Ms. Brandy’s Corner – April 2014

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Tallmadge School

Couriosity guided our work during the month of April in the elementary classroom. As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, our first through third graders selected Natural Wonders of the World for their International Festival research and presentations. Ryan read about the Amazon Rainforest; Nick discovered the beauty of the Grand Canyon; Aleksandar stuck to his Serbian heritage and researched the Djavolja Varos; Allie and Annika plunged into Victoria Falls; Quinn and Zach bundled up to learn about the Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights; Madelyn and Mason revealed the majesty of Mount Everest; and Kassie and Skylar swam through the beautiful Great Barrier Reef. This was quite an extensive project for our students. 1133After selecting their Natural Wonder, they chose topics for their research reports. I provided them with a list of 12 from which to choose, and they narrowed it down to eight that were of interest. After selecting their Wonder and creating an outline, students then called the local library to request books about their Wonder and the topics they wanted to include in their research report. I was impressed with their etiquette on the phone. Even the librarian complimented your children’s manners. Students picked up their library books and began reading. They were so interested to learn about these great places. Everyone asked if we could take a field trip to their Wonder. Wouldn’t that be awesome!The reports were very impressive, full of detail and well written. The next step was to take their new knowledge and write a creative skit to be preformed at the International Festival. Watching their minds race through the possibilities and sharing their ideas was inspiring. Each partnership came up with a different idea and I was so happy with how they turned out. I hope you were able to see the Festival or at least watch the DVD. One of our wonderful parents has been able to get us 12 microscopes, 6 compound and 6 dissecting. Students were given individual lessons on how to operate the two types of microscopes. Continuing to follow the students’ curiosity for nature we explored several natural items under the microscopes. We even looked at our own skin as a cut, then each day as it healed. One creative student came up with the idea to examine a booger. It was quite a hit! We were also amazed at the incredible veins on various kinds of leaves. Students also brought in items from home to examine. 1132 Our classic reading adventures this month have been with the fun-loving, energetic Anne of Green Gables. This story has inspired us to get up and act! As we read, if there is an unfamiliar word, our Dictionary Helpers look up the definition and our Actors act out the word as it is used in the story for clarification. These activities have become a joy for us all to watch. A personal favorite, I have enjoyed reading this book with your children. Several of them have finished the book well before the entire class. We will be continuing to read this story into the month of May. 1113

Ms. Kristen’s Corner – April 2014

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Cuyahoga Falls School

The month of April was very busy in our classroom! The children have been working hard and learning so much. With practicing for the International Festival, Dads and Doughnuts, and all the other fun activities we had this month, time just flew by! During the first week, we traveled to Africa. We also discussed how the people in Africa dress. Ms. Kim had the children make beautiful African necklaces from pasta. We also made African tribal masks! We learned about the pyramids of Egypt, the African Savannah and all the animals that live there. Students loved learning to play a children’s game from the country of Kenya called Mancala! 1111During the second week of April, we explored the continent of Europe. The children enjoyed learning about how the Germans invented pretzels, about how the Leaning Tower of Pisa is in Italy, how Ireland is called the Emerald Isle, and Norway is famous for the Bryggen in Bergen. I especially enjoyed sharing pictures of my trip to Bergen, Norway with the children and sharing about the people and the culture there! Students also enjoyed many visitors that came in to share about their experiences or heritage in different countries this month. Thank you to those who came and spent time teaching our students; we loved it! 1102 In the third week of April, we explored Asia! The children enjoyed listening to a CD of my choir singing Russian music, learning how people in India celebrate Diwali (which is similar to New Years), and learning how to say “hello” and “goodbye” in Japanese. (Also, did you know Russia is part of two continents? Europe and Asia!) During the fourth week of April, we traveled to Australia! We learned about all the different animals that are native to Australia. We learned that kangaroos, wombats, and koalas are classified as marsupials, which means the mothers carry their young in pouches. 1104 We then traveled to Antarctica. We learned the continent of Antarctica is not claimed by any one country, but is used by many scientists around the world for research. Since no country governs Antarctica, it does not have a flag or any ruler. We also discussed how many of the animals in Antarctica can stay warm because they have a layer of blubber underneath their skin! 1105The children very much enjoyed their trip around the globe and learning about the seven continents. For each country they learned about, the children also had the opportunity to color a flag of that country during work time. The children also enjoyed learning how to work on the Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia map puzzles. The map puzzles have become very popular in our classroom. It is wonderful to see their knowledge of the world around them growing! 1103 Take time with your child over the next few weeks and discuss with them which country was their  favorite. Which continent might they want to visit someday? Which food that they tried at the International Festival was their favorite? I consider it an honor and a privilege to work with each of your children. They teach me new things every day!

