Apples! We learned all about apples this week! Blossoms began the week learning that a group of apple trees is called an orchard. We brainstormed all of the things we already knew about apples and were extremely excited to find apples in our lunch boxes. We then discussed the life cycle of an apple from seed to tree to blossom to apple. We also learned about the parts of an apple – skin, flesh, core, seeds, and stem. At the end of the week we gathered some scientific data as we taste tested a Gala apple, a Granny Smith apple and apple cider. Everyone LOVED the apple cider!
A Peek into Work Time:
Here is a snapshot of all of the different ways we brought apples into our work activities this week!
Enrichment Spotlight – Music, Art, and ASL!
A Peek into Next Week:
Focus Lesson: Pumpkins!
Important Dates:
October 27: Trunk or Treat event
November 10: Parent/Teacher Conferences (No School for students)
Line Time: Mammals-This past week we learned about Mammals. Mammals are vertebrates (have a spine or backbone), warm blooded (their body temperature does not change), have hair or fur, live bearers, and eat/drink mother’s milk when young. Some mammals live in the water such as dolphins and whales. The only mammal that can fly is the bat! Cats, dogs, elephants, and rats are mammals. Oh, and people are mammals as well. “Are we not men? We are MAMMALS………. “
I have to do this every year…. If you want to play Six Degrees Of Separation for DEVO, Mark Mothersbaugh’s (front man for DEVO) brother does the confirmation classes for my church. Also, I do childcare at the church and I have cared for his niece’s children. I know useless but interesting information.
Trivia: What high school did Mark Mothersbaugh attend.
Did you know? Since football season is upon us it would be apropos to share this knowledge of the defensive term of “Blitz”. The term “Blitz” comes from the German word blitzkrieg, which means, “lightning war.” In World War II, the Germans employed this tactic which emphasized mobile forces attacking with speed and surprise.
A Message From Mr. John (Who are these bands????):
Cultural Subjects: Your children can now count to ten in 10 languages (English, Latin, Sign Language, Spanish, German, French, Greek, Japanese).
Next Week: Weekly Themes: Geography.. Cardinal Directions Math.. Multiplication Other Materials Language.. Articles Geometry.. Geometric Solids
Synonym Of The Week: ACTIVE: lively, energetic, dynamic, vigorous
Sight Words Of The Week: you his
Upcoming Events: Trunk or Treat: Friday October 27 2023… Details to follow Parent/Teacher Conferences: (NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS): Friday November 10 2023… Details to follow
This week in Aspen it was all about Apples!! The Aspen students spent the week learning how apples grow, what they need to grow, learned how to identify and name the parts of an apple, and got to observe and explore the parts of an apple with our apple observation activity. At the same time, Aspen took their scientific observation to the next level by engaging in a very yummy science experiment involving apples. We took a red apple (Red Delicious), a green apple (Granny Smith), and a yellow apple, (Golden Delicious) and taste tested them! Our experiment was to see if they tasted the same or different! Ask your apple scientist what they discovered! Since we were slicing apples, Aspen then took the opportunity to discuss fractions. Aspen learned about whole, half, one- third, and one- fourth while slicing our apples for our experiment. A very big thank you to Lily for bringing in apples for us to use for this lesson. Finally, we shifted gears and used our apples for something other than eating! We made apple prints with sliced apples and paint. Our Week in Aspen sure was Appletastic!!
This week we also had our first field trip to Ramseyers Farm and enjoyed some Fall themed fun ! We learned all about Pumpkins, how they grow, and got to pick our very own perfect pumpkin!! A big thank you to all of the Aspen parents that made our field trip special and fun! Ms. Angela and I truly enjoyed spending the day with you and your child! Happy pumpkin carving with your perfect pumpkins!!
