November 2010 Archives

Overview

We've been busy wrapping up our small groups and excited to share our culminating work with our families! The children have been sharing and applying their new knowledge from our small groups in their daily play. Many have been building nests and beehives using hollow blocks; talking about birds and music; and manipulating colors. We will continue exploring animals in winter and with the cold and snow and continue talking about hibernation.

Expressive Arts
We will continue to explore clay and clay tools. There will be different materials available for the children to add to their clay. To extend the color mixing from the light table, we will provide primary colors at the painting easels. Everybody has been adding a piece of our found natural material to our whole class fall sculpture and we plan to finish it up to display this week!!
-Materials: Clay, clay tools, wire, natural materials, easel, paper, red, blue, and yellow paints, paintbrushes, natural materials, yarn, wire, branch.
-Rationale: The clay tools and added material will give the children opportunities to creatively express themselves. The wire and natural materials will allow the children to extend their experiences making collages into creating clay sculptures. The paint color mixing will give the children the opportunity to continue exploring color mixing using primary colors to create new colors. The whole class fall sculpture will build a sense of community and ownership as children continue adding to it.
-Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, observation, sensory input, fine motor, and community strengthening.

Science
We will continue to weave using the weaving looms, using different ribbons and other materials. The children will be encouraged to weave and discuss their weaving patterns. We will also continue to observe the tadpole and talk in-depth with the children about things they've noticed about the tadpole. For example, observations about size and other physical changes. The light table will have the different color shapes for exploration.
-Materials: Weaving looms, ribbons, other long materials, tadpole tank, magnifying glasses, paper, colored pencils, primary colored shapes.
-Skills: Scientific inquiry, peer interactions, fine motor, patterning.

Dramatic Play
We will continue exploring the underground "cave" for bears or birds hibernating or "nesting" inside a tree. To create a quiet area and sense of community, the loft will have table games such as Bingo, matching, and patterns.
-Materials: Kitchen with dishes, fruits and veggies, dress up clothes, animal costumes, restaurant supplies, cookbooks, menus, paper, pencils, and food photos. We will add more animal food (nuts, acorns, corn on the cob, etc.) The Animal Cave has a little bit more of a winter look now. It has stuffed woodland animals, logs, wood blocks, books about animal homes and animal hibernation. We have added questions about hibernation and photos of animals hibernating in the cave.
-Rationale: The dramatic play area is set up to encourage social interactions, symbolic play, literacy, and expression of children's ideas about their experiences. The animal food will encourage children to extend the restaurant and pet theme to an animal café theme. Children have been showing interest in hibernation, so the cave is set up for small group interactions and discussions about woodland animals, their homes, and hibernation.

-Skills: Role-play, peer interactions, social problem solving, symbolic representation, and print awareness, community building.

Language and Literacy

The children have really enjoyed drawing pictures for others and writing their own and their friends' names on their pictures. We will continue to have the name cards and mailboxes available.
-Materials: Books about bears, hibernation, winter, birds, trees, and snow in the classroom within science area, animal cave, and cozy couch. There are also cookbooks in the dramatic play area. The dramatic play, bird watching station, tadpole table and writing table all have pencils and paper.

-Rationale: We will continue to encourage talking, writing, print awareness, and using books as informational resources. 

-Skills: Self-expression through talking, writing, drawing, awareness of the purpose of print and letter recognition, phonemic awareness, and connecting speech to print and print to speech.

Blocks 

The blocks will be available during free play and during some small group activities. The children incorporate their dramatic play themes with the blocks frequently.
-Materials: Hollow blocks, unit blocks, tree blocks, wheels, and street signs. Cloth material and notch blocks will be added to extend children's explorations of building different structures.

-Rationale: To provide materials for symbolic play, awareness of geometry and directions, to encourage cooperative play and collaboration. 


-Skills: Large motor skills, balance, directional awareness, symbolic representation, and social interaction skills.

Math and Manipulatives

We will keep the mobilos and matching games available this week.
-Materials: Number sense puzzle, mobilos, new peg puzzles and matching game. 

-Rationale: To provide opportunity to practice one-to-one correspondence, matching, seriating and measurement. We will also encourage creative building and expression. To encourage and support social interactions. 

-Skills: One to one correspondence, comparing, matching, seriating, and number sense. Creative building.

Large Motor
We will focus on getting on all of the snow clothes a little early so that everyone can play outdoors at the end of the day. The children will be encouraged to put on their winter clothing independently and remembering what order to put the clothing on.
-Materials
Gym- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats.

Playground- Lots of snow, sleds, shovels, buckets, cups, rakes, ropes, lots of space to run and climb, and big straw bales! The children have begun using these in their dramatic play outdoors! 


-Rationale
We will continue to provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. Children will have opportunities to practice climbing, use their upper and lower body strength, practice using their receptive skills (throwing, catching, and grasping). 

In the playground we want to give children space for additional large motor endeavors and support them into noticing what is happening outside. The "bird call game" remains popular with the children initiating the game!!
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsion skills, dramatic play, cooperation, turn taking, problems solving, and following directions.

Special interest
Isaac's mom, Allison, will be coming in on Thursday to help us bake a special snack for our end of session party!

Large Group


There will be a primary color paint mixing demonstration. We will also be reading The Bear Snores On. Patterning has been a big part of our classroom lately. We've been patterning our snacks and playing patterning games. We will continue to support the children's interests in patterning by offering more opportunities and reading books that have patterning themes.
END OF SESSION PARTY: MONDAY, DECEMBER 6TH, 2-3:30. Please make sure to mark you calendars!! We will have a special snack prepared by the children, share our Small Group happenings, say good-bye to our wonderful student teachers, sing a few of our favorite songs, and surprise!

Pat, Ellen, Linda and Dalia

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Please click bellow to watch Ch play the Ukelele
Charlie D playing the Ukelele-Mobile.m4v

November 29-December 3
Jessica Lead Teaching

Overview:
As our fall session is quickly coming to an end, our focus this week will be on preparing the children for winter break and the new student teachers. We will be having our goodbye snack along with a visit from the new student teachers to give the children an opportunity to meet them before break starts. We will be discussing the upcoming transitions with the children during large group and snack time. Another goal of this week is to focus on the cold and snowy weather that is upon us. We will be discussing what animals do to survive in the winter and emphasize the concept of hibernation throughout different areas of the classroom. The children have continued to form positive relationships with one another. Activities will be highlighted that support their growing social interactions that emphasize collaboration and working together.

Expressive Arts
**Materials: Cake watercolors, tabletop easels, brushes, and paper
Rationale: To introduce a new type of watercolor. To continue promote creative expression while encouraging social interaction during the painting experience
Skills: Fine motor, try out new things, color recognition, symbolic representation, creativity, artistic expression.

**Materials: Letters and picture stamps, ink, thin markers, and large tabletop paper
Rationale: To provide the opportunity to experiment and creatively express oneself with stamping. To create artwork in collaboration with other children.
Skills: Fine motor, try out new ideas, creativity, persistence, artistic expression.

Sensory
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools, plastic woodland animals, visuals of woodland animals, and their tracks.
Rationale: To continue making and comparing impressions of various animals footprints. To foster creativity in forming molds that represent animal necessities including shelter, food, and protection (fur).
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, manual dexterity, observation, creativity

**Materials: Sand, water containers, various molds, rakes, scoops
Rationale: To explore with adding different amounts of water to sand. To continue building structures from the sand and making imprints with hands and molds.
Skills: Sensory input, turn-taking, comparison, observation, imitation, prediction, trying out new ideas, fine motor

Science
**Materials: Magnetic wands, metal objects, magnets and magnet board
Rationale: To provide the opportunity to explore and learn about the properties of magnets. To encourage the children to test whether or not different objects are magnetic.
Skills: Observation, prediction, comparison, try out

**Materials: Animal fur, stuffed woodland animals, winter animal visuals, animal books with winter and hibernation themes
Rationale: To discuss the process and reason for hibernation and how animals survive in the winter
Skills: Ideas, discussion, observation, sensory input

Dramatic Play
**Materials: Grocery store food items, shopping carts, grocery bags, shopping lists, credit cards, credit card swipes, household kitchen furniture, plates, bowls, cups
Rationale: To introduce the idea of shopping at a grocery store. To encourage children to make a home-school connection with a familiar errand. To provide an opportunity to symbolically represent the children's previous experiences at grocery stores and the kitchen.
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.

**Please bring in empty boxes/packages of familiar food items that your child enjoys eating (cereal boxes, Mac and Cheese, etc)

**Materials: "train" chairs in the loft area, pictures of trains, instruments
Rationale: Provide an opportunity for the children to use their imaginations to create a train ride scenario.
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills


Math and Manipulatives 

**Materials: Animal sorting activity, part-to-whole puzzles
Rationale: To challenge children to recognize and sort the animals by two characteristics (size and color). To understand part to whole relationships in putting together a puzzle.
Skills: sorting, comparison, persistence, fine motor control, hand-eye coordination

Language and Literacy 

**Materials: Books about winter and hibernation in "Reading Cave"

Rationale: To promote finding and applying new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language. 

Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information, turn taking. 


**Materials: Letter stamps
Rationale: To promote alphabetic awareness and letter recognition in an artistic way. Encourage children to find the letters that are in their name.
Skills: Alphabetic awareness, artistic expression, phonological awareness

**Materials: Teacher made grocery lists and notepads and markers
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter, word, and number recognition in the grocery store.
Skills: writing, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness

Blocks 

**Materials: Trains, wooden train tracks, hollow blocks
Rationale: To introduce toy trains and provide the opportunity to experiment with moving the trains at different speeds and directions. To promote train track building in collaboration with others.
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creativity, symbolic representation, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), try out new ideas

Large Motor 

**Materials: Indoors- rolling hill, jumping area, climbing wall, stairs, donut hole, monkey bars, and mats; large group parachute activities led by teachers
Rationale: To provide the children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice rolling and climbing in addition to strengthening their upper and lower bodies. To focus on coordination and balance through jumping and rolling activities.
Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, balance, coordination, symbolic representation, creativity, turn-taking

**Materials: Outdoors- teeter-totter, hula hoops, scavenger hunt activity, buckets, shovels,
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on balancing coordination skills. To facilitate a scavenger hunt that requires the children to explore different areas of the playground environment.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect, turn-taking

Large group 

**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, dance and instrument activities, modeling of activities
Rationale: To continue preparing the children for the transitions ahead including new student teachers and winter break. To expand on specific topics of interest (hibernation and winter) through sharing a common experience.
Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music 

**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, rainsticks, shakers 

Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to play instruments both in large group and during free play
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.

Snack
Tuesday: Rolls and Milk
Friday: Apples and rice cakes

November 29-December 3
Jessica Lead Teaching

Overview:
As our fall session is quickly coming to an end, our focus this week will be on preparing the children for winter break and the new student teachers. We will be having our goodbye snack along with a visit from the new student teachers to give the children an opportunity to meet them before break starts. We will be discussing the upcoming transitions with the children during large group and snack time. Another goal of this week is to focus on the cold and snowy weather that is upon us. We will be discussing what animals do to survive in the winter and emphasize the concept of hibernation throughout different areas of the classroom. The children have continued to form positive relationships with one another. Activities will be highlighted that support their growing social interactions that emphasize collaboration and working together.

Expressive Arts
**Materials: Cake watercolors, tabletop easels, brushes, and paper
Rationale: To introduce a new type of watercolor. To continue promote creative expression while encouraging social interaction during the painting experience
Skills: Fine motor, try out new things, color recognition, symbolic representation, creativity, artistic expression.

**Materials: Letters and picture stamps, ink, thin markers, and large tabletop paper
Rationale: To provide the opportunity to experiment and creatively express oneself with stamping. To create artwork in collaboration with other children.
Skills: Fine motor, try out new ideas, creativity, persistence, artistic expression.

Sensory
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools, plastic woodland animals, visuals of woodland animals, and their tracks.
Rationale: To continue making and comparing impressions of various animals footprints. To foster creativity in forming molds that represent animal necessities including shelter, food, and protection (fur).
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, manual dexterity, observation, creativity

**Materials: Sand, water containers, various molds, rakes, scoops
Rationale: To explore with adding different amounts of water to sand. To continue building structures from the sand and making imprints with hands and molds.
Skills: Sensory input, turn-taking, comparison, observation, imitation, prediction, trying out new ideas, fine motor

Science
**Materials: Magnetic wands, metal objects, magnets and magnet board
Rationale: To provide the opportunity to explore and learn about the properties of magnets. To encourage the children to test whether or not different objects are magnetic.
Skills: Observation, prediction, comparison, try out

**Materials: Animal fur, stuffed woodland animals, winter animal visuals, animal books with winter and hibernation themes
Rationale: To discuss the process and reason for hibernation and how animals survive in the winter
Skills: Ideas, discussion, observation, sensory input

Dramatic Play
**Materials: Grocery store food items, shopping carts, grocery bags, shopping lists, coin cash register, Household kitchen furniture, plates, bowls, cups
Rationale: To introduce the idea of shopping at a grocery store. To encourage children to make a home-school connection with a familiar errand. To provide an opportunity to symbolically represent the children's previous experiences at grocery stores and the kitchen.
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.

**Please bring in empty boxes/packages of familiar food items that your child enjoys eating (cereal boxes, Mac and Cheese, etc)

**Materials: "train" chairs in the loft area, pictures of trains, instruments
Rationale: Provide an opportunity for the children to use their imaginations to create a train ride scenario.
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills


Math and Manipulatives 

**Materials: Animal sorting activity, part-to-whole puzzles
Rationale: To challenge children to recognize and sort the animals by two characteristics (size and color). To understand part to whole relationships in putting together a puzzle.
Skills: sorting, comparison, persistence, fine motor control, hand-eye coordination

Language and Literacy 

**Materials: Books about winter and hibernation in "Reading Cave"

Rationale: To promote finding and applying new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language. 

Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information, turn taking. 


**Materials: Letter stamps
Rationale: To promote alphabetic awareness and letter recognition in an artistic way. Encourage children to find the letters that are in their name.
Skills: Alphabetic awareness, artistic expression, phonological awareness

**Materials: Teacher made grocery lists and notepads and markers
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter, word, and number recognition in the grocery store.
Skills: writing, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness

Blocks 

**Materials: Trains, wooden train tracks, hollow blocks
Rationale: To introduce toy trains and provide the opportunity to experiment with moving the trains at different speeds and directions. To promote train track building in collaboration with others.
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creativity, symbolic representation, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), try out new ideas

Large Motor 

**Materials: Indoors- rolling hill, jumping area, climbing wall, stairs, donut hole, monkey bars, and mats; large group parachute activities led by teachers
Rationale: To provide the children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice rolling and climbing in addition to strengthening their upper and lower bodies. To focus on coordination and balance through jumping and rolling activities.
Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, balance, coordination, symbolic representation, creativity, turn-taking

**Materials: Outdoors- teeter-totter, hula hoops, scavenger hunt activity, buckets, shovels,
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on balancing coordination skills. To facilitate a scavenger hunt that requires the children to explore different areas of the playground environment.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect, turn-taking

Large group 

**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, dance and instrument activities, modeling of activities
Rationale: To continue preparing the children for the transitions ahead including new student teachers and winter break. To expand on specific topics of interest (hibernation and winter) through sharing a common experience.
Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music 

**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, rainsticks, shakers 

Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to play instruments both in large group and during free play
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.

