C
olor(s)
: Purple & Pink
Concept: Baby Animals, Insects, Growing Plants, Flowers & Vegetables
Shape: Make Your Own
Letter(s): W, X, Y
Number(s):
Ages(1-2): 9
Ages (3-4): 17, 18
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May 6th-12th
Nurse Appreciation Week
May 11th
Mother's Day Breakfast
May 13th
Happy Mother's Day
May 18th
EDU. Music Recital5-6 pm
May 20th-26th
Teacher's Appreciation Week
May 28th
Memorial Day!
School Closed
June 18th
SAVE THE DATE
Pre-K Stepping-Up Ceremony
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May is here and finally some cheerful spring weather. One of the most exciting highlights of April was our Earth Day celebration. The children planted with their new best buddies, the MVP Charter School students. A very special thank you goes out to them for their patience, kindness and to make it such a fun day. Please take the time to stop and enjoy the Earth Day flowers your child's class has planted at our CTK Garden Walk located in our A yard Parking lot.
In May, we will be spending more time outdoors. Our classes will be going on Nature walks and following up with the care and watering , while continuing to learn about plants and flowers. We will also continue to learn about the cycle of life of ladybugs, butterflies and baby animals. Learning about Science and Nature helps children expand their vocabulary and develop a better understanding of basic science concepts in daily life.
We will also be encouraging the children to be more physically active than ever. As their large motor muscles are developing in leaps and bounds, the children will have lots of opportunities through exercise and games, such as, freeze dance, musical chairs, red light green light, parachutes and more. We also support children as they develop specific skills, like jumping, kicking, catching and throwing. These are skills that the children will use for a lifetime of physical activity, including sports.
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- Our Daycare Center is open from 7am - 7pm.
- Please remember to make sure your child's cubby contains weather-appropriate clothing. We also appreciate all of our parents continuing to bring in diapers and a box of wipes twice each month on the 1st and the 15th.
- When calling the facility, please keep in mind that calls should be ideally made between 12-2pm while the children are napping.
- We ask that you do not allow your child(ren) to run ahead of you when entering and leaving the facility, it is a safety issue. Especially when exiting the building, children should never open the security door.
- Strollers that are left in our storage area must be closed
We thank you for your cooperation with these matters.
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Science with the Sunflowers
The month of April was the perfect time for the Sunflowers to begin learning about how plants and flowers grow. The children learned that plants and flowers need sunlight, water, air, and soil in order to grow. The children also learned that plants and flowers grow from seeds, have stems, leaves, roots, and sometimes petals! The children were so eager to learn about plants and flowers that we decided to grow our own.
Ms. Ally and Ms. Linda brought in the materials that the children needed so that they could plant their own flowers. We gathered soil, flower pots, and Daisy seeds. The Sunflowers worked together as a class to prepare the soil and plant the seeds. The children were able to explore the soil and seeds using their sense of touch. Once the children were ready, each one was able to scoop soil into one of two flower pots and then place the seeds inside. The Sunflowers had so much fun planting together as a class and cannot wait for their flowers to begin growing!
This month theme, "Clothing and Shoes" was explored throughout all of the centers in the classroom. The students were able to engage in many multisensory activities. During small group, the students explored with the SMART Board playing a game of sorting clothing and shoes by Seasons. The children learned about all of the different types of shoes that there are , and why we wear different ones , due to the change in weather , and Seasons. We also talked about why some shoes are small, medium or large as well as some shoes being narrow and wide. During meeting time the children carefully observed the different treads and designs on the bottom of our shoes. The children turn and talk to their friends how their shoes may be the same and how they may be different. Last but not least; In the Art Center, the Bears had fun using various shoes, dipping them in paint, and stamping the bottom all over the big Art paper, they again observed the differing designs and patterns. The children had a great time leaning all about shoes.
In the month of April, the Ducks are learning all about the themes of clothing and spring. We spoke about why we need to wear clothing and why we wear heavier clothing and more clothing in the winter and less clothing in the warmer months. We also spoke about the changes that spring brings such as warmer weather and plants blooming. In the Science Center, we experimented with a white cloth fabric. Using various spices and liquids, such as curry, tea, cranberry juice, and mustard, we made predictions on what would happen to our white cloth if we dipped it in certain liquids. We mixed the spices with water and put them in bowls and we smelled each of the liquids and observed the colors they made. We picked one liquid we wanted to dip out cloth in and then we put our white cloth fabric in the liquid and timed it for 2 minutes. We drew predictions on what we thought would happen to the cloth once we took it out of the liquid and then we drew what happened after we took our white cloth fabric out of the bowls.
