News From Miss Gloria's Class: 2/18/11

Friday, February 18, 2011
LETTER OF THE WEEK: V

On Monday, we read The Very Clumsy Click Beetle by Eric Carle. In this book, a clumsy click beetle learns to land on its feet with the encouragement from an earthworm, a turtle, a snail, a mouse, a boy, and a wise old click beetle. For our letter V art project, the boys and girls painted volcanoes. We learned these letter V words: vanilla, velcro, vase, violet, violin, voice, veterinarian, vacation, vacuum, and vegetables. Today the boys and girls were very excited to go outside to ride bikes and play. Please dress your child appropriately for the outdoor weather.

On Tuesday, we read Vera’s First Day of School by Vera Rosenberry. In this book, Vera is looking forward to her first day of school until she arrives late and the school door is closed. Vera sadly goes home and has her mother take her back to school where she has a fabulous day meeting new children and painting pictures. Vera said that school was fun and that she knows that the second day of school will be even better. For our letter V art project, the boys and girls decorated their letter V with violet paint and violet flowers.

On Wednesday, the story group read The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle. This book tells how a spider works very hard to build its web. No matter how the animals of the nearby farm try to distract the busy spider, she keeps on working. She builds a web that is not only beautiful, but one that is useful, too. The children in the journal group made a vase holding violet flowers. In yoga, Miss Kim asked the children to name their favorite movie as they practiced yoga breathing. They repeated, “sa, ta, na, ma” for yoga relaxation. They played the dog and snake yoga game, too. The children are now able to hold up their bodies in dog pose so that other children can crawl underneath them as they do the snake pose. The imaginary yoga trip was to ride bikes to a cave. In the cave, the children posed as bats and snakes.

On Thursday, we read Sammy Spider’s First Purim by Sylvia A. Rouss. Sammy Spider books are always a great way to begin teaching a holiday celebration. In this Purim book, Sammy Spider learns about dressing in costume, eating hamantashen, and shaking a grogger to celebrate this happy time. The children took turns trying out different types of groggers. Groggers are noisemakers that are sounded when the name of the villain, Haman, is read. The boys and girls also learned a song about hamantashen, a three-cornered pastry with filling that is eaten at Purim. For our letter V art project, the boys and girls made violins.
 
On Friday, we read Growing Vegetable Soup by Lois Ehlert. This book tells how vegetables are grown in the garden. Once all of the vegetables have grown, they are picked or dug up from the soil. After they have been washed and cut, they are ready to be added to the soup. For our project, the children made a vegetable garden. We sang “Put a Chicken in the Pot” and named vegetables that we could add to our soup.

*Thank you to Brendan, Brody, Maddie, Dalia, and Lucie for being our super “kids of the day” this week.

*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, February 21, 2011 for President’s Day.

*Our third trip to the Art Museum will be on Tuesday, March 8. We will need 10 parents, who did not go on the last trip, to accompany us on this trip to the museum. The sign-up sheet is posted on the Social Hall door. Our last trip will take place on Tuesday, May 10.

*Please mark your calendars for the Purim Carnival on Sunday, March 13 from 11 AM until 1 PM. We will have games, food, prizes, craft projects, and fun for the whole family. Our class Purim celebration, with a parade and luncheon, will take place on Thursday, March 17 at 11:30 AM. All children and parents are encouraged to attend even if it is not your child’s regular day to come to school. More information about our classroom celebration will be coming soon.

*Reminder: Please donate non-perishable food items to Philabundance. The collection box is located in the Lawrence Courtyard foyer.

*Next week, we will learn about Purim and letter Q.

Have a great weekend! See you on Tuesday!
Miss Gloria, Miss Chloe, Miss Julia, Miss Mindy, and Mr. Noah

News From Miss Gloria's Class: 2/11/11

Friday, February 11, 2011
LETTER OF THE WEEK: L

On Monday, we read Harry and the Lady Next Door by Gene Zion. In this book, Harry’s neighbor, the lady next door, has a very loud singing voice. Harry tries hard to get her to stop singing so loudly, but each time he tries, he gets himself into trouble. Harry is able to find a way to have the lady next door win a singing contest that takes her to a far-off country to study music. For our art project, the boys and girls painted lizards. We learned these letter L words: light, look, lamb, lion, ladybug, lizard, leg, lips, little, lady, line leader, lick, lollipop, lunch, and our friends, Lucie, Liam, and Luke.



On Tuesday, we read Ladybug Girl by David Somar and Jacky Davis. When Ladybug Girl’s brother tells her that she is too little to play baseball with him, she makes her own fun. Ladybug Girl waters her plant, takes her dog outside for a walk, discovers ants marching over a rock, plays in a puddle of water, builds the perfect fort, and balances across a tree trunk without falling. After a morning full of adventures, Ladybug Girl knows that she is definitely not too little to do anything. For our letter of the week project, the boys and girls decorated the letter L with a ladybug crawling on leaves. The boys and girls had so much fun playing musical chairs, too.