Snack
Monday:Cereal and milk
Wednesday: apples and rice cakes
Thursday: Celery and sun butter

Overview: We are midway through November and winter is upon us in full force! I hope you all had a fun and safe weekend enjoying the snow. We will continue to go outside at the end of the day when it is warm enough, so please send warm coats, snow pants, boots, hats, and mittens with your child. We do have limited lab school clothing available for use, and if your child is sent home in the clothing please return the items to school so they can be used on another day! The children are continuing to enjoy and explore color mixing in the classroom. They have discovered how to make secondary colors with water as well as paint. They are also noticing they can change the lightness or darkness of a color. We will be adding some white and black to the art easel to continue fostering their interest in color tint and shade. In the dramatic play area we have added some new colorful fabric and dress up shoes, as well as some new food and baking items for cooking in the kitchen. We have had three weeks of small groups now, and will each be taking a field trip soon for a community connection to the topics we are studying.

Expressive Arts (paint, watercolor, play dough)
•Materials: Water colors, coffee filters, watercolor paper, pipettes; primary colors, white and black paint, empty cups for mixing, paintbrushes, spoons; markers, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue, and hole-punchers; colored play dough, rollers, cutters in familiar shapes, and pounding tools.
•Rationale: The children are continuing to use primary colors, while mixing secondary. We are also adding white and black paint to mix different tints and shades. We have also started to introduce water color painting through dropping the colors on coffee filters with pipettes and will slowly introduce painting with the water colors. We will be continuing to use the play dough because of its soft consistency, while using different tools to change the shape.
•Skills: creativity, artistic expression, fine motor development, symbolic representation, color recognition, sensory input, sharing materials
Sensory (flax seed)

•Materials: seeds, measuring cups, funnels, a variety of different sized and shaped containers, scoops, muffin tin, baking utensils.
•Rationale: To change the sensory experience with a new natural material while continuing to use measuring cups and scoops to continue comparing and counting. Cooking materials will be used to follow their interest in pretend play cooking.
•Skills: large and fine motor development, counting, measuring, comparing-contrasting, turn taking, fostering social relationships, developing an awareness of senses.
Science

•Materials: Red, yellow, and blue water, mixing containers and test tubes, pipettes, color wheels, light table, transparent colored shapes, water based manipulatives
•Rationale: to encourage color awareness and development of inquiry skills through hands on experimentation with mixing colors, as well as exploring color through manipulatives.
•Skills: observing, predicting, recording, scientific investigating and inquiry, sorting, fine motor, use of science tools, sharing and discussing
Dramatic Play

•Materials: Tools, blocks, fabric, stethoscopes, doctor bags, clipboards, stuffed animals, a variety of food and food boxes, kitchen utensils; the caves continue to have blankets and pillows, and baby dolls for house play.
•Rationale: To follow the children's interest in building and fixing appliances with tools, as well as helping injured and sick people and animals. They are also interested in cooking pretend meals and baking using the empty boxes.
•Skills: creative role-play, peer interaction, turn taking, social problem solving, symbolic representation, creating imaginary scenarios
Math and Manipulatives

•Materials: Peg boards and colorful pegs, puzzles, translucent colorful duplos
•Rationale: The children have enjoyed using the pegs to create interesting designs. The puzzles currently have a color theme to support the theme of the classroom. Duplos have been introduced in the color cave to encourage construction as well as patterning with shape and color.
•Skills: construction, symbolic representation, counting, patterning, one-to-one correspondence, critical thinking, creativity, and fine motor development
Language and Literacy

•Materials: Writing utensils, paper, envelopes, staplers, tape, and stickers. In our literacy center, familiar books, books with seasonal themes and books with classroom themes and interests.
•Rationale: To encourage writing, recording, and creativity. To support pre-literacy skills, follow the themes of the classroom and encourage new ideas within the theme, and allow for a quiet space for exploration of the books.
•Skills: fine motor, pre-writing, letter recognition, receptive language, listening, supporting social skills and relationships.
Blocks

•Materials: large hollow blocks, unit blocks, and tools 

•Rationale: To continue dramatic play themes and support creativity, teamwork and collaboration, and problem solving. 

•Skills: large motor development (strength, coordination), dramatic play, creating imaginary scenarios, symbolic representation, directional awareness, cooperative play, problem solving
Large Motor

•Materials: gym- large motor obstacle course (A-frame ladders, horizontal and vertical climbing bars, mats, balance beams, large rubber balls, and a basketball hoop) playground- shovels, scoops, buckets
•Rationale: To promote development of a variety of large motor skills. With the new snowfall, the playground will include tools for scooping and manipulating the snow.
•Skills: coordination, spatial awareness, directional awareness, jumping and landing, turn-taking, balance, agility, body awareness, upper and lower body large motor development, physical fitness, and building community through social interactions

Special Announcement:
A student in the morning class is missing a red knit hat and mittens. If one of our students was accidently sent home with the items, please send the items back to school with your child. Thank you!

Snack
Monday - Sunbutter & celery
Wednesday - Hummus & rice crackers
Thursday - Cucumbers & pretzels
*All snacks served with water and milk unless otherwise noted

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Weekly Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
November 22nd-Dec 7th, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: Heidi

Overview: As we near the end of the semester we are able to see growth in the children as they express their confidence in familiar activities, songs, and routines. Established friendships have continued simultaneously with the formation of new relationships. The classroom also reflects this old-alongside-new format by continuing with familiar activities such as the colored water mixing stations and introducing something novel such as a new set-up in the gym. The small groups will begin to culminate their meetings this week with field trips and conclusion activities. The children will have the opportunity to share their experiences with the whole class and see what their classmates were doing in the other small groups. Some children may comment on wanting to join another small group but parents and teachers can remind the children that they will have more opportunities for different small groups next semester when new student teachers arrive. When the small groups end the children will return to the schedule with a full class free activity time and be able to play with anyone in the class. During these play times the teachers have noticed the children gathering together in large groups to explore the manipulatives table together, "bake" in the seeds table, or build a large block structure and expand upon familiar dramatic play scenarios adding new characters and roles as additional children join the play. The teachers have used these extended play times as opportunities to include literacy in the form of written signs, math in the form of counting, patterning, and seriation, science in the form of inquiry skills with mixing colored water, creative expression and art appreciation with watercolors, and social and emotional development with sharing, conflict resolution, entering play groups, and building relationships. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving break.

Expressive Arts (paint, collage, clay)
• Materials: watercolor paints, permanent markers and materials such as tape for masking techniques and sugar and salt to add interesting effects, primary/secondary/white colors at the painting easel, bottle caps, puff balls, natural/beautiful materials for collage, markers, crayons, clay (with supportive materials for more symbolic representational sculpture: toothpicks, popsicle sticks, wood lacing beads, wet sponges to help with adhering pieces)
• Rationale: The watercolor table has been busy with children drawing pictures of people and houses then painting over the permanent marker. New techniques will be added to help the children extend the possibilities for artistic expression. Tape will be used to create masked areas that will hide the plain paper when painted over then removed to reveal the original color of the paper. Salt and sugar will be available for the children to explore the effects of sprinkling a pinch of the salt or sugar on their wet watercolor projects. Black and white paints at the easel have given the children the ability to create their own shades of colors with pink and light blue becoming the favorites. This week the teachers will encourage additional shade exploration and record keeping of the various color shades created by the children.
• Skills: color recognition, creativity, artistic expression, symbolic representation, recalling previous information, using resources to help recall or build knowledge of the world, social skills, fine-motor strength/coordination

Sensory (flaxseed table)
• Materials: flaxseed, measuring cups, cookware, new containers, bowls, "oven", glass gems, recipes
• Rationale: The children have been sharing their tasty seed creations with the teachers and their classmates. To extend this dramatic play scenario, a pretend oven will be added and recipes will be recorded as the children talk about their creations.
• Skills: math concepts (counting, measuring), symbolic representation, social skills, sensory input/awareness, comparing touch/feel from sand table, using descriptive words such as slippery or smooth, fine-motor strength

Science
• Materials: red/yellow/blue/clear colored water, pipettes, clear containers for mixing water, transparent legos & color inch cubes, water gel mixing, red cabbage experiments with baking soda, salt, vinegar, and washing soda
• Rationale: To extend the exploration of mixing colored water, another way to create colored water will be explored when the children add various materials to boiled red cabbage water. The red cabbage acts as a pH indicator and will change colors when an acid or a base is added. The children will collect their results and create a record of the color changes.
• Skills: color recognition, hypothesis creating/testing, concepts/properties of color mixing, social interaction, recording of observations, scientific exploration and inquiry

Dramatic Play
• Materials: child-size door, new fabrics, shoes, and hats, capes, blue tarp, scarves, purses, stuffed animals, baby-dolls, house furniture, plates, cookware, plastic food, containers, and empty food boxes
• Rationale: The availability of more realistic materials such as new fruits and vegetables and empty food containers have extended the children's play to new scenarios such as parties based around the kitchen table. Additional children have found the new materials to be interesting and have joined the regular crowd of children that frequent the play house area. The new muffin tin added to the kitchen area has helped the children to make connections with the muffin tins available at the flax seed table and generalize their play to multiple areas of the classroom.
• Skills: social skills, imaginative/creative play, symbolic representation, generalization

Math and Manipulatives
• Materials: mosaic pegs of different sizes and colors (i.e. very small, small, medium, and large), patterning blocks, lacing beads, puzzles, color seriation cards
• Rationale: To support the children's counting and grouping abilities, pattern making and seriation materials were added to the manipulatives area. With teacher support the children are exploring the creation of patterns, groups, and gradations of color using familiar and unfamiliar materials. Fine motor development is supported equally with cognitive development and the children have fun learning math skills.
• Skills: patterning, classification, color recognition, 1 to 1 correspondence, problem solving, hypothesis/critical thinking, creativity, social interaction and discussion

Language and Literacy
• Materials: alphabet book, writing supplies (i.e. pens, markers, pencils, paper, envelopes, etc), mailbox for each child and teacher, letter punches, art materials to create alphabet book
• Rationale: The children have been gradually adding letters to their alphabet book. The teachers will support the children in their use of the alphabet book to create mail/letters to their families, classmates, and teachers. The mailboxes will be highlighted and the children will be encouraged to practice their writing skills by creating something to put in the mailboxes. Dramatic play scenarios may evolve to include the mailboxes and help the children extend their verbal and written communication skills.
• Skills: fine-motor strength, letter/word/name recognition or awareness (pre/early literacy skills), supporting/fostering social skills and relationships, print concepts, writing ability

Blocks
• Materials: large hollow blocks, unit blocks, peg people, blue tarp, and paper for sign making, various props from the classroom (bowls, blankets for beds, blocks for chairs)
• Rationale: After watching Amy's class perform The Three Bears on a stage created with hollow blocks, the children have been recreating their own versions of the play. Costumes and props from the dramatic play and kitchen areas have been included along with various block stages. The children develop collaboration and social skills within the process of assigning roles and structuring the story.
• Skills: large motor skills, fine-motor skills, imaginative/creativity, spatial awareness skills, supporting and fostering social relationships, recalling information about their interests and utilizing new knowledge, using resources to help expand and build their knowledge, confidence building, collaboration

Large Motor
• Materials: GYM: climbing triangle,"sliding" donut, monkey bars, rolling hill, distance jumping, scooters
PLAYGROUND: tricycles, shovels, buckets, rakes, wheel-barrows, tarp, cookware, swings, slides, monkey bars, natural materials, trees, boat and oars, climbing structures, wobbly bridge
• Rationale: A new gym set-up will be introduced on Monday. The children will have novel activities and physical skills to explore. Balance, grasping and muscular strength will be developed on the climbing triangle. Rolling, spatial, and body awareness will be developed on the rolling hill. Jumping, landing, and number recognition will be developed at the jumping station. Feet propulsion, balance, and muscular strength will be developed on the two person scooters along with communication and cooperation skills. The melting snow will bring new challenges on the outdoor playground as the children learn where sleds can and cannot go.
• Skills: depth perception, propulsion skills, balancing, large-motor, fine-motor, eye-to-hand coordination, spatial skills, body awareness, turn taking, problem solving, social interaction and sharing, jumping, rolling, climbing, number recognition, grasping, muscular strength

Special Interest (large group, music, cooking, fire drill, etc)
• Please return permission slips for your small groups if these were requested by the student teachers
• Reminder: NO SCHOOL on Thursday 11/25 and Friday 11/26

Snack
Monday (11/22): graham crackers & sunbutter
Tuesday (11/23): pretzels and raisins
Wednesday (11/24): trail mix

Monday (11/29) - Apples & pretzels
Tuesday (11/30) - Rice cakes & sunbutter
Wednesday (12/1) - Graham crackers & fruit butter
Thursday (12/2) - Rice chips
Friday (12/3) - Frozen peas & rice crackers

*All snacks served with milk/water unless otherwise noted*

Overview: Winter has arrived! The children are every excited to play on the playground in the snow. We will continue to go outside at the end of the day when the weather is warm enough. Please continue to send warm coats, snow pants, boots, hats, and mittens with your child. The lab school does have limited clothing available for use. If your child is sent home in any of the clothing, please return the items so they can be used another day! The children continue to be very excited about color mixing and are discovering how to make secondary colors. With the addition of the black and white paint at the art easel, the children have discovered how they can change the tint and shade of their paint colors. After many fun and exciting weeks, we will be wrapping up our small groups on Monday. We also have a new gym set up this week. There is a rolling hill, distance jumping area, monkey bars, and a climbing wedge. Have a safe and fun Thanksgiving break!

