Tuesday, February 23, 2010

World Of Color



During the World of Color Unit, students mix colors to create new ones while fingerpainting on a white canvas.





Students pretend to wash clothes in the laundry mat while testing for color fastness in cloth materials.

During Red Color Week, students assemble a red fire engine puzzle! 





Here, the kids enjoyed reading some new books in our cozy book area! 





Our class artists paint their own versions of Max's dragon shirt from today's story. 
























February 22-26


Theme – This week we will begin Unit 4 of the OWL curriculum, World of Color. During this unit students will interact with colors and explore topics such as color mixing, stains, fading, camouflage, and color patterns. Students will learn that color can be found in nature, that color can carry information, that paints and dyes are used to color things, colors can be mixed to make new colors and that sun and washing can make colors fade.

Stories – Max’s Dragon Shirt, By Rosemary Wells.
Dog’s Colorful Day, Emma Dodd

Small Groups –
Science – Students will work with colorfast and non color fast materials. They will see how colors bleed when they are not color fast. They will make connections to this and doing laundry.
Math – Students will use primary colored circles to make a pattern.
Language – Students will learn about different shapes as they play shape bingo.

Choice:
- Max’s green shirt painting on the easel.
- Sensory table with colored soap bubbles
- Dolls and doll clothes in the dramatic play area
- Fire engine puzzle
- Books about colors
- Finger painting with primary colors
- Colored Legos

Music: 1) Apples and Bananas 4) Down by the bay
2) Color Song 5) Green grass
3) Looby Loo 6) Rhythm Sticks

Special Notes:
1) Welcome back! We hope everyone had a great vacation!
2) During our Colors Unit we will celebrate a color of the week! This week we will talk about red. We will play the Color Guessing Game. Teachers will give clues about different red objects and students need to guess! Every Thursday will be color day! Please send your child to school wearing something red on Thursday!
3) Next Wednesday, March 3rd, is picture day!

Monday, February 8, 2010

Safari Scouts Newlsetter

February 8, 2010

Theme: This will be a transition week from one OWL unit to another. We will sum up some concepts from the Wind and Water Unit and prepare students for the World of Color which will begin after vacation. We will also talk about one of our favorite community helpers, the mail man. Students will write and mail letters and valentines to classmates.

Story: Mail Carrier, by JoAnn Macken
Valentine Friends, by April Jones Prince
Snowy Day, By Ezra Jack Keats

Small Groups:
Language and fine motor – Students will talk about the steps included in mailing a card. They
will make a valentine card to send to a family member!
Math – Students will graph candy hearts and talk about total amounts.
Language – Students will make connections between the The Snowy Day and their own life
experiences as they paint pictures and “write” captions for our class book.

Choice:
- Sorting shapes in different envelopes
- Students will make mailboxes for the valentine letters.
- Sensory table
- Post Office in the Dramatic Play area
- Counting hearts game
- Books about community helpers
- Painting hearts with stencils on the easel

Music: 1) Skidamarinky Do, I love you 4) Down by the bay
2) Clap, Clap, Clap your hands 5) Walk like a rhinoceros
3) The color song

Special Notes:
1) Thursday, February 11th we will have a Valentines swap. You are welcome to send your child in with Valentines for each classmate, but do not feel obligated to do so. Please use this opportunity to help your chills practice writing his or her name!
3) Winter Vacation is almost here. There will be no school February 13-21.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Wind and Water Week 5

February 1-5

Theme – We are continuing our wind and water theme. This theme allows children to explore wind and water using observations, experiments, and books to learn more about topics such as evaporation, weather, temperature, insulation, rain, and snow.

This week we are reading:
*A Hat for Minerva Louise, By Janet Morgan Stoeke
*The Snowy Day, By Ezra Jack Keats

Small Groups this week
*Drying Clay- Students will learn about the physical properties of clay. Students will make paper weights with clay. They will make observations the following day and notice how the clay changes. (Science)
*Alphabet Go Fish- Students will be playing “go fish”, but they will be matching uppercase letters. (Letter Awareness)
*Snowman Sequencing- Students will talk about and sequence the steps involved in making a snowman.

Choice Activities this week:
Easel: “Snowy Day” paintings on the easel.
Art: Students will cut coffee filters to make snowflakes. They will use eye droppers to make them colorful.
Writing: writing letters and creating stamps
Dramatic Play: Post Office
Sand and Water table: water with sailboats and water wheels.
Puzzles and Manipulatives: file folder games including color mitten match, igloo letter match and snowflake counting.

Songs, Word play and Letters : Songs: Someone’s Wearing?, Looby Loo, Open Shut Them, I Love You, Bean Bag Rock, If You’re happy and you know it. Poems: Cloud, Mix a Pancake, Five Little Owls in an Old Elm Tree.Literacy Skills: I’m thinking of… clue game.

Try This At Home:*We will be observing physical changes to clay this week. Try observing a wet sponge or wash cloth at home. Have your child check it during the day to see if it is drying (if the water is evaporating from it).