On Wednesday, the journal group colored a picture of a ladybug and a lion for the letter L. The story group read The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle. The grouchy ladybug wants to pick a fight with all of the other animals, large and small. Once the grouchy ladybug realizes that it is not as strong as the whale, the grouchy ladybug does not want to fight anymore and uses its manners to thank a friendly ladybug for food. In yoga, Miss Kim asked the children to name their favorite song as they practiced yoga breathing. They also practiced the relaxation pose of repeating, “sa, ta, na, ma”. The boys and girls played “Red Light, Yoga Light” as they stretched their bodies. They posed as frogs, snakes, rabbits, and crabs. The boys and girls were excited to see Miss Kim stand on her head, too.

On Thursday, we read Leo the Late Bloomer by Robert Kraus. In this book, Leo, the tiger, could not do anything right. He couldn’t read, write, or draw. He couldn’t speak and he was a sloppy eater. Leo’s father and mother waited patiently for him to bloom. It took a while, but finally, he bloomed, and he was able to do all of the things that he always wanted to do. We also read llama llama misses mama by Anna Dewdney. Llama llama misses his mama on his first day of school, but he soon learns that his mama always comes back at the end of the school day. For our arts and crafts project, the children made roaring lions.

On Friday, we read The Littlest Candlesticks by Sylvia Rouss. Abby loves Shabbat so much that she wants to have her own candlesticks. In school, her teacher gives the children their own glass candlesticks. Abby surprises her family with the candlesticks, on which she has painted the sun, daisies, a rainbow, and a heart for the love that she feels for Shabbat. For our art project, the children decorated a picture of love.

*Thank you to Bodin, Talia, Rachel, Jordan, and Oren for being our super “kids of the day” this week. We welcome Isabelle Orosco to our class. She will be attending on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays.


*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, February 21, 2011 for President’s Day.

*Our third trip to the Art Museum will be on Tuesday, March 8.

*Please mark your calendars for the Purim Carnival on Sunday, March 13 from 11 AM until 1 PM. We will have games, food, prizes, craft projects, and fun for the whole family. Our class Purim celebration, with a parade and luncheon, will take place on Thursday, March 17 at 11:30 AM. All children and parents are encouraged to attend even if it is not your child’s regular day to come to school. More information about both of these family events will be coming soon.

*Reminder: Please donate non-perishable food items to Philabundance. The collection box is located in the Lawrence Courtyard foyer.

*Next week, we will learn letter V.

Have a great weekend!

Miss Gloria, Miss Chloe, Miss Julia, Miss Mindy, and Mr. Noah

News From Miss Gloria's Class: February 4, 2011

http://www.kinderteacher.com/FebFavIdeas.htm


Friday, February 4, 2011
LETTER OF THE WEEK:  K

On Monday, we read Jody’s Beans by Malachy Doyle. In this book, Jody learns how to plant and care for runner bean seeds. We learned that the seeds need water, sunlight, and rich soil to grow. After much care, Jody’s plants grew bright red flowers and green beans. For our art project, the boys and girls made free-standing trees. The boys and girls are still anxiously waiting for the parsley seeds that they planted to grow.

On Tuesday, we read Cowboy Kid by Max Eilenberg. In this book, Cowboy Kid likes to have his dad, Sheriff Pa, give him kisses goodnight until he falls asleep. Sheriff Pa tells Cowboy Kid that one kiss each night will help him to have a good night’s sleep. Sheriff Pa was proven right when Cowboy Kid falls asleep after just one kiss. The children learned these letter K words: kitchen, karate, king, kangaroo, kite, key, kiss, koala, kids, ketchup, kitten, kickball, and our friend, Kaya. For our letter K art project, the boys and girls decorated the letter K with a kite in the sky. We also played a parachute game.

On Wednesday, Groundhog’s Day, we read Gregory’s Shadow by Don Freeman. Gregory Groundhog loses his shadow. He searches in the winter’s snow to find his shadow before he needs to make his annual appearance for the farmers. Once he finds his shadow, Gregory and his shadow plan to stay together and never be parted again. For our project, the children made groundhogs coming out of their burrows. The boys and girls learned that if the groundhog sees his shadow, then there will be six more weeks of winter, and if the groundhog does not see his shadow, then we will have an early spring. As it turns out, the groundhog did not see his shadow, so hopefully, we will have an early spring. Miss Kim did not teach yoga today because of the two hour delay. We will make up this yoga class in the spring.

