The months of May and June were very exciting in our classroom! We learned all about Insects, Dinosaurs, Reptiles and Amphibians, Mammals, and Summer Safety. We also had a very exciting field trip to the Akron Zoo to experience up close the different types of animals we had learned about!

During the first week, we discussed all about Insects. We learned insects have six legs. We also learned that all insects have a head, thorax, and abdomen. We also learned about the process that caterpillars go through in order to become a butterfly, called metamorphosis. The children also enjoyed making their own time line of the process of metamorphosis as well.

The following week we learned all about Dinosaurs. The children learned there were some dinosaurs that ate meat (carnivores), some dinosaurs who ate plants (herbivores), and some dinosaurs who ate both plants and meat (omnivores). We also learned Dinosaurs were reptiles. The children also learned all about Tyrannosaurus Rex and that his name means “ Tyrant Lizard King”. We also learned about Stegosaurus and enjoyed making a Stegosaurus craft with Ms. Kim during afternoon group lesson.

We learned all about Reptiles and Amphibians during week three. We learned that Reptiles are cold blooded and most live on the land ( the alligator and crocodile being the exception). We learned that Amphibians can live both on the land and in the water. The children enjoyed learned about the parts of the turtle and learning about the life cycle of the frog as well. The children learned that frogs start off as an egg, then they grow into a tadpole after they hatch. The tadpole then grows into a froglet and then the frog becomes an adult.

Mammals were the topic of discussion during week four. The children learned that mammals are warm blooded, give birth to their babies, usually have hair or fur on their bodies, and they drink milk from their mother’s bodies. The children enjoyed making a lemur craft and a mammal booklet with Ms. Kim during pre-school lesson as well. We also learned that we are mammals too!

The last week of school was all about Summer Fun and Safety. We learned all about how to be safe around a campfire, and Ms. Kim brought in S’mores as a special treat! We also learned we should wear our helmets when riding our bikes or skate boards, when it is alright to call 911, we should not talk to strangers, and what is safe to touch in our house and what is not.

This summer, I encourage to you discuss with your child the safety rules of your home and rules for also being safe in your neighborhood. Discuss with your child what their favorite animal was that they saw at the zoo. Take a trip to the Natural History Museum in Cleveland and see the Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton up close.

Enrichments (Ms. Kim)

Music

For our last month in music class, Ms. Lisa reviewed many skills we have been working on throughout the year. To review loud (forte) and soft (piano), the children played tambourines and bells during different parts of a song. We then danced with scarves to some smooth (legato) music and then popped some bubbles to jumpy (staccato) music! To practice using our listening ears, Ms. Lisa had us play a pass and roll ball game. We had to work together to keep the balls moving in circle, but had to listen carefully and stop when the music stopped! We also worked on learning whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes. Ms. Lisa had the children play rhythm sticks to “Great Big Stars” to keep the beat with the quarter notes. Another musical instrument we worked with was Ms. Lisa’s keyboard (piano). She explained to the children that the keys on the left side of the keyboard make low sounds, while the keys on the right side make high sounds. Lastly, we played the cat and mouse game to review high and low sounds. The children loved when the low sounds were played on the keyboard and the cats came out to catch the mice! Thanks Ms. Lisa for such a fun music class!

Science

In science this month we learned that we eat metal! Mr. John mixed together bran flakes cereal and water in a bag. When he rubbed a magnet over the cereal, black spots appeared. These black spots are iron. So since iron is a metal, we eat metal in cereal!

In our next experiment, we made green goo! Mr. John mixed together water, green food coloring, and Metamucil powder. The children made hypotheses on what would happen if you put the mixture in the microwave. Many of the children said that the mixture would turn to goo. Mr. John explained that once the mixture cooled down it would turn to goo because the polymers in the powder stick together.

During our last experiment we made a tea bag fly up into the air. Mr. John asked the children what they thought would happen when he lit an empty tea bag on fire. Some children said that the tea bag would melt. When he lit the tea bag, the bag burnt down a little and then flew up into the air. Why? When the tea bag began to burn it got lighter. The air around the tea bag got hot and made the paper rise.

Art

In our first art class, we studied the artist Vincent Van Gogh. We looked at the painting he did of a bedroom. Then the students created their own bedrooms out of cardstock and other art media. In their bedrooms, the children had to create two patterns.

In our second art lesson, the children got to use their imaginations and creativity to create shape animals by gluing strips of paper into different shapes and then gluing these shapes together. Ms. Michele demonstrated to the children how to glue strips of paper into circles, hearts, ovals, etc. When the children were done, they had created 3-dimensional art since the animals were not flat.

