IED PRE-K NEWSLETTER FOR THE WEEK OF: 
FEBRUARY 16-19    

    This week in Pre-K was short and sweet! Since the week went by so quickly, we chose to focus on the Chinese New Year; and save community workers for a longer week! The kids had a great time learning about how Chinese families celebrate the new year, talking with Molly about the symbolism and meaning behind many traditions, and the colors used during the celebrations; we even had oranges for snack, and learned that the color orange represents joy. The children also learned about the Chinese zodiac, made dragon masks, decorated their own red envelopes and made their own paper lucky money,  drew pictures for the person of the week, and drew pictures of dragon dancers. On Wednesday, the weather was so fabulous we even took the instruments outside to play. The children each had a chance to try various instruments; the triangle, tambourine, maracas, drums, jingle bells, and the sand paper blocks. A few of the kids even put on an impromptu performance out on the playground, assigning each other roles; with dancers, singers, and musicians all working together! 
    We also celebrated our special person of the week; Kate Humphrey! We learned that Kate is 4 years old, her eyes are blue, and her hair is brown, and her middle name is June. The only thing that Kate does not like is doing chores! Kate Loves her friends, horses, dogs, and cats; and when Kate grows up she would like to be a veterinarian and help animals. Kate's favorite color is red, and one of her favorite things to eat is frog legs covered in butter! If Kate had three wishes, she would wish to be able to ride a unicorn, a dinosaur, and a dragon. Hooray for Kate! 
 
Tuesday February 16th

* We started the day by learning the sound and sign for the Letter Ss. We sang the Ss and alphabet songs, then chose our new Person of the Week: Kate Humphrey. Congratulations, Kate!

* The special project for today was dragon masks; the children colored and cut out masks, taped them to popsicle sticks and then decorated them using crepe paper streamers 
 
* We read: Charlie and The Lucky Money , Knuffle Bunny, and since this is Ss week, we read Scaredy Squirrel! 
 
* During choice time the children had access to: easel painting, lego, the block area, the white board, sequence jr., the alphabet floor puzzle, play dough, and beans and corn in the sensory table. 
 
Wednesday February 17th 
 
* Today we counted the calendar, chose new frog jobs, and opened our letter Ss bag. During circle time we also talked about the Chinese zodiac and read a legend that explains why each year is named for a different animal. 
 
* The special project for the day was drawing pictures for Kate's person of the week book. Kate also helped to fill out her person of the week sheet for her memory book. 
 
* We sang Five Speckled Frogs 
 
* We went to the gym and played with the parachute, and played freeze tag! 
 
* We read: Why Rat Comes First, Three Little Kittens, and There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly 
 
* During choice time the kids had: zodiac coloring sheets, new dolls in dramatic play, the snap blocks, race to the roof, dot markers, easel painting, the sensory table, and wickie sticks at the light table. 
 
Thursday February 18th 
 
* Today we counted the calendar and checked the weather during circle time. We also made a list of words starting with the letter Ss, the children came up with twenty words beginning with the letter Ss, and they certainly could have kept going if we hadn't stopped for lunch! 
 
* We sang Willaby Wallaby, and The Grand Old Duke Of York 
 
* We read: This is The House That Jack Built, My Chinese New Year, and Knuffle Bunny 
 
* For our special project the children continued working on pictures for Kate's person of the week book, and free art materials were also available. 
 
Friday February 19th 
 
* Today we counted the calendar, sang our letter Ss song, and talked about the different sounds the letter Ss can make. In the afternoon, we read Katie's Skippyjon Jones Book, and  she shared her itty bitty stuffed Skippyjon Jones. 
 
* At the art table the children had access to various New Year coloring pages, dragon masks, cupcake coloring pages, and letter Ss tracing sheets. 
 
* At the end of the day we read Kate's person of the week book, and her person of the week sheet. 
 
* During choice time the children had access to: easel painting, k'nex, the block area, color mixing,  faces memory, the alphabet floor puzzle, and beans and corn in the sensory table.