Intro to Bears

It has been a great week. We have read LOTS of bear books and we have been working on bear projects. The dress up area has been taken over by a large group of Teddy Bears.  Here are some of the activities we have been playing at this week:

Our Teddy Bear puzzle helps us practice buttons, zippers, snaps, and lacing. 

Building Forests for the Bear Counters.

Acting out "The Bear Feels Scared" in the dress up area.

The Search Party.

The TV hasn't been brought back to the basement from PJ day. They are enjoying pretending its a computer.

It's a picnic.

Creating our own Teddy Bears.

The Three Bears: Fact and Fiction

Baby Bear, Papa Bear, and Mama Bear

Cutting our Mini-Books that show the difference between fact and fiction with bears.

BEARS: Fact and Fiction

Bears

This month we will be doing a lot of projects and activities that are bear related. We will be investigating real bears and teddy bears. 

The purpose of the unit is to work on literacy and increase excitement for books.

There are some amazing bear characters and books that we will get to explore this month.  Corduroy, Paddington, Winnie the Pooh, Little Bear, Three Little Bears, Bear Hunt and The Bear Snores On, to name a few.  

Towards the middle/end of the month we will be having a week long Teddy Bear Reunion!

Coming Soon: Classroom Faces T-Shirts

We will also be working on our classroom t-shirts. These are the shirts that I am often wearing with the little faces all over them.  When we have the layout all situated, you will be able to place an order with me.  They are $13 for all sizes, and I cover the shipping and handling.  

Snow Mountain

Our first official day on the "snow mountain." It is so worth the plowing bill!

Relaxing

"Simmmbbaaaa! Helppp Meee!"

Jump

Happy Hanukkah

Our Hanukkah Sensory Bin

Although none of the children in my preschool program this year are Jewish, someday they may be in a classroom with a child who is. When the teacher is pulling out the Christmas activities and a Jewish child in the class speaks up and says they celebrate Hanukkah, I want that to spark a memory for my preschoolers. I want my preschoolers to be the ones who raise their hand and say “I know about Hanukkah! We learned about that in preschool.”  I want them to be the ones to create a feeling of acceptance for their peers. I want them to stand up with that child and help their traditions be recognized.
It is very important for children to learn that there are other cultures and traditions in the world other than those that they celebrate at home. Hanukkah is a great way to expand this knowledge because it usually coincides closely with Christmas.  During the “holiday” season children can become very wrapped up in themselves. This is a great opportunity to open their eyes to the many different ways people celebrate.



The main character in The Only One Club, written by Jane Naliboff, realizes that she is the “Only One” in her class who celebrates Hanukkah. She is so proud that she starts a club, but many children who experience this may feel sad. 

A close friend of mine,  remembers her teacher as a child, centering the classroom around Christmas and making her feel very left out of the celebrations.  In many public schools, the teachers avoid holidays all together, some bring many cultures into the classroom, and some still focus solely on Christmas.

Hebrew Letters Shin, Nun, Hay, and Gimel can be found on dreidels;
which teaches the children that not all letters look like A B C

Potato Latkes are a traditional food served during Hanukkah.
Shredded potato that is fried in oil
and served with applesauce

Focusing on the number 8 and counting 1-8.

Sammy Spider lives in the home of the Shapiro family. Although Sammy is not Jewish,
he learns all about the holiday by watching from up above on the ceiling. There are
also more Sammy Spider books for the other Jewish celebrations.

From the book "The Story of Hanukkah"

Playing Dreidel is a great way to practice using those fine motor skills.
Children feel a huge sense of accomplishment when their practice pays off.

December: Ice and Mud

The playground has been an interesting combination of mud and ice this week. Two things that you can't keep children away from, even if I tried. 

Somebody was very proud of their discovery. 

She thought I couldn't see her eating the ice. She kept peaking around the corner at me.

Frozen mud, even better!

Trying to break ice.

This will work better!

I have no idea what this was all about. It went on for about ten  minutes. Very serious conversations going on.

In case you are wondering if this ice "plate" ever left his sight, it did not.

Just when you think its a bucket full of muddy freezing cold water....

...turns out to be hot cocoa!

Meanwhile inside this week...


Liquid Watercolor:

Beads and Patterns