I Can Tie My Shoes!

I can tie my shoelaces*? 

Shoe tying begins around age 4 and is a skill still to be mastered at age 6.

Toys: Lace up figures, shapes, and book; marbles, (new) FP Castle, Princes and Princesses, and Village. (It was fun to see how the boys got very involved in imaginary play with the princes and castle!)


 

  











Snack: Apple slices, pretzel sticks, and powdered doughnuts.

Circle Time:  Today we read about a little girl who was afraid to go to Kindergarten because she thought she had to tie her shoelaces by herself, without help! She learns that almost all Kindergartners are still learning to tie their own shoelaces. 
(**We did not get to our Show ' Teaches today.  Please have your child bring it on Thursday.)  

Eva's Un-Birthday!   

Eva Marie was born on April 13 by emergency C-section.  (She had an 8 inch cord wrapped around her neck).  We are so happy to have her in our family!  She turned four on Sunday.  She loves pink, her family, princesses, playing, and ponies.  She told the class her father (an Actuary/I.T. Chief) "washes dishes and cleans the floor" at his job!  (It is great when dads pitch in at home, rare, but nice!)  When asked what she will learn this year, she told the class,"You have to be careful!"  She might have been reflecting on a recent accident when she slipped climbing a loft ladder and let go/fell.

 

 Kayson helps me Demo how to Tie Shoes*: 

(One trick is to tie different colored laces together in the back--children are still learning right and left hands and so colors help.)

Step one:  Have child hold one lace in each hand and "cross" together--(make an X), then tuck one end under, and pull.

 

Step two: wrap "bunny ear" (loop) around thumb and pinch with left index and thumb. 

Step Three: With right hand, "chase" lace around the loop 

and poke little bunny ear through.

Step Four:  Pull second ear through loop

 

Step Five:  Pull ears apart and tight.

 Finished!  So proud.

*There are several ways to tie shoes (cross rabbit ears, etc.  See Links for Rhymes, songs, "Magic Fingers" Youtube, and suggestions.)
 
Books:   
Whose Shoes Are These? A Learn to Tie Your Shoelace Book by Lisa Carr (Barnes and Noble).
*Countdown to Kindergarten by Alison McGhee, Ill. by Harry Bliss

Links: 

• Magic Fingers ("Teach Your Child to Tie Shoes in 5 Minutes" Youtube)
•  Tying Shoes: A Collection of Songs and Poems
  

Skills to practice at home:

• Threading small items--yarn threading block necklaces, and threading cereal rings (coat string ends with tape), lace ups, etc.

• Practice shoe tying (dad's Church shoes, mom's tennis shoes, etc.)

Weather and Wiggly Worms

Weather Day:
Daily Question:  Ww  Do you what weather means?  We live in the atmosphere, an enormous ocean of air that surrounds our earth.  Weather is what is happening at the bottom of the atmosphere, driven by the heat of the sun.

 Check out our name writing!

Toys: Train Table, ABC Blocks, Lite Brites, and Tinker Toys

It was fun to see how the children joined up as spontaneous partners and played with the Lite Brites this morning.  Cute conversations overheard--what types of jokes they might play on April Fools (from Tuesday's lesson).  "Hey, you have a spider in your hair!"  "Teacher, I see some popcorn on your nose!" Etc.

 Ethan had fun making machines (cars) with Tinker Toys.

 Dade shows the other children how beautifully he signed his name on a Thank You card to teacher.  Sweet boy!

Snack: Cheese Sticks, Animal Crackers and Swedish Fish.

Circle Time: We talked about what is weather and made our own Storm!  We enjoyed listening to several stories about weather.  (See books in bold).

Activity:  W the Worm wiggles from Washington State to West Virginia each week.  Worm forgot to check the weather and had to wiggle "w/w/w" through wet mud.  Painting with chocolate pudding, repeat the W action (wiggle chest from side to side) and song.   

 Not all the children loved painting with pudding!

 Ethan enjoyed it!  He kept saying, "Oh Teacher!  This is making me hungry for choc-o-late pudding!"

