Recently in Ross's Lesson Plans Category

Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of May 24-28
Lead Teaching: Jenny

Overview and Goals
Last week was filled with outdoor adventures on the toddler playground and exciting play scenarios in the classroom. The children used camping materials outside to pretend they were on expeditions and sometimes they transformed into animals along their trek! Several students visited the bakery this week as they made recipes and baked "treats" with the packing peanuts, pom pom balls, and polyfill. Comic strips were introduced at the beginning of the week and the majority of the students created their own comic! The teachers assisted the children in writing captions to their pictures and then shared them with each other at pick-up time. This form of story-telling gave children who do not often visit the writing center a chance to put their imaginative stories onto paper. Our focus this week will be on providing new materials to expand on the already developed play going on in the classroom. Furthermore, we would like to focus more on the "academic thinking" to enhance greater learning opportunities. The children have been very focused on certain activities and we will be enticing them to dig deeper and expand further on their play. Critical thinking skills and imagination will be fostered as the children are prompted to incorporate the new materials into their play.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ The easel will be restocked with twelve different colors of tempera paints this week to promote creativity and symbolic representation through art. In the past, the students enjoyed the open-ended opportunities of painting as they produced artwork revolving around their favorite interests: dinosaurs, princesses, and playmates. Bringing back paints will provide the children with the opportunity to engage in making their own creations once again with a familiar medium.
~ The creation of bracelets and necklaces made from pipe cleaners, buttons, and beads have become a popular occurrence at the art center over the past week. To support the creativity and pattern-making skills we have seen through this activity, we will be providing more materials that can be used for making jewelry, hats, and other accessories.

Sensory Materials
~ The sand table has been a huge hit over the past week and it provides a rich learning opportunity for many skills. Children are using tools such as the sand sifters, shovels, and containers, to perform precise tasks. A popular theme is making "volcanoes" out of piles of sand and pretending they erupt. We will continue to use the sand table to encourage children to use their imaginations to create detailed play scenarios with the materials.
~ Students have been experimenting with the clay as they mold it into objects based on their interests. A dragon was carefully created by a student with detailed wings and a delicate face. In order to encourage more students to use the clay, we will be introducing the volcano theme at the clay area that has become all the rage at the sand table. Children will have the chance to look at a volcano model and recreate it with the clay materials--including spewing lava using baking soda and vinegar! This will also be a chance for the children to observe chemical reaction, an "academic" concept several children will see more of in kindergarten!

Science Center
~ The children have been hypothesizing about what the larvae might grow into at the science center--guesses include ants, butterflies, and caterpillars. The larvae will continue to develop in the next week and the children will get closer to solving the mystery: supporting critical and scientific thinking skills.
~ Each student planted a new bean this week in their individual cups with the understanding of how important sun and water are to keep plants alive. We have been studying the changes in the grow window, recognizing the roots, stem, and leaves of the bean plants. Our focus this week at the science center will continue to revolve around the beans we have planted. The children will examine how a tiny seed can grow into something much bigger. This is a biological concept that the children can see and relate to everywhere in their environment. We will also be focusing on taking the individual responsibility of growing a plant which gives each child the feeling of ownership and accomplishment.

Language and Literacy Center
~ The comic strips were a hit last week! Herman the Worm was transformed into a comic strip at large group in order to show a familiar story in the form of a comic allowing the children to understand the story-telling sequence. The children caught on to the idea and created their own stories using a comic strip template. This week, we will be making a book out of all the comic strips created by the students and sharing it at story-telling times. Furthermore, we will be providing examples of comics in order to get the children's minds rolling to create more stories. Pre-literacy skills including reading, writing, and the concept of a story will be implemented by the teachers as we sit alongside the children and work with them one-on-one.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Children have been arranging puzzles at the manipulative center, demonstrating their one-to-one correspondence skills. We will be continuing to promote these skills by adding new puzzles to the table. Sequencing stories became a fun activity with the Herman the Worm comic strip--children arranged the pictures in various orders, imitating the original story and inventing different versions. Therefore, we will add more familiar stories for students to sequence and recreate new versions based on their imaginations. To promote academic/higher-level thinking we will be adding games with rules such as Hi Ho Cherry-O and Candyland. These games will also promote turn-taking skills and persistence.

Block Center
~ Several block structures were built over the past week: stages, fire trucks, and helicopters. Children have been created stages; therefore, we will bring back the CDs in order to promote more musical and rhythmic development as well as usage/exploration of new instruments. In addition, we will be providing the children with props in hopes that they will use their structures in more detailed play. For instance, we will provide the firefighters with water hoses, walkie-talkies, and pretend fire scenarios--taking their play one step further. The overall goal is to create opportunities for elaborate play with more child direction and less help from the teachers.

Dramatic Play Center
~ Quite a few students visited the bakery this past week and baked pies, cakes, and cookies. For example, an imaginative, detailed pie was made last week along with a drawn set of directions. The packing peanuts turned into blueberries, lemons, and huckleberries. Frosting was made out of the polyfill and the pie was baked in the oven before it was served! Several children have started taking the food to other areas of the classroom on picnics. Therefore, we will be providing more materials such as baskets, blankets, food items, and plates for the children to venture further on their picnic adventures. The open-ended materials will continue to allow children to use their creativity to mix foods and follow step-by-step directions. Furthermore, it will encourage the children to take on roles and imagine scenarios that may occur at a picnic.

Large Motor
~ We have been spending as much time as possible outside in the amazing weather! The children have been kicking balls around on the playground, peddling on the tricycles, and digging deep holes in the sand. This week, we will be including more games with rules outside on the playground to focus the activities and to foster the development of following rules and working collaboratively. Parachutes will also be incorporated for an exciting way to work on coordination! The water for the hoses will be turned on next week, so prepare your child in appropriate clothing and footwear for water activities.

Reminders/announcements
~ Over the past few weeks, more and more toys from home have been traveling to school in backpacks and finding their way to the classroom and playground. Most of them make it home, however we have found some of these "special" items after school during clean-up. To make sure everything makes it home and nothing is left at school over the summer, please keep all toys at home or, at the very least, in the car.
~ Thanks to those who have turned in their parent evaluations and there is still time for those who haven't had a chance to complete it yet!
~ Please remember to turn in your order form for the Lab School Pizza Party on Tuesday, May 25. I hope you can all make it!!! The event is from 6-7.30p and is a great time to connect with other families from our classroom before the year wraps up.
~ Remember...NO SCHOOL Monday, May 31. Have a happy and safe Memorial Day weekend!
~ The "End of the Year Party" is scheduled for Thursday, June 3. We will meet and have a quick snack at 10.30a, have our sing-a-long, say thank you and goodbye to our student teachers, and then invite any and all families to join us on the playground for a picnic lunch! Bring a blanket and a basket filled with your lunch supplies for the day and join us for one last get-together!
~ That being said, our last day of school is Friday, June 4. It will be a regular day with regular times for drop-off and pick up. Hard to believe we're already at that point!

Snack
Monday: Popsicles
Tuesday: Pretzels, carrots & Dip
Wednesday: Multigrain Cheerios & Kiwi
Thursday: Graham Crackers & Apple
Friday: TLC & Oranges

Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of May 10-14, 2010
Lead Teaching: Laura

Overview and Goals
The children were really engaged last week with all the changes in our classroom! Some of the children have been pretending they are animals and doctors, facilitating their social skills through speaking and listening in the context of their play. We hope to encourage and expand their interactions this week. Some of the children have been working on machines using blocks, balls, and tape and continue to develop their understanding of cause-and-effect relationships and problem solving skills. Because of the rainy weather last week, we spent more time inside, which gave us ample opportunity to use the gym and play indoor games like "Doggy, doggy where's your bone?" which the children love! Additionally, it gave the children extra time for exploring the new materials available in the classroom, which led to some great play sequences! We are eager to see how the children will further use the materials in the classroom and cannot wait to see where their play takes them!

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~In the past week the children discovered "mixed media art" and explored different mediums by mixing oil pastels, watercolors, and other materials like feathers and pipe cleaners from the art table. We will continue to support their creations by suggesting other items to make collages with (beads, sequins, our beautiful things from nature, bottle caps, etc.) and other techniques such as using different brushstrokes with the paintbrush (small dots, long, sweeping brushstrokes, etc.). Doing this will get them to see different uses for familiar materials and encourages imagination and invention.
~We noticed the children using the pictures of famous artwork that we posted on the easels as ideas for their paintings; demonstrating their ability to make representational art. Doing this enhances the children's ability to evaluate other types of art and compare it to their own; also fostering their understanding of relationships and concepts such as "same" and "different". We will continue to change the paintings so the children feel inspired by a variety of different artists and styles!
Sensory Materials
~ The children used both their hands and the tools to continue experimenting with the clay this past week. Some of the children used toys from home as their "models" and practiced isolating parts of the model to sculpt before putting together their finished product. This method of sculpting builds on children's' understanding of part-to-whole relationships and is something we will be focusing on again this week.
~ This week we are excited to have the sand table available for the children to explore with. Through use of pans, funnels, scoops, and wheels, the children will practice their conservation and fractional skills while re-discovering the sensory experience of sand.

Science Center
~A lot has been happening in our science center this week! The children found a lot of caterpillars on the playground last week and brought them into the classroom for us to examine with our magnifying glasses. Many of the children have been making hypotheses about how long it will take the caterpillars to form their chrysalises and turn into butterflies. This shows us that the children are applying their knowledge from previous situations to watching the metamorphosis of the Painted Lady butterflies.
~Last week we introduced a new sort of larvae at large group and are having the children guess what they think the small creatures will turn into. We are hoping with their previous knowledge of the life cycles of mealworms, caterpillars, rats, and tadpoles the children guess that they larvae will turn into ladybugs---however, we are refraining from telling them right away in order to encourage higher-level and scientific thinking. We are asking them draw what they think the larvae will turn into, record their guesses, and post them in the classroom.

Language and Literacy Center
~The children really took an interest in story-making last week after helping Laura write a story during large group. Many of the children began dictating their own stories, borrowing ideas from other children's stories, their imaginations, and their own life experiences. In order to expand on their pre-literacy skills, we plan on posting useful phrases in the writing center such as "Once upon a time," and "The End." We are hoping that by showing the children how to make their own books from start to finish will help the children take ownership of their writing and illustrations and create some amazing stories in the process! Additionally, we plan on showcasing their work by reading their stories during pick-up and encouraging them to write stories at home!

Math and Manipulative Center
~ The notch puzzles and peg boards in the manipulatives center have been very popular this past week. Many of the children used the pegs to create patterns demonstrating their sequencing abilities as well as their ability to group pegs based on size and color. Although the notch puzzles are tricky, many of the children were able to figure out how to rotate and adjust each piece in order to finish the puzzle. We will continue to have these items available this week in order to build on the children's confidence in these tasks. Additionally, we will add fraction puzzles to support mathematical concepts and make connections to the fractions being utilized through the measuring cups at the sand table.

Dramatic Play
~ The open-ended materials we put in the bakery last week were a huge hit and brought life back to the bakery! Many of the children have been baking "cakes" using recipes that incorporate packing peanuts, pom-poms, polyfill, and felt pieces. The children are demonstrating their knowledge of the roles of bakers, by placing their creations in the oven and using hot pads to take them out; and they are even using the measuring cups, showing their emerging understanding of fractions and mathematical skills! These "ingredients" will stay in the bakery this week in order to expand on the dramatic play sequences involving birthday parties and cake delivery.

Block Center
~The block area has been as busy as ever with a lot of different themes emerging. The children were working on machines again last week but are using some different techniques than we've seen in the past; such as using tape to hold the blocks together and using the U-shaped blocks to redirect the balls. Some of the children have been interested in making caves to "sleep" in, so we will be adding fabric to the block center to encourage tent-building and some dramatic play involving camping.
~Recently, the children re-discovered the notch blocks and the unique structures they can create. Because the large hollow blocks are often being used by all the children, the teachers plan on encouraging use of the notch blocks by themselves and in junction with other creations. We are hoping that these sturdy materials will encourage some interesting creations!

Large Motor
~ The children had so much fun exploring the new elements of the gym last week! One of the highlights of the gym is a ball tethered to the ceiling. The children had to jump off the bridge, hit the ball mid-air, and then land into the circle-shaped mat filled with beanbag chairs. Doing this encourages propulsion and timing skills while building their confidence through risk-taking. The children can't get enough! With the new gym set up next week, we will open up the space a bit more so that we can play games like "Paper Blast" to encourage running skills and speed and "Beanbag Toss" to help the children develop their depth perception and propulsion skills.
~ Outside the children have been using the climber a lot; balancing on the wobbly bridge, climbing up the wall, and sliding down the slide. Additionally, a lot of the children have been using the swings and are learning both how to pump themselves and give one another a push when needed. Some of the children have been interested in playing baseball so we plan on helping the children develop their propulsion and receptive skills through throwing and catching. Seeing this self-reliability has been great, and is something we plan on encouraging in all areas of the playground in the upcoming weeks!

Reminders/announcements
~ The pizza party is next week on Tuesday, May 25 (rain date is set for Wednesday, May 26). It's a great time to bring everyone in the school together one final time! The Teddy Bear will provide the music, the Lab School provides the food, and all you have to do is come and have fun!
~ Don't forget to make Thursday, June 3 on your calendars, as well. That will be our class' end of the year party! Typically we do a little bit more to celebrate the end of our wonderful school year. Details will be sent out later this week once Amy and I finalize our plans. It's hard to believe we are already planning the end of the year party!! It's been an amazing year!

Snack
Monday: Rice Cakes & Strawberries
Tuesday: Open Snack-Fruit & Oat Bars made by Jenn's Class
Wednesday: Open Snack-Cheddar Bunnies
Thursday: Open Snack-Multigrain Cheerios & Raisins
Friday: Sunflower Butter & Honey Sandwiches

Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of May 10-14, 2010
Lead Teaching: Jenny and Laura

Overview and Goals
Last week was a busy week for our students! On Monday, the children noticed that their soybeans had grown over the weekend into small sprouts. Laura's small group went to the Minneapolis Farmer's Market on Wednesday and brought back a box full of plants. On Thursday, each student got their hearing checked by the Speech-Language and Hearing Science department and we are happy to report our entire classroom passed! Finally, the children got the chance to play in Amy's classroom on Friday as we had "open class." The children have expressed excitement about the current curriculum and the teachers see an enormous amount of potential for more learning to occur. In the next week, we are going to let the children go deeper into the subject matter presented within the classroom. The teachers will support this by taking a close look at what the children are doing while arranging more teacher-facilitated activities at the clay, science, and sensory tables.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~The watercolors were a hit! Many of the children experimented with the watercolors and made interesting patterns and designs using different techniques and combinations of water and paint. The watercolors will continue to be available to allow the children to continue their creative/artistic expression.
~We have decided to put out oil pastels at the easel in order to help the children make more representational drawings of the art they see at the easel. Giving the children new materials to work with will help foster their fine motor skills through use of a novel substance, as well as expand their creative minds. We are excited to see the inventive drawings the children make with the oil pastels!
Sensory Materials
~ The children explored the clay this week by manipulating it with their hands and the shaping tools and comparing it and contrasting it with the play dough. We talked a bit about clay techniques during large group last week and are hoping to help the children develop an eye for animals, people, and objects they could sculpt with the clay by putting out examples for them every day and asking them questions like, "What parts do we need to make a penguin?"

Science Center
The science area sprung to life last week after each student transplanted his or her small soybean sprout into a pot. Planting the beans resulted in an arousal of questions from the children: "why is mine shorter than that one?" and "how much water does it need?" Next week, the students will work on their mathematical and comparison skills when they keep track of the growth of their beans. They will be provided with rulers and growth charts in order to support this learning. Each child will have the opportunity to track the growth by drawing the height of their bean on a chart each day. The butterflies are completely out of their chrysalises and the children have enjoyed watching them fly around the habitat we have created. Over the past few weeks the students have seen how the butterflies have gone through a portion of the life cycle. Before we let them go, the children will be able to compare them to

Language and Literacy Center
Many children continue to stop by the writing center, writing letters to friends and family as well as creating new stories to add to our book shelf; all while support their pre-/early-literacy skills. A few students even wrote letters to the past student teachers! The teachers will continue to support the children's phonemic awareness as they listen closely to the sounds heard in each word. Letter-sound games will also be played during snack to support this development, as well! To build on the children's already creative stories, as well as spark ideas for new tales, we will add a variety to animal and shape stamps to assist the children with the illustration process of their story-creating.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Lately the children have been really getting the hang of part-to-whole relationships through use of the puzzles and pattern sheets with shape blocks; we plan on encouraging these skills this week as well. Additionally, to help practice their pincer grasps and 1-to-1 correspondence, we will be putting out pegs and stacking blocks. We are hoping these items will help the children learn about the balance and weight distribution of objects so they can translate it to heavier objects in the block and dramatic play areas.

Dramatic Play
~ This week we are hoping to bring the focus back to the bakery by modeling for the children how to "bake" using recipes in the dramatic play area. We will be filling containers with items such as cotton balls and newspaper but using them as ingredients for our baked goods. Hopefully, having the children stir and measure their "ingredients" will bring their excitement back to the area and will spur more play interactions surrounding the baking and selling of baked goods.

Block Center
Theatrical performances complete with a stage, tickets, music, and dancing have become a common occurrence in the block area. The children showed so much excitement as they put on music and moved about. Last week, we added microphones and the children started singing to music. Creative, musical, and social skills have been developing; to support and expand on this play we will add a variety of musical instruments. Therefore, the children will be able to explore the endless possibilities of music! This will foster an exploration of rhythm and the children will have the chance to work collaboratively with peers.

Large Motor
~ Because the children have been so interested in the new materials in the classroom, we haven't had a lot of time to spend in the gym; but when we are there we've had so much fun! The children love measuring how far they can jump and are testing their risk-taking ability by jumping off the climbing wall as well. This week we plan on doing some activities revolved around the new equipment in the gym, such as having the children play a game called "Over, Under, Through," where each child will choose to jump over, under, (and you guessed it) through a hoops; promoting full body coordination while fostering their directions awareness skills. We can't wait to see how well they do!
~ Outside the children have been spending a lot of time pretending they are pirates digging for "treasure;" enhancing their strength through use of their arm muscles. Many of the children spend time on the climber, climbing up the stairs and going down the slide, or making their way across the monkey bars, also building strength and agility. We are hoping to spend as much time as possible on the playground as the weather continues to get warmer!

Reminders/announcements
~ The all-school Pizza Party is coming up on Tuesday May 25 from 6-7.30p. Mark it on the calendar and make sure to plan having dinner at the Lab School that night. It's a lot of fun for everyone: with the Teddy Bear Band playing some classic songs, as well as chances to connect with other families before the school year is over. Hope to see you all there!
~ Another date to mark on the calendar: Thursday, June 3rd. That will be our end-of-year party for our class. Details about the party will be coming soon.

Snack:
Monday: Cookies by Class & Apple
Tuesday: Cheeze Its
Wednesday: Graham Crackers
Thursday: Granola Bars
Friday: Cucumber, Pretzels, & Dip

Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of May 3-May 7
Lead Teaching: Laura

Overview and Goals
So many things have been happening this week; we can't wait for this next week to begin! The curiosity was bubbling last week as the children found letters waiting for them in the newly added mailboxes in the classroom. They were eager to check for new mail every day, as well as deliver cards and notes of their own. Another way we are supporting critical thinking with curiosity is the addition of our soybeans. We are hoping that these planting activities will lead into an interesting discussion of growing and gardening this week. Hopefully we'll see some sprouts early this week. We also completed our first full week of small groups, and the children are interested in exploring their topics! Next week each group will continue to focus in on their topic through guest visits, field trips, and conversation. Ask your child about their group, and take time to look at the small group newsletters to talk more about what is happening in their small group. Finally, Jack and Pete (the architecture students) came in for their last visit and helped us create a machine to help feed our pet crayfish. It was great to see the children use their knowledge from the past weeks in order to make this machine-making possible. We know this method of feeding Sparkle will be popular for a long time!