This week in Readers and Writers Workshop the kindergarten students continued their literary and phonics fun! In Readers Workshop the Cardinals continued their work exploring phonological awareness, sight words, sentence structure, and comprehension skills ( focusing on the concept of sequencing). We read the book If You Give A Pig A Pancake and The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate The Wash and discussed sequencing within these stories. We then placed events in order from from their occurrence within the story! Our Cardinals have some great recollection and comprehension skills!! The Chickadees continued their fun with phonics and phonemic awareness by engaging in sound games, sound activities, and began practicing segmenting words! They also continued to practice following directions and completed two worksheets this week. The Chickadees also engaged in more sight word work!
Next week Aspen will be learning all about Pumpkins and the life cycle of a pumpkin!
Creative fun with the Geometric Magnetic Tiles!
Pattern work with the Apple Pattern activity.
Labeling the parts of an apple.
Exploring phonics with the CVC (consonant vowel consonant) words! Phonics is fun!!
Matching and folding socks is a favorite Practical Life activity in the Aspen room!!
This week we learned all about the Four Seasons. We learned that we are currently in the season of summer but that the season will change this Saturday to fall or autumn! We discussed what sort of activities we could do in all of the seasons, what the different temperatures would feel like in each season, and some of the things we can observe with our scientist eyes. We also learned that because of the tilt of the Earth on its axis, that while we are having summer in the Northern Hemisphere, the Southern Hemisphere is having winter! We’re really looking forward to exploring all that fall has to offer us over the next months!
Preschool Corner:
Our preschoolers have been busy sorting in both the Practical Life and Sensorial areas of the classroom. All year long we will be practicing sorting by color, shape, size, and then by two attributes at once! Why is sorting so important? Grouping objects by color, size or shape helps develop visual memory, a skill that assists with problem solving!
Kindergarten Corner:
Our Kindergarteners have been so busy working on their individual reading skills with Ms. Tonya in the classroom and Ms. Kelley during Reader’s Workshop. They love to read their books to their teachers! They also completed their lessons on the different types of triangles with Ms. Sam this week in the Sensorial area of the classroom. In Math, we are diving into our Addition unit!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
A Peek into Work Time:
Our individual work periods are getting longer and we are well on our way to being a normalized classroom. What is a normalized classroom? Maria Montessori wrote, “The greatest sign of success for a teacher… is to be able to say ‘The children are now working as if I did not exist.’” Some characteristics of a normalized classroom would be a room where the children are freely choosing their work activities, concentrating on their work, and finding joy in the work that they are doing.
Ramseyer Farms!
We had a BLAST at Ramseyer Farms! It was such a beautiful, perfect day! A huge THANK YOU to all of the parents and grandparents that helped make our field trip such a success! We couldn’t have done it without you!
A Peek into Next Week:
Our Focus Lesson: Apples
Important Dates:
October 27: Trunk or Treat event
November 10: Parent/Teacher Conferences (No School for students)
Line Time: Living/Non-Living Living and Non-Living- This week we talked about living and non-living things. Your children now know what makes a living thing. All living things reproduce, grow, eat or take in nutrients, breathe or exchange gases, and need water. We are all in agreement that plants, animals, trees, grass, are living things! My shoe is not a living thing nor am I at 5:00 am. Some of the parents are not living until they have had their coffee. My youngest son’s shoes may or may not be living. I do not get close enough to tell due to the smell and I may have seen them move on their own…. Boys that are 17 years old, SMH.
AMessage From Mr. John (Dang Mosquitos):
Fun Fact:(Dang Mosquitos, again) The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calls mosquitoes the “world’s deadliest animal.” It’s a weighty moniker for an insect that weighs just 2.5 milligrams, but it’s well deserved because vector-borne diseases, including those transmitted by mosquitos, cause more than 700,000 deaths worldwide every year. They are truly evil things.
Trivia: What was the name of the band that visited Gilligan’s Island?
