Mrs. Ernst

October 31- November 4

From Miss Cheryl’s and Miss Ginger’s SNP Class

HAPPENINGS IN OUR CLASS

WOW- our week just flew by because of early release. The children enjoyed the story and all the activities. Their favorite activity was making some delicious pumpkin pie spread using cool whip and pumpkin pie filling. Everyone tasted canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie filling first. Then we made a graph of their reactions. Next they measured, scooped, stirred and spread the pumpkin pie spread on a cookie and ate it. Believe it or not most of the children liked the pumpkin pie spread better than the sugar cookie!! Another fun activity was cutting the pumpkin open to discover what is inside. What fun they had putting their hands into the pumpkin to feel the seeds and the rest of the insides. Many had no idea how it would feel but all were willing to experience it. Finally they all loved the Go Away Big Green Monster powerpoint. The story was read by a child which really caught their attention.

We still have one more day of Halloween stories. Our story for Monday (Halloween) will be Monster Mischief by Pamela Jane. This rhyming story is about 5 monsters making monster stew for Halloween until disaster strikes. A sixth monster saves the day and all is well for the monsters’ Halloween celebration The story emphasizes ordinal numbers, size and shape as well as rhyming words. We are also going to “Trick or Treat” in our room to practice this skill and safety skills. On Tuesday we will start our new unit centered on food, nutrition and Thanksgiving. The story for the rest of the week will be Mouse Mess by Linnea Riley. This is a rhyming story about a cute little mouse that raids the kitchen in search of food and ends up making a terrible mess in the end. The story’s key concepts include food; clean and dirty (messy); hungry and full; and awake and asleep. This week we will work on patterns; graphing and science (plain milk versus chocolate milk), sorting and counting foods; positional words; colors; and rhyming.

 Below are vocabulary words from our story:

mouse   clean   food   cracker   cookie   corn flakes   milk   cheese   peanut butter  

jam (jelly) bread   sugar   olives   pickles   ketchup(catsup)   mess   bubble   awake   asleep

 Homework

1. Fingerplays

Five Little Mice

Five little mice were hungry as could be

"Let's go to the kitchen and see what we can see!"

The first little mouse found a tasty cookie crumb. (hold up one finger)

He ate it right up and said, "Yum Yum!" (rub stomach)

The second little mouse found a piece of jelly bread. (hold up 2 fingers)

"That snack was pretty good" he said.  (rub stomach)

The third little mouse said, “For goodness sake,” (hold up 3 fingers)

"just look at that delicious chocolate cake!" (put hand above eyes to pretend to see the cake)

The fourth little mouse found a big piece of cheese. (hold up 4 fingers)

All of a sudden he started to sneeze! (pretend to sneeze)

The fifth little mouse hollered, (hold up 5 fingers)

"We'd better scat! Here comes Tommy that big old cat.” (Wiggle all 5 fingers as if they are running away)

Quiet Mouse

There was a little mouse  (stick up right thumb)
And he lived in a hole    (insert right thumb into left fist)
And when everything was quiet, as quiet as can be
Shhh----shhh----shhh—(put finger on lips)
Out popped he! (pull thumb out of fist)

2. Nursery Rhymes

Hickory Dickory Dock

Hickory, dickory, dock,
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down,
Hickory, dickory, dock.

Hickory, dickory, dock                                                                                                                                      

The Mouse went up the clock
The Clock struck two
The mouse said "Boo"
Hickory Dickory Dock

Hickory Dickory Dock
The Mouse went up the clock
The Clock struck three
The mouse said "Whee!"
Hickory Dickory Dock

This is fun to do with a clock

Three Blind Mice

Three blind mice,
Three blind mice,
See how they run!
See how they run!
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a sight in your life,
As three blind mice?

3. Eat some of the healthy or less familiar foods from the story with your child. How many of your senses can you use when you are exploring the new foods?                                                              Look for them in the grocery store. Look for them in your panty. How many varieties can you find?

4. Related Literature--- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie - Laura Joffe Numeroff; Mouse Paint- Ellen Stoll Walsh; The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear- Don and Audrey Wood; Lunch- Denise Fleming

Important Dates in October and November

October 31- Halloween

As much as everyone loves Halloween costumes, makeup, and masks are too much for school (i.e. NO COSTUMES). In the past teachers have been asked to remind parents that this is an afterschool activity. With that said we will practice “Trick or Treating” in our classroom which not only fun but also a great way to learn about safety.

November 8- Election Day--- NO SCHOOL

November 17- Celebrate Families Day

Please join your child at lunch time for a Thanksgiving Feast. More details to follow.

November 21-25- Thanksgiving Break --- NO SCHOOL

 

Pre-Academic Activities for the Full Day Students (Letter Uu)

Remember to continue to review the previous letters as we begin to progress.  Don’t forget to use the chants I sent home as you practice writing. The children enjoy saying the chants or hearing you repeat the chants as they write in sand, rice or flour using their pointer finger and on an upright chalkboard with chalk or on an attached paper with a crayon on an upright board.

