Noah's pre-school activities

September Newsletter » Mt. Whitney: New Beginnings

Hi Preschool Families,

After an unforgettable exhilirating summer...

camping,

making human bubbles,

painting in the dark,

time traveling (49ers panning for gold),

.

meeting mountain biker - Teal,

fishing,

visiting the moon (exploring "moon sand"),and playing with snow,

... it was time to start the new fall year.  With a new season comes a new classroom.  As our eight 4-year olds transitioned to Pre-K, it left our Mt. Whitney classroom with seven preschoolers to make their newly downsized classroom their own.

Before a long weekend, the children came together to discuss their likes and dislikes of the classroom. Suggestions were made; Come the following Tuesday, to their joy, the classroom was different - rearranged furniture, new rugs, plants, family photographs. The sparkle in their eyes and wide grins showcased the absolute joy of seeing their classroom as they imagined days ago. You had to be there... They were most excited to see their silhouettes mounted on the wall and used as a growth chart; which they track daily.

Can you guess the silhouette?

Fall 2013

As the new fall season starts, the children now begin the fun introduction of the ABC's.  Keeping it emergent and child-focused, many conversations of "what do you want to learn about" are initiated weekly. Their ideas are then connected with the letter of the week. The children have the power to guide their curriculum.

Letter "A"Taavi multitasking - eating & working

What better way to learn about the letter "A" than to explore all things apples?  Since it was apple season, it made the topic very relevant; interest was easily gained once they found out about making one of their favorite foods - APPLESAUCE!

Using their gross motor skills the children worked hard peeling the fresh fuji apples.  As they twisted the "machine," they discovered that the apple skin resembled "apple hair and apple noodles". They became very fond of it. Some ate the skin, while others got creative and used them as necklaces, earrings etc. Many skills such as: counting one to one correspondence, math (measurement) and social- emotional (taking turns) were observed. The children also practiced delayed gratiJayden counting apple cores.fication during this cooking project as they waited hours until the applesauce was cooked in the crock pot. All woul"Come see what I made" Noah Td agree that it was the worth the wait because it was sooooo yummy!

As an extension to learning all about apples, many children then became very interested in writing the letter 'A'. You can find A's written all over their new art/writing journals; which were introduced to them the same week to jott down ideas, thoughts and create masterpieces! Way to go guys!

Busy "B's"

Our Mt. Whitney bees kept busy the following week. They learned about pollination and honey. They even made the very complicated banana ice cream (just blended frozen bananas) and continued practicing delayed gratification by baking bread! It was an amazing experience for both myself and the children. Being our very first time baking bread, we were careful reading and following the directions. When one thing failed, we tried again. For example, when we sat and waited for the yeast to foam and it didn't, we didn't fret. We shrugged our shoulders and asked eachother what we could do differently. Jayden mentioned, "we can put more honey." So we did, and the yeast activated. After waiting patiently for hours until the dough woke up (rise), we had the opportunity of punching and moulding the dough into various shapes. Once completed, we popped them in the oven and awaited to eat them as the irresistable warm toasty aroma of fresh baked bread trickled through the hallways of Base Camp.

 The oh so good, lavender, rosemary sweet bread!

Field trip to the train tracks'C'olors of Fall

With leaves falling and unpredictable weather, we decided to closely examine the colors of Fall for week "C". Using four of our five senses, we went on nature walks to collect leaves and record our findings. We even went as far as leaving Base Camp during one of our trips. From what started as just visiting the bochy ball court, to an emerged interest of "what's that sound?" It was a "choo choo train." Walking a few blocks further with the cool breeze carressing our faces, we found the railroad tracks. But where were the trains? Nowhere to be seen, the children waited patiently and took in their environment. They waved to passerbys, made new friends with a "man and his monster truck", searched for the only cloud in the sky (which turned out to look like a fire breathing dragon) and made some drivers dance in their cars! Unbelievable. Minutes passed, distracted by others, the children then heard the ticking of the train signal. Immediately, they jumped up with pure excitement as they saw the train quickly pass by. Although only witnessing it for less than 5 seconds, you could tell - it made their day. Nonstop chatter/arguments of where the train was going, or whether it was really a train echoed through the streets as we walked back to school. This simple siting made my day, week and month. It was absolutely worth the impromptu trip. 

Next month, to coincide with many of our friends' favorite holiday - Halloween, we will continue our ABC curriculum with an emphasis for all things "scary!" EEEEK! It's going to be spooktacular!

I look forward to making more memories and reaching new milestones with our Mt. Whitney Preschool class of 2013/2014! 

With love,

Ms. Mylees