Expressive Arts (paint, watercolor, play dough, glurch)
•Materials: Water colors, coffee filters, watercolor paper, pipettes; primary colors, white and black paint, empty cups for mixing, paintbrushes, spoons; markers, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue, and hole-punchers; glurch, colored play dough, rollers, cutters in familiar shapes, and pounding tools.
•Rationale: The children are continuing to use primary colors, while mixing secondary. We will continue with white and black paint to mix different tints and shades. We will also continue with watercolor painting. We will be adding glurch and removing the play dough. We want to introduce a new material, yet still provide one that that soft in consistency.
•Skills: creativity, artistic expression, fine motor development, symbolic representation, color recognition, sensory input, sharing materials
Sensory (flax seed)

•Materials: seeds, measuring cups, funnels, a variety of different sized and shaped containers, scoops, muffin tin, baking utensils, bowls
•Rationale: To change the sensory experience with a new natural material while continuing to use measuring cups and scoops to continue comparing and counting. Cooking materials will be used to follow their interest in pretend play cooking. We will be adding a pretend oven and cookbooks.
•Skills: large and fine motor development, counting, measuring, comparing-contrasting, turn taking, fostering social relationships, developing an awareness of senses.
Science

•Materials: Red, yellow, and blue water, mixing containers and test tubes, pipettes, color wheels, light table, transparent colored shapes, water based manipulatives
•Rationale: to encourage color awareness and development of inquiry skills through hands on experimentation with mixing colors, as well as exploring color through manipulatives.
•Skills: observing, predicting, recording, scientific investigating and inquiry, sorting, fine motor, use of science tools, sharing and discussing
Dramatic Play

•Materials: Tools, blocks, fabric, stethoscopes, doctor bags, clipboards, stuffed animals, a variety of food and food boxes, kitchen utensils; the caves continue to have blankets and pillows, and baby dolls for house play.
•Rationale: To follow the children's interest in building and fixing appliances with tools, as well as helping injured and sick people and animals. They are also interested in cooking pretend meals and baking using the empty boxes.
•Skills: creative role-play, peer interaction, turn taking, social problem solving, symbolic representation, creating imaginary scenarios
Math and Manipulatives

•Materials: Peg boards and colorful pegs, puzzles, translucent colorful duplos
•Rationale: The children have enjoyed using the pegs to create interesting designs. The puzzles currently have a color theme to support the theme of the classroom. Duplos have been introduced in the color cave to encourage construction as well as patterning with shape and color.
•Skills: construction, symbolic representation, counting, patterning, one-to-one correspondence, critical thinking, creativity, and fine motor development
Language and Literacy

•Materials: Writing utensils, paper, envelopes, staplers, tape, and stickers. In our literacy center, familiar books, books with seasonal themes and books with classroom themes and interests.
•Rationale: To encourage writing, recording, and creativity. To support pre-literacy skills, follow the themes of the classroom and encourage new ideas within the theme, and allow for a quiet space for exploration of the books.
•Skills: fine motor, pre-writing, letter recognition, receptive language, listening, supporting social skills and relationships.
Blocks

•Materials: large hollow blocks, unit blocks, and tools 

•Rationale: To continue dramatic play themes and support creativity, teamwork and collaboration, and problem solving. 

•Skills: large motor development (strength, coordination), dramatic play, creating imaginary scenarios, symbolic representation, directional awareness, cooperative play, problem solving
Large Motor

•Materials: gym- rolling hill, distance jumping, climbing wedge, monkey bars
Playground- shovels, scoops, buckets, sleds
•Rationale: To promote development of a variety of large motor skills. With the new snowfall, the playground will include tools for scooping and manipulating the snow.
•Skills: coordination, spatial awareness, directional awareness, jumping and landing, turn-taking, balance, agility, body awareness, upper and lower body large motor development, physical fitness, and building community through social interactions
Snack
Monday - Crackers & sunbutter
Wednesday - Oven fries & Abby's birthday treat!
**All snacks are served with milk and water unless otherwise noted

Special Announcement: A student in the morning class is missing a red knit hat and mittens. If one of our students was accidently sent home with the items, please send the items back to school with your child. Thank you!

Reminders:
NO SCHOOL THURSDAY NOVEMBER 25
LAST DAY OF THE SESSION MONDAY DECEMBER 6

Under construction -- check back!!!

Many many thanks to all the families who provided support with collection of materials this fall. Our art closet and classrooms are full of wonderful treasures! Also thanks to the parents who helped sew the "animal costumes" and who helped us fix a few key learning materials like the Montessori cubes and the tone bells. It makes a big difference!

Now with winter here, we expect to see less of the natural materials coming in, but hope you'll still stay focused on "packaging" and little bits of plastic shapes and other stuff which crosses your path. Bring it in if it's small and send me a note or stop me if it's larger and you want to check if we can use it (and have space for storing it!)

Take a look below at some children from Dalia's classroom wearing the "bird" costumes recently

MT.flyer.graphics.10.final.doc

Overview

Our small groups are getting deeply immersed in nature, birds and the arts and bringing some of those ideas back to the classroom. Linda's group will be visiting the Minneapolis Institute of Arts on Wednesday this week. We will have two birthdays this week - Aoife's and Otto's! Otto's mom will be baking on Wednesday and Aoife's dad will be doing a creative project with the class on Thursday. We will build on children's enjoyment of dramatic play with animal themes by adding a "cozy cave" under the loft. We will continue our exploration of animal tracks and hope to see some outdoors now in the snow! Children are interested in writing and drawing pictures for each other; there will be a mailbox in the room by the writing center as well as picture/name cards for every child so they can practice writing names. 


Expressive Arts
Next Monday we will be making a class sculpture with wire and materials from our nature hunt last week. The children are experimenting with the snow to see what they can make outside.
-Materials: Natural collage materials collected and sorted from outside, large stick, and wire for a whole class fall hanging sculpture. Paints, clay, clay utensils.

-Rationale: The whole class fall sculpture will help foster a sense of community and ownership by creating one project together. Continue to provide opportunities for the children to express themselves creatively and represent what they know and learn. The clay provides one more option to express children's thoughts, ideas and understandings. It also provides opportunities for creative expression.

-Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, observation, sensory input, fine motor, and community strengthening. The clay allows children to experience conservation.

Science
We have a Nest-Building Station! Children can experience for themselves the process of making a nest. There is also a Weaving Wall with chicken wire and colorful ribbons to add and support the nest creating experience.
-Materials: We have added a weaving station where a few children can work on weaving ribbons in and out of the mesh wall, animal tracks' matching game, light table. Fish tank and tadpole tank. Nest building table with natural materials and playdough to create cozy homes for birds.

-Rationale: To continue to facilitate children's interests in nest building. To experience how much work it is for birds to make their nests by weaving materials together. To encourage hypothesis testing regarding what materials make a good nest. Observe our classroom fish and tadpole. 

-Skills: Sorting nest-building materials, predicting what makes a good nest, experimenting with different materials, fine motor skills, collaboration.

Dramatic Play
We are adding an underground "cave" for bears or birds hibernating or "nesting" inside a tree.
-Materials: Kitchen with dishes, fruits and veggies, dress up clothes, animal costumes, restaurant supplies, cookbooks, menus, paper, pencils, and food photos. We will add more animal food (nuts, acorns, corn on the cob, etc.) The Animal Cave has a little bit more of a winter look now. It has stuffed woodland animals, logs, wood blocks, books about animal homes and animal hibernation. We have added questions about hibernation and photos of animals hibernating in the cave.
-Rationale: The dramatic play area is set up to encourage social interactions, symbolic play, literacy, and expression of children's ideas about their experiences. The animal food will encourage children to extend the restaurant and pet theme to an animal café theme. Children have been showing interest in hibernation, so the cave is set up for small group interactions and discussions about woodland animals, their homes, and hibernation.

-Skills: Role-play, peer interactions, social problem solving, symbolic representation, and print awareness.

Language and Literacy

We will introduce our new mailboxes and encourage letter-writing this week and next. Our latest "mystery word" was "Inspiration." Cormac has introduced us to a new song: "Happy Birthday" in Chinese which we hope to hear again this week! 

-Materials: Books about bears, birds, trees, and snow in the classroom within science area, animal cave, and cozy couch. There are also cookbooks in the dramatic play area. The dramatic play, bird watching station, tadpole table and writing table all have pencils and paper.

-Rationale: We will continue to encourage talking, writing, print awareness, and using books as informational resources. 

-Skills: Self-expression through talking, writing, drawing, awareness of the purpose of print and letter recognition, phonemic awareness, and connecting speech to print and print to speech.

Blocks 

The blocks will be available during free play and during some small group activities. The children incorporate their dramatic play themes with the blocks frequently.
-Materials: Hollow blocks, unit blocks, tree blocks, wheels, and street signs. Cloth material and notch blocks will be added to extend children's explorations of building different structures.

-Rationale: To provide materials for symbolic play, awareness of geometry and directions, to encourage cooperative play and collaboration. 


-Skills: Large motor skills, balance, directional awareness, symbolic representation, and social interaction skills.

Math and Manipulatives

We will keep the mobilos and matching games available this week.
-Materials: Number sense puzzle, mobilos, new peg puzzles and matching game. 
--Rationale: To provide opportunity to practice one-to-one correspondence, matching, seriating and measurement. We will also encourage creative building and expression. To encourage and support social interactions. 

-Skills: One to one correspondence, comparing, matching, seriating, and number sense. Creative building.

Large Motor
We will focus on getting on all of the snow clothes a little early so that everyone can play outdoors at the end of the day. On Wednesday, we may play in the gym instead of the playground to maximize our large motor time.
-Materials
Gym- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats.
On Friday, November 19th the gym will be rearranged. We will send a separate e mail with a description of the new set-up.
Playground- Lots of snow, sleds, shovels, buckets, cups, rakes, ropes, lots of space to run and climb, and big straw bales! The children have begun using these in their dramatic play outdoors! 


-Rationale
We will continue to provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. Children will have opportunities to practice climbing, use their upper and lower body strength, practice using their receptive skills (throwing, catching, and grasping). 

In the playground we want to give children space for additional large motor endeavors and support them into noticing what is happening outside. We will play the "bird call game" again, with new birds next time!! 

-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsion skills, dramatic play, cooperation, turn taking, problems solving, and following directions.

Special interest
We have a new class member! His name is Abdiaziz and he just started on Monday this week.
Large Group


We will introduce some new songs (Miss Mary Mack and Many Pretty Trees by Ella Jenkins) and stories (Cupcake! and Fall is Not Easy) this week.
Snack
We will be having a special birthday snack on Wednesday for Otto's birthday.
Field Trip
On Wednesday, Linda's "All Kinds of Art" group will go to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts.

Coming up...

• The Lab School will be closed on Thursday, November 25th (We are open on Wednesday, November 24th
Aoife's aunt Fiona will visit our classroom on Wednesday, Nov. 24th during large group to show us some Yoga moves!

• Discussion on: "Everything you wanted to know about the transition to Kindergarten" facilitated by Ann Rhul Carlson will take place on Wednesday, December 1st from 9-10:30; Wednesday, December 1st from 1:30-3; and Thursday, December 2nd from 7-8:30.

•The last day of the fall session is Monday, December 6th.
END OF SESSION PARTY: MONDAY, DECEMBER 6TH, 2-3:30. Please make sure to mark you calendars!! We will have a special snack prepared by the children, share our Small Group happenings, say good-bye to our wonderful student teachers and sing a few of our favorite songs!

Pat, Ellen, Linda and Dalia

Overview:
As small groups wind down for the session, the children are excited for the culminating events of each group. Mary's group will be visiting a local pizza shop and then making pizza for the classroom. Ann's group will be visiting an Architects' studio to see how models and blueprints are used in a professional manner. Emily's group will be performing Goldilocks and the Three Bears for our class and Ross' class. Each group has worked hard and is very excited about our final week of meeting.

Many of the themes from previous weeks continue to flourish in our classroom. The ramps and cars remain a popular activity, inspiring children to experiment and predict outcomes. The Animal Café continues to draw many children during free play. The interest in animal homes can be seen throughout the room. The animal cave, Animal Café, bird watching station, and nest making stations give a plethora of opportunities for children to discover and act out the role of animals preparing for winter.

The science center in the classroom will be changed this week to reflect the children's growing interests in nest making, camouflage and color mixing. The child-sized loom and fabric strips will be located next to the writing station to encourage children to work together to add fabric. Clay, twine, twigs, and other materials will be placed in a nest making station to connect the ideas of weaving in nature. White fur will provide a visual and tactile experience for the children as we focus on the ways animals hide during winter. Many of the children have shown and interest in mixing colors at the tabletop easels. To provide another approach to this activity, a color mixing station will be set up at the light table.

Expressive Arts
-Materials: table easels, tempera paint in varying colors, paper, small boxes, tacky glue, glass beads, wooden shapes, foam stickers, natural materials.
-Rationale: The children continue to enjoy painting with the smaller brushes and more color options. Six of the students created structures from boxes and other cardboard materials. The rest of the children have expressed an interest in creating similar structures.
-Skills: Creative risk-taking, fine motor development, symbolic representation, and self-expression, construction skills

Sensory
-Materials: Flax seed, funnels, scoops, paddle wheels, tubes, and bottles.
-Rationale: The children continue to flock to the flax seed table. Watching the seeds go through the funnels and the different speeds at which the tall containers are filled continues to be an interesting and rewarding experience for the entire class.
-Skills: Social interaction, turn taking, sensory stimulation and pleasure, communication, fine motor development, problem solving.

Science
-Materials: Loom, strips of fabric, bird nests, clay, straw and yarn, colored transparencies, solid color animal cut outs, transparent colored shapes
-Rationale: The children have been very interested in animal homes. The bird nests brought into the classroom by the afternoon class have intrigued many of the children. Students will have the opportunity to practice weaving like the birds with the use of the loom. Many of the children are interested in mixing the colors at the tabletop easels. By bringing this activity to the light table, more opportunities to engage in this process with a different material will allow children to add more depth to their knowledge of color mixing. We are also using the childrens' interest in color to introduce the idea of animal camouflage.
-Skills: Observation, inquiry, comparing, sorting, asking questions, predicting, hypothesizing, interpreting and reasoning about events, knowledge of the natural environment

Dramatic Play
-Materials: Kitchen with dishes, assorted nuts, corn, bananas, dress-up clothes, swathes of material in forest hues, materials to add to our forest, dark cloth to make a den, pillows. Plush animals, wood pieces, pictures of animal homes, fake nuts, hollow blocks, and fabric in the animal cave.
-Rationale: The children continue to be excited about the Animal Café and dressing up as different animals. The children have been talking about dens the past few weeks, so creating a den under the loft will add another dimension to the Animal Cafe.
-Skills: Role-play, peer interaction, social problem solving, creating imaginary scenarios, large and fine motor development, and symbolic representation.

Math and Manipulatives
-Materials: Mobilos, nature and number puzzles, tracks matching game, frog counting game, small weaving boards
-Rationale: The children are very excited about the addition of the Mobilos to our classroom. Discovering numeral concepts and counting remains a popular activity and we are also beginning to talk about patterns.
-Skills: Number sense, matching, classifying, seriating, patterning, one to one correspondence, counting concepts, whole/part relationships, and fine motor development.

Language and Literacy
-Materials: Colored pencils, skinny markers, scissors, post it notes, staplers, tape, envelopes, paper, "L" objects, and sandpaper letters, couch, book shelf, plethora of books.
-Rationale: The focus on the letter "L" will continue this week to go in depth with the letter sound and uses. The children are excited about the idea of writing, drawing, making books, sending mail, and using the written word to express themselves.
-Skills: Letter recognition, listening and receptive abilities, writing/drawing, fine motor control, and using books for reference.