This week we will be learning letter Uu. I try to emphasize the short sounds found in the letters that are vowels (underwear, umbrella, under, up…) I will send home vocabulary words for you to practice with your child to learn the letter sound. Try to follow the activities and strategies listed below. Please keep in mind that each child has varying abilities. I will expose your child to the standards that are age appropriate but will adjust each lesson to their individual levels and needs.

IF your child is becoming frustrated when writing his/her first name in upper and lower case letters I have chants for the lower case letters that I can give you. Please email me if you need the chants!!

Friday Media Center (full day students) —On Friday afternoons we will visit the Media Center and check out one book. Please read this book with your child daily. The book needs to be returned by Friday or your child will not be able to check out another book. Please help your child learn to respect the books he/she has brought home. Show them the proper way to handle the books and how to put them away.  We practice this at school in our classroom library and they need to know the same respect and treatment of books applies at home also.

More activities for increasing letter awareness, letter sound awareness and handwriting-

1. Go on a treasure hunt around your house (inside and/or outside) to find items that begin with each letter sound. (Use the vocabulary words I have sent home to help you.)
2. ALWAYS practice writing their first names in upper and lower case letters—not just upper case (capital letters).  At this age children only need to learn to write the upper case letters (except in the first names). They should learn to recognize both upper and lower case letters.
3. Practice writing the letters.
4. Look in books, magazines, etc. to find both the upper and lower case letter of the week. Always go from left to right as you do when you read. They can even use a highlighter to mark the letters they find. This is also a great review exercise for the previous letters we have learned. For those students who can recognize the letters this is a great way to start exposing them to words. Have them find and highlight the word that has the letter in it.
5. READ to your child. Read a variety of books to them. Ask questions about what you are reading- use “what” and “who” questions at first. Then move on to questions that require higher thinking- where, when, how and why. Talk about the pictures. Point to the words as you are reading. All of these things increase awareness which will help them learn to read

Handwriting Strategies to use-

1. Using a shortened normal sized crayon or pencil will encourage the correct hand position when they are writing if this is needed for your child. The shortened length requires your child to have to hold the writing instrument using a more appropriate grasp.  A crayon helps the writer increase pressure when writing. Pencils tend to slip easily and may not be the best instrument to use for beginning writers.  Markers should not be used until they are established writers. Once your child is an established writer use regular length crayons and begin writing with pencils.
2. Writing on a slanted surface such a 3 inch binder helps to keep their hand and arm in the correct position if needed.  
3. Writing with chalk on an upright easel encourages correct arm and hand position PLUS it increases the need to add pressure.
4. While they are writing say the chants I sent home with your child will help remember the correct way to form the letters.   (These will be sent home when we begin letter formation.)
5. Have your child write while laying prone (flat) on his stomach.  This is another way to reinforce the correct position for the arm and hand when writing.                                   
6. Roll playdoh or other modeling clay into balls first and then snakes. Use the snakes to form the letters. Use a rectangle shape such as a picture frame with no glass as a guide to form the letters. ALWAYS form the letters starting from the top to bottom inside the rectangle shape using the edges as a guide.
7. Practice writing the letter shapes with their fingers on sandpaper; in rice, sand or flour; or hair setting gel in a sealed plastic bag. 

 Speech and Language- Miss Allison

Check out the Speech and Language page on the left side of this blog page.

Georgia Pre-K Content Standards Link

     Here is a useful link to the Ga. Preschool/ Pre-K content standards. As special needs preschool educators our lessons are planned around these standards and the individual needs of each student. You may find information on this site helpful when you are working with your child at home and in your community. This site will help you as parents become familiar with the standards your child will need know or be exposed to during their preschool/pre-k years. The standards are set up according to your child’s chronological age. IF your child is older than 4 they will still be concentrating on the 4 year old standards. To access the standards click on the top address for the preschool standards or click on the bottom address for the Pre-K standards.

Preschool Standards     http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/GELSSection6.pdf

Pre-K Standards          http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/Content_Standards_Full.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 24-28

From Miss Cheryl’s and Miss Ginger’s SNP Class

THIS WEEK IN OUR CLASS

Last week we really enjoyed the old lady and the scarecrow. The children loved making the scarecrow who actually joined our class for a while! We even made a scarecrow hand with a deli glove and crushed popcorn. They were great at re-enacting our story using actual items that were found in the story paired with the sounds each one made. This was an excellent way to learn sequencing skills. Finally the math activity they liked the best was weighing pumpkins and other fall items using the scales.

Our Halloween theme culminates this week with the story “Go Away Big Green Monster” by Ed Emberley. In this story the children continue to work on their sequencing skills as the monster grows and then disappears. They will also begin to learn a strategy to help them if they are afraid. They will learn to tell their fears to “go away”.   Other key concepts in this unit will be learning positional words, using words to describe their feelings and learning shapes and colors. Our activities this week will include opening the pumpkin and discovering what is inside, measuring each other and a monster puppet using monster feet, mixing 2 different colored jellos in a baggie to make new colors and to explore the squishy feeling (making this a math/science/sensory activity) and a food/graphing activity to see who likes monster mash (bananas and applesauce mixed together).