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~Ever since the children helped make the glass bead mobile for the spring soiree, the children have been very interested in stringing beads into necklaces and bracelets. We will add some different length string and some other materials conducive to jewelry-making in order to encourage fine motor and creative skills.
~In order to expand on the children's painting at the art easel, we have decided to make watercolors available for the children to paint with. Hopefully the children will experiment with color mixing and compare and contrast their watercolor paintings with their paintings from the easel while fostering their fine motor skills.
Sensory Materials
~ Last week the children spent a lot of time painting and decorating their baked play dough creations and moving them over to the dramatic play bakery to sell. This week we will be re-introducing the children to clay; allowing them to refine their fine motor skills while manipulating the clay with their fingers. We think this natural material will spark a lot of interesting creations from the children, as they explore the different way clay holds as compared to the play dough they got so comfortable with in the past few weeks.

Science Center
~ On Thursday, we planted soybeans with the children. The children have been excited to look at their individual pouches to see how much they've grown. We have put out magnifying glasses for investigating and comparing the soybeans to one another, and clipboards for recording the soybeans' growth, in hopes of promoting higher-level and scientific thinking.
~ With our mealworms and butterflies continually growing and changing, the teachers will bring the focus back to the area in order to spark conversations about the insect life cycle and encourage the children to make predictions and ask questions like "what changes did you see?" and "what do you think will happen next?" to enhance their cognitive development.

Math and Manipulative Center
~Many of the children have been using pattern sheets and the shape blocks in order to create pictures. We will add puzzles to this area as well in order to build on the children's knowledge of part-to-whole relationships.
~During the architecture students' last visit the children helped create a Rube Goldberg machine to feed our pet crayfish. The machine will be up for the rest of the year in hopes that the children will further develop and perfect it through use of more manipulatives. This building and creating helps foster part-to-whole and cause-and-effect relationships.

Language and Literacy Center
~This week the writing center has been a very popular area, with many of the children using the card-making materials to send cards to other children in the classroom and family members. We labeled a mailbox in the classroom with each of the students' pictures and encouraged the children to check their mail slot daily and respond to any letters they receive from the teachers or other children. By providing children with useful phrases such as "please write back soon" and "Dear ____" we are encouraging pre-literacy skills such as emergent reading and writing. We will continue with this letter writing this week in hopes of expanding to a classroom post office in the near future. If you would like to send a special note along to put in the cubbies, come on in and drop it off or hand it to a teacher and we can make sure it gets delivered.

Block Center
~ Lately we noticed an interest in making a stage for the dancing that has been happening in the classroom. This week the teachers are bringing out microphones and fabric to extend this dancing/performing. With our encouragement these activities will help the children develop their gross motor and creative skills.
~During our last week with the architecture students, we saw the children make a leap between the simple ramps they were creating in the past, to ropes and pulleys. This led the children to solve problems using the machines and mathematical skills Jack and Pete helped foster during their weeks with us. This also allowed the children to develop a better understanding of cause and effect. We are excited to see more problem-solving machines be built; now with more complex pieces!

Dramatic Play Center
~Last week the children spent a lot of time decorating their play dough creations and moving them over to the bakery, giving them a sense of ownership for the bakery and their products. We have seen some interesting dramatic play sequences involving tea parties and birthday parties and the teachers have encouraged the party-goers to get their supplies from the bakery. The children are starting to get the hang of requesting an item, being told how much it costs, and exchanging money for their chosen item. This week we will continue to encourage these interactions with storyline support to extend the play sequences. It will be fun seeing where the children take these interactions!

Large Motor
~The gym is new! The children were very excited to see the new gym this past week and have a lot of fun using their bodies to propel the swings tied to the monkey bars, crawling through the cardboard maze, and testing themselves to see how far they can jump. We plan on having open gym a few days a week to allow those children who are interested in testing their balance and their propulsion skills a chance to do so. These new additions to the gym help the children develop their gross motor skills, as well as balance and perceptual motor skills.

Reminders/Announcements
~PLEASE return your parent feedback forms this week. They should have been emailed to you last week. They are a great way for me to get feedback about how the year has gone for your child and helps me improve my skills as a teacher. You can email them back or hand in a hard copy to Eva.
~With many children actively creating in the bakery, some of our "supply boxes" have become a bit worn out. Ergo, if you have any baking supply containers (e.g. empty bags of flour, used cake mix/muffin mix boxes, washed spice containers, etc.) that are taking up extra space in the pantry or recycling cans, bring them in...we would be glad to take care of those for you!
~ We will be practicing a fire drill and tornado drill on Tuesday, directly after large group.
~ We have our hearing screening happening next week on Thursday May 6. This is a service we offer every spring as we team with the audiology department, and help their students practice using their equipment. I will be going with small groups of children across the school's driveway to Shelvin Hall to play "listening games that check your hearing." Not only does this help the mission of supporting research at the U of MN, your child gets a free hearing screening!

Snack
Monday: Sunbutter and jam sandwiches
Tuesday: Animal crackers
Wednesday: Graham crackers
Thursday: Trader Joe's alphabet cookies
Friday: Kiwi and Gorilla Munch cereal

Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of April 26-30
Lead Teaching: Jenny

Overview and Goals
Last week was excitingly busy as we introduced new materials in the classroom such as the bakery dramatic play center, the new art materials, and the Rube Goldberg manipulatives. In addition, we began our small groups and the architecture students visited us again on Thursday. This week we want to prompt higher-level thinking skills by asking students "why" and "what then" questions as they engage in play in order to take it one step further. The school year is coming to an end and we anticipate that the students are now able to think more profoundly about the curriculum presented to them. The classroom will also parallel the changes outside as we enter the planting season by encouraging the children to participate in hands-on experiences with plants, herbs, soil, and other beautiful things from outside in order to engender a passion for the scientific process. Lastly, our small groups will be in full swing this week as we prompt the children to generate ideas, suggestions, and predictions based around the topic of interest as we dig deeper into the subject.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ The children were asked to collect beautiful things over the weekend for the art center. By providing natural materials at the art table, the children will be able to have a sense of ownership in their artistic creations. They may discuss their ideas and thoughts on how to use the beautiful things at the art table which will support their creative thinking skills. In addition, the children will share their experiences of collecting the materials, promoting social interactions.
~ Easels will be added to the playground so children will be able to paint what they see outdoors. Not only will placing the paints/easels in a different location catch the attention of other children who rarely paint in the classroom, we anticipate painting in the spacious, aesthetic, natural surrounding of our playground will catalyze children to think differently as they use their creativity in novel ways.

Sensory Materials
~ At the end of last week, the children followed a recipe and made their own baker's dough (a kind of playdough that can be baked in the oven). Many enjoyed kneading and rolling out the dough and made a variety of baked goods such as donuts, cookies, and bagels that we baked and later painted. They utilized their fine motor skills as the used the cookie cutters, manipulated the dough, and as they used small brushes to paint details. We will continue to provide rolling pins, garlic presses, cupcake tins, and other baking materials to use with the playdough. Leaving the materials out for another week will encourage the children to discover new ways to expand on what they have done thus far.

Science Center
~ Last week, we introduced four types of herbs at large group. The children brainstormed what we use herbs for in cooking--such as putting basil on our pizzas. The mint herb was a huge hit as children learned that it is often used in candies, ice cream, and toothpaste! Within the next week, the children will have the opportunity to use their senses as they explore various types of herbs by smelling and tasting them. Then, they can make comparisons that will facilitate their higher-level thinking skills. We will make snack using the basil from the past week as a concrete example of how herbs are used in cooking. In addition to the herbs, we plan on investigating other types of plants and learning about their life cycles. The children will have the opportunity to plant their own seed and to make predictions about how it will grow.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ The materials at the manipulative table were used by several children to build small Mouse Trap-like machines. This week we will encourage more children to think more objectively about what they are building and help them see the cause-and-effect relationships that take place with the machines they build. Specifically, the teachers will pose questions such as, "What would happen if this piece was missing?" supporting part-to-whole relationships. Asking children what else they could use at the manipulative table will encourage them to brainstorm how they can use typical materials to build complex machines.

Language and Literacy Center
~ Recently, the children have shown interest in writing letters to each other and to their parents at the writing center. Several children have asked how to spell certain words as they write messages to each other. Therefore, to build upon this curiosity, we are going to provide stationary, envelopes, and materials for students to write letters to their classmates and family. By encouraging letter writing the students may begin to understand how writing is a form of communication. The teachers will support this by encouraging classmates to write letters to each other and by writing our own letters to students. Furthermore, writing will encourage children to ask how to spell words and how to write letters, promoting development with their pre-/early-literacy skills.

Block Center
~ Pete and Jack, the architecture students, will be visiting our classroom again this week as they help students create Rube Goldberg machines in the block area. In the past two weeks, students have gotten very creative with their building--some have built large structures and others have paid attention to little details as they made balls go through courses in order to achieve an outcome. Last week we added paper and pencils in the block area to promote the planning and drawing of machines. Several children drew their machines and were able to tell us exactly what they did. One student explained, "First, it goes down there and if you put the ball in the basket it will go into the empty bucket." We will continue to encourage the thought process as we ask students use simple strategies to solve problems.

Dramatic Play Center
~ The bakery was a hit and was visited by all of the children last week! Several students have enjoyed selling baked goods as well as baking bread in the pretend ovens. Some have identified ingredients that are needed in their mixtures based on recipes we have hanging in the bakery. After the students paint their playdough cookies, donuts, and bagels at the art center, we will add their creations to the bakery and the children can play with their own contributions. This week, the teachers will facilitate specific roles for the children within the bakery such as a customer, shop-keeper, baker, and cake-decorator. We will also incorporate more recipe cards and menus to increase literacy and word awareness within the play center.

Large Motor
~ We will finally be opening up the back playground during free choice this week so children have the option to be outside in the nice weather as much as possible. The students will have the opportunity to develop their large motor skills throughout the entire morning. On the large playground the children have been using the hollow blocks to build seesaws, bridges, and other structures. Overall, the students are using a variety of equipment in their outdoor play; developing and strengthening a mixture of muscles. Specifically, several students have been playing games that involve a lot of running: increasing their cardiovascular endurance. Others have been digging deep for treasure: supporting upper body and core strength.

Reminders/Announcements
~ Thanks to all those who could make it to the soiree on Saturday! It was a great time and wonderful to chat with all of you, even if it was only briefly. Also thank you for all the generous donations/bids towards the scholarship fund! It is your charitable gifts that create opportunities for many families to be a part of the Lab School community. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
~ Knowing that it was wet this weekend and gathering beautiful things may have been challenging, please feel free to bring the bags of collected items in throughout the week.

Snack
Monday: Banana & Rice Cakes
Tuesday: Pretzels
Wednesday: Multigrain Cheerios
Thursday: Cheeze-Its
Friday: Potatoes made by class

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of April 19 - April 23, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: Team Teaching (Ross, Jenny, and Laura)

Overview and Goals:
Energy levels surged and the attention to solving problems increased last week with the visits from the architecture students (Jack and Pete) and with our field trip to the bakery. To maintain the interest while promoting more academic learning opportunities (i.e. counting, number/letter recognition, patterning, pre-/early-literacy practice, etc.), the teachers will be asking specific questions that challenge the children's thinking and asking them to recall previously learned information. We want to support this utilization of knowledge, as well as help the children learn new information, as they work together throughout the classroom. We will also plan to continue our investigation of the natural world as we continue exploring outside and discover its many wonders - especially with the bugs waking up and flowers starting to blossom. These discoveries are another great opportunity to support the higher-level thinking skills of the children as they discuss their findings with the teachers and one another while creating opportunities to learn new facts about the natural world!

Art Center:
Expressive Materials
~ A study of line drawing will be introduced at the art center this week through teacher-facilitated activities. The children will be provided with sketching pencils, a variety of paper, and an instructional book to inspire them as they draw. This will expose the children to representational drawing, and although it is not important that they draw exactly what they see, they will learn the concept of drawing with intent. In addition, the architecture students have decided that the children may enjoy drawing their Rube Goldberg machines--this would be another aspect of drawing they may embark on. Our goal is for the students to put the ideas they have in their heads onto paper; promoting creativity, symbolic representational skills, as well as the higher-level thinking skills necessary to help the children think less concretely and more abstractly.
~ Several students have continued to paint at the easel, but we would like to encourage more children to experiment with painting. The big brushes will be replaced with small brushes to encourage more detailed work. The technique of painting known as pointillism will be introduced through teacher-led demonstrations to inspire new ways for using the paint and representing ideas as well as foster fine motor skills. Similar to the drawing area, pictures of animals, nature, and machines will be displayed to give the students inspiration as they paint. Giving children ideas of what to paint will support representational thinking skills while still allowing the children to develop their creative minds as they interpret the drawings in their own way.

Sensory Materials
~ Last week we added more bakery-specific materials to the playdough table like a potato press, cupcake trays, chef's hats, and spatulas; which led to a multitude of new "baked goods." This week we will continue to expand on the excitement the children have shown with the materials by adding more instruments to manipulate the dough. At large group the children voiced their observations from the field trip and made suggestions for the elements we are missing in our own classroom "bakery." Based on their ideas, we will add cash registers, a window display, ovens, and menus. Because many of the children expressed interest in "saving" their playdough creations, we are planning on switching to an oven-safe playdough so we can save the children's work and extend the play by inviting them to "frost" and decorate their creations with paint and other materials: supporting creativity and fine motor skills. We are hoping that our bakery creations at the sensory area will continue to take off and will extend to other areas around the room as well!

Science Center:
~ The children have really enjoyed creating various aquatic habitats for the frogs, snakes, and turtles at the water table. They pile up rocks and use the plants to help create "protection" from other animals that "want to eat them!" We will continue this wetland habitat exploration, adding science books about each animal and opening up conversations about what each animal needs to survive: for examples - what does its home actually look like, what food does/does not the animal actually eat, and what animals try to eat them? This inquiry-based investigation will promote scientific thinking, hypothesis creating, as well as discussion between the children about facts/beliefs they may already have about an animal, allowing us to look it up - modeling how books/encyclopedias are tools to learning more information.
~ The worm cave has sparked some interesting conversations between the children about what worm homes would actually look like. They have discussed where tunnels would go, where they would lead to, and how many worms could/do live together. The Diary of a Worm has a great illustration of the tunnel system that worms use. We will add paper towel tubes to the cave to help the children create their underground tunnel system and help them utilize their recently learned knowledge about worms.

Math and Manipulative Center:
~ Last week, the architecture students came and introduced the idea of making "Rube Goldberg" machines with the children. We introduced the game 'Mouse Trap' at large group so the children could see what kinds of machines the architecture students wanted to create. The children quickly became interested in figuring out how to make the machine work. To support this growing curiosity and higher-level thinking, we are planning on putting similar materials at the manipulative center for the children to create their own versions of Mouse Trap: such as marbles, small blocks, pieces of cardboard, tape, and tubes. We are curious to see how the children will incorporate the magnetic letters and other manipulatives at the table into their structures. It will be exciting to see them use their creativity to solve these problems in non-conventional ways!

Language & Literacy Center:
~A few of our children brought in extremely detailed homemade books last week. We read them during pick-up and the children really enjoyed listening to the interesting stories and looking at the elaborate pictures. This has inspired us to add additional materials for book making at the literacy table. The traditional books on our shelves continue to reinforce the children's early literacy and creative skills.
~Additionally, we are hoping to bring literacy into the classroom bakery by encouraging the children to design menus, take orders, and create and record their own recipes. The teachers will transcribe longer explanations when necessary while encouraging the children to listen closely to the sounds they hear and connecting that sound to a letter of the alphabet: supporting phonemic awareness.

Block Center:
~ Machine building with 'cause-and-effect' parts have boomed in the block are, allowing the children to critically think about how to get the first part of the machine to reach the next part, thus "turning on" the second part which will eventually reach the third part, and so on until the machine completes its mission...or "solves its problem." The collaboration has been amazing to observe, as the children negotiate physical space, materials, and how various parts of the machine will work. Additional materials like large wooden dominoes, wheels, rubber tubes/hoses, and other materials will be added this week to help inspire new ideas and keep the excitement/intrigue high!

Dramatic Play Center:
~ Our field trip to the bakery sparked the children's interest as they asked many questions about how bakeries work and about all the delicious options available for purchase. Therefore, the home living center will transform into a bakery. The playdough area will support this as the children make loaves of bread, cookies, muffins, and more out of dough that will be used in the bakery shop. One cave will be turned into the oven - similar to those we saw on our field trip. There will also be racks for baking and cooling the bread! The children will use their literacy skills as they write orders and make signs for their store. Unlimited social situations will arise as the children work together to create a functional bakery; this will give the children an opportunity to practice collaborating with others.

Large Motor:
~ We will continue to have our gym set up for one more week, however with the nicer temperatures, we plan to open the back playground up during free-play and utilize more outside space that will allow for more large-motor support during the day. There will be more opportunities and space for the children to run, jump, climb, and build during the day. On the larger playground, the children have loved having ample time to ride bikes, dig with the shovels, and swing! Many children have been drawn to the monkey bars and are giving them a shot with surprising success. The teachers are noticed stronger large-motor muscle coordination as we have increased our time outside. We will continue supporting this full-body coordination by inviting the children to play specific teacher-facilitated games while outside: for examples Red Light Green Light, Mr. Fox, and Sleeping Children. These games will promote running, cardio-vascular strength, as well as promote body awareness and spatial skills.

Special Interest/Announcements:
~ NO SCHOOL this Tuesday, April 20. The teachers will be meeting for the second half of their staff development that took place in the fall.
~ The Spring Soiree is almost here!!! Make sure to find someone to watch the kids or have a sleepover with the grandparents so you can be in attendance! It is a lot of fun...great company, delicious food/beverages, and wonderful items to bid on (and hopefully bring home) - all to raise money for the scholarship fund that helps all families have the opportunity to be a part of the Lab School family!
~ The Parent Discussion groups will be meeting this week, revisiting the topic of kindergarten. Check the website for more information, as well as the dates and times.

Snack:
Monday: Trader Joe's Letter Cookies & Banana
Tuesday: No School
Wednesday: Wacky Cake by Ayuko's Class
Thursday: Pineapple & Rice Chex
Friday: Banana Bread by Class
*All snacks served with milk/water unless otherwise noted*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of April 5 - April 9, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: Ross

Overview and Goals:
The children have jumped back into the routines of the classroom without missing a beat! Due to the beautiful weather last week, we spent a lot of time outside, and this sparked in-depth investigations with the natural world! A handful of children eagerly dug for worms, large rocks, and "fossils," finding all of the above and asking to bring their findings into the classroom to further investigate. Other children were intrigued by the budding branches and the sprouting plants, talking about the changes they observed. A final group of children feverously searched the playground for various creatures (mostly bunnies, birds, and ants), looking for clues that these animals had been on our playground. With this excitement and interest in the natural world, we will focus our attention outdoors and bring more of the curriculum outside. We will take a "Signs of Spring" walk to help us observe these changes to our environment more closely and be a provocation into learning about how and why the changes are happening.

Art Center:
Expressive Materials
~ The children have really enjoyed the new collage materials, and have been busy making new multi-media collages and large, multi-media books. These books have primarily been "picture" books, however this week we will sit down with the children and help transcribe their stories. We will be sharing these books at large group time as well as at the end of the day during pick-up.
~ The floor easel has been a very popular spot, and it seems the variety of colors have been very helpful with inspiring new visitors as well as encouraging more symbolic representational art; creating angels, dinosaurs, houses and even themselves! To promote their growing observational skills (as well as their artistic expression and creativity), we will add small mirrors to the easel so the children have a chance to look closely at themselves and add specific details if they decide to paint their self-portrait.

Sensory Materials
~ Last week we added the glass gems and golf tees to promote more open-ended exploration and creation with the playdough - the result being a richer and more thoughtful manipulation of the dough. Rather than pounding the dough flat or using cookie-cutters to make predetermined shapes, the children began creating their own sculptures. To continue this open-ended expression and thought-provoking sculpting, toothpicks and packing peanuts will be added to the shelf to spark new ideas. The children grew familiar with these materials when they were with the clay last session and the repetition is intended to promote more elaborate, intentional use of the playdough.

