We have started preparing for our Native American Feast and the children are
very excited. They have been listening to Native American stories, making
clay pinch pots in Art class, and talking about the traditions of the Eastern
Woodland Indians. We created a KWL chart this week and discussed what the
children know about Native Americans and what they want to learn. It was
truly amazing to hear what they already know!
The students have been learning the following concepts in each of the
academic areas:
Religion
In addition to learning about the Guardian Angels, the children have been
listening to some Old Testament stories as well as learning about the
Rosary. On the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, we prayed a decade of the
Rosary, and then the children made their own decade Rosary bracelets, which
they all wanted to wear. We will continue talking about the Joyful Mysteries
of the Rosary through Christmastime.
Social Studies
We had a great visit from Mr. Mann and many of his firefighter friends. The
children got a close up look at their pumper truck, ladder truck, and
ambulance. The children learned about fire safety and prevention. Thank you
to all the parents who contributed to our collection of food for the
firehouse.
We will be focusing this month on learning about the traditions of the
Eastern Woodland Indians and preparing for the Feast. The children will be
making vests, drums, necklaces, and dream catchers. They will be learning
many Native American songs in music class that they will sing at the Feast.
Language Arts/Reading
We have started our next unit on Transportation. The letters we have studied
so far (handwriting and phonics) are m,a, s, p,and the letter for this next
unit will be t and i. To reinforce letter recognition and letter/sound
recognition, the children cut out pictures from magazines with the letter
sounds, they practice writing the letters in sand and/or paint, form the
letters out of Wikki Stix or Playdough, and listen to poems and music that
reinforce letter sounds. The sight words we have learned so far are I, can,
we, the, like, and a. The words for the Transportation unit are see and go.
If your child does not know these words on "sight" it would be helpful for
you to make flash cards for them to practice every day.
Science
We will be integrating our language unit on Transportation with our studies
in science. The children will be exploring simple machines and they will be
doing science experiments with wheels, toys that move in different ways, and
working with pulleys and levers.
Math
In addition to continuing to work on basic math concepts, the children have
been learning about 3D shapes and their properties (how many edges and
corners, and whether they can stack, slide and/or roll). The children are
now beginning to match numbers to sets and learning how to add two sets
together. We have introduced the concept of postion words through their math
workbook, children's literature, and games. After Thanksgiving, we will be
introducing money (first with pennies and nickels)and the children will be
practicing using coins to purchase candy and make change at our "Legend of
the Candy Cane" store during December.
Thanks for all of your support.
Mrs. Caruso
