The Christmas holidays/vacation seem like a distant memory at this point, but I still want to say that I hope you all enjoyed your break and spending time with friends and family.  I enjoyed my time off, but I honestly did miss the children.  They are a constatn source of joy and entertainment.

A quick review - I believe we all had fun at the the holiday party/luncheon.  James K. is always a pleasure - as was all the delicious food.  Some of you were here for the "driveway event", which was a real blast for the children.  If you were not here, we have a "driveway book" in the classroom, next to the photo album next to the sofa.



Yes, there really is an excavator in our driveway!  The children were glued to the window for 3 days.

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We love Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer so much that we (Emmet, Carolynn, Caroline and Aidric) became one!



Zachary, Ryan Jakob and Geneva also wanted to play.





Oh no, is it Christmas already?










Sometimes when the children are dancing, they just dance right around Jango, the centerpiece.



On rainy days, we watch "yoga Kids"; then we go in the classroom to practice the poses.








The children are very interested in Zachary's birthday poster.
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Elizabeth with a full can of lemons.



Ella, Parisa and LeeAnn are finding ripe lemons.




Zachary and Elizabeth are carrying the bounty.  We now have plenty of lemons for the children to make their own lemonade.
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We have retired the winter environment, and are now learning about the animals who live in the jungle.


This is my best shot at demonstrating camoflauge.
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This is a new "work" for the younger children.  They learn size
discrimination, naming colors and sorting.




Another "work" for younger children. 


In this "work" the children reach inside the box to find an object.  The younger children just match to the correspomding card.  The older children try to identify the object by feeling before taking the object out of the box; and then matching to the card.




Another tactil work - each circle has a feeling (smooth, rough, etcl), which matches the surface underneath.

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I love this puzzle.  To make the picture, children place the numbers in correct succession.  By the way, our chickens have recently remembered how to start laying eggs again!




In this work, the children put all the same color cubes together; count the cubes; and then find the corresponding number slot.
Good for fine motor skills, color matching and counting.
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TThis is one way the older children are learning to write letters.  They trace the letter with the rod (which has a rubber grip for correct finger positioning).  I ask them to do this 3 times - so their fingers remember how to make the letter.  (This is part 1)




Part 2 is where they actually write the letters on a white board. 




Another way to extend the concept of letters.




In this work (which is difficult to see), the children trace the sand
paper letters with their pointer finder and then find the object that corresponds with the beginning sound (e.g. duck, flamingo and lion).

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Songs
You may have heard your child talk about the monkeys and the alligator.  I have a "tree" (otherwise know as a coffee cup holder/ stand) , 6 monkeys and a large alligator puppet.  The song is as follows:

Six Little Monkeys
6 little monkeys swinging in the tree, teasing the alligator - "You can't get me".
Along comes the alligator, just as quiet as can be, and............snap!
He ate one monkey up.
How many monkeys are left?

Five little monkeys swinging in the tree, etc., etc.

Ram-Sam-Sam
We have also been singing ram-sam-sam.  It is from a Raffi collection.  First we do this in a "regular" singing voice; then silently, as we think the words.  (I remind them that they can think sometimes instead of using their words to talk.  It's worth a try, huh?); then we sing it really fast.

A ram-sam-sam; a ram-sam-sam
Gullie, gullie, gullie, gullie, gullie
Ram-sam-sam.

A raffi, a raffi
Gullie, gullie, gullie, gullie, gullied
Ram-sam-sam.

I think the message is really deep, but I cannot confirm that.

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The children are very interested in telling time - ever since we got a clock with birds who announce each hour.  They run over to the clock to identify the bird.  I encourage them to show me the time on a clock I keep on the kitchen table.





Clock on kitchen table
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We are also working on word recognition (not all of the children, yet), but the older children, for sure.  I have labelled 12 items in the classroom with a name tag, and then I have a duplicate tag in a basket on the shelf.  The work is to match the tags and start to recognize familiar words.

It's hard to see, but the clock has a label,(at 7:00) and there are labels on the bench to match the word on the clock.  Maybe you have it see it   We have various items in the classroom labelled, e.g. tray, mirror, sofa, shelf, etc.

Another activity that the older children just love is making a book report.  I read a story book several times.  Then, as they turn the pages, they tell me the story; I write it down; they make a cover; and seem extremely pleased with their work - as they should be!!!