Science Center:
~ The water table was taken over by the rats last week! Jenny and some of the children got the idea to make new structures/toys for the rats and realized they needed a larger space to "test" them out. The children worked together and created various houses, beds, and tunnels for the rats to play with. We also learned that two rats are friends and liked running around together! This week, we will continue to use the water table as a "laboratory" to observe/study the behaviors of our rats, asking provocating questions to continue the critical thinking and hypothesis creating/testing taking place.
~ With all the interest with finding worms on the playground, we will bring worms into the classroom. We will bring in earthworms to look at more closely; studying their bodies, learning about what they eat, as well as figuring out the best "home" for them. Later, we will introduce mealworms and superworms, and compare the similarities and differences between them. This will promote scientific thinking and reasoning skills, observation skills, as well as support ways of data collection as we record our observations through pictures and graphs.

Math and Manipulative Center:
~ The various puzzles, magnetic letters, and alphabet cards have been very popular and will continue to be available. We began sitting down with the children and leading focused activities with some success. We will continue facilitating these teacher-lead activities and promote specific pre-/early-literacy skill development with the children, acclimating the games to each child's level.

Language & Literacy Center:
~ The books and letter continues to be a hit! We will restock the supplies as well as bring back the alphabet stamps to promote further development with pre-/earlier-literacy skills. We will also encourage the children to write out and add their own words to the word wall as they continue to create their books.

Block Center:
~ The building has again become a very popular place for many children. The addition of the animals and building props to the unit-block table has proved quite successful in stimulating new ideas/play themes with the unit-blocks. The children created various animal houses and caves, using all the props in the building. We will facilitate these building projects by transcribing the stories as they happen, hopefully encouraging repeated visits and recreations to stimulate more elaborate stories between the children.

Dramatic Play Center:
~ The home-living area has seen a number of visitors already this week and we hope to continue supporting these storylines as the weeks continue, encouraging the children to invite new classmates to join them as they create the storylines. We also will try and facilitate the use of the block area as an extension for the dramatic play by encouraging the creation of possible destinations (e.g. grocery stores, islands, castles, etc.).

Large Motor:
~ We have a new gym set-up! We have added a tunnel that wraps under the climber and leads to the slide. The tunnel fosters self-control, crawling, exploring (through windows), depth perception, and spatial awareness. The A-Frame ladders are on its side connected by a bridge, promoting balance, coordination, motor planning, and risk-taking. The "Build-a-car" is also available, which fosters fine motor coordination, upper body strength, cooperation, turn taking, and engineering as they put together a block car and take turns pushing and riding in it! The monkey bars are back, supporting upper body strength, hand-eye coordination, and motor planning. Lastly, the wall-climber is back; promoting upper body strength, risk taking, climbing, jumping, depth perception, and hand eye coordination.
~ The playground is quickly becoming our class' new favorite spot! Nearly every large-motor skill is being fostered as the children run, jump, climb, dig, hang, swing, and ride while we our outside. Speaking of riding, after school on Friday we received our new tricycles and wagons that were purchased with part of the GYM JAM donations! They look amazing and will be VERY popular, I'm sure. This might be a great opportunity to revisit conversations about sharing and taking turns, as there are only three new trikes and two new wagons, and 36 children that may potential want to use them!

Special Interest/Announcements:
~ DON'T FORGET...there is a PAC meeting on Monday, April 5 from 7-8.30p. If you can, please make it and share your thoughts and ideas about the Lab School.
~ Any art items for the Spring Soiree can be dropped of with any of our teachers or with Eva and we will make sure they are put in the auction basket! Also, you are more than welcome to contribute to another basket as well (say if you have a surplus of gardening tools or musical instruments), you are more than welcome to do so!

Snack:
Monday: Cheddar Bunnies & Banana
Tuesday: Sunflower Butter Sandwiches
Wednesday: Baby Carrots, Pretzels, & Dip
Thursday: Snack by Ayuko's Class
Friday: Cheese & Crackers

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

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of March 29 - April 2, 2010
Lead Teaching This Week: Ross

Overview and Goals:
Welcome back everyone! Spring is here and I hope you enjoyed some of the near summer days we had over break. It appears that there are more to come this week! I have brought back new ideas and inspirations thanks to the amazing Reggio trip, and I can't wait to get started! We will pick up where we left off before break: supporting elaborate and collaborative child-directed socio-dramatic play as well as inviting children to join in more teacher-directed academically focused games and activities. Intentional, thought-provoking questions will be asked to challenge the children's thinking and require them to critically synthesize ways to answer the questions posed by the teachers. This will support their ever-growing creativity as they do so, and promote a strong, intentional focus on learning/exploring as we work towards the end of the school year.

Art Center:
Expressive Materials
~ New, open-ended materials such as popsicle sticks, various small empty boxes, beads, sequins, and other beautiful objects will join the existing materials to promote new collages/3-D sculptures while supporting the children's artistic expression, imagination, and creative thinking.
~ The floor easel will be set up with many colors...every color we have in the art closet, actually. Looking at the easels/art centers in Reggio helped me see that to truly support creativity, ample supplies must be available. A tray will be positioned next to the easel with 12 cups of different color paint, ready to inspire and encourage the creation of new masterpieces!
Sensory Materials
~ We will bring back a tried and true molding material to the modeling table: playdough. After the excitement and interest in creating with the clay, we will bring back the playdough with a variety of tools (such as the rolling pins, tenderizers, and spatulas) as well as with the beads and stones to support the creation of more representational figures. This repeated experience continues to support fine-motor strength/coordination, creativity, dexterity, and social interactions, however because we have used the material a number of times already this year, the children will be able to do more with it. As children reuse materials, they begin to see new possibilities that go beyond an initial investigation of it. We anticipate that new detailed figures and sculptures will be made as well as thoughtful creations added to dramatic play.
~ The water table will be available with various aquatic animals, stones, pitchers, and large, interestingly shaped Styrofoam pieces to act as a catalyst for new symbolic representational play while exploring water. As the storylines develop, we hope to inquire about the various life cycles of these animals and further investigate what their real aquatic habitats look like around the world.

Science Center:
~ We will continue our investigation of light and shadow in the science area. Again, while studying the Reggio classrooms and watching the children in action, I saw how valuable the exploration of this concept is and how it inspires the young mind. It creates amazing opportunities to think creatively and explore one of the most basic properties we experience: light and shadow. We will have both the "nook" and the cave set up with flashlights, a light table, and an overhead projector with colored glass gems, color gels, and other materials that will change color or provide interesting shadows on the wall, allowing the children the opportunities to independently explore the properties of light and shadow.

Math and Manipulative Center:
~ Literacy will be our opening focus at the manipulative table. Various puzzles, magnetic letters, and alphabet cards will be available for the children to explore as we begin to promote an intentional focus on literacy. We will start will teacher-directed activities that will challenge the children to identify letters, phonemes, or spell simple words based on their developmental level. As we continue, we will introduce new games (such as alphabet and rhyming lotto) to promote new thinking and support of pre-/early-literacy skills.

Language & Literacy Center:
~ With the continued interest in writing letters and books at the end of last session, we will restock the supplies at the writing center and continue supporting the children as they explore "writing." We will add a world wall to help the children recall simple sight words as well as display all books created on the bookshelves in the reading area. We will also start playing more pre-/early-literacy focused games during large group as well as during free-play.

Block Center:
~ The No-Ends and notched blocks will be available to support the hollow block building taking place in the back of the room. Also, we have added a table to unit block area to act as a raised building platform as well as a number of interesting materials to inspire new building possibilities and attract new visitors to the area.

Dramatic Play Center:
~ The home-living area was very popular at the end of last session and we have added new props to encourage more dressing up and character transformations. We will closely observe the children as they create the storylines to help add additional props as needed. We will also invite the children to venture to the art area to create new props as the play, tying in another creative element to the play.

Large Motor:
~ We will return to a simpler gym set up with the slide, jumping station, A-frame climber, and the rope swing; promoting the skills of running, jumping, balancing, upper and lower body strength, eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, as well as cardiovascular strength. With the nicer weather coming this spring, we hope to spend much more of our time outside!
~ It is true, the snow is gone and the playground is dry! The shovels, buckets, rakes, and other tools will be available, along with the tricycles and wagons for the children to rediscover the snow-free playground. The sandbox is ready to be re-explored and many scientific expeditions will be lead as we carefully observe the seasonal changes taking places on the playground.

Special Interest/Announcements:
~ We want to officially welcome Jenny and Laura to our classroom. They have introduced themselves briefly in the newsletter, however stop in and say hello. We look forward to all their great ideas during these last 10 weeks of school.
~ There is a PAC meeting on Monday, April 5 from 7-8.30p. If you can, please make it and share your thoughts and ideas about the Lab School.
~ Although it's not for a few weeks, just a reminder that school will be closed on Tuesday, April 20.
~ Spring Soiree is coming! Don't forget to schedule a sitter or ship the kids off to a relatives' house on April 24! It's going to be a great time to socialize with other parents as well as meet new families.

Snack:
Monday: Rice Cakes
Tuesday: Pretzels
Wednesday: Trader Joe's Letter Cookies
Thursday: Heart 2 Heart Cereal
Friday: Cheddar Bunnies

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

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 3/8/10 - 3/12/10
Lead teaching this week: Jennie

Overview and Goals: Our last week is finally upon us. These ten weeks have gone by amazingly fast, and the student teachers will be sad to see this great experience end. It has been a pleasure working with your children, and we hope to make our last week here remarkable for both the children and ourselves. For the last week of the winter session, we want to foster cooperative play throughout the room to support the relationships that were developed during this session and help them continue when the children return from spring break. Higher-level and mathematical thinking will also be a main focus in the room. The manipulatives area will foster mathematical skills of counting, estimation, and comparison through games and teacher-facilitated activities. The science area will also foster concepts related to part-to-whole relationship with activities focusing on light and shadow. We will continue this investigation into the spring as well as dive deeper into the exploration of the natural world as science will be "budding and blossoming" right before our eyes!

Sensory Table: With spring quickly approaching, and water gathering on the streets and sidewalks around us, we will continue our investigation/exploration of water. Along with color mixing, there will be sea creatures and boats available for the children to incorporate into their water play. Through the cooperative play, imaginative play, and story telling that is possible, the children will be enhancing their already formed relationships.

Art: Watercolors continue to be of interest within at the art table. Last week, the children examined the effects of watercolors on paper towels and coffee filters. This week, the pipettes will continue to be used with the watercolors, the children will be able to do line drawings on watercolor paper and then use the pipettes to intentionally place color on their pictures. The tabletop easels will return for more detailed painting experiences using the watercolors. These activities provide the children with opportunities to form/test those hypotheses, as well as opportunities for creative expression, and appreciation for their own work and the work of others. We will be removing the large easel from the art area and replacing it with an area in which the children can paint with their feet! A teacher will be on hand to facilitate the exploration of using paintbrushes with our feet. This will encourage fine motor development in our toes and ankles. It will also present the children with a novel way of creating art.

Science: In the science area, we are going to continue our investigation of light and shadow. A light table will be added to the science cave for the children to explore using clear, colored shapes and figures. Here the children will be able to practice patterning, as well as create larger pictures out of the shapes while discovering part-to-whole relationships. Kaleidoscopes will be brought into the cave for the children to investigate how the effects light and shadow can have on appearances.

Manipulatives: Last week, we began exploring the ideas of estimation and comparison with numbers by providing various sized containers and glass beads to fill them with. The children were then able to fill each container up with beads, ask their classmates and teachers how many beads were in each container, and count the beads. To continue these higher-level thinking skills, we will provide more objects for the children to use in estimation and counting activities. Along with the glass beads, the children will be guessing and comparing the number of buttons, bottle caps, and other small manipulatives. We will also be adding inch wood cubes to the manipulatives table. With the cubes, the children can stack them or lay them out to promote a stronger understanding of quantity and what piles of 1, 10, 20, and even 100 actually look like when next to each other.

Literature Center: With the end of the session very near, we will be encouraging the children to write letters to one another before the two-week break starts. To facilitate the letter writing, especially to help with addressing the letters, a name bin has been added to the area. The name bin has a drawer for each child's name labels. This drawer system helps encourage pre-literacy skills in the recognition of their own names as well as those of their classmates. There will also be extra sheets with their names printed on them for them to cut out, developing their fine motor skills and fostering their ability to successfully use a scissors.

Dramatic Play: Since the kitchen and house items have moved over to the side of the room with the caves and expanded into the caves, the family play has been resurrected. The children have taken on the roles of mother, sister, baby, babysitter, as well as dog, puppy, and kitty creating very sophisticated story lines. To continue the exploration of the familial roles, the kitchen and house area will remain, and we will add common pets to the area in the form of stuffed animals. Along with the pets: leashes, dog food, and other pet supplies will be added to help the children care for their animals. Skills that will be fostered in this area are cooperative play, sharing, the continuing establishment of understanding societal roles, and story telling.

Blocks: The hollow blocks, No Ends, and notch blocks all continue to be popular materials in the block area. The children are once again building many types of vehicles out of the hollow blocks. During the last week alone, there was a rescue helicopter, racecar, and pirate ship stationed in the back of the room. The stories created around these vehicles have grown in complexity. With the construction of the rescue helicopter, the children created stories about the people they were saving, and the reason they were saving them. They have been building tall towers and large animals out of the No Ends, and machines with the notch blocks. To continue to encourage their creative thinking, as well as the cooperative building that has been going on, we will demonstrate how all three types of building supplies can be used together in their creations. We will also continue to encourage the children's development of stories around their structures as it has been generating very productive and intriguing play schemes in the back of the room.

Gym/Outside: The final gym set-up of the year has kept the children busy over the last few weeks. To continue interest in the equipment, the teachers will be facilitating more games, such as "How fast can you...(crab walk, run, bear walk, etc.)?" The teachers will be timing the children, and encouraging them to beat their personal best times. Outside, the weather continues to get warmer! More animal life has been active during the school day, drawing the attention of the children. Sledding continues to be popular; we have even gotten the swimming pools out to include more children at one time, as well as slow the children down on a very slick hill.

Announcements/reminders:
- It's already that time to say farewell to our student teachers, again. Hard to believe that another 10weeks have passed and we're now 2/3 of the way through our school year! We will have our "Goodbye Party" on Thursday, March 11 around 10.30. We hope you can make it for snack and sing-a-long, however we are trying something a bit different this time. It will be an "open-day" for you to come and spend some time in the classroom and say goodbye to Jennie, Nadine, and Stephanie. We understand that trying to leave work mid-day can be tough, so we are inviting you to stay a bit longer at drop-off, join us for large group, or stop in during free play. Also, please let me know if there is another day that works better and I'm sure you could stop in anytime this week.
- Speaking of student teachers, our new recruits for the spring session will be coming to visit the classroom and meet the children on Wednesday. Jenny Stabenow and Laura Sibinski are their names and they are very excited to meet everyone and get started once we return from break!
- Speaking of student teachers, again, our fall team (Elizabeth, Rachel, and Stacy) will be stopping by to visit and have snack on Monday! We're excited to see them and hear about the many things they have been doing since they finished in December!
- Just a reminder, Friday is our last day of school. We will be on break for two weeks and return on Monday, March 29th. If you can, try to arrange a play-date or two with some classmates during our time away. Although it's a shorter break, it is still a great support their existing and newly budding friendships! If you have any questions, please let me know.

Snack:
Monday: Rice Cakes & Banana
Tuesday: Cheeze-Its & Apple
Wednesday: Cheese & Crackers
Thursday: Fruit & Oat Bars & Cantaloupe
Friday: Pretzels & Oranges

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 3/1-3/5
Lead teaching this week: Stephanie

Overview and Goals: The end of the session is fast approaching. Small groups will be finishing this week, ending with a culminating activity that will help the children utilize the information their learned over the past five weeks. Utilizing new information will be the focus in the classroom as the winter session ends and the spring session begins. We will continue to promote higher-level thinking skills as we challenge the children's thinking, asking them to recall what they have learned through the use of new and familiar materials. Revisiting familiar materials with new knowledge allows the children to devise and try new ideas, thinking of new ways to use the materials. The teachers will ask questions and facilitate conversations with children as they explore the materials to help promote this reflective thinking.

Sensory Table: Spring is on its way and that means the snow is melting! The children have been curious about the melting snow in the classroom, so we will bring the water table back to the classroom, revisiting the exploration of water with a new focus of the varying physical states of water; solid, liquid, and gas. We will also add food coloring to the water so the children can mix the colors and revisit the concepts of color mixing. Funnels and other pouring devises will be available to aid with the color mixing. The water table will promote scientific inquiry and thinking, hypothesis creating/testing, and reinforce color-mixing concepts.

Art: At the art table, we will introduce an array of watercolors. Using pipettes the children will build their fine motor skills as they lift the water with the pipette, drip it on coffee filters and other absorbent papers; explore the color blending and carefully observing how different papers absorb water differently. Watching as the colors mix together, the children will also develop an understanding of how the colors blend, and will have the opportunity to create their own varying shades of color.

Science: As we transition out of the sense of hearing, we will move into the final sense: sight. Light-Brights will be introduced in the science cave with illuminated pegs. Using these materials, the children can watch how the light passes through them; promoting scientific reasoning, creative expression, and observation skills. To further explore the sense of sight, we will also explore the world of light and shadow in the "nook" of the classroom. A large overhead projector will displaying light onto a white backdrop, and allow the children to create and observe shadows made by their own bodies. The light projector will develop imitation skills and increase the children's ability to look at their bodies in "a different light."

Manipulatives: The ordering, serration, and color exploration has been an exciting challenge for the children. The children have been working together to place the blocks into their corresponding place settings. The children have also been working independently with these materials, and a lot of great thinking has taken place. To continue the positive learning experience occurring in this area, we will keep the Montessori materials encouraging the children to self-correct and complete tasks concretely. Through the use of these materials, the children will develop stronger cognitive skills and will increase their ability to self-correct.

Literacy Center: To vamp up the literacy center we will bring back the envelopes and encourage letter writing. The children have demonstrated an interest in putting together packages for one another. To encourage this creative play as well as social development, we will bring in small and medium boxes for the children to put together packages for one another. We will also create a "word wall" for the children to post words that they have been practicing writing; whether it be the name of their peers, the baby rats, or common letter-writing words such as "dear" or "from." These words can also be words they find in books or hear around the classroom. By displaying these words on the literacy wall, we are encouraging literacy development, as well fine motor skills.

Dramatic Play: The "No Ends" are a popular item in the dramatic play area. The children have been working collaboratively to build large-scale items such as towers and ladders. To continue this elaborate building we will include stepladders and stools for the children to safely climb to build their structures as high as they can. This hands on approach gives the children the opportunity to actively take part in building materials and seeing what they are individually capable of doing.

Blocks: The hollow block area has been explored in a new light over the last couple weeks. The children have been building elaborate mazes with the blocks and have been participating both individually as well as in social groups to enter through the mazes they create. To continue the maze creations, we will place pictures of mazes around the block area, as well as maze blue prints for the children to follow. This will increate the children's cognitive ability level, and increase creativity. Through building these structures, the children must account for how many people can fit inside, use early numerical skills to determine how many blocks fit across the structures, as well as develop an overall development of large motor skills.

Gym/Outside: The new gym set up has sparked interest and excitement in the children. They are able to explore new structures, and games, as well as new ways to move their own bodies. Outside, the children are continuing to make snow walls and caves with the trucks, shovels, and brick makers. The sledding hill continues to be an exciting feature, and the climbing structure has sparked interesting play in several children. To extend the play outside, we will provide games such as " I SPY" and scavenger hunts. This will increase structure on the playground, as well as problem solving skills and have them look closely at the winter environment as well as offer new and exciting challenges.

