You'll notice that we have reached the end of our alphabet, posted along the top of the classroom. We have begun to discuss what we call 'letter buddies,' which are two (or three) letters that frequently appear side by side in words and make a special sound. In the same style, during our morning meeting, we discuss a new set of 'buddies' each day, and we have been having wonderful brainstorms where we think of as many words containing the buddies as we can. This is a great precursor for spelling, and we have noticed that many children are eager to attempt to spell words when writing.
At this stage in their development, we allow 'invented spelling.' In the same way that we do not demand that the letters are perfectly formed, we cannot expect them to spell words exactly right, and telling them "Well, there's actually a silent 'e' at the end of that word" can be confusing for them. For instance, one child was spelling 'love,' and after sounding out each sound, had written down "lov." And this is great!! We want to get them excited about letters, words, spelling, and reading without over-correcting them.
We have been rehearsing with Adelaide for our dance performance in April (details forthcoming). We are reviewing our favorite dances from this year, and cannot wait to show off our fancy moves for you.
During extended day, we have been talking about feet. Yes, feet. We looked at all of our feet together and noticed and everyone's looks a little different, but all have the same basic structure. We've talked about bones, joints, nails, and toes, and played a game where we tried to see how many corks we could pick up with our feet and deposit in a box in 2 minutes. Then, one child had an idea for an art project to do with our feet.... and here's a short movie showing how we did it!
At this stage in their development, we allow 'invented spelling.' In the same way that we do not demand that the letters are perfectly formed, we cannot expect them to spell words exactly right, and telling them "Well, there's actually a silent 'e' at the end of that word" can be confusing for them. For instance, one child was spelling 'love,' and after sounding out each sound, had written down "lov." And this is great!! We want to get them excited about letters, words, spelling, and reading without over-correcting them.
We have been rehearsing with Adelaide for our dance performance in April (details forthcoming). We are reviewing our favorite dances from this year, and cannot wait to show off our fancy moves for you.
During extended day, we have been talking about feet. Yes, feet. We looked at all of our feet together and noticed and everyone's looks a little different, but all have the same basic structure. We've talked about bones, joints, nails, and toes, and played a game where we tried to see how many corks we could pick up with our feet and deposit in a box in 2 minutes. Then, one child had an idea for an art project to do with our feet.... and here's a short movie showing how we did it!
Throughout the schizophrenic weather patterns of late, we have been having fun as always on the playground. Although it may be flooded at times, the sandbox frequently transforms into a bake shop, where fresh cakes are produced by the minute, while the jungle gym provides refuge for mama and baby birds, or a platform for steering friends to far off lands.
And picture day was as smooth as butter on a baby's bottom.
The children were very excited to have their pictures taken. Here are some outtakes from the shoot, taken before the photographer arrived. Enjoy!
And picture day was as smooth as butter on a baby's bottom.
The children were very excited to have their pictures taken. Here are some outtakes from the shoot, taken before the photographer arrived. Enjoy!
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