Category: Raspberry Classroom

Hello Raspberry Families!

Welcome back and I hope you all had a wonderful break!

Weather and seasons are one of the most important themes we teach in the preschool curriculum. Because my Raspberries are so curious I will encourage them to discover the world around them—especially seasons, weather, insects and nature. At this point , we’ve become comfortable with all the elements of our morning routine in the circle discussion (counting /taking attendance, talking about what day it is, discussing the weather and so on). Must say that I love the sense of amazement our kiddos have when they look out the window and check the weather—even on a rainy day!

Monthly Curriculum

Theme: Spring

Value: Patience

Color: Rainbow

Multicultural Visit: Europe

Animal: insects

Community Helper: teacher

Additional Theme: Weaher cycles

Letters/Sounds:  Vv, Qq

Numbers: 30-40

Outing: Kidspace

As in every preschool classroom, these plans may evolve to better suit the interests of the children. I will be updating parents with pictures, videos, and write ups of what the children are learning and doing during the day. These will be posted to our Bloomz app.

** Week One

————————————————————

This week I will be teaching our kids about Springtime , rainbows,  the letter “V” and pentagon/hexagon shapes.

Math

-This week students will learn how to sort by attributes. They will sort shapes and other collections by size, color, thickness, and shape.

-Will focus on numbers 30-40 using Montessori materials.

Reader’s  Workshop

This week we will use reading strategies (talk like the characters, re-read familiar books, sound out words) to read individually and with a partner.

Mindfulness

This week in mindfulness we can  explore ways to be mindful to our environment

Writer’s Workshop

Our storytellers  will  add new skills to their writing repertoire. They will learn about speech bubbles and how to add dialogue to make their stories come alive. Our students will also continue to work on adding details and drawings, stretching out words, and enhancing their work.

Phonics

This week students will learn  the letter V , the sound it makes, and how to write it correctly.

Home connection: Find some things around your house that begin with the above letter.

Teaching for Understanding

Spring theme: What season are we in now? How can we tell?

In what season is it easiest to play outdoors? In what season is it hardest?

How does the weather change in Spring? Does the amount of sunlight change?

Activities:

Art:Rainbow drawing/pipe cleaners

Flower collage/ painting

V is for Vase activity

Sensory: flower sensory bottle/ bin/playdough

Math: patterning with flowers

And much more

Week Two

This week we will focus on insects, it’s body parts and  importance in our environment. We will also  bring the weather cycle to life for our students with a variety of fine/gross motor skills (fingerplay/ songs)as  to help them commit the cycle to memory (Precipitation is when rain is falling from a cloud. Accumulation is when rain falls from a cloud and collects in a puddle. Evaporation is when water rises to the sky. Condensation is when water collects into clouds. Precipitation (rain) happens after condensation)

I know what you’re thinking—that’s a lot to explain, and it’s pretty scientific. But we don’t need to dwell on complex technical definitions to get the point across.

Phonics:

This week students will learn the letter  Q,the sound it makes and how to write it correctly. Home Connection: Find some things around your house that begin with letter Q.

Writers Workshop

Weekend activity

Story sequence activity

Math

We will continue to focus on numbers 30 to 40 using Montessori materials

Reader’s  Workshop

This week we will continue to use reading strategies (talk like the characters, re-read familiar books, sound out words) to read individually and with a partner.

Activities

Alphabet Roll a Ball activity

Examining bugs with a magnifying glass

Weather book illustrations activity

Insect sensory play

April sun/rainbow collage

Upcoming Events

PLAY Family Outing

Saturday, April 14th!

The entire school community is invited to meet up at Kidspace Children’s Museum in Pasadena at 10am. Please have your child wear their PLAY shirt so others know you are with our school group!

These monthly outings, ‘Field Trips’, are aligned with our themed curriculum and give your child the opportunity to share what they are learning in class with you. They also give families the opportunity to meet each other and make new friends! You might even see a teacher there with their family!

Reminders

– If you plan on parking in our lot, we ask that you please limit your stay to 10 minutes. Lingering in the lot makes it difficult for other parents trying to Pick Up/Drop Off their child on time.

