January 25, 2013

Dear Parents,

This week we went on an amazing "journey" to Antarctica to visit the penguins.  The children learned several facts about penguins such as: Penguins can't fly but are excellent swimmers.  They are the only bird in the world that can't fly but can swim under water.  There are 17 different species of penguins. The largest penguin is 4 feet tall (emperor penguin) and the smallest is 16 inches tall (the little blue penguin).

After reading about penguins, the children created their own.   First they painted egg cartons, then cut out wings, feet and a beak and finally glued them all together to make an adorable penguin colony, which even included snow and icicles.

We continued our winter animal theme by learning about bears in the winter. We listened to several books about bears and then had a discussion about what bears do to prepare for hibernation. We discovered that bears eat a lot of food and put on an extra layer of fat to prepare for their deep sleep.  They usually go to sleep in October and wake up in April.  Some bears sleep up to 100 days. 

 

After learning about bears the children then made their own hibernating bears.  They made a cave for the bears by gluing a half of a paper plate to dark blue paper (the sky), colored the plate and covered it with coffee grounds.  They then cut out a bear's face and glued it under the cave.  The children  added a tree and a moon. What a spectacular looking scene they created.

We concluded our unit by have a pajama party.  The children prepared for the party by baking delicious teddy bear cookies.   They all sat on their blankets and ate cookies along with a glass of milk and fruit.  They also put on a play called "Goldilocks and the Three Bears."  They  looked so adorable in their pajamas, holding their bears. The children had such a great time, they did not want the day to end.

We look forward to celebrating the Chinese New Year with Irene (William's mom) next Wednesday.

Love,

Ms. Bonne.

January 18, 2013

Dear Parents,

This week we continued our winter theme by making snow globes.  The children were given three pieces of clay which they rolled into balls and pushed them together to make a snowman.  After baking the clay, the children decorated the snowmen with markers and then put them into a clear container filled with water, white glitter and plastic beads. The children were so surprised when they realized that after shaking the jar it actually looked like a snow storm.  They were so excited with them,  that they did not want to put them down all day.

After listening to the the Mitten Story, by Jan Brett the children traced, cut, and decorated their  own mittens. They then played a mitten matching game with lots of different colored mittens.  It was a lot of fun watching the children smile with delite  after they found a matching pair. They also listened to The Hat, by Jan Brett and water colored a hat to match their mittens.

The children had a great time in music this week with Michelle and Yina. They sang and danced with scarves as well as learning some new winter songs.  Some of the songs they sang were "Frosty the Snowman" and "I 'm a Little Snowman."  They also practiced with the rhythm sticks. 

We concluded our week by doing a science experiment.  The children poured vinegar into a water bottle, then poured baking soda into a balloon, using a funnel, and then stretched the mouth of the balloon over the bottle.  The children screamed with excitement as the balloon blew up. It was a great learning experience for the children.  They learned that when mixing two chemicals together you get a chemical reaction which caused the balloon to blow up.

Next week we will be learning about penguins and other animals that live in cold environments.

Love,

Ms. Bonne

Dear Parents,

Suzuki Soft Serve Ice Cream Store

Our class looks like a “Winter Wonderland” with all the amazing snowmen the children created.  They listened to the story Snowballs, by Lois Ehlert and then created their own version.  The children made snow mommies, snow daddies, snow babies and even a snow dog called “Spot.” The children began by choosing materials for their snow figures.  They then traced and cut out three circles for the snowman’s body.

It is amazing how well they have mastered the use of the scissors, in such a short time.  At the beginning of the year, the children did not even know how to hold a scissors and now most of them are able to cut out circles, independently. Please stop by and look at our bulletin boards and table displayed with all their work.

The children designed a great snow scene by making Styrofoam snowmen. They glued Styrofoam balls on top of a Styrofoam cup and then dressed him/her with scarves, hats, buttons and yarn.

This week in music with Michelle and Yina the children learned all about Popsicle stick rhythms.  Previously they had learned pear and apple rhythms and now they are learning strawberry and watermelon rhythms. They used combinations of each, while playing the drums and the resonator bells.  They also were introduced to Allegro (fast) and Andante (slow). They used these words to sing “Twinkle, Twinkle.”

In science, last week the children made frost, using a can, ice, and salt.  Ask your child what happened to the outside of the can after adding salt to the ice water.  This week, the children worked together to make a bottle wave, a bottle tornado, and a bottle fountain.  They really seem to enjoy doing science experiments. I am sure the children will tell you all about it.

Love,

Ms. Bonne