Below are our vocabulary words for this week. Please try to use these words with your child to make them aware of how the words are used in their daily lives. With your help learning becomes real and meaningful to them.

monster	face
hair	teeth
nose	mouth
ears	sharp
big	little
long	scary
eyes	scraggly

 

 

 

 

 

 Homework

1. If possible visit a “pumpkin patch” in your area. Several are fairly close by. Check the internet for locations. Talk about the vines that the pumpkins grow on and the fields they grow in. Look for scarecrows.

2. Look at and describe how the season is changing to your child. Talk about how the weather feels, the clothes you are wearing, how the leaves are changing and how homes/stores/etc. are decorated with scarecrows, pumpkins and other fall items.

3. In celebration of Halloween some of our song choices this week are old favorites that you can download or may already have on Halloween CD’s. If possible dance with your child. See if they can show you the motions we do in class. The 2 we will be “dancing” to are the Monster Mash (YouTube has an appropriate video for preschoolers-musicfactorymusic) and the Purple People Eater (YouTube has this video under Kidsongs.com- Very Silly Songs).

4. The children really love the fingerplays/chants we do weekly in class. Last week we did Two Little Blackbirds. This week we are going to learn Five Little Monsters.

              Five little monsters sitting on the floor,

              The red one said, Let’s knock on someone’s door.

              The green one said, Let’s act a little scary.

              The white one said, Why are we so hairy?

              The blue one said, I hear a funny sound.

              The yellow one said, There’s no one else around,

              Then woosh went the wind and “EEEKKK” someone said.

             And the 5 little monster hid under the bed.

    I changed the colors of the monsters to the colors found in our story this week. They are yellow, white, purple, red, green and blue. We will be doing this as a flannel board activity also. I think you can find this fingerplay or one that is similar on YouTube.  

4. Related Literature- Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak; There’s a Nightmare in My Closet by Mercer Mayer;  Glad Monster, Sad Monster by Ed Emberley

 Important Dates in October

October 24- 28- Conference Week—Early Release Week

Please check your calendars for the day and time you are scheduled to attend. Remember conferences are only 20 minutes. Please be on time. If the conference before you runs over PLEASE knock on the door. I will also have my visual timer set as a reminder when to end the conference.

SNACK and LUNCH during conference week

We will have a very morning short snack time. Please send a small snack for this time.

We will not have an afternoon snack time.

Lunch Time is from 10:00 until 10:30. We will have a regular lunch period in the cafeteria

Please note during conference week half day students will be dismissed 1 hour early (11:00) and full day students will be dismissed 2 hours early (12:10).

The Book Fair will be taking place in the Media Center the same week as Conference Week. If possible please stop by and look at the available books with your child.

October 27- Monster Mash-

This is when your child can dress up and come to school. The party is from 6:00 to 7:00 pm. Remember NO masks or weapons.

October 31- Halloween

As much as everyone loves Halloween costumes, makeup, and masks are too much for school (i.e. NO COSTUMES). In the past teachers have been asked to remind parents that this is an afterschool activity. With that said we will practice “Trick or Treating” in our classroom which not only fun but also a great way to learn about safety.

Pre-Academic Activities for the Full Day Students (Letter Ii)

Remember to continue to review the previous letters as we begin to progress.  Don’t forget to use the chants I sent home as you practice writing. The children enjoy saying the chants or hearing you repeat the chants as they write in sand, rice or flour using their pointer finger and on an upright chalkboard with chalk or on an attached paper with a crayon on an upright board.

This week we will be learning letter Ii.  We will learn the letter sounds by practicing the letter sounds found at the beginning of words (ex. igloo, iguana…). I try to emphasize the “short” sounds when we learn vowels if possible.  I will send home vocabulary words for you to practice with your child to learn the letter sound. Try to follow the activities and strategies listed below. Please keep in mind that each child has varying abilities. I will expose your child to the standards that are age appropriate but will adjust each lesson to their individual levels and needs.

IF your child is becoming frustrated when writing his/her first name in upper and lower case letters I have chants for the lower case letters that I can send you. Please email me if you need the chants!!

Friday Media Center (full day students) NO MEDIA CENTER TIME UNTIL NOVEMBER 4 —                     On Friday afternoons we will visit the Media Center and check out one book. Please read this book with your child daily. The book needs to be returned by Friday or your child will not be able to check out another book. Please help your child learn to respect the books he/she has brought home. Show them the proper way to handle the books and how to put them away.  We practice this at school in our classroom library and they need to know the same respect and treatment of books applies at home also.

