Friday, October 9, 2009 Letter of the Week:T On Monday, we read Old Bear's Surprise Painting by Jane Hissey. In this book, Old Bear and his friends paint patterns of wiggly lines, dots, and stripes to create one exciting painting. The boys and girls used their creative talents to paint on ceramic tiles for our upcoming Art Exhibit to be held on Friday evening, October 23 during our Fall Shabbat Dinner. As you will soon see, their art is quite expressive.
On Tuesday, one group of children read A Tree for Me by Nancy Van Laan. In this rhyming book, a child finds that one owl, two possums, three worms, four squirrels, and five spiders all make their homes in trees. The other group of children read One, Two, Tree! by Anushka Ravishankar. In this number book, a tree keeps growing as more and more animals make their homes in it. For our letter T art project, the children decorated the letter T, using turquoise paint, for Simchat Torah, a joyous holiday that celebrates the Torah. We learned the words Torah, Tuesday, tiles, tree, two, three, tiger, teeth, tongue, tummy, and toes.
On Wednesday, a group of children read a book about the adventures of Clifford, the dog, in Clifford's First Autumn by Norman Bridwell. The other group made an entry in their journals by coloring fall leaves. In yoga, Miss Kim asked the children to name their favorite food that grows in the ground as they practiced yoga breathing. They played "Yoga Simon Says", too. Their imaginary trip was to visit a farm and travel by hayride. At the end of each class, the children put their hands together and say "Namaste" to their friends to show that they had fun participating in the yoga poses.
On Thursday, we read Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. Where does a Leaf Man go when the wind blows? In reading the story, we find out that Leaf Man just follows the wind. For our art project, the children painted murals for our classroom bulletin board. Red, orange, yellow, and green paints were used to make the leaves of a fall tree and darker paints of brown and blue were used for the tree's trunk.
On Friday, we read Sammy Spider's First Shabbat by Sylvia A. Rouss. Sammy Spider observes how the Shapiro family celebrates Shabbat. For our art project, the children made flags for Simchat Torah. On this holiday, we wave flags and sing happy songs. The Torah is a gift to the Jewish people.
*Thank you to Tommy, Max, Jonah L., Maya, and Avery for being our super "kids of the day" this week. Please return the flyer for Grandparents/Special Friends Day as soon as possible so that we will know the names and addresses of our guests. They will be mailed an invitation to attend our Playschool event which will take place on Friday morning, October 23. We will show grandparents and special friends how the children play together, what we do during circle time and calendar time, and we will celebrate Shabbat together. All children and their grandparents or special friends are invited to attend even if Friday is not their usual day to come to school.
*The Fall Shabbat Dinner and Art Exhibit will be held on Friday evening, October 23 from 5:45 - 7:15 PM. You will be receiving more information pertaining to the details of the dinner and art exhibit soon.
*Our first trip to the Philadelphia Museum of Art will take place on Tuesday, November 10. All children and parents are invited to attend. More information will be coming soon.
*Please sign-up for Afterschool Arts Clubs. It's a great way for children to extend their day in the Playschool. Each day, we focus on a featured activity. Monday is Cooking Club, Tuesday is Science Club, Wednesday is Art, Thursday is Movement, and Friday is Music Club. Please have your child give it a try!
*Jackets are missing!! Please check to make sure that you have not mistakenly taken home another child's jacket. All outerwear must be labeled with your child's name.
*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, October 12 for Columbus Day. Have a great weekend!
Miss Gloria, Miss Allison, Miss Sophie, Miss Mindy and Mr. Noah
