We have been reading a variety of Gingerbread Stories in K Prep this month and learning about the parts of a story. We’ve been comparing the characters, refrain and the ending of the stories. These are just a few!
We have been reading a variety of Gingerbread Stories in K Prep this month and learning about the parts of a story. We’ve been comparing the characters, refrain and the ending of the stories. These are just a few!
Number Order Gingerbread Style
Uppercase and Lowercase Letter Matching
Frozen Sensory Table
Gingerbread Baking Shop
Winter Wonderland Building Center
Making Bracelets in the Bead Center
Snuggle up with a good book in the library
Write a Christmas Card in the Writing Center
Baking Some Holiday Treats in the Bake Shop
Ms. Penny joined the K Prep Class to teach us about about two ways Native Americans told stories long ago…pictographs and petroglyphs. We tried our hand at creating our own pictograph!
Pictograph
Petroglyph
The K Prep students did the first entry in their journals today about what we were thankful for, after reading Bear Says Thanks. We saw a lot of family faces in those entries!
Journal writing is one of the foundation blocks of our language arts philosophy. Each week, the children have a set time to write in their journals. The journal serves as a valuable learning tool. The children are beginning to get their ideas on paper and learn first hand the power of words. Research shows that journaling is one of the most effective ways to teach and learn phonics.
Children at the beginning stages often use “scribble writing” or random letters to represent words. As they progress, they will begin to use the letters that represent the sounds in the words that they are attempting to write (“btrfli” for butterfly). We make good use of the children’s growing phonics by helping them listen carefully to the words they wish to use. Our ultimate goal is for each child to learn to communicate on paper whether it is through words or illustrations.
Children draw pictures as the main part of their communication at these early stages. Drawing helps them find the words they might want to use in their writing. We saw a lot of words in these first entries….very impressive!
Our reading group book this week was titled, Birds, by Bruce Larkin. We focused on the sight words this and is throughout the book. The students were also introduced to the reading strategy, looking for a small word in a big word (i.e. is in this). After reading the book all week, we created our own sentences and designed an illustration to match. The students also put into practice their new knowledge of creating an interesting illustration by adding details. They did a GREAT job!
Creative Tots has specialized in the private education of both toddlers and preschool age children for over 15 years. We began in the heart of Madeira and now also have a new Mason location. We are specifically designed to focus on early childhood development for children ages 18 months to 5 years.
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