Acorns

The kids in the Lucky Ducks have found acorns to be quite fascinating.  On the playground the majority of the class decided to gather acorns.  We have also planted an acorn on Tuesday.

We are following their lead and have changed some of our choice time activities to go along with their interest.  

This week during choice time we are:

painting with acorns

sink or float with acorns

counting acorns

Check out some fun photos from our choice time this week.

September 21, 2014

The Lucky Ducks are settling into the classroom nicely.  We are continuing to practice our classroom routine and responding to both individual names and the phrase Lucky Ducks.

This week in the Lucky Ducks:

Story:  Ten Red Apples up on Top

My Five Senses - Aliki

Small Groups:

Math: Counting Apples book

Math: Apple picking with tweezers.  Students will count and move the correct number of apples.

Fine Motor: - Lacing and Decorating Apple cards

Literacy - Letter matching to make their own name

Ducks in a Pond - Students will match 11 ducks to the correct colored spot in the pond.

Writing: - Journal Page - In the fall I like to....

Choice Time:

Rug - Doll Houses

Science Center - Exploring our fingerprints with magnifying glasses

Writing Center - Science Journal

Art - Leaf Rubbings

Blocks - wooden blocks

What's coming up

Back to School Night, Wednesday, October 15th.  The Lucky Duck session will be held 

from 6:30-7.  This is a parent only event.  During this evening we will be sharing about our classroom routine and expectations as well as discussing our curriculum.  Although I will have a sign up sheet for conferences for this day, this will not be a time for individual conferences.  If you have any concerns prior to conference day please email, call or speak with me after all the children have been dismissed and I would be happy to meet with you.

We will also be hosting a Book Fair during this week.  More information will follow.

9-15-2014

All About Me

This week we will continue learning about classroom expectations and routines while we get to know each other.  

Please remember to send in an extra set of clothes that we may keep here at school.  Please label the clothing.

Preschool Life Skills #1 Response to Name.  When a teacher calls your name, you stop, look and say 'yes'.

Our Stories for this week include:
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom- by Bill Martin Jr.

The Kissing Hand - Audrey Penn

Handwriting -

Peeling stickers

Playing with playdough with googly eyes and pipe cleaners

Play Dough Mats - making playdough coconuts (rolling balls) to put on palm trees that match the numeral on the mat. For example, the mat with numeral 3 will have 3 coconuts

Rip and Glue Green Paper to make our Coconut Tree Leaves

 

Small Groups - We are starting the year with "All about me"
Painting a brown trunk

Decorating a journal page for our first class book Lucky Duck Lucky Duck who do you see?

Using Bingo Markers on the first letter of the student's names to hang on our Chicka Chicka Boom Look Who's in the Lucky Duck  Room

Choice TimeDramatic Play - Kitchen
Blocks - Cardboard Blocks

Alphabet Puzzles
Art- Kissing Hand - Raccoon Mask
Rug - Legoes
Sensory - Sand
Table - Mr. Potato Head

Music
We incorporate music throughout our day as a motor break or transition.  We also set aside some time at the end of the day to dance and sing as well.  Children are typically given the choice of songs to sing.  Some songs may include - sticky sticky bubble gum, 5 little ducks put your finger on your head.

First Day!

We had a great first day of school.  We read the Kissing Hand and made a special project with it.  We also talked about how we felt about being in school.  We are keeping some of the children's art work to decorate our classroom as well as for our student portfolios.  They will all be returned at the end of the year.

Please check back for our pictures from our first week - I hope to update the blog on Friday.
Thank you.

First Week of School

Thank you for coming to our open house.  It was great to meet so many new friends.

This week we will be learning about classroom expectations and routines while we get to know each other.  Some of the activities will include our morning greeting song - Hello ____. The children have the choice to bounce on or roll a big ball while we sing.

Please remember to send in an extra set of clothes that we may keep here at school.  Please label the clothing.

Preschool Life Skills are an important component of our preschool curriculum.  A complete list can be found on the top of this page.  Our first life skill is Response to Name.  When a teacher calls your name, you stop, look and say 'yes'.

Our curriculum Opening the World of Learning (OWL) - develops and understanding of literacy through reading a variety of stories multiple times throughout the unit.  This provides for students to have a deeper understanding of the story, supports understanding vocabulary as well as retelling familiar stories.

Our Stories for this week include:
Preschool Day Hooray - Linda Strauss
The Kissing Hand - Audrey Penn

Handwriting - We will be exploring a variety of materials during this time to strengthen our hands to get ready to write properly.  Students will progress as they are developmentally ready with this task.  We are starting this week with exploring playdough -squeezing, pulling, and pushing the dough.

Small Groups - We are starting the year with "All about me"
Self Portraits
Decorating Name Tags
Decorating Birthday Crowns
Coloring Birthday Cakes and Candles
My Favorite Color is - students will glue items of that color on the paper.


Choice Time
Dramatic Play - Kitchen
Puzzles
Art- Kissing Hand - Hand Prints
Rug - Roads and Car Garages
Sensory - Sand
Writing Center - playing with stamps


Music
We incorporate music throughout our day as a motor break or transition.  We also set aside some time at the end of the day to dance and sing as well.  Children are typically given the choice of songs to sing.  Some songs may include - sticky sticky bubble gum, 5 little ducks and going to Kentucky

Monday- Wednesday we will be finishing up our Gingerbread Unit

Monday- Wednesday we will be finishing up our Gingerbread Unit

When we return to school, we will begin our next unit.

Unit 3 SNOW weeks 1 & 2

This week we will begin our unit on SNOW. We are so lucky to have such an abundance of it to explore in our yard. As soon as the temperatures warms up a bit, we will be able to play in it at school.

Here are the theme concepts for this unit:

• When it is very cold, sometimes it snows instead of raining
• Snow comes from the clouds
• Every snowflake is different
• Animals and people need protection from the cold and the snow
• Some animals hibernate during the winter  months
• Tools and machines keep us safe when it snows such as shovels and snowplows
• There are many ways to enjoy the snow
• When the temperature gets warmer, the snow melts
• 
  

Questions for the unit:

• What is snow?
• When does it snow?
• Where does the snow come from?
• What do you wear when it snows?
• Where does it snow?
• What happens when it snows?
• After the snow falls, what happens to it?
• What can you do in the snow?

Week of January 4

Books for the week:

Goodnight Baby Bear by Frank Asch

Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

Small Groups:

1. Making Pairs - Students today used their language skills to describe a mitten. The other students selected the described mitten to make a pair.

2. Getting Dressed for winter - Students are coloring clothes needed for the winter. Attention is given to the details of this project as they need to make the mittens match each other. After coloring, the students will be cutting out and assembling the pieces to get themselves dressed for winter. This is a two day group.

3. Winter home habitats - Students will be creating bear caves and learning about hibernation.

Let's Find out About It - The states of water, hibernation, and winter clothing

We have a great choice time this week:  

Snowball Toss Target

Choice time:

Art Table: Making snowflakes from coffee filters

Easel: Snowflake pictures with stencils

Block Area: Snowball toss - students crumple pieces of paper and throw them at the snowflake
Library Area: Snow themed books
Sensory Table: snow with mittens

Writing Table: writing/tracing winter words and playing with winter stamps

Dramatic Play: Let's get dressed up for winter

Rug Toy: Legos

Welcome to Lucky Ducks

Welcome to the Lucky Ducks!

We are busy getting our classroom ready and can't wait to meet all of you at the Open House on Thursday, September 4th at 9:00.