 

 

Weather Songs:

• It's Raining, It's Pouring

• Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree

• If All the Raindrops Were Lemondrops and Gumdrops

Janeen Brady's songbook "I Have a Song for You

If All the Raindrops If all the raindrops were lemon drops and gumdrops

Oh, what a rain that would be!

Standing outside, with my mouth open wide

Singing La la la la, la la la, la la la, 

If all the raindrops were lemon drops and gumdrops

Oh, what a rain that would be!
 

If all the snowflakes were candy bars and milkshakes

Oh, what a snow that would be!

Standing outside, with my mouth open wide

Singing La la la la, la la la, la la la, 

If all the snowflakes were candy bars and milkshakes

Oh, what a snow that would be!
 

If all the sunbeams were bubble gum and ice cream

Oh, what a sun that would be!

Standing outside, with my mouth open wide

Singing La la la la, la la la, la la la,

If all the sunbeams were bubble gum and ice cream

Oh, what a sun that would be!

Our Class Rainstorm:  Our class simulated a rainstorm by patting pants (like rain)--slow than faster, some students snapped, some clicked their tongues, some students clapped, and some students hit shoes on the ground.  It was fun to listen to the storm we created with our hands and feet!

Weather Books:

Rain Drop Plop (Audio CD) by Wendy Cheyette Lewison and Pam Paparone

Chicken Soup with Rice; A Book of Months by Maurice Sundak.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi & Ron Barrett

The Biggest Boy by Kevin Henkes and Nancy Tafuri

Weather by Seymour Simon

The Big Storm by Bruce Hiscock

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats (DVD, Scholastic)

Sky Tree:  Seeing Science Through Art by Thomas Locker

Arty Facts: Weather and Art Activities (Crabtree Pub.)

 Water, Ice, and Steam (Rosen Real Readers) by Ira Wood

Nature's Fury: The Power of Weather (Parents Choice Award) Readers Digest Childrens

Weather Words: umbrella, snow, rain, rainbow, clouds, smog, fog, ice, rain coat, rain boots,  sun shine, sleet, blizzard, thunder, lightening, wind, kite, hurricane, tornado, tsunami,

Season Reveiw: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer.

 

The weather has been "April Foolin'" us today!  First it was rainy, then sunny, then overcast, and then sunny again!  I Like how Kayson discovers this rain puddle and begins to splash.

What time is it Mr. Raindrop? This is a fun game to play outside. You can change the name to suit any theme. The children all line up against a wall or fence. And one child, Mr. Raindrop or the teacher faces away from the children, a good distance away from the children. The children yell, what time is it "Mr. Raindrop", Mr. Raindrop answers 1 o'clock, and the children all take one step toward Mr. Raindrop. The children yell again, what time is it "Mr. Raindrop", Mr. Raindrop answers (fill in the blank) o'clock, and the children all take same number of step toward Mr. Raindrop. This continues until all the children are very close to Mr. Raindrop, then Mr. Raindrop will answer it's midnight, and chases the children back to the fence or wall that they started at. The first person Mr. Raindrop touches will be the new Mr. Raindrop.

Freeze Tag with Jack Frost, Dade, and the Sunshine Fairy, Eleanor.  Frost "freezes" the children and Fairy "melts" them.

Look what we found Popping (blooming) in the back yard--an Apricot tree!

April Fools ABCs

Do you know your ABCs?

Toys: Pirates, ABC Train, and (New) Skills Puzzle.

Snack: Ritz Crackers and Teddy Grahams.

Show and Teach: Weather and Week W.
Eleanor: Baby Belle and Baby Tiana
William: Small glass horse
Seth:  Lego duck that moves!
Kayson: "These are my black and white gloves for the snow and for being a Police Officer!"
Ethan: "These are my Thomas Sunglasses, so the sun won't burn my eyes!"
Dade: "This is my dog.  I got my dog for going to the doctor."  Dade was also wearing snowman socks!