– I know saying goodbye can be hard, but you can do it and so can your child!! Remember to keep a consistent routine throughout the year, prepare your child for your departure, validate their feelings, and remind them that you will be back.

– Hot lunch will continue to be $5 when ordered in advance, however if ordered the day of or by the week it will be billed at $6.

– Show and Tell is every Friday! Encourage your child to bring in a special toy of their choice to share with the class. Show & Tell is great because it’s fun for the kids and simultaneously enhances effective communication, strengthens their vocabulary , improves their listening skills, and promotes self confidence.

– Date Night is every other Saturday from 5:00pm-12:00am. $15/hr for an individual child or $20/hr for a pair of siblings (min. charge is $60). Dinner and a movie are also provided.

– We are now NUT FREE! We have a number of students in the school allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, in order to keep them safe we ask that you please do not send your child to school with any products containing nuts. If you would like a list of nut-free food suggestions let me know and I will get you a list!

– And lastly, a personal request from myself, please try to label all of your child’s items! Many families buy the same things and sometimes other students or teachers may move your child’s items mistakenly; labeling your things will greatly help avoid any mishaps!

If you have any other questions about the parent handbook feel free to ask myself, Gabriel, or Ms. Annie.

School Calendar 2018

April

Tuesday – 3rd- Back from Spring Break

Saturday – 7th- Date Night with Mrs. Gloria

Saturday – 14th – PLAY Family Outing

Saturday -21st – LAST Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Wednesday – 25th – Disney Character dress up day!

May

Friday – 4th – Star Wars Day

Saturday – 5th – Date Night with Ms. Diana & Ms. Lorraine

Monday – 7th – PLAY’s Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

Monday – 7th- Teacher Appreciation Week – Give a Creative gift

Tuesday – 8th – Teacher Appreciation Week – Give the gift of Food

Wednesday – 9th – Teacher Appreciation Week – Give a gift that Grows

Thursday – 10th – Teacher Appreciation Week – Give the gift of Touch

Friday – 11th – Teacher Appreciation Week – Give a Class gift

Friday – 11th – Moms & Muffins

Saturday – 19th – Date Night with Mrs. Hasmik & Ms. Cynthia

Monday – 21st – Blueberry Parent Teacher Conferences

Tuesday – 22nd – Kiwi & Peach Parent Teacher Conferences

Wednesday – 23rd – Strawberry & Raspberry Parent Teacher Conferences

Thursday – 24th – Pineapple Parent Teacher Conferences

Monday – 28th – NO SCHOOL – Memorial Day

Happy March!

What do you think of when the first of March rolls around? I always picture a relaxed quiet month! Don’t worry—we’re going to keep learning lively and scientific. And that’s the kind of atmosphere I try to bring into our classroom. I will include all our lesson plan regulars: circle discussions, literacy, art, science, gross and fine motor skills and much more!

Monthly Curriculum

Value: Respecting nature

Color: green

Multicultural Visit: Ireland

Animal: Dinosaur

Community Helper: Chef

Additional Theme: Plant Life cycles

Letters/Sounds:  Uu, Jj, Kk

Shape:  diamond /pentagon

Numbers: 30-40

Outing: Natural History Museum

As in every preschool classroom, these plans may evolve to better suit the interests of the children. I will be updating parents with pictures, videos, and write ups of what the children are learning and doing during the day. These will be posted to our Bloomz app.

** Week One

————————————————————

This week we will focus on weather themed discussions, plant life cycles and dinosaurs.

Math

-Will focus on numbers 30-40 using Montessori materials.

-Will make a 4-shape covered with paper leaf shapes. Since many dinosaurs ate leaves, seeds; this ties in nicely.

-Will explore 2D/3D shapes with marshmallows and tooth picks.

-Will find out how many feet does it take to fill in a T-rex foot print, we then will document their findings.

Reader’sWorkshop

Students will review strategies to support sight word vocabulary: look, read, spell, write, look and read.

Mindfulness

This week in mindfulness we will focus on appreciation and reflecting on what we are thankful for. We will think about people in our lives, who we appreciate and create an appreciation chain.