Cultural Subjects: Your children can now count to ten in 7 languages (English, Latin, Sign Language, Spanish, German, French, Greek)
Know Your Languages (Greek):
Enrichment (Science):
Peek In Our Week:
Peek Into Next Week: Line Time- Mammals
Letter Of The Week- F f
Rhyming Word Of The Week- big
Next Language is Japanese
Upcoming Events: Nothing really going on. Lets celebrate… hmmm… my pseudo birthday with jelly donuts!
Academic Enrichment: Weekly Themes: Next Week: Geography.. Continent/Fun Facts Math.. Multiplication w/carryovers Language.. Nouns/Verbs Geometry.. More geometric shapes
Synonym Of The Week: SAD, miserable, gloomy, depressing, downtrodden, glum, unhappy
This week in Aspen we began our Botany lessons with learning all about the Parts Of a Tree. The Aspen students used our Botany Tree puzzle to learn the names of each part of a tree. At the same time, we also discussed that each part of the tree has a special job or function that it does. Each part of the tree performs a special job that helps the tree grow strong and healthy. For example, Aspen learned that the roots collect water , minerals, and nutrients from the soil and help to stabilize and keep the tree upright. Aspen then examined the trunk and branches of a tree and learned that the bark protects the wood inside the tree. In fact, something amazing occurs inside the trunk! Aspen learned that the trunk and branches have different types of wood underneath the protective layer of bark. The part called the inner bark or “Phloem” is the part or pipeline through which food is passed to other parts of the tree.This is the part of the tree that; only lives a short time , turns to cork, and eventually becomes part of the protective Outer Bark! The Cambium cell layer or growing part of the tree trunk produces new wood and gets its food through the phloem from the leaves. The Sapwood is the pipeline through which water is transported to the leaves and the Heartwood is the center supporting pillar of a tree. Aspen was fascinated by how many special events occur inside the trunk! Finally, Aspen discussed the important function of the Leaves. We learned that the leaves are the food factories providing nourishment for the tree!
After investigating the parts of a tree, the Aspen children became scientists and discussed the needs of a tree! We learned what trees need in order to grow and then researched different types of trees. For instance, the Aspen students determined that a tree needs water, sunlight, soil (minerals and nutrients), and Carbon Dioxide. We then explored where carbon dioxide comes from and discovered that we help the trees and the trees help us! They help by giving us the Oxygen we need to survive! We learned this is called a symbiotic relationship! Finally, we discussed the difference between deciduous and coniferous trees. We then took a closer look at different kinds of tree seeds, leaves, and bark with our Botany tray! We encourage your child to bring in any leaves, seeds, bark, or scientific nature related objects. However, we do ask that you limit the amount of objects for our Botany tray to two items. I know they will discover so many fascinating treasures but please have them choose their favorites! Happy hunting!!!
In Readers Workshop the Cardinals continued to practice using their decoding skills while practicing preliminary comprehension activities, they also practiced following directions, and mastered their first box of sight words! The Chickadees continued to be Sound Detectives and decoded object clues and matched them to their corresponding letter sounds! We practiced segmenting words and we realized that words are just made up of sound clues! The Chickadees also engaged in following directions by completing worksheets utilizing the skills they have acquired. Both groups are learning how to write the date when writing their name on their work!
Next week it is All About Apples! We will take a close look at the parts of an apple, engage in a scientific taste test, explore fractions with apples, and engage in apple themed art projects!!
We learned all about our 5 Senses this week in the Cherry Blossom classroom! Our 5 senses are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching. We learned that we use our 5 senses to learn all about the world around us every day. We practiced using our sense of sight to match pictures, our sense of hearing to pair sound cylinders, our sense of touch to match fabrics, and our sense of smell and taste during lunch!
Ms. Sam introduced the Blossoms to the Where I Am in the World lesson. She started by introducing the children to their planet, then continent, country, state, city, and finally our school. This is an introductory lesson that we will build upon all school year long!
Preschool Corner:
I am sure you are familiar with the sandpaper letters. This beautiful work is well known in the Montessori classroom environment. But the children use these letters in so many different ways! In the Blossoms class the letters a, c, r, and t can be found in the red pouch. If your child ever mentions the red pouch, then they are working on these letter sounds! We always teach sound first, and letter name later.