Books:
Bubble Bath Pirates by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
One Guinea Pig is Not Enough!*(Early Addition!) by Kate Duke

Songs:
ABCs

I Played a Joke on You! (April Fools) by Janeen Brady
Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree!

Writing Notebooks:
We are working on "pinching (the end of our) pencils" and drawing straight lines.  We are also working on writing our name in between the dashed lines.

Thank you for your tuition for April!
We had a fun day talking about April 1st and April Fools Day.  We listened to and sang a song, "I Played a Prank on You!"  We also sang Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree and used our popcorn bottles (empty water bottles in tube socks--when squeezed sound like popcorn).  We lined up and went out to the castle in the back and spied several "Popcorn Trees."  We also talked about how apricots are often one of the first fruit trees to bloom but that apple, cherry, pear, and plum will also blossom before bearing fruit.

Thursday's lesson is about a Wiggly Worm who wiggles through all kinds of weather and mud (chocolate pudding painting.  Enjoy SPRING BREAK next week.  No class Tuesday or Thursday.  See you the following week!

Vowels and Consonants

Do you know what a vowel is?  I loved Eleanor's answer to this," I DO!  I know what vowels are.  There are vowels in my name!"  The other students were not as excited about vowels.

Toys: Pirate Ships and Castles, Wooden Blocks, (new) Basic Skills Puzzle, Skee Ball, and Lace-up Shoes.

 Posed picture.  (Kissing lips?).  

Children loved playing with the Pirates!

Snack: Pretzel bags, raisins, and fruit leather.

My Vowels Song:
We watched a snip of the Vowels Song from Rock N Learn: Phonics and Reading DVD.

Aa, Ee, Ii, Oo, Uu, and sometimes Yy.

I Spy V Words:
V8 drink can, vowels charts, Valentine heart, vacuum, vulture, violin, vase, vest, van, vines, etc.



 Finishing up our "V the Vulture" Page.  We are working on doing "our preschool best" coloring and cutting.

Signs of Spring:
We've been singing "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree" (and using our Poppers--empty water bottles in tube socks).  Today, Eva, Kayson and Ethan and I found popcorn popping on the neighbor's apricot tree!  We also smelled hyacinths. 

Recycled Robots!

Do you know what a robot is?

Toys:  Tinker Toys, Linkin Blocks, and Khun Zuus.  (A special thanks to Dade and his mother Maren who donated a large box of Zhu Zhu Pets, Zuu Zuu Babies, Accessories, and Preschool and Pizza Parlor to our preschool!)

Snacks:  Ritz Crackers, Animal and Circle Strip Cookies.

After snack time, Kayson in a robotic voice said, "Hello.  How may I help you?"  Do you think his mother would let me buy this helpful robot?!

Circle Time Discussion:  Recycle and Robotic Definitions
What is a robot?  Some of the students didn't know what they were.
Recyle means to change something (waste) into reusable material.
Robots: A real or imaginary machine controlled by a computer made to look like a human or animal.
Kayson mentioned..."(A robot) is a machine that does things!  If you push a red button, he goes wild and is naughty.  If you push a yellow button, he slows down and the green button makes it go!"

We played I Spy "R" Words: 
roadster, race car, rocket, robot, radio, 

We have had some chasing and romping indoors and so we reviewed Safe Touch (meaning that we need to ask, "May I hold your hand?") at preschool.

Books:
*Find a Face by Francois and Jean Robert 
Can You See What I See? Dream Machine: A Picture Adventure to Search and Solve by Walter Wick.

Race Cars and Transportation

Race Cars and Transportation 

Daily Question:  Rr  Do you like to play with race cars?

Toys: Train table, cars, town rug, big truck and crane, Linkin blocks, and Race Set.

Snacks: Mandarin oranges, animal crackers, and pudding.

Show N' Teach:

Brody: Remote control car

Kayson: Rabbit

William and Seth: Raphael (Ninja Turtle)

Today we are talking about Race Cars and Transportation. Transportation is something that is used to carry people from place to place like a race car, train, plane, boat, trolley, subway, etc.