On Thursday, we read Katy No-Pocket by Emmy Payne. Katy Kangaroo has no pockets. She asks Mrs. Crocodile, Mrs. Monkey, and Mr. Owl to show her how they carry their babies. Their ways of carrying their babies just do not work for a kangaroo mother. Katy asks Mr. Owl for some advice. He tells her to go to the city to find a pocket. In the city, Katy discovers something more than just one pocket. For our letter K art project, the boys and girls painted kangaroos.

On Friday, we read The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn. In this book, Mrs. Raccoon tells Chester that whenever he feels lonely and needs a little loving from home, he can press his hand to his cheek and know that his mommy loves him. For our art project, the boys and girls used Model Magic to make a key for the letter K.

*Thank you to Charlotte, Sofia, Cobrin, Theo, Nicky, Gemma, and Jacob for being our super “kids of the day” for the past two weeks.

*Thank you to those parents who accompanied us to the Art Museum last week. On our next trip, on Tuesday, March 8, we will have 10 more parents join us.

*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, February 21, 2011 for President’s Day.

*This week, in Afterschool Arts, the children made a fruit salad in Cooking Club, they learned about Groundhog’s Day and making shadows in Science Club, in Art Club, they made snowmen and read When It Starts to Snow by Phillis Gershator, in Movement Club, they rode scooters and played games with the Pre-K class, and in Music Club, they sang Shabbat and winter songs. Please have your child participate in Afterschool Arts. It is a great way to spend a cold winter’s afternoon.

*Reminder: Please donate non-perishable food items to Philabundance. The collection box is located in the Lawrence Courtyard foyer.

*Next week, we will learn letter L.

Have a great weekend!

Miss Gloria, Miss Chloe, Miss Julia, Miss Mindy, and Mr. Noah

When Children’s Art Takes Over the Home

The article can be found here!

A Little Contemporary Music from Jonah!

News from Miss Gloria's Class: 01/14/2011

Friday, January 14, 2011
LETTER OF THE WEEK: C
On Monday, we began learning letter C. We learned these letter C words: cupcake, chocolate, car, cat, cow, calendar, candle, crayon, cookie, carpet, clap, clock, cricket, and our teacher, Miss Chloe, and our friends, Cobrin, Carly, and Charlotte. We read Career Day by Anne Rockwell. In this story, the parents of the boys and girls in Mrs. Madoff’s class have come to school to tell the children about their jobs. We asked the boys and girls in our class to tell us what kind of work they would like to do when they grow up. Their answers are hanging up in our classroom. Please take a moment to read what the children told us. For our art project, the boys and girls made cupcakes using shaving cream for the frosty topping.

On Tuesday, we read two favorite children’s books, both by Eric Carle, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Little Cloud. In The Very Hungry Caterpillar, a tiny caterpillar becomes a big, fat caterpillar. He builds a cocoon around himself, and shortly thereafter, becomes a beautiful butterfly. Since many of the children are familiar with this book, it was fun to have them read the book along with me. Little Cloud looks like a sheep, an airplane, a shark, two trees, a rabbit, a hat, and a clown as it floats through the sky. When all of the clouds became one with Little Cloud, it began to rain. For our letter C art project, the boys and girls made the letter C look like a caterpillar.

On Thursday, we read Kiss the Cow! by Phyllis Root. In this book, Mama May sings to her cow, Luella, thanks her for her milk, and kisses her on the nose. Annalisa would like to try milking Luella, but she refuses to give the cow a kiss. One day, Annalisa decides to milk Luella. Now, Luella refuses to give any more milk until she gets a kiss on her nose from Annalisa. Annalisa gives Luella a kiss and decides that it isn’t so bad to kiss a cow after all. For our letter C art project, the boys and girls made cars.
 
On Friday, we read A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni. All animals have a color of their own, except for chameleons. They change color wherever they go. A lonely chameleon, in search for his own color, finds a new friend who is just like him. For our letter C art project, the boys and girls made cat masks.
 
*Thank you to Brody, Dante, Max, and Liam for being our super “kids of the day” this week.


*Please have your child try our Afterschool Arts Clubs. This week, on Monday, the boys and girls made birdseed treats to hang on trees, on Tuesday, they learned about clouds and made an illustration of puffy clouds, on Thursday, the boys and girls rode scooters and exercised to Mousercise, and on Friday, the children sang songs for Shabbat with the Pre-K Class.

*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, January 17 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

*We will be going to the Art Museum on Tuesday, January 25. Please let us know if your child will be attending.

*SHS will be having a Havdalah Pajama Party on Saturday, January 29 from 6 PM — 7:30 PM. Family and friends are invited to join together to mark the end of Shabbat. There will be songs, a story, and dessert. Don’t forget to wear your pajamas. More information will be available soon.

*Reminder: Please donate non-perishable food items to Philabundance. The collection box is located in the Lawrence Courtyard foyer.