In our third art lesson, the children got to observe and paint flowers. Ms. Michele brought in pots of flowers and set them on the tables. She showed the children how she observed and then painted what she saw. She demonstrated how to paint stems, leaves, and then flowers. The children’s paintings had lots of color!

In our last lesson, Ms. Michele reviewed the color wheel. She asked the children what primary, secondary, and complimentary colors were. Then she showed the children that they would be working with pipe cleaners to create an animal. Ms. Michele twisted and bent pipe cleaners to show the children how to make bodies, eyes, and other parts of animals. Making these animals was a good way to get the students thinking about the animals at the zoo!

In conclusion, I want to thank you and your children for making this such a wonderful school year. Your children inspire me every day and have shown me so much unconditional love. It’s because of them that I love getting up and going to work every day! Thank you for the precious gift of your children! I can’t wait for what the next school year has in store for us!

The month of April was very busy in our classroom! The children continued to delve into experiencing other cultures and customs, worked very hard on their lines and songs for the International Festival, and we also even learned about the Ocean.

During the first week of April, we learned about the continents of South America and Africa. We first learned that the continent of South America contains the Amazon Rain Forest as well as the Amazon River. The children also learned about the African Savanah and the many animals that reside there, such as lions, impalas, and African Elephants. The children also enjoyed making African necklaces with Ms. Kim during Preschool!

We studied the continents of Europe and Asia during the second week of April. The children enjoyed learning about France and tasting croissants during Preschool Lesson. They also enjoyed learning about Ireland’s green countryside and many castles. We then traveled to Asia where we dove into Japanese music and how songs in Japan were originally composed using only five notes! I even brought in my xylophone to demonstrate for the children the difference between Japanese music, and the style of music we are used to hearing as Americans. We also learned that Japan was formed over time due to the eruption of several volcanoes. We also enjoyed making our own volcano in class!

During week three, we traveled to Australia. We learned about Aboriginal Art and discussed the many animals found in Australia, such as kangaroos, wallabies, and wambats. We even had a special speaker come and visit us to tell us all about her trip to ” The Land Down Under”.

The final week, the children enjoyed learning all about the Oceans. We learned the names of all the oceans, which are Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, and Arctic. I think this was a favorite unit, as the children were excited on the first day to name as many animals as they could that live in the ocean. We learned that not only fish live in the ocean, but mammals such as Orca Whales and Dolphins live in the ocean as well and breathe oxygen from the air, just as we do! The children also enjoyed making a crab craft during preschool lesson with Ms. Kim.

Enrichments (Ms. Kim)

Music

We were happy to see Ms. Lisa back from her trip! She had traveled to El Salvador on a missions trip. She shared with us pictures of the land and the children she worked with. Then Ms. Lisa played us a song that she had used in El Salvador. It was in Spanish, but she told us it means “I Have Joy in My Heart” in English. The children played tambourines to this joyful song. We also reviewed forte (loud) and piano (soft) in different ways. I (Ms. Kim) got to play in on the fun. I pretended to be asleep while the children walked around me singing in their piano voices. Once the music was loud, the children used their forte voices to wake me up! In addition, Ms. Lisa used rhythm sticks to review soft and loud. We tapped them loudly then rubbed them softly to different parts in a song. We then reviewed whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes. Lastly, we learned some new musical vocabulary. Staccato means bumpy and legato means smooth!

Science

Our first science experiment involved a bottle of colored water with vegetable oil and Alka-Seltzer tablets. The children made hypotheses about what would happen when the Alka-Seltzer tablets were dropped into the bottle. When Mr. John dropped a tablet into the bottle, the tablet dissolved but bubbles were created that floated up and down. We found out that when a tablet dissolved, carbon dioxide bubbles were created. The carbon dioxide bubbles carried the colored water to the top of the bottle. At the top of the bottle was the oil, and since oil and water don’t mix, the bubbles fell back down to the bottom.

Our next experiment involved a candle, balloons, and water. Mr. John lit the candle and waved a balloon over it. The balloon popped! Next he blew up another balloon but added water to it. The children made hypotheses about what would happen to this balloon. Did it pop also? No! The water absorbed the heat from the lit candle and prevented the balloon from popping.

Art

In Art we got ready for the International Festival by doing cultural projects. First we made koi fish windsocks to represent Japan. Ms. Michele explained that in Japan koi fish banners are made to represent different members of a family. The children enjoyed creating these windsocks out of construction paper. We used tissue paper, sequins, crayons, and googly eyes to decorate them.

In our next art lesson, the children made Aboriginal paintings to represent Australia. We learned that the Aborigines started pointillism (dot painting) to create pictures. The children drew an animal from Australia, and then filled in the animal by dotting with Q-tips that were dipped into different colored melted clay.

