Christmas Kisses & Kazoos

Theme:  Letter K
Letter K is tricky because it says the same sound as "C".  We learned that most of the time "K" is at the end of a word.  Some of our focus words this week were kitten, key, kiwi, kangaroo, koala, kid, king, and kiss.  Some of the kids thought of some great words that have the "K" sound in the middle and at the end of the words.

We also engaged in a lovely discussion about Jesus being the best King of all.  All the kiddos had great comments.  :)

Questions of the week:

1. Do you like Chocolate Kisses?
2. Do you like Kiwi?
3. Have you ever flown a Kite?

Choosing Time:  Christmas Stamps, Magnetic "K" word spelling, Koalas, Kangaroos,...

Snacks:

• Kix Cereal, Kiwi, & Kisses
• Christmas cooKies & Clementines
• Christmas Tree "Kiss" Cookies

Music & Movement:

• Jingle Bells
• Frosty the Snowman
• I'm the Happiest Christmas Tree
• The Shepherd's Carol
• Lots of Kicks
• K body shapes
• Kangaroo Jumps

Games:

• ABC Christmas Stocking--I put several letters into a Christmas Stocking.  We passed it around in a circle while listening to some fun Christmas music.  When the music stopped, whomever held the stocking chose a letter.  If we could name the letter and its sound we were able to do an accompanying activity.  Most of the activities involved receiving a kazoo and playing familiar Christmas tunes with them.
• ABC Bingo with Kix cereal

Art:

• We are working on some amazing Christmas Surprises!
• King Crowns

Writing:  We practiced "K/k" in our workbooks

Books:  I chose to read Santa Duck for fun, but it turns out it was a learning tool as the kids pointed out the "K" at the end of "duck." 

Jolly Jingles & JOY

Theme:  Letter "J"
We practiced making the letter "J" sound.  We thought of some things that begin with "J".  I thought it was awesome that when we talked about "jeep" one of the boys said, "That is the letter "G", not "J".'
And, it does sound that way.  Then we thought of other "J" words that might sound like "G", but we couldn't think of any.  We know that "G" sometimes makes the "J" sound, but I think "J" always says its own sound.

Choosing Time:  Jigsaw puzzles, jingle bell bracelets, jumping, marbleworks...

Questions of the week:

• Do you like Jello?
• Do you like to jump?  (I'm so excited.  I put the word, jump, on the board and they had to figure it out in order to answer the question.  And, they did :)
• Do you like Jelly Beans?

 Books:




Snacks:

• "J" shaped Candy Canes & Pretzel Sticks (which we had a lot of fun using them to form letters with)
• Jello Popcorn & licorice "J's" 
• Apple Slices & Cheese Sticks

Music & Movement:

• Jingle Bells
• Jack-in-the-Box 
• A Shepherd's Carol
• Jumping Jacks
• Jumping
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Art:

• Santa's Beard Trimming Advent Calendars
• Baby Jaguars (some of the kiddos named theirs....ask them...some of them were really clever)
• Baby Jesus 
• Nativity Coloring Page

Reading:  jump, jet, jacket, jam, jar, jello, jeep, joy
  
Writing:  We practiced "J" and "Jesus."  Some of the kiddos practiced the word wall words with magnets

Game:  Jelly Bean ABC Bingo

Happy Thanksgiving!

Theme:  Friendship
The Pilgrims had lots of help from good kind Indians.  When it was harvest time they came together bringing good foods to eat and celebrated for 3 days.  They enjoyed their friendship and were grateful to God for their blessings.


Snack:  Friendship Mix
We feasted on a fun friendship mix.  Thank you for sending some fun snack items.  Our mix turned out really yummy with almonds, craisins, Kix cereal, chow mein noodles, M & M's, candy corn, marshmallows, & mini cookies.  We enjoyed pouring our ingredients into a large bowl and watching our creation grow yummier with each addition.

Art:  We learned about patterns.  We were able to think about using patterns in our art.

• Indian Costumes
• Beaded Necklaces

Reading:  We made "I Am Thankful" books

Music & Movement:  (We had fun in our tee-pee singing)

• Turkey Dance
• I Am a Little Indian
• 5 Little Indians
• Turkey is a Funny Bird
• Happy Thanksgiving
• Thank You, Thank You

  Books:

Thanksgiving Fun

Theme:  We had a fun week learning about the Pilgrims who sailed on the Mayflower to come to America so they could choose how to worship God.

Choosing Time:  Little People Village, Trains, Sewing Cards....

Snacks:

• Popcorn
• Fruit By the Foot, Granola Bars, Grapes
• Fruit Loops

Music & Movement:  We read a Giant Book called Harvest Time.  Several pictures were missing from the book.  As we read the story the kiddos were able to guess what picture was missing and then add it to the book.  Each picture had a corresponding song.

• I am a Little Indian Boy
• For Health & Strength
• Row the Mayflower
• Turkey Dance
• Little House
• I Am Glad for Many Things
• 10 Little Indians
• A Turkey is a Silly Bird

Science:  We learned about wild and domesticated turkeys.  Did you know that Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be the country's national bird?

Books:







Art:

• Turkey Pumpkins
• Color by the number Turkeys 
• Cornucopia Collage  

Reading:  We practiced the words "the, thank, and you."

Game:  Thankerchief, Thankerchief
As we recited a little poem we passed a handkerchief around the circle.  Whoever was holding it when the poem ended shared something he/she is thankful for.