More activities for increasing letter awareness, letter sound awareness and handwriting-

1. Go on a treasure hunt around your house (inside and/or outside) to find items that begin with each letter sound. (Use the vocabulary words I have sent home to help you.)
2. ALWAYS practice writing their first names in upper and lower case letters—not just upper case (capital letters).  At this age children only need to learn to write the upper case letters (except in the first names). They should learn to recognize both upper and lower case letters.
3. Practice writing the letters.
4. Look in books, magazines, etc. to find both the upper and lower case letter of the week. Always go from left to right as you do when you read. They can even use a highlighter to mark the letters they find. This is also a great review exercise for the previous letters we have learned. For those students who can recognize the letters this is a great way to start exposing them to words. Have them find and highlight the word that has the letter in it.
5. READ to your child. Read a variety of books to them. Ask questions about what you are reading- use “what” and “who” questions at first. Then move on to questions that require higher thinking- where, when, how and why. Talk about the pictures. Point to the words as you are reading. All of these things increase awareness which will help them learn to read

Handwriting Strategies to use-

1. Using a shortened normal sized crayon or pencil will encourage the correct hand position when they are writing if this is needed for your child. The shortened length requires your child to have to hold the writing instrument using a more appropriate grasp.  A crayon helps the writer increase pressure when writing. Pencils tend to slip easily and may not be the best instrument to use for beginning writers.  Markers should not be used until they are established writers. Once your child is an established writer use regular length crayons and begin writing with pencils.
2. Writing on a slanted surface such a 3 inch binder helps to keep their hand and arm in the correct position if needed.  
3. Writing with chalk on an upright easel encourages correct arm and hand position PLUS it increases the need to add pressure.
4. While they are writing say the chants I sent home with your child will help remember the correct way to form the letters.   (These will be sent home when we begin letter formation.)
5. Have your child write while laying prone (flat) on his stomach.  This is another way to reinforce the correct position for the arm and hand when writing.                                   
6. Roll playdoh or other modeling clay into balls first and then snakes. Use the snakes to form the letters. Use a rectangle shape such as a picture frame with no glass as a guide to form the letters. ALWAYS form the letters starting from the top to bottom inside the rectangle shape using the edges as a guide.
7. Practice writing the letter shapes with their fingers on sandpaper; in rice, sand or flour; or hair setting gel in a sealed plastic bag. 

 Speech and Language- Miss Allison

Check out the Speech and Language page on the left side of this blog page.

 Georgia Pre-K Content Standards Link

     Here is a useful link to the Ga. Preschool/ Pre-K content standards. As special needs preschool educators our lessons are planned around these standards and the individual needs of each student. You may find information on this site helpful when you are working with your child at home and in your community. This site will help you as parents become familiar with the standards your child will need know or be exposed to during their preschool/pre-k years. The standards are set up according to your child’s chronological age. IF your child is older than 4 they will still be concentrating on the 4 year old standards. To access the standards click on the top address for the preschool standards or click on the bottom address for the Pre-K standards.

Preschool Standards     http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/GELSSection6.pdf

Pre-K Standards          http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/Content_Standards_Full.pdf

 

October 17-22

From Miss Cheryl’s and Miss Ginger’s SNP Class

THIS WEEK IN OUR CLASS

Our Halloween themes continue this week with the story “The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything” by Linda Williams. This is another one of the children’s favorite stories. In this sequenced story the little old lady goes out for a walk and is followed back home by a set of clothes and a pumpkin. The children love sounds and words associated with each type of clothing and the ending is a big surprise to them. Some of the key concepts found in this story include types of clothing, the emotion of being afraid/scared (see how this connects with last week) and things found in the fall (scarecrows and pumpkins). This should be a fun filled week with the children making a class scarecrow, dressing up like a scarecrow if they choose to and looking at different pumpkins and comparing their attributes (size, weight, shape, etc). We will be sorting and measuring, dancing to a song that goes right along with the story and we may even cut open a pumpkin to explore it this week. Our food activity will be making scarecrow hands!

 Below are some of our vocabulary words for this week from our story:

lady   scarecrow   pumpkin   gloves   shoes   pants   shirt   hat

knock   afraid   clomp-clomp   wiggle-wiggle   shake-shake  

clap-clap  nod-nod  BOO-BOO

 Homework

1. If possible visit a “pumpkin patch” in your area. Several are fairly close by. Check the internet for locations. Talk about the vines that the pumpkins grow on and the fields they grow in. Look for scarecrows. Discuss the same ideas in the pumpkin patch as in #2 below.

2. Check out the pumpkins at the grocery store. Look at the sizes. Feel the skin. Feel the weight. Where are the pumpkins located in the store- in the vegetable section or the meat section? Talk about the different colors of the pumpkins. Count the pumpkins.

3. Discuss the clothes you are wearing. What part of your body do you wear certain clothes on?  Discuss the change in the season from summer to fall and the change in clothes we wear.

4. Related Literature- “It’s Pumpkin Time” by Zoe Hall; “Five Little Pumpkins” (author unknown; “Pumpkin, Pumpkin” by Jeanne Titheringfo

Important Dates in October

October 20- Picture Retake Day  

If your child needs their picture retaken or if they did not have their picture taken at all please let me know. I will make sure those children have their pictures taken on the retake day.

October 24- 28- Conference Week—Early Release Week

Thanks for getting back the conference letters back so fast! Please mark your calendars with the day and time you are scheduled to attend. Remember conferences are only 20 minutes.

Please note during conference week half day students will be dismissed 1 hour early (11:00) and full day students will be dismissed 2 hours early (12:10).

The Book Fair will be taking place in the Media Center the same week as Conference Week. If possible please stop by and look at the available books with your child.