Announcements/reminders:
- The Parent Discussion Groups will be meeting again this week, talk about sibling relationships. Check the website for further information, dates, and times!
- Small groups will be wrapping up this week. Taking a look through the previous small group updates with your child and having conversations about the things they learned is a great way to help them reflect about their experiences with small groups this session.
- Our "spring break" is almost here! Hard to believe another 10 weeks have past. Our last day of school will be Friday, March 12 and we will return on Monday, March 29.
- We will be saying "good bye" to Jennie, Nadine, and Stephanie on Thursday, March 11. We are again inviting you to join us for snack around 10.30a. For those that can't make it during the day, feel free to stay for a few minutes during drop off and share your well wishes!

Snack:
Monday: Graham Crackers made by Amy's class & Banana
Tuesday: Open snack- Cheddar Bunnies
Wednesday: Open snack- Sun-butter Sandwiches
Thursday: Open snack- Rice Cakes
Friday: Multigrain Cheerios & Pineapple

Weekly Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of: February 22-26, 2010
Lead teaching this week: Nadine

Overview/Goals: Wow, this winter session has really flown by! It's hard to believe that we're already 7 weeks into this session. The children have been busy creating elaborate block structures, painting with new tools, exploring the snow (both inside and out), and learning about their sense of hearing. With such a creative and active group, the possibilities for play and learning are endless. By providing the children with rich materials, their play becomes increasingly more purposeful and their learning more evident. In order to promote higher-level thinking skills we are introducing new concepts this week, and providing materials that will facilitate different areas of cognition. We will focus on hypothesis testing in color mixing, ordering and seriation skills using manipulative activities, and critical thinking and listening skills with sound matching games.

Sensory Table: Snow was introduced to the sensory table last week, along with shovels, buckets, and the pulleys. In order to encourage more visitors to the snow table, we will add spray bottles with water. We hope this will spark discussions regarding the different physical states of water, as well as create different opportunities and means of manipulating the snow. Later in the week we will add color to the water to introduce concepts of color mixing as well as extend their creativity while working with the snow. These additions will facilitate higher-level thinking and inquiry about the various states of water, foster hypothesis forming and testing skills, as well as cooperation and negotiation with using materials.

Art
Sensory: The clay table is still of interest, but in order to encourage more thoughtful and elaborate building, we will be removing all of the extra tools and materials. The clay will be displayed in various forms: balls, coils, flat slabs, etc. We hope that the "natural state" of the clay will act as a completely blank slate for the children to come up with their own ideas of what to create. Not only will this encourage intrinsically motivated creative expression, but it will continue to develop manual dexterity and strength.
Expressive: At the easels the children have been painting with rollers and primary colors. We will continue with these materials, but will also bring in table-top easels with watercolors. Using smaller paintbrushes and rich watercolors, we hope to foster imaginative and detailed artwork. We will also introduce color mixing, and encourage the making of new colors.

Science: We have been exploring our sense of hearing, and the interest in this area is increasing. We will utilize the keyboard, encouraging the children to explore the keys, think about the differences in sound, and maybe make up their own songs or rhythms. In addition to the books on tape that are in the cave, we will be adding sound lotto games, in which the children will use their critical thinking/listening skills, to discriminate between similar sounds. As with the other senses we have explored, we will help the children understand that hearing is another way for the brain to receive information. These activities also facilitate social interaction by using cooperation/negotiation skills as well as collaborative play skills

Manipulatives: This week we will be shifting our focus to ordering and seriation. Various Montessori pegboards will be available, requiring the children to sort by height, width, and depth, as well as other games and activities that focus on ordering. We will discuss how different things can be put in order by different criteria (i.e. tallest to shortest, biggest to smallest, oldest to youngest, etc.). Seriation also sets the stage for learning/understanding measurement.

Literature Center: We will continue to focus on letter recognition and writing, as well as encouraging bringing new visitors to this area. We will be adding large alphabet cards that the children can flip through in order to facilitate their recognition and pre/writing skills. We will also display more examples of the children's writing on the new backboard of the table, and provide them with small blank booklets. This will give the children the opportunity to share writing, drawings, and ideas with one another as well as provide a place to compile their work in which they can continue adding to.

Caves: The Brio tracks, trains, and airport has supported elaborate play and learning in the caves, but now it is time to change the focus. The addition of the LEGOS and wheels has sparked new interest in creating cars and trucks, so to facilitate this we will bring in materials to construct roads, ramps, and garages. Theses materials will continue to facilitate fine motor skills, cooperative/collaborative play, thoughtful planning and cooperation/negotiation.

Dramatic Play: The surplus store provided the children with many materials that they use in block play, or more recently, their construction of tents and forts. We will add larger fabric pieces to give the children an opportunity to create more life-like tents. Also, adding No-End blocks will facilitate the children's desire to build taller forts, and will encourage the exploration of height. These activities foster collaborative play skills, negotiation of materials, as well as planning and problem-solving skills.

Blocks: The children continue to use the materials from the surplus store in their block play, and recently they have been constructing various kinds of buildings (castles, forts, etc) with rooftops made from cardboard boxes. We will be bringing in larger cardboard boxes so the rooftops can extend across the entire length of their buildings. Also, due to Jennie's small group, mazes have been constructed with the hollow blocks, and after small groups all of the children get a chance to explore them. If this interest continues, we will encourage the children to change the mazes that have already been constructed, and challenge them to work together and make their own mazes. This area continues to develop the children's cooperative/collaborative play skills, large motor skills, planning and problem-solving.

Gym/Outside: The final gym set up of the session will keep the children very busy! Inclined balance beams, the Pedalo, and slides will be introduced. The stations will facilitate skills such as balance, core strength, flexibility, upper-/lower-body strength, full-body coordination, as well as eye-hand/eye-foot coordination. The rope-swing and rope ladder will also continue to be available, due to its extreme popularity and support of many skills. Outside, sledding continues to be a popular activity, as well as transporting snow with the construction trucks. We will continue to encourage the creation of snow structures. With all of the new snowfall and some warmer weather recently, the snow is in perfect condition to mold and build with. The Sno-Blocs facilitate the making of rectangular bricks, and the children have been interested in creating walls with these. Outside play continues to facilitate large-motor skills, cardiovascular endurance as well as social interactions and collaborative play skills.

Announcements/Reminders:
- The grand total raised at the GYM JAM was $2200! Thanks to all those who attended and donated, your generosity is greatly appreciated!
- Conferences are wrapping up this week. For those families with meetings this week, please double-check your time to make sure it was correctly posted on the schedule.
- Winter weather starting to wear on you? Need to take a break from work? Just a reminder, parents are welcome to come and visit the classroom. Whether you would like to join us for a large group, read a favorite book from home, lead a special cooking project, or simply observe from the booth, please know you are always welcome! Talk to Ross and the proper arrangements can be made.

Ross' Snack:
Monday: Cheese & Crackers
Tuesday: Open snack - Cinnamon Topped Oatmeal Muffins by Jenn's Class
Wednesday: Open snack - Cheeze-Its
Thursday: Open snack - Graham Crackers
Friday: Granola Bars & Oranges

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 2/15/10 - 2/19/10
Lead Teaching this week: Team

Overview and goals:
As the winter months continue to roll through, the children's energy level continues to ramp up! Children enter the classroom ready to explore the new materials and activities provided to them everyday. Many have shown interest in the Mama and her baby rats. Last week we voted as a class which rats would stay, and which rats would go back home with Eva. This week, two baby rats remain, (Glitter and Cinderella) leaving a chance for the children to explore them more closely, observing their unique characteristics. We will also support the elaborate dramatic play that has been occurring in the classroom by including more unique and interesting objects for the children to explore. With the focus on promoting higher-level thinking, we want to introduce materials that challenge the children to think of ways to incorporate new materials as well as possibly create new play themes. We will also start our investigation of snow and explore its various properties, supporting scientific thinking and hypothesis creating/testing with hands on experiments.

Sensory Table:
The flax seed table has been a popular area, but we feel it is time to give the children a different material to explore. We have decided to take a closer look at snow. We will bring snow into the classroom each day for the children to explore with gloves, shovels, and buckets. We will also provide pictures of elaborate snow sculptures to inspire new ideas/ways to look at molding the snow. This will provide many opportunities for the children to utilize their hypothesis creating/testing skills to figure out how the snow melts, to figure out how long it takes snow to melt, how to get it to make shapes, and how well it holds shape.

Art:
Sensory: To stimulate a deeper exploration of what clay has to offer, we will be removing the rolling pins, hammers, and keep specific sculpting/carving tools so the children can manipulate the clay with their hands. By removing these items, we hope that the children will utilize their own manual dexterity and strength to manipulate the clay into new shapes and sculptures. We will also be adding new materials such as small beads, toothpicks, packing peanuts, and other sculpting related materials to the table for the children to help the children see new possibilities about how to manipulate the clay.

Expressive: To maintain the children's interest in the art table, we will continue to keep the collage supplies well stocked. Many of the children have been creating pictures of and for the rats as well as pipe cleaner jewelry. We will also add materials to allow for the construction of their own maracas to tie into the theme of sound that is occurring in the science area. This will not only encourage creative expression, but the children will also be able to compare the sounds different materials can produce within the same container. The collage materials that were added last week will be kept in the easel; last week some of the children participated in cooperative painting and added lace, confetti, and yarn to their paintings to create textured art. The addition of the collage materials also fosters creative expression, fine motor skills, and the apprecitiation in their work as well as the art of others. This week, we will swop the brushes for rollers to provide the children with a different sensory experience while they paint as well as offer a new way of putting paint on the paper.

Science:
This week we will be changing the focus in the science area from the sense of taste to the sense of hearing. We will be introducing a sound matching game where the children will shake containers with various volumes/sounds and try to find the matches. This game will test the children's problem solving skills and sorting skills by encouraging the children to observe/compare the sounds they hear, listening closely to distinguish the differences between the containers. Inside the science cave, we will encourage the comparison between louder and softer through the use of stethoscopes and headphones. We will progress to a sound lotto game where the children will match sounds they here to the spaces on their cards, much like bingo. This will reinforce critical thinking and listening skills as the children distinguish the different sounds they hear. We will also add a keyboard to the area as another means of comparing various sounds. The keyboard will support creative expression through the creation of personal melodies, cooperation/negotiation skills, and turn-taking abilities.

Manipulatives:
Last week we introduced weaving boards and cross-stitching. The children are showing interest and are learning how to use the materials, and we will continue to model the patterns involved with weaving. We also will have beads and string to facilitate pattern making. We will model simple A-B-A patterns and gradually work toward more complicated A-B-B-A or A-B-C-A-B-C patterns. This activity will foster creative expression, patterning, one-to-one correspondence, and fine motor skills.
The interest in the train caves (especially with the addition of the airport) continues to be high. The children have been creating elaborate train tracks that bring people to the airport, and they love using the airport and airplanes in their play. We will switch the DUPLOS for smaller LEGOS, which will encourage the building of more elaborate structures surrounding the tracks. Continuing this activity extends the children's ability to explore the materials in different ways with different peripheral objects that change the way they are used as well as allows the children to utilize new knowledge with familiar play themes.

Dramatic play:
The surplus store has continued to be a big hit for many children. Plastic tubes, wires, and tiles have been used in many areas of the classroom, and the children have been stamping tickets for each item they make a purchase at the store. Mathematical awareness is being developed in this concept as the children make one punch for every item "purchased," and the children seem fascinated by the idea. Adding unique odds and ends to the surplus store such as tiles, carpet, fabrics and other building materials will spark creativity in the children and increase peer interactions. If you have any interesting additions that could be incorporated in this play, we would love to place them in our "surplus store."

Literature Center:
The children's interest in using the alphabet stamps continues to grow as they use them to write notes to each other and extend their writing skills. To foster additional writing practice we will bring in small notebooks with lined paper to inspire new visitors to the writing center. We will also encourage the children to practice writing their answers to the question of the day. These activities will foster early literacy/ pre-writing skills, fine-motor skills, and encourage creative expression.

Block area:
Building continues to be an exciting area in the classroom. Last week several of the children participated in building houses with elaborate interiors. These interiors include having secret compartments and trap doors. The children are using materials such as tubes and wires as latches to these compartments, and take turns placing objects inside these areas. As this elaborate building takes place, the children are building creativity skills, peer interactions, as well as scientific reasoning. Working together as a team, the children must hypothesize ways to retrieve objects from their secret compartments in creative ways. Materials such as blankets and scarves will be added to the block area to enhance their elaborate interior creations, also supporting the growing interest in making tents.

Gym/Outside:
The rope swing and climbing structures have consistently sparked interest in the children. Because the rope swing continues to be one of the most popular areas in the gym, the children have had many opportunities to practice flexibility and agility, endurance, large motor skills, as well as turn taking. Adding a suspended climbing ladder to the set up will put a twist in the rope station and encourage new movement and strategies for the children to experiment with. Outside, the weather has finally been cooperating! With the fresh new snow, the children have been able to create new tracks down the sledding hill, make snow deliveries with the dump trucks at various "construction sites" around the playground, and experienced the speed of the slides on the climbing structures. Because snow is available for the children to explore a several months, we would like to incorporate materials outside that will allow the children to explore the snow on a more investigative level. We will provide colored squirt bottles for the children to create artwork in the snow, and buckets for the children to fill so that we can observe the snow as class inside.

Announcements/reminders:
- Conferences start this week! Please be sure to double check the schedule. Also, remember to try and schedule child care.
- Scholastic book orders are due on Tuesday. You can give your order forms to any of the teachers or Eva.
- Mama rat and all but two babies have ventured back home. However, "Cinderella" and "Glitter" are now the new permanent additions to our classroom.

Snack:
Monday: Chex cereal and oranges
Tuesday: Open snack - Pretzels
Wednesday: Ross' birthday treat
Thursday: Open snack - Cheddar bunnies
Friday: Cooking with Nadine

*All snacks served with milk/water, unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 2/8/10 - 2/12/10
Lead Teaching this week: Jennie

Overview and Goals:
Mama and her babies continue to be a focal point in the classroom. The babies' eyes are open now and they are more adventurous than ever: leaping around their cage, wrestling, and starting to eat Mama's food. With all the drawings the children have been illustrating for Mama, we have created a binder to place all of their artwork in, which is located on the table with Mama's cage. Their observations of Mama and the other animals in our room are reinforcing their observation skills as well as encourage them to practice data collection to promote higher-level thinking. This week we will be adding to/refreshing materials around the room to encourage the more elaborate play themes as well as helping the children discover of all the different possibilities found with using the rich materials in each area of the classroom.

Sensory Table:
With the introduction of the pulleys and tubing to the flax seed table, there has been an increased interest in learning about machines. We will start with simple machines and ask the children questions such as, "How do these machines make moving the seeds easier?" To also encourage more exploration of the pulleys, as well as to demonstrate how machines work cooperatively, cars and trucks will be added to the flax seed table. The children will be able to explore the purpose of simple machines as well as the process it takes to move materials from on location to another. This process will foster problem-solving skills, cooperative play, and negotiation.

Art:
Sensory: The children have enjoyed exploring the clay using hammers, wires, rolling pins, and glass beads. To stimulate a deeper exploration of what clay has to offer, sample of various clay creations will be on display to help inspire the molding of new, more intentional sculptures. Now that we have explored clay's physical properties, we want to tap into the children's creative minds. Clay is a limitless material and we will help the children see it can be more than mashed and pounded by modeling and creating sculptures with them. One way we did this happened last week, as Jennie demonstrated how to make a pinch pot during large group.
Expressive: Many children have been to the art table daily creating party decorations, toys for the rats, bracelets, pictures, and more. To maintain the children's interest, we will continue to keep the collage supplies well stocked. At the easel, we will be changing the colors to the primary colors blue and red to encourage the children to revisit color mixing, as well as white so they can observe what happens when white is added to dark colors. Collage materials will also be added to the paint easels to foster the interest in textured art; fostering creative expression, fine motor skills, and the appreciation in their work as well as the art of others.

Science:
The sense of taste continues to be the focus in the science area. There has been much discussion in large group about taste buds: what they are used for, and how they work. To stimulate further discussion and exploration on this topic, we have taken pictures of each child's tongue and placed them in the cave, creating a matching game for the children to find their own tongues and identify those of their classmates. A taste matching game also exists in the cave in which children are to analyze everyday foods, and think about what they taste like (i.e. sweet, salty, sour). The taste game also continues to stimulate the realization in children of their own preferences as well as those of their peers. The activity also incorporates data collection and critical thinking.

Manipulatives:
Matching games will continue to be the focus of the manipulatives center, with a nuts and bolts matching game tying in the building theme of the room. There will also be puzzles for the children to complete to foster fine motor skills, part-to-whole relationships, shape recognition, symbolic representation, and problem-solving skills. Beading materials with different size beads and weaving boards will also be added to the manipulatives area to facilitate fine motor skills, patterning, and creative expression.
Trains continue to be the highlight of the caves, with the addition of an airport being a popular structure this week. The airport not only encourages the development of new train track layouts, but it also helps the development of more complex structures and stories. The construction of the tracks utilizes fine motor skills, cooperation/negotiation, spatial awareness, and planning. Duplos continue to be in the caves as well to encourage the formation of more elaborate structures to coincide with the train play or to take place on their own.

Literature Center:
In past weeks, the literature center has been host to materials to create postcards and write letters home from faraway places, and has seen many visitors. To extend the building theme throughout the room and the interest of incorporating literacy into dramatic play, we will add grid paper. This addition will help boost the interest in the literacy table once again and will bring their play to the next level by encouraging planning of how the structures might light and follow-through in constructing the new building plans.

Dramatic Play:
Many of the children are still discovering the potential of the "Building Supply Store," and the objects within it. Fire hoses, giant paint brushes, and lawn mowers are examples of what has been created with new piping available in the store. To encourage the children to "purchase" their items, we will be rearranging the area to feel more like a store as well as introduce a new purchasing method. The children will be given punch cards to receive punches on in accordance with their purchases. These cards will reinforce mathematic skills, one-to-one correspondence, and the method of the exchange of money for services and goods. Other items such as hard hats, tool belts, safety glasses, and toolboxes will be added. This play will encourage cooperation, turn-taking, planning, and negotiation.

Blocks:
Building with hallow blocks has continued to be a popular activity in the classroom. Many houses have been under construction, including a trap door house built by some of the children. The children wired the trap door house with "electricity," used the door as their main entrance, as well as created storage areas for their food and other materials. Although vehicle construction continues to dominate the area, many of the children have been constructing homes as of late. This construction encourages cooperative play, planning, creative expression, and the development of large motor skills. With the addition of new materials to the "Building Supply Store," the children will have more items to utilize to build their structures, including tape measures, tools, and tool belts.

Gym/Outside:
The gym set-up remains the same from last week; with Bolster Island, a balance beam, a rope swing, a throwing/catching area, a jumping platform, and scooter boards being the focal points. These structures encourage upper and lower body strength, core strength, hand-eye and foot-eye coordination, muscular endurance, and spatial awareness. The use of the large structures encourages patience through turn-taking, and the encouragement of other children. This week we will be playing a game in the gym each day as well as add some extensions to the activities already offered by the structures. On the jumping platform, we will have the children play a "hopscotch" game by directing them to jump to a certain number on the floor, not always to encourage them to jump as far as they can, but to also promote control in their large motor abilities. We will also be raising the balance beam to increase their work on depth perception, large motor skills, and balance.
Outside sledding has been a popular activity encouraging large motor skills. With the new layer of snow at the end of last week, the children displayed more interest in building with the soft snow. We will be providing colored water in spray bottles, as well as water in buckets with paint brushed to aid the children in building towers and snow forts. We will also provide the construction trucks for the children to move snow from place to place.

Announcements/Reminders
-To get ready for conferences, Ross will be out on Tuesday.
-For those parents who have yet to sign up for conferences, please do so as soon as possible!

