Playing with salt dough is a favorite sensory activity for this class, especially when they get to create something that they can KEEP and bring home. They take a lot longer creating and building when they know it's going to be a special take home thing. We have been talking lots about animals that live in winter all the time, like penguins, and polar bears, but they really just wanted to build snowmen. They used plastic knives to cut their pieces just right.
The next day, after I baked them all, to turn them rock hard, they colored them. The details are adorable. Stick arms, and carrot noses.
These guys have been doing lots of WORK at preschool too, and showing lots of interest in words, letter sounds, and reading. I am ever impressed with them. I have lots of opportunities set up for them to practice their sight words. Here are some that we are working on. The game is to turn the card backward once they have said it. Simple, but I catch them choosing this game a lot of the time for free play, instead of a toy. Usually they will get stuck on a few of the words and call a friend over for help. It turns into a great team building activity. (Also, Ryan is kneeling in the pictures, this is hung low enough to be reached easily as long as you're standing, FYI)
The kids watched an online art class. It was SO perfect. The artist, and his son, talked us through how to paint a penguin. We set it up for small group time and the kids LOVED it! We will certainly be doing this again.
I did not help one bit, and these turned out SO SO GOOD! Really, I think they are gorgeous! What amazing little artists! I tried to find frames after realizing they were going to be keepers, but the paper was an odd size, so I'll leave the hunting to you. Really though, look at these masterpieces!
We have been talking about "word families", which is different than sight words. Sight words don't always follow the rules when you try to sound them out, like 'as', that word should be spelled "az" if you spelled it the way it sounded. Word family words are ones that are related in some way. The "at family" are words that all end in 'at', like 'cat', 'bat', etc. You get the picture. Those words are easy to sound out when you know what to do. Everyone loves when we do a new word family during circle time.
This hungry penguin likes to eat word fish. I drew a billion little fish with words on them and the kids feed the penguin the fish after saying the word. These kids are SO smart, and going to be ahead of the game in kindergarten for sure.
Of course, a lot of our time is still spent playing and having fun. Dress up and puzzles were their favorites this week, sometimes at the same time.
Our schoolroom is now rearranged too. The kids were surprised when they came on Friday to see the transformation. There have been even more changes since then, so Wednesday will be an interesting day to see if the new layout is as good as the old one.
For those of you who are interested, here are a list of some sight words that we are working on. Not all have been introduced yet. Some can be sounded out, lots are just to be memorized. There are almost 200 of them and are comprised of some of the most common words used in the English language, along with a few that we have seen commonly in the books we have read in class. Several, we have expanded on, for example, when we sounded out 'not' and everyone got it, then we made a word family for 'ot' and figured out lots more words that way. I added them all below without commas, in case you were going to copy and paste them.
a about after again all all
and any are as at be
been before boy but by can
also am because best
another better away back ball big black
book both box bring call came color
could dear each ear end far
find first five found four friend
come day did do down eat
for from get give go good
girl got hand high home house
into kind last leave left let
live look made may men more
morning most mother
must name near never next night only
own people play please
had has have he her here him his how
I if in it is just know like little long
make man many me much
my new no not of old
on one or other our out put
said see she so some
ran read red right say school seem
stand such sure tell thing think too tree
upon use want way open over present
pretty run saw should soon
than these under until where while
take that the their them then there
they this three to two too up us
very was we were what when which who
will with work would you your zoo
