Dear Parents,
S….so it looks like there’s SNOW way out of this impending blizzard! Our lesson plans for the week may be subject to a few changes depending on what Mother Nature decides to dump on us. In any event……stay warm and safe everybody!!! Fingers crossed that March will come in like a lion, BUT out like a lamb!!!!
This past week in “Circle Time”, we introduced the letter “Ss”. The children learned that S is an unreliable letter that often makes sounds other than the base (s) sound. For example: (s) as in snake, Stella and Sarah and (sh) as in shark. To highlight the letter we star-studded S and made some sensational, sequined seahorses!
During our “Circle Time” discussions we read Sharks by Catherine Nichols. The children were fascinated to learn that some sharks are as big as a school bus (whale shark) and some are so small they can fit in the palm of your hand (Cookie cutter shark)! With illustrations on every page, the children soon memorized the names of nearly every shark. Ask them which sharks people are afraid of most (Great White)! We also learned about spiders. Ask your children why spiders are NOT insects. (Spiders have eight legs while insects only have six.)
Snakes with their flicking tongues, unblinking stares, incredible agility and no visible arms or legs were topics of conversations this past week as well. The children seemed fascinated by certain special interest snakes like Rattlesnakes! Naturally we had to have some fun with a “Rattlesnake Eggs” prank! The envelope warned of the dangers and the children were beyond curious. They’d learned that rattlesnakes are best known for their rattles and that when you hear it, you should RUN! They knew what the word “venomous” meant but were confident that these eggs wouldn’t hatch till spring. So, several victims, including Joey, Cydni and Erica volunteered to open the envelope and report to us what the tiny eggs looked like! Little did they know that inside the envelope, there was a rubber band assembly that uncoiled, causing a loud rattling sound as if the eggs had hatched. All three of them boldly stepped forward to open the envelope. ALL courageous…..UNTIL….the rattle sounded!!! PRICELESS!!!
This past week we also learned to let our fingers do the talking!!! The children learned that just like learning a foreign language, sign language opens up a new path of communication, especially with the hearing impaired. Using American Sign Language we taught the children to sing and sign “Each of Us is a Flower”. They were not only interested but a lot of them acquired it easily! It’s a great skill to learn at an early age. It went like this:
Chorus:
Each of us is a flower
Growing in life’s garden
Each of us is a flower
We need the sun and rain.
Verse:
Sun, shine your warmth on me
Moon, cool me with your night
Wind, bring the gentle rain
Earth, take my roots down deep.
I’m confident your child will be thrilled to practice his/her “secret language” with you! Ask them to sign “I love you!!”
We also thought that since we based all our learning around the letter “S”, it might be a good time to get out the anti-smoking message. We discussed the health risks and the importance of making good choices.
Two more “S” words that we had some fun with last week was Solar System.
The sun, moon, stars and planets are fascinating to young children who see the stars twinkle in the night sky. They learned that there are eight planets since Pluto has been left out in the cold. We learned that there is no evidence of life on other planets. Ask them which planet is closest to the sun (Mercury), and why we can’t live there! (too hot) Ask them which planet is the largest (Jupiter) and which one has the rings around it (Saturn). Ask why Mars is called the “red” planet! (red soil) To demonstrate the planets sizes and locations in the Solar System, we used a Styrofoam kit. We positioned the planets around the sun for some totally far out fun!
We also did some scarf dancing this past week. Dancing in the nursery is already fun, and adding scarves to the mix brings the entertainment to a whole new level! We held our brightly colored scarves by a corner and waved them around in time to “Let’s Go Fly a Kite”! Everyone got very creative!
Our flip-chart song for the week was:
Ss (to the tune Row, Row, Row Your Boat)
Sing, sing, sing a song,
Sing a silly song.
Singily, jingily,
Ringily, swingily,
Won’t you sing along?
We continue to review our numbers, colors and shapes. This week’s letter focus will be “Tt.” To keep the children immersed in the learning, on Tuesday and Wednesday (weather permitting) we will have a tea party!! On Thursday and Friday, it will be all about the GREEN! As we prepare to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, encourage your child to spread some Irish cheer by wearing green on those two days.
The FOLLOWING week we will reinforce the concept that letter U always follows Q in words. On Wednesday, March 22nd we will unite those two letters in matrimony! The nursery’s Royal Wedding will be complete with music, decorations, ceremony and reception. Your child is encouraged to bring a gift for the happy couple but it must start with a Q or U. (i.e.: Q-tips, umbrella, Quaker oats, ukulele, quarter). Please see attached formal invitation. We will be selecting a bride and groom to represent letters Q & U by drawing names from a hat. This will take place on Monday 3/13. We will share our winners in the next newsletter!
“Wishin’ you a pot o’gold and all the joy your heart can hold”. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Warmly,
Miss Joanne and Miss Sam
March Birthdays:
Fiona 3/23
Dates to Remember:
March 14th & 15th Tea parties!
March 16th & 17th St. Patrick’s Day parties!! WEAR GREEN!
March 22nd THE ROYAL WEDDING OF LETTERS Q & U!