December Week 3: Jingle Bells

Transition Song: Must Be Santa.  The children are getting very good with this!

Vocabulary and Basic Concepts: high/low, fast/slow, over/under, front/back, shake, bells

This week Miss Carrie pulled out jingle bells for everyone.  In previous years, we went caroling to the front office and an older classroom here and there.  Since we couldn't do that this year, we sang in our classrooms and then danced to holiday music.  Teachers followed the children and tried to do all the actions the children were doing.

And we got to WEAR PAJAMAS TO SCHOOL!

(Miss Carrie's phone was playing the music and couldn't take pictures during that time).

DO THIS AT HOME:  No jingle bells?  drum on pots and pans, laundry baskets, or even the floor.  Follow what your child does.  Make up songs, jump around, balance, talk about concepts like high and low.

December Week 2: I like my RED shoes!

 Transition Song:  Must Be Santa by Raffi

Vocabulary: same/different, big/small, like/not like, buckle, zipper, velcro, colors

This week Miss Carrie brought one of her favorite books!  Pete The Cat, I Love My White Shoes.  It's written by Eric Litwin and illustrated by James Dean.

Miss Carrie asked if everyone remembered that she dressed up like Pete The Cat for Halloween.

This time, we read the book.  Everyone sang and clapped or snapped their fingers along with Pete the Cat as we sang "I love my WHITE (Red/Blue/Brown/Wet) shoes!  We shook our head when we said "Goodness, NO!"  We guessed what color would come next.

Then Miss Carrie brought out a big box full of shoes.  There were her Pete The Cat red shoes, there were sparkly shoes, dancing shoes, sandals, boots, shiny gold shoes, and gym shoes.  We found shoes that looked the same and shoes that looked different.  We compared them to the shoes we were wearing to see if they were bigger or smaller.

DO THIS AT HOME:  What can you match at home?  Shoes? Socks? So laundry takes a little bit longer to put away...you're working on language skills! Go you!  What about setting the table?  What is the same and what is different?  Do you use big glasses for the adults and small cups for the kids?  Set the table together and talk about it.  Find opportunities in your everyday routine.  Then do it again the next time.

December Week 1: Silly Sally

 Transition Song:  Must Be Santa

NOTE:  This song goes much faster than we sing it in class.  We sing the first 3 verses.

Vocabulary and Basic Concepts:  front/back, right side up/upside down, forwards/backwards, walking, leapfrog, dancing, jig, singing, tune, loon, dog, pig, sheep, awake/asleep, and /s/.

This week we read the book Silly Sally by Audrey Wood.

Silly Sally went to town, walking backwards, upside down.

Why read a book like this?  There are so many concepts to cover!  And the idea of walking upside down and meeting friends (we have clues on every page who she will meet next) is so much fun!

When we were done we used toys to talk about front, back, right side up, upside down, forwards, and backwards.  We practiced walking forwards and backwards, making sure to look so we didn't crash into friends. We learned new words like jig, loon, and tune.

DO THIS AT HOME:  Find any book where characters are moving.  Can you move like that characters?  What do you need to do?  We didn't practice moving upside down since a school rule is "Feet on floor" so we don't accidentally kick our friends.

Favorite Toys List

 In Preschool, we like toys that don't light up or do the thinking for you. Blocks, kitchen utensils and really boxes, cars/turcks/trains/tractors, puzzles, sorters, art.  Parents are always wondering "What toys are the favorites at preschool?"  Here you go:

The Kid Tough Recycling Truck from Lakeshore Learning.

What's Fun About It:  It's big.  You can put little things in side like dinosaurs, Matchbox cars, blocks, or (kid favorite) crumpled up pieces of paper to recycle. They also have a fire engine that is very popular.

Magnet Tiles from Amazon

What's Fun About It:  fun colors and shapes, great for problem solving as you try ways to put them together.  Also fun to stack.  We like to work on shapes and colors with these. The Magnet Tiles and various versions of them often go on sale on Amazon.

Train Set from IKEA

What's Fun About It:  So. Many. Parts.  Putting together encourages problem solving.  Be warned: many children don't want or feel the need to connect in a continuous circular pattern.  They may make a wavy line that is long.  No stress - this is okay.  Don't offer a better solution that may only be better for you.  Take advantage and talk about the long track, the beginning and the end.  Kids love the trains and also seeing what else they can put on the track that may not even go with it.

ART SUPPLIES:  markers, crayons, scissors, paper, paint, paper punch stamps, ink stamps, glue, yarn, beads, pipe cleaners, stickers, empty cardboard rolls, washi tape and colored masking tape. Oh, the color tape!  Do much fun to create with tape. A lot of local stores will have the tape and art supplies, but also look around your house.  Can you imagine a big box of different art supplies?

Snap Bots from Lakeshore Learning

What's Fun About It:  There are so many ways to create when putting together your own robot.  There is also problem solving when you realize that not every part will fit the way you first try it.  Out Snap bots are from Lakeshore. There are less expensive versions on Amazon.

Kitchen Items: Cash Register, Realistic Play Food, Pots/Pans, Dishes

What's Fun About It: When playing in the kitchen area, we try to use real utensils, plates and cups (unbreakable, of course) and realistic play food and containers.  The children love using the old cell phones to order food, cash register to pay for it, and the kitchen area to cook in.  There is also a pretend microwave, slow cooker, and waffle maker.  They all get used daily.  The kids love to pull out the wok and make the most amazing creations for the teachers to "eat".  Strawberry spaghetti, anyone?

Wood Building Blocks

What's Fun About It:  Your child's imagination is amazing.  There are so  many things they like to build.  Towers, race tracks for matchbox cars, zoos for the toy animals, tunnels, volcanoes.  And there is so much fun in building and wrecking.  Colors or plain wood, it doesn't matter.  Blocks never grow old.

Realistic Looking Animals

What's Fun About It:  It doesn't matter if they are zoo animals, ocean mammals and fish, farm animals, or dinosaurs, kids love playing with them.  They play with dinosaurs at the zoo, farm animals in Lego houses, sharks drive the tractors, and horses gallop everywhere. 

Those are some of the most popular toys.  You can ask your child's teacher to see if your child has a favorite.