Ms. Courtney’s Corner – April 2014

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Tallmadge School

We started April off by talking about butterflies and caterpillars. Students had a blast learning about how butterflies go through stages of growth and change called a life cycle. They even got to create a butterfly mobile to represent each stage of the life cycle they learned about. We also designed butterflies using paper, pipe cleaner, and creativity. For science we put one empty glass of water and one full glass of water next to each other with paper towel we twisted together  until it formed a rope (the wick). The rope absorbed and transferred the water from the full glass into the empty glass after we placed one end of it into the glass filled with water and the other into the empty glass. The children learned that the process they just watched happen is called capillary action which is when water uses the tiny gaps in the fiber of the paper towels to move along. Later, some of the children asked if this is the same thing that happens in plants and flowers. What a proud moment that was as a teacher!

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The rest of April we focused on the seven continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. We learned Africa, is where the elephants, giraffes and lions live. South America has tropical forests and one of the longest rivers in the world the Amazon River. North America is where we live. Europe and Asia are together on the map, but Australia is an island where the kangaroo and koala bear live. Last but not least Antarctica is way down below frozen and also home to the penguins. Students and teachers spent a lot of time preparing for this year’s International Festival, displaying some of the knowledge we learned throughout the month. They did a wonderful job, we are very proud of them!

I would like to send a Big Thank You to everyone who took the time to come and talk to us about places around the world. The children really enjoyed listening to what you had to share and appreciated all the time and effort you put in to preparing for the visit!1120

 

Ms. Kate’s Corner – April 2014

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Cuyahoga Falls School

Bonjour! Spring is finally here! I love seeing the warm sunshine and the colorful flowers in bloom! The month of April was spent getting ready for the International Festival and learning about all of the different continents and countries. The children also enjoyed our guest speakers from different backgrounds and cultures.

