Finally! A full week of school! This week was packed full, beginning with meeting our alphabet bear, Benny. The letter we learned this week was M, and since Benny travels all over the United States before he comes back to Marblehead, the children sat in front of the map of the U.S. to find all the states he visited that begin with the letter M. Then they discussed what form of transportation he used to get to these states. For instance, they realized that he certainly couldn't take a boat to get to Marblehead from Montana! This geography lesson happens every time Benny comes to teach them a new letter, and it also includes directions (North, South, East, West) and climate. They brainstormed words that begin with M in different categories, such as foods, animals, numbers, days of the week, colors, and months of the year. The children practiced writing the letter in its upper and lower case forms as well as forming it with pegboards. They also listened to poetry and illustrated a poem called "When You Talk to a Monkey". In science, they learned about their sense of taste and tasted molasses, maple syrup, and marmalade, and then they made a graph to see how many people liked each flavor. They also learned about magnets and magnetic fields and filled out a lab report as they experimented with objects that were magnetic and non-magnetic.
In math, they have begun to make combinations of three, using pattern blocks, fingers, and Unifix cubes. They are now able to make four different combinations of three and write the number sentences ( i.e. 2+1=3) for all the combinations. In the Writing Center, they continue to write more words and are beginning to write simple sentences using bigger, lined paper.
Starting next week, your children may bring in objects for Shabbat Sharing on Friday mornings. It should be something that begins with the letter we are studying. For instance, next week we will continue the letter M, and the children could bring in money (maybe for the tzedakah box?), mints, a marshmallow, a piece of macaroni, etc. The children will have the opportunity to share what they bring from home and answer questions about it as well. Please do not send in anything that is alive! That's a story for another time!
Also, we only have five "All About Me" boxes returned so far, which is only half the class. If you haven't worked on the box yet, please try to do so this weekend, and send it in next week.
As we approach November, we try to be prepared for the cold weather. Please note that we go outside as long as it isn't raining or below 30 degrees. Your child will need a warm jacket, hat, gloves, and boots to be able to go outside. In order for your child to enjoy playing outside in the winter weather (including snow), you might want to leave an extra pair of snow pants and boots here at school so that they will always be prepared.
In Hebrew and Jewish Studies,we finished the letter aleph. Each time we finish a letter, our turtle friend Bentzi (who only speaks Hebrew) comes to review all of the new vocabulary words that the children learned. The children then create a page with the new vocabulary words for their Aleph- Bet books.
In Torah, we began the story of B'reisheet (creation). The children are making a beautiful bulletin board in the hallway with hand made posters from each day of creation. They have completed the first two days so far. Please be sure to check it out when you are in the building. They are also creating a B'reisheet booklet, and a page for their own special Torahs.
We continue to work on the V'ahavta prayer during T'filah, adding more each day. They learned that there are three different types of prayer - praise, request and thanks.
In math, they have begun to make combinations of three, using pattern blocks, fingers, and Unifix cubes. They are now able to make four different combinations of three and write the number sentences ( i.e. 2+1=3) for all the combinations. In the Writing Center, they continue to write more words and are beginning to write simple sentences using bigger, lined paper.
Starting next week, your children may bring in objects for Shabbat Sharing on Friday mornings. It should be something that begins with the letter we are studying. For instance, next week we will continue the letter M, and the children could bring in money (maybe for the tzedakah box?), mints, a marshmallow, a piece of macaroni, etc. The children will have the opportunity to share what they bring from home and answer questions about it as well. Please do not send in anything that is alive! That's a story for another time!
Also, we only have five "All About Me" boxes returned so far, which is only half the class. If you haven't worked on the box yet, please try to do so this weekend, and send it in next week.
As we approach November, we try to be prepared for the cold weather. Please note that we go outside as long as it isn't raining or below 30 degrees. Your child will need a warm jacket, hat, gloves, and boots to be able to go outside. In order for your child to enjoy playing outside in the winter weather (including snow), you might want to leave an extra pair of snow pants and boots here at school so that they will always be prepared.
In Hebrew and Jewish Studies,we finished the letter aleph. Each time we finish a letter, our turtle friend Bentzi (who only speaks Hebrew) comes to review all of the new vocabulary words that the children learned. The children then create a page with the new vocabulary words for their Aleph- Bet books.
In Torah, we began the story of B'reisheet (creation). The children are making a beautiful bulletin board in the hallway with hand made posters from each day of creation. They have completed the first two days so far. Please be sure to check it out when you are in the building. They are also creating a B'reisheet booklet, and a page for their own special Torahs.
We continue to work on the V'ahavta prayer during T'filah, adding more each day. They learned that there are three different types of prayer - praise, request and thanks.