*Next week, we will learn letter M and we will learn about Tu B’Shevat, the birthday of the trees.

Have a great weekend! See you on Tuesday!

Miss Gloria, Miss Chloe, Miss Julia, Miss Mindy, and Mr. Noah

Happy New Year from Miss Gloria's Class: NEWS 1/07/11

Friday, January 7, 2011
LETTER OF THE WEEK: J

Welcome back to the Playschool and Happy New Year! On Monday, we read City in the Winter by Eleanor Schick. In this book, school is closed because of a blizzard. A young boy enjoys his opportunity to spend the snowy day with his grandmother. He eats a good breakfast, cleans his room, makes an art project, eats an indoor picnic lunch, walks through the deep snow, helps his grandmother make dinner, and then, he waits for his mother to come home from work. He has quite a busy snow day! For our art project, the boys and girls worked on a group project to paint a snowstorm. The boys and girls learned that now we are beginning the brand new year, 2011. They enjoyed wishing each other “Happy New Year” and “Happy 2011” as we sang, “The More We Get Together”.

On Tuesday, we began learning letter J. We learned these letter J words: January, jump, jog, jacket, juggle, jelly, jaguar, jet, our friends, Jacob, Jakob, Jordan, and Jack, and our teacher, Miss Julia. We read Jeanette and Josie by Claude Lager. When Jeanette got out of bed in the morning, everything seemed to be going wrong for her. She slipped on the carpet and broke the lamp. She stepped on the toothpaste tube and made a mess. She spilled her hot chocolate on a clean tablecloth. Once it began to snow, Jeanette went outside to play and she made a new friend in the snowstorm. For our letter J art project, the boys and girls painted the letter with purple paint to make the J look like jelly. The children practiced jumping and they also jogged around the classroom for letter J movement exercises.

On Wednesday, the children in the journal group colored a picture of a Weather Bear and the children in the story group read The Snowman Storybook by Raymond Briggs. In this book, James dreams that his snowman has come to life. When he awakens, he is disappointed to find out that his dream is finished and his snowman has melted in the bright sunlight. In yoga, Miss Kim asked the children to tell her what they did over the winter break as they raised and lowered the yoga ball. The boys and girls did more yoga breathing as they practiced blowing through a straw. As they blew through the straw, each child held a cotton ball at the end of the straw and they used their breath to make the cotton move. The children went on an imaginary trip to the jungle. Some children took turns posing as jungle animals as the other children in the group tried to guess what pose they were making.

On Thursday, we read The Night Before New Year’s by Natasha Wing. On New Year’s eve, a brother and sister are determined to stay up until midnight. They play cards, look at family photos, eat cupcakes, and take a walk so that they can stay up to welcome in the New Year. As the time is approaching, they just cannot stay awake and they make a New Year’s resolution to stay up for next year’s New Year’s eve celebration. For our art project, the boys and girls made two flowers that begin with letter J. One is called a jacinth, a reddish blue or deep purple flower commonly known as a hyacinth, and a jonquil, also known as a daffodil. We did aerobic exercises to the music on Preschool Aerobic Fun by Georgiana Stewart.

On Friday, we read Snip, Snip… Snow! written by Nancy Poydar. In this book, Sophie makes paper snowflakes while she anxiously waits for it to snow. Once it begins to snow, she sees the beauty in the snowflakes and learns that no two snowflakes are exactly alike. The letter J art project was to make a boy or girl jumping rope.

*Thank you to Maya, Giacomo, Maddie, Carly, and Brendan for being our super “kids of the day” this week.
*When the Philadelphia Schools are closed because of inclement weather, the Playschool will also be closed. This information can be found on the TV, radio, or on the School District of Philadelphia’s website.
*Please have your child try our Afterschool Arts Clubs. This week, on Monday, the boys and girls peeled and baked apples, on Tuesday, they learned about mixing oil and water, on Wednesday, the art project was to make a winter goose after reading Grandmother Winter, on Thursday, they rode scooters and played obstacle course games, and on Friday, the boys and girls celebrated Shabbat with the afternoon Pre-K Class.
*The Playschool will be closed on Monday, January 17 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
*We will be going to the Art Museum on Tuesday, January 25. More information will be given out next week.
*SHS will be having a Havdalah Pajama Party on Saturday, January 29 from 6 PM — 7:30 PM. Family and friends are invited to join together to mark the end of Shabbat. There will be songs, a story, and hot cider and cookies. Don’t
forget to wear your pajamas. More information will be available soon.
*Reminder: Please donate non-perishable food items to Philabundance. The collection box is located in the Lawrence Courtyard foyer.
Have a great weekend! Next week, we will learn letter C.
Miss Gloria, Miss Chloe, Miss Julia, Miss Mindy, and Mr. Noah