Looking forward:
We will study apples more.
Star is Cole!

Just a note: Please don't feel rushed to pay October tuition right away. The envelopes are a reminder of what's to come. We established that tuition is due before the beginning of the next month, which doesn't fall until next week. I just learned last year to give more time, so that's why I passed the envelopes out now, but please don't feel like when you get that you must pay right away... just before the next month begins. (Did I ramble or make any sense, who knows?!?)

On a side note: Thank you to Tyler for bringing apples from his "hobba's" farm.

Preschool is so a'PEEL'ing!

This week's theme: Apples/seeds

Today we:
-Made our name with 'bendy sticks' (small motor)
-Introduced a new center: Apple seed Play. It's like a sand table - but with "apple seeds" - really it's dry black beans -shhh!! They measure, sift and fill bowls with apple seeds.
-Got to know our Star: Peyton
-Worked with her name.
-Read A Day at an Apple Orchard to learn about how apples grow.
-Made paper apples
Cut into an apple and counted the seeds. First we made a guess "called an estimate" as to how many seeds we thought would be inside, then cut it open, counted the seeds and ate the apple slices.
-Played outside.
-Danced the Hokey Pokey
-Learned a new song: Apples and Bananas

Looking Forward:
School is tomorrow!
Tomorrow is Show-n-Tell (apple theme if they feel so inclined)
Letter B homework due tomorrow. This is how I'll teach the formation:
Touch the top (at the 'x'), straight line down and 'bump' the bottom. Jump back up (to the 'x') then bounce around to the middle and bounce around to the bottom.
You can also say 'did you hear that word BOUNCE? it starts with "b" (sound). What other words start with 'b'?
Next week:
Star Student: Cole
Theme: Apples

{Sign up Schedule}

::Mystery Reader Schedule::
Oct 13 - Cole's Mom (or whoever)
Oct 27 - Tyler's Mom
Nov 10 - Peyton's Mom
Jan 12 - Kye's Mom
Feb 16 - Open
Mar 8 - Open
April 19 - Open


::Star of the Week Schedule::
Week of:
Sept 19th - Peyton
Sept 26th - Cole
Oct 4th - Kye
Oct 11th - Liam
Oct 18th - Taryn

Another Amazing Day + Make up day for the blog!

What I thought was going to be a relaxed, easy-going, story-filled day of Preschool Fun quickly morphed into me thinking preschool needs to be 3 hours long to include all we need to get done in our short time together!!!

It was an amazing day filled with:
*OUR FIRST MYSTERY READER!!!!! A BIG thank you to Chloe's grandmother! She read a sweet book about 'Wodney' (Rodney).
*Working on our Preschool Friends book.
*Reading "My Friend Bear"
*Completing our Star Names project.
*Discussing and practicing the letter Aa.
*Tyler sharing is favorite snack.

So much to do with them... so little time!
It was a great day!

LOOKING FORWARD::
School is MONDAY AND TUESDAY next week.
Peyton is our Star of the Week.
Our theme is: Apples/seeds

Happy Day... Chloe!

Today started with a BANG! It's Chloe's special day here at Preschool.
Some of the things we accomplished were that we:
*made a birthday book for Chloe, wishing her many fun things.
*Played in centers
*Sang our Song of the Week
*Read Clap Your Hands & I Like School
*Made place mats for our seats and snack time.
*Had our first Show-n-tell
*enjoyed a birthday treat of CUPCAKES from Chloe!

We really worked hard on "sitting smart" (that's my term for criss-cross applesauce) and cleaning up right when we hear the Clean Up Song (not continuing to play). If we work hard now to understand why we do these things then the rest of the year will be cake!

I will be placing the book order tomorrow; you still have time to log on or bring the order to me.

Looking Forward:
Star of the Week: Tyler
*We will be working with our names

Thanks, it was an awesome week!
Jen

A few things to remember...

Tomorrow will be our first show-n-tell. Remember to help your child choose 1 item. We will connect the item to our theme in some way and give each child the opportunity to talk to the class and answer questions (a wonderful social skill to develop).

Book orders due tomorrow - I'll be ordering on Friday.

Mystery Reader (these dates aren't set in stone - if another day during the month works better, just let me know)
{Sign up changes}
September is still open if any preschool day works for anyone (dad, grandparents, etc)
Oct 13 - Cole's Mom
Oct 25 - Tyler's Mom (she has a fun Halloween book she wants to share - GREAT!)
Nov 10 - Peyton's Mom
Jan 12 - Kye's Mom
Feb - open
Mar - open
April - open
{just let me know if you'd like one of the dates}

Tyler is Star of the Week next week. (Thanks Jess, already have his stuff.)

A huge REMINDER that preschool will be on Monday and Tuesday the week of Sept 19th. Due to our (WHOLE entire family's) yearly pilgrimage to our Mecca (Disneyland), I will be gone on Thursday and want to make sure the children have two days of preschool that week (+ that's Peyton's "Star" week, so I'll make sure I talk to you, Renae).

Thanks for all your wonderful comments and support!
Jen

First Day!!!

We did it! We conquered the big day! I just kept having this thought in the back of my mind, 'this is so easy. I love this'. I just can't believe the difference it makes to feel like I can truly affect the lives of the little ones I teach. It was a good day!

So here is what happened during those two short hours:
*We worked with Playdough and cookie cutters.
* Learned about and worked in centers.
{Chloe went straight for the magnetic (paper) dolls. Taryn, Tyler, and Cole set up the train station. Kye went for the crash cars. And Peyton went up in the Reading Nook. By the end of centers the children had enjoyed building castles, playing in the kitchen, having a tea party, having a car wash, and much more).
*At circle time, we began with a song (sung to: if you're happy):
If you like to come to school, raise your hand.
If you like to come to school, raise your hand.
If you like to come to school, if you like to come to school,
If you like to some to school, raise your hand.
*Our Star of the Week is Chloe. We learned about her favorite things, worked with her name by using bean bag letters, and cheered for her.
*We read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and then created our own 'Chicka Trees' with the class rules on the leaves {so you can be aware of what our class rules are}.
*For snack we made edible 'Chicka Trees' out of graham crackers, apples, and grapes.
*After outside play, we came in for our next circle time where we introduced and played our first Homework Game. Every month we will get a homework game to keep and play with. This month: Gone Fishing for Colors!

The children are great at cleaning up after themselves. We are going to have a wonderful year!

Reminders:
* Book Orders are due Thursday.
*We will celebrate Chloe's birthday on Thursday.

Thanks!
Mrs. Wimmer
{pictures to come soon}

Welcome to Preschool!

It's going to be a great year! I'm excited to take the opportunity to know each child, to assist in their learning, and to watch them grow. I hope they are as excited as I am about being here.
At the Open House you received a lot of papers and information. Please work to complete and turn in the following:
*The waiver needs to be signed by both parents and turned in on the first day (in order for your child to participate in preschool).
*Star Studentpacket should be completed and turned in as soon as possible. We will need this information before the date chosen to introduce your child.
*Tuition is due before the the first day of school.
*Book Orders are due on September 8th. This is a wonderful way to add to your home library.

If you didn't have a chance to sign up for Star Student and for Mystery Reader, we will have these sign ups ready on the first day of school.

I am so thrilled with the group of children I have coming this year. It's going to be so much fun. I'm excited to watch them grow!

Thanks!
Jen