This week we read Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback.  The story talks about how Joseph starts out with an overcoat and ‘transforms’ it into a jacket, vest, etc.  This led us into a conversation about how we already reuse materials.  

We also began to discuss the changes we see around us. The children described some of the changes as plants growing, people growing, clouds changing shapes and colors, and ice melting into water.  In the Art Center, we mixed colors together to see what happened!

The children also learned that they are beginning to read using the sounds and letters they already know to create rhyming word lists like cat, hat, mat, rat …

Weekly Letter 6.10.22

Family Engagement 6.10.22

Next week we will discuss more about what kinds of changes happen in nature.  We will focus on the lifecycle of butterflies and how they go through different stages. 

This week, we began discussing what human babies need and ways we care for human babies.  We read Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers.  The children were thrilled to share some of their personal experiences and loved guessing which classmate each baby picture belonged to!

We turned Dramatic Play into a pediatrician. The children were actively engaged in imaginative play, taking care of the babies using some baby items, such as bottles, toys and diapers.

At the Art Center, children created additional baby items using recycled materials, such as rattles and cradles and high chairs!

Weekly Letter 5.27.22

Family Engagement 5.27.22

Next week we will begin to explore how babies grow and change. 

This week, we read the book Over in the Meadow by Ezra Jack Keats. We discovered that a meadow is a habitat
with many different types homes where various living things can live. 

In the Block Center the children had an opportunity to create different kinds of habitats.

We also focused on what kinds of animals hatch from an egg. The children brainstormed a list of animals.
Then in the Art Center they made eggs using paper maché around balloons. Once the eggs were dried,
the children created an animal that could hatch from an egg.  

In the Science Center the children continued their science journals by documenting animals that hatch from eggs,
as well any other animals that interested them. 

Weekly Letter 5.20.22

Family Engagement 5.20.22

Next week, we will begin focusing on human babies. 

This week, we began our Babies Unit by looking at animal babies and reading the fact book Follow Me by Shira Evans. We also read the book Stellaluna by Janell Canon. This book explored the differences and similarities among some baby animals as one baby animal got lost and became friends with others.

Together we charted the different types of baby animals. We discussed specific names of baby animals such as kittens, puppies, calves and cubs.

We began our research at the Science Center with information books and iPads, drawing and writing about chosen baby animals in our science journals.

In Art, we painted, collaged and drew pictures of baby animals to present to our friends during circle time. 

Weekly Letter 5.13.22

Family Engagement 5.13.22

Next week, we will be continuing our study of animal babies and their habitats.

 

This week we wrapped up our Plant unit by reading The Vegetables We Eat.  The children sorted out our pretend fruits and vegetables from Dramatic Play.

We took a nature walk outside in search of different kinds of plants. The children found various types of flowers and plants!

In our Art Center, the children used their fine motor skills to stamp out pictures of flowers using different materials.

At the Science Center, we observed a lettuce head in water to see if it would regrow its leaves.  We are still watching!

Weekly Letter 5.6.22

Family Engagement 5.6.22

Next week, we will be starting our new unit on Babies. We will begin by finding out about animal babies.

This week we read An Orange in January by Dianna Hutts Aston. We discussed the journey of an orange from farm to home.  The children were then invited to try drawing and writing about the journey of other fruits and vegetables either to their home or school.

In the Art Center we looked at the paintings of famous artists, including Claude Monet’s Sunflowers and Georgia O’Keefe’s Poppy and then enjoyed recreating our own versions.    

This week we continued to plant more seeds and recorded observations in our science journals. 

In the Math Center we used unifix cubes to measure how tall our class plants had grown, and also used the balance scale to compare which seeds were heavy or light.

Weekly Letter 4.29

Family Engagement 4.29

Next week we will be discussing why plants are important to us.

 

This week we read The Curious Garden by Peter Brown. It’s a story where a little boy finds some isolated plants growing on abandoned railway tracks. He takes it upon himself to become the gardener and help the garden flourish! The children learned that this story is based on the true curious garden, High Line Park in NYC.

The children created their own curious gardens by building them in the Block Center. They added trees, flowers, and plants of their own creation to it.

We have assembled and continued to add to our flower shop in the Dramatic Play Center!

In the Science Center, we continued to watch our seeds for growth and record in our journals. We can’t wait to see our garden of fruits, vegetables, and flowers grow!

Weekly Letter 4.8.22

Family Engagement 4.8.22

In the coming weeks we will continue to explore different kinds of plants, such as cactus, evergreen, succulent, and herbs!

This week we began exploring our new unit all about plants!

We read Up in the Garden, Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner. We observed the plants and animals living in the little girl’s garden, as well as the changes occurring below the dirt that we do not usually get to see!

As a whole group we planted bean seeds in Ziploc bags and placed them on the classroom windows so we can observe them growing! We provided the seeds with sunlight, air, and water.  The children also planted their own flower, fruit or vegetable seeds. Finally, they began to record their seed observations in a Science Journal.

At the Art Center we drew our observations of real plants with colorful flowers. We also voted on our new dramatic play theme and will be creating a flower shop.

Weekly Letter 4.1.22

Family Engagement 4.1.22

Next week we will explore what plants need to grow, as well as the many places we find plants in our communities and around the world! 

This week we wrapped up our Water unit with the read aloud The Pigeon Needs a Bath by Mo Willems and learned how important water is for all living things including animals and plants. 

In the Science Center, the children observed how colored water travels up the stems of celery to show how plants drink water up their stem. 

Following on from our discovery that salt mixed (dissolved) into water, we also tried mixing water with rice, sugar, and oil.  We observed that only the sugar dissolved.

We also discussed the changes in Spring as our class bears came out of hibernation.

Weekly Letter 3.25.22

Family Engagement 3.25.22

Next week we will begin our next unit on Plants.