Pre-K: Opposites, Oobleck and O'Keeffe
"Oo" week was a wOnderful mix of review, opposites, oobleck and Georgia O’Keeffe!
Language and Literacy
We started our week by talking about opposites and reviewing the letters and sounds we’ve already covered. Children used their developing fine motor muscles to clip clothespins with lower case letters to popsicle sticks with the matching upper case letters. A number of children created scenes around an ocean prompt, drew it on their paper and then dictated what they had drawn. We practiced using pointer fingers to trace both numbers and letters in oatmeal and on our smooth lower case letter stones. This act of tracing in a variety of materials helps children manage sensory input, while following the movement they will be making as they write letters and numbers on paper with pencils.
Math and Science
One day this week we measured each of the children, and will do the same in the spring so that we can see how much they’ve grown! We practiced sorting items in many different ways in small groups, and we used new math cards that show different ways of representing numbers to group them appropriately. For example, a green card with 5 dots matches a purple card with the numeral 5 and a blue card with a 10-frame with 5 dots filled in.
We started our week with a visit from Puddlestompers. Melissa taught the class about lots of different animal homes and how they might change for the winter. During Science Friday, Martine made orange oobleck with the class! First, they read Bartholomew and the Oobleck. They made lots of scientific Oobservations about what was happening as the oobleck mixed and as they played with it.
Dramatic Play
Children loooooooved using keyboards, white boards and calculators in our Bowen Office. There were so many orders being placed and filled, so many telephone conversations overheard, and tons of tapping from our keyboards.
Art
Our art this week centered on the paintings of Georgia O’Keeffe. After reading Through Georgia’s Eyes, children first used magnifying glasses to examine either one leaf or the roots of a large green plant. Then, using watercolors, they painted what they saw. Connor, then, had the fantastic idea of doing a large collaborative Georgia O’Keeffe work of art! We divided children into pairs and asked them to look carefully at one facial feature on their friend’s face. We followed a similar process for our December self portraits; looking in magnifying mirrors, each child chose one feature on their face to draw in crayon, filling the page, and then they used watercolors to fill in their drawing. They will be exhibited on our bulletin board in the hallway before moving to our classroom.
Thank you for sending your children in with their snow gear. They have loved sledding on our Bowen Hill and making snow angels in our playground!
Have a wonderful weekend,
Emily and Martine
Questions to ask your child:
What part of your face did you choose for your O’Keeffe self portrait?
Can you name 3 opposites?
What did the oobleck feel like?
What’s one way to show that you’re listening?