Writer’s Workshop

We will use our notebooks to focus on proper letter formation for J.

We will practice our Word of the Week activity.

Phonics

This week students will learn the letter J and its corresponding words. Home connection: Find some things around your house that begin with J.

Teaching for Understanding

-We will talk about the dinosaur, its eating habits, and its location. We will read If the Dinosaurs Came Back and talk about the differences between the world with dinosaurs and no people and the world with people and no dinosaurs.

–  We will discuss how we use plants (for food, paper, firewood, beauty, rubber products, coffee, tea, food for animals, and so on.) Will ask our Raspberries what plants they like to eat. Brainstorm how plants are different from animals (Plants are stationary, don’t have brains, hearts, and other organs that animals have and so on.)

Activities:

Sensory:

– Dinosaur habitat bin/ gardening sensory bin

Dramatic Play:

– They will become paleontologists and have a digging site in the dramatic area

– We’ll also divide the class in two with each half representing a different dinosaur herd.

Science:

Well make our own fossils.

Week Two

Math

-This week, the Raspberries will continue to work on number order, number writing, and connecting numbers to corresponding quantities.

– Students will count out dried peas or beans to practice math skills.

– We will give each student a half cup of Lucky Charms cereal. Have them count how many of each marshmallow shape they have. Then will have them guesstimate the total number of pieces of cereal they have.

Social Emotional Learning (did not cover last month)

This week’s Tool is our Straight Pretzel, which reminds us to be honest and go straight to the truth. Even if we make a bad choice or have some responsibility in a problem with a friend, our straight pretzel can help us make a repair.

Phonics

-This week students will practice the letter K and its corresponding words

-We will practice sight word list 3.

Writers workshop

This week in Writer’s Workshop, we will continue to practice stretching out words like a rubber band and write down all the sounds we could. We will also write the letter K on rainbow salt trays.

Teaching for Understanding

-We will locate Ireland on a map and talk about its traditional culture, dances and historic landmarks.

-We will learn about chefs and the basics of food preparation

Activities:

Science and discovery:

On a sunny day, we will place a clear glass full of water on the window sill or table. Will Place a large sheet of white paper on the floor where the light will shine through the glass and down. We may need to move the glass around a bit until we get the sun to shine through the glass onto the paper. The sunlight will make a rainbow on the paper!

sensory:

Coins and rainbow rice bin activity

And much more!

Upcoming Events

PLAY Family Outing

Saturday, March 10th!

The entire school community is invited to meet up at The Natural History Museum on Saturday March 10^th at 10am. Please have your child wear their PLAY shirt so others know you are with our school group!

These monthly outings, ‘Field Trips’, are aligned with our themed curriculum and give your child the opportunity to share what they are learning in class with you. They also give families the opportunity to meet each other and make new friends! You might even see a teacher there with their family!

Reminders

– If you plan on parking in our lot, we ask that you please limit your stay to 10 minutes. Lingering in the lot makes it difficult for other parents trying to Pick Up/Drop Off their child on time.

– I know saying goodbye can be hard, but you can do it and so can your child!! Remember to keep a consistent routine throughout the year, prepare your child for your departure, validate their feelings, and remind them that you will be back.

– Hot lunch will continue to be $5 when ordered in advance, however if ordered the day of or by the week it will be billed at $6.

– Show and Tell is every Friday! Encourage your child to bring in a special toy of their choice to share with the class. Show & Tell is great because it’s fun for the kids and simultaneously enhances effective communication, strengthens their vocabulary , improves their listening skills, and promotes self confidence.

– Date Night is every other Saturday from 5:00pm-12:00am. $15/hr for an individual child or $20/hr for a pair of siblings (min. charge is $60). Dinner and a movie are also provided.

– We are now NUT FREE! We have a number of students in the school allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, in order to keep them safe we ask that you please do not send your child to school with any products containing nuts. If you would like a list of nut-free food suggestions let me know and I will get you a list!

– And lastly, a personal request from myself, please try to label all of your child’s items! Many families buy the same things and sometimes other students or teachers may move your child’s items mistakenly; labeling your things will greatly help avoid any mishaps!