We read about the Little Engine That Could. This great story talks about being willing to try and saying "I Think I Can!" when trying out something new.

We learned about R the rhinoceros who races rapidly on roller skates down a rainy road, "R-r-r." He is trying to reach the end of the rainbow on his red roller skates, "R-r-r." As you student races with his feet moving them back and forth (like roller-skating) have them practice the letter "r" sound as in rhino, race, and roller skates.

Arts and crafts: Our follow-up activity on the letter R was finger painting with metal race cars across a page while we practiced saying the letter "r" sound.

Transportation Books:

A Book of Things That Go Zoom by Jennifer Frantz. Ill. by Don Tate.

The Story of Flight by Lizzy Pearl.
The Little Engine That Could Retold by Watty Piper, Ill. by Geore and Doris Hauman
My Big Train Book (Priddy Books; Big Ideas for Little People)

Next Lesson: Recycled Robots and R sounds.

Happy Chinese New Years! (Horse)

This Friday the Year of the Water Snake gives way to the Year of the Wooden Horse.(January 31-February 14)

This unit teaches children about Cultural Diversity 

as we study Chinese Americans and the Lunar New Year Celebration.

2015 is the Year of the Goat
(according to the Chinese Zodiak Calendar).
Depending on what year you were born, in China, you are assigned an animal: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Cock, Dog, or Boar. It is felt growing up that you will have characteristics and personality similar to your birth year animal.

 
It was fun to meet all the animals: Dragon (), Rats (), Oxes ( , and Miss Julie), and Tigers (Eva and ).
 
Daily Question: Do you know a Chinese Happy New Years Greeting?  "Gung Hei Fat Choi!" (Kantonese)

Which means in English "Wishing You Prosperity and Wealth."

 We learned a few Chinese words, including:  hello--Nǐ hǎo (Nee how) and Thank you--Xièxiè (Shey Shey).  

Toys:  FP Village and Lite Brites

Snack:  Orange slices, graham crackers, and homemade chocolate chip cookies, White Rabbit Candy, Panda Cookies, and Fortune Cookies.

We practiced using our chop sticks! 

(The elastic and rolled up paper make learning chopsticks easier.  Ask your students to show you his/her skills! ) 


We enjoyed White Rabbit (creamy, milk) candies wrapped in rice paper--that we could eat!  We also tried Panda cookies (creme filled), and talked about noodles, sea food, sea vegetables and sea weed, dumplings, rice cakes, fruit, and other feast favorites.

Tangerines are considered lucky at the New Year. They leave the stem and leaves on for a sign of "connectedness."

Wooden Horse Coloring Page: Before finding our fortune, we went in to color a lucky Chinese Horse to take home and welcome in the Chinese New Year! 

Fortune Hunting: As part of Chinese New Year, friends and family exchange lucky red envelopes.  Inside is usually money.  Today, we sent home a lucky envelope with your student.  * Parents, please review what a penny, nickle, dime, and quarter are worth.

As part of the celebration, we each got a pair of child friendly chopsticks (the paper and elastic makes them spring back--easier to use), a red envelope with a Fortune Cookie (invented by a Chinese American), a Zodiak Placemat, and a lucky red envelop with cash inside.*

Contributions from China: Did you know the Chinese invented paper, silk, kites, noodles, and fireworks? Fortune cookies were invented by Asian Americans and are not found in China.

Chinese Language:
We learned a little Chinese in class today, with help from a library DVD.
ni how (knee how) means "hello!"
zai jian (Zaie zhen) means "goodbye."
xie xie (zhey zhey)means "thank you."
peng you (pong yow) means "friend."