The first week I introduced the seven continents to the children by showing them our continents puzzle. We discussed the four main countries in North America, which are The United States of America, Mexico, Canada, and Greenland.  1100-1The children also learned about our flag, which consists of 13 horizontal stripes, which are red, white, and blue and represent the first colonies and states in the union. The Flag also has 50 stars, which represent the 50 states in the Union. The children also learned about Christopher Columbus, the climate, and cultures of North America. We also discussed South America; their famous Andes Mountains, the Amazon, and the rainforest. The children really liked learning about the four layers of the Rainforest, which are the forest floor, the understory, the canopy, and the emergent layer.
1097The second week I introduced Africa. Africa is the second largest continent next to Asia. The children learned about North Africa, South Africa, West and East Africa, and also about Central Africa. We had fun discussing their homes and how their houses are made of dried mud, stones, and sticks and how people in Central America live in villages and tend to only cook over an open fire since they do not have electricity. They also learned that the largest cities in Africa are Cairo, Egypt, Lagos, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Throughout the week the children learned about savannas, deserts, and rainforests that make up Africa. We also talked about how thousands of different kinds of plants grow in the rainforest, and how some of those plants provide food and medicine for people that the pharmacies online like the www.dramandabrimhall.com/coolsculpting/ sell. As our time on Africa came to a close we went over the animals, people, language, music, and housing of Africa.
1098The third week we focused on Asia. We discussed how Asia is the largest continent in the world. We mainly focused on China, Japan, and India.
1095 The first few days we learned about China. The children were able to see pictures of the largest Buddha, which is carved in the side of a cliff in China. It took workers about 100 years to carve! They also saw pictures of children at school, the beautiful mountains, their parades that they have when they celebrate the New Year. The children enjoyed learning about the Huang River, which is the third longest river in the world. It is also called the Yellow River because the yellow soil turns the river waters yellow. They also learned about their traditional clothing, families, and how most Chinese people live on farms and work in fields called Paddies. We also reviewed how they do not have an alphabet, but instead a symbol called a character. And lastly, we went over traditions, schooling, and how reading short stories or folktales are very popular. The second country we talked about was Japan. We discussed the weather and seasons, cultures and traditions, school and family. Students also enjoyed gaining knowledge about country and city life in Japan. The children also learned about their food and how they have fun.1099During the third week we explored the country of India. India is a country with seventeen official languages, races, and religions. The children loved learning that India has 45,000 plant species, some of which are not found anywhere else in the world, and that India is divided into 25 states, each with its own governor, members of parliament, and lawmakers.  The children also enjoyed learning about their transpiration, their traditional dressings, family life, and education.1110We spent the last week of April practicing our lines and songs and making special crafts for our International Festival. Amongst all of the busyness the children learned about France, Spain, and the Netherlands. The children had so much fun learning to say “good day,” “hi,” “thank you,” “thank you very much,” and “goodbye” in French. Children were able to learn about their foods, different cultures and traditions, holidays, work that they do, farming, and things to do when you visit each country. While we were exploring Spain, the children learned the history behind the Running of the Bulls and Flamenco dancing and were able to watch a short video on these. Although the month was very busy I really enjoyed teaching the children about the different countries. I loved showing them all countries are different in many ways but also the same. I hope you have learned a little something and see you next time! Au Revoir!

Ms. Courtney’s Corner – March 2014

Written by

Tallmadge School

We started off the month of March talking about Dr. Seuss and Eric Carle. The children loved coming to school dressed crazy with their hats and silly socks (and teachers did too)! We read the book I Wish I Had Duck Feet and discussed animal parts and why different animals need certain parts. Students had a blast drawing themselves with a particular animal part and sharing with the rest of us why they chose that part. After reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar, students created their own caterpillars using cups and forks. We enjoyed reading Green Eggs and Ham and watching the students cringe as they tried that first bite of their green eggs and ham. For science we listened to a reading of Bartholomew and the Oobleck and made our own Ooblecks out of cornstarch and water.


The second week of March we learned all about insects. The children learned how to identify animals belonging in the insect category and those that do not. They learned the main parts of an insect with the help of our own version of Head Shoulders Knees and Toes. This will also be part of me writing thesis for the Montessori school.1057

Thestudents crafted insects out of their names making sure to include all the main parts (head, thorax and abdomen). They turned out great! We also enjoyed creating insects using pipe cleaners. It was amazing to watch their imaginations go wild! Science was a special time this week because we divided students down into two teams. We had team cold water and team hot water and we learned about solutions. We began by experimenting with sugar cubes. Students learned if you add more and more sugar cubes to different temperatures of water, you can only dissolve a certain amount. This varies depending on the temperature of the water.

1054For the third week of March we talked about plants and flowers. The children discovered the four elements needed to grow a plant soil, seeds, sun and water. They also learned the word photosynthesis! Before planting flowers to take home students helped draw a diagram with the sun in the upper corner of the poster board with plenty of “rays’ extending down, and soil on the bottom of the poster board with a lot of seeds planted and some rain drops flowing from the sky. We also gained a new class pet “Polka Dot 2”,our very own Venus Fly Trap! Students are excited to observe this throughout the year!

Mr. John’s Corner – March 2014

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Cuyahoga Falls School

Line Time Lessons

Ms. Dana and Ms. Kathleen have never missed a beat and are a great support to me in the classroom; we can’t believe we are heading into the home stretch! It has been a great year together and with your children!

