Dreaming of outdoor fun!

This winter has been brutal and we decided that if it was too cold to be outside we could imagine we were camping in warmer weather instead.  So this week in preschool we did just that.  We hunted for bugs, made s'mores and built tents all while imagining what it will be like to get to do these things in warmer weather.

This week was also spirit week at school so though we only were here for two days we had a blast dressing like the old west in our boots and hats and flannel as we painted campfires and sang camp songs!

 We did a lot of work this week in math and art centered around the sweet treats of s'mores as we worked to build them in the correct order, match the parts of a s'more with its pieces of the same number representation and even assembled them into s'more people!

After some stories 'round the campfire' about camping we used pipe cleaners to create patterns of various colors and bent and twisted them in ways to 'follow the trail' drawn out on the strips of paper at each table.

We also did some word matching and phonics by listening to the sound in the word TENT and then finding the word on the table with the T sound at the front to match it to the picture of the tent, etc.

We also used real marshmallows and toothpicks to build 'tents' at the tables.  Some children built tall tents, others small tents and some amazingly crazy styled tents too!

After building "S'more Men" to show our teachers how to assemble a s'more on paper we made 'flashlights' for our campouts out of water bottles.  If you turn the real flashlight from your phone on and place it under the water bottle your child made at school and turn out the lights you have quite the cool nightlight!

 On Friday we heard some stories about various bugs then 'dug up' some bugs hidden in some tins at the tables for a science activity by dropping vinegar onto baking soda to create fizz and make them appear. 

After finding bugs in science, we sorted them into 'bug jars' by color, then type and more.  Activities like this are easy to do at home as well with any toys you have whether they are big or small.  If they are bigger, use laundry baskets and if they are smaller use bowls!

Between books about bugs and sorting bugs and hunting for them around the classroom we needed a bug break on Friday so we made some 'snacks' out of paper by matching the numeral to the amount of dots on its counterpart.  

To end out our fun week of spirit days and camping we played parachute games and built tents with the parachute!  We were able to use our smaller parachutes in the classroom and a bed sheet can work the same way in your home for some fun too.  

If you worry about hitting the ceiling, then kneel instead of stand to shake and raise and lower the sheet.  Sometimes in winters like these creativity is what gets you through the cold!

What's Coming Up?

This coming week we will celebrate all things Dr. Seuss!  We will be reading a lot of his books and doing activities based on these great books.

Many questions are coming in about preschool registration for next year.  I hope to have the plan for you by the end of March and will email you as soon as I am able to open registration.  

We are waiting for numbers to come in to tell us how long the morning AND afternoon sessions will run but YES! you saw that right, we will have a choice next year of either morning or afternoon.  

Once I know the times of each session I will open registration so keep checking in the What's Coming Up section each week for updates!

We LOVE our school!

This week in preschool we focused on the happy holiday filled with love, Valentine's Day!  The children started out the week with some candy heart pattern math.  The teachers gave each child a slip of paper with a few colored candy hearts.  The children then had to decide on the pattern that was given and then fill up their strip of paper with the pattern that completed the series.  

Some patterns were that of two colors, some that of three, etc.  If you have any left over treats at home from this holiday you might want to go ahead and play this game with them.

 Next we worked on spelling at the front of the room by assembling a heart that had been broken for Pirate Pete.  Each strip of this broken heart had been cut to let us see only one letter in Pirate Pete's name.  The children then took turns coming up to the board to assemble the heart 'puzzle' thus helping the children spell the word Pete.

Once we modeled this activity at the front of the room we headed to the tables where the children fund pieces of broken hearts with the letters of their name on them and assembled their own heart puzzle.

 We searched for and sorted different colored hearts by looking all over the room for what we could find and then put them into designated hula hoops to count the totals later to see which we found the most of and which hearts had the least amount.

 We read books about hearts and Valentine's and then reminded the children about catapult's from a lesson a few weeks ago and launched candy hearts all over the room!  We worked again during this stem activity to see how to shoot the hearts high and low, far and short.

 After we launched the hearts across the room we measured their distance by preschooler steps.  The children would walk heel to toe across the room from their catapult to their heart.  Then, we logged the amount of preschooler steps on a graph using tally marks at the board to see who's heart went the furthest.

 We took some time to work out our fingers with stickers and made Valentine's Day headbands.  Many of the preschoolers ended up wearing their headbands the rest of the day.

Later we sorted through bowls of black beans to find tiny hearts using tweezers and fingers.  The children love the textures these beans create and have all been moved into our sensory bin for free play now too.

 On Wednesday we talked about ways to show each other kindness at Valentine's Day and every day as well as how we show our family we care about them.  We talked about high fives and hugs and making cards and hope some of the love we showed each other this week continues throughout the year.

We decorated our bags early in the day Wednesday so they would be dry and ready for our Valentine exchange before heading home.  Some children drew pictures and others chose to glue items all over their bags.

 To pass the time until our Valentine exchange we worked on some heart math by matching the amount of dots on one half of a heart to the correct number that represented that amount.  

Puzzles like this are easy to make at home because you can help your child self-correct by drawing out the pattern and then cutting the two parts in different patterns.  Separating one pair with a zig zag cut while the other with a curved cut.

We learned about density with various liquids and how the things the liquids are made up of change whether or not items like hearts were able to sink or float.

We like to separate the children into smaller groups for science so the children are not only able to 'see' more but also able to participate in the experiment. 

Before getting ready to pass out our Valentine's we sang some terrific songs about the holiday and friendship.

Then before heading home we made one final Valentine's Day project.  We used Valentine's Day colors to add hand prints to hearts and worked on cutting them out in order to let them dry and bring them home soon. 

 Once we finished our painting of hearts for the holiday we sat at the rug and learned the process for our Valentine exchange. 

We focus on the exchange process of Valentines for the children in our preschool program.  The children learned how to pass out Valentines to their friends and the joy of giving in order to learn what to expect as they move into elementary school.

 What's Coming Up?
After President's Day we will have a two day preschool week this coming week as we learn about camping and insects.  

If you are looking for a night out filled with music, check out the PHS Orchestra concert on Thursday, February 28th.