In the Science Center, for a spring activity, we planted grass seeds in cups and helped water them to make the grass grow. We placed the cups on the windowsills and watered them every morning to help the grass grow. We knew which cup to water because we had pictures of our faces on the cups. As the grass grew, it looked like we had silly green hair on top of our heads!
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Math with the Chipmunks
The Chipmunks love learning about Math and they like playing the number memory game. We use flash cards that have double number cards from 1-12. On each card is a picture (turtle, bear, etc.) of that number. The cards are shuffled and placed number side down on the table. Everyone is told that each one gets a chance to turn over two cards. They have to pay attention to the cards turned over so they know the position of the numbers. This is so they can match the number cards when it's their turn. The class has a lot of fun playing this game as they help each other point to where the matching number card may be. They get so excited each time a match is made by their fellow classmate. This helps enhance their socialization skills by working together.
The number memory game is not only fun for them it also is helping them improve upon their number recognition, hand to eye coordination, and short term memory skills.
Math with the Puppies
Math can include everything from counting and shapes to size and weight. The Puppies learn so much about math just from daily routines.
In the morning they love to come in and help make their own breakfasts. They get to press the numbers on the microwave as I help them and say the numbers they are pressing. A
t lunch time, a teacher will count the plates and forks out loud with the children, as they help set the tables. And of course on pizza day we show the children that the box is a square, the pizza is a circle and the slice is a triangle.
The Puppies especially love when we read the book "10 Little Bugs." They love touching and helping me count the number of bugs left on each page.
We learn so much in the Puppy room each and every day!
Math with the Turtles
This month the Turtles focused on our math lessons. Our themes of community helpers and clothing made for some great pattern and size discrimination lessons. We are working on ABC patterns and we used pictures of our community helpers to create our very own patterns. Some of our patterns looked like police-teacher-doctor and dentist-nurse-firefighter. We used cut-outs of clothing articles such as shirts and pants and counted how many holes, buttons or zippers each one had. We also took a tally of which fabric design we liked best.
In the gym, we counted the amount of steps it took us to get to the top of the rock wall. We also practiced our first, second and third concept while racing our cars and bikes in the gym. While in the block center, we are working on figuring out which structures are taller and which are shorter. In the soccer field, we practiced our Red Light, Green Light 123 and counted our hops from one side to the other. The children are also incorporating math into English lessons by counting, and clapping out the syllables of our names. We are learning a lot of math and we are really enjoying the process!
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Art with the Angels
The Angels absolutely love to do different art projects, especially when paint is involved! Just in time for Earth Day, one of the art projects that the Angels had created last month was a recycled bird feeder. The Angel class had an absolute blast making this project. The teachers cut a hole out of a water jug. The children then painted the outside of the water container and decorated the bird feeder with different colored foam shapes. (This was a great teachable moment to review colors as well.) The final touch was a popsicle stick that was used as a perch for the birds. The Angels truly loved making this project.
Art with the Bumblebees
To the tune of 'The More We Get Together:
Reduce, reuse, recycle
Recycle, recycle
Reduce, reuse, recycle
It's easy to do!
Cause your trash
And my trash
Make up way
Too much trash.
Reduce, reuse, recycle
It's easy to do!
The Bumblebees learned about recycling and how we should respect our planet Earth. Children learn so much from being involved, and we did a number of activities to help the children understand this topic. We started by saving our labeled plastic cups from snack and using them for lunch as well. This helped to save cups and use less plastic! The Bumblebees also did a cool project where they painted their hands blue and green, so when they placed it on the paper it looked like Earth! We also got the pleasure of planting our own flowers outside of the school. The children enjoyed this activity the most!
Art with the SnugglieII
This past month, the babies of Snugglies II had the opportunity to have some fun with paint. The children used their fingers to create the cutest little insects. The teachers helped them dip their fingers in various color paints and then smudge them onto the paper. As they dipped their fingers, the teachers would say the names of each color to help develop language skills. It was great to see their expressions as they felt the new texture of paint. In the end, each child had an adorable "Insect Jar." Way to go Snugglies!
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Music with the Bunnies
For the month of April the Bunnies had a lot to sing about! They are starting to remember the words to songs that Mr. Kenny's sings with them, especially the one where they're learning about words such as "yes, no, maybe, me, you, and we." (It seems that "no" is their favorite word.)