To begin this month, we visited the Ancient Romans and found they wore the toga, built the coliseum, and their most famous person was Julius Caesar.   Our students had fun one afternoon building their own Roman Arches from sugar cubes. Our students were very fascinated by Roman Mythology. We learned the Greeks Gods had Roman counterparts.

Jupiter was the king of all Gods. The God of the sea was named Neptune and the God of the Underworld was known as Pluto. The God of War was named Mars. Goddesses existed as well. Juno was the queen of all Goddesses. Venus was the Goddess of Love. Minerva was the Goddess of Wisdom. Many students noticed that many of the Gods were named after planets or the planets were named after the Gods. Mythical creatures existed such as the faun. The faun was a creature that was half man/ half goat. The griffin was the most interesting to the students. It was a creature that had a head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion. It was known to guard treasures and built their nests out of gold.

We then learned a little about pollution. Pollution is something that is harmful to our environment. Some students used the word “toxic” to the environment. We learned that “ground pollution” was known as litter. We know not just to toss a plastic bottle or a candy wrapper on the ground but instead put it in a trash can or recycle. Water pollution can come from oil spills or factories dumping their toxic waste into the water. Fish and other water creatures such as ducks do not like this. Air pollution is caused by factories and cars. We all agreed any kind of pollution is gross, disgusting, and probably smells. And no one thought noise pollution was good for the environment.


Students have also been talking about what it means to be a friend with Ms. Dana and Ms. Kathleen in the afternoon and enjoyed working together to build a friendship web. This is a group activity that teaches our students how to communicate their feelings, and pick out positive characteristics in people.We then dove into the ocean and found the oceans are all salt water and have some pretty cool animals. We all knew there were water mammals such as dolphins, and whales. There are also some invertebrates such as the octopus, squid and seahorse. We know that the oceans and any water forms are very important to the Earth. We get our water, food and oxygen from our water forms.

We also took a field trip to the Art Museum this month!  Thank you to all of our parents who volunteered to drive and help us at our visit.  It was a great trip!

 

Our classroom was visited this month by some very mischievous leprechauns. We were greeted by tipped tables, stacked chairs, and paper strewn across the room. Although the room was a mess the cheeky little leprechauns did leave gold coin candy for the children to take home!
Cultural Subjects

The class has been counting to 10 in twenty-eight different languages, English (that is our native language), Spanish, Sign Language, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Arabic w/Lebanese dialect, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Hebrew, Swedish, Korean, Polish, Hungarian, Tagalog, Hebrew, Korean, Polish, Irish, Kiswahili, Welsh, Dutch/Flemish, Serbo-Croatian, Cebuano, Malay, and Hindi.Kindergarten Lesson
We ended our math unit by learning more shapes such as the quatrefoil, oval, and ellipse. We looked at some three dimensional shapes such as the ovoid, ellipsoid, rectangular and triangular prisms, square and triangle based pyramids.We began our grammar unit by learning our five vowels and what isn’t a vowel is a consonant. Then we looked at the noun and verb. Nouns are people, places, and things. Verbs are action words or something you can do. Even if you sleep….. Sleep is a verb!

The Kindergartners now can count to 10 in twenty-eight languages…English (that is our native language), Spanish, Sign Language, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Arabic w/Lebanese dialect, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Hebrew, Swedish, Korean, Polish, Hungarian, Tagalog, Hebrew, Korean, Hungarian, Polish, Irish, Kiswahili, Welsh, Dutch/Flemish, Serbo-Croatian, Cebuano, Malay, Hindi.

Ms. Kristen’s Corner – March 2014

Written by

Cuyahoga Falls School

This month was a busy month in our classroom! We have been learning a lot (myself included) and the children are working very hard!

