Week Sixteen--All Aboard!

Theme: Christmas

Letter: J

J is for Jasmine

J is for Jaguar
J is for Jewel
J is for Jurassic, Jackrabbits, & Jupiter

Writing: Practiced J & j. We think J looks like a fish hook & little j is fishing underneath the water.

Snacks:

• White Chocolate dipped pretzels with sprinkles, apple slices, & fruit leather
• "Jack Frost" Snowman Donuts
• Sugar Cookies
• S'mores
• Jam & Bread
  

Polar Express Adventure: Jammie day at school is a favorite one for all! After everyone arrived at school and had decorated a treat bag, we presented a ticket and then boarded the train. We snuggled in our warm blankets & sat on our pillows. Some of our adventures include:

• Reading The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
• Wrapping Station to wrap your Christmas Presents
• We explored the music car where we played Silent Night on Bell Pipe Chimes
• Ice Fishing--Fished for prizes
• Jingle Bells--Each child received a bell and then we danced to Jingle Bells
• We paused to sing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• We ate in the dining car. Snacks were served along with a hot chocolate bar including marshmallows, candy canes, & whipped cream.

Books:

• There was no Snow on Christmas Eve by Pam Munoz Ryan
• Max's Christmas by Rosemary Wells
• Letter "J" related Nursery Rhymes (Jack Be Nimble, Jack & Jill,....)
  

Music & Movement:

• Jingle Bells
• Mary, Mary
• We Wish You a Merry Christmas
• Silent Night
• Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
  

Art: Jingle Bell Jewelry & Treat Bag Decorating

Birthday Girl Parade:

Week Fifteen-- Children of A King

Theme: Christmas
We've been working diligently on our Christmas surprises for our parents. Sh! Sadly, what I'd planned to do didn't work...so I improvised and I hope you'll all be gentle with me after you receive them :) We've enjoyed singing Christmas songs, reading Christmas stories, & sharing traditions. We discussed how Heavenly Father is a King, we are his children, so we are princes & princesses.
Letter: K
We met Kippy Kangaroo who brought us some new words including: king, kangaroo, kiss, karate, & kind. We learned that "K" and "C" make the same sound and sometimes they go together in a word, but K goes after C so that K won't kick him :) We had fun making "K" shapes with our bodies and the sign for "K".
Choosing Time: Kangaroo Game, Letter K Matching Game, Animals, Little People Village, balloons,....
Music & Movement:

• 10 Kangaroos hopping all around...
• Kangaroo Long Jumps
  
• Jingle Bells
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• Santa Claus is Coming to Town
• Shepherd's Carol
  
• We Wish You A Merry Christmas
• Oh, I'm the Happiest Christmas Tree
• Lots of Kicking--to the side, quick front kicks, kick your bum, & high kicks
• Karate punches

Art:

• Children of a King Crowns
• Christmas Surprises

(Photography by My Nathan)

Writing: We practiced writing the words, to, love, mom, dad, our names, & the letter "K". We also wrote "Kiss" on our Krispy Kisses.

Books:

• Kangaroo, Kangaroo, What is in Your Pouch?
• Kisses (A Goodnight Kiss) by Nanda Roep
  
• The First Christmas ABC Book by Laura Ring
  
• There was no Snow on Christmas Eve by Pam Munoz Ryan
  
• Christmas in the Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
  

Cooking: The AM class had fun making large Rice Krispy Kisses together. We enjoyed watching the marshmallows puff up in the microwave.

Science: We learned about Kangaroos.

Snack:

• Hershey Kisses, Apples, & Goldfish Crackers
  
• Kangaroo (Pita) Pocket Turkey & Cream Cheese Sandwiches, Kool-Aid, & Kiwi
• Christmas Tree Cakes
• Kettle Pops & Graham Crackers
• Rice Krispy Treats & Winnie the Pooh Crackers (including Kanga)
• Kettle Corn, Cheez-Its, & Rice Krispy Kisses
• Kit-Kats & Special K Chips
  

Show 'N Tell: We had some great fun this week with our Show & Tell. Some of our favorites include: Kick board, Kernels, Kitten, picture of sister, Kaitlyn, Kangaroo, Keys, a book with a Kookaburra in it, & the musical dancing Christmas friends :)

Some Cute Comments:

***Me: "What is a baby Kangaroo called?"

Child: "Jo-Jo's"

***"Miss Jodi, I'm off the naughty list!"

After School Fun....

Week Fourteen

I walked by and saw these cute shoes lined up and it just was too cute!

Theme: Winter
We focused our discussions on hibernation and migration.

Letter: H
Harry Hippo introduced us to Ned's Head filled with letter "H" things. Each child was able to reach into the head and pull one "H" thing out. We practiced letter H in sign language. The Letter H sound is fun to make. A new vocab word was "holiday." I asked if anyone knew what that meant and one little girl answered, "Yep, it is a day to celebrate." Wow! She nailed it and even gave a better answer than I would have :) Thank you Grace S.

Choosing Time: Can You Tell Me What Animal Sound You Hear?, Huge Blocks, Hairdo Salon, Hats....
Snacks:

• Pretzels & Christmas Tree Brownies
• Frozen Go-gurts & Vanilla Wafers
• "Healthy Snack" (Popcorn & Raisins)
• Heart shaped Ham & Cheese Sandwiches & Grapes
• Sweet Tooth Fairy Cupcakes & Peanut Butter Crackers
• Happy Face Fruit Snacks & Rice Krispy Treats
• Happy Face Fruit Snacks & Ritz Crackers
  

Music & Movement:

• Jingle Bells
• Hibernation & Migration
• Horsey, Horsey
• Make Letter H with a Partner
• Hippo Works with One Hammer...
• Hello, Everyone and How Are You?
• Hokey Pokey (focusing on H body parts)
• Hibernation Game (We danced to some fun Disney music. When the music stopped we froze. I called out an animal. If it was an animal that hibernates we laid down on the floor to "hibernate" until the music played again. If I called out an animal who doesn't hibernate we just kept on dancing. If I called out a bird we "migrated" around the room :)

Game: Hibernation

I chose a child to "hibernate" in the middle of our circle. I then silently chose one child to "wake" up the "hibernating" child. The child had 3 guesses to find the one who woke him up.

Art: Hibernating Bears & Hanging Hearts

She wasn't pleased with her artwork...but I am! She drew this bear by listening to my oral instructions without any help!!! Love this Bear!!!

Science: We read a book to learn some facts about Hippopotamus.

• Hippopotamus means "river horse."
• They are mean and will eat people.
• Their ears can turn in different directions
• They have babies under water
• They can weigh nearly 9000 lbs
• They can hold their breath for 5 minutes, but then need to come up for air.

Reading: Our word wall words: hand, hippo, heart, he, house, & horse.

Writing: We practiced "H" & "h"

Books:

• Hippo ZooBook
• Hippo Hugs
• Animals In Winter
• Santa Claus the the World's Number One Toy Expert by Marla Frazee