Kindergarten Corner:
Reader’s Workshop and Writer’s Workshop are going so well with this group of Kindergarteners! In Reader’s Workshop, children played games with Ms. Kelley to isolate the beginning sounds of words. Readers also read short stories and answered comprehension questions.
In Writer’s Workshop, our young authors began adding labels to their illustrations. We worked on stretching our words out slowly and writing down the sounds they hear.
Enrichment Spotlight: Tae Kwon Do Demo!
Blossoms had so much fun at the Tae Kwon Do demo this week with Master Barnick! Master Barnick introduced stretching, punching, kicking, and a fun game. We also practiced yelling “Yes, sir!” after directions were given.
Line Time: Food Groups, This week we had fun learning about the food groups in our class. Grains and Cereals (pasta, rice, bread, cereal, crackers), Fruit (apples, grapes, kiwi, mango which is my favorite), Vegetables (cucumbers, carrots, potato, broccoli, eggplant, which is my favorite) Dairy (my favorite… milk, cheese {I love cheese/smoked gouda}, yogurt), meats (beef, pork, chicken), and proteins, fats and sugars and how many servings we should have per day.
AMessage From Mr. John (I really am shy):
Fun Fact: Giraffe ‘horns’ are not actually called horns, but ‘ossicones’ and both female and male giraffe have them. Ossicones are formed from ossified (hardened into bone) cartilage and are covered in skin.
Cultural Subjects: Your children can now count to ten in 6 languages (English, Latin, Sign Language, Spanish, German, French)
Know Your Languages (French):
Enrichment (Music):
Peek In Our Week:
Peek Into Next Week: Line Time- Living and Non-Living Things
Letter Of The Week- E e
Rhyming Word Of The Week- bad
Next Language is Greek
Upcoming Events: Ramseyer Farms- Friday, September 22, 2023
Picture Day: Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Academic Enrichment: Weekly Themes: Next Week: Weekly Themes:
Geography. Continent Fun Facts ll Math. Multiplication no carry overs Language . Nouns and Verbs Geometry. Geometric Shapes ll
Synonym Of The Week: HAPPY: cheerful, content, jovial, joyful, merry
Sight Words Of The Week: our was
Frolic, Friends, and Fun:
Your Kids Say The Darndest Things (A Cat With One Eye):
This week in Aspen it was all about the Seasons! Aspen learned that there are four seasons Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring! We also learned that here in Ohio we are lucky to experience all four seasons! We then discussed the characteristics of each season and our Aspen students shared their observations and talked about their favorite seasons! During Line Time, we used our Painted Globe and a flashlight to demonstrate the reason we experience four seasons in Ohio. Therefore, the Aspen students were able to visually experience the concepts of seasons, day and night, and learned some new vocabulary words ( rotation, axis, tilt, and orbit). Aspen learned we live on a planet called Earth that orbits a star called the Sun. As our Earth rotates and orbits our sun, only part of our planet experiences day and night. The part facing the sun has daytime and the part facing away from the sun has nighttime. The Aspen students had so much fun creating day and night with the flashlight and Painted Globe! We then took our experiment to the next level and discussed how the Earth rotates on its axis and experiences a tilt. We can’t feel the Earth rotating and tilting but we can feel the results of the tilt of the Earth! When Earth’s axis or our part of the world is tilted towards the sun and is receiving lots of direct sunlight, we will experience summer! Lots of sun equals lots of heat! Then something special happens, the tilt shifts the axis a bit giving us less direct sunlight leading to cooler temperatures giving us Fall!! As we experience Fall we eventually tilt receiving even less direct sunlight. Which leads to a significant drop in temperature giving us cold weather with snow and ice! Then something special happens again, as our Earth continues its orbit, it’s rotation, and the tilting of it’s axis the Earth begins to tilt towards the sun giving us more direct sunlight melting the snow and ice while warming us! As a result, we experience Spring! Then the process repeats all over with Summer, Fall,Winter, and Spring! This Repeating process lead Aspen to also discuss patterns and repetition! Aspen also learned that different parts of the world experience different seasons at different times and some do not experience four seasons like Ohio!! This allowed for us to learn two more vocabulary words (Hemisphere and Equator)! It sure was a busy and scientific week in Aspen!
