Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Welcome back to our Tuesday at preschool! 

We are so thankful to be able to be inside on this super cold day!

A couple quick reminders...

Enrollment for 2020 - 2021 is here… Enrollment for current Zion Lutheran School families began the morning of January 8th online through Sycamore. Please note that enrollment will open to community families new to Zion THIS Sunday, January 26th at 5:00 pm.  You will want to complete enrollment before January 26 to secure your spot for the upcoming year.  

Valentines for friends...Our class will have our valentine parties on Monday, February 10 and Tuesday, February 11. Prior to the parties, each child will be making a valentine bag, at school.  Please have your child prepare 20 valentines at home (1 for each child in the class) and bring them on 2/10 or 2/11. Below are a few tips when completing valentines:

• In my experience, filling out valentines can take a bit of time, completing only a few per day.
• Please write "Friend" or "My Friend" in the "To" line (or leave it blank), and then he/she can sign his/her name in the "From" line.  
• Including a small item (sticker, pencil, tattoo, etc) along with the valentine is okay, but not required.  Please, NO CANDY or FOOD, due to possible allergies. 
• If you attend on Monday and Tuesday, you do not need to bring valentines for each day.  The bags will be out both days, so you can bring your 20 in on either day.

National Lutheran Schools Week...We will be celebrating National Lutheran Schools Week on January 27 - 31. Help us celebrate with these special dress days!

• Monday: Class Choice Day…Wear your favorite color from head to toe! Jeans Optional.
• Tuesday: Crazy Weather Day...Dress for a rainstorm or snowstorm or any other crazy weather event. Jeans optional.
• Wednesday: PJ Day...Wear pajamas/sweats, may wear slippers (bring change of shoes for outside).
• Thursday: Olympic Day...Dress as an athlete or in gear from your favorite country. Jeans optional.
• Friday: Redout/Whiteout Day...Choose to dress in all red or all white from head to toe. Jeans optional. No face paint or hair color.

Whew...on to our day...

We had a different check-in this morning. Each friend decided how he/she was feeling today (happy, sad, angry, scared, tired, or excited).  Then wrote his/her name in the correct column!

 With everyone checked in, we used our early math skills to see that "happy" had the most with 7 friends, while "angry" and "scared" had the least with 0 friends each!

In preparation for National Lutheran Schools Week, we began painting lots of dots lime green. Next week, the older kids at Zion will be using the dots that all of preschool and ELP paint for an all school art project!

 To finish up morning meeting, I had 7 items from around the classroom.  After identifying each item, we locked them in our brains.  I covered the items with a towel and removed 2.  Our job was to recognize and recall what was missing!  There was no fooling us...we figured it out every time.

Happy 4th Birthday Nolan! Thank you for sharing your special day with us!

Another GREAT birthday lantern in the books!

Brrrr....with a cold feels like temperature it was a trip to the commons for large motor time!!!

We enjoyed a book that helped us to understand why there was no school yesterday.  We learned that Martin Luther King Jr. had a very important dream.  We too can have dreams that will hopefully one day come true!

We then read a book that helped us to remember to use please and thank you when asking for something.  Many times it is hard to remember, but we all have to learn to use our manners and show kindness!

We even had enough time to enjoy a book that reminded us that it is always the best choice to share with our friends! What a great way to show God's love...

Time for small groups (centers)!

With me we improved number recognition and counting that same number of objects.  I had cards with numbers on them.  Each friend stated the number, then counted out that many snowballs (mini marshmallows) to put in an ice cube tray.  Success for some was working with numbers 1 - 9, while success for others was working with numbers 1 - 16!

With Mrs. Cooper we improved letter identification and the sound each letter makes. Then we practiced forming the letter correctly on magnet boards!

We improved our balance while also practicing number identification!  As, each friend stepped over a number, he/she said the number and then patted his/her head that number of times!

After reading the book about MLK Jr, his dream and those dreams of the children in the book, each friend wrote or drew in his/her journal about a dream that he/she has!

We then enjoyed getting the wiggles out as we had large motor time in the gym!

During Jesus Time we learned of Jesus performing another miracle! Bartimaeus was a blind man, a beggar sitting on the side of the road.  As Jesus was traveling near Jericho, he came across Bartimaeus.  He asked Jesus for his mercy, but Jesus didn't hear him.  So, he kept asking louder and louder.  Finally, Jesus called for him and because of his faith, he was healed.  Bartimaeus could see again!

Thanks for checking out our day and stay warm tonight!