Some things you can do with your child in the coming months to reinforce our themes would be going to the zoo and seeing how many animals your family can find that are from Africa. Try making a French recipe together as a family. Pull up a world map and review the names of the Oceans together. Discuss with your child their favorite sea creature.

Some things you can do with your child in the coming months to reinforce our themes would be going to the zoo and seeing how many animals your family can find that are from Africa. Try making a French recipe together as a family. Pull up a world map and review the names of the Oceans together. Discuss with your child their favorite sea creature.

Maria Montessori stated that, “It is true that we cannot make a genius. We can only give to the child the chance to fulfill his potential possibilities.” Remember, every child is unique and develops different skills and abilities at their own pace in their own time. I am very proud of how hard your children work in the classroom, and it is an honor to be their teacher.

The month of February was very busy in our classroom! We learned about types of transportation, all about arctic animals, our Presidents (past and present), and all about dental health! We also had fun celebrating Valentine’s Day!

During the first week of February, we discussed trains, boats, buses, and trucks and other forms of transportation. The children especially enjoyed making “Name Trains” in Preschool lesson, turning their names into a train. We also discovered that the children are very interested in kayaks, and had many questions about them! We discovered there many way to get from one place to another! The children also enjoyed using the sink or float work during Preschool lesson and during work time!

We learned about many different types of arctic animals during the second week of February. The children learned about how many arctic animals have a layer of blubber underneath their skin and how is keeps them warm at night. They also learned that male Emperor Penguins take care of their eggs while the female Emperor Penguins go and search for food. The children also enjoyed learning about Arctic Wolves, Polar Bears, and Beluga Whales. The children especially enjoyed making a Penguin craft with Ms. Kim during Preschool lesson.

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During week three, we learned all about Presidents. We learned that the president’s job is to be the leader of our country. We also learned about the sixteenth President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. We also discussed George Washington and how he was the first President of the United States. We also learned that George Washington’s picture is on the quarter and the dollar bill. We also learned that Abraham Lincoln’s Picture is on the five dollar bill and the penny.

We learned all about dental health during the final week of February. We learned all about how when we are young, we only have ten twenty when we are younger. Later, when we become adults, we have twenty-eight teeth! We also learned the proper way to brush our teeth and what foods are healthy for our teeth. The children also enjoyed making a craft with Ms. Kim during Preschool lesson where they made a mouth with construction paper and marshmallows for teeth!

Enrichments

In music class, we sang hello to Rainbow the Dragon and Bernie the Bernard by using our loud, soft, high, and low voices. Ms. Lisa had the students play some of their favorite games this month. To reinforce high and low sounds, the students pretended to be horses. When high sounds were played, the students galloped with jingle bells. When low sounds were played, the students galloped with castanets. Another high/low sounds game we played was Mice and Cats. When high notes were played, the “mice” came out to play. When the low notes were played, the “cats” came out to try and catch the “mice!” Then, Ms. Lisa brought in her keyboard piano. She used the keyboard to make the sounds of the instruments used in Peter and the Wolf. I was surprised that the children remembered what characters from the story were represented by the instruments. They also remembered the names of the instruments! Way to go! Lastly, we sang some of our favorite songs like If All the Raindrops, BINGO, and Wheels on the Bus.

In science class, Mr. John had the students make many hypotheses about whether items would sink or float. Our first experiment involved two balls of play dough. Mr. John turned one of the balls of play dough into a bowl. When we dropped both play dough items into water, the bowl floated and the ball sank. Why? The play dough turned into a bowl had more surface area which allowed it to push enough water away to stay afloat. Then we looked at lemons and limes. The lemons floated and the limes sank. This was a tricky one. Both fruits have similar density, however the limes are just slightly more dense which causes them to sink. Last, we looked at two oranges, one peeled and one not. The peeled orange sank and the orange with its peel floated. We learned that the orange with its peel keeps in an air bubble which allows it to float. Once that peel is taken off, the air bubble is allowed to escape.

Our favorite project this month was called Dancing Fingers. Students learned about the artist, Monet. They dipped their fingers in many different color paints and with dancing fingers made picture creations of what ever they could imagine! Then they added white paint to their creation to add the tint. This shows light on a picture, just like they learned Monet would have done.

In conclusion, I encourage you to review with your child what they have learned this month. Discuss with them their favorite arctic animal. Take a ride on a train or a boat (when the weather is warmer). At the grocery store, as your child to point out which foods are good for their teeth, and which ones are not. Discuss with your child about what they learned about the job of the president.

As Maria Montessori stated, “Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future.”. I truly believe this, and I am truly amazed as I watch how your children have grown this year so far! I look forward to seeing the wonderful individuals that they will become in the future, who will one day change our world for the better!