Dear Parents,
    This week we continued our unit on Tu B Shvat.  Here are some highlights of the week:

Gross Motor

In our block center we had plenty of room to play an exercise game.  Our friends took turns tossing a die onto a chart with different exercise moves and whichever exercise the die landed on, they needed to try that exercise. A favorite exercise for the children were Jumping Jacks.  Exercise games improve a child's overall gross motor skills and core strength.  Some exercises foster isolated movement which is the ability to move one part of the body while keeping the remainder still.  For example; clapping.

Art 

In the art center we set our bark, wood chips, crayons, and paper to explore and create textured crayon rubbings. When our friends colored over the bark and wood they discovered it was quite difficult to keep the objects underneath the paper still. They also noticed the rubbings came out bumpy and rough.  Then Morah asked, "what if you color on the paper without anything underneath? I wonder what that will look like, let's try."  Our freinds colored to reveal the line patterns were different!  They smooth long and straight and not rough and bumpy like before.

Manipulatives
This week we played counting games.  In our garden we picked fruits and vegetables then counted and placed assorted fruits and vegetables into brown paper bags with the written corresponding number up to the number 5.  For example:  One banana was placed in the bag with the number one written on it.  Some skills attained from this activity are numeral recognition, matching numbers to pictures, and one to one correspondence.

Our friends enjoyed sculpting and rolling "fruits"  and "trees" out of playdoh.  We used tree playdoh mats, gems, and wooden blocks to enhance their experience.Playing and molding playdoh can be extremely therapeutic for a child who needs to physically express their emotions.  In addition, their fingers are working to strenthen their fine motor skills and dexterity while their is brain is working on their imagination and creativity.

We also worked on creating a keepsake magnet for our special friends and grandparents to hand out on Monday.  Thanks for a great week. Wishing a restful Shabbos Morah Felicia and Morah Menucha 

Tu B Shvat

Dear Parents,
  Here are some highlights of our week:

Discovery 

Our friends were given the opportunity to explore an assortment of seeds and bark in our discovery tray.  They discovered not all seeds look the same, some are teeny tiny like a tomato seed, some are long and pointy like cucumber seeds.  The children enjoyed looking through the magnifying glass and realizing things appear so much bigger! They felt the rough textures of the bark and compared it to the smooth seeds.  

Block Center

This week in our block center we played a fruit and match game. We printed images of different fruits and stuck them onto blocks, then our friends were invited to the find the matching fruit.  Then we added a tape tree maze and the children were invited to pick the matching fruits off of the tree. 

Sensory

This week our Sensory table was filled with soil, sticks, and alphabet letters.  Our friends were invited to dig and hide letters, create mud paste, and add seeds to our soil.  On Friday we added grass seeds to our table.  Morah Felicia asked what do you think will happen to the seeds?  Will they stay the same or will they change when we open the table on Monday?  Our friends guessed they will stay the same, we can't wait to find out on Monday.

 We asked our friends a question, what do you think grows in soil? Our friends shouted out answers, "flowers" "carrots." Morah Felicia explained to her friends that another very special holiday was coming up called Tu B Shevat.  Just like Rosh Hashana is the the New Year for people, Tu B Shevat is the New Year for the trees.  On Tu B Shevat we celebrate the trees and thank them for everything they give us.  What are some gifts our trees give to us all year long?

Dramatic Play

We had a Blue Room Farmer's Market this week.  The children had so much fun "harvesting" fruits and vegetables from our garden then sorting them to be "sold" in the market.  Harvesting means when a fruit or vegetable is ready to picked to eat.  This center provided great conversations about what fruits and vegetables grow on trees and which grow in the ground.  One day this week Morah Felicia made a grocery list and her friends had to find all the items on list at the Farmer's market. The children took turns being the cashier and playing with the cash registers. 

This week we also introduced cutting with scissors, counting fruits on trees, and built ramps with recycled loose parts and collaborated to paint parts of a tree.  Next week will continue our Tu B Shvat unit and don't forget about Grandparents Day and the Grand opening of our outdoor environment on Jan. 21st starting at 10 a.m.  Thanks for a great week and wishing you all a restful Shabbos.
Morah Felicia and Morah Menucha.