Blocks
-Materials: Hollow blocks, unit blocks, wooden cars, wooden people, notch blocks.
-Rationale: The children are very interested in making ramps and roadways for cars. The children are experimenting with speed as they create different ramps and have fewer or more wheels on their constructed cars. Stage building has also been a predominant theme during free play. The children have started creating stages with compartments and complex sets represented by the notch blocks.
-Skills: Construction skills, geometry, problem solving, communication, dramatic play, symbolic representation, and large and fine motor.

Large Motor
-Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats. Outdoors-Sleds for pulling, shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows, hay bales.
-Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that will challenge their physical skills.
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsive skills

Special Interest
-Materials: Stories, finger plays, and felt board stories at dismissal time.
-Rationale: The children have developed favorite stories, poems, and finger plays to do during dismissal and transition times. Teacher use this time to bring some classroom content to the children, but also emphasize enjoyment and silliness.
-Skills: Listening, discussing, enjoyment of group activities, encourage self-control, community building.

Please click bellow to watch A build her nest and Ma watch her.
Nests-Mobile.m4v

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Weekly Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
November 15th-19th, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: Natalie

Overview: The play and activities in the classroom continue to become more focused and thoughtful as we continue through the fall (seemingly now winter) session. The children are constantly sharing ideas with one another: at times about what should happen next in the dramatic play story and other times thinking collaboratively to answer questions at the science, manipulative, and art tables. Small groups have been exciting and are already getting ready to come to a close. The groups will begin to wrap up this week and have the last meetings the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Talk with your children about what they've done and check in with your child's small group teacher if you are interested in continue some of these investigations over winter break. These conversations help them recall the information they have learned and helps them utilize these findings into other areas of their world.

Expressive Arts (paint, collage, clay)
• Materials: watercolor paints, primary/secondary/white colors at the easel, permanent markers, bottle caps, puff balls, natural/beautiful materials for collage, markers, crayons, clay (with supportive materials for more symbolic representational sculpture: toothpicks, popsicle sticks, wood lacing beads, wet sponges to help with adhering pieces)
• Rationale: The introduction of the permanent markers has been a hit and has taken the watercolor painting to a new level! The children have been carefully creating images on the paper with the markers and adding color to create/complete the images that have created in their minds. This level intentionality fosters high-level thinking skills as the children think/plan as they create. To extend the children's interest in water colors, the children will learn about different shades of a color by adding clear water to the watercolors. We will let them explore what happens to paint as they add the clear water to their painting. We will also support the exploration of "shades of color" by adding white tempera paint. As for the clay, the teachers have been encouraging to make sculptures of the children's favorite animals or things that we could sculpt to make a story. For this week, we will have an open ended story about "Ted" and "Fred" which came from our story when we had the dancers from the past couple weeks. These characters are familiar to the children and will help motivate children to come up with characters or things to add to the story.
• Skills: color recognition, creativity, artistic expression, symbolic representation, recalling previous information, using resources to help recall or build knowledge of the world, social skills, fine-motor strength/coordination

Sensory (flaxseed table)
• Materials: flaxseed, measuring cups, cookware, new containers, bowls, glass gems
• Rationale: Children have been pretending to make chocolate chip cookies, cakes, pies, and anything else that sounds delicious to them. To extend their interest in the idea of "making" or "baking" something, muffin pans, bowls, glass gems, and new containers have been added to help with their imaginative play with the flaxseed. This will help prepare them for making pumpkin muffins on Friday by knowing to add all the ingredients before mixing together and to measure a specific amount for the recipe.
• Skills: math concepts (counting, measuring), symbolic representation, social skills, sensory input/awareness (comparing touch/feel from sand table or anything children can relate it to by using descriptive words such as slippery or smooth, fine-motor strength

Science
• Materials: red/yellow/blue/clear colored water, pipettes, clear containers for mixing water, transparent legos & color inch cubes, water gel mixing
• Rationale: We still have water color mixing in two areas of the room because of the children's high interest in that activity. Clear water will help extend their interest for deeper learning and exploration of what will happen to the water. Children can do some hypothesizing/critical thinking when trying to guess what will happen to the colors when adding clear water. Children can also interact and learn from other children when exploring the different shades of a color.
• Skills: color recognition, hypothesis creating/testing, concepts/properties of color mixing, social interaction, recording of observations

Dramatic Play
• Materials: child-size door, new shoes and hats, some new fabrics added, capes, blue tarp, scarves, purses, stuffed animals, baby-dolls, house furniture, plates, cookware, plates, plastic food, containers, and empty food boxes
• Rationale: The child-size door has been a popular thing for children to go in and out of. Teachers have helped children make signs on the door that said "Knock on the Door" to help build awareness on pre-literacy skills. Also, making a crab house has been popular for many children. We have added a blue tarp to represent water and to see what else children will use it for to expand their imaginations. Again, signs have been made that read "Open" and "Closed" with all the children's name on it for those who have been playing in the crab house. This gives children a sense of community and collaborating on what animals or characters they will be, what needs to be added, and to act out like crabs walk (to eat/pick up food, how they walk, what color they are, etc).
• Skills: social skills, imaginative/creative play, symbolic representation, recalling factual knowledge related to various themes (e.g. sea creatures/oceans), writing skills and awareness

Math and Manipulatives
• Materials: mosaic pegs of different sizes and colors (i.e. very small, small, medium, and large), patterning blocks, lacing beads, puzzles
• Rationale: Our "Question(s) of the Day" have been about patterning with both colors and shapes. By focusing on patterns, the children recognize colors and what come comes next by collaborating with peers or teachers. Fostering these skills helps the development o of future mathematical skills related to arithmetic/problem solving. Patterning cards will be added this week to help children visibly see examples of different pattern as well as ask if they could continue on with the same pattern to show their knowledge or awareness of patterns. Children have also been making pictures out of the pegs, showing their symbolic representations while informing the teachers about their color-recognition and counting skills.
• Skills: patterning, classification, color recognition, 1 to 1 correspondence, problem solving, hypothesis/critical thinking, creativity, social interaction and discussion

Language and Literacy
• Materials: alphabet book, writing supplies (i.e. pens, markers, pencils, paper, envelopes, etc), mailbox for each child and teacher, letter hole punch, collage materials to create alphabet book
• Rationale: The ABC letter hole-punches have been a hot tool for children to use. Some children have punched out the letters of their name or just explored each letter by seeing what it looks like after punching into the paper. By having this added to the language and literacy center, this fosters children's relationships with peers by learning from each other of how or what to use them for (i.e. make their name, "write" something, or pretend to make a sign for the house). This helps children be aware of words on paper (pre/early-literacy skill) and to also help with their fine motor skills by being in control with their hands to punch out the letters.
• Skills: fine-motor strength, word/name recognition or awareness (pre/early literacy skills), letter recognition, supporting/fostering social skills and relationships

Blocks
• Materials: large hollow blocks, unit blocks, peg people, blue tarp, and paper for sign making
• Rationale: The children have been making a "Crab House" and a castle out of the large hollow blocks. We have added a blue tarp to extend the crab house to use for water, whether they want to be on top of it or be under it to extend their interest. Or maybe for the castle, it will be used for something that they need, such as a roof or a pond in their backyard. The children can expand their imaginations and creativity to expand on what has been going on to get them thinking at a deeper level. Resources can be used to help expand their knowledge in these topics (computer or books).
• Skills: large motor skills, fine-motor skills, imaginative/creativity, spatial awareness skills, supporting and fostering social relationships, recalling information about their interests and utilizing new knowledge, using resources to help expand and build their knowledge

Large Motor
• Materials: GYM: "sliding" donut, balance beams, basketball hoops, balls, monkey bars, climbing wall PLAYGROUND: tricycles, shovels, buckets, rakes, wheel-barrows, tarp, cookware
• Rationale: The "sliding" donut has been an activity that many children love to do! This gives children the ability to practice their depth perception of being up high and sliding down to a lower level. Many children will count before going down the slide (i.e. 1,2,3, 4 blastoff! or 4,3,2,1 blastoff!). We were not able to be in the gym last Thursday and Friday because of the book sale, so we will have the same gym set-up to let children practice and master their skills with the materials provided for their large motor skills as well as on their social interactions with peers. On the playground, last week digging deep holes was the popular activity among many! Children from both classes collaborated by digging together and talking about how the hole is getting deeper each time they scoop up sand with a shovel. Also, children have been playing "Birthday Parties" by trying to invite many children to attend. It's wonderful to see the social interaction increasing each week when having both classes sharing the playground at the end of the day! And now with the snow - we will see how this all transforms. We will continue to have the same materials out and focus on similar play themes, now with the inclusion of the snow!
• Skills: depth perception, propulsion skills, balancing, large-motor, fine-motor, eye-to-hand coordination, spatial skills, visual targeting, turn taking, problem solving, social interaction and discussion on sharing their experiences/knowledge

Special Interest (large group, music, cooking, fire drill, etc)
• We will practice another fire drill this week.
• Reminder: NO SCHOOL on Thursday 11/25 and Friday 11/26

Snack
Monday: Sunbutter and rice cakes
Tuesday: Grapefruit and crackers
Wednesday: Sweet potato chips and fruit
Thursday: Popcorn and fruit
Friday: Pumpkin Muffins (made by the children!)
*All snacks served with milk/water unless otherwise noted*

Ayuko's 3AM Classroom 

November 15-19 

Nora Lead Teaching


Overview: The children have shown increased interest in their growing bodies. Through dance and song activities they have been able to further explore their body and its capabilities. To follow up on this interest we will continue to introduce a variety of movement and rhythmic activities and encourage the children to observe, compare, and record a variety of measurements such as their height and size of their hands. We have recently found the children taking notice of numbers as they count various objects both individually, such as toy cars and other manipulatives, and during large group activities and songs. The classroom will be arranged to begin focusing on number concepts. As the weather gets colder, the children will also be practicing the number sequence and steps needed to dress for the outdoors with added layers and accessories. As Thanksgiving break is fast approaching, we find that some families travel to see their extended family members and friends. If you are going to be away for the Thanksgiving break, please let the teachers know if your child will miss class. Also, we would love to hear where you are going and how you will get there (via plane ride, train, etc) so we may incorporate this into our lessons and to prepare the children for any changes in schedule.

Expressive Arts 

**Materials: A variety of liquid water colors, brushes, and paper at the easel
Rationale: To provide an opportunity to experiment with new paint consistencies; to provide an additional outlet for creative expression
Skills: Fine motor, color recognition, symbolic representation, creativity, artistic expression.
**Materials: Stencils, markers, and colored paper. 

Rationale: To promote fine motor coordination and continue to practice tracing as an artistic expression

Skills: Persistence, hand-eye coordination, try out new ideas, risk-taking
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools, and plastic animals

Rationale: To further explore the consistency of clay and the impression various footprints leave in the material. To create lasting molds to symbolically represent their ideas and creativity
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, manual dexterity, observation, creativity

Sensory 

**Materials: Sand, water, various molds, containers, scoops
Rationale: To explore using both dry and wet sand to make structures. To compare and contrast between the two textures
Skills: Sensory input, turn-taking, comparison, observation, imitation, prediction, trying out new ideas

Science 

**Materials: Small objects of various weights (both light and heavy), large fans, ribbons, tabletop rulers

Rationale: To observe and experiment the power of breath, wind, and fans in the movement of materials of various weights. To begin learning how to measure and record the distance of the movement of materials.
Skills: Observation, comparison, prediction, measurement, turn taking, trying new ideas, recording

**Materials: Kites made of plastic bags and yarn [outside]
Rationale: To construct hand-made kites and to explore the effects various wind patterns have on the movement of objects
Skills: Cause and effect, prediction, observation, comparison

Dramatic Play 

**Materials: Familiar kitchen furniture, table, plastic baked goods, plastic and cardboard coffee cups, condiments, credit card machine, plastic credit cards
Rationale: To further explore an emerging interest of "drinking" and "ordering" coffee, the classroom restaurant will be converted into a neighborhood coffee shop. To familiarize children with number concepts by adding prices to items and credit card machines. To encourage the exchange of items between children using various roles, such as cashier, customer, or server
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.

***Please bring in any left over coffee cups when you are done with them to add to our "neighborhood coffee shop!"

Math and Manipulatives 


**Materials: Measuring wall (to measure and explore height), various sized hand and foot prints, tabletop ruler near fan
Rationale: To give the children opportunities to compare and record how their bodies continue to grow; to record and compare the strength of wind and air using a variety of objects.
Skills: Counting, recording, observing, comparing, turn taking, persistence, numbers
**Materials: Montessori seriation pegs, train puzzles, "Dressing Dolls."
Rationale: To challenge children to use problem-solving skills to order and place pegs according to size and shape. To become familiar with self-help skills such as buttoning, zipping, and snapping clothing items.
Skills: Problem solving, seriation, persistence, fine motor control, hand-eye coordination, comparison

Language and Literacy 

**Materials: Books about our growing bodies and numbers in the new "Reading Cave"

Rationale: To promote finding and applying new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language. 

Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, numerical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information, turn taking. 

**Materials: Large cards outlining steps of getting ready for outside (hat, mittens, etc.)
Rationale: To provide a visual representation outlining the sequence of steps needed to prepare for going outside.
Skills: Follow directions, alphabetic awareness, sequencing, self-help skills
**Materials: Menus with prices, notepads, markers, credit cards and machine

Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter, word, and number recognition in the coffee shop and kitchen
Skills: Fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, numerical awareness, vocabulary expansion 


Blocks 

**Materials: Various sized wooden boards and ramps, hollow blocks, small cars, cardboard "trains"
Rationale: To further explore building road structures such as tunnels and bridges of various heights; to continue to foster experimenting with weight, balance, and height; to create "trains" and other vehicles out of recycled materials
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creativity, symbolic representation, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), try out new ideas

Large Motor 

**Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats; large group activities led by teachers
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice climbing and strengthen their upper and lower bodies. To focus on receptive skills including throwing, catching, and grasping. 

Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, symbolic representation, creativity, turn-taking
**Materials: Outdoors- Trikes, wagons, buckets, shovels, basketball hoop, balls, sand molds
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on propulsion skills through riding the trikes. To encourage the children to make creations out of the sand with the variety of molds and buckets.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect, turn-taking
***Materials: Outdoors- Kites made of plastic bags and yarn
Rationale: To facilitate further exploration and inquiry in the (unpredictable) windy weather; to examine how the wind and varying weather conditions affects them when they move
Skills: Observation, comparison, large and fine motor,

Large group 

**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, dance and instrument activities, modeling of activities
Rationale: To expand on specific topics of interest (body awareness) through sharing a common experience. To practice a routine and be part of a community of learners. 

Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music 

**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, xylophone, interactive music PowerPoint, guitar, maracas 

Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To allow the children an opportunity to use the computer to choose different instrument sounds to listen to the sounds instruments make. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to play instruments both in large group and during free play
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.



Snacks:

Monday: Pineapple chunks and pretzels
Wednesday: cucumbers and crackers
Thursday: soy butter and graham crackers

Ayuko's 2AM Classroom 

November 15-19 

Nora Lead Teaching


Overview: The children have shown increased interest in their growing bodies. Through dance and song activities they have been able to further explore their body and its capabilities. To follow up on this interest we will continue to introduce a variety of movement and rhythmic activities and encourage the children to observe, compare, and record a variety of measurements such as their height and size of their hands. We have recently found the children taking notice of numbers as they count various objects both individually, such as toy cars and other manipulatives, and during large group activities and songs. The classroom will be arranged to begin focusing on number concepts. As the weather gets colder, the children will also be practicing the number sequence and steps needed to dress for the outdoors with added layers and accessories. As Thanksgiving break is fast approaching, we find that some families travel to see their extended family members and friends. If you are going to be away for the Thanksgiving break, please let the teachers know if your child will miss class. Also, we would love to hear where you are going and how you will get there (via plane ride, train, etc) so we may incorporate this into our lessons and to prepare the children for any changes in schedule.

Expressive Arts 

**Materials: A variety of liquid water colors, brushes, and paper at the easel
Rationale: To provide an opportunity to experiment with new paint consistencies; to provide an additional outlet for creative expression
Skills: Fine motor, color recognition, symbolic representation, creativity, artistic expression.
**Materials: Stencils, markers, and colored paper. 

Rationale: To promote fine motor coordination and continue to practice tracing as an artistic expression

Skills: Persistence, hand-eye coordination, try out new ideas, risk-taking
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools, and plastic animals

Rationale: To further explore the consistency of clay and the impression various footprints leave in the material. To create lasting molds to symbolically represent their ideas and creativity
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, manual dexterity, observation, creativity

Sensory 

**Materials: Sand, water, various molds, containers, scoops
Rationale: To explore using both dry and wet sand to make structures. To compare and contrast between the two textures
Skills: Sensory input, turn-taking, comparison, observation, imitation, prediction, trying out new ideas

Science 

**Materials: Small objects of various weights (both light and heavy), large fans, ribbons, tabletop rulers

Rationale: To observe and experiment the power of breath, wind, and fans in the movement of materials of various weights. To begin learning how to measure and record the distance of the movement of materials.
Skills: Observation, comparison, prediction, measurement, turn taking, trying new ideas, recording

**Materials: Kites made of plastic bags and yarn [outside]
Rationale: To construct hand-made kites and to explore the effects various wind patterns have on the movement of objects
Skills: Cause and effect, prediction, observation, comparison

Dramatic Play 

**Materials: Familiar kitchen furniture, table, plastic baked goods, plastic and cardboard coffee cups, condiments
Rationale: To further explore an emerging interest of "drinking" and "ordering" coffee, the classroom restaurant will be converted into a neighborhood coffee shop. To encourage the exchange of items between children using various roles, such as customer or server
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.

***Please bring in any left over coffee cups when you are done with them to add to our "neighborhood coffee shop!"

Math and Manipulatives 


**Materials: Measuring wall (to measure and explore height), various sized hand and foot prints, tabletop ruler near fan
Rationale: To give the children opportunities to compare and record how their bodies continue to grow; to record and compare the strength of wind and air using a variety of objects.
Skills: Counting, recording, observing, comparing, turn taking, persistence, numbers
**Materials: Montessori seriation pegs, train puzzles, "Dressing Dolls" (later in the week), zippers.
Rationale: To challenge children to use problem-solving skills to order and place pegs according to size and shape. To become familiar with self-help skills such as buttoning, zipping, and snapping clothing items.
Skills: Problem solving, seriation, persistence, fine motor control, hand-eye coordination, comparison

Language and Literacy 

**Materials: Books about our growing bodies and numbers in the new "Reading Cave"

Rationale: To promote finding and applying new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language. 

Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, numerical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information, turn taking. 

**Materials: Large cards outlining steps of getting ready for outside (hat, mittens, etc.)
Rationale: To provide a visual representation outlining the sequence of steps needed to prepare for going outside.
Skills: Follow directions, alphabetic awareness, sequencing, self-help skills
**Materials: Menus with prices, notepads, markers, credit cards and machine

Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter, word, and number recognition in the coffee shop and kitchen
Skills: Fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, numerical awareness, vocabulary expansion 


Blocks 

**Materials: Various sized wooden boards and ramps, hollow blocks, small cars, cardboard "trains"
Rationale: To further explore building road structures such as tunnels and bridges of various heights; to continue to foster experimenting with weight, balance, and height; to create "trains" and other vehicles out of recycled materials
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creativity, symbolic representation, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), try out new ideas

Large Motor 

**Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats; large group activities led by teachers
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice climbing and strengthen their upper and lower bodies. To focus on receptive skills including throwing, catching, and grasping. 

Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, symbolic representation, creativity, turn-taking
**Materials: Outdoors- yellow race cars, wagons, buckets, shovels, basketball hoop, balls, sand molds
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on propulsion skills through riding the trikes. To encourage the children to make creations out of the sand with the variety of molds and buckets.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect, turn-taking
***Materials: Outdoors- Kites made of plastic bags and yarn
Rationale: To facilitate further exploration and inquiry in the (unpredictable) windy weather; to examine how the wind and varying weather conditions affects them when they move
Skills: Observation, comparison, large and fine motor,

Large group 

**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, dance and instrument activities, modeling of activities
Rationale: To expand on specific topics of interest (body awareness) through sharing a common experience. To practice a routine and be part of a community of learners. 

Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music 

**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, xylophone, interactive music PowerPoint, guitar, maracas 

Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To allow the children an opportunity to use the computer to choose different instrument sounds to listen to the sounds instruments make. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to play instruments both in large group and during free play
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.



Snacks:

Tuesday: cucumbers and crackers
Friday: soy butter and graham crackers

Day 7

Day 6

Day 4-5

Day 3

Day 2

Day 1

Amy's Science Small Group - Volcanoes
November 24

Amy's Science Small Group - Science Lab Field Trip
November 18

Amy's Science Small Group - Snow
November 17

Amy's Science Small Group - Magnets
November 10-11

Amy's Science Small Group - Water
November 3-4

Amy's Science Small Group
October 27-28

On our first day we met to find out what science topics the children are interested in by looking at a few pages in a children's science encyclopedia as well as a book of simple experiments to get some ideas. We looked at the photos and read a little about plants, insects, water, and volcanoes. The children were enthusiastic to get started and curious about what we will see happen! Each student then drew a picture of a topic they want to look into further through experimentation, and they shared their pictures with one another. Topics they shared were leaves, water, and learning about the lava inside of volcanoes.

On our second day together we met to introduce and explore a variety of tools scientists use and tools we might be using during our experiments. This included looking through magnifying glasses and a microscope, using magnets, and learning how to use a pipette in water. We also discussed the scientific concepts of predicting, observing, and recording, which we will focus on during our experiments in the next few weeks.

Click on the links bellow to watch a few video clips featuring the children using rhythm sticks for the first time...

rhythm-Mobile.m4v

Rhythm 2-Mobile.m4v

rhythm 3-Mobile.m4v

rhtyhm 4-Mobile.m4v

I and Ra comment on their building creations with mobilos... click below to hear what they have to say...

Mobilos-Mobile.m4v

Overview
Small groups have continued to flourish throughout the week. Emily's group went to see Stone Soup last week and has chosen the Three Bears to perform. Mary's group has continued to explore different food through play dough. They made their own play dough and then used that dough to create a pretend meal together. Ann's group created blueprints for their own buildings and then built them out of recycled materials. The children have really enjoyed group time and have begun to generalize things they learn in group into their play throughout the day.

In the classroom the children have enjoyed building different kinds of homes for the animals in the caves, playing at the flax seed table, and building many different ramps and bridges in the blocks. The restaurant theme has also carried through in the dramatic play area

This week we will be focusing on the creation of an Animal Cafe in the back of the room to get the children to think about different kinds of food animals eat. This will also provide opportunities to talk about the extra food animals eat and store in preparation for winter. The flax seed table will address new kinds of motion with the addition of two paddle wheels. Large group times will continue to focus on teaching beginning literacy skills as well as community building activities.

Expressive Arts
- Materials: tabletop easels, tempera paint, small brushes, small paint trays with six colors
- Rationale: The children have shown continued interest in painting. The smaller brushes will allow them to experiment with narrow brush strokes.
- Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, symbolic representation, fine motor development

Sensory
- Materials: flax seed, scoops, funnels, bottles, tubes, paddle wheels
- Rationale: The children have continued to enjoy scooping, filling, and pouring. We added tubes that the children can connect to funnels and bottles for additional problem solving opportunities. The paddle wheels will allow them to experiment with cause and effect relationships as they see the seed flow over the wheel to make it move.
- Skills: Social interaction, turn taking, sensory stimulation and pleasure, communication, large and fine motor development, problem solving, and knowledge of the natural environment.

Science
- Materials: feathers, nests, string and sticks for the children to practice creating their own nests, film about birds constructing nests, pictures of animal tracks and matching animal for a matching game, tadpole and fish, bird watching station.
- Rationale: A nest making station has been added to support the children's interest in birds and the way nests are constructed. To extend the concept of habitats the children will have the opportunity to match pictures of various animals to their accompanying habitat. To further the children's thinking about feathers and their colors some pictures of camouflaged birds will be added to the science center. The children will be challenged to find the bird in the picture and then to think about how the colors of their feathers helped that bird hide.
-Skills: Observation, inquiry, comparing, sorting, measuring, asking questions, predicting, hypothesizing, interpreting and reasoning about events, knowledge of the natural environment

Math and Manipulatives
- Materials: Mobilos, interlocking nature themed puzzles, number puzzles
- Rationale: The children are continuing to explore number concepts and counting through puzzles, games and morning meeting songs. They have enjoyed exploring whole/part relationships by building with flexi-blocks so we added a new builder, the Mobilos. The Mobilos have wheels and can be incorporated into the ramp building that continues to take place daily in the hollow block area.
- Skills: One to one correspondence, counting concepts, number sense, whole/part relationships, construction skills and fine motor development

Language and Literacy
- Materials: A variety of writing implements, paper, post-it notes, envelopes, a poster with the upper and lower case alphabet, a well stocked library with books about animals, habitats, seeds, and fall, posting of the letter of the week "L", objects that begin with the particular letter of the week, a scavenger hunt based on the letter of the week
- Rationale: The children continue to utilize the writing center in various ways; to create signs, write letters, and make tickets for plays. In order to extend and support the childrens' growing awareness of print and letter recognition, the literacy center will feature a letter of the week. The teachers will highlight the letter through objects that begin with the letter, opportunities for the children to find the letter in words through out the classroom and school, and opportunities for children to practice writing the letter. There are also sensory tiles with the letter on them available. Letter sound will also be incorporated into group games and songs.
- Skills: Letter recognition, listening and receptive abilities, writing/drawing, fine motor control, and using books for reference and pleasure

Blocks
-Materials: hollow blocks, wooden planks, unit blocks, wooden cars with accompanying people, notch blocks.
- Rationale: The children have begun to use the hollow blocks and planks to create ramps. With the creation of various sized ramps the children have been investigating how the cars move differently down each ramp. The children also continue to build boats, ships, and roads with the hollow blocks. The addition of the notch blocks will encourage the children to use problem solving skills to create structures. The notch blocks will also support set building among the children who have been performing plays.
- Skills: Construction skills, geometry, problem solving, investigating, communication, dramatic play, symbolic representation, and large and fine motor

Dramatic Play
- Materials: Kitchen with dishes, aprons, dresses, animal themed costumes, acorns, corn, other types of food that relate more to animals. In order to give the restaurant a more woodsy feel, we added fabric hanging over the kitchen area to simulate the night sky and the treetops. Fabric was also added to cover the pipes as if they were trees. The children will be encouraged to decorate the area and make it look more like a forest. In the animal cave there are stuffed woodland animals with logs, branches, vines and wood pieces, different types of cloth to create more cozy homes, pictures of animals' dens and accompanying hibernation questions.
- Rationale: Animal themed costumes and acorns will be added to the dramatic play area to connect this area with the classroom curriculum of plants, animals, and life cycles. More costumes will be added to this area to support the emerging interest in plays and acting. The children continue to show interest in the restaurant theme, and recently the restaurant has begun to serve the many different kinds of animals (both stuffed and costumed) we have in the room. The cave continues to provide a cozy close place that promotes small group interaction and exploration of more specific animal homes and habitats.
- Skills: Role-play, peer interaction, social problem solving, creating imaginary scenarios, large and fine motor development, and symbolic representation.

Large Motor
-Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats. Outdoors-Tricycles, shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows.
-Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that will challenge their physical skills.
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsive skills

Special Interest
-Materials: musical instruments in the loft, including a xylophone, maracas, wood box and accompanying mallets to create music.
-Rationale: To provide children opportunities to express their creativity through sound and rhythm. The children will also begin to gain an understanding of musical notes, pitch, and tone through musical activities arranged during large group time.
-Skills: Creative expression, temporal awareness, pitch/tonal awareness

Amy's Science Small Group
We are excited to have started our small groups! Our topic is science and we will be focusing on inquiry based science experiments and the concepts of predicting, observing, and recording. We've discussed a variety of topics and tools, and will be diving into experiments this week beginning with the topic of water. The children have shown interest in a variety of topics and the experiments will follow these interests. We will meet every Wednesday and Thursday, introducing the topic through stories or demonstration followed by making predictions and hands on experimenting on Wednesdays. Thursdays we will meet to finish up the experiment if necessary, and follow up with recording what happened in journals and discussing their findings. The experiments will allow the children to individually use the tools and materials, while also fostering collaboration and sharing ideas. After their hands on experiences, I am hoping to visit a science laboratory on campus to look further into the subject of science while seeing the concepts they've been using in action in a lab. Please visit the small group tab on our class webpage for weekly updates and photos!

Lindsay's Fall Harvest Small Group
In our small group, Fall Harvest, we have been learning about pumpkins and other fall vegetables. Students will continue to work with and learn about pumpkins. We will be doing many fun, math, science, and art activities with pumpkins. We will be weighing, measuring, rolling, and floating pumpkins, along with other fruits and vegetables. We will also be doing art projects and other fun activities. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask either Lisa or me.

