Group Meeting:  The children finished their October Math Journals today and are bringing them home.  Please take a few minutes to look through them.

Story: The morning class had the story Where's My Mummy? by Carolyn Crimi.  Little Mummy is playing hide and seek with Big Mummy when he gets lost.  As he looks for her he sees a skeleton, a glob, and a vampire, but he is not afraid of them.  Then he sees a little mouse.  He is very afraid of it.  Big Mummy comes to the rescue.

The afternoon class story was A Very Scary Jack-o-Lantern by Joanne Barkan.  Elliott wants to carve a very scary jack-o-lantern.  He asks his grandfather for help.  Grandfather tells him that he must follow a black cat, a ghost, and a skeleton to find the witches house.  She will have a pumpkin for him.  This is a glow in the dark book.  To see the pictures glow, we needed a dark room with no windows.  We used the girls restroom.  The children thought that it was very silly to stand in the girls restroom for story time, but the pictures were worth it!

Small Groups:  The children learned about the life cycle of a pumpkin in the Let's Find Out Magazine.  They completed the words on the back page and matched the colors.  I thought that this activity would be hard for them, but they did it very well.

Large Group:  The yellow group brought items for show and tell today.

Snacks:  The morning class had Scooby snacks, grapes, and milk brought by Gus.  The afternoon class had cheese sticks, pretzels, and juice brought by Kennedy.  Thank you!

Monday will be our Halloween party.  The children may wear their costumes to school.

Group Meeting:  We are learning a few songs to sing at Senior Star on Halloween.  We worked on these a little bit today.

Story:  Our story for today was Ten Orange Pumpkins, A Counting Book by Stephen Savage.  This book started with a 10 pumpkins.  A Halloween character on each page took one pumpkin away as we counted down to 1.  The children enjoyed seeing the pumpkins disappear.  Ask your child to tell you what animal appeared on every page.

Small Groups:  The activities for small groups are listed in Monday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1 Green Group
Activity #1 Red Group
Activity #3 Yellow Group

Large Group:  The children participated in an obstacle course.  They had to run around cones, walk across a balance beam and throw a bean bag at a ghost.  It was a good gross motor game for a cold rainy day.

Snacks:  The morning class had applesauce, granola bars, and milk brought by Colin.  The afternoon class had peanut butter, jelly, bread, and juice brought by Journey.  Thank you!

Halloween planning

Story:  Our story for today was The Little Old Lady Who Wasn't Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams.  A little old lady takes a walk in the forest to collect spices and herbs.  When it starts to get dark, she turns around to go home.   On her way home, she sees two shoes, a pair of pants, a shirt, a hat, a pair of gloves, and a jack-o-lantern that are making scary noises (ask your child to make the noises), but she is not afraid.  When she gets back to her house, the things have followed her.  What will she do with them?

Small Groups:  The activities for this week are listed in yesterday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1 Yellow Group
Activity #2 Green Group
Activity #3 Red Group

Large Group:  Yesterday, the children made a list of games to play and snacks to eat at our Halloween party.  However, the list was too long.  Today, we voted on which games we would play and which snack we would eat.  To vote, each child was given a plastic chip to put in the container next to the picture of the game that they wanted to play.  The games with the most votes were; Flip Boards with Pumpkins, Ghost Bowling, and Spider Web Walking.  They also voted for a snack.  The winner was pumpkin cut out cookies to decorate with frosting and sprinkles.  Now, we have to get to work getting things ready.

Snacks:  The morning class had grapes, cheese sticks, and milk brought by Cael.  The afternoon class had bread, peanut butter, jelly, and juice brought by Holden.  Thank you!

It's time to get ready for Halloween

Group Meeting:  The children have been telling me for two weeks that Halloween is coming, and that we need to get ready.  So for the next three days, we will be participating in Halloween activities and making Halloween decorations.  Our party will be on Monday.  For our opening song today, we did "If You're a Kid: Halloween re-mix" by Harry Kindergarten Music.

Story:  The story for today was Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman.  In this story, a witch has planted a pumpkin seed.  It grows and grows into a big pumpkin.  She would like to make pumpkin pie on Halloween, but the pumpkin is too heavy for her to move.   A ghost, a vampire, and a mummy, come to help her, but it is to heavy for them as well.  Finally, someone comes along with an idea.  Ask your child to tell you who the hero of the story is and why.

Small Groups:  The activities and schedule for today is as follows:
 Activity #1 (red group) The children played a board game in which the pieces were added according to how many syllables were in a selected Halloween word.  If the word had one syllable, it was added to the ghost line which also has one syllable.  If it had two syllables, it was added to the monster line. To help the children understand syllables, I use clapping.  A clap represents a syllable.
 Activity #2 (yellow group) The children sorted pictures of monsters.  They selected the categories such as color, eyes, spots, etc.  
Activity #3 (green group)The children counted pumpkins, added the correct amount of chips onto a 10 frame and added the correct numeral. 

