Author Studies 

Spring has sprung in PreK!!  We spent our week learning about the "bones" of a story.  Zoi was very good at raising her hand every time she heard a character in the story "Swimmy" by Leo Lionni.  We talked about the title, setting, characters, problem and resolution.  Cash loved the art project that accompanied "Swimmy."  The ocean scenes featured varies mediums, using sponges, fingerprints, stamping, and tissue to recreate a scene from the book.  They are gorgeous and currently on display.

Dr. Seuss is always a favorite and his style of writing allows the children to complete the sentences themselves.  We made plates of "Green Eggs and Ham" and the famous red and white hat by using a pattern with squares.  Grace was so proud when hers was hung on the board! 

The sensory bin was turned into our Science area the first two days of class so our little gardeners could plant their own beans.  We will keep them in class so their growth can be graphed and the children can water them until they grow.  Aidan loved getting dirty and was so excited to water his plant "all by myself." (himself) 

The letter of the week was "Ss" so a tongue twister was in order.  Seven silver swans swam silently seaward.  The kids loved reciting it and trying to get faster without their tongue getting tied in a knot.  We practiced writing our "Ss" and brainstormed words.  Sheynna realized that quite a few of us had "S" names so we used this "teaching moment" to go ahead and graph how many children had names that began with the same letter.  Turns out we have a whole lot of "A" and "S" names in our class!

Music brought a new song, and alot of laughter to class.  It is called "If You're a Kid" and has a rap-feel.  Your kids know how to dance with attitude!  Kennedy spent the first day with the song humming it and dancing from place to place.  So cute!  Music is so important and builds confident children who feel good about expressing themselves so it is a daily activity and a great way to start our day.

Pennies were the first item we used to measure and count with this week.  The children were excited to walk in the door and start counting pennies.  Look in their folders on Friday and try the exercise at home.  They are very proud of all they can accomplish with counting.  On a side note, restroom trips are now accompanied by counting by tens, hundreds and thousands.  This is by the childrens request and I am always happy to oblige. They are all so excited to count while in the restroom and sing on the way back.  Every moment of the day is utilized!  We also measured various classroom items using our paper rulers and talked about what items weigh more or less than others.  I brought in a scale to let the kids weigh themselves and will keep notes and follow-up again at the end of the year so they can see how much they have grown.  Sikha was super excited about this as she is growing quickly and loves reminding me of how big she is by comparing her height to mine.

We continue to work on conflict resolution daily and have been role-playing so the students can make their own choices.  This has been extremely helpful as they have begun to work things out on their own and only come to talk to us when they really need the help.  Listening to their communication skills grow as they problem solve is so rewarding and a little praise goes a long way so we make sure to follow up with them and let them know how proud we are when they decide to work it out on their own.