Hi Everybody,
Monday Veronica came in and told us three different oral versions of
Little Red Riding Hood. In the last version, Little Red Riding Hood
outsmarted the wolf. Veronica told us that the stories were 200 and
300 years old. The children said they liked the last one best. We
voted on whether to create a version of our own or to have Veronica
tell us a different story. The response was overwhelmingly in favor of
hearing her, so she told the story of a little man named
Rumpelstiltskin.
Tuesday we did our own retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.
On Wednesday we rewrote and acted out Jack and the Beanstalk. We had
five Jacks, five mothers, three giants, and two audience members. Of
course, we used our giant beanstalk that we had made. Once the giant
came down the beanstalk, the Jacks and the mamas shrieked with
laughter and excitement. The story was kind of blurry after that.
We went to free-play in the big room and about five minutes later,
someone came up and asked, “Am I still the giant?” She decided she was
and ran off.
We had our second dance class with Sharon. While half the class
danced, the other half made Valentines. Most people agreed, the more
sparkles, the better. We read Somebody Loves You Mr. Hatch, a favorite
Valentine book.
We read Hop On Pop and Green Eggs And Ham. The children were able to
remember the author’s name with one clue: "Doctor." We searched for
rhyming words and found many. We made a list which the children
continued to add to during snack time and after.
When we return, we will do some beading in preparation for our Mardi
Gras celebration, and continue studying animals. We will make a
transition from pretend animals to real animals.
Hope y'all had a fantastic week off,
Therese
Baby Chicks Rule
Dear Parents,
Monday morning our first baby chick, egg number four, pecked his way
out of his shell. We left him in the incubator to dry as instructed by
Farmer Kayla. We reviewed how to treat baby chicks and how to sit when
it was our turn to hold one. Much to everyone’s delight, when we
returned on Wednesday there were three more chicks. A day later, the
fifth chick joined us. We took turns sitting criss-cross applesauce to
hold them. We reminded a couple of friends not to hold them by the
wings. Four people did not want turns but watched from afar. Eight
people wanted as many turns as chickenly possible.
We read The Little Red Hen. Several children knew the story and told
parts they remembered.
We had plenty of time to run, swing, slide, climb, tricycle, and run,
in the big room and yard.
We had our first dance class with Sharon. When discussing dance before
she arrived, two children told us their brother does silly dances at
home, one person told us she likes to twirl because her dress goes
out, and another said she knew a lot about ballet. We saw everyone
holding hands in a circle with Sharon and then throwing scarves up and
catching them.
While half the class danced, the other half had more turns petting
baby chicks or using clay.
Farmer Rick came to pick up our baby chicks. The children asked why
they had to leave? Several answered they wanted to go see their daddy
and mama, Will and Gracie. We read See How We Grow and My Chick Egg.
We compared the illustrations of one book to the photographs of
another. We talked about the real chickens vs. the pretend chickens.
The children knew real chickens couldn’t cook spaghetti and knit
sweaters like the illustrated book.
Friday we made scrambled eggs. We asked the class what makes these
eggs different from the ones we had in our incubator? They came from
the grocery store instead of the farm, replied one person. We talked a
little about the rooster fertilizing the eggs to make baby chicks and
grocery store eggs not being fertilized. We scrambled using an old
hand mixer, and then we ate.
Next week we will write some stories of our own.
Have a sunny weekend,
Therese