September 20, 2012 Quarter Note Newsletter

Dear Parents,
 
We introduced our unit on apples by reading the "Little Red House."  The story is about a boy who searches for a little red house with no doors, no windows, and a star inside ( a copy of the story has been placed in your child's cubby).  Some of the other stories the children enjoyed listening to were:
Seed to Apple, by Anita Ganeri,  How do Apples Grow, by Betsy Maestro, and Apples Here, by Will Hubbel.

                

The children really enjoyed making apples prints with apples and apple shaped cookie cutters.  They also painted apple trees at the easel and glued apple cutouts and stickers on to them.

 

 

 

We had an apple taste test.  The children tasted three different types of apples and chose the one they liked the best.  They then colored in the square above the picture of their favorite apple.  The results showed:  Four people liked the granny smith apple, four people liked the red delicious apple and one person liked the macintosh apple.

 

 

 

 

 



 

We love apples!

The children seemed to really enjoy the music class this week with Lisa. Some of the activities included marching to the beat of the drum (and learning to STOP when the drum stops), keeping the steady beat with their bodies (clapping, tapping, and stomping, etc.), and using various rhythm instruments.  The children have also been working on identifying their thumbs and pointer fingers and using them to sing the "Itsy, bitsy, spider."  This small motor movement is excellent for getting them ready for using a pencil or crayon, and for playing an instrument!

The highlight of the week was when the Newton Fire Department visited our school.  The children were so excited, especially when they were able to sit in the fire truck.  Chris (firefighter)  let the children try on his helmet and mask.  It was a wonderful learning experience for the children, as well. He explained to the children what to do in case of a fire.  He also dressed up in his firefighters gear and explained the purpose of each piece of equipment.

 

 



We concluded our week by making delicious apple sauce.  The children loved using the "magic apple peeler." They got so excited every time they turned the handle on the peeler and watched the apple being peeled and sliced at the same time.



Newsletter September 13, 2013

Dear Parents,


The Quarter Notes have done an amazing job settling into our classroom.   The children are beginning to learn our classroom routines.  It is so exciting watching the children make new friendships and how they are beginning to negotiate the use of the toys. 

 

 

 

 

 

They all participated in making ”Mat Man" a figure representing a person, constructed out of wooden shapes.  They then, each drew their own self portraits, which we adorned our classroom bulletin board with.  They were all so proud of their accomplishments.  They also created and decorated mirrors.  They used them to look at themselves and then to describe what they saw.

 The children enjoyed listening to stories which were "All About me."  We had some great discussions about ourselves such as, what color hair and eyes we have and our favorite activities.  Some of the stories we listened to were: My Hands, by Aliki, The Crown on Your Head, by Nancy Tillman, I Love You Book, by Todd Parker.  It’s All about Me by, Nancy Cote.  
 

They also seemed to love singing songs, playing instruments and dancing.  The children created a classroom song book which included every one's favorite part of their body. The book is called "This Song is All About Me."  Some of the new songs we learned this week are: “Make New Friends but, Keep the Old" and "I am Special," and "The More we Get Together."  
Finally, the children have enjoyed participating in music class with Lisa.  Some the highlights were:  Making rhythms with rhythm sticks, singing and dancing. 

 

We concluded our week by making delicious face cookies. The children loved decorating the delicious cookies as well as eating them.

 

Next week we look forward to another fun-filled week.  We will be learning about fall fruits (mainly apples). 

Love,
 
Ms. Bonne and
Ms. Barbara

 

 

  

 

Dear Parents,

We had so much fun preparing for our "Beach Party."  The children made binoculars which they decorated with fish and shell stickers.  They also enjoyed making aquariums. The children  first decorated the outside of a plastic container with fish, frogs and other sea stickers.  They then filled it with various beach items such as shells, frogs, glitter, and blue water into the container and then covered it.  The results were spectacular.  The children were so excited  when they shook their aquarium while watching the fish and frog swimming around.  We even made edible aquariums with blue Jell-O and gummy fish.  Mmm....was it good!

The highlight of the week came when we had our "beach party."  The children were so excited  with all the activities.  They didn't know which one to go to first.  They had so much fun decorating beach balls and  playing with them as well.  The children also decorated visors with beach themed stickers, which they immediately tried on.  After completing all the activities in the classroom Michelle took the children out into the hallway and read them stories, while I hid pictures of whales throughout the classroom.  The children then came back into the classroom with their binoculars, searching for whales. After each child found a whale  they sat down on their towel.  I then showed them a picture of various whales and they held up their matching picture. We then discussed what each whale eats and how big they grew to.

 

 

After finishing all the classroom activities the children sat down on their blankets and had a delicious picnic lunch.  They all looked so adorable sitting on their towels, dressed in bathing suits, and wearing their beach visors. We then had a discussion about all of the things we learned about this year.  Some of themes included: 

• All About Me
• Experimenting with Mixing Colors
• Nature
• Animals (pet houses)
• Thanksgiving and Halloween
• Teddy Bear Picnic
• Seasons
• Christmas, Hanukkah
• Animals in Winter
• Penguin Colony
• Chinese New Year/ Making Dumplings
• The Five Senses 
• Counting Books
• Passover and Easter
• Nutrition Unit
• Baking
• Science Experiments
• Spring and Planting Flowers
• Magnets
• Magnetic boats and Race Track
• Feelings Book
• Under the Sea Unit
• Music
• Alphabet

We then talked about each child's favorite activity this year, and this is what they said:
~ "I liked making the dog house," Caleb
~"I liked making the snowman," Jack
~ " I liked making the "Rainbow Fish, "Julia
~ "I had lots of fun decorating a beach ball at our beach party'," Alison
~ "I liked making the big turkey," Jacob
~ "I had fun playing with the magnetic boat I made,"
~ "I liked doing puzzles," Benjamin
~"I liked making the sailboats,"Lajos
~"I had fun making a beach ball and a visor at the beach party," Rachel
~"I liked playing in  the gym," William
~"I love the aquariums, and the party" Eli

We ended the school year with a great concert, graduation, and indoor barbecue.  The children did an excellent job singing, and playing instruments.  Thank you for contributing all the delicious food.  Everything was delicious!

I would have to say that this was the best year yet!  It has been an amazing year watching the children grow both socially and academically right in front of my eyes.

I would especially like to thank you for all your support throughout the year and for all your contributions to the classroom such as:  Bringing in fruit each week; cutting the wood for the boats; fixing the closet lock; and donating coffee boxes and wipes.  As the saying goes, "Great parents

have great children" and that certainly couldn't be any truer!

 

Lots of Love,

 

Ms.  Bonne