Lisa's Animal Small Group
We have a very active group of children who are energetic about our topic, animals! We will be learning about the animals that live inside and outside our school, what they eat, where they live, and what they'll do once winter comes. The children are also excited to explore other animals as well (crocodiles and cheetahs are of specific interest), so we will broaden our scope to include additional animals of curiosity. Along with nature walks and reading stories, our discoveries will also include exploring animals through songs, art, and creative expression. We will have a few guest teachers lined up to participate with our group, and we're hoping to visit the Bell Museum as a culminating event towards the end of the session. The children are very excited to begin. Please be sure to check out weekly updates on our webpage!

Please click bellow to watch the children continue the Bird calls' game in the playground
bird calls 1-Mobile.m4v

Overview


The children continue to make observations and ask meaningful questions about what they notice outdoors. We will continue to take the time to listen to their questions and incorporate their wondering into our classroom set-ups and activities. We will keep on exploring the topics from last week of animals, animal homes, and what different animals do to get ready for winter. Our small group topics and experiences are becoming more focused based on the children's interests. Children are forming ownership and identity within their groups. The children are taking what they experience in small groups and using it in their play in other areas of the classroom. The Naturalists group will be taking a field trip to the Harriet Nature Center this Thursday.
The teachers will continue to support and provide opportunities for meaningful and positive social interactions throughout our afternoons at school.

Expressive Arts


-Materials: Tempera paint (6 colors), small paintbrushes, and standing easels. Natural collage materials collected and sorted from outside, large stick, and wire for a whole class fall hanging sculpture.
-Rationale: To provide the children with a variety of opportunities for self and creative expression and story telling. The smaller brushes and added color will help encourage children to give more details to their paintings and story. The whole class fall sculpture will help foster a sense of community and ownership by creating one project together.
-Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, observation, sensory input, fine motor, and community strengthening.
-Materials: Clay and sculpting tools.
-Rationale: Continue to encourage children to experience clay as a sensory input, promote social interactions, representation skills, and conservation skills. 

-Skills: Sensory awareness, peer interactions, sharing materials, and conservation.

Science


-Materials: Animal tracks' matching game, light table, and an animal sorting game. Fish tank and tadpole tank. Feathers, nest building, and pictures of birds using their feathers for camouflage.
-Rationale: To continue to facilitate children's interests and higher level thinking (questions, predictions, hypotheses) of where animals live, what animals do during winter, and why and how animals hibernate, migrate, or stay active. Continue to pay attention to our pet fish and tadpole. The pictures of birds using their feathers for camouflage will help spark children's interests in the colors and patterns in the feathers.
-Skills: Observation, exploration, investigating, identify/describe objects by physical characteristics, make comparisons between objects that have been collected or observed, and peer interactions.

Dramatic Play


-Materials: Kitchen with dishes, fruits and veggies, dress up clothes, animal costumes, restaurant supplies, cookbooks, menus, paper, pencils, and food photos. We will add more animal food (nuts, acorns, corn on the cob, etc.) The Animal Cave has stuffed woodland animals, logs, wood blocks, books about animal homes and animal hibernation. We have added questions about hibernation and photos of animals hibernating in the cave. 

-Rationale: The dramatic play area is set up to encourage social interactions, symbolic play, literacy, and expression of children's ideas about their experiences. The animal food will encourage children to extend the restaurant and pet theme to an animal café theme. Children have been showing interest in hibernation, so the cave is set up for small group interactions and discussions about woodland animals, their homes, and hibernation.
-Skills: Role-play, peer interactions, social problem solving, symbolic representation, and print awareness.

Language and Literacy


-Materials: Books about birds, seeds, and animals in the classroom within science area, animal cave, and cozy couch. There are also cookbooks in the dramatic play area. The dramatic play, bird watching station, and writing table all have pencils and paper.
-Rationale: We will continue to encourage talking, writing, print awareness, and using books as informational resources. 
Children are enjoying using the writing materials in the dramatic play area for menus, for taking orders, and for drawing construction plans.
Skills: Self-expression through talking, writing, drawing, awareness of the purpose of print and letter recognition, phonemic awareness, and connecting speech to print and print to speech.

Blocks 


-Materials: Hollow blocks, unit blocks, tree blocks, wheels, and street signs. Cloth material and notch blocks will be added to extend children's explorations of building different structures.
-Rationale: To provide materials for symbolic play, awareness of geometry and directions, to encourage cooperative play and collaboration. 

-Skills: Large motor skills, balance, directional awareness, symbolic representation, and social interaction skills.

Math and Manipulatives


-Materials: Unifix cubes, number sense puzzle, mobilos, new peg puzzles and matching game. We will add different sized handprint cut outs for children to match the size of their hands.
-Rationale: To provide opportunity to practice one-to-one correspondence, matching, seriating and measurement. To encourage and support social interactions. The handprints will help children explore and connect the idea of animal tracks to themselves.
-Skills: One to one correspondence, comparing, matching, seriating, and number sense. Creative building.

Large Motor


-Materials: Gym- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats.
Playground- tricycles, shovels, buckets, cups, rakes, ropes, lots of space to run and climb, and bird tickets for children and teachers. 

-Rationale: Children enjoyed the new gym set up, especially the basketball hoop and balancing beams. We will continue to provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. Children will have opportunities to practice climbing, use their upper and lower body strength, practice using their receptive skills (throwing, catching, and grasping).
In the playground we want to give children space for additional large motor endeavors and support them into noticing what is happening outside. We will also play a large motor game outside to foster locomotor skills, group identity, and following directions. Children will be given 3 different pictures of birds, 3 teachers will make different bird sounds, and children will run to the corresponding bird sound.
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsion skills, dramatic play, cooperation, turn taking, problems solving, and following directions.

Special interest

Large Group

Discussions about imagination and transformations will continue. We will continue talking about animals in the fall and focusing on hibernating and migrating. This week we will also introduce musical instruments in large group and then put them at the top of the loft for children to explore.
Snack
One of our snacks this week will focus on making patterns.
Field Trip
On Thursday, November 11th, the "Naturalists" small group is going on a field trip to the Harriet Nature Center.

Coming up...

• "Tantrum Talks" on Thursday, November 11th at 2:30 and Friday, November 12th at 10 in room 105 (Kelley sent a flyer last week).

• Oleanna book sale will take place on Thursday and Friday, November 11th and 12th in our gym. 

• The Lab School will be closed on Thursday, November 25th (We are open on Wednesday, November 24th)
• Discussion on: "Everything you wanted to know about the transition to Kindergarten" facilitated by Ann Rhul Carlson will take place on Wednesday, December 1st from 9-10:30; Wednesday, December 1st from 1:30-3; and Thursday, December 2nd from 7-8:30.
•The last day of the fall session is Monday, December 6th.

Pat, Ellen, Linda and Dalia

Weekly Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Date: November 8 - 12, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: TEAM WK2

Overview: As the school year settles into a comfortable routine the children have not only been busy building relationships with each other but also with the teachers. The social development of the children has been a focus in every area of the classroom and encouraged in many planned activities. Small groups share their content focus with the goal of building new relationships and strengthening current friendships. The activities throughout the classroom also provide opportunities for the children to interact and learn together. Many new materials and activities were added last week: color mixing at the science center, watercolors at the art table, and a new gym set-up. Because the children have shown an increasing interest in exploring these activities, and with repetition comes mastery, many of the areas of the room will stay the same to allow for more exploration and deeper learning while also contributing to the development of relationships around common interests and experiences. As you read the daily documentations you may notice these relationships forming and your child talking about their relationships at school. Continue to talk with your child about their experiences at school and show them the photos in the daily docs to help them recall those experiences and the relationships with the other children in the class.

Expressive Arts (paint, collage, clay)

• Materials: watercolor paints, primary/secondary colors at the easel, bottle caps, puff balls, new natural/"beautiful" materials for collage (cut-out letters, zigzag confetti paper), markers, crayons, clay (with supportive materials for more symbolic representational sculpture: toothpicks, wood lacing beads, carving tools, wet sponges to help with adhering pieces, and examples of other sculptures made with clay) • Rationale: The children have really enjoyed painting with watercolors and seeing what it does when putting onto paper. Last week, one child waited until her painting was dry and then drew with markers on top of her painting to add a new layer of detail/representation. To extend this interest, the use of permanent markers will be introduced to the children. This is for them to draw an image that can then be painted over to increase the intentionality with the watercolors. Many of those that tried it on Friday drew people on their paintings (family members and themselves). It's a way to use their creativity and to express what they know through art. • Skills: color recognition, creativity, fine-motor strength/coordination, artistic expression, symbolic representation, social skills, using resources in the classroom to help build their knowledge of the world

Sensory (flaxseed table)

• Materials: flaxseed, scoops, funnels, measuring cups, graphs/chart of how many scoops fill a container • Rationale: We have had the flaxseed table for a week and the children are quite involved! While exploring the flaxseeds, the children have been creative with it by making "cookies, pie, volcanoes, and even the idea of making snow." The teachers are also encouraging the children to revisit the "counting-of-scoops" to fill the containers game and comparing to what we had for the sand. We are recording the children's answers with the numbers and putting them next to the corresponding picture. Teachers are also using words like "more than, less than, or the same" to get the children thinking more intentionally when comparing number of scoops between the different containers or sand and flaxseeds. This requires that the children recall their experiences from before and create new hypotheses - promoting scientific and critical thinking skills. • Skills: counting, recording data, math conceptions related to more/less/the same, critical thinking/reasoning skills, large-/fine-motor skills

Science

• Materials: red/yellow/blue colored water, pipettes, clear containers for mixing water, light box, color shapes, water gel mixing, color glasses • Rationale: We have colored-water mixing in two areas of the room (the science area and in the "nook") because many children want to be involved with this. The children continue to reinforce their knowledge about the mixing of two primary colors, however it has some children very curious about what happens when all three colors are mixed together (especially in the rinse cups. The children are also learning from each other as they watch a peer make a color and discuss how it is lighter/darker - opening up discussions about shades of color (i.e. light green, dark green, dark purple). By exploring and recalling what two colors make, the children can also transfer that knowledge when painting at the easel or the art table. • Skills: color recognition, concepts/properties of color mixing, scientific investigation/inquiry, hypothesis creating/testing, recording of observations, supporting social relationships and discussions through shared experiences

Dramatic Play 

• Materials: child-size door, SCUBA props (flippers, masks, air tanks), additional Playschool doctor tools, fabric/scarves, shoes, purses, house furniture, plates, pretend food, stuffed animals, baby-dolls, and care supplies

• Rationale: The children have really enjoyed using the child-size door and it has brought much of the dramatic play back to the house...then back to the block area...then back to the house - there is a lot of in and out. The children continue revisit the underwater stories: scouring the deeps of the ocean with many different missions. We will continue to support these stories by adding supporting materials each day.
• Skills: imaginative/creative play, symbolic representation, fostering social relationships, recalling factual knowledge related to various themes (e.g. doctor/hospital/ambulance/sea creatures/oceans)

Math and Manipulatives

• Materials: plastic egg-shell pegs of different sizes (i.e. very small, small, medium, and large) and colors (i.e. light blue, dark blue, red, green, orange, yellow), patterning blocks, puzzles, multi-colored/-shaped lacing beads
• Rationale: This last week, the children began to form or extend their pattern awareness by using the patterning pegs. Many children in the class have been able to participate in a "Pattern Game," in which a teacher makes a pattern, such as "red, green, red, green, red," and asks, "What color do you think comes next?" A few children have been creating their own patterns and have asked teachers to continue them. The children have also demonstrated an awareness of what colors do not come next in a pattern and have tested themselves and others by forming the "wrong" step in a pattern on purpose. We will continue to foster the children's pattern awareness by engaging them in the "Pattern Game," incorporating the dimension of size more into the patterns, and by encouraging the children to create their own patterns and ask other children to solve/continue them.
• Skills: patterning, classification, color recognition, one-to-one correspondence, collaborative problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, fostering social relationships

Language and Literacy

• Materials: alphabet book, writing supplies (i.e. pens, pencils, markers, paper, envelopes, etc.), mailbox for each child, collage materials to create alphabet letters
• Rationale: We will continue the collaborative activity of creating "Our Alphabet Book," where each child will include their version of an alphabet letter. We will encourage the children to use the book as a resource when writing. Collage materials will also be available to create 2 and 3-dimensional alphabet letters to display in the classroom. By increasing the amount of print in the classroom the children will have more opportunities to learn the alphabet. They will also build their sense of community as they contribute to the collaboration of creating a unique and meaningful class project.
• Skills: pre-/early-literacy skills, letter recognition, fine-motor coordination/endurance, supporting/fostering social skills and relationships

Blocks

• Materials: Large hollow blocks, peg people, scuba equipment (goggles, snorkels, flippers), fish cut-outs, magnet fishing rods (for fish cut outs).
• Rationale: The children have used the blocks to make "Ocean tanks", and other ocean themed structures. We will bring back the fish cut outs and scuba gear, which was incorporated into the ocean play, to continue to foster those play themes. The children have also been using the hollow blocks, unit blocks, and inch cubes together to make more elaborate/detailed structures. Additionally, the peg people have added to the play so these will also be continued.
• Skills: Large motor, fine motor, creativity, spatial skills, social relationships, concepts of balance, weight, and stability.

Large Motor

• Materials: GYM: "sliding" donut, balance beams, basketball hoops (and balls), climbing wall, monkey bars, slide-climber
PLAYGROUND: tricycles, shovels, buckets, rakes, ropes, tarps, Scooter cars, "driving lane," uneven ("bumpy") walk, low hurdles, stair climber, throwing games, trampoline, (bikes, rakes, shovels on the playground)

• Rationale: The new gym set-up was a success! The children loved challenge themselves on the balance beams and it also appears we have some avid basketball players - with a handful of children frequenting the court and taking some shots. The arrangement has also leant itself to some great teacher-facilitated activities. We introduced the "flip-triangle" - a large triangle mat that the children run/jump into that then flips to the ground (with a teacher's assistance/guidance). We also played "Take Out the Trash" - a throwing game that children hurling sock-balls across the gym! It's a lot of fun and gets the children practicing their over-hand throwing skills! We will continue with these activities this week, however will be unable to visit the gym on Thursday and Friday due to the book sale. If the weather cooperates, we will make sure to get some extra time on the playground those days. Don't forget to send along the hats, mittens/gloves, and jackets every day! 

• Skills: balancing, depth perception, propulsion skills, large-motor strength/coordination/endurance, eye-to-hand/foot coordination, spatial skills, visual targeting, turn taking, social skills, sharing and problem solving

Special Interest (large group, music, cooking, fire drill, etc)
• The dance students are coming back Monday during large group to do another movement activity with the children!
• The teachers would like the children to expand their play in the housekeeping area by using real food packaging. Please send along with your child this week any empty packages such as cereal boxes, plastic bottles, and cardboard boxes. Please fill the cardboard boxes with newspaper and tape closed, also wash any plastic bottles and containers.
• Story telling small group participants were sent home on Friday with their journal. Please help them write a story to share with the group and return the journal on Monday or Tuesday.
• A reminder about the "Tantrums" presentations - Thursday 11/11 @ 2.30p and Friday 11/12 @10a - both in room 105 (upstairs). See flyer sent from Kelley for additional information.
• The Oleanna Book Sale is this Thursday and Friday. Stop in after dropping off your child or bring them with after school and take part in a great book sale! Because the book sale will be held in the gym, we will unfortunately have "No-gym" days on Thursday and Friday.

