Dear Parents,
Happy February!!! Thank you to all the parents that attended Parent-Teacher conferences. Tapping into your support enables us to teach more effectively. I especially appreciated everyone’s patience and apologize for any inconveniences. Keeping to a schedule can often be the most difficult part of the conference process! Although we typically do not schedule another parent-teacher conference, I am always available to discuss progress or concerns.
Since we were learning the letter “Nn” last week, noise was our focus and we made LOTS of it! In case you didn’t know, your children LOVE to make noise! While playing Pharrell Williams “Happy”, we took our musical instruments and when prompted, made noise! Music measures the ability to follow directions and keep rhythm. The children created a wonderfully noisy band!
Our song this week from our fabulous flip chart went like this….
Nn (to the tune The Old Gray Mare)
Nathaniel had a naughty little nanny goat,
who never ate a single oat,
just nibbled on his overcoat.
Nathaniel had a naughty little nanny goat.
Her name was Nannabelle.
As we introduced the letter “Nn”, examples of words such as nest, Native Americans, newspaper, nose and necktie were given. To reinforce the letter, we covered our N’s with pieces of newspaper and made nifty neckties!
Eager to have a little sensory fun, we tried an experiment called “Guess that Smell!” Since smelling involves your nose, the children used their sense of smell in trying to identify familiar scents. Small containers of chocolate, pickles, bananas, bacon and “smelly” cheese were passed around one at a time. After experiencing all the scents we tried identifying them. The children realized how powerful their sense of smell really is!
During our class discussions we talked about “Good Nutrition.” The children should now know that good nutrition means healthy foods. We used a “pyramid guide” as a visual. The children explored the food groups and specific foods that make up these groups. We talked about the fact that everyone needs food in order to grow strong, be healthy and have active brainpower and lots of energy! I hope they take some of what they learned to the lunch table where they peck and poke at just about everything!
I would like to share with you another discussion that occurred this past week during afternoon snack.
Gavin : “One day the dust bunny came and went “pinch” right on my eyebrow!”
Christian: “You know that dust bunnies are not rabbits…right?”
Gavin:(Totally ignoring his comment.) “Then one time a dust bunny came and stole my dinosaur and bit me on my ear and it was bleeding and everything, but it’s better now.”
Christian: “But you know that dust bunnies are not really rabbits….right?”
Christian: (Changing the subject!) “Did anybody ever eat shark meat?”
Jacob: “Once when I was a baby I tried it and LOVED it! I like shark meat better than broccoli!”
“One of the virtues of being very young is that you don’t let the facts get in the way of your imagination!” Sam Levenson.
Six more weeks of winter or an early spring??? On Tuesday, in anticipation of our favorite furry forecaster, Punxsutawney Phil, the nursery class will have some educational and interactive fun! We will Phil our day with various activities that include pictures of groundhogs, stories, crafts and even shadow shapes on the wall!!
The excitement should continue through Friday as we gear up for the biggest football game of the year…..the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos!!!! Please have your child wear a sports jersey or team shirt that day. In our indoor-outdoor play area we will fumble and toss some footballs. Of course a Super Bowl party wouldn’t be complete without some football FOOD so we will have our own little tailgate party!!! Make Super Bowl Sunday a fun family tradition! Football isn’t just for grown-up’s you know. Provide age-appropriate explanations so the children can enjoy it too! They need only to understand that when Mom or Dad’s team has the ball, it’s time to cheer and jump up and down!!!
This week we will introduce the letter “Oo”, and reinforce all of our colors, shapes and numbers. We will begin crafting our “Valentines for Vets” and talk to the children about showing love for others. Parents, with your help, have your child make a card or paint a picture for a veteran. Instill patriotism early! On a day when Americans traditionally engage in expressions of love to one another, it is a great opportunity to remind those who served that their fellow citizen’s love, support, and truly appreciate them. Please send all cards in at your earliest convenience. We will have a mailbox set up and our Pre-K teacher, Miss Anne, will ensure their delivery to the VA hospital in Northport.
On February 10th and 11th, we will observe Valentine’s Day in the classroom! Since it is also Letter “Pp” week, we will invite the children to wear their pajamas to school and breakfast will be served!!! We will celebrate Valentine, Pajama Days by eating pancakes, playing games and sharing cards. Please have your child bring in a Valentine for every student in the class on or before February 10th. DO NOT label these with names as it is too time consuming to sort them out. There are 23 friends in the nursery!
Enjoy the week!
Warmly,
Miss Joanne
Dates to Remember:
2/2 Groundhog Day!!!
2/5 Super Bowl Party!! Wear a sports jersey!!!
2/8 Chinese New Year!!! Wear RED!
2/9 Mardi Gras!!
2/10 & 2/11 Valentine/Pajama Parties!! Wear PJ’s!!
2/15 thru 2/19 School Closed/Mid Winter Recess!
2/24 & 2/25 100th Day of School Celebration!!!