Dear families,

When December rolls around it is always hard to believe that we have reached the end of another year.  But walking through our wintry and newly festooned New York City, there is no denying that "Auld Lang Syne" is just a few weeks away.  

We will be wrapping up 2010 with the indelible tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  Students will follow in Goldilocks' footsteps these two weeks as they get to taste 'porridge' after learning how the dry oats absorb water and spices.  They will also test temperatures with thermometers, craft their own porridge pinch pot out of clay, learn about black, grizzly, and polar bears, and role play the story focusing on hot/cold, soft/hard, big/small.  We will also discuss potential plot variables (What if the bears were scared of Goldilocks? What if she had a sister that joined her at the house?) and challenge students to consider how these changes would affect the story's ending.

Though Goldilocks provides us with many fun and interactive activities, it also allows us the chance to tackle real life skills and the idea of a "stranger." We will discuss whether or not Goldilocks knew the bears, what makes someone a stranger, and whether or not you should enter someone's home without being invited. We will also begin to see if students know their own phone number, and review the number to call if you ever need help. 

Our language and rhythm practice continues with a series of new poems including We're Going to Spy on a Brown Bear (ask your child about the movement they paired with words in the poem like 'squelch squelch,' 'swishy, swashy,' 'splish splosh') and Peas Porridge Hot.

Peas Porridge Hot

Peas Porridge Cold

Peas Porridge in the pot

Nine days old.

Some like it hot.

Some like it cold.

Some like it in the pot,

Nine days old

These poems not only provide us with the opportunity to practice writing our curved letters (D,P,B,R,U), but they also introduce the concept of opposites.  This lesson will extend into our math stations when students will be asked to sort pairs of opposites like awake/asleep, light/heavy, full/empty, and long/short.  We will practice writing and recognizing the numbers 7, 8, and 9, build in stacks of three, and work on a three bears puzzle until we get it "just right."

With this the last newsletter of the calendar year, please note that our Winter Camp will take place Dec 20^th-24^th and Dec 27^th-31^st. Students have the option of morning or afternoon sessions, and can attend for one day or the entire week of our winter themed activity camp.  We hope to see you there and look forward to greeting you and your family in the new year!