Snack 

Monday: Birthday Snack brought by Sam
Tuesday: 
Chips and salsa (made by the children on Monday)
Wednesday: Carrots and pretzels
Thursday: Rice cakes and raisins

Friday: Home=style oven fries (back again by popular demand!)
*All snacks served with water and milk, unless otherwise specified*

Fall lesson plan - week of November 8th
Ayuko's 2AM Classroom
November 9-12
Courtney Lead Teaching

Overview: The children are continuing to form stronger relationships with one another and working together in the classroom. As we work to solidify the children's familiarity with one another, we will continue to facilitate social awareness by sharing common areas, promoting dramatic play, and offering a "matching" game with the children's faces to their name. The temperatures outside have continued to drop and the idea of wind is still being explored indoors and outside on the playground. We will begin focusing on the process of "preparing" to go outside when it is cold and all the steps that we take to get dressed after snack. Furthermore, we will continue to promote opportunities for the children to think about how wind affects objects and give them the opportunity to use "wind" to make objects move. Additionally, we will support and encourage literacy as the children begin spelling and recognizing the letters in their names. The children have recently expressed an interest in the topic of growing and getting "bigger." We will continue to foster this interest in a variety of ways to expand the children's body awareness through a variety of activities available during the week.

Expressive Arts
**Materials: A variety of colors, rollers, and paper
Rationale: To provide an opportunity to experiment with new painting tools. To encourage creativity through mixing colors and experimenting with different paint strokes.
Skills: Fine motor, hand-eye coordination self-expression, risk taking, observation, comparison, and promote social interaction.
**Materials: Scissors and paper with lines
Rationale: To promote fine motor skills of cutting and snipping. To experiment with different methods of cutting (little snips, longer cuts, straight-line cutting) on different lines of the paper. To give opportunities to "write" on the lined paper as the interests in writing names and words have increased.
Skills: fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, persistence, creative expression, patterns, writing, heuristic language, and alphabetic awareness.

Sensory
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools.
Rationale: To introduce and explore a natural material that can be molded and sculpted. To experience the different properties of clay.
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, alphabetic awareness, symbolic representation, manual dexterity
**Materials: sand, scoops, rakes, sifters, shells, rocks, plastic insects, and paddlewheels
Rationale: To explore and experiment with sand by using different tools and containers to excavate and collect.
Skills: Sensory input, observation, measurement, experimentation, math skills (spatial relations and volume), comparison, prediction, fine motor, and creativity.

Science
**Materials: Ribbons, cotton, leaves, feathers, light materials, and heavy materials.
Rationale: To experiment with creating our own "wind" by using a large fan to move light objects and test heavier objects.
Skills: Observation, comparison, try out, prediction, cause and effect.
**Materials: Plastic and stuffed animal birds, basket nests, acorns, seeds, pictures of birds (highlighting the feeding process).
Rationale: To continue to support the children's interest in various types of birds, their habitats, and the process of caretaking of baby birds through dramatic play scenarios and creating bird feeders.
Skills: Creative Expression, observation, role play, social skills, classification, comparison, prediction.
**Materials: Sunflower seeds, pine cones, soy butter, paper bags, string, bird seed.
Rationale: To continue to support the children's interest in birds and the process of feeding the birds outside our classroom by creating our own bird feeders.
Skills: Observation, cause and effect, prediction, comparison, try out ideas.

Dramatic Play
**Materials: Familiar kitchen furniture, table, plastic foods highlighting those that encourage serving (pizza, part to whole plastic fruits/vegetables, cake, cupcakes), serving trays, silverware, plates, bowls, cups, pitchers, menus, aprons, notepad (to take orders), and writing tools.
Rationale: To continue to encourage the children's interest in being in a restaurant setting. To support acting out scenarios of "preparing" and "serving" various foods and drinks to others. To support and promote writing and taking food orders (asking questions) from other children, and serving (sharing).
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.
***Please continue to let the teachers know if your child has any favorite restaurants/coffee shops or specific restaurant experiences you would like to share to make our classroom restaurant more personal and familiar to the children.

Math and Manipulatives
**Materials: Sorting shells, bugs, rocks etc ("buried" in the sand table)
Rationale: To give the children opportunity to group, sort, and count the different objects they find buried in the sand.
Skills: Fine motor control, visual and spatial discrimination, one-to-one correspondence, grouping and ordering, counting, turn taking, manual dexterity.
**Materials: Measuring wall (to measure and explore height), small to large hand and foot prints placed on the floor and table of the classroom.
Rationale: To give the children opportunity to explore and record how our bodies grow.
Skills: Give and ask for information, speaking, counting, keeping record, measurements, seriation, visual and spatial discrimination.

Language and Literacy
**Materials: Books related to the wind, cold weather, construction and growing (body awareness).
Rationale: To promote finding resources and new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language.
Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information.
**Materials: Letter matching game to spell out the children's names or initials
Rationale: To continue to support knowledge of symbol and representational systems. To promote alphabetical awareness, name recognition, and letter formations and letter matching.
Skills: fine motor, reading, writing, alphabet awareness, and vocabulary expansion
**Materials: Menus, notepads and markers
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter and word recognition in the restaurant area.
Skills: fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, and vocabulary expansion
**Materials: Construction paper, markers, tape
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading the signs the children want to make for their roads and construction areas.
Skills: fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, and vocabulary expansion

Blocks
**Materials: various sized wooden ramps, hollow blocks, wood blocks, wooden planks, various wheels, small trucks, cars, and road signs.
Rationale: To promote road building with different surfaces (ramps, tunnels, streets). To continue to foster experimenting with speed, weight, direction, acceleration and slope.
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creative expression, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), scientific skill, experimenting, reasoning.

Large Motor
**Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats.
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice climbing and upper and lower body strength. To focus on receptive skills including throwing, catching, and grasping.
Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination
**Materials: Outdoors- trikes, wagons, buckets, shovels, sand molds, ribbons with handles
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on propulsion skills through riding the trikes. To encourage the children to make creations out of the sand with the variety of molds and buckets. To use the ribbons with handles to experiment how the wind affects them when they move.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect.

Large group
**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, modeling of activities
Rationale: To expand on specific topics of interest (birds, wind, growing, and winter clothing) through sharing a common experience. To practice a routine and be part of a community of learners.
Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music
**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, xylophone, interactive music PowerPoint, posted song selections.
Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To allow the children an opportunity to use the computer to choose different instrument sounds to listen to the sounds instruments make. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to use the instruments in the cave while singing a familiar song together.
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.

Snacks:
Tuesday: Bananas and graham crackers
Friday: Oven fries and milk.

Fall lesson plan - week of November 8th
Ayuko's 3AM Classroom
November 8-12
Courtney Lead Teaching

Overview: The children are continuing to form stronger relationships with one another and working together in the classroom. As we work to solidify the children's familiarity with one another, we will continue to facilitate social awareness by sharing common areas, promoting dramatic play, and offering a "matching" game with the children's faces to their name. The temperatures outside have continued to drop and the idea of wind is still being explored indoors and outside on the playground. We will begin focusing on the process of "preparing" to go outside when it is cold and all the steps that we take to get dressed after snack. Furthermore, we will continue to promote opportunities for the children to think about how wind affects objects and give them the opportunity to use "wind" to make objects move. Additionally, we will support and encourage literacy as the children begin spelling and recognizing the letters in their names. The children have recently expressed an interest in the topic of growing and getting "bigger." We will continue to foster this interest in a variety of ways to expand the children's body awareness through a variety of activities available during the week.

Expressive Arts
**Materials: A variety of colors, rollers, and paper
Rationale: To provide an opportunity to experiment with new painting tools. To encourage creativity through mixing colors and experimenting with different paint strokes.
Skills: Fine motor, hand-eye coordination self-expression, risk taking, observation, comparison, and promote social interaction.
**Materials: Scissors and paper with lines
Rationale: To promote fine motor skills of cutting and snipping. To experiment with different methods of cutting (little snips, longer cuts, straight-line cutting) on different lines on the paper. To give opportunities to "write" on the lined paper as the interests in writing names and words have increased.
Skills: fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, persistence, creative expression, patterns, writing, heuristic language, and alphabetic awareness.

Sensory
**Materials: Natural Clay, rolling pins, cutting tools.
Rationale: To introduce and explore a natural material that can be molded and sculpted. To experience the different properties of the clay.
Skills: Sensory input, fine motor, creative expression, alphabetic awareness, symbolic representation, manual dexterity
**Materials: sand, scoops, rakes, sifters, shells, rocks, plastic insects, and paddlewheels
Rationale: To explore and experiment with sand by using different tools and containers to excavate and collect.
Skills: Sensory input, observation, measurement, experimentation, math skills (spatial relations and volume), comparison, prediction, fine motor, and creativity.

Science
**Materials: Ribbons, cotton, leaves, feathers, light materials, and heavy materials.
Rationale: To experiment with creating our own "wind" by using a large fan to move light objects and test heavier objects.
Skills: Observation, comparison, try out, prediction, cause and effect.
**Materials: Plastic and stuffed animal birds, basket nests, acorns, seeds, pictures of birds (highlighting the feeding process).
Rationale: To continue to support the children's interest in various types of birds, their habitats, and the process of caretaking of baby birds through dramatic play scenarios and creating bird feeders.
Skills: Creative Expression, observation, role play, social skills, classification, comparison, prediction.
**Materials: Sunflower seeds, pine cones, soy butter, paper bags, string, bird seed.
Rationale: To continue to support the children's interest in birds and the process of feeding the birds outside our classroom by creating our own bird feeders.
Skills: Observation, cause and effect, prediction, comparison, try out ideas.

Dramatic Play
**Materials: Familiar kitchen furniture, table, plastic foods highlighting those that encourage serving (pizza, part to whole plastic fruits/vegetables, cake, cupcakes), serving trays, silverware, plates, bowls, cups, pitchers, menus, aprons, notepad (to take orders), and writing tools.
Rationale: To continue to encourage the children's interest in being in a restaurant setting. To support acting out scenarios of "preparing" and "serving" various foods and drinks to others. To support and promote writing and taking food orders (asking questions) from other children, and serving (sharing).
Skills: Role play, symbolic representation, communication, collaboration, creative expression, cooperation, social skills.
***Please continue to let the teachers know if your child has any favorite restaurants/coffee shops or specific restaurant experiences you would like to share to make our classroom restaurant more personal and familiar to the children.

Math and Manipulatives
**Materials: Sorting shells, bugs, rocks etc ("buried" in the sand table)
Rationale: To give the children opportunity to group, sort, and count the different objects they find buried in the sand.
Skills: Fine motor control, visual and spatial discrimination, one-to-one correspondence, grouping and ordering, counting, turn taking, manual dexterity.
**Materials: Measuring wall (to measure and explore height), small to large hand and foot prints placed on the floor and table of the classroom.
Rationale: To give the children opportunity to explore and record how our bodies grow.
Skills: Give and ask for information, speaking, counting, keeping record, measurements, seriation, visual and spatial discrimination.

Language and Literacy
**Materials: Books related to the wind, cold weather, construction and growing (body awareness).
Rationale: To promote finding resources and new information in books while continuing to facilitate the development of the basic components of language.
Skills: Listening, speaking, reading, phonological awareness, alphabetical awareness, heuristic language, give and ask for information.
**Materials: Letter matching game to spell out the children's names or initials
Rationale: To continue to support knowledge of symbol and representational systems. To promote alphabetical awareness, name recognition, and letter formations and letter matching.
Skills: fine motor, reading, writing, alphabet awareness, and vocabulary expansion
**Materials: Menus, notepads and markers
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading to promote letter and word recognition in the restaurant area.
Skills: fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, and vocabulary expansion
**Materials: Construction paper, markers, tape
Rationale: To encourage writing and reading of the signs the children want to make for their roads and construction areas.
Skills: fine motor, writing, alphabetical awareness, and vocabulary expansion

Blocks
**Materials: various sized wooden ramps, hollow blocks, wood blocks, wooden planks, various wheels, small trucks, cars, and road signs.
Rationale: To promote road building with different surfaces (ramps, tunnels, streets). To continue to foster experimenting with speed, weight, direction, acceleration and slope.
Skills: Cooperation, collaboration, creative expression, large and fine motor, spatial concepts, construction skills (building), scientific skill, experimenting, reasoning.

Large Motor
**Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats.
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice climbing and upper and lower body strength. To focus on receptive skills including throwing, catching, and grasping.
Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination
**Materials: Outdoors- trikes, wagons, buckets, shovels, sand molds, ribbons with handles
Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills including a focus on propulsion skills through riding the trikes. To encourage the children to make creations out of the sand with the variety of molds and buckets. To use the ribbons with handles to experiment how the wind affects them when they move.
Skills: Fine and large motor, body manipulation, physical fitness, hand-eye coordination, cause and effect.

Large group
**Materials: Songs and rhymes led by teacher (gather, name, and topic songs and rhymes), story telling, guest dancers, modeling of activities
Rationale: To expand on specific topics of interest (birds, wind, growing, and winter clothing) through sharing a common experience. To practice a routine and be part of a community of learners.
Skills: Attention span, attending and orienting, respect for one another, following directions.

Music
**Materials: Piano, bells, tambourines, xylophone, interactive music PowerPoint, posted song selections.
Rationale: To promote exploration of sound, volume, rhythm and social interaction. To allow the children an opportunity to use the computer to choose different instrument sounds to listen to the sounds instruments make. To promote social interaction and community by encouraging the children to use the instruments in the cave while singing a familiar song together.
Skills: Creative expression and movement, mathematical concepts (beats and patterns), imitation, call and answer, communication.

Snacks:
Monday: Bananas and graham crackers
Wednesday:Rice cakes and carrots
Thursday: Rice cakes and carrots

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Overview: The children were very excited to begin their work with mixing two different colors together to create a new color. The children were able to experience mixing colors first hand by using pipettes and test tubes. We will continue our work with color mixing this week. The children continue to be busy with dramatic play using tools to repair our classroom appliances, playing doctor, and building hospitals and other structures with the large hollow blocks. The teachers will facilitate the children's interests by continuing to provide additional materials and tools. Small groups are well underway and going great. Amy's science group will continue with various science experiments. Lisa's group will continue to learn about animals, based on the children's interests. My group will continue our fall harvest theme, investigating a variety of fall fruits and vegetables. More information on these small groups can be found on the small group tab.