Counting:
1. Yi (yee)
2. Er (er)
3. San (san)
4. Si (s'uh)
5. Wu (w'uh)
6. Liu (li-ah)
7. Qi (chee)
8. Ba (bah)
9. Jui (je-oh)
10. Shi (sh'uh)

Chinese New Year Books:
A New Year's Reunion by YU Li-Qiong and Zhu Cheng-Liang (2012-Year of the Dragon)
The New Year Dragon Dilemma by Ron Roy, Ill. by John Steven Gurney. PCL
Light the Candle! Bang the Drum! A book of Holidays Around the World by Ann Morris and Peter Linenthal
The New Year Dragon Dilemma by Ron Roy; Ill. by John Steven Gurney PCL
Happy New Year, Julie (1974) American Girl. (This is for more advanced reading and pictures about the Chinese New Year. Julie celebrates with her Chinese American friend, Ivy). PCL

DVD:
American Cultures For Children: Chinese-American Heritage (Schlessinger Media) PCL

Some Other Fun Tidbits:

WHEN IS CHINESE NEW YEAR?
In 2014, Chinese New Year falls on January 31st. It ends on February 14 which is also Valentine's Day.. Chinese New Year lasts for 15 days.
However, do take note that Chinese New Year has no fixed date. It is celebrated following the lunar calendar. The lunar calendar is calculated on the time the moon takes to go around the Earth. Emperor Shih Huang Ti introduced the animal zodiac cycle. There are a total of 12 animals in the zodiac cycle. According to the Chinese calendar, it takes sixty years and five cycles of twelve years each for a complete cycle. Chinese New Year usually falls in either January or February. 

Chinese New Year Dates and the related animal zodiac

2009 Jan 26 - Ox 2010 Feb 14 - Tiger 2011 Feb 3 - Rabbit 2012 Jan 23 - Dragon 2013 Feb 10 - Snake 2014 Jan 31 - Horse 2015 Feb 19 - Goat 2016 Feb 8 - Monkey 2017 Jan 28 - Rooster 2018 Feb 16 - Dog 2019 Feb 5 - Pig

HOW DO THE CHINESE CELEBRATE CHINESE NEW YEAR?

SPRING CLEANING

Spring cleaning is a must before Chinese New Year's Day. No sweeping is allowed on the first day of Chinese New Year as it is believed that you will be sweeping out all your goodluck or family fortune. 

REUNION DINNER

Family members will get together on the eve of Chinese New Year for is called the reunion dinner. This is the most important day of all. Some families prepare elaborate dinners while some will choose to have a steamboat dinner.
The steamboat dinner is a big pot of soup placed in the middle of the dinner table and lots of different kinds of foods like shrimps, fish, crabs, meatballs, fishballs, chicken meat, pork and vegetables are put into the pot of soup to cook. 

FIRST DAY OF CHINESE NEW YEAR

All debts have to be repaid by this time. There should also be no lending on this day as it is believed that it will put you in debt for the whole year.
Everyone is encouraged to speak only good and nice things on this day. Using inappropriate language is considered bad luck.
Children also get away with their misbehaviour on this day. Parents do not want to upset their children or make them cry as crying on New Year's Day is considered unlucky.
It is advisable to start the day off by consuming a bowl of sweet dessert called "tong sui" (syrupy sweet drink) in Cantonese. It symbolises starting the year off sweet and pleasant. 

The children will greet their parents and adults :

·  Gong Hei Fatt Choy (in Cantonese)

·  Gong Xi Fa Cai (in Mandarin)

·  Keong Hee Huat Chai (in Hokkien) 

The meaning of "Gong Xi" is congratulations while "Fa Cai" means be rich or prosperous. All the above have the same meaning. They only sound different.
New clothes and shoes are a must for Chinese New Year.
The younger generation will go visit their elder relatives and friends too. Married couples, will have to give a red packet called "Hong Pow" containing money inside to those who are not married and also to their parents.
The hosts will serve their guests all kinds of cookies and the Mandarin Orange. The Mandarin Orange is a symbol of prosperity.
 

SECOND DAY OF CHINESE NEW YEAR

The elder generation who stayed at home to welcome visiting relatives on the first day, will now visit their friends and relatives.

One of the things that most Chinese do during Chinese New Year is to play some card games. It is a favorite past time during this festive season of 15 days. The Chinese also like to set off lots of fireworks and firecrackers during this time. To find out the reasons for all the firecrackers and fireworks, go to our story section and watch the video of "Nian".