Large Group:  The children helped me brainstorm some ideas for our Halloween party.  We thought of several game and snack ideas.  Tomorrow, we will vote for our favorites.  We are also learning a few Halloween songs to sing at Senior Star.

Snacks:  The morning class had graham crackers and milk by Brogan.  The afternoon class had Goldfish and juice brought by Ellie.  Thank you!

Fire Prevention Day

Group Meeting: We discussed fire prevention today.  Our opening song was "Hurry, Hurry, Drive the Firetruck".  We conducted a fire drill following our story.
The afternoon welcomed a new student to our class.  Her name is Elliott.

Story:  The story for today was It's Time for a Fire Drill by Steve Metzger.  In this story, Albert's preschool class is going to have a fire drill.  Mrs. Dee tells them that when the alarm sounds, they should all line up to go outside.  Albert is afraid of the loud alarm.  Mrs. Dee tells him that although the alarm is loud, it is a good sound.  It is the sound of children being safe from fire.  When the alarm goes off, Albert realizes that it is not as loud as he thought it would be. 
Our preschool cannot set off the alarms without the fire department being notified first.  For now, we will pretend, but someday we will sound the alarm to let the children know what it sounds like.

Small Groups:  The children completed the "Let's Find Out" leaflet about fire safety.  Take a few minutes to review this at home.

Large Group:  The red group brought items for show and tell.  We also completed the letter H page in our workbooks.

Snacks:  The morning class had cinnamon graham crackers and milk brought by Ben.  The afternoon class had oranges and milk brought by Ella.  Thank you!

 Group Meeting:  As the children arrive at school, one of their tasks before Group Meeting is to sign in.  I've noticed that the children have improved greatly in printing their names.   Please encourage your child to practice at home, remembering to start all letters at the top.  They have learned a song to help them remember this.

Story:  Our story for today was Tomas' and the Library Lady by Pat Mora.  Tomas' family are migrant workers.  In the winter, they pick fruit in Texas.  In the summer, they help the harvest in Iowa.  As Tomas' travels back and forth, his grandfather shares stories with him.  However, Tomas' has heard all of grandfather's stories.  Grandfather encourages him to visit the library.  Tomas' has never been to the library before.  He is amazed at the size of the building and amount of books in the library.  A very nice library lady helps him find books that he enjoys.  Now as he is riding back and forth in the car, he has books to help him enjoy the ride.  Ask your child to tell you what Tomas' favorite book topics are.

Small Groups:  The activities for small groups are listed in Monday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1 Green Group
Activity #2 Red Group
Activity #3 Yellow Group

Large Group:  Yesterday, we made a list of things that we know about roads.  Today, we came up with a few things that we would like to learn about roads.  I'll be sharing that soon.
We also did Wet, Dry, Try for the letter H.

Snacks:  The morning class had oranges, animal crackers, and juice brought by Angel.  The afternoon class had pretzels and juice provided by the preschool.  Charlie was supposed to be the snack helper today, but was ill.  We hope he is better soon.

Group Meeting:  Mrs. Hoogheem was absent again today.  She has grandchildren from Michigan visiting her.  She will be back tomorrow.  It is also her birthday tomorrow, but don't tell her that I told you:)  Our sub for today was Mrs. Smith.  Some of the children were familiar with Mrs. Smith from last year, but for some, she was a new teacher.

Story:  The story that I read today was Hooray, A Pinata by Elisa Kleven.   Clara is planning her birthday party.  She will have cake, balloons and a pinata.  Her friend, Samson goes with her to the pinata store to pick one out.  She selects a puppy pinata.  Clara becomes very fond of her pinata, treating it like a real dog.  When it's time to get ready for the party, she doesn't want to break it.  Samson has a solution.  Ask your child to tell you what he does to make Clara feel better.

Small Groups:  The activities for this week are listed in yesterdays post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1 Yellow Group
Activity #2 Green Group
Activity #3 Red Group

Large Group:  Now that we have talked about roads for a few days, we made a list of everything that we know about roads.  Tomorrow, we will think of things that we want to learn about roads.  I will share the lists when we are finished.  We also went to the Outdoor Classroom.  We never know how many more nice days were are going to get.

Snacks:  The morning class had peanut butter crackers and milk brought by Andon.  The afternoon class had oyster crackers, apple slices, and milk brought by Beckett.  Thank you!

Group Meeting:  We received new paint sticks for the art table.  I showed the children how to use them if they should want to go to the art table during play time. 