If you have any other questions about the parent handbook feel free to ask myself, Gabriel, or Ms. Annie.

School Calendar 2018

March

Saturday – 10th – Date Night with Ms. Cynthia

Friday – 16th – Celebrating St Patrick’s Day

Tuesday – 20th – Egg Hunt

Friday – 23rd to 2nd – NO SCHOOL- Spring Break

April

Tuesday – 3rd- Back from Spring Break

Saturday – 7th- Date Night with Mrs. Gloria

Saturday -21st – Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Hello Raspberry families,

I hope you all enjoyed the long weekend!

As we are approaching the second half of February, we will continue to demonstrate all sorts of “Heart Smartedness”. It’s been wonderful to see!  We’ll also have a friendship bucket list in which our students tell us what being Heart Smart means to them. Of course, to maximize the fun and education in our classroom, we’ll be learning about presidents, friendship, farmers, farm animals , doctors.diamonds, number sense, gross and fine motor skills, dramatic play,  science and discovery. And yes, preschool life never gets boring!

Monthly Curriculum

Theme: Love

Value: friendship

Color: Pink and purple

Multicultural Visit: Asia/china

Animal: Farm Animal

Community Helper: Doctor

Additional Theme: president’s day

Letters/Sounds:  Ww Ee Oo

Shape:  Diamond

Numbers: 20-30

As in every preschool classroom, these plans may evolve to better suit the interests of the children. I will be updating parents with pictures, videos, and write ups of what the children are learning and doing during the day. These will be posted to our Bloomz app.

** Week One

————————————————————

** This week we will focus on  farm animals,  the letter’ Oo and our presidents.

Math

– We will continue to work and use Montessori materials in circle time and math centers.

– Number sense:  Looking at money and the presidents on money.  We will talk about pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, and paper money.

Reader’s Workshop

This week in Reader’s Workshop, students will review strategies to support sight word vocabulary: look, read, spell, write, look and read.

————————————————————

Writer’s Workshop

We will use our notebooks to  focus on proper letter formation for  e and o.

-we will continue to practice our Word of the Week activity and weekend writing activity.

Phonics

This week students will  learn the letters O and E and the sound/words it makes. Home connection: Find some things around your house that begin with o and e.

Mindfulness

This week we will practice Heartfulness with ourselves. We will make  a list of the things we appreciate about ourselves, and each student will choose 3 kind words to make themselves feel better at anytime.

Teaching for Understanding

– Learn primary colors and what two primary colors make

-What is a President?  What do they do?  We will feature patriotic books or short biographies of our presidents

-Farm Animal Theme: Where does food come from? How do farms work, and why are they important? And how can we make healthy food choices?

Activities:

-Art activities:

Teamwork open ended  activity: primary/secondary  painting activity

Stomping mud art using farm animals

Barn and Farm animal craft

corn on the cob painting activity

-Sensory activities:

Milking a cow with gloves activity

Washing station: raspberries will wash dirty animals using tooth brushes

-Science:

Indestructible egg activity

Week Two

Math

This week, the students will continue to work on number order, number writing, and connecting numbers to corresponding quantities.

-February also brings us a whole new shape to learn: the diamond.

Social Emotional Learning

This week’s Tool is our Straight Pretzel, which reminds us to be honest and go straight to the truth. Even if we make a bad choice or have some responsibility in a problem with a friend, our straight pretzel can help us make a repair.

Phonics

-This week students will revise  the letters Ee ,We and Oo  and its corresponding words

-We will continue to practice sight word list 1 and 2.

Writers workshop

This week in Writer’s Workshop, we will practice stretching out words like a rubber band and write down all the sounds we could

Activities:

Science Activity:

-Egg balance science activity

Art activities:

– Stethoscope and yarn activity

– Diamond activity: marshmallows and cotton swabs

– Cooking activity:

We will have make our own Golash. Ingredients needed: milk, cheese, eggs and butter

Upcoming Events

The Petting Zoo is coming to PLAY!

One of our learning themes this month is Farms. On Wednesday, February 21st the children will have the opportunity to see and pet small/baby sheep, goats, bunnies, chickens, ducks, guinea pigs, and a pony.

