We wrapped up our unit on oviparous animals (animals that lay eggs) with a visit from the Cincinnati Museum Center.
Cool Critters visited our classroom today. We have been talking about what animals lay eggs….not just chickens! We got to interact with four animals that lay eggs: gecko, snake, millipede, & box turtle. One little critter did NOT lay eggs, the chinchilla! He was so soft and adorable. I think many of them would have snuck that little one into their backpack and taken it home, if we would have let them 🙂
We continued with our second book, Making Bubbles by Bruce Larkin in reading groups this week. The children have been working hard to track each word in the repetitive text that introduces a new sight word each week. The sight word we worked on this week is the word, the. Sight words are words that are used most frequently in text. The reason that they are called “sight” words is because the goal is for your child to begin to recognize these words instantly, at first sight. These are very important to master because they account for up to 75% of the words used in beginning children’s books. These words, typically, are not words that can be “sounded out,” therefore need to be learned by sight.
Many of the students were asking to take the books home to be able to share them with you. If you would like your child to read the text for you. You can find a digital book here. Just click on “Making Bubbles” under Kindergarten Books to access the book.
Our early reading adventure began in K Prep this week. The focus this week was how to use their “Magic Reading Finger.” Why do we have children use their finger to track the words while they read? The reason for this practice is because our eyes naturally follow movement, placing a finger, on a page and strategically moving it down the text, a reader will naturally keep their place and be more focused. This helps readers concentrate and understand what they read making reading a more satisfying experience.  They did a wonderful job!
Our K Prep class worked together to create a collaborative art piece yesterday. We have been working so hard on mastering skills over the past few weeks, it was time to let our creativity soar without any thought of right and wrong answers. In open-ended art projects, there is no frustration, no anxiety, and no uncertainty. Creating an “anything goes” atmosphere during our project was a welcome relief for our amazing learners.
Collaborate art is also a great way to build community within the classroom, develop communication skills and learn from each other!
Friends are vital to Preschool & Pre-Kindergarten children’s healthy development. Friendships provide children with more than just fun playmates. Friendships help children develop emotionally and morally. In interacting with friends, children learn a lot of social skills, such as how to communicate, cooperate, and solve problems. They practice controlling their emotions and responding to the emotions of others. They develop the ability to think through and negotiate different situations that arise in their relationships. Having friends even affects children’s school performance. Children tend to have better attitudes about school and learning when they have friends to share it with.
At Creative Tots, we have learned that students rely heavily on their senses to process information when learning. This means it is more easily accessible to your children as there are more ways the information can be triggered and retrieved from their brain. We all have different learning styles and we strive to make lessons beneficial to all your children.  Our goal is to make learning a fun and multi-sensory experience to help children remember and retain information more effectively. One way we achieve this during our daily writing groups is through sensory writing. Using a textured material under their paper during their writing activity allows the brain to not only see the letter that’s in front of them but also FEEL the letter as they write it. Not to mention, it’s fun!! Playful Learning at work.
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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