Holiday Blog Post

Have a wonderful holiday season with your family and friends. See you in the new year! 

Literacy
During reader's workshop, the children worked on:
-retelling a familiar story
-identifying the beginning, middle, and end
-recording a retelling focusing on the important details
-central message

Retelling stories to our reading buddies!

Writing

Over the last few weeks, the children worked on a letter writing unit. First, they learned about writing friendly letters. The children were so excited to write to author Mo Willems. They even addressed their own envelopes and then we placed their letters in the mail. We hope that Mo Willems writes back to us soon!

Editing our Mo Willems letters with a partner.

The children also learned how to write a thank you letter. First, we worked together to write a thank you letter to Mrs. Lane and Mrs. Kelly. Then, the children practiced writing their own thank you letters to someone very special. It’s a secret (but I bet you will find out very soon)! They are doing a great job of remembering the five parts of a letter (heading, greeting, body, closing, signature).  

Mrs. Kelly and Mrs. Lane loved our thank you letter!

Snow Globes:

Last week, the children listened to the book, The Snow Globe Family by Jane O’Connor. After, they wrote their own story about what they would do if they lived in a snow globe. The children wrote some very creative stories about life in a snow globe. They also created their own snow globe to attach their writing to. Our room now sparkles with beautiful snow globes hanging from the ceiling. 

Reindeer Application:

After listening to the book, Who Will Guide My Sleigh Tonight?, the children were very excited to learn that Santa was in need of a new reindeer. Each child applied to the position by filling out a reindeer application. They wrote about why they would make a good reindeer. To go along with their writing the children also turned themselves into a reindeer, complete with antlers and a shiny red nose!

Math

Last week, the children wrapped up Unit 3. They did a really nice job on their Unit 3 test. This week, we began Unit 4. This unit will focus on measurement. The children worked with measuring temperature using a thermometer. Later in the week, the children worked on measuring objects using non standard units, their personal foot, and a standard foot. The children recorded their measurements using approximation language.

Social Studies 

Over the last few weeks, we studied different Winter Holidays. We read several books and used Pebble Go to research each of the holidays. The children learned about how people celebrate Diwali, Eid, Hanukkah, Kwanza, and Christmas. After learning about the traditions and celebrations for each holiday, the children worked together to fill in a holiday celebrations chart. 

The children each decorated a Rangoli. 

After learning about Kwanzaa the children made Unity Cups and wrote a Harambee paper. They learned that “Harambee” means “let’s pull together.” The children each wrote about how they pull together with their friends and family. 

We concluded the unit by reading, Festival of Lights. The children discussed how all of the holidays we learned about use light to celebrate. The children wrote about how they use light to celebrate at their house. They each created a festival of lights craft to go along with their writing. 

Star Students

Angie and Connor were our last two star students. Thanks for sharing all about you!

***Photo of Connor coming soon!***

Royal Readers

A special thank you to Samantha's Mom, Angie’s Mom and sister, and Connor’s dad. They joined us the last three weeks as our Royal Readers. The children enjoyed listening to the two books that you read. 

Happy Birthday

We celebrated Oliver’s, Demetri’s, and Maddie’s birthday this week. Happy Birthday Oliver, Demetri, and Maddie!

Our updates will return in the new year. Check back in to see new photos and read about all the wonderful things we are learning!