The Bunnies have also been starting to go into the music room more frequently, where they get to play with many different instruments. They love to use the bells and shakers. Some of them even help the other kids by giving them a shaker and saying, "Shake! Shake!" The music room also has a BEAM that projects games onto the floor. The children use their feet to manipulate the projection. One game, in particular, that the children enjoy is "The Piano." With this projection, the Bunnies get to run across the floor and make music as they step on a key. They love to dance to their own music.
Music with the Lions
April turned out to be a "roarsome" month for the Lions! We learned so many ways to help save our Earth by recycling old materials to make some exciting new things and won the recycling contest while we did it! The creating didn't stop at our bottle cap fish, the Lions had some left over materials and decide to make some musical instruments. We took some of our left over caps and cardboard and made some adorable castanets. We also had some paper towel holders lying around and made some kazoos. The children got to choose which instrument they wanted to make. The children who made the castanets started with cardboard. They painted and decorated it, and then we glued on the caps. The children who made the kazoos painted and decorated the tubes. Then we added a piece of wax paper and a rubber band, and we were ready to go. Do these two instruments go together...no way, but because our little Lions are so talented they made it work. They got together and chose a song and "The Lion Band" was born. We were serenaded with a beautiful version of "The ABC Song," and then some solos. We helped the planet and made beautiful music doing it!
Music with the Dolphins
During the month of April the Dolphins had lots of fun exploring the new additions to the music center including dancing scarves and bongos. The Dolphins also learned all about rhythm using rhythm sticks with our music teacher, Mr. Kenny. The Dolphins kept a beat by clanking the sticks according to the rhythm of the songs. The Dolphins also kept to the beat of music using egg shakers! We are super lucky to have class egg shakers that Ronen's dad got for the class after he came in to play instruments for us!
Since our music recital is fastly approaching the Dolphins have been practicing the lyrics and accompanying moves to our songs, "The Inca Trail" and "Don Alfredo Bailiar." They are so excited to perform for everyone! In accordance with our theme of clothing, the Dolphins learned and enjoyed songs related to clothing, such as Getting Dressed, Old Shoes, New Shoes, Let's Put on Our Socks, and Boot Prints. The Dolphins also celebrated Earth Day by singing This Old Earth, This Land, Clean Up, and Clean Up This Earth.
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Technology Tots &
Athletes in Training
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Gym time with Monkeys
We Have a Little Garden by Beatrix Potter
We have a little garden,
A garden of our own,
And every day we water there
The seeds that we have sown.
We love our little garden,
And tend it with such care,
You will not find a faded leaf
Or blighted blossom there.
T
he birds are chirping, the bees are buzzing, and we all so happy that spring has finally sprung. May is here and before you know June will be here as well. With all the fun we've been having all year long we wish we could make the school year longer. The Monkey's couldn't have done it all without the help from such great parents like you.
This month the Monkeys were chosen to discuss about the fun we have each day in the gym. The Monkeys love to participate, in relay races, in the gym. The children all line up against the wall and Miss Sara or I call two children at a time to stand on a color box and run to the teacher; then the children hop or roll the big balls to us. After we play this, the Monkeys participate in a running and hopping game. The Monkeys have to listen for their name and to see if they are assigned to run or hop, for example, one child might run when another might hop as they race together. The children love this game, which teaches listening skills and to follow directions.
Gym & Tech with the Kitties
Last month the Kitties focused on Technology & Gym. The Kitties love going to the gym, where they have fun and work on large motor skills at the same time. One way we like to do this is take large steps and hop across the room, based on the number of the month. If the number of the month doesn't get them across the room, we jump to different colored squares to get across the room. They have so much fun cheering each other on and seeing who can take the most steps or jump the highest! It also helps them work on their counting.
We are also able to combine movement and technology when we play in the BEAM room. With its constant changing screens projected onto the floor, the Kitties are kept moving and learning. This included popping balloons, to catching fish, to kicking balls all on the floor screen. They love when the screen is about to change to see what's next! They love to yell, "BALLOONS!," or "FISHY!," or they're favorite, "PIRATES!" While popping balloons, we were learning they are the shape of an oval, so instead of yelling, "BALLOONS," now we yell, "OVAL!" The kids love learning their shapes. The BEAM system is a big hit with our Kitties!
In the month of April, the Pandas learned all about the theme "clothing." The Pandas learned all about the different types of clothing and which clothing item is wore in which season. After talking a lot about clothing the Pandas came up with a new gym/outside game. All the Pandas would line up and the teacher would call out an item of clothing if you had that item on you would stand up and go tag a friend with that same item on as you. For example, if Diana was wearing jeans, Diana would have to find a friend who also was wearing jeans, just like her. The Pandas have so much fun playing the new clothing game and finding out which friend matches their outfit that day.