Snack
Monday: Sunflower Butter Sandwiches
Tuesday: Open Snack-Animal Crackers
Wednesday: Open snack-Pancakes
Thursday: Open snack-Cheeze-Its
Friday: Pita & Cheddar Cheese

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

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 2/1-2/5
Lead Teaching this week: Stephanie

Overview and Goals:
As we have been stuck inside the majority of the week, due to blistering cold weather, the children have been really excited to see Mama rat and her babies grow over the last week. They quickly became a focal point for several activities that took place in the classroom; including documenting the changes occurring with the babies via diagrams and charts, creating hypothesis about what they eat and how they are changing, having conversations about how the rats use their sense of smell to search for food, as well as making toys and pictures for the baby rats at the art table. This has been a great way to support or focus on higher-level thinking as the children continue to investigate Mama, her babies, and all the other class pets - especially the tadpoles as one has grown all its legs and continues to increase in size!

Art:
Expressive: The children have been very creative with the materials at the art table. Binoculars for dramatic play, toys for the rats, and pictures for traveling have been a few things we have seen created at the art table. To extend this artistic expression, we will add new materials at the table for the children to utilize in their creations. These materials include pipe cleaners, textured paper and fabrics, as well as buttons to help spark new ideas and new possibilities.
Sensory: We have completed our focus on the sense of touch in the flax seed table and ready to challenge the children's thinking in a new way! Because there seems to be a predominate interest in building and creating materials around the classroom, we would like to introduce pullies, levies, tubes, and tunnels for the children to explore with the flax seed. These materials will stimulate problem solving techniques, increase discussion throughout the classroom, as well as introducing way to figure out how new "machines" work. Also, we will continue exploring clay as we introduce new materials (e.g. nuts, bolts, washers, and scraps of plastic pipes) to stimulate new means of manipulating the clay: fostering creative and artistic expression, symbolic representation, and fine motor skills.

Science:
We will switch gears from the olfactory sense to the sense of taste. All the sense work together in giving our brain information, however smell and taste seem to be the two that work the closest together, and we want to help the children learn about the companionship of these sense as well as how they work independently. Matching the taste of certain foods (oranges, bananas, olives, etc.) to their corresponding scent will stimulate the children's thinking how these senses are connected. We will also learn about the different kind of taste buds on the tongue and how they help our brains know if we are eating something sweet, salty, spicy, and so on. Graphs and charts will continue to be in this area to stimulate mathematical thinking, scientific reasoning, and continue the practice of collecting data like real scientists.

Manipulatives:
Because the children have just begun to explore the matching games in the manipulative area, we will continue to use these materials this week; adding a new "nuts and bolts" matching game that fosters reasoning skills, comparing sizes, as well as supports fine-motor skills. We will also introduce cranks, gears, and other mechanical devices in this area to support the interest in building/creating while fostering mechanical thinking and investigations about how things work. This also supports the part-to-whole relationships, fine-motor skills, and hypothesis creating/testing. With these manipulatives in place, we will encourage the children to think critically while solving the problems accompanying these tasks. Skills addressed in this area of the classroom also include solving problems independently as well as with peers through discussions. In addition, the DUPLOS have created new opportunity for the children to build new structures. With the interest in travel, we will add an airport that the train tracks can connect to, extending the play and giving the trains a "destination." The new additions will stimulate peer interaction and creative thinking, as well as the development of fine motor skills. Pictures of the children's creations will be placed in the caves to help the children recall previous structures built and stimulate new creations.

Literacy Center:
Many postcards, pictures, and drawings were made last week, fostering literacy and fine motor skills. When the children enter the literacy center they use stamps, markers, and assorted papers. To encourage the children to focus more on their writing skills, we will introduce alphabet and number boards to help improve the children's letter recognition as well as encourage them to practice writing their ABC's. As children learn to create these letters they are also beginning to develop their pre-literacy skills and are preparing for writing skills to come.

Dramatic Play:
Though the children continue to take trips, we want to support the adventurous thinking taking place in the blocks. The suitcases are moving to the house and all an "all purpose supply store" is moving in! Nuts, bolts, wire, washers, boxes, etc will all be available to help fuel the "internal" building taking place in the blocks. With these new materials, the children will be able to expand their imaginations and create new structures.

Blocks:
The interest in transportation continues to live on in the block area! Recently we have seen the children expand on their building ideas and have observed the children adding internal components to their buildings and vehicles. We will help facilitate the incorporation of the new materials from the "supply store" to support the children's new ideas and visions with building. These new materials will continue to support collaboration, cooperative play, negotiation skills, as well as create opportunities to have discussions about how machines actually work. This focus will encourage higher-level thinking, promote scientific inquiry, as well as stimulate deeper investigation related to figuring out how different machines work.

Outside/gym:
There is a new gym set-up! A rope swing, mat-jumping station, throwing/catching corner, balance beam bridge, scooter boards, and climbing structure made out of tumbling mats (nicknamed "Bolster Island") will be available in the gym this week. The new set-up will support, upper/lower body strength and coordination, muscular endurance, agility, spatial awareness skills, depth perception, core strengthening, balance, eye-hand/eye-foot coordination, over-/under-hand throwing, catching, and opportunities to practice team building and turn taking skills. Also, as the weather slowly warms up, we are hoping to head out to the playground as much as possible this week. Sledding, digging/shoveling the snow, and searching for tracks continue to be favorite activities while we're outside. Please remember to keep sending your snow gear, as we hope to get outside and shed the build sense of "cabin fever."

Additional Announcements:
Be sure to get your enrollment for next year turned in by Monday, February 1 to reserve your child's spot for next year! If you have any additional questions, please let Ann Ruhl Carlson or me know!
Coffee hours with Barb will be happening this week! There are taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings from 8.45-9.45a and Wednesday afternoon from 12.45-1.45p. This is a great opportunity to sit down and chat with Barb, please try to make it in!
GYM JAM this Friday, February 5th from 6.30-8p. Bring the family and tell your friends! This fun and exciting evening will be held at Bierman Athletic Field. Let me know if you have any questions.

Snack:
Monday: Fruit & Oat Bars by Amy's class
Tuesday: Open Snack-Multigrain Cheerios & Raisins
Wednesday: Open snack-Rice Cakes
Thursday: Open snack-Trader Joe's Letter Crackers
Friday: Pita & String Cheese

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of 1/25/10 - 1/29/10
Lead Teaching this week: Nadine

Overview and Goals - Many exciting things took place in our classroom last week! The children planned trips, built elaborate block structures, dug into sensory materials, and thoroughly enjoyed the snow. Also, as many of you know, Mama had her babies last week (11 to be exact!). We kept her tucked away in the nook so she could rest and care for her babies, but now they are old enough for us to observe and look at up close in classroom. We will use Mama and her babies as a catalyst to promote a life science focus. We will have discussions, create hypotheses, observe and record the babies, as well as create graphs and charts related to the growing family. This experience will promote higher-level thinking, scientific inquiry, promote the learning of new information, and create great opportunity to recall previous knowledge in different ways (i.e. generalization). I encourage you to stop in and see what we are learning!

Sensory Table - There continues to be a strong interest in the flax seed, and the children are really enjoying their search for different objects! We added a texture sorting game that challenge the children to find an object and decide whether it was hard, soft, smooth, or bumpy; supporting classification skills. We will add new objects and continue to discuss different texture and classification words. We will also be discussing the importance of the sense of touch, and the concept of when you touch something, your skin sends a message to your brain and tells you what it is.

Art -
Sensory - At creativity night last week, a lot of children from our class showed a great interest in clay: creating many interesting sculptures with intentionality and focused attention. Because of the high interest we brought clay, cutting tools, and natural wood pieces to our sensory art table. We will see what the children create, as this material has endless possibilities. This activity is great for fine motor strength and skill building as well as creative expression.
Expressive - We brought pastel colors to our easels to reflect the colors the children are seeing in nature. Painting with these pastels on black paper added a nice contrast, and to continue this experience we will add more pastel colors to the mix. To facilitate even more creativity and artistic expression, we will be adding collage materials that the children may use in their easel paintings. We have seen the children making multimedia collages and feel this would be an intriguing extension to bring more visitors to the easel.

Science - We have moved into the sense of smell! The children have had fun with the smell "guessing and matching game." We also discussed how animals use their sense of smell to find food, and our cave transformed into a forest, where woodland animals (and your children!) have been sniffing around to find "food". Throughout the week, we will be introducing new scents into the smell matching game as well as continue our discussions about the sense of smell and how it helps us. This activity is a great tool to get the children thinking about their own bodies; learning about how they work and why we need our senses. We will also continue to use graphs and charts related to smell preferences, allowing thee children to compare/contrast their opinions with their peers while practice the math concept of recording/counting data.

Manipulatives - We will switch our focus to memory and matching games this week, as we add games that relate to the themes we've been seeing throughout the classroom: such as travel, animals, and familial relationships. We will have mother-child matching games, animal memory games and additional puzzles available as well. These games will facilitate part-to-whole relationships, shape recognition, symbolic representation, classification, matching, and visual discrimination.
- The Brio tracks and trains have been quite popular with a consistent group of children, and the train tracks they have created become more and more elaborate each day. We will add Duplos in hopes to help build sturdier structures to accompany the tracks, as well as be able to withstand the moving children within the small space! It is wonderful to see their imaginations at work as they build a track: showing intention and planning as they create. This type of play helps develop fine motor skills, facilitates thoughtful planning and active problem solving, as well as fostering social relationships and collaborative play skills.

Literature Center - A main theme we are seeing throughout the classroom is this idea of travel and transportation. Because many of the children take trips daily, we introduced the idea of writing loved ones postcards from the places they are visiting. There is now a mailbox in our literature center where the children can "mail their postcards" to friends and family. Another way will want to incorporate literacy into dramatic play is by encouraging the children to make nametags for their luggage so they don't get lost on their trips!

Dramatic Play- As mentioned before, one of the biggest themes we have seen in our room has been travel and taking trips. We have created a travel center complete with luggage, backpacks, brochures, maps, and tickets. The children have come up with some fun places to visit, and the play continues to become more elaborate. To expand on this play, we will incorporate literacy and creativity into the play themes by encouraging the creation of postcards and luggage tags as well as help facilitate new activities/adventures once the children reach their destination

Blocks - Transportation and rescue have been the focus of block play recently. We have seen rescue helicopters, police cars, airplanes and trains created. Giant structures that take up over half of the building space have been created to save people in need or to take people where they want to go. We will bring in first aid equipment so our rescuers are ready to help other people in need. The stories are creative and have given children great opportunities to build relationships, work on collaborative and cooperative play skills, and practice negotiation/compromise skills.

Gym/Outside - Our gym has taken on a car theme, with a road for cars to drive on, a gas station, and a repair shop. The children enjoy getting some energy out at the beginning of the day as well as driving their cars around, fixing them up, and working at the gas station. We have recently added a car wash to the gas station as well! These activities foster upper and lower body strength, coordination, depth perception, propulsion skills, collaborative play, and negotiation skills. Outside we have seen the children exploring the snow and digging up large chunks to create walls. The favorite activity, however, is sledding. The snow has become quite hard and icy, so to ensure safe sledding, we have switched the sleds out for small kiddy-pools in which we put 4 or 5 children in at a time. It doesn't go nearly as fast, but the children have a blast just the same!

Announcements and reminders - We have our parent discussion groups taking place this week. Be sure to check the website for dates and times. The topic for the discussions is "Guidance and Limit Setting."
- Enrollment forms for next school year are due by FEB 1. Be sure to fill out your sheet and hand it in to Eva, Ann Ruhl Carlson (in office 123), or me. Even if you child is moving to kindergarten, please share the information with friends and family. It is your recommendations and conversations with others that help keep bring many wonderful families to the Lab School!
- We will have a fire drill this week on Tuesday.

Snack -
Monday: Graham Crackers made by Class & Banana
Tuesday: Oat & Honey granola bar (Really!) & Kiwi
Wednesday: Open snack-Pretzels
Thursday: Open snack-Letter Cheeze-Its
Friday: Pretzels, Carrots & Dip

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of: Jan 19-22, 2010
Lead teaching this week: Team teaching

Overview and goals
Week three will start off with some very exciting news pertaining to some new little "visitors" joining our classroom this week. Mama had her babies this weekend! Please read the announcement at the bottom to let your child know how we will be visiting Mama this week. With that, we anticipate our life science exploration will be taking off! We will bring in books and questions for the children to explore and answer as continue our science focus as well as support our goal of encouraging high-level thinking skills. We will also continue to foster these skills throughout the other areas of our classroom, challenging the children's thinking and reason as they explore new senses at the science center and create more elaborate dramatic play themes in the back of the room.

Art center
Expressive material
~ The easel painting has been a huge hit! To change it up we are going to add pastel colors that reflect more of the colors the children are seeing in nature. We began to see some collaborative painting going on last week. We will encourage these cooperative experiences by encouraging the children to invite another child to join them while they paint. These collaborative ventures allow the children to practice their comprise, negotiation, and social interaction skills while sharing ideas and talking about what the painting process will be. We are excited to see the creativity blossom!
~ With all the trips taking place in the back of the room, we will add additional collage materials (paper towel tubes, string, etc.) to encourage the children to make their own props needed for travel. Binoculars, maps, and signs are a few of the anticipated creations needed for the future adventures around the "world" (a.k.a. our classroom).
Sensory material
~ One focus in the art areas has been on painting and printmaking. The children loved using the dinosaur sponges and cookie cutter letters to make prints. When the trucks were brought in, they really enjoyed making tracks on their paper with the wheels in the paints. We will be bringing in new shades of color to mix as well as various sized cars to help foster comparison skills. We will also focus more on using the letter shapes, promoting the novel ways to incorporate literacy through art.
~ The children have really enjoyed exploring and playing with flax seed in the sensory table. They have been using measuring cups, scoops, paddle wheels, and many other materials to support their play. With the interest in the new material being so great, we will be adding many different objects for the children to dig for and find. This activity is linked to our science focus dealing with the sense of touch. We have been asking the question "How does it feel?" when a child finds an object, encouraging the children to use the new texture words we have been taking about during large group and free play. To utilize their new knowledge and vocabulary words, we will create a sorting game that challenges the children to sort objects by their texture. This activity will get them thinking about similarities and differences, address the concept of classification, and engage them by using their sense of touch and fine motor skills.

Science Center
~ Since we've been back, we have been investigating the sense of touch in our science area. Through matching and guessing games, the children have been using their sense of touch to explore textures in their environment. We have extended the use of touch to our sensory table, and have been hearing the children use various texture words to describe the items they are finding hidden in the flax seed. This week, we will move onto the sense of smell in the science area. Smelling jars with scents such as cinnamon, coffee, and cocoa will be available for the children to smell and describe through written or pictorial recordings, as well as identify through a matching game. We will also use the cave to display how different animals use their sense of smell to find food with pictures, books, and figures for the children to play with to utilize their new information. Through these activities, the children will be developing their higher-level thinking skills with prediction, inquiry, and reflection or discussion. They will also be developing social skills by comparing their thoughts and findings.

Math and manipulative Center
~ The manipulatives have become more popular with the children over the past two weeks. Currently, the area has puzzles and activities that center around patterns. The children have enjoyed following provided patterns with colorful pegs and pattern blocks, as well as creating their own patterns. In the coming days, we will introduce new patterning games to the area to continue the exploration of patterns, as well as support the social interactions that accompany the cooperative production of the games.
~ The trains have been a very popular material in the classroom! The children have been working very hard in creating tracks that snake in and out of both caves. The children have been demonstrating spatial awareness by winding their tracks around certain objects including chairs and tables. To help the children extend their play themes, we will place pictures of their creations in the caves to stimulate new ideas by helping them recall tracks/stories from the days previous.

Language and Literacy Center
~ The children have spent some time at the book center over the last two weeks. Some of the book themes that they have explored include the human body, as well as the winter season. To expand this literacy exploration, we would like to incorporate books that relate to the dramatic play that we see reoccurring throughout the classroom. Books about trains, airplanes, and cars will be available to help create opportunities for the children enhance their dramatic play themes with more detail and new ideas while supporting their pre-/early-literacy development. Last week the children had a great time creating airplanes so they could travel to different countries such as China, Puerto Rico, and even the Grand Canyon.
~Several children have also explored the writing center since we have been back. Children have been stopping by to create grocery lists, draw pictures, and send letters to friends and families. To build off this interest in writing as well as help foster a deeper understanding of print and letter recognition, we will be adding alphabet stamps, inkpads, post cards, and envelopes to the writing center. We feel these additions will help foster the pre-/early-literacy skills of the children currently using the center while inviting new visitors to use the space. To increase this awareness, we would like to encourage the children to write post cards to their peers as they "travel" around the world. Writing letters increases fine motor skills, literacy, as well as cognitive ability levels.

Block Center
~ There has been many new "transportation" vehicles being created in the back of the room. Planes, trains, and other automobiles have popped up to help many of the children reach their intended destinations (e.g. Florida, China, Disneyworld). We will add more steering wheels, cardboard, paper, and tape to help furnish the newly created vehicles as well as encourage the children to use/create maps to take with them. These additions will support the social community in the classroom as well as provide new dramatic plays that can incorporate many children simultaneously.

Dramatic Play
~ The general severed the children well, however as the children continued to travel, they were buying supplies to take with them on their trips. With these constant occurrences, we felt it only appropriate to change the general store into a travel store. We will add suitcases, maps, tickets, and travel accessories (e.g. clothes, sunglasses, etc.) to help support this growing interest in travel.

Large Motor
~ The cars, driving track, obstacle course, and climber will continue to be available this week. The children have had a blast drive around the track as well as stopping by the gas station: both to fill up as well as keep on the general maintenance of their automobiles. We will be playing new teacher games this week, lead by the student teachers. The gym's set up will be changed for a day on Wednesday morning, as the teachers will be getting ready for Creativity Night!
~ Sledding has been a huge success, as many children cannot wait to get outside after snack! For those not interested in sledding, there has been some interesting snow-fort building taking place. The sleds will continue to be available and parents are always welcome to come a bit early (we're out there around 10.50 or so) and join in the fun! We will also be dismissing from outside as much as possible.

Announcements/Reminders
~ Mama had her babies!!! We haven't been able to get an exact count, but there are probably around 10 baby rats with Mama in her nest! With that, she needs to have privacy and quiet for these first for days/week as her babies begin to grow. We have moved Mama and the little ones to the "nook" in the back of our classroom (next to the teacher sink). The teachers will take groups of 2-3 children in to visit, but stress that we need to be very quiet while looking at Mama and her babies. They may be tough to see in these early stages, but as the babies grow, they will venture out of the nest more and the children will have better opportunities to see them!
~ Creativity Night - Tuesday, Jan. 20 from 6-7.30p. Take a look at the flyer posted on the Lab School's main page for more details!

Snack
Monday: No School
Tuesday: Oat & honey granola bar & banana
Wednesday: Sunflower butter sandwiches
Thursday: Cheese & crackers
Friday: Popcorn (made in class)

*All snacks served with milk & water, unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan

Week of: Jan 5 - 8, 2010!

Lead teaching this week: Ross

Overview and goals 

Happy 2010 everyone! It is the start of a new year, a new decade, and (most importantly) a new session at the Lab School! The new student teachers and I are excited to jump right in, and I imagine your children are, too! Whereas the children needed time to acclimate to a new classroom, new faces, as well as learn new routines, I anticipate they will be eager to see each other, and will pick up right where they left off! We have rearranged the environment a bit, and hopefully you have had time to look at the pictures with your child. The new space was arranged to help create more involved, elaborate play themes, as well as for inquisitive investigation of materials to unfold. We wanted to create centers that promote rich opportunities for critical thinking as well as areas that allow for deep, imaginative play themes to come alive! These ideas came about from our staff development in November and we are excited to see what comes about from the new environment! We are excited for the new session and are glad to have you all back!

Art Center

Expressive materials

~ The paints and large brushes will be at floor easel, as it was one of the favorite materials for many of the children in the fall. It not only supports large-/fine-motor skills with long brush strokes and small, detailed brush strokes, it also supports creativity, artistic expression, as well as fosters development with symbolic representation as the children begin creating recognizable figures. We saw many visitors in the fall and I anticipate similar traffic during the winter, especially as we add more pastel colors to match the colors the children see outside. 