We started off the month of March by learning about Dr. Seuss and his life. We learned that his real name was Theodore Seuss Giesel. We also learned that he became good at rhyming because he and his mother played rhyming games and made up silly words together when he was a child. We also read some of his famous stories such as “The Cat In The Hat”, “And To Think I Saw It On Mulberry Street”, “The Lorax”, and “The Sneeches”.  We even had fun in class making our own “Dr. Seuss” book. Ms. Kim brought in some “rhyming words” cards with different pictures on them. I then asked the children one by one to come up and find two cards with pictures of objects that rhymed. Next, the children came up with a rhyming sentence using those two words. We then turned those sentences into a book and drew pictures to illustrate the sentences. The children had so much fun making their own book!

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The second week in March, we began discussing our world. Going from biggest to smallest, we discussed how we all live on the planet Earth, on the continent of North America, and how we all live in the United States. Next, we all live in Ohio, and then many of us live in Cuyahoga Falls (or in the surrounding cities), and how all of us go to Absorbent Minds Montessori School! We then learned about the continent of North America. I started the week off by introducing the North American puzzle map to the children during our morning line time. We put each country back in place one at a time and went over the names of the countries. We also 1074discussed that English and Spanish are the main languages spoken in North America, the exceptions being Haiti, where they speak Creole, and parts of Canada, where they speak French. Also, in learning about North America, we learned about Ohio and that it is the state where we live. We learned that the Cardinal is our state bird. Ms. Kim also did a fun craft with the children where we made Cardinals out of paper plates. Next, we learned 1073there are many people who farm or who work in factories in Ohio as well. We also learned that the Buckeye Tree is our state tree. We also found out that there is also a famous astronaut from Ohio, John Glenn! We then “traveled” to Mexico. We learned that people in Mexico speak Spanish and often eat rice and beans and beef and vegetables. We also learned that flour tortillas are often place on the table at meal times in Mexico. Students enjoyed eating tortilla chips and salsa while listening to authentic Mariachi music!  We also enjoyed reading about the ancient Aztec and Mayan peoples, who were the ancient native people of Mexico. We also learned that they built pyramids in Mexico. Students were taught a pyramid is a square based triangle.

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During the third week of March, we focused on the continent of South America. We learned about the countries of Peru and Brazil. We discussed how Brazilians speak Portuguese, which is a language similar to Spanish and how they celebrate “Carnival.” This is where the Brazilian people wear brightly colored costumes and decorate beautiful, colorful parade floats. We also learned about the Amazon Rainforest and the different kinds of animals that live there, such as the tapirs, the jaguar, and the spider monkey. We also learned that the Llama lives in the Andes Mountains in Peru, and people in Peru often raise them as livestock!

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I encourage you as parents to take time with your child this month and ask them about what they have learned about the countries and continents. Maybe take time and cook a traditional Mexican dish as a family. Go to the library and find books to read with your child about animals that live in the Amazon, or go to the Zoo now that the weather is becoming warmer and find animals from the continents we have learned about.

As always, it is a pleasure and a joy teaching your children! We have fun every day learning from each other in our classroom!

 

Ms. Kate’s Corner – March 2014

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Cuyahoga Falls School

March was a busy month for us. The children had fun talking about Dr. Seuss, learning about different artists, and exploring the Rain Forest. We also had fun celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day.

The first week was all about Dr. Seuss. Throughout the week the children came to school dressed in crazy & mismatched socks, hats and backwards clothes! The first few days we concentrated on rhyming activities; the first activity was a rhyming ball game. I placed different words onto a ball and the children had to throw the ball to one another. When a friend caught the ball they were able to pick out a word and identify another word that rhymes with it. 1070The children loved this activity! During the second activity, I wrote out a number of sentences from The Cat in the Hat and placed note cards at the end of every other sentence. The children had to guess what word was under the note card that rhymed with the last word of the sentence. I was super impressed at how well they knew the rhyming word!  We also played a noun game this month.  Students were introduced to the symbol used to label a noun (black triangle). We would begin the game by pulling out our large black triangle. I would ask them to, “find me pencil.”  They then went to explore the room for that noun to place on our black triangle.  Throughout that week we went down in the kitchen and cooked green eggs and ham and then had a taste test. We then graphed who liked what better. For the last activity we focused on four sight words, “I, and, the, & that.” Four students came up at a time. As I was reading The Cat in the Hat my four friends had to keep a tally on the sight words that we were looking for. At the end of the book we counted up the tally marks to see which sight words were used most in the story. At the end of the week the children made a Cat in the Hat hat to celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday. It was a very fun week!

