Jeff Pre-K December

Week 13 (Dec. 3, 4, 5)

This week we got out some new toys! Farm toys and animals were a hit! Especially after reading about what different animals do to get ready for winter. 

We have been doing a lot of predictable reading. Hard words that don't follow the rules, like "bear" and "squirrel", can still be guessed when we know the context. We read about bears hibernating and then about squirrels gathers nuts for wintertime. I wrote the words in the middle of the page, and asked them to guess which was which. Each child got it on their own! What does it start with? Buh, buh, bear? Yes!  Then we continued on to draw each home, and put in the coordinating sticker of each animal. Then they drew a line from the right word to the animal.

We haven't played with potato heads in a while. They sure loved them!

The preschoolers went on a nature walk to find a few things for the bear habitat they made.  I made each kid a list and they filled the box with the items.

When we got back inside for table time, they glued each item on the list, then we made the bear habitat! It was a bit messier than I predicted, but they loved it.

Play time is a BIG part of preschool. Learning to share and take turns and problem solve all happen when they are playing! These sweet preschoolers are really good at it!

We played with SLIME for a table time activity. I was VERY surprised that they even touched this stuff, let alone play with it. It was very sticky and slimy. They made terrible faces, but played with it for a few minutes. I am always excited to see the kids exploring.

 Week 14 (Dec. 10, 11, 12)

We had lovely weather again this week and we sure took advantage! Making chalk handprints (although not everyone loved it), was a fun activity. The kids went around stamping everything in sight.

Playtime was a big highlight, now that all the kids are here! We sure missed Logan while he was gone in Canada, but it was fun to be able to ask him questions about cold weather and share stories with each other about what winter is like in other places.

We worked VERY hard to get all our presents done. We made a list, with all the family member names. Each preschooler made their own specific list, which we have been checking off, as each present is created and wrapped.

Dads, LOOK AWAY! :) First we played with the salt dough and then we used it to make ornaments. It took 4 hours to bake, so they had to wait until the next day to see how they turned out.

Painting was a FUN project. The kids got very into it and I liked seeing their personalities show. Some painted several different colors on each ornament, some painted one solid color for each. Since our day on Friday was cut short, there are a few more steps we will need to do on Wednesday.

Wrapping the gifts and making labels was pretty fun too. The kids LOVED choosing which paper to use, and which color paper for the tag. It's a very serious thing, wrapping presents.

I had some great conversations with the preschoolers about Christmas, and the different traditions we have in our families. When I tried to get some of it on film, the conversations switched to presents, which of course, is a very exciting part of Christmas for these guys. So I asked them what specific people wanted, and the answers were pretty cute. Enjoy the video!

Week 15 (Dec. 17, 18, 19)

The game "Bananagrams" is a little complex for preschoolers, but the letter tiles from it are perfect for spelling out names and words. The kids had fun sorting through and finding the letters they needed for the words they were building. Such smart kiddies. 

Being in the holiday spirit we did a few activities unique to this time of year. One was this gingerbread man game. They took turns rolling the die and checking the sheet to see what they did for each number rolled. Each number was for something different. Cutting out the gingerbread man, drawing the face, putting on the stickers for buttons, etc. They loved it.

The finished products were SO cute.
  Preschool is a lot about playing too. Exploring and having fun and working together. These kids are best friends and are learning to be very compassionate, helpful, and kind to each other. I am very pleased with their behavior everyday.

Several LOUD rounds of jingle bells were sung while we waited for parents to pick up at the end of the day. Having real jingle bells really makes it more fun.

And to end this fun week, a tiny photo shoot of these cute kids in silly reindeer sunglasses, just for fun. I hope everyone has a great Christmas, and gets to spend LOTS of time together with your families. School will start again on Wednesday, January 7th. See you then!