~ Also to support creativity, artistic expression, and symbolic representation, new and interesting collage materials will be available at the art table. We will invite children to create props for dramatic play, as well as make props to help tell stories. The teachers will use these creations as well as model the process during large group.

Sensory materials
~ Stamping/printmaking will be available at the sensory table. Alphabet and number blocks, cookie-cutters, and dinosaur sponges will be available, helping promote pre-/early-literacy skills, numeral recognition, as well as creative/artistic expression.

~ Flax seed will be introduced in the second sensory table. This new material offers great opportunities for new and unique sensory exploration as the children pour, scoop, sift, and hold the seed. We anticipate many visitors to the flax seed table, and will begin asking questions about how the seed feels and about its texture: supporting our science focus on the sense of touch.


Science Center

~ We have expanded the "walls" of our science center...and moved it across the room to include the use of one of the caves! We hope the added space will allow for additional supporting materials while creating ample opportunities for enriched scientific exploration. To start the winter session, we will be exploring our five senses: the first being touch. The sense of touch is the most concrete and allows for all children to create as well as answer their own scientific hypotheses. The human body is fascinating topic, especially for children, as their body continual changes and grows in ability, strength, and coordination nearly every day! We will ask questions using specific sensory words to promote scientific thinking and inquiry, as well as help the children begin thinking critically about how their sense of touch works.

Math and Manipulative Center

~ Puzzles, multicolored inch cubes (with pattern cards), parquetry blocks (with pattern cards), and a seriated Montessori peg board will be available: supporting part-to-whole relationships, one-to-one correspondence, seriation, patterning, counting, shape recognition, symbolic representation, as well as basic math concepts of addition and subtraction. 

~ In the second/third cave, we have set up the Brio trains, tracks, and multi-shaped building blocks to encourage the children to build and create with a popular/familiar toy. We anticipate this area will create many opportunities for children to reconnect with one another as well as promote the practice of many social skills: such as negotiation, comprise, and collaboration as they develop new and involved play themes.

Language and Literacy Center

~ A plethora of new books (as well as a few classroom favorites) have made their way to the book shelf, supporting the various topics around the room. Books related to the human body, trains, and winter are amongst the many titles available, as well as Where the Wild Things Are, Just Another Oridinary Day, and NO DAVID! We also hope to have the children starting creating/illustrating their own books during the session. 

~ With the goal of having the children dictate and illustrate their own books, we decided we needed more space at the writing center. We have added a second table, new markers, paper, and stickers to encourage the children to visit the area and practice their pre-/early-literacy skills, support their fine-motor strength and coordination as they practice writing, as well as foster new/existing social relationships as the children create/share their stories with others.

Block Center

~ The "door" has been reinforced and is ready for many more block-building adventures! With the block area being the favored spot for many children, we have made sure to reserve plenty of room for building and will be quick to add supporting materials as the children come back and begin the building conquests once again! We will continue to support the large-/fine-motor development that accompanies the use of hollow and unit blocks, however we also want to support our goal of richer, more elaborate/involved dramatic play. We will record and revisit play themes and story lines from previous days by documenting the "stories" created by the children and sharing them with the children to help foster these ever-growing dramatic play themes. As the teachers document these stories, we will also post them on the website to share with all of you!

Dramatic Play 

~ Along with the dramatic play that will stem from the blocks, we have also set up a retail store in the back of the room to help create opportunities for social interactions. Many of the themes in the blocks revolved around house play last fall, and we felt the store would be a great addition to help expand the interest in building homes. The children have opportunities to be cashiers, customers, as well as help create price tags and labels for the items (promoting pre-/early-literacy skills and number recognition while foster the social skills of turn taking, negotiating, and compromising). We anticipate bigger story lines to emerge with the addition of the retail store!
~ The dramatic play kitchen will also be available with new foods that can be "cut" into pieces, allowing for discussions about the math concepts of addition, subtraction, and fractions while supporting social interactions and dramatic play.

Large Motor

~ To start the winter session, the first week in the gym will revert back to a more basic set-up with the monkey bars, step-climber and slide, A-frame, jumping donut, wall climber, and trampoline. These pieces of equipment support: eye-hand/eye-foot coordination, upper-/lower-body strength and coordination, depth perception, cardiovascular endurance, spatial awareness, and balance. This set up also allows ample space for teacher-facilitated activities: supporting playing games with rules and following directions. Some of the games we will play will be Parachute, Popcorn, "Tickle Fish," and Double Bubble.

~ There is no doubt about it...snow has COVERED the playground (well...so has the ice!). Shovels, buckets, plates, cups, and silverware will all be available to support the dramatic play on the playground. And as you guessed it, we WILL be sledding! Anticipating that this will be a popular area, the teachers will be bring their boots and snowpants every day to ensure fun and safe sledding opportunities for all! Parents: you are MORE THAN WELCOME to come and join us on the sledding hill - however I do suggest dressing appropriately!

Announcements/Reminders 

~ Jennie, Nadine, and Stephanie are excited to get started and meet all of you. Try to stop down and introduce yourself to them!
~ There will be a PAC meeting on Thursday, Jan. 14. If you can, please try to make it, as your ideas and insight are appreciated and necessary to keep this school all that it is!
~ Although these two events aren't for a few weeks, I still want to remind you to put them on your calendar so you can make it. The first: Creativity Night - Tuesday, Jan. 20 from 6-7.30p. It's a great opportunity to come to school with your children and explore various creative options with all the teachers! The second: Gym-Jam - Friday Feb. 5 from 6.30-8p. This is a Lab School favorite! The Bierman Facility opens its doors and allows the families (and friends) of the Lab School to run around on the indoor practice field and interact with various U of M student athletes. It's a high-energy night that has quickly become a favorite event for many families. Mark your calendars and stay tuned, as more specific information will be sent out about each event!

Snack

Monday: NO SCHOOL

Tuesday: Cheddar bunnies

Wednesday: Letter crackers

Thursday: Pretzels

Friday: Graham crackers

*All snacks served with milk & water, unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Week of: Nov. 23 - Dec. 2, 2009
Lead teaching this week: Rachel

Overview and goals
The classroom has been busy thispast week! The children are developing stronger friendships and playing cooperatively this week. A lot of activity has been happening in the block area as the children work together to make large houses for everyone to fit
into! The new activities this week will help encourage higher level thinking, as the students will hypothesize the measurement of different objects and answer questions that have more than one answer for the question of the day. As the first session comes to a close, we have truly seen many friendships blossom during the session. The children have become comfortable with the classroom routines and daily schedule. We feel it is important to establish this strong social community in the fall with the long winter break, as it makes coming back in January that much smoother. We will be opening the focus of the classroom to include more opportunities for higher-level thinking skills to be practiced as well as bringing in more teacher-facilitated activities.

Art center
Sensory material
~The glurch has run its course and we are ready for a new material. It will be
replaced with Plasticine clay. This is oil-based clay that does not dry, allowing the children to mold it into something day after day. This will give the children the opportunity to explore a new material and discover the similarities and differences between the other moldable materials we have had this year.
~We will add soap to the water table and invite the children to wash dishes and other materials around the room. This will support children’s fine-/large-motor skills and social interactions skills as they negotiate the use of tools and discuss what toys need to be washed. We also want to instill a sense of respect/ownership of the toys and
environment within each child. We talked at large group about how keeping
the toys clean and putting them away when they are not being used are two
ways to respect our toys.
Expressive material
~Since paint was a big hit earlier in the year we will bring it back next week at the
easel. There will be a variety of colors, including black and white so children can experiment and make various shades of familiar colors. Smaller paintbrushes will be at the easel in order to let the children practice more fine-motor skills and allow for finer-detailed paintings.
~Weaving boards will be introduced at the art table. Weaving creates great
opportunities to foster fine-motor strength/coordination as well as challenges children to focus on the over/under pattern involved with stringing the yarn through the weaving board. There will be a variety of yarn colors so they children can make their own creations. Later, larger strips of ribbon will be introduced as well as a larger loom for the
children to utilize their new weaving skills!

Science Center
~Many of our beans have sprouted and are growing quite feverishly! The children continue to visit them daily, watering their sprouts and comparing with others. We will hybrid the science focus of plant growth with the math topic of measurement. Unifix
cubes will be added to the table to help chart the growth of each child’s plant. The children will also be encouraged to take the cubes to other areas of the room and measure various objects. This will familiarize the children with the idea of measurement and foster a richer understanding of the comparison terms taller, longer, shorter, bigger, smaller (especially in regards to comparing their plants).

Math and manipulative Center
~Small Legos will be added to the manipulative center in order to support the continued interest in building and constructing. Legos offer a great opportunity to create “just the right thing” needed to extend a dramatic play theme: whether it be a new tool in the construction area or a new control/radio for the spaceship. We are seeing creations being incorporated into dramatic play and want to foster the creativity/imaginations of the children by encouraging them to think of Legos as a material that can be used in limitless ways!
~Marble ramps will be added to the small cave. We want to introduce the children to concept of motion and get them familiar with how the marbles move down the ramps, because later we will introduce the Marbleworks construction set. The children will be able to make a variety of structures using ramps, turns, and a variety of others unique pieces. This supports children’s fine-motor skills as well as their social interactions and
cooperative play as they work together to make structures. Also, it will support problem solving skills as the children experiment with how the marbles will travel through the structures.

Language and Literacy Center
~There has been some book making and note writing at the writing center over the past week. The books have been incorporated into block and dramatic play, being used as
maps and blueprints for a future building project. There will continue to be supplies for the children to create their books and write notes, and the teachers will be checking in to help dictate stories and instructions as needed.
~One big change this week is the closet by the sinks will be turned into a book nook. There will be pillows, comfy seating and books on tape in there. This will allow the children to get away from the busyness of the classroom and have some quiet time. Also, the books support their pre-literacy skills and familiarize them with new books.

Block Center
~This past week the children have been very busy building houses. They have been working together to make large houses and then use other materials around the room in their building, such as dog leashes as “internal electrical wires.” In order to support more house building pipes, string, and wire will be added. Also, there will be pictures of windows, doors and indoor furnishing that can be added/taped to the structures to support their building. One exciting thing that will be added is a door (or two) that the children can use in their house building play! All of this will support their large motor skills but also their problem-solving skills as they think about and figure out how to build
structures. It will also support their social skills as they work together to complete structures and share materials.

Dramatic Play
~Many of the children have expressed an interest in space and gravity, stemming from the science small group. In order to expand on these interests one of the caves will be turned into a spaceship cockpit. The children can go into the cave and pretend like they
are driving a spaceship! Control panels, keyboards, headsets, and walk-talkies will be available to make this cosmic travel come alive. This will support cooperative play as the children pretend to fly together as well as their imaginative play as they take off into space!

Large Motor
~The new set-up in the gym was a huge hit this week! The children loved the rolling hill and jumping to hit the ball. The set-up will be the same next week but there will be minor changes. Scooters will be added to the relay lane so the children can pull each other back and forth. There will also be new large group games for the children to play. This will support the children’s large motor skills and physical fitness.
~On the playground there will be shovels and buckets available in order to encourage the children to continue digging their huge holes. The soccer nets will also be put out so the children can use them to make goals. This will support their cardiovascular endurance.

Announcements/Reminders
~ Mark your calendar…we are having our “Good Bye” party for the student teachers on Thursday, December 3! We invite all the families to come and join us for snack (starting around 10.30a) as well as for a sing-a-long to say goodbye to Elizabeth, Rachel, and Stacy. See the newsletter posted on our classroom webpage for additional information.
~ With the party on Thursday, you may be wondering if we have school on Friday, December 4? Yes, we will have one more “regular” day of school before we take off for break.
~ Be sure to read the newsletter for additional information about important dates and ideas for things to do over our long winter break!
~Small Group groups are wrapping up this week. Elizabeth’s group will be making a trip to the pet store on Wednesday this week, and Stacy’s and Rachel’s groups will be venturing out next week. Permission slips will be sent home soon!

Snack:
Monday: Cheese & Crackers
Tuesday: Open Snack-Fries by made by the children
Wednesday: Open Snack-Rice Cakes
Thursday: NO SCHOOL
Friday: NO SCHOOL
*All snacks served with milk & water, unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Nov 16 - 20, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Elizabeth

Overview and goals
With an abundance of new materials, a classroom pet that went missing for a few days, and the introduction of the computers...this week has been extremely exciting for the children! Social interactions and cooperative play seem to continue to increase, while creativity is on the rise. Children have started to develop scientific inquiry skills as they investigate magnets and search for clues of the missing pet. Numerous children participated in cooperatively building a house within the block area while others have spent time expressing themselves creatively through modeling clay and open-ended art. This week as children begin to explore items that sink and float, different strength magnets, and the slimy material of glurch: promoting a new focus of scientific investigation and questioning asking/testing. New materials and modification of old ones will also continue to support cooperative play and creative expression.

Art Center
Sensory
~ Throughout the past weeks, children have explored the properties of water. Our focus will dive deeper toward a scientific inquiry of sinking and floating. Various materials including assorted balls, feathers, foam, wood and tin foil will be available, as well as checklists where children can make their predictions and test their hypotheses of whether items will sink or float. The water table will continue to support scientific inquiry, hypothesis testing, critical thinking, as well as social interaction as children discuss their findings.
~ In the classroom, the children have used the modeling clay in many creative ways this past week. As our time with the clay comes to an end, we will move on to the sensory-rich material of 'glurch', a mixture of liquid starch and glue. After building awareness of the material as children investigate the consistency, materials will be added including scissors, wires, and cups. Teachers will help facilitate deeper investigations of the properties of the glurch using these materials. These materials will also support observation, scientific inquiry and social interaction as children collaborate together in exploring this new material.
Expressive
~ The large floor easel continues to be a popular for children to express their creativity. So far this school year we have focused on using the medium of paint in many different ways. This week, we will introduce the chalk to the floor easel in order to encourage exploration of a new art medium. The chalk will continue to be available to promote both fine and large-motor skills.
~ Last week we began to introduce liquid watercolors at the large floor easel. Because of the popularity, we will continue to have watercolors available at the art table. Open-ended collage materials will also be available to foster creative development and encourage social interaction.
~ The music cave has been a popular place over the past few weeks as children have expressed their creativity through creating new instruments and playing old ones. This week there will be a CD player in the music cave for the children to operate with popular classroom songs. Children can practice literacy skills with reading CD cover as well as continue exploring rhythms and beats together as they play alongside the music.

Science
~ Some of the seeds have sprouted! Children will continue to have the opportunity to observe and document their seeds' growth this next week through the use of our classrooms' digital cameras. As well as the seed growth, we will continue our investigation of magnets. This past week, many children started to explore the concept of magnetism as they tested various materials to see if "they would stick." To expand this exploration and promote further opportunities for critical thinking and scientific inquiry, new materials including different strength magnets, will be added and teachers will begin to facilitate deeper discussions. Magnetic connectors will be added for children to support fine motor, as well as express their creativity while exploring the topic of magnets.

Math and Manipulatives
~ Two new set of manipulatives including tan-a-grams and 'rig-a-jig's' will be available this week to promote shape and color as well as increasing symbolic representation while working on fine motor skills. Geoboards will continue to be available allowing children to create shapes and demonstrate shape recognition. Puzzles will continue to promote visual discrimination, shape recognition, and part-to-whole relationships.
~The computers continue to be a popular spot for many children. Millie's Math House supports many mathematical concepts including sequencing, grouping, comparing amounts, and counting.
~ Many different children have visited the Lego cave through the past few weeks. To expand play we will add smaller Legos alongside the Duplos. As children develop creations we will add pictures to inspire. Legos will continue to allow children an opportunity to practice fine motor movements, support creativity, cooperative play as well as, create symbolic and representational objects.

Language and Literacy Center
~Many construction and road signs have been incorporated into children's play this week. We will continue to encourage children to utilize the writing center as a resource to enrich their play while practicing fine motor skills and promoting letter recognition and pre-literacy skills. This week we will encourage the children to create an alphabet poster that we can hang in the writing center as a reference as they begin to recognize letters and sounds.
~New books will be available at the reading coach for children to enjoy looking at with themselves or a teacher.

Block Center
~In the block center, construction and transportation continue to be the central themes. This past week, children have utilized hard hats within their play as well as transformed blocks into many different types of tools. To support the cooperative play that continues to increase daily, tool boxes and other building materials will be available for children to incorporate into their story lines. The blocks will continue to be a great area to foster creativity and rich cooperative play.

Dramatic Play Center
~ Many sick animals have been treated at the animal hospital in the past few weeks. As children begin to treat other sick children, we will follow the children's lead and shift our focus from an animal hospital to a doctor's office. Various props including models of head and teeth, x-rays, and pictures of muscles and bones will encourage children to think about what is inside our bodies and how do they work. Children can utilize their experience from previous play as well as their own connections to experiences at the doctor's office to facilitate play. The area will continue to support cooperative play, body awareness, and problem solving as children work together to ensure all patients are treated.

Large Motor
~ A new gym setup this next week will hopefully excite the children as much as it excites the teachers. There will be a rolling hill to promote balance and vestibular awareness. The A-frame will allow children to jump and hit a hanging ball from the light supporting hand-eye coordination, depth perception, as well as jumping and landing skills. The monkey bars have also been "attached" to the climbing wall to promote a raised climbing structure that will challenge the children's eye-hand/eye-foot coordination and create opportunities to safely take risks in the gym. Throughout the week, teachers will lead various relay games in a running lane to promote endurance, cooperation, and muscular strength.
~Warm weather this past week has increased the energy and excitement in outdoor play. Bikes, shovels, wagons, and the rope swing continue to be popular on the outdoor playground. Hollow blocks have been used to build bridges over the wholes within the sand. In addition, this week we will add soccer goals in order to promote kicking at a target, as well as cardiovascular endurance.
~Teachers will begin to facilitate games at story time including Animal Barnyard and Mr. Fox in order to promote large motor skills and expend extra energy at the end of the day.

Announcements and reminders
~ Parent Discussion groups will be meeting again this week on Tuesday.
~ The Lab School will be closed next week on Thursday and Friday. There will be school on Wednesday, Nov. 25!

Snack
Monday: Graham Crackers made by Amy's Class & Banana
Tuesday: Open Snack-Rice Cakes
Wednesday: Open Snack-Pretzels
Thursday: Open Snack- Letter Cheeze-Its
Friday: Muffins made by Class

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Nov 9 - Nov 13, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Stacy

Overview and goals
The last week has been a very productive week. We made our own paper and took our class picture. The children took advantage of the new materials available in the classroom (i.e. story telling in the felt board cave, construction sites, trains in the Lego cave, water exploration and planting of our own seeds). The children are displaying an ever-increasing level of comfort with each other and the teachers, and because of this we continue to see new social interactions emerging in the classroom. This week we will continue with the positive momentum by adding in new materials and slightly tweaking what is already there. We will be adding the computers to the classroom in order to allow the children opportunities to explore forms of technology while practicing cooperation/negotiation skills. Creative expression, building, animal care and scientific inquiry will continue to be central themes for the up coming week.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ The art table will have our staple collage materials and an abundance of markers, crayons and paper. The availability of these materials has led to some new and exciting creations. Last week we saw construction signs and a robot snake! The consistent availability of the open ended art supplies allow the children to extend their play from other centers, practice their fine motor skills, and facilitate social relationships.
~ The easel will continue to be available in the art center. However, we will be experimenting with bubble painting. The bubble paint invites the children to paint by blowing bubbles mixed with tempera paint at the paper. When the bubbles pop they create various shapes and patterns. There will be pipe cleaners bent into various forms to use for blowing bubbles. Not only is this activity fun, but it also allows children to see the many forms creativity can take. Inviting children to see familiar things such as bubbles in a new manor help to facilitate creative though processes not just in artistic expression, but in everyday life, too.
~ The musical cave continues to be a popular spot for many of the children. The addition of the piano, bells, and sand blocks enabled the children to further their individual musical exploration. Musical instrument making materials will be available for the children to try their hand at creating their very own rhythms and sounds creating an opportunity for further musical exploration. Some of the materials we will have available are toilet and paper towel rolls, tissue boxes, and rubber bands. There will be premade examples of drums, maracas, and guitars to assist the children in creating their own musical instruments. The topic of musical instrument making will be introduced at large group and will continue to be available in the music cave over the course of the week. The open-ended materials will allow the children to create new and exciting instruments.
Sensory Materials
~ Last week, the water table consisted of introductory water movement materials. Materials such as pumps, funnels and paddle-wheels will continue to be available. We will have plastic tubing with funnels attached to the table to begin looking at water movement. Turkey basters will also be available for hypothesis creating/testing related to water movement. The new materials will promote inquiry, prediction making, exploration and continual social interactions.
~ We will have new modeling clay available this week. The children have explored the properties of clay and what it can become: allowing for not only a sensory experience but a creative one, as well. The modeling clay will allow the children to create pieces of art or representational objects. The clay can be left over night and can be painted the following day if the child desires to do so.

