All Bundled Up

At the beginning of January, our preschool class ended our unit on jobs. The afternoon class pretended to be builders as they constructed their very own treasure boxes! They used popsicle sticks and glue to make the boxes, and paint and stickers to decorate them. 
While the afternoon class learned all about the jobs, the morning class had fun painting, playing, and learning new winter songs from our music teacher, Ms. Nora. In the pictures, the morning kids are learning  “I’m a little snowman”. It goes like this…I’m a little snowman short and fat. Here are my buttons. Here is my hat. When the sun comes out I cannot play. Slowly I just melt away. 

In mid-January, the class started their unit on community. The teachers worked hard to rearrange the classroom so the kids could learn more about community through functional play. Both classes spent lots of time building cities, railroads, and playing with the doll house. 

The first week, we focused on what a community is. We talked and read stories about different buildings, people, and transportation we see in our community. The teachers showed the kids a map of our community to learn more about what it looks like.  

In our second week, we talked about the kinds of people that make up our community. We read “Colors of Us” by Karen Katz. Our Northeast community is diverse and just one of the reasons why it’s so special! The book talks about our skin color. We talked about how there are many different ways to describe our skin instead of using terms like black and white. It also helps promote a positive outlook on how our children see themselves. We used colors like “mocha, amber, almond, sand, and cherry-bronze” to describe our skin, and then drew self-portraits. It was a perfect segue into learning about Dr. Martin Luther King, the powerful messages he brought us, and the uniqueness each of us bring to our class.

In our third week, we focused on map making. The kids took the time to make their own communities through map making. They presented their maps to the class and were so excited and proud when the teacher hung them up in the classroom. We also learned about measuring items. The kids built towers from blocks and measured the height using paper clips. 

Last week we were going to use a map to take a trip to the library. But with the extremely cold temperatures, we were unable to. Hopefully, when the weather gets a little warmer, the kids can take a trip to our local library and use their map skills to get there!

We also had a special visit from Snake Discovery! Our preschool classes enjoyed an exciting afternoon learning about local reptiles. The kids learned about their habitats, how snakes shed skin, and the food reptiles eat. They had the opportunity to feel snakeskins, watch salamanders eat worms, and touch several reptiles, including a painted turtle, a tiger salamander, a hogshead snake, and finally, a western fox snake.  To the teacher's surprise many students were eager to hold the 5-foot western fox snake named Carl. It was a fun hands-on experience for the kids and their families to learn about local wildlife! 
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During the month of January, the kids also had a fun surprise as we brought in new toys to add to our large motor room! In addition to our playhouse we added a climbing log, large building blocks, and stepping stones! 

Lastly, I wanted to express the gratitude I have for all the parents and kids that are a part of the preschool program. It has been absolutely amazing watching our kids grow and develop these last couple of years. You are all wonderful parents! I wish you all nothing but the best! Cheers to the next chapter; the kids will be greatly missed. They all have a bright future ahead of them!
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- Ms. Gwen ​