Pre-Kindergarten