Next week the Aspen students will begin their Botany classification work with the Tree Puzzle! Students will learn how to identify and name each part of a tree. At the same time, they will also learn the function of each part! See you Monday!!
The Kindergarten students continued their work with phonics in Readers’ Workshop and began illustrating books in Writers’ Workshop! In Readers Workshop the Cardinals engaged in more word play manipulating sounds to create words, discussed new Sight Words ( he, she, me, we, I , see, look, you and a). They then practiced following directions completing in class follow -up work. The Chickadees continued their work with the identification of letter sounds and then engaged in multiple in class follow-up work activities. Chickadees then used their knowledge to identify sounds and name things beginning with the corresponding sound! They also practiced writing their name and date on their follow-up work.
Reason For Seasons – Science Experiment! Using our Painted Globe to visually experience the concepts of Day and Night and the Seasons!
Visual Discrimination of color with The Color Tablets! Matching colors for Sensorial fun!
This week all of our Blossoms learned characteristics of living things and characteristics of non-living things. We learned that living things need food, water, and air. Living things also grow and make more of themselves, or reproduce. Your child practiced identifying if items were living or non-living. You can practice this concept with them at home!
Blossoms were also introduced to categorizing in the Science area. Children practiced identifying if something was an animal or a plant. We learned that animals move on their own, while plants stay where they are. Animals also eat food while plants make their own. Another concept you can practice with your children at home!
This is Spike, one of our classroom plants. We discussed how Spike is a living thing because it needs food, water, air, it grows, and it makes more of itself. This is Fred, another of our classroom plants. Fred is a non-living thing. It does not need food, water, or air. It will not grow and it will not make more of itself. Ms. Sam is reading one of our favorite books, I am Josephine and I am a Living Thing.
Preschool Corner:
Preschoolers worked on their Handwriting skills this week!
This child is working with our cursive booklets. We work on holding our marker correctly and following the line from the apple to the tree. This is a beginning handwriting work that prepares our hands for writing! This child is using the chalkboard to practice writing her name. We use this chalkboard to not only focus on correct formation of letters, but also practice keeping our letters within the box. We are developing those fine motor skills! This child traced and labeled a horse! This work activity can be found within the Science area of our classroom, but also works on our handwriting skills!
Kindergarten Corner:
Our Kindergartners continued their study of the seven continents this week! They traced and labeled our world map puzzle on posterboard which we proudly displayed in the classroom for all to see!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
A big Happy Birthday to our newest four year old and our newest five year old!
A Peek into Work Time!
We bring the concept we are learning in Art Class with Ms. Varela into the classroom on a tray in the art area. This week we focused on pasting small pieces of paper onto a line. More fine motor development! This child is working on his one to one correspondence in Math with counting objects! We will tell the child a number and then have them count out the correct amount of popsicle sticks! This child is working with our object to picture matching activity in the Language area of the classroom. This is just one of our many prelanguage works – the activities we do before we begin letters!
Oh My, Butterflies!
Remember those caterpillars you saw at Open House? Well they have completed their metamorphosis! (Metamorphosis is one of my most favorite words!) Our butterflies hatched this week and we were excellent scientific observers as we watched how the butterfly moved its wings.
This female monarch butterfly is off to Mexico for her long migration!
Movement Fridays!
We are all about moving on Fri-yays! This week we had a wonderful dance party in the gym with our Aspen friends, and we also met Ms. Jaime from Cosmic Kids Yoga in the classroom! Check out our awesome yoga poses!