Story:  I read the book Machines on the Road by Sian Smith. This is a non-fiction book with lots of pictures of cars, trucks, buses, etc. that travel on the road.  The book described the function of each machine.  The last picture in the book was a steam roller.  The text asked if we could identify the function of this machine.  Ask you child to see if he/she remembers.

Small Groups:  The activities and schedule for small groups this week are:

Activity #1 The children played a game in which they had to match rhyming picture words such as king/ring, boat/goat, etc.  (red group)
Activity #2 The children made small towers using the Unifix cubes.  Then they had to make towers that had more or fewer depending which the spinner indicated.  We are working on using the words more or fewer/less.  (yellow group)
Activity #3 The children took turns throwing a bean bag into a Halloween pail.  After it landed, they had to describe where it landed such as in, next to, beside, in front of, or behind. (green group)

Large Group:  We went outside to look at the parking lot.  We noticed that the hard surface was made up of a lot of rocks held together by black stuff.  We will be learning about how roads are made later in our study.  A note concerning our new study was sent home today.

Snacks: The morning class had crackers, cheese, salami, and juice brought by Addelyn.  The afternoon class had Cinnamon Toast Crunch and milk brought by Ashlyn.  Thank you!

Group Meeting:  Today was Birthday Day.   We had one birthday in the morning, but none in the afternoon. 

Story:  The story for today was 20 Big Trucks In the Middle of the Street by Mark Lee.  An ice cream truck breaks down in the middle of the street.  Other trucks come upon it, but cannot move around it.  In all, 20 trucks are stuck in the middle of the street.  A young boy has an idea of how to get traffic moving.  Ask your child to tell you the solution.

Small Groups:  The children made Apple Crescents for snack.  Each child was given a Pillsbury crescent dough triangle and an apple.  The apple was placed on the wide end of the triangle and was then sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.  The children rolled up the apple in the crescent and put it on the cookie sheet to bake.  It tasted just like apple pie.

Large Group:  Six children brought items for Show and Tell.  Everyone has now had one turn.  We will start over again next week.

Snacks:  The children enjoyed the Apple Crescents and Birthday Brownies with juice.

Maps

Group Meeting:  We have three new floor puzzles.  I introduced them to the children as they will be available during play time.

Story:  Our story for today was Walk on Maps by Mel Campbell.  This is the story of Anthony who will be attending a new school.  He lives close enough to the school to walk.  His father has drawn a map of the streets in his neighborhood.  Together they select the best route to get to school.   The book had pictures of street signs and school crossing signs.  As you are traveling in your vehicle, point out signs to your child along the way.

Small Groups:  The activities for this week are listed in Monday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1  Green Group
Activity #2 Red Group
Activity #3 Yellow Group

Large Group:  Following our story, I displayed a road map of Iowa.  I pointed out Bettendorf, Davenport, and DeWitt (my home).  I also pointed out Des Moines which is where the teachers went to the inservice training two weeks ago.  Some children were familiar with Ames, Iowa City, and the Mississippi River. 
We also learned two new songs today; "Where Do You Start Your Letters?" and "Boom a Chicka Boom".

Snacks:  The morning class had graham crackers and juice provided by Topher.  Topher was absent today due to illness.  We hope he is back tomorrow.  The afternoon class had Goldfish and juice brought by Addison.  Thank you!

Let's Take a Look at Roads

Group Meeting:  We have been observing our cut apples for about three weeks now.  They are shriveled up, brown, and are starting to mold.  Curiously however, they smell good, kind of like apple cider.  We will place them outside now in the dirt along side of the north door.  We can still keep an eye on them as they break down into the soil.

Story:  I read The Berenstain Bears and the Big Road Race by Stan Berenstain.   Brother Bear is entering a road race.  His car is small and slower than the other four cars.   Will he be able to win the race?  Ask your child to tell you how Brother Bear won.

Small Groups:  The activities for this weeks small groups are listed in yesterday's post.  Today's schedule was:
Activity #1 Yellow Group
Activity #2 Green Group
Activity #3 Red Group

Large Group:   I showed the children two pictures of roads; a paved and a gravel.  I asked them where they would see these types of roads.  I asked them if they had used paved roads or gravel roads to get to school.  Then we took our journals outside and sat on the sidewalk next to Utica Ridge Road.  The children drew pictures of what they saw.  We have some great documentation of roads!

Snack:   The morning class had animal crackers, grapes, and juice brought by Taylor.  The afternoon class had bread, peanut butter and juice brought by Wesley.  Thank you!

Group Meeting:  During group meeting, we reviewed our trip to Cinnamon Ridge Farm.  The children shared their favorite parts of the trip.  They remembered a lot!

