FROM MS. KRISTINE
Welcome back after a very long Pesach break. It was nice to get a break from the alarm clock, but I was ready to get back to school. I really missed all the children. It was nice to hear about the trips, adventures, and family time, and now we are ready to get back to work. We began our week by making our April calendar. The children wrote their numbers and made fun art. The theme was flowers. I have done various designs in the past, but I couldn't decide which one to do, so I had the children decide. I gave them all the materials from the different samples and watched them create their own version. They all came out bright and original. It was fun to see them work. They started with cupcake liners. We had very fancy and colorful options. We also had white as an option and the children got to color them with paint or markers. They created their garden environment and added details. As a little math challenge, they added real sunflower seeds to the center of their flowers. They needed to make each seed number equal to the rest. By doing this, they got an introduction to multiplication, once they counted their seeds. If they had 3 seeds in 3 flowers, they discovered 3 seeds 3 times is 9. I love seeing them commit time and show patience to their projects. They are so proud in the end. As we welcome in a new month (even though it’s half over), we decided to paint flowers (free hand) for our April art. The children had so much fun and stayed so focused as they worked in great detail. Their challenge was to fill the page while maintaining balance in their art. I love seeing the pride in their work as their skills and abilities continue to develop. Our room is bright and colorful with our happy flower art. For creative writing, we wrote about what we would like to plant if we had a garden. It was nice to hear some of the kids have gardens at home and are beginning to plant. We also talked about vegetables they love to eat. Everyone had very clear ideas of what they would like to grow and they all did great illustrations to go with their writing. I expected to see a lot of flowers, but we also had some kids choose carrots, cucumbers, avocados, strawberries and apples.. We have some ambitious and brave gardeners in our group.
Reminders: SWIMMING NEXT WEEK (Wednesday, April 22). Please bring your child’s swim gear by next Tuesday.
FROM MORAH RAIZEL
It was so nice to see the children after Pesach break. We had a chance to catch up and reflect upon our Pesach experiences. The children were excited to share all of the things they did over vacation. The children learned that we count forty-nine days from the second night of Pesach until the next holiday, Shavuos, where we celebrate the giving of the Torah. There is a mitzvah to count each of the forty-nine days, called the counting of the omer. The children each have their own chart, which they mark each day. Clay! This week, the children were introduced to air-dry clay. Clay is a great medium that improves fine-motor skills, as it is much more difficult to work with than playdough. The children got busy creating their own clay sculptures. Next week we will be celebrating Israel's birthday. We have begun talking about Israel and why it is special to us, as Jewish people. The children looked at pictures and shared what they knew about Israel. Wishing you a restful and peaceful Shabbos,