Expressive Arts (paint, collage, play dough)

•Materials: We will be adding watercolors along with coffee filters and paper to the art table. We will continue using primary color paints and empty cups for color mixing at the easel; natural materials for collage; markers, crayons, colored pencils, scissors, glue, and hole-punchers; colored play dough, rollers, cutters in familiar shapes, and pounding tools.
•Rationale: The children are continuing to use primary colors, while mixing secondary. The natural materials with various textures are being used for making collages, as well as the hole-punchers and scissors to make interesting designs with the paper. Blue play dough has sparked curiosity and conversations, while continuing to develop fine motor skills through changing the shape of the dough. 

•Skills: creativity, artistic expression, fine motor development, symbolic representation, color recognition, sensory input, sharing materials
Sensory (flax seed)

•Materials: seeds, measuring cups, funnels, a variety of different sized and shaped containers, and scoops. 

•Rationale: To change the sensory experience with a new natural material while continuing to use measuring cups and scoops to continue comparing and counting. 

•Skills: large and fine motor development, counting, measuring, comparing-contrasting, turn taking, fostering social relationships, developing an awareness of senses
Science

•Materials: Continue with red, yellow, and blue water, mixing containers and test tubes, pipettes, color wheels, light table, transparent colored shapes, water based manipulatives. 

•Rationale: to encourage color awareness and development of inquiry skills through hands on experimentation with primary colors and colors they can make. 

•Skills: observing, predicting, recording, scientific investigating and inquiry, sorting, fine motor, use of science tools, sharing and discussing
Dramatic Play

•Materials: Tools, blocks, fabric, stethoscopes, doctor bags, clipboards, stuffed animals, food, kitchen utensils; the caves continue to have blankets and pillows, and baby dolls for house play. 

•Rationale: To follow the children's interest in building and fixing appliances with tools, as well as helping injured and sick people and animals. They are also interested in cooking pretend meals and pretending to watch funny movies in the caves, which has created a lot of laughter and has built social relationships. 

•Skills: creative role-play, peer interaction, turn taking, social problem solving, symbolic representation, creating imaginary scenarios
Math and Manipulatives

•Materials: Continue with Bristle Blocks, puzzles, and shape blocks

•Rationale: To continue supporting the interest in construction of buildings and vehicles with the Bristle Blocks. The puzzles have themes, which are consistent with themes in the classroom. Shape blocks have been introduced to encourage construction as well as patterning with shape and color.
•Skills: construction, symbolic representation, counting, patterning, one-to-one correspondence, critical thinking, creativity, and fine motor development
Language and Literacy

•Materials: At the writing center, we have writing utensils, paper, envelopes, staplers, tape, and stickers with letters, numbers, fall shapes, and familiar characters. In our story center, we have a variety of familiar books, seasonal books with harvest themes, as well as a variety of titles corresponding to the student's interest in constructing buildings and hospitals.
•Rationale: To encourage writing, recording, and creativity. To support pre-literacy skills, follow the themes of the classroom and encourage new ideas within the theme, and allow for a quiet space for exploration of the books.
•Skills: fine motor, pre-writing, letter recognition, receptive language, listening, supporting social skills and relationships.
Blocks

•Materials: large hollow blocks, unit blocks, and tools 

•Rationale: To continue dramatic play themes and support creativity, teamwork and collaboration, and problem solving. 

•Skills: large motor development (strength, coordination), dramatic play, creating imaginary scenarios, symbolic representation, directional awareness, cooperative play, problem solving
Large Motor

•Materials: gym- large motor obstacle course (complete with A-frame ladders, horizontal and vertical climbing bars, mats, balance beams, large rubber balls, and a basketball hoop) playground- continue using rakes, shovels, and wheelbarrows to collect fallen leaves, as well as scooters and bikes. 

•Rationale: To promote development of a variety of large motor skills along with providing a group game to foster cooperation. The playground includes rakes to support their interest in the changing seasons and connect them with nature while incorporating physical development. 

•Skills: coordination, spatial awareness, directional awareness, jumping and landing, turn-taking, balance, agility, body awareness, upper and lower body large motor development, physical fitness, and building community through social interactions
Snack
Monday - Bananas & graham crackers
Wednesday - Trail mix & milk
Thursday - Cereal & milk

Monday, November 22nd, 2010

Wednesday, November 17th, 2010

Monday, November 15th, 2010

Thursday, November 11th, 2010- Field Trip to The Harriet Alexander Nature Center

please click bellow to hear Ra explain what he has in his dish with water from the pond
Raymond-field trip-Mobile.m4v

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Thursday, November 4th, 2010

Wednesday, November 3rd, 2010

Monday, November 1st, 2010

Thursday, October 28th, 2010

Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

WATCH CHARLIE D help his friends take turns to throw the balls into the hoops!

basketball-Mobile.m4v

Dear Families,

The children in the care taking group have been involved in activities that are necessary when taking care of an animal or pet. The children have practiced walking their stuffed animals and now they have taken the steps of making animal food to feed the squirrels outside at school. To build on their care taking skills in the upcoming weeks we will consider exploring the ideas of taking care of the health of animals by setting up "vet" supplies and taking care of any "sick" animals we find. In addition, some of the children have mentioned giving their animals a bath which we might explore as well.

I look forward to the weeks to come.
Sincerely,
Courtney

Overview:
The classroom has been a very busy place with the start of small groups. All of the children are enjoying their experiences and are clearly excited about what they are learning. New friendships are being formed and established friendships are growing stronger within the groups. The children have also been sharing what they have learned in their small groups with the rest of the class. We have observed many plays and construction projects during free play.

The children have shown a continued interest in the birds and squirrels at the bird feeder. We have been making daily trips out to refill the bird feeder. We made popcorn last week and put some extra kernels out for the birds. The children delighted in checking to see if the popcorn had been eaten. Some of the children have incorporated stuffed birds into their play at the sensory table, they pretend to feed the birds and make nests with the flax seed. The children have also begun to notice and delight in the various feathers on the light table.

Last week the children planted the pumpkin seeds and they have been growing fast. The children have enjoyed watering and talking about the growing plants. We now have pumpkin seeds and plants in various stages of the growing cycle, so the children will have opportunities to simultaneously observe the changes in a growing plant. The children wanted to see if the sunflower seeds they removed from the plant would grow, so we are experimenting to see if they will sprout as easily as the pumpkin seeds.

The recent cold and blustery weather has finally made fall seem like it is really here. The children have been drawing their observations of the changing seasons, which will soon be posted outside of the classroom.

Expressive Arts
- Materials: tabletop easels, tempera paint, large brushes
- Rationale: The children have shown continued interest in painting. Many of the children have been exploring how colors change when they are mixed together and they have shown delight in the variety of colors they have created.
- Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, symbolic representation, fine motor development

Sensory
- Materials: flax seed, scoops, funnels, bottles, tubes, buckets, and small bird figurines
- Rationale: The children have continued to enjoy scooping, filling, and pouring. To further their sensory play we will add tubes and buckets so the children can explore how the seed moves through tubes and into a bucket on the floor. Bird figurines will also be added to support the children's play with feeding and creating nests for the birds.
- Skills: Social interaction, turn taking, sensory stimulation and pleasure, communication, large and fine motor development, problem solving, and knowledge of the natural environment.

Science
- Materials: seeds and seedlings in plastic bags, growing plants in pots, rulers for measuring the height of the growing plants, feathers, nests, string and sticks for the children to practice creating their own nests, film about birds constructing nests, pictures of animals and habitats for a matching game, tadpole and fish, bird watching station, and bird sounds listening station
- Rationale: The growing plants and sprouting different types of seeds will continue to help the children conceptualize the cycle of life. To extend to the exploration of birds a listening station will be added so the children can hear the different sounds birds make. A nest making station will be added to support the children's interest in birds and the way nests are constructed. To extend the concept of habitats the children will have the opportunity to match pictures of various animals to their accompanying habitat.
-Skills: Observation, inquiry, comparing, sorting, measuring, asking questions, predicting, hypothesizing, interpreting and reasoning about events, knowledge of the natural environment

Math and Manipulatives
- Materials: snap together building pieces, unfix cubes, interlocking nature themed puzzles, number puzzles
- Rationale: The children are continuing to explore number concepts and counting
- Skills: One to one correspondence, counting concepts, number sense, whole/part relationships, and fine motor development

Language and Literacy
- Materials: A variety of writing implements, paper, post-it notes, envelopes, a poster with the upper and lower case alphabet, a well stocked library with books about animals, habitats, seeds, and fall, posting of the letter of the week, objects that begin with the particular letter of the week, a word find around the classroom based on the letter of the week
- Rationale: The children continue to utilize the writing center in various ways; to create signs, write letters, and make tickets for plays. In order to extend and support the children's growing awareness of print and letter recognition, the literacy center will feature a letter of the week. The teachers will highlight the letter through objects that begin with the letter, opportunities for the children to find the letter in words through out the classroom and school, and opportunities for children to practice writing the letter.
- Skills: Letter recognition, listening and receptive abilities, writing/drawing, fine motor control, and using books for reference and pleasure

Blocks
-Materials: hollow blocks, wooden planks, unit blocks, wheel sets that fit on the unit blocks, wooden cars with accompanying people
- Rationale: The children have begun to use the hollow blocks and planks to create ramps. With the creation of various sized ramps the children have been investigating how the cars move differently down each ramp. The children also continue to build boats and roads with the hollow blocks.
- Skills: Construction skills, geometry, problem solving, investigating, communication, dramatic play, symbolic representation, and large and fine motor

Dramatic Play
- Materials: Kitchen with dishes, fruits and veggies, aprons, dresses, animal themed costumes, acorns, pads of paper and pictures of food to use as order pads and menus, a menu making station in the loft. In the animal cave there are stuffed woodland animals with logs, branches, vines and wood pieces
- Rationale: Animal themed costumes and acorns will be added to the dramatic play area to connect this area with the classroom curriculum of plants, animals, and life cycles. More costumes will be added to this area to support the emerging interest in plays and acting. The children continue to show interest in the restaurant and recently the restaurant has begun to make food for the children watching the plays. The cave continues to provide a cozy close place that promotes small group interaction and exploration of more specific animal homes and habitats.
- Skills: Role-play, peer interaction, social problem solving, creating imaginary scenarios, large and fine motor development, and symbolic representation.

Large Motor
-Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats. Outdoors-Tricycles, shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows.
-Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that will challenge their physical skills.
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination, propulsive skills

Snack
Monday - Oven fries & milk
Tuesday- Trail mix & milk
Wednesday - Raisins & rice cakes
Thursday - Pretzels & peas
Friday- Carrots & hummus

Overview
We will continue support children's exploration of the natural world. Our topic this week will be animals, animal homes, and animals getting ready for winter! The children have been using the different animal costumes in the room and continue observing the bird feeder. We will be taking some things out of some areas of the classroom and adding new activities that relate to our animals theme. We've also been very busy in our small groups discussing the children's interests within each group. The Birds group will visit the Bell Musem this week!
The teachers will continue to support the children in making thoughtful choices among the activities at choice time, providing opportunities for meaningful and positive social interactions and discussions throughout the afternoon.

Expressive Arts
-Materials: Tempera paint (primary colors), paintbrushes, table easels. Natural collage materials, glue, scissors, markers, crayons and colored pencils.
-Rationale: To provide the children with a variety of opportunities for self and creative expression and story telling.
Skills: Self-expression, creative risk-taking, observation, sensory input, fine motor.

Sensory
-Materials: Flax seeds, bottles, scoops, spoons, funnels
-Rationale: Continue to encourage children to experience a different sensory input, promote social interactions, experience conservation
-Skills: Sensory awareness, peer interactions, sharing materials, conservation.

Science
-Materials: Animal tracks' matching game, light table, pictures of animals. Animal sorting game, pictures of different types of animals. Animals home display where children can move different animal pictures and place them according to their homes.
-Rationale: To foster children's development of one-to-one correspondence, the children will have the opportunity to sort animals according to their characteristics, whether or not they hibernate, migrate, or stay active. The animal homes display will include a land, a tree, underground, sky, and pond. There will also be common Minnesota animals that the children can place in which home they think the animals live in. The light table will be set up for an animal tracks matching game. There will be shadows of an animal track and the children can match the track to its animal.
-Skills: Observation, exploration, investigating, identify/describe objects by physical characteristics, make comparisons between objects that have been collected or observed, peer interactions

Dramatic Play
-Materials: Kitchen with dishes, fruits and veggies and dress up clothes. We have added restaurant supplies, cookbooks, menus, paper, pencils and food photos. The loft has a reading area next to the large windows and a table for writing. The Animal Cave has stuffed woodland animals, logs, wood blocks, books about animal homes and animal hibernation.
-Rationale: The dramatic play area is set up to encourage social interactions, symbolic play, literacy, and expression of children's ideas about their experiences. The cave is set up for small group interactions and discussions about woodland animals, their homes, and hibernation.
-Skills: Role-play, peer interactions, social problem-solving, symbolic representation, print awareness.

Math and Manipulatives
Materials: Unifix cubes, number sense puzzle, lego builders, new peg puzzles and matching game. Matching handprint cut outs
-Rationale: To provide opportunity to practice one-to-one correspondence, seriating and measurement. Encourage and support social interactions.
-Skills: One to one correspondence, comparing, matching, seriating, numerical sense.

Large Motor
-Materials: Indoors- climbing wall, slide, stairs, A-frame and balancing beams, donut hole, monkey bars, basketball hoops, balls, and mats. In the playground we have tricycles, shovels, buckets, cups, rakes, and ropes, as well as lots of space to run, and climb.
-Rationale: To provide children opportunities to engage in activities that challenge their physical skills. To provide opportunities for the children to practice climbing and upper and lower body strength. To focus on receptive skills including throwing, catching, and grasping. In the playground we want to give children space for additional large motor endeavors and support them into noticing what is happening outside.
-Skills: Upper and lower body strength, endurance, hand-eye coordination, receptive skills (throwing, grasping, reaching, catching), balance, visual/spatial discrimination. In the playground offer opportunities for children to run, climb up and down, balance, propulsion skills, balance, dramatic play, cooperation.

Special interest:
Large Group
Discussions about imagination will continue. We will also discuss the word "transformation."
We will continue talking about animals in the fall and focusing on hibernating, migrating, and different types of animal homes.
• Wednesday, November 3rd is Picture Day!
• On Thursday, November 4th, the "Birds" small group is going on a field trip to the Bell Museum.
• On Thursday, November 4th, Karla (Quinn's mom) will facilitate banana-chocolate chip muffins baking in the classroom.

Coming up...
• "Tantrum Talks" on Thursday, November 11th at 2:30 and Friday, November 12th at 10 in room 105 (Kelley sent a flyer last week).
• Oleanna book sale will take place on Thursday and Friday, November 11th and 12th in our gym.
• On Thursday, November 11th, the "Naturalists" small group will go on a field trip the Harriet Nature Center.

Linda, Ellen, Pat and Dalia