Feel free to dress up your child in a fun Farmer or animal outfit!

Picture Day is Monday, March 5th!

All pictures will be taken between 8a – 11a. If Monday is not your regular school day you are welcome to bring your child in for just the pictures or for an extra school day as a Drop-In.

Feel free to pack a spare play outfit for when pictures are all done!

Reminders

– If you plan on parking in our lot, we ask that you please limit your stay to 10 minutes. Lingering in the lot makes it difficult for other parents trying to Pick Up/Drop Off their child on time.

– I know saying goodbye can be hard, but you can do it and so can your child!! Remember to keep a consistent routine throughout the year, prepare your child for your departure, validate their feelings, and remind them that you will be back.

– Hot lunch will continue to be $5 when ordered in advance, however if ordered the day of or by the week it will be billed at $6.

– Show and Tell is every Friday! Encourage your child to bring in a special toy of their choice to share with the class. Show & Tell is great because it’s fun for the kids and simultaneously enhances effective communication, strengthens their vocabulary , improves their listening skills, and promotes self confidence.

– Date Night is every other Saturday from 5:00pm-12:00am. $15/hr for an individual child or $17/hr for a pair of siblings (min. charge is $60). Dinner and a movie are also provided.

– We are now NUT FREE! We have a number of students in the school allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, in order to keep them safe we ask that you please do not send your child to school with any products containing nuts. If you would like a list of nut-free food suggestions let me know and I will get you a list!

– And lastly, a personal request from myself, please try to label all of your child’s items! Many families buy the same things and sometimes other students or teachers may move your child’s items mistakenly; labeling your things will greatly help avoid any mishaps!

If you have any other questions about the parent handbook feel free to ask myself, Gabriel, or Ms. Annie.

School Calendar 2018

February

Wednesday- 21st- Petting Zoo Visit

March

Saturday – 3rd- Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Monday – 5th – Picture Day

Saturday – 10th – Date Night with Ms. Cynthia

Friday – 16th – Celebrating St Patrick’s Day

Tuesday – 20th – Egg Hunt

Friday – 23rd to 2nd – NO SCHOOL- Spring Break

April

Tuesday – 3rd- Back from Spring Break

Saturday – 7th- Date Night with Mrs. Gloria

Saturday -21st – Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Hello Raspberry families,

Hope you are having a great 2018 so far!   This month is just the right time to incorporate some hearts into our Raspberry classroom. Covering everything from heart-y social emotional learning activities to colorful art, number, and letter projects.

During the month of February, we will be focusing on Love, Friendship, China, Farm Animals, Doctors, Diamonds, the colors pink/purple, president’s day, the numbers 10 to 30, the letters Ww, Ee, Oo and Sight word list 1 and 2.

February won’t disappoint; it continues the learning with balanced theme activities and lots of LOVE in the air!

Monthly Curriculum

Theme: Love

Value: friendship

Color: Pink and purple

Multicultural Visit: Asia/china

Animal: Farm Animal

Community Helper: Doctor

Additional Theme: president’s day

Letters/Sounds:  Ww Ee Oo

Shape:  Diamond

Numbers: 20-30

Reminders

Peace Corner Photos – We are compiling family photos and notes for students to keep in peace corner to look at when they are having a tough day or missing their family. Please provide a family photo and note. Thank you!

As in every preschool classroom, these plans may evolve to better suit the interests of the children. I will be updating parents with pictures, videos, and write ups of what the children are learning and doing during the day. These will be posted to our Bloomz app.

** Week One

————————————————————

** This week we will focus on friendship, love, the letter Ww  and numbers 1 to 20.

Math

– We will continue to work and use Montessori materials in circle time and math centers.

– We will count  1 to 20  objects as well as writing those numbers.

– We will make estimation jars for math center

————————————————————

Reader’s Workshop

This week in Reader’s Workshop, we will  continue to learn about the structure of reader’s workshop (how to read during independent reading time, how to share about a book, and how to clean up when reader’s workshop is done) as well as the strategies of a good reader: look and Think

Writer’s Workshop

-This week in Writer’s Workshop, Students will practice putting sequenced  ideas onto paper through pictures/ words.