RED RIBBON WEEK is also during conference Week. This is a national program teaching children to be drug free. You received a flyer about this with daily activities. We will be participating in these activities. On Oct. 26 it is pajama day. Your child is allowed to wear their pajamas but they must be school appropriate and they must be able to access the playground while wearing them. Please remember they must wear school appropriate shoes also.

October 27- Monster Mash-

This is when your child can dress up and come to school. The party is from 6:00 to 7:00. Remember NO masks or weapons.

October 31- Halloween

As much as everyone loves Halloween costumes, makeup, and masks are too much for school (i.e. NO COSTUMES). In the past teachers have been asked to remind parents that this is an afterschool activity. With that said we will practice “Trick or Treating” in our classroom which not only fun but also a great way to learn about safety.

Pre-Academic Activities for the Full Day Students (Letter Cc)

Remember to continue to review the previous letters as we begin to progress.  Don’t forget to use the chants I sent home as you practice writing. The children enjoy saying the chants or hearing you repeat the chants as they write in sand, rice or flour using their pointer finger and on an upright chalkboard with chalk or on an attached paper with a crayon on an upright board.

This week we will be learning letter Cc.  We will learn the letter sounds by practicing the letter sounds found at the beginning of words (ex. corn, cracker, crown…). I will send home vocabulary words for you to practice with your child to learn the letter sound. Try to follow the activities and strategies listed below. Please keep in mind that each child has varying abilities. I will expose your child to the standards that are age appropriate but will adjust each lesson to their individual levels and needs.

 IF your child is becoming frustrated when writing his/her first name in upper and lower case letters I have chants for the lower case letters that I can give you. Please email me if you need the chants!!

Friday Media Center (full day students) —On Friday afternoons we will visit the Media Center and check out one book. Please read this book with your child daily. The book needs to be returned by Friday or your child will not be able to check out another book. Please help your child learn to respect the books he/she has brought home. Show them the proper way to handle the books and how to put them away.  We practice this at school in our classroom library and they need to know the same respect and treatment of books applies at home also.

More activities for increasing letter awareness, letter sound awareness and handwriting-

1. Go on a treasure hunt around your house (inside and/or outside) to find items that begin with each letter sound. (Use the vocabulary words I have sent home to help you.)
2. ALWAYS practice writing their first names in upper and lower case letters—not just upper case (capital letters).  At this age children only need to learn to write the upper case letters (except in the first names). They should learn to recognize both upper and lower case letters.
3. Practice writing the letters.
4. Look in books, magazines, etc. to find both the upper and lower case letter of the week. Always go from left to right as you do when you read. They can even use a highlighter to mark the letters they find. This is also a great review exercise for the previous letters we have learned. For those students who can recognize the letters this is a great way to start exposing them to words. Have them find and highlight the word that has the letter in it.
5. READ to your child. Read a variety of books to them. Ask questions about what you are reading- use “what” and “who” questions at first. Then move on to questions that require higher thinking- where, when, how and why. Talk about the pictures. Point to the words as you are reading. All of these things increase awareness which will help them learn to read

Handwriting Strategies to use-

1. Using a shortened normal sized crayon or pencil will encourage the correct hand position when they are writing if this is needed for your child. The shortened length requires your child to have to hold the writing instrument using a more appropriate grasp.  A crayon helps the writer increase pressure when writing. Pencils tend to slip easily and may not be the best instrument to use for beginning writers.  Markers should not be used until they are established writers. Once your child is an established writer use regular length crayons and begin writing with pencils.
2. Writing on a slanted surface such a 3 inch binder helps to keep their hand and arm in the correct position if needed.  
3. Writing with chalk on an upright easel encourages correct arm and hand position PLUS it increases the need to add pressure.
4. While they are writing say the chants I sent home with your child will help remember the correct way to form the letters.   (These will be sent home when we begin letter formation.)
5. Have your child write while laying prone (flat) on his stomach.  This is another way to reinforce the correct position for the arm and hand when writing.                                   
6. Roll playdoh or other modeling clay into balls first and then snakes. Use the snakes to form the letters. Use a rectangle shape such as a picture frame with no glass as a guide to form the letters. ALWAYS form the letters starting from the top to bottom inside the rectangle shape using the edges as a guide.
7. Practice writing the letter shapes with their fingers on sandpaper; in rice, sand or flour; or hair setting gel in a sealed plastic bag. 

 Speech and Language- Miss Allison

Check out the Speech and Language page on the left side of this blog page.

 Georgia Pre-K Content Standards Link

     Here is a useful link to the Ga. Preschool/ Pre-K content standards. As special needs preschool educators our lessons are planned around these standards and the individual needs of each student. You may find information on this site helpful when you are working with your child at home and in your community. This site will help you as parents become familiar with the standards your child will need know or be exposed to during their preschool/pre-k years. The standards are set up according to your child’s chronological age. IF your child is older than 4 they will still be concentrating on the 4 year old standards. To access the standards click on the top address for the preschool standards or click on the bottom address for the Pre-K standards.

