Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!

On Tuesday this week we talked about the first Thanksgiving and also about the Mayflower. The kids played a number matching game with some colorful fall leaves.

Our Thanksgiving Feast was a hit! The kids first colored some turkeys to add for our "turkey bowling." The kids really enjoyed rolling the bowling ball and knocking over our little turkeys. We sang our "5 little turkey" song again and made some head-bands to wear during our feast.

Lined up for the feast...

Our Thanksgiving Feast...

Thank you to everyone who donated food for our feast!!!

Cars

This week our spotlight was Tatum.

On Tuesday we learned about traffic signals and what they mean and why we have them. The kids enjoyed painting red and green lights to glue on their papers to make a traffic light. We also had a really fun time playing "red light, green light."

On Wednesday we learned all about maps. The kids had a great time looking at different kinds of maps. We looked at a large map, a pocket size map, a road map and even a map of Disneyland. We talked about what different symbols and colors might mean.

On Thursday we talked about our first mode of transportation...Cars! (we will learn about the rest after Thanksgiving)

We also reviewed our colors and our letters A-J.

The kids had fun driving the cars on the mat and also on the roads made out of tape! :)

I is for Ice Cream

Our Spotlight this week was Staten.

On Tuesday we talked about what flavor ice cream everyone likes. Mostly chocolate and one vanilla. :) We listened and watched a fun song about a girl who dreams about ice cream. We also played a shape matching game and reviewed our colors.

On Wednesday we talked about where ice cream comes from. "the box, the store, the ice cream man..." were some of their guesses.  :)  We learned that it is made from milk.

The kids had a great time making some homemade ice cream. We filled a bag with some milk and a little sugar and then put the bag inside a container with some ice and salt. The kids loved rolling the container on the ground and shaking it.

Results... YUMMY!

The kids also took turns scooping some play dough "ice cream" into some bowls.

On Thursday was our Ice Cream Party!
We played a counting game with some felt ice cream cones. Each child was given a turn to roll the dice and count that number of scoops to put on their cone. We also had some cherries for on top.

 The kids really enjoyed making a pretend ice cream cone to take home. It was my first time using "puffy paint" (aka - shaving cream, glue and food coloring) and I think it turned out great! The kids loved smoothing out the ice cream onto the paper.

The best part of the party?? Eating ice cream! :) The kids were able to make their own ice cream sundae. Don't forget the sprinkles on top!

Halloween

We had a fun Halloween week!

And our Spotlight for this week was Paytyn.

On Tuesday we got ready for our Halloween party by coloring our Haunted House papers, decorating our Halloween bags and hanging up bats in our preschool room.

Our Halloween party was great! The kids colored different Halloween pictures, made some cute little pumpkins and decorated pumpkin cookies. They also had a great time digging for skeleton bones, playing 'pin the broom on the witch' and listening to a Halloween story. I think the kids favorite part of the party was the trick or treating activity! (Who wouldn't love getting a bag full of candy from their classmates?!?)  :)

On Thursday we talked about books. Where we might find books, what kind of books there are and what different kinds of books the kids enjoy. Everyone brought a favorite book to class and we took turns telling what they are about.
We also did a few different activities to review our letters A-H.

Seasons

This week we talked mainly about the four seasons. (Although it is hard for kids who live in AZ to comprehend this.)  :)

We learned about the different seasons we have, what the weather is normally like during those seasons and what happens to the trees. I showed the kids pictures of trees in New York in the fall, you know, because they actually have leaves that change color.

On Wednesday the kids colored the trees for the 4 seasons and on Thursday we used cut up paper for the leaves.

We did not have a letter this week, but have been reviewing the letters that we have learned so far: A-F.

We also sang to Paytyn who will be having a birthday next week.

We will start again on our Spotlights after the break.
Have a HAPPY FALL BREAK!!!

A Pirate's Life for me!

AHOY!!!
Yes, it's true...I LOVE Pirates, especially a certain Captain, but I won't name names. So, I was very excited about this week. I think the kids enjoyed it too! :

On Tuesday we read a book about a little girl named Maisy who goes to Pirate School. Then the kids made some Pirate puppets.

We also took turns sailing on our own Pirate ship.

The kids loved "digging" for treasure in Pirate playdough. They found some Pirate gold and some jewels.

On Wednesday we talked about Pirate ships. The kids had a good time putting together a ship with their own picture for the captain! We also had a classroom Pirate ship with all my lil' Pirates on it.

We also played a Pirate game where we collected treasure pieces.

Markers are a special treat at preschool. We don't color with them very often and the kids were excited to use them for the first time.

On Thursday we had our treasure hunt! It was fun following the maps clues and finding a bag of goodies at the end! The kids loved it and were so excited that they were running from clue to clue. :) The kids also were able to make a treasure map to take home.

The kids put together a Pirate number puzzle. They needed a little help to get going, but they ended up doing a great job of putting it together.