Hold back from "Helping" your Child

Learning to do things for themselves is a BIG part of Pre Kindergarten.  Well intentioned adults will often rush in to "help" children with things that the children are capable of doing themselves.  This "help" is actually robbing the children of a wealth of education.  Please, take a moment to encourage children to try to do it themselves before you do it for them.  They will learn independence, persistence, problem solving, and the joy of setting and accomplishing goals.  If you have a couple minutes, read the following great post from a mother who recognizes the importance of independence. http://alameda.patch.com/groups/kate-bassford-bakers-blog/p/bp--please-dont-help-my-kids  

A smile for a job well done.  She got dressed and zipped her zipper all by herself!

Surprise Visit from SANTA!

Today, we did some Q-tip painting and we had a surprise visit from Santa!

OUTSIDE TIME!

The weather was warmer today.  A very welcome change!  We took advantage of  it and played outside.  You can view some pictures of the afternoon class playing in the snow by clicking on the following link.

http://get-puppet.com/s/2331799A-EDDA-49C1-B231-9F88ED21D336

Advent Calendar

This Advent Calendar helps the children visualize how long they need to wait for Christmas.  Mary and Joseph are on their way to Bethlehem.  When they reach the stable, Jesus is born and it is Christmas!

Wrapping Christmas Presents

Today we started wrapping Christmas presents for our mommies and daddies.  (Shhhhhh....it's a surprise!). Some students brought extra wrapping paper and were nice enough to share with their friends.  Wrapping takes plenty of time and we are not finished yet.  We have some patient children who are waiting for their turn tomorrow.

This activity is educational in many ways.  Lots of Language is used while wrapping the gifts.  Teachers expand vocabulary and comprehension by asking questions, listening and having conversations while wrapping the gifts with the children.  

Waiting patiently for your turn and sharing are important Social Skills.

 Fine Motor Skills are used tearing the tape off the dispenser and applying it to the gift.  

Another important reason that I help the children make gifts for their parents is that it is important to experience the act of giving.  Often, at Christmas, children have many experiences of receiving . By giving their parents this small gift, I really hope that the children learn about giving and begin to experience the joy that comes with it.  

Happy Birthday!

We celebrated a Birthday, today.  For birthdays a crown is worn, a Blessing made, a Birthday dance is enjoyed and a Birthday Book is chosen.  The Birthday child chooses to have "Birthday Claps" or "Birthday Bumps"...four claps or four bumps when you are four years old and five when you turn five years old.  If the child wishes, baby memories are also shared.  Happy Birthday Master "S"!  Hope your special day is great!

 

 

 

 

 

Puppet Show

On Dec. 3rd & Dec. 4th we travelled to the John M Cuelenaere Public Library to see a puppet show.  Maxine, Sharon and Kim put on three very entertaining puppet plays for us.  We wanted to thank them for their work so the students dictated a thank you note to me and made a "THANK YOU" picture.

Dear Maxine, Kim and Sharon,

Thank you for the puppet show.  We Liked it.  We really liked the Christmas one.  We Liked the reindeer.  When Santa wore sunglasses it was funny.  Mrs. Claus' bikini was funny.  Thank you!  MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Love,

Mrs. Bain's Pre K

St. John Community School

Thank you ladies!  The Christmas Puppet Show is always one of the highlights of Christmas for the children and for me too!

Advent Fundraising

In Pre K we have been talking about "Getting our hearts ready for Christmas".  We talk about being kind to family and friends.  We talk about helping people in need.

In the spirit of giving, St. John Community School is attempting to raise $1000 during Advent to help purchase a Shelter Box.  The Shelter Box helps such people as the victims of  Typhoon Hayian in the Philippines.   We are collecting money in our classroom. Please help our students with this worthwhile activity by contibuting money to our Jar. Thank you!

If you would like further information about Shelter Boxes, follow this link:
http://www.youtube.com/user/ShelterBoxUK

Santa's Gift Shop

Today many children had a chance to shop at Santa's Gift Shop. The activity was a great success!  Look at all the choices!

    Santa's Little Helper's

    

   Happy Shoppers

Letter to Santa

Several students have brought me their letters to Santa and I have mailed them to the North Pole. You can still bring your letter to school if you have one to send.  It is never too late to talk to Santa!  Watch your mailboxes for a reply from Santa or his elves coming soon.  Take the time to read the letter and discuss it with your child when it arrives.  It is a great Literacy Activity!

We are Proud of Ourselves!

I have started taking pictures of children who have zipped their coats all by themselves.  The pictures are posted just outside the classroom door.  Zipping is an important skill in Pre K.  It is good for Fine Motor Skills and teaches independence. Accomplishing this difficult task is great for self esteem. I always try to give the students "High Five" after they zip up their coats!

                              

Acorn Squash, Pumpkin Seeds and Sunflower Sprouts

We had an acorn squash donated to our Science Table in September.  It was a deep green color and stayed that color for a long time.  Gradually, it has begun to change color until it is almost all orange now.

This is the Acorn Squash in September

This is the Acorn Squash now.

After scooping out the pulp and seeds from our Halloween pumpkins, we planted a few seeds in some soil.  Then we waited and waited and WAITED!

But nothing sprouted.  I was beginning to think nothing would happen.  Then, today one of the students noticed that something was growing!

If you look very closely, you may notice part of the seed's shell is still attached to the sprout....and it's not a pumpkin seed shell.  It's a SUNFLOWER seed shell!  Now how do you think that happened?

(Our Science table had sunflower heads with the seeds still intact.  Could someone have planted a sunflower seed when I wasn't looking?  I wonder.)

The children were anxious to water the sprout when they saw it.  It will get lots of attention, now.  We will be watching closely.