Science Center
~ We have planted our very own seeds! We will have a documentation board allowing the children to track the growth of their seeds. As we continue to observe our seeds' growth process we will introduce the new topic of magnets. We feel the children are ready for a new topic and magnets allow vast opportunities for critical thinking and question asking. As the children will begin to investigate the properties of magnets, we will have various materials to test as well as magnetic object hunt available throughout the classroom. Lastly we will have sand and metal filings mixed in containers for the children to sort out. With the new topic of magnets in the science center we have attempted to provide a variety of activities to allow the children to investigate and enquire about the properties of magnets. Also, because this is a more abstract topic (force of magnetism), we will introduce the idea now and may revisit similar experiments later in the school year to expand on prior knowledge.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Stringing beads will continue to be a focus in the manipulative center. Fine-motor skills will continue to be addressed with the addition of new types of beads and stringing materials. Children will also be able to expand their knowledge of various types of patterns one to one correspondence as well as continue to develop hand to eye coordination. Geoboards will also be available allowing children to create shapes and demonstrate shape recognition.
~ This last week Legos were very successful in facilitating new interactions between children. We saw trains and large complexes being built as well as new friendships. There will be more boards for building added to the cave by mounting them on the wall. This will allow the children to view the Legos as a material that can be used for building structures, but also making pictures, and symbolic items to be used in other areas of the class. Legos will continue to allow children an opportunity to practice fine motor movements, support creativity, cooperative play as well as, create symbolic and representational objects.

Language and Literacy Center
~ As the focus on the mail center decreases we will phase in new forms of language and literacy. There has been an increase in sign making though out the classroom. We have seen caution signs for construction sites and animal hospital signs for the hospital lobby. With this focus we will encourage the children to create their own signs. We will have example of some common signs the children know and see often as well as some not so common. The children will be able to create their own signs from the example given. This will allow for the demonstration of letter recognition and emerging reading skills. Social interaction will be a large focus of the literacy center as children collectively create props for their play.

Block Center
~ As always, the block area is very busy. Creative structures continue to spring up in the back of the class. Cars, trucks, boats, and building continue to be the main focus. To create new roles in building and cooperative opportunities we will add pulleys and ropes to the block center. The addition of buckets for block transportation will reintroduce the building play theme while allowing for unique problem solving opportunities and scientific knowledge of simple machines.

Dramatic Play Center
~ The animal hospital continues to be extremely popular. We have seen animals being delivered by buses to the hospital, animals receiving "many" bandages and even waiting lines to see the vet. We will add various props to encourage children to think about what is inside our bodies and how do they work. The addition of new props such as transparencies displaying X-rays with broken bones and internal organs will also help to facilitate further play. The area will continue to support social relationships, cooperation and body awareness.

Large Motor
~ The gym will continue to have swings from the monkey bars, A-frames turned upside-down, a mat mountain with a triangular mat slide, and a throwing target. These will allow the children opportunities to engage in activities that foster balance, climbing, landing, depth perception, throwing, and hand/eye coordination. The teachers will also be facilitating various games to encourage teamwork: such as, Ball Balance, Choo-Choo Train, Big Snake and Big Turtle. Ask your child to tell you about the games they played in the gym!
~ We continue to have a large pile of leaves available for jumping and a rope swing in one of our playground's trees. Last week we brought out hollow blocks for the children who have been very interested in digging and construction. The hollow blocks will continue to be available for use on the playground. Child sized rakes will be available for raking up leaf piles in addition to the bikes, wagons, shovels, and buckets allowing for open-ended play. We will also have the soccer balls out this week inviting children to run and kick. The compost bin continues to be a point of interest for the children. We will be bringing out leftovers from snack daily to add to the bin and continue to observe what is happening in the bin. With the planting of our seeds in the class some of the children have become interested in planting seeds on the playground as well. We will continue to encourage them to dig and bury seeds to see what happens to seeds when they are in nature.

Snack
Monday: Birthday Snack (Nigel)
Tuesday: Apples and Sunflower Butter
Wednesday: Birthday Snack (Peyton)
Thursday: Cheddar bunnies
Friday: Applesauce made with Rachel and pretzels
*All snacks served with milk and water, unless otherwise noted*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Nov 2 - Nov 6, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Team

Overview and goals
The children have been very active this week! Many have found favorite areas in the classroom to visit as well as favorite play themes to participate in over the course of the last six weeks. This repetition of activities and stories supports the children's utilization with materials over time, however we also want to help the children see that there is more to school than the block area or the art table. In order to encourage continual growth in all developmental domains, we will incorporate new and exciting activities to help children explore "new" areas of the classroom: such as papermaking, Legos, as well as new musical instruments (i.e. a keyboard and sandpaper blocks). We will also continue to observe our seeds and their growth in the science area, as the seeds have begun to sprout! With these new activities, we hope that the children will gain new interests while expanding on old ones. The new materials and areas will also encourage cooperative play and new social relationships.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ Expanding on the theme of book making, this week children will have the opportunity to make their own paper through a teacher facilitated activity. The art table will continue to have collage materials as well other open-ended materials including markers, crayons, colored pencils, and colored paper. These supplies will foster creative development, artistic expression, fine-motor strength/coordination, as well as encourage social interaction.
~A few children have explored natural print making materials at the easel last week. To continue to support this exploration of print making and creative development, the large easel will be available with other miscellaneous items including foam rollers, feather dusters, and variously-shaped blocks that will allow for different prints/applications of paints.
~Music has been a theme through many children's play the past week. Musical instruments have promoted social relationships and creative expression. Musical instruments - including hand drums, xylophones, maracas, and jingle bells - will continue to be available in one of the caves for the children to use. Through exploration of the materials and large groups children will continue to develop a beginning knowledge of music elements: such as beat, rhythm, tone, and meter.

Sensory Materials
~ As we phase out the animals at the water table, new materials including pumps, paddle-wheels and tubing will shift our focus to exploring the topic of water movement. Materials will promote the development of inquiry, problem solving, and creativity as well as social interaction. As children become familiar with the properties of water, we will add soap for children to investigate how this changes water properties.
~ At the clay table, awareness has been built as many children have begun to explore the properties of the clay through the use of different tools. The clay has been a great way for children to practice fine motor strength and coordination. This week, through teacher modeling and large groups, we will begin to promote the development of molding and shaping the clay into representational objects. We expect to see creative models emerge as children begin to mold their ideas into clay.

Science Center
~The past week, children have observed different seeds at the science table. As seeds continue to sprout children will have the opportunity to begin to observe and track their growth through the use of classroom digital cameras. Different seeds will be available for children to compare and make predictions about their growth, supporting the development of scientific inquiry and observation.

Math and Manipulative Center
~This week stringing beads and shoelaces will be added to the manipulative center. This will help fine-motor skills. It will also support one-to-one correspondence, patterns, and hand to eye coordination.
~In one of the caves there will be legos added in order to offer something new in the classroom. The legos will encourage more social relationships and interactions. It will also support creativity and cooperative play when they build structures together. . They will also have a chance to practice fine-motor skills.

Language and Literacy Center
~We continue to have daily visitors at the literacy center, writing of letters to other students as well as family members, and using the mailbox in the classroom to "send" them. The mail center will continue to be available this week and the supplies will be replenished. This will continue to support social interaction and relationships. It will also support early literacy skills. We encourage you to talk to your children about mail and mailing letters back to school and maybe even to classmates.

Block Center
~There continues to be a lot of creative building happening in the block center. We have seen, police helicopters and boats this week. In order to keep the block center new and exciting we will introduce large pieces of fabric and cones with large sticks to support the fabric. Large clips will also be available for attaching fabric to blocks. It is our hope that the introduction of new materials for building will reintroduce children who have taken a break from the block center back into the dramatic play themes and building.

Dramatic Play Center
~There has been a lot of activity in our animal hospital this last week. We have seen animals being nursed back to health, operations, and even animals "hatching." The animal hospital has been so popular that we are going to expand it to allow more children to play in the area at a time. We will also introduce more props and new animals to extend the play. The area will continue to support the forming of social relationships, turn taking as well as cooperation.

Large Motor
~ In the gym this week there will be swings from the monkey bars, A-frames turned upside-down, stacked mats, and a throwing target. This set up will allow the children to practice balance, climbing, landing on a flat surface with two feet and absorbing their landing, depth perception, throwing, targeting, and hand/eye coordination with using the balls.
~ Mid week last week we introduced a large pile of leaves available for jumping and a rope swing. The two have been a hit and will continue to be available on the playground. Child sized rakes will be available for raking up leaf pile allowing the children to make their own pile for jumping. As always the bikes, wagons, shovels, and buckets will be available to play with. Of course at this time of year we must go day by day with the weather. If the snow comes we will need to alter our play ground plans but, the presence of snow will allow us to have just as much fun!

Special Interest
~Picture will be talking place on Tuesday this week! Don't forget to send in your order form WITH payment if you are interested in purchasing pictures this year. Individual portraits will be taken as well as a class photo. It will be a bit of a busier day, but a conversation at home about how the day will be different can help make the change in routine go smoothly.
~NO SCHOOL on Friday. Remember to stay home and have fun!

Snack
Monday: Sunflower Butter Sandwiches
Tuesday: Open Snack-Letter Cheeze-Its
Wednesday: Open Snack- Graham Crackers
Thursday: Open Snack- Letter Cookies
Friday: No School

*All snacks served with milk and water, unless otherwise noted*

Weekly Lesson Plan for Ross' Class
Week of 10/26 - 10/30/09
Lead Teaching: Rachel

Overview and goals
There has been a lot of activity in the classroom this week. The water table, post office, and block area have been very popular. Also, small groups started this week; these will encourage more social relationships and interactions between the children. In the fall, we feel it is vital that the children establish a sense of comfort with the environment, however more importantly with each other. Small groups create opportunities for children to make new (as well as support existing) friendships. There are three small groups: "focusing on" animals, science, and creativity/movement. Tree-related materials will also be a part of the classroom this week to continue the all-school focus of trees. There will be leaves and natural elements available in the easel, replacing the brushes, as well as at the art area to make collages using real materials from nature.

Art Center
Sensory materials
~ "The excitement of model/creating with the playdough has passed and the children are ready for something new!" The play-dough will be replaced with clay, however the trees, animals, pinecones, and plastic animals will still be available to use. These materials support focus on the tree curriculum and will reinforce conversations about habitats and differences between the materials. Also, the clay is more malleable and can be used to create different figures, challenging the children to explore new ways to use this moldable material.
~ The introduction of the water table has been a huge hit! There has been a lot of cooperative play and discussions between the children with the animals and other materials in the water table. The water table and materials will continue to be available in order to support social relationships and cooperative play.
Expressive materials
~ There will be leaves, flowers, and twigs available at the easel, allowing the children to explore the different kinds of prints these materials make. There will also be new paint colors added: orange, red, and yellow for more fall colors. These materials will continue to allow the children to practice large-motor and fine-motor skills when handling the materials. The materials also support artistic and creative expression.
~The art table will continue to have materials for collages and books available. There has been a lot of interest in book making lately, so the teachers will sit down with the children and help them dictate their stories; writing their words and encouraging them to add the illustrations.
~One of the caves will be made into a music cave. Musical instruments - such as hand drums, xylophones, maracas, and jingle bells - will be available for the children to use. This supports social relationships and creative expression. The materials will also provide the children with a beginning knowledge of music elements: such as beat, rhythm, tone, and meter.

Science Center
~There has been a lot of observations and examining of the pumpkins and squash this week. At the end of last week, we actually cut open the pumpkins and squash! The children were very interested in the insides of these and were asking many question to find out more. Due to this there will be seeds available for the children to look at and make observations on, leading to eventually planting the seeds to see what happens. The children can make observations each day about the seeds and sprouts as they begin to grow.

Math and manipulative center
~This week stackers will be added to the manipulative center. These will help with hand-eye coordination, patterns, and 1-to-1 correspondence. There are also new puzzles added that will promote visual discrimination and shape recognition.
~ The peg people and wooden houses have been very popular. The children have been taking the peg people to school together and having dinner together in the kitchen area. These will still be available in order to support social relationships. Some of these materials will be moved to the small block area in order to encourage more open-ended building with the small blocks.

Language and Literacy center
~Mail has been very popular this week, especially with some children being the classroom mail carriers. Envelopes, stamps, paper, and other mail supplies will be available in order to support pre-literacy skills and social interaction between the children. The children also took a field trip to the mailbox at the end of the driveway last week and sent postcards with pictures of them in the classroom home. This week we might be sending letters to each other's home, possibly creating pen pals amongst members of the class. The mailbox will also be in the room along with the mail book in order to support more social interaction between the children.
~The reading couch has been very popular. In order to support pre-literacy skills new books will be put out focusing on nature and fall themes, along with some favorites of the class. We invite you as parents to come in and read with children if you are able to - come talk to one of the teachers if you are interested.

Block Center
~The block area is always popular with cars, airplanes, and fences being created. We will take out the plastic animals and trees this week and replace them with some of the materials from the peg people cave. We hope this will encourage the children to build with the small blocks and support their symbolic representation skills. It will also support social relationships between the children.

Dramatic Center
~There has been a lot of doctor and animal hospital play this past week. The children are pretending to be hurt and needing to go to the doctor and bringing their animals to the doctor. The dramatic center will be turned into an animal hospital this week. There will be an examining table, x-rays, and hospital props available for use. These materials support continuing social relationships and interactions between the children.

Large motor
~ In the gym this week there will be swings from the monkey bars, A-frames turned upside-down, stacked mats, and a throwing target. This set up will allow the children to practice balance, climbing, landing on a flat surface with two feet and absorbing their landing, depth perception, throwing, targeting, and hand/eye coordination with using the balls.
~ Last week pinecone birdfeeders were made and hung in the trees on the playground. It has been fun checking them each day for changes. Also, with the change in weather many leaves have fallen off the tress and covered our playground. Child sized rakes will be available for leaf pile raking, which seemingly always ends up with jumping in the leaf piles! Also, bikes, wagons, shovels, and buckets will continue to be available...as long as the snow stays off the ground.

Special Interests/Announcements
~ We will have our first fire-drill on Tuesday. These drills are performed once a month and are low-key (no big noises or flashing lights). We will walk down the sidewalk to a large tree and then head back inside. It will happen at the end of large group, and we just want to let you know because it will be a change from our usual transition out of large group into free play. Talk about it ahead of time helps take away any anxiety as well as prepares the children for the change in schedule.
~ True, Halloween is just around the corner, however please remember to keep the costumes and candy at home. It ends up becoming more of a distraction in the classroom. Thanks!
~ The Spring Soiree committee will be meeting on Nov 2 at 7p. This is a group of parents that work specifically with planning the Lab School's spring scholarship fundraiser. If you are interested in being a part of the group or simply learning more, please attend the meeting!

Snack
Monday: Applesauce & Graham Cracker
Tuesday: Open Snack-Rice Cakes
Wednesday: Open Snack-Pretzels
Thursday: Open Snack- Popcorn
Friday: Carrots and dip
*All snacks served with milk/water unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Oct 19 - Oct 24, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Elizabeth

Overview and goals
With the introduction to our all-school curriculum focus on trees and the arrival of our class pet rats, this past week has been an exciting one for the children! Children met for the first time in their small groups, which will continue until the end of the fall session. Friendships are continuing to bloom and cooperative play has increased. Autumn is upon us and children have been exploring nature related items throughout the classroom. The topic of nature extends beyond our classroom to the whole school community. This week we will continue to build upon the nature and habitat theme that has developed. The materials that will be added this week also continue to foster relationships. Also, the activities planned for this week will focus on supporting the children's connection to the classroom and whole-school community.

Art Center
Sensory
~ Within the past week, many children have explored the properties of water in the sand. As our play at the sand table comes to an end, the water table will be introduced. The focus will be on exploring the properties of water and promoting social interaction. Large rocks, aquarium rocks, plants, and small animals will be available for children to create a water habitat, extending our exploration of where animals live.
~ At the play dough table, much discussion has taken place of where specific animals live. Nature related materials including pinecones, sticks, glass gems, and plastic trees will continue to be available with an assortment of animals to support our nature and tree curriculum. These materials will also support creativity and social interaction as children collaborate together in discussing specific animal habitats.
Expressive
~ The art table will continue to have natural collage materials as well other open-ended materials including markers, crayons, colored pencils, and colored paper. We feel the children are ready for some new materials to explore. Small boxes will be available for children to create 3-D collages. These supplies will foster creative development, artistic expression, fine-motor strength/coordination, as well as encourage social interaction.
~ The large floor easel continues to be a popular for children to express their creativity. Large brushes will continue to be available to promote large-motor skills. Other miscellaneous items including leaves, flowers, and wood sticks will be available for open ended print making supporting our nature and tree focus.

Science
~ Many of the children have eagerly explored the nature related items at the science table. Last week the children found leaves on the playground as big as their heads! As fall continues to progress, pumpkins and squash will begin to be examined at the science area. Towards the beginning of the week, the pumpkins and squash will be available for children to discuss and compare. As children hypothesize what is in the pumpkin the class will eventually dissect the pumpkins, allowing children to explore the insides with magnifying glasses and tweezers.

Math and Manipulatives
~ This week, the nature theme will extend to the math center with leaf sorting. Different colors and kinds of laminated leaves will be available for children to describe and sort. A new set of small cube manipulatives will be available along with the stacking pegs to promote 1-to-1 correspondence, counting, patterns, and measurement, as well as increasing symbolic representation while working on fine motor skills. Puzzles will continue to promote visual discrimination, shape recognition, and part-to-whole relationships.

Language and Literacy Center
~Throughout the past week, many children have been involved in writing letters and delivering them within our classroom. To encourage pre-literacy skills and social interaction, a mail book with all the children's pictures and names will be available at the literacy center. In addition to the large mailbox that was added last week, individual envelops with children's names will be available for children to mail. Additional post office supplies and alphabet stamps will be available to support children's letter making and literature skill development.
~New books will be available at the reading coach for children to enjoy looking at with themselves or a teacher. Many of the books will surround trees, pumpkins, animals and habitats as well as some classroom favorites.

Block Center
~In the block center, children have continued to come up with complex vehicles, machines and buildings the past week. To extend block play cardboard box pieces will be available for children this next week. We anticipate seeing more complex structures including possible houses or buildings, as well as story lines develop as children creatively incorporate these new materials. The blocks will continue to foster creativity, cooperative play, large motor coordination, and social interaction.

Dramatic Play Center
~ In conjunction with the literacy center, the post office dramatic play props have been very popular. These props will continue to be available as play expands. Seeing that the weather has been particularly rainy the past few weeks, rain boats and ponchos will be available in the dramatic play center to encourage further socio-dramatic play and creativity. These materials will expand on play and connect it to the current "weather trends."
~ In the caves, the wooden houses and peg people (with the children's faces taped to them) have fostered much social interaction and symbolic representation. Teachers have told stories during large group about the class peg people going on nature walks and post office adventures, which inspired children to create their own story-lines with the peg people. Some of the children have found their peg person and taken it to the block area to incorporate in play. It has been exciting to watch new friendship be formed/supported through the play with the peg people.
~In the woodland animal habitat cave, materials such as berry bushes, rocks, and trees will be added to continue to build upon animal and habitat related play themes we have observed. Discussion about where animals live and what they need to survive have lead to a habitat matching game that will be available outside of the caves on the wall.

