Vv is for Vets and Pets

I've moved phonics to the first thing we do Monday and Tuesday.  This allows us to talk about our new theme before we learn our letter.  I've enjoyed the conversations about my students' pets.

During phonics, I have a letter puppet that comes alive.  This time it was Victor the Vulture, which let me teach children a little about vultures, because many children don't know what they are.  Every week, I show a 10 second clip of the letter of the day from Leap Frog's "Letter Factory".  I show pictures and their words.  I also have a kit with things that start with the letter.  Here is a photo of the children looking at the letter Vv objects like a video camera:

Here are the children during our writing time working with the letter Vv Wikki Stix cards:

After writing, the children have a snack and then play outside:

After the children come inside, they wash up, read books, and listen to a story that matches our theme.  This week the books were both about children wanting a pet, but the parent having a reason why the child couldn't have a pet.  In both books, the children come up with a solution.  I wish I could have found a good book about a veterinarian.

After our story, we did our center, which on day one was to do tricks with the dogs with dog treats:

After our center, the children had circle time.  here is a picture of one of my students pretending to be a teacher:

On the second day, we have art.  For art we did the first part on a project that is a secret.  It is supposed to be a gift for both Mom and Dad.  Mother's Day is in May, but unfortunately Father's Day is on a day when we aren't here.  I am going to combine Mother's Day and Father's Day and turn it into Parent Appreciation Day.  I want to plan something special and the art that the children did this week is a gift to the parents.  I took pictures of the children painting, but blurred out the project.

On Friday we talked about "same" and "different" as we sorted ocean animals into color and animal groups.  We also did counting during this activity.

I ordered some vestibular cushions, which helps the children put their wiggles in the cushions, so they can concentrate while sitting in circle time.  This was the first day that we used them.  Here are the children sorting while sitting on their special cushions:

One of our students had a birthday this week.  Here is our celebration:

Our box of mystery wrapped birthday presents.

The children said that the stack of brownies reminded them of a volcano (v is for volcano).

passing out goodies to the other children

Sharing pictures

Other activities we did this week were: review letters through a game, build two words (vet and van), count the days on a calendar, sing some songs, and continue to build friendships.

We are going on a two week spring break and will be back on April 8th, so look for our blog after April 12th on our theme: "Kk is for Kites".

Bb is for Balloons

When I talk about balloons, preschoolers tend to get very excited, especially when they get to take one home.  When they tell me that their balloon popped, they are sad.  There are a few that don't like balloons, because the *pop* of a balloon is scary. 

This week, I played a song from the movie "Up" and it helped transport their mind to the movie and the many balloons inflated by Mr. Fredricksen.

For centers, on the first day, the children practiced throwing a beanbag, underhand at a low target.  Then they practiced throwing it high with an overhand throw.  The reason why they practiced hitting a target with a beanbag was because on the second day, they threw a balloon at a target.  They had to compare the balloon to the beanbag and figure out different ways to throw the balloon to hit the target.

Before I blew up the balloons, I talked to them about the differences between balloons that float, because of helium, balloons that we blow up with our own breath, and hot air balloons.

Here are some pictures of the children throwing balloons and bean bags:

 

For art, we made a balloon scene using Wikki Stix.  I love this material! We use it when we build letters. It's basically yarn dipped in colorful wax.  It's pliable and can stick to paper.  Although it does stick to paper, it can still be peeled off, so after the children shaped their balloons, they peeled them off and glued them down.  Then they took markers to decorate their balloon scene.  Here's a tip for parents: when you get your child's art work, say, "Tell me about this."  Try to get them to explain what they did, what it was like to make the art piece, and what their art is about.  It is important for children to practice using their words to explain, because with the new common core standards, they'll need to use their words a lot more.  Here are pictures of their art:

Working with Wikki Stix, glue bottles, and markers are great fine motor activities.

Besides working on the phonics and writing the letter Bb, we also reviewed the letter Ee.  When the children work on their writing, I dug out my (ugly) handmade dividers.  I used these when I was a new teacher.  I couldn't afford to buy the dividers from a teacher supply store and needed to create personal spaces for my students to concentrate on their own work.  Well, my preschoolers who have trouble focusing love these.  In fact almost all of the preschoolers wanted one and called them their office.  They pretended they were in a cubical at work and when they finished their writing, they say, "I'll see you after work" or "I'm going on my lunch break".  I might have to tone down the dividers, because now instead of writing they are fascinated with being in their "office".  We'll see if the novelty wears off.  Here are some photos of our letter practice:

Here are some photos of the children having a chance to play for a little bit:

Each class has their own way of playing outside.  Here is this group trying out something new as a group: baseball!!!

Next blog up: Vv is for Vets and Pets :).