Story:  I am considering starting a study on roads which would include road construction, maps, how people use roads, and bridges.  To help gather some information on what the children might be interested in, I read the story Miles To Go by Jamie Harper.   Miles is the name of a preschooler who takes his petal car to school.  His mom follows him as he drives down the sidewalk avoiding obstacles and seeing friends a long the way.  Following the story, we talked about how we get to school everyday.  We will continue our discussion tomorrow. 

Small Groups:  The activities for small groups this week and the schedule for today are:

Activity #1 (red group) The children will roll a letter dice, find the matching letter on their Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree and stamp the letter with a dauber.  When your child brings his or hers home, ask them to identify the letters that they stamped. 
Activity #2 (yellow group)  The children played number bingo with the numerals 1-20.
Activity #3  (green group)  The children read through the "Let's Find Out" magazine about Autumn with the teacher and completed the activities on the page.

Large Group:  We are learning about the letter E this week.  We learned the words to the letter E song.  We went to the Outdoor Classroom.  We took out bubbles and large bubble wands.  I've attached a few pictures.

Snacks:  The morning class had graham crackers and juice brought by Scarlett.  The afternoon class had carrots, ranch dip, oyster crackers and juice brought by Vivian.  Thank you!

Preparing for our field trip

Group Meeting:  We are prepared for our field trip tomorrow.  I informed the children of what we can expect when we get the farm.  I'm sure everyone is going to be a good listener.  We will go rain or shine, so dress accordingly.  A jacket and/or boots might be a good idea if it is raining.  I sent a map home with everyone today so that you can make driving plans.  We will meet at the preschool at arrival time.

Story:  Our story today was Growing Pumpkins by Melvin Berger.  This non-fiction book has wonderful pictures of the pumpkin seeds, vines, leaves, blossoms, and pumpkins.  The only thing that the book left out was how the flowers are pollinated.  Ask your child to tell you what needs to "dance" on the flower before a pumpkin will grow.

Small Groups:  The activities for small groups are listed in Monday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1  Green Group
Activity #2 Red Group
Activity #3 Yellow Group

Large Group:  The children completed the L page in the HWTears  workbooks.  We opened a tub that contains 6 toys that start with the F sound. 

Snacks:  The morning class had cheese crackers and juice brought by Owen.  The afternoon class had graham crackers, peanut butter, and juice brought by Simon.  Thank you!

Story:  Today I read The Leaves on the Trees by Thom Wiley.   This book uses the words of a song to describe the different kinds of leaves on a tree.  The melody was from "The Wheels on the Bus".  After the story, we talked about the different shapes of leaves on trees.  Have your child look at the leaves on the trees in your yard.  What shapes do they make?  Do you know what kind of tree it is?

Small Group:  The activities for small group are listed in yesterday's post.  The schedule for today was:
Activity #1  Yellow Group
Activity #2 Green Group
Activity #3 Red Group

Large Group:  The children sang the song "The Ant, the Bug, and the Bee" that we learned yesterday.  Their workbooks have a coloring page with the directions to color the ants black, the lady bugs red, and the bees yellow.  This is a good page for following directions and it gives us practice in holding the crayon the correct way.

Snacks:  The morning class had granola bars, grapes, and milk brought by Mason.  The afternoon class had carrots, ranch and juice brought by Paxton.  Thank you!

We went outside for a few minutes to enjoy this beautiful day.  Mrs. Hoogheem took a parachute out for the children to enjoy.  I tried to snap a few pictures.

The Ant, the Bug and the Bee

Group Meeting:  The children have new Math Journals for October.  We took a look at them and colored the pumpkin on the front.

Story:  Today's story was The Fox and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson.  Fletcher, a fox, notices that his favorite tree is turning brown.  He thinks that it is sick.  One day, a leaf falls off of the tree.  He chases after it and sticks it back on.  However, more leaves begin to fall.  He is worried that the tree will soon have no leaves.  A squirrel takes a few leaves for his nest.  A porcupine takes a few to use as a blanket.  Ask your child tell you what happens to the tree at the end of the story.  What will happen to the tree in the spring?

Small Groups:  These are the small group activities for this week along with the schedule for today.

Activity #1  The children will be introduced to a new alphabet game.  The game pieces are Popsicles with upper and lower case letters printed on them that fit together to make a large Popsicle.
Activity #2  The children are introduced to Unifix cubes that we use for counting and measuring.
Activity #3  The children listen to the story Picking Apples and Pumpkins.  This book will help us prepare for our field trip to the farm on Thursday.

Large Group:  The letter for this week is F.  We learned the F song.  We also learned a new song that will help us learn to make lines that go up, down, and around.  It is called "The Ant, the Bug and the Bee".  Hopefully, by the end of the week, your child will be singing a few lines from this song for you.