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With the warm weather here, our children are able to spend more time outdoors. This calls for a couple of reminders.
Below are a few important reminders:
- Please remember to apply sunscreen every morning.
- Please bring in sunscreen labeled with your child's name.
- Sunhats or caps are a great shield from the sun but please consider safety. Be sure that hats or caps do not obstruct your child's view.
- Keep in mind your child is wearing the proper footwear. Sandals and flip-flops look adorable but may become a potential hazard for running and climbing. Please see that your child is wearing toe-enclosed sandals or sneakers.
- Please remember to replace your child's cubby with weather appropriate clothing. Make sure all items are labeled with your child's name. Please take notice of replacing your child's spare clothing.
Last by not least, I would like to acknowledge all of the mothers who drop off and pick their children up after stressful days of work. As a mother, I know you are exhausted and would rather go home and have some time to yourself. Instead, I hear you in the hallways asking your child about their day in school. I see you checking in with teachers about your child's day in school and whether they ate accordingly to your schedule. I see you checking to make sure your child has what they need in their cubbies or calling to find out if they are feeling better, sleeping and eating. I see you juggling the bags, bottles and sippy cups as you head in and out of the door to wherever it is that is next on your list. A mother is someone who eternally puts their child before themselves.
Happy Mother's Day!
Happy Mother's Day!
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Angels
One afternoon while the Angels were returning from the art room, Johnnie told Ms.Anna, "I'm a good artist!"
Bumblebees
While watching an educational video about our solar system, Miss. Karolina paused the video on a picture of the Earth. She asked the Bumblebees, "Where do we all live?" Layla replied, "I live in New York!"
Bunnies
After snack one day, Ms. Christine was putting on Layla's sweater. As she put it over her head and her head popped out of the top she shouted "Peek-a-boo!" Too funny!
Bears
While the children were in our clothing and shoe store (we transformed dramatic play and block center) the children were shopping for different kinds of clothes and shoes. Kaylyn, Giuliana, Matthew H., and Roman had shopping bags in their hands and they were searching through the shoe shelves, when Giuliana said to Kaylyn and Roman, "Hey guys don't forget to check your phones for coupons. My mom told me that there are some great coupons today." Roman said, "Oh yeah! I have the coupons now. It's for $7,5002 dollars (seven five hundred two dollars)!!!"
Chipmunks
The Chipmunks were having pasta for lunch. Fiona was smiling when we gave her the pasta. She said, "Miss. Nancy is this penne alla vodka? That's my
favorite!"
Dolphins
Ailey said, "I love Miss Nancy and Miss Jackie, but I'm ready to move on the kindergarten. I'm really ready for it!"
Ducks
We had so much fun making our own snack necklaces out of fruit loops and pretzels. We all made our own patterns with the snacks. Eric said: "I want mine to be all blue!" Konstantin said, "I want to make rainbow colors with the fruit loops!"
Kitties
One day while we were cleaning up to get ready to go to the gym, MaJu was very excited and anxious to get there! As she was cleaning up, and notice some of her friends moving too slow, she would yell, "TIME FOR GYM!"
Lions
One morning, Luciana came in and said, "I'm a big sister! My baby sister was born!" Chloe looked at her said, "My baby brother isn't here yet. He's still in my mommy's belly!'
Monkey
On Fridays Miss Diane comes to school at 9am and not 7am, like she does the other days. One Friday morning Miss Diane came in and was taking off her coat. Steven R. said, "Miss Diane you're late!"
Pandas
While playing "The Clothing Game," Patrick said, "Look Ms. Kathleen, a lot of the Pandas have sneakers on today!" Ms. Kathleen said, "Really? How many Pandas have sneakers on today, can you count for me?" Patrick said, "Yes!" He was so excited to count. After he counted, he ran back to Ms. Kathleen and said, "15! 15! 15 Pandas have on sneakers today!" Ms. Kathleen was so proud of him for realizing and counting how many Pandas had sneakers on.
Puppies
The Puppies have so much fun playing with each other. Ana Sofia's best friend is Lia and one week Lia went on vacation. After a week when Ana Sofia saw Lia came back she hugged her so tight and smiled so big!
Sunflowers
Ms. Linda was working on projects with the children when all of a sudden, Mia jumped onto her lap. Ms. Linda asked Mia "Why are you jumping all over me?!" and Mia replied loudly, "BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!"
Turtles
While transitioning from centers to lunch, the children were straightening up and getting ready to eat. Paule was trying to get the attention of her friends but they were a little busy. She stopped, took a deep breath and said "123 eyes on me!"
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