Week of September 22, 2014

Week of September 22, 2014

Theme: Let's Be Friends

Nursery Rhyme: Little Miss Muffet

This week we will continue to focus on classroom rules and routines. We will also be focusing on building friendships and qualities that make a good friend. The children will explore ways that friends help each other and show that they care about each other. They will read stories in which unlikely characters, such as a goose and a bear, and a lion and a mouse, become friends. In addition, children will talk about how sharing toys, listening, and sharing their feelings are important not only to a friendship, but also to creating a friendly, cooperative classroom environment.

Learning together:

• Have your child invite a friend over to play. After the visit, discuss things that your child and his or her friend did that were fun.
• Talk with your child about your friends. Explain why these people are your friends and describe the kinds of things you enjoy doing with them.
• Get one of the Frog and Toad books from the local library and read it with your child. Talk about what makes these characters good friends.
• After school each day, talk with your child about what he or she did during the day. Begin by sharing what you did during the day and then pose questions designed to elicit more than "yes or no" answers. For example, ask: What songs did you sing today? What new things did you learn? Which activity was the most fun for you today? Why? What stories did your teacher read aloud? What new friends did you make? What have you brought home from school to share?

Some stories that we will enjoy as a class this week include: Max and Mo's First Day at School, Bear's New Friend, and of course my favorite character, Pete the Cat: The New Guy. All of these stories include the theme of friendship, how to be a friend and how to be a friend to a new friend. 

This week in the gym we will be practicing skills such as balancing, jumping and hopping while going through an obstacle course. The children will work together to complete block towers. We will practice counting by making "pepperoni pizza" that match the one the children are shown. We will also work on following directions and using our nice words please and thank you while playing games. 

I am compiling the class roster and will have it out by Monday of next week, once I have everyone's paperwork in. We have some new faces in our classes; in our a.m. class we have two new friends: Hunter and Andrew and in our p.m. class we have one new friend Ava. We will continue to add children throughout the school year and as that happens I will update the class roster.

At least once a week your child will receive a special daily note letting you know what they did that day at school. This can provide some information that will spark a conversation with your child about their day at school.