– We will use our notebooks to  focus on proper letter formation for  W .

Phonics

This week students will  learn the letters W and the sound it makes. We will  also practice Words that start with W.

-We will practice Sight word list 1.

Mindfulness

This week students will practice deep breathing and understanding how this can help calm our bodies down. We will learn  how to find and get into a mindful position.

Teaching for Understanding

– learn primary colors and what two primary colors make

– learn what it means to be a good friend.

– Explore concepts such as kindness, love, and respect.

Activities:

-Art: Teamwork open ended  activity: primary/secondary  painting activity

Valentine’s hearts

W’ is for worm spaghetti painting activity

Watermelon craft

– Sensory table activities: Worm noodles and alphabet activity / water activities

– Circle Time:  filll up Bucket Friendship activity

– Science : experiment with walking water! (water absorption) We will make our predictions and write down our findings.

– I will  incorporate literacy, math, songs,  dramatic play, large motor  skills, and much, much more!

Week Two

This week we will be focusing on China/Asia, farm animals, the letters ‘Ee’ and the diamond shape.

Math

This week, the students will continue to work on number order, number writing, and connecting numbers to corresponding quantities, focusing on numbers 10- 20.

Reader’s Workshop

We will read February themed books. Students will also  learn  that readers re-read old favorites, remembering to say more and more about the story.

Mindfulness

This week we will  learn about how our bodies are connected to our emotions and thoughts and how we can help control that.

Phonics

This week students will learn  the letters Ee  and  sounds that they make.

We will continue to practice sight word list 1.

Handwriting

We will  focus on proper letter formation for Ee.

Teaching for Understanding

– We’ll be learning about  China. We will  locate the country on the map and talk about their location, climate, culture, language, historical landmarks, traditional dances and food.

–  Well learn about the importance of farmers and farm animals  in our environment

Activities:

** Science: indestructible egg activity/ planting and seeds

Art : stomping mud art using farm animals/ Asian fans /lanterns /dragon crafts

-And much more!

————————————————————

Reminders

– If you plan on parking in our lot, we ask that you please limit your stay to 10 minutes. Lingering in the lot makes it difficult for other parents trying to Pick Up/Drop Off their child on time.

– I know saying goodbye can be hard, but you can do it and so can your child!! Remember to keep a consistent routine throughout the year, prepare your child for your departure, validate their feelings, and remind them that you will be back.

– Hot lunch will continue to be $5 when ordered in advance, however if ordered the day of or by the week it will be billed at $6.

– Show and Tell is every Friday! Encourage your child to bring in a special toy of their choice to share with the class. Show & Tell is great because it’s fun for the kids and simultaneously enhances effective communication, strengthens their vocabulary , improves their listening skills, and promotes self confidence.

– Date Night is every other Saturday from 5:00pm-12:00am. $15/hr for an individual child or $17/hr for a pair of siblings (min. charge is $60). Dinner and a movie are also provided.

– We are now NUT FREE! We have a number of students in the school allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, in order to keep them safe we ask that you please do not send your child to school with any products containing nuts. If you would like a list of nut-free food suggestions let me know and I will get you a list!

– And lastly, a personal request from myself, please try to label all of your child’s items! Many families buy the same things and sometimes other students or teachers may move your child’s items mistakenly; labeling your things will greatly help avoid any mishaps!

If you have any other questions about the parent handbook feel free to ask myself, Gabriel, or Ms. Annie.

School Calendar 2018

February

Saturday – 3rd – Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Saturday – 10th – Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Friday – 16th – Chinese New Year

Monday – 19th – NO SCHOOL – President’s Day

March

Saturday – 3rd- Date Night with Ms. Jennifer

Monday – 5th – Picture Day

Saturday – 10th – Date Night with Ms. Diana

Friday – 16th – Celebrating St Patrick’s Day

Tuesday – 20th – Egg Hunt

Friday – 23rd to 2nd – NO SCHOOL- Spring Break

April

Tuesday – 3rd- Back from Spring Break

Saturday – 7th- Date Night with Mrs. Gloria

Saturday -21st – Date Night with Ms. Jennifer