1068Some of our students began to take off with our grammar farm this month.  The grammar farm is used to teach parts of speech. Students build a sentence (noun, verb, adjective, article etc) using the objects on the farm. They have really enjoyed working with this new material in the classroom.

The theme for our second week was, Art Appreciation. This week we focused on different artists and their works. The children were able to create their own works from the artists they learned about. The first day we learned all about Claude Monet. We discussed landscapes and why he chose to only draw them. We also learned about oil pastels and how to blend them. The children then created their own landscape while using oil pastels. On the second day, we discussed Pablo Picasso and his different Periods. The children learned about his Blue period and how he was very sad. We also talked about his Rose period where he fell in love and became very happy and all of his paintings were a rosy hue. We then went over his angry period, where all of his paintings were a bit scary. I showed them how he would drew faces in a different way and how all of his drawings were different. The children1067 then drew self-portraits, cut their pictures up and created their own Picasso. The next thing we learned about was Mosaic art. The children learned the history behind the art, why they did art this why, and the different materials people used to make a mosaic. The children then made a mosaic heart out of little colored paper squares. They turned out fantastic! The children also had a lot of fun learning, exploring, and doing different types of Art with Ms. Ashley!

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The last week we explored the Rain Forest. The children learned about the four layers of the rain forest which are The Forest Floor, The Understory Layer, The canopy Layer, and the Emergent Layer. The children learned about which animals and creatures lived in which layer. We also went over the insects and animals they would find and why they are becoming extinct. Throughout this lesson we also talked about things that we use that come from the rain forest such as wood for our furniture, fruits, coffee beans, and rubber to make rubber bands. For the preschool lesson, Ms. Ashley did awesome rain forest Art projects! We also had a very special leprechaun visit our room. The children had so much fun going on a shamrock hunt and finding all of his gold coins he left for them!
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Ms. Brandy’s Corner – March 2014

Written by

Tallmadge School

The month of March began with a flurry of art activities. Students added the beautiful finishing touches to their paper mache globes and imaginary islands we had been working on in our geography studies. We also placed the last of our human organs on each student’s body tracing project. Origami was a very popular activity as students designed patterns made from.
1084 origami boats, butterflies, and birds. These patterns were framed and part of our auction. Along with several masterpieces constructed in Art class with Ms. Michele, the students proudly displayed their handiwork at our annual Art Extravaganza.

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We completed the book Robinson Crusoe in February. Each student chose a final project about the story.

Many of them built Crusoe’s island or his house, while others wrote their own adventure stories. Crusoe at the end of

Each student then presented their project to the class, explaining each detail of their design. It was a great project!

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Geometry has continued to be focus for all of us. Typically geometry is not thought of as a subject of study for children in grades 1-3, but Dr. Montessori wanted to open up the child’s mind to the world of mathematics. Along with arithmetic, geometry and algebra are all expressions of the same “mathematical mind” Dr. Montessori desired each child to develop. Geometry is the link in the child’s mind between thinking arithmetically (specific quantities) and thinking in algebraic formulae (generalized ideas/rules of solving algebraic problems).

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This is why geometry is so important in our classroom: geometry made specific becomes arithmetic; geometry made general becomes algebra. This month we focused on the study of lines and angles. Students learned that a line is not just a line, but can go on forever, unless cut, then it is a ray, with a distinct origin. We labeled several parts of lines and built them using our Box of Sticks. Next we discovered relationships between lines that are parallel, convergent and divergent. We made up stories about two friends who were walking on these lines to help us remember that convergent lines come together and divergent lines separate. We even drew little stick people to place on the lines we built.

