This week we changed up the dramatic play area. To go along with our All About Me theme we began talking about pets. The students were able to try out different roles as a veterinarian or pet owner. The teachers modeled both roles. The students learned how to ask patients what was wrong with their pet, use tools such as a stethoscope for listening to the heartbeat and a syringe for giving shots, record pet ailments on a chart, take x-rays and use kind words so the owners would know their pet would be ok.
During circle time, the students created a graph showing which pets they have at home.
Colors
At the sensory table, students experimented with colors. Given three tubs with the primary colors- red, yellow and blue- the students were asked to use turkey basters to mix the colors in small cups to see what would happen. They were surprised to find that they were able to make orange by mixing red and yellow, green by mixing blue and yellow and purple by mixing red and blue. We then followed up this activity by reading Mouse Paint by Ellen Walsh.
Partner Day
Thursday was partner day. The students were asked to choose a partner to play with during Exploration. We talked about how to compromise if both partners wanted to do different activities. The students practiced what language to use when selecting a partner, choosing activities and sharing. All of the children were successful and seemed to enjoy partner day.
In preparation for letter recognition and writing, the students have been participating in the Handwriting Without Tears Get Set for School program. Students will soon be able to create letters of the alphabet using wooden lines and curves. To familiarize the children with these manipulatives, we did the Wooden Piece Pokey and followed the rhythm of the song Tap, Tap, Tap Big Lines.
Gym
On Friday, the children were introduced to the gym. They worked on following directions, gross motor development, and sorting by color as we went on a camping trip using the parachute and then played "Garbage Clean Up" sorting colored balls into the correct hoola hoop while jumping, marching, skipping, running and crawling.