Preschool Standards     http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/GELSSection6.pdf

Pre-K Standards          http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/Content_Standards_Full.pdf

 

October 10- 14

Announcements from Miss Cheryl and Miss Ginger’s SNP Class

This Week in Our Class

Our new theme this week is feelings. This can be a very difficult concept for many children. Our story is "Glad Monster, Sad Monster" by Ed Emberley. In this story the author helps children understand how others feels using monsters and familiar situations that the children know such as eating a favorite food, losing a toy and hugging their parents. We will cover the 6 emotions found in the story- happy, sad, loving, silly, mad and scared. We will explore emotions through art projects, songs about feelings, flannel board faces, feelings PowerPoints, looking at face making books and even play a feeling game to help them understand how each feeling may make you act. Of course we will include feelings and monsters into our math, science, play and food activities as well.

Below are our vocabulary words for this week from our story:

 

glad (happy)          sad           loving (love)         silly        angry (mad)          scary (scared)

mask           monster                 feelings           pretend

yellow           blue        pink           purple          red              green       

 

Homework

1. You and your child can play face games of each of the 6 emotions we will be covering. You make a face look like an emotions (i.e. happy) and have them guess how you are feeling or you just tell them how you are feeling (Look- I’m happy!) See if they can copy your face. Using a mirror will help them learn as they see how a face and body looks when people show emotions.  Next, let them try to make faces for you to guess. Even if they are only able to make one or two faces they are learning about emotions.

 2. Look at people in books or magazine or in Google images of people and their feelings. Tell them what makes you feel happy, sad, etc. Let them try to tell you or show you what makes them feel that same way.

3. Sing and act out “If You’re Happy and You Know It”. Use different emotions as you sing the song and act out that emotion. Example- If you’re sad and you know it cry “boo hoo”.

4. Here are 2 fingerplays for this week. We will continue to learn these as October progresses--ooooo- Halloween is just around the corner!

                5 Little Monsters (colors)

              Five little monsters sitting on the floor,

              The red one said, Let’s knock on someone’s door.

              The green one said, Let’s act a little scary.

              The white one said, Why are we so hairy?

              The blue one said, I hear a funny sound.

              The pink one said, There’s no one else around,

              Then woosh went the wind and “EEEKKK” someone said.

             And the 5 little monsters hid under the bed.

 (You can change the colors of the monsters to the colors found in our story this week. They are yellow, white, purple, red, green and blue)

                5 Little Monsters (numbers 1-5)

              Five little monsters sleeping in my bed

             1 crawled out from under my spread.

             I called Mama and Mama said,

             “no more monsters sleeping in your bed!”

 Continue until there are no little monsters then say

No little monsters sleeping in my bed

None crawling out from under my spread

I called Mama and Mama said,

“there are no more monsters, GO TO BED!”

(This is to the tune of “5 little monkeys jumping on the bed”.)

5. Ever need the words or tunes to the songs I suggest? There are many free websites to find them but this is one that I recommend:

http://kids.niehs.nih.gov/games/songs/childrens/index.htm

 

 Important Dates in October

October 5- 14- CogAt and Iowa Basic Skills testing

   No, we are not testing but we must move to Mrs. Meadows SNP classroom (A-105) so we do not disturb the classes that test around us. We will be in her classroom from 8:00 until 10-ish daily. Please note this is a fun experience for both classes but we will be ready to be back in our own classroom by October 14.

October 20- Picture Retake Day  

If your child needs their picture retaken or if they did not have their picture taken at all please let me know. I will make sure we access the retake day.

October 24- 28- Conference Week

When you receive your conference schedule notice please sign and return ASAP. We will meet for 20 minutes to discuss your child’s progress.

Please note during conference week half day students will be dismissed 1 hour early (11:00) and full day students will be dismissed 2 hours early (12:10).

The Book Fair will be taking place in the Media Center the same week as Conference Week. If possible please stop by and check out the books with your child.

October 31- Halloween

As much as everyone loves Halloween costumes, makeup, and masks are too much for school (i.e. NO COSTUMES). In the past teachers have been asked to remind parents that this is an afterschool activity. With that said we will practice “Trick or Treating” in our classroom which not only fun but also a great way to learn about safety.

Pre-Academic Activities for the Full Day Students (Letter and Number Time)—Letter Review

Remember to continue to review the previous letters of Ll; Ff;  Ee, Hh and Tt.  Don’t forget to use the chants I sent home as you practice writing. The children enjoy saying the chants or hearing you repeat the chants as they write in sand, rice or flour using their pointer finger and on an upright chalkboard with chalk or on an attached paper with a crayon on an upright board.

This week we will be reviewing the letters we have learned. Although we usually only practice writing the upper case letters. We will learn the letter sounds by practicing the letter sounds found at the beginning of words (ex. turtle, lamp, hop, fan, egg…). This will be a great time to review the vocabulary words I have sent home to continue practicing the letter sound and letter recognition with your child. This will help you target the letters that continue to challenge them. Try to follow the activities and strategies listed below. Please keep in mind that each child has varying abilities. I will expose your child to the standards that are age appropriate but will adjust each lesson to their individual levels and needs.

New Friday Event (full day students) —On Friday afternoons we will visit the Media Center and check out one book. Please read this book with your child daily. The book needs to be returned by Friday or your child will not be able to check out another book.

More activities for increasing letter awareness, letter sound awareness and handwriting-

1. Go on a treasure hunt around your house (inside and/or outside) to find items that begin with each letter sound. (Use the vocabulary words I have sent home to help you.)

1. Sing songs or nursery rhymes using only the letter sound instead of the words.
2. ALWAYS practice writing their first names in upper and lower case letters—not just upper case (capital letters).  At this age children only need to learn to write the upper case letters (except in the first names). They should learn to recognize both upper and lower case letters
3. Practice writing the letters.
4. Look in books, magazines, etc. to find both the upper and lower case letter of the week. Always go from left to right as you do when you read. They can even use a highlighter to mark the letters they find. This is also a great review exercise for the previous letters we have learned. For those students who can recognize the letters this is a great way to start exposing them to words. Have them find and highlight the word that has the letter in it.
5. READ to your child. Read a variety of books to them. Ask questions about what you are reading- use “what” and “who” questions at first. Then move on to questions that require higher thinking- where, when, how and why. Talk about the pictures. Point to the words as you are reading. All of these things increase awareness which will help them learn to read

Handwriting Strategies to use-

1. Using a shortened normal sized crayon or pencil will encourage the correct hand position when they are writing if this is needed for your child. The shortened length requires your child to have to hold the writing instrument using a more appropriate grasp.  A crayon helps the writer increase pressure when writing. Pencils tend to slip easily and may not be the best instrument to use for beginning writers.  Markers should not be used until they are established writers. Once your child is an established writer use regular length crayons and begin writing with pencils.
2. Writing on a slanted surface such a 3 inch binder helps to keep their hand and arm in the correct position if needed.  
3. Writing with chalk on an upright easel encourages correct arm and hand position PLUS it increases the need to add pressure.
4. While they are writing say the chants I sent home with your child will help remember the correct way to form the letters.   (These will be sent home when we begin letter formation.)
5. Have your child write while laying prone (flat) on his stomach.  This is another way to reinforce the correct position for the arm and hand when writing.                                   
6. Roll playdoh or other modeling clay into balls first and then snakes. Use the snakes to form the letters. Use a rectangle shape such as a picture frame with no glass as a guide to form the letters. ALWAYS form the letters starting from the top to bottom inside the rectangle shape using the edges as a guide.
7. Practice writing the letter shapes with their fingers on sandpaper; in rice, sand or flour; or hair setting gel in a sealed plastic bag. 

 Speech and Language- Miss Allison

Check out the Speech and Language page on the left side of this blog page.

Georgia Preschool/ Pre-K Content Standards Link

     Here is a useful link to the Ga. Preschool/ Pre-K content standards. As special needs preschool educators our lessons are planned around these standards and the individual needs of each student. You may find information on this site helpful when you are working with your child at home and in your community. This site will help you as parents become familiar with the standards your child will need know or be exposed to during their preschool/pre-k years. The standards are set up according to your child’s chronological age. IF you child is older than 4 they will still be concentrating on the 4 year old standards. To access the standards click on the top address for the preschool standards or click on the bottom address for the Pre-K standards.

http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/GELSSection6.pdf

http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/Content_Standards_Full.pdf

 

 

 

October 3-8

Announcements from Miss Cheryl and Miss Ginger’s SNP Class

This Week in Our Class

During the week of October 3- 7 our second unit about fall (autumn) will focus on different aspects about the fall and, in particular, about fall leaves. The story for this week is Fall Leaves Fall by Zoe Hall.  Be ready to have lots of examples of fall leaves coming home at the end of this week. Some of our weekly activities will include graphing (ex. favorite fall leaf color), estimation (ex. how many acorns are in the basket?), counting and set making (acorns and leaves), patterning (ex. AB and ABC—Green leaf, red leaf, green leaf, red leaf or green leaf, red leaf, orange leaf…) and, of course, playing (ex. raking leaves and then using the verbs from the story to play in them).

Below are the vocabulary words we will concentrate on. Please try to use these words with your child to make them aware of how the words are used in their daily lives. With your help learning becomes real and meaningful to them.

fall     leaves/leaf   wind     blow     stomp     catch 

kick   collect    rake    pile    pointy     smooth

Homework:

Look at the fall leaves and acorns or other seeds in your yard or neighborhood.  Practice some of the action words in our vocabulary list. Make it a game.

Collect some leaves and other fall items you see. Talk about pointy and smooth edges on the leaves. Talk about the colors. Sort the small and large ones or small, medium and large ones. Count the leaves and other fall things.

2 Fingerplays- (1 from the apple unit and 1 from the fall leaf unit)

Apples

5 little apples hanging in a tree, (hold up 5 fingers and forearm to look like a tree)

Teasing Mr. Slinky Worm “You can’t eat me!” (bend one finger like it is talking )

Along some Mr. Slinky Worm as quiet as can be (wiggle 1 finger from the other hand to imitate a worm climbing a tree)

And crunched that apple right off that tree. (Grab one finger like the worm is eating one apple

Continue down to 1 apple.

Fall Leaves

5 little fall leaves, so happy and gay, (hold up 5 fingers and forearm to look like a tree)

Were dancing about on a tree one day. (wiggle all fingers)

The wind came blowing through the town (blow like the wind)

And 1 little leaf came tumbling down . (put one finger down)

Continue down from 5 leaves to 1 leaf.

 

Important Dates in October

October 5- 14- CogAt and Iowa Basic Skills testing

   No, we are not testing but we must move to Mrs. Meadows SNP classroom (A-105) so we do not disturb the classes that test around us. We will be in her classroom from 8:00 until 10-ish daily. Please note this is a fun experience for both classes but we will be ready to be back in our own classroom by October 14.

October 20- Picture Retake Day  

If your child needs their picture retaken or if they did not have their picture taken at all please let me know. I will make sure we access the retake day.

October 24- 28- Conference Week

You will be receiving your scheduled time for conferences soon. We will meet for 20 minutes to discuss your child’s progress.

Please note during conference week half day students will be dismissed 1 hour early (11:00) and full day students will be dismissed 2 hours early (12:10).

October 31- Halloween- No Costumes/ No Candy

Sorry, we do not have a Halloween party and we do not wear costumes. I will be basing our October units around fall and fun Halloween themes throughout the month of October.

 

Pre-Academic Activities for the Full Day Students (Letter and Number Time)—Letter Tt

Remember to continue to review the previous letters of Ll; Ff; Ee and Hh.  Don’t forget to use the chants I sent home as you practice writing. The children enjoy saying the chants or hearing you repeat the chants as they write in sand, rice or flour using their pointer finger and on an upright chalkboard with chalk or on an attached paper with a crayon on an upright board.

This week we will be learning letter Tt. Although we usually only practice the upper case letters when learning to write we may also practice the lower cast “t” this week. We will learn the letter sounds by practicing the letter sounds found at the beginning of words (ex. turtle, table, turn, etc…). Use the vocabulary words I send home to continue to practice letter sound and letter recognition with your child. Try to follow the activities and strategies listed below. Please keep in mind that each child has varying abilities. I will expose your child to the standards that are age appropriate but will adjust each lesson to their individual levels and needs.

More activities for increasing letter awareness, letter sound awareness and handwriting-

1. Go on a treasure hunt around your house (inside and/or outside) to find items that begin with each letter sound. (Use the vocabulary words I have sent home to help you.)

1. Sing songs or nursery rhymes using only the letter sound instead of the words.
2. ALWAYS practice writing their first names in upper and lower case letters—not just upper case (capital letters).  At this age children only need to learn to write the upper case letters (except in the first names). They should learn to recognize both upper and lower case letters
3. Practice writing the letters.
4. Look in books, magazines, etc. to find both the upper and lower case letter of the week. Always go from left to right as you do when you read. They can even use a highlighter to mark the letters they find. This is also a great review exercise for the previous letters we have learned.
5. READ to your child. Read a variety of books to them. Ask questions about what you are reading- what and who questions at first. Then move on to questions that require higher thinking- where, when, how and why. Talk about the pictures. Point to the words as you are reading. All of these things increase awareness which will help them learn to read

Handwriting Strategies to use-

1. Using a shortened normal sized crayon or pencil will encourage the correct hand position when they are writing if this is needed for your child. The shortened length requires your child to have to hold the writing instrument using a more appropriate grasp.  A crayon helps the writer increase pressure when writing. Pencils tend to slip easily and may not be the best instrument to use for beginning writers.  Markers should not be used until they are established writers. Once your child is an established writer use regular length crayons and begin writing with pencils.
2. Writing on a slanted surface such a 3 inch binder helps to keep their hand and arm in the correct position if needed.  
3. Writing with chalk on an upright easel encourages correct arm and hand position PLUS it increases the need to add pressure.
4. While they are writing say the chants I sent home with your child will help remember the correct way to form the letters.   (These will be sent home when we begin letter formation.)
5. Have your child write while laying prone (flat) on his stomach.  This is another way to reinforce the correct position for the arm and hand when writing.                                   
6. Roll playdoh or other modeling clay into balls first and then snakes. Use the snakes to form the letters. Use a rectangle shape such as a picture frame with no glass as a guide to form the letters. ALWAYS form the letters starting from the top to bottom inside the rectangle shape using the edges as a guide.
7. Practice writing the letter shapes with their fingers on sandpaper; in rice, sand or flour; or hair setting gel in a sealed plastic bag. 

 Speech and Language- Miss Allison

Check out the Speech and Language page on the left side of this blog page.

Georgia Preschool/ Pre-K Content Standards Link

     Here is a useful link to the Ga. Preschool/ Pre-K content standards. As special needs preschool educators our lessons are planned around these standards and the individual needs of each student. You may find information on this site helpful when you are working with your child at home and in your community. This site will help you as parents become familiar with the standards your child will need know or be exposed to during their preschool/pre-k years. The standards are set up according to your child’s chronological age. IF you child is older than 4 they will still be concentrating on the 4 year old standards. To access the standards click on the top address for the preschool standards or click on the bottom address for the Pre-K standards.

http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/GELSSection6.pdf

http://decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/Content_Standards_Full.pdf