Large Motor
~ In the gym monkey bars, slide, horizontal ladder, and A-frame will continue to be available promoting the skills of running, jumping, balancing, upper and lower body strength, eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, as well as cardiovascular strength. This past week, the parachute was been a popular teacher-lead activity. We will be planning more parachute activities based on the excitement shown last week! The teachers will also continue to lead action games including Simon Says and creative movement to support motor development.
~Snow fall this past week brought lots of excitement and exploration to outdoor play. Bikes, shovels, wagons, and rope swings continue to be popular on the outdoor playground. In addition, seeing that many children were excited about exploring nature this past week, children will have the chance to join Amy's class in making sun-nut butter squirrel feeders from pinecones to add to the playground and support whole school community building.

Special Interest
~ Conferences start this week! Please remember to complete the conference questionnaire and bring it with you to the meeting. Also, stop in and double check the date and time of you conference on Ross' hard copy posted on the door. If you date/time don't match up or you need to reschedule, let Ross know right away. Also, don't forget to arrange childcare
~ Parent Discussion groups will be meeting this week (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday). Please so the school website for more information.

Snack
Monday: Homemade sweet/russet potato fries with ketchup (made by Amy's class)
Tuesday: Open-snack: Graham crackers
Wednesday: Open-snack: Cheddar Bunnies
Thursday: Open-snack: Alphabet Cheez-Its
Friday: Carrots, pretzels, and dip

*All snacks served with milk and water unless otherwise specified*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Oct 12 - Oct 16, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Stacy

Overview and goals
As we continue to focus on building relationships and community within the classroom, we will extend our focus to the school-wide sense of community by taking a closer look at our all-school curriculum focus on tress. We have been building the awareness of the trees at school by going on a tree hunt last week as well as talking about trees at large groups last week. This week we will bring the focus home, as we have the children explore trees n the their neighborhoods and share some of their "findings" with the class (e.g. leaves, twigs, acorn shells, etc.). We are also welcoming our while rats into the classroom on this week. The addition of the rats will create a transition in the science area as we shift our focus to habitats and the transitions of the seasons (i.e. lifecycles/changes of plants and weather). We will observe the children and see what sparks their interest. Many of the areas in the classroom will highlight the themes of growth, habitat, and lifecycles with the addition of natural elements: meant to foster interest in future natural exploration

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ Various brush sizes will be available again this week to continue the bush stroke exploration that began last week. Large and fine motor skills will continue to be addressed through various brush strokes (i.e. full-body strokes stretching the length of the paper and the precise, detailed strokes adding the smallest of details). We will also incorporate sticks and possibly bark to paint with - possibly leading to creating reliefs by removing the paint with the use of the natural objects. Artistic and creative expression will continue to be supported as the children explore the new materials.
~ The art table will continue to have collage materials available to foster creative expression. Natural elements found on our playground and from home will be available in creating collage. The use of natural elements in art will allow the children to investigate other uses for objects found in the world around us as well as support the school-wide tree curriculum.
Sensory Materials
~ The playdough table continues to be a staple in many of the children's daily play. Last week the interest in baking slowly came to a close. The baking tools will be replaced wit sticks, rocks, acorns, and small plastic animals: allowing the children to explore the many uses of these open-ended materials. The materials also support out focus on the tree curriculum as well as our focus on animals, habitats, and lifecycles that come with the changing seasons.
~ Last week the sand table has seen much activity as the children found new uses for the shovels and rakes. This week we will add bowls of water and pipettes to the sand. This will allow the children to create various textures and consistencies: exploring the various properties of sand. The fancy rocks and seashells will continue to be present to encourage further building and social interactions. Small trees and animals will be added to support the focus on habitats. The sand table has supported many of the growing relationships between the children and continues to do so.

Science Center
~ With the changing of seasons at hand, a unique opportunity presents itself to learn about life cycle of trees. The children are encouraged to bring fall items that they find at home into class so that we can all "take a closer look." We will have magnifying glasses available for the children to see what nature looks like up close.
~ With the new addition of our white rats, we will ask the children what animals need to live: building their knowledge about how to care for pets as well as reinforce conversations about habitats.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Within the first few weeks many children have been interested in sorting the colored animals with the large pinchers, and have mastered the activity of sorting by color. This play will allow the children to sort the animals by where they live. This center will allow extensions into the caves where the theme will be habitats and homes. Fine motor and strength will continue to be addressed through the use of tongs in this activity. New animal puzzles will also be available to promote visual discrimination, shape recognition, part-to-whole relationships as well as serve to address our overall theme.

Language and Literacy Center
~ Letters continue to be written at the writing table nearly every day. Pencils, markers, tape, scissors, and hole punches will continue to be available to help promote pre-literacy skill development. This week, we will add a mailbox for the children to send letters to each other. The mailbox will encourage children to incorporate play themes into various areas of the classroom. This will also help encourage social interaction and growing relationships between the children.
~ The reading couch has become a great place for the children take a break during free play. Reading books with a teacher, looking at books by themselves or even with classmates has become an enjoyable past time for many children. We will be introducing books surrounding trees, lifecycles, animals and habitats into the collection of time-honored favorites. Please feel free to come and share a book or two in the morning with your child.

Block Center
~ The block area continues to be a source of much excitement and activity. Friendships are being built with blocks at the center of the play. With the start of our tree theme we expect to see new play themes emerging in the block center. Animals will be added to the small blocks allowing the children to create homes for the animals and apply their new knowledge on habitats.

Dramatic Play Center
~ Dress-up continues to contribute to the play themes for many of the children. Fabric pieces continue to be used as skirts, capes, and picnic tables. To encourage the connection of the centers the post office theme that has emerged from the literacy center will be connected to the dramatic play center through the addition of a mailbox. To facilitate further socio-dramatic play the children will also have the opportunity to deliver mail to their cubbies or anywhere in the classroom while in costume.
~ In order to keep the Fischer Price People cave new and exciting, we will remove the plastic homes and replace them with wooden homes. We will also have the addition of classroom member peg people. This will be new and exciting for the children to play with their very own peg person. The babies and animals will be condensed into one cave and replaced with a woodland animals habitat. This area is intended to create awareness that both people and animals have homes.

Large Motor
~ The gym will continue to have the slide, monkey bars, wall climber, jumping station, and A-frame climber available; promoting the skills of running, jumping, balancing, upper and lower body strength, eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, as well as cardiovascular strength. This week, the teachers will also continue to facilitate activities in the gym. Last week's teacher facilitated games was predominately Hoop Jumping and PaperBlast!. This week we will begin to do a few more open-ended creative movement activities to prepare the children for with the dance teachers that will be making appearances in the class for the next few weeks. We will continue going to the playground at the end of our day where the children will continue to have sand tools, tricycles as well as the other staples available. The playground will also provide an opportunity to look at the trees present on our playground as well as the animals and insects that call our trees home.

Special Interest
~ The snow has flown and temperatures will seemingly continue to be low. PLEASE, make sure your child brings a hat and mittens/gloves in addition to their jackets. We want to keep your children healthy and warm while they are outside!
~ The children are encouraged to bring in materials and items from nature this week either for the science area or for the art and sensory table. If there are any items that the children want to use themselves in an art project or are more special we would like for you to encourage them to keep it in their cubby. A teacher can look at it with your child and a small group. If you have any contributions that you would think would be of interest, please let us know. Thank you!
~ Small groups will be starting soon! We will keep you informed as to what group your child is in and who else is in the group with them. We hope to have our first meeting this Thursday, and be in full swing next week.
~ The Parent Discussion Groups, lead by Ann Carlson, will be starting next week (Oct. 20-23). The first topic will take a closer look at the social skills and social development of young children. Please look at the Parent Discussion Group tab for more information.
~ Lastly, some very exciting news - we will have a new student joining our class on Monday! Please welcome Alexis and her parents, Kathy and David, to the classroom. We are very excited to have a new family join our growing community!

Snack
Monday: Birthday Snack
Tuesday: Sunflower Butter Sandwiches
Wednesday: Apples & Trader Joe's Animal Crackers
Thursday: Graham Crackers made by Class & Applesauce for dipping
Friday: Cheese & Crackers

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Oct 5 - Oct 9, 2009
Lead Teaching This Week: Ross

Overview and goals
It has been a fantastic first two weeks of school! The children have quickly acclimated to the classroom routines, and have become comfortable with all the new faces. Observing some of the cooperative play that has been happening in the back of the classroom, as well as at the sand table, it is hard to believe this class has only been together for two weeks. Social interactions and fostering a sense of community and safety will continue to be our primary goals as we continue through the fall session. The teachers have arranged new set-ups in the science center as well as in the block area to help facilitated more opportunities for social interactions as well as support the budding friendships.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ The floor easel is an extremely popular spot and will continue to be available with large brushes and primary colored paints. This week empty cups for mixing paint will be added as well as smaller brushes to help continue the excitement at the easel. Using the empty cups, the children will be able to continue exploring color mixing, making their own mixtures to create new colors. Large and fine motor skills will be addressed as the children begin to try out various brush stroke sizes. Artistic and creative expression will also be supported as they craft new masterpieces.
~ The art table will continue to have collage materials available fostering creative expression. As the children have familiarized themselves with the many materials in the art center, they have started making treasure maps and books which have been used in the other areas of the class - especially dramatic play.

Sensory Materials
~ The play dough table has become a staple in many of the children's daily play. In the last week play has moved past simple molding, rolling, squeezing, and mashing into the creating a various foods and snacks. In order to facilitate further exploration last week, glass gems and various cooking utensils were introduced and proved quite successful. Social interactions have become increasingly complex as the children negotiate the use of materials and the overall course of their play. This week more cooking utensils, trays and possibly a pretend oven will be added to extend the baking theme that has emerged.
~ We have seen a lot of activity at the sand table this week. Roads, castles, and cities have been created with many discussions taking place between the children. There will be fancy rocks and seashells added to encourage further building and social interactions. The sand table has supported many of the growing relationships between the children.

Science Center
~ As we continue to explore the topic of color, we will be switching from the color-gels and velum to various test tubes, pipettes, and primary colored water. The children will be able to mix colored water to help instill the properties of color mixing while observing the variability that comes with using different amounts. For example, lots of blue water and very little yellow water will make more of a turquoise or teal rather than simply making "standard" green. These mixing experiments will support the growing understanding of color mixing while promoting opportunities for hypothesis creating and testing.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Within the first few weeks many children have been interested in sorting the colored animals with the large pinchers, and have mastered the activity of sorting by color. To expand this play, children will be able to sort the animals through different attributes including type of animal and where they live. This activity will continue to encourage fine-motor strength/coordination, and opportunities for cooperative play/social interactions. New puzzles will also be available to promote visual discrimination, shape recognition, and part-to-whole relationships. Link-togethers have been used creatively to make shapes and will continue to be on hand as children explore more ways to use these materials.
~ Another area that has seen a number of visitors has been the cave with the Fischer Price houses and school in it. This week will add some larger wooden houses to allow for more space to "live." Another exciting addition will be small "peg-people" made from wooden dowels with the children's pictures on them! Not only does this allow the children to be themselves in the place, it creates comfortable opportunities for the children to play with one another: supporting our focus on social interactions and community building.

Language and Literacy Center
~ Many letters have been written at the writing table this week. Pencils, markers, tape, scissors, and hole punches will continue to be available to help pre-literacy skills. In the coming weeks, we may add a mailbox so children can mail letters to each other. This will also help encourage social interaction and growing relationships between the children.
~ The reading couch continues to see many visitors throughout the day, as well. Many of the children enjoy sitting down and reading with a teacher. Reading books with the children during arrival time as well as during free play is a great and simple way to be involved in the classroom. If you would like to "play hooky" from work for the morning and read some books with the children on the couch, please let one of the teachers know and we can arrange a time for you to come in!

Block Center
~ The block area has created many opportunities for conversations and social interactions. We have seen the creation of a children's museum, boats, taxis, a bus, a clubhouse, helicopters, and a cruise ship. In order to extend these current play themes materials such as paper, markers and scissors will be added to the area. Small wooden airplanes will be added with the small wooden cars to encourage the building of small block structures in addition to large structures as well as continuing to support the growing social community.

Dramatic Play Center
~ Dress-up has been a hit in the dramatic play area for many of the children. Fabric pieces have been used as skirts, capes, and picnic tables. To encourage continued socio-dramatic play and sustained interest, a few new props will be added to the area as new themes within children's play evolve. Pretend cameras will be available to encourage social interaction as well as weave into and expand the theme of 'trips and transportation' currently in the block area.
~ The stuffed animals have been a very popular addition to many dramatic play themes, so this week will be add food dishes, pet food containers, and pet carriers to help extend the play we have observed over the past two weeks. If you have any empty pet food containers (e.g. boxes, treat bags, etc.), we will gladly add them to the play. Also, the babies will continue to be available, as they, too, have made their way into several dramatic play storey-lines.

Large Motor
~ The gym will continue to have the slide, monkey bars, wall climber, jumping station, and A-frame climber available; promoting the skills of running, jumping, balancing, upper and lower body strength, eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, as well as cardiovascular strength. This week, the teachers will be introduced a few teacher-facilitated activities in the gym. Games such as Simon Says, Hid-and-Seek, and Animal Action will take place as on opening activity a few days this week, fostering the children's opportunities to follow directions through more open-ended, creative-movement activities. We will continue to venture to the playground, even on those soggy days of autumn. Many children have enjoyed digging in the sand, riding tricycles, as well as playing the boat that has been buried in the sandbox.

Special Interest
~ Please try to make it to the PAC meeting on Tuesday night (10/6 at 7-8.30p). One of the major reasons the Lab School continues to be such an exemplary learning environment for young children is because of the parent involvement. It is your voice and ideas that help keep the staff moving forward to best serve the needs of the children and the families at the Lab School.
~ As the weather quickly transitions from a lovely warm autumn, to something far more brisk, windy, cool, and wet, PLEASE send a hat and mittens/gloves with your child. Some days it warms up enough by the time we venture outside, but on the days when it's still cool, it is very helpful for the children to have their own supplies.
~ We will have some visitors coming to class this week. On Tuesday, one of the researchers will be coming to meet the children and build rapport, as her lab gets ready to conduct a study. Information about the study will be sent out and if you have any questions, please let Ross know. On Wednesday, an instructor from the dance department will come and do some fun movement activities with the children during large group. Eventually, her students will come to visit the class and try out some other fun movement/dance activities with us, as well! We'll keep you posted about their next visit.
~ Don't forget to email your request or stop down and sign up for conferences. Times are filling up fast!

Snack
Monday: Banana & Trader Joes Crackers
Tuesday: Apples in Sunflower Butter
Wednesday: Cantaloupe & Rice Cakes
Thursday: Popcorn
Friday: Carrots, Pretzels, & Dip

*All snacks served with milk and water, unless otherwise noted*

Weekly Lesson Plan
Weeks of Sept 22 - Oct 2, 2008
Lead Teaching This Week: Ross

Overview and goals
School is finally upon us, and I want to officially welcome everyone to the Lab School! These first few weeks are a time for your children to become comfortable with the environment and begin establishing relationships with their teachers and peers. The beginning of the year can be overwhelming for some, and I hope to make the transition of coming to school as easy for you child as possible. The materials and activities in the classroom reflect a focus on social interaction, as a majority of the children in the class will be unfamiliar with one another. One of our major goals in the fall is to establish that sense of community right away. I am eager to see what will happen with this new group of children, and anticipate many quick friendships.

Art Center
Expressive Materials
~ The large floor easel will be available with large brushes, red, yellow, and blue paint; promoting large-motor skills with long brush strokes and opportunities for primary color mixing/color recognition.
~ Collage materials will be available at the art table, allowing for artistic/creative expression with familiar materials (scissors, glue, colored paper, stickers, crayons, markers, tape) as well as support opportunities for social interactions during the collage making process.
Sensory Materials
~ The sand table will be open and ready for digging with shovels, rakes, buckets, and molds. With the perfectly moist sand, the children will be able to dig and build a variety of sand sculptures while interacting with one another and exploring the properties of sand.
~ Playdough will be at the sensory table, promoting fine-motor development with cutting, mashing, pinching, squeezing, and rolling the dough. It also supports social interaction through common interest, as children observe one another's actions and talk about what they are doing with the dough.

Science Center
~ Color will be the focus in the science area. Assorted translucent color-gels and pieces of velum will be available at the light table, allowing the children to explore new concepts or recall existing knowledge about color and color mixing. We will exchange with new color props and games during the two weeks, allowing for new opportunities to explore color.

Math and Manipulative Center
~ Puzzles: promoting visual discrimination, shape recognition, and part-to-whole relationships
~ Graduated pegboard: promoting concepts of seriation (ordering by length) and sorting by color
~ Color sorting game (with large tongs): promoting color recognition, fine-motor strength/coordination, and opportunities for cooperative play/social interactions
~ Link-Togethers: promoting color/shape recognition, matching, creativity, social interactions, opportunities for symbolic representation

Language and Literacy Center
~ The writing table will have pencils, markers, tape, scissors, and hole punches for exposure to pre-literacy skill development.
~ The bookshelf will be filled with books that are favorites of many children and will be available to look at any time of the day. Some titles include My Friend Rabbit, The Little Mouse, Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear, and Just Me and My Dad (Little Critter Series).

Block Center
~ Large hollow blocks will be in the back of the room, supporting large-motor development as well as social interaction/dramatic play themes through building. Blocks are an integral part of an early childhood classroom, as they allow countless opportunities for children to create and interact with one another while supporting development in all the domains (e.g. social, emotional, cognitive, creative, physical).
~ Small unit blocks will available, allowing the children to create smaller, more detailed buildings and constructions using familiar shapes while supporting social interaction and cooperative play.
~ Seeing that cars were a popular item during the home visits, small wooden cars and peg people will be available to accompany the unit blocks. We hope that the common interest will bring together new peers and help establish new friendships through symbolic and imaginative play.

Dramatic Play Center
~ House props (sink, stove, fridge, cabinets, etc.) and dress-up clothes will be available in the back of the room. Having familiar and enjoyable props foster socio-dramatic play between children, and allow them to create well-known play themes for themselves and with others.
~ Babies and stuffed animals will be available in the caves, offering an extension of the house dramatic play as well as opportunities for social interactions with familiar materials.
~ Fischer Price houses and school will be in the other cave, promoting symbolic representation and social interactions, as well as helping children with the transition of coming to school.

Large Motor
~ The gym will have a slide, monkey bars, wall climber, jumping station, and A-frame climber available; promoting the skills of running, jumping, balancing, upper and lower body strength, eye-hand and eye-foot coordination, as well as cardiovascular strength. While the weather is still agreeing with us, we will be spending as much time as we can on the playground! Thus, we will spend less time in the gym and more time outside while we still have the sunshine and warmer temperatures. The playground offers similar opportunities for large-motor strength and skill development through the use of the monkey bars, slides, swings, tricycles, wagons, pedal cars, shovels, and buckets.

Special Interest
~ The primary focus for the next two weeks will be getting to know the children, as well as supporting their interactions with one another. In addition, we will help the children become familiar with the routines of the classroom and establish a sense of trust that school is a safe and fun place to be.
~ Parent Info Night will be on Thursday, September 24 from 7-9p. This is a great opportunity to learn more about the philosophy of the program as well as meet other parents from your child's classroom. I hope you all can make it and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask! The event will be at the school and refreshments will be provided. Also, plan on arranging childcare as this is for parents only.

Snack
Monday: No School
Tuesday: Rice Cakes
Wednesday: Rice Cakes
Thursday: Graham Crackers
Friday: Cheddar Bunnies

*All snacks served with milk and water, unless otherwise noted*