Research is a wonderful way for children to explore and discover. Children are full of questions and they ask them almost constantly. In our classroom, students are encouraged to look up the answers to their questions, first in a book J, then online. It is rare that I just answer their questions. If I answer them, I become the resource, but if the child discovers the answer themselves, not only will they remember it, but they will become resourceful themselves.

This month we began a research project on the Natural Wonders of the World. Each student chose a natural wonder to research and, with a partner, wrote a research paper and skit, as well as designed a display board showcasing their discoveries. The Natural Wonders selected were The Grand Canyon, The Amazon Rainforest, Djavolja Varos (unique rock formations in Serbia), Victoria Falls, Mount Everest, The Great Barrier Reef, and The Aurora Australis (southern lights). The students will present their research skits at our International Festival on April 25th.

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Ms. Kristen’s Corner – February 2014

Written by

Cuyahoga Falls School

by Ms. Kristen Minnich

The month of February was a busy month in our classroom. The children worked very hard, and we learned a lot in just a month!During the first week of February, we talked about Groundhog Day! The children enjoyed learning about groundhogs and making their own groundhog puppet to take home. The children also enjoyed watching the video coverage from the previous day to see if the groundhog saw his shadow. We were sad to learn that he did see his shadow, but we know spring will be here soon enough!

We also talked about dental health in our classroom since it was National Children’s Dental Health Month. We discussed the different ways we can take care of our teeth by brushing, flossing, and eating healthy food. The children also had fun brushing pretend teeth!

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We also talked about our pets and how to best care for specific pets. The children loved Ms. Kim’s guessing game where she described a pet and the children had to guess which animal she was referring to. We also graphed how many of the children had dogs, cats, and fish.

A big topic of conversation this month in our classroom was the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The children enjoyed discussing the different sports they watched with their families on television. Many of the children expressed that they would love to learn to ice skate or ski so they could one day go to the Olympics. We also kept track of many gold, silver, and bronze medals the United States won. In total, we won nine gold medals, seven silver medals, and twelve bronze medals! We even watched a video of a medal ceremony and talked about how important that moment is for an athlete.

1044During the second week, we learned all about Abraham Lincoln and his life. We explained that Abraham Lincoln was our president and that he wanted everyone to be free. We discussed that because Abraham Lincoln was such a wonderful president, his picture is on our penny and the Lincoln Memorial was built in his honor.

We also discussed penguins and penguin facts with the children. We discussed how penguins are black and white in order to protect them from predators in the ocean, such as whales and seals. We also learned that not all penguins live in cold climates and that some actually live where it is hot! The children also had lots of fun making a penguin craft with Ms. Kim!

During the third week, we discussed the job of the President of The United States and where he lives, and he is only able to be elected president twice. The children were amazed to find out that the White House has one-hundred and thirty-two rooms! We also learned that our current president’s name is Barack Obama.

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We also learned what it means to be patriotic and reviewed some of our national symbols, such as the bald eagle, the Statue of Liberty, etc. We then learned about the Pledge of Allegiance and what the words in the pledge mean.

1047We then celebrated George Washington’s birthday by learning about his life. We learned that he was the first president of our country and that his picture is on the quarter and the one-dollar bill. Also, we learned about the Washington Monument in Washington D.C. That was built in his honor.

The last week of the month was we focused on fairy tales. We read Goldilocks and The Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs, The Gingerbread Man, and The Tortoise and The Hare and talked about the morals and values we can take away from each story. We then wrote our own fairy tale, which was very fun!

As a closing thought, I would encourage you to take time with your child this month to review what they have learned in the classroom. Continue to discuss more with them what it means to be patriotic. Include them in the taking care of your pet. Maybe walk the dog, feed the cat, or clean out the fish bowl together. Read fairy tales with your child. Reading to your child will also foster their love for reading!

Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your child’s education and development! It is truly a joy to teach them!

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