Ida Insect

Theme:  Letter "I"
We practiced putting "I" words into one of two groups:  one with short i sound and one with the long I sound.  We were able to go on a field trip to Timpview High School to see part of a musical.  The most exciting part was peeking into the "pit" to see all of the various Instruments.  Some of us want to play an instrument some day :)

Choosing Time:  Igloo/Island Game, Insects, ...

Snacks:

• Scrabble Cheez-Its

Art:

• Instrument Shakers

Science:

• What makes an insect?  6 legs, 2 antennae,...We then practiced categorizing several bugs.  We placed them in an insect pile or not an insect pile.
• We made ice cream.  We had a fun time mixing the ingredients into zip-lock bags and then we took turns tossing the bags to one another while calling out  letter "I" words.  We learned that the ice and salt helped freeze the cream mixture.

Music & Movement:  We built a paper ice cream cone on the wall.  Each child took a turn to choose a "flavor" and then placed it onto the "cone."  We did a corresponding activity with each "flavor."

• Ten Little Indians
• I am a Little Indian Boy
• Turkey (Chicken) Dance
• Turkey Strut
• Row, Row, Row the Mayflower
• A Turkey is a Silly Bird
• I Scream
• Fall Leaf Interpretation
• Leaves Are Falling

Game:  Insect Movements

Heavy Hippos, Horses, & Hives

Theme:  Letter H
We practiced writing both the capital & lowercase letter "H".  We practiced its sound.  We brainstormed words that begin with "H".  Some of those included:  Ham, Hat, Home, Huck, Hazel, Have, Honey, Happy,...We can remember what a lowercase "H" looks like by remembering that it is a house with a tall chimney :)

Choosing Time:  Horses, Make individual Bee Hive games, House,...

Game:  Which Hive is the Bee Hiding in?
The children liked this game so much they wanted one to take home.  To Play:  choose one person to leave the room.  While he's out, have another person hide the bee under one of the Hives.  The person comes back to the room and gets 3 chances to guess where the bee is Hiding.

Music & Movement:

• If You're Happy & You Know It
• Hokey Pokey
• Hippo Hits with One Hammer
• Hibernation
• Horsey, Horsey
• Animals Down by the Meadow

Science:

1. How Hot air can fill a balloon--We placed a balloon over the lid of an empty water bottle.  We submerged the bottle into a bowl of boiling water.  The balloon rose and filled with the hot air.  We took the bottle out of the hot water and watched the balloon deflate.
2. Hovercraft--We made our own hovercraft using an old DVD, a bottle top, and a balloon
3. Hibernation--When I asked the kiddos what hibernation means I received some interesting answers:  "  Then I defined it for them as a winter sleep that some animals take.  We talked about some of the animals that hibernate and others that migrate and some that just stay awake where they are.

Snacks:

• Happy Apples & Honey Nut Cheerios Treats
• Honey Maid Graham Crackers & Apple Slices
• Hot Corn (Popcorn) & Apple Slices

Art:

1. Hand Print/Painted & Leaf Wreaths
2. Letter "H" Horses

Books:   Hippo Hugs  &

Happy Halloween--and a fun field trip to Hee Haw Farms!

We had a fun week! We had an exciting adventure at the Pumpkin Patch at Hee Haw Farms in Pleasant Grove.  The farm was cold and wet, but the kiddos were great!  No one complained nor cried. We were able to see one week old piglets and enjoyed chasing the sheep and goats.  Thankfully, we had 3 umbrellas that sheltered us all from rain and hail on our hay ride..The pumpkin patch was a bit sparse this year, but no one seemed bothered.  All found a cute pumpkin to take home.  It was good to see how the temperature and weather affects nature.   I hope everyone enjoyed the experience--I did.

Our Halloween Party was super fun!  We played a game with some foam pumpkins and straws.  We enjoyed a fun game of Halloween Bingo.  We read some fun books and sang some fun songs.  After each activity we each received a "treat" for participation.  We even got to take our bats home and were excited to find a special surprise inside.  Everyone's costumes were great.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween!

Ghosts & Goblins

Theme:  Letter G
We took turns choosing one "G" picture word out of a green bag.  We practiced making the "G" sound.  We practiced writing "G/g".  We need help remembering what the correct sound (not confusing it with the "J" sound).  And, letter "G" sometimes doesn't make its own sound, which is really tricky.  Some of our favorite G words include:  Gum, Green, Grass, Goat, Great, Good, & Giggle!  We loved doing things with glue, glitter, & ghosts!

Choosing Time:
Things that GO, geometric shapes, green play dough, spelling "G" words...

Show & Tell:
Gum, Gift, Green Gecko, a car that Goes ...

Game:
Red Light, Green Light

Snacks:

• Banana Ghost Pops, Graham Crackers, & Frozen Go-gurts
• Graham Crackers & Grapes & Marshmallow Ghosts
• Green jello "G's" & ABC crackers

Books:

Music & Movement:

• 10 Little Ghosts
• Green Little Frog
• Spooky Loo
• Duck, Duck, Goose
• 5 Little Ghosts
• Bubble Gum

Art:

• Green & Gold Glitter Goblins with Googly Eyes
• Glow in the Dark Footprint Boo Ghosts with Googly Eyes
• Glitter Glue Name Practice
• Green Grasshoppers (Great scissor practice)

Questions of the Week:

1. Do you like Grasshoppers?
2. Do you like Gum? (Surprisingly, this did not get a unanimous positive response from everyone)
3. Do you like Grapes?

Birthday Girl: