Finishing February

We wound up the month of February introducing letters G and H and numbers 7 and 8. We are only working with capitals at this point, but it's a great opportunity for your kids to see the letters and gain familiarity with the sounds they make. I enjoy seeing them learn and process what a letter is, what sound it makes, and what words start with that sound.

The classes are also doing really well identifying their names. Each day at snack and lunch they raise their hand to identify their placemat when they see their name. In March we will begin a class sign-in during our circle time to really acquaint each child with their first name and saying the different letters in it. This will help them next year when they move up into our 3-4 year old classes, and help make the eventual writing of their names a little bit easier.

We continue to use centers to stimulate fine motor and cognitive awareness. Reviewing shapes and colors last week was beneficial to the class and they enjoyed sorting various shapes into their own color categories. The concepts of "biggest" and "smallest" were introduced as each child had the opportunity to identify a shape as directed. "Find the biggest yellow square." They would then have to sort through the various colors, identify yellow, and finally name which one was biggest. It was a fun game that helped them learn at the same time!

Our patterning skills are growing as we learn that patterns can be based on shape and color. The ABAB pattern will be the only one used, but we will continue to work on it through the end of the year. Try doing some patterns at home: stack blocks into an ABAB pattern; line up silverware fork, spoon, fork, spoon; organize Little People boy, girl, boy, girl--the possibilities are endless! And it truly is the work you do at home that helps stimulate their growth and development and leads to success in school. Thanks!

Bible lessons have taught us all about how "God Made Me" and to "Show God's Love"; our final unit for the year introduces "God Made Everything." We will begin with take a look at the creation of the world, and discussing the significance of each thing God gave to us. This week will start with "God Created Light," and we'll talk about what light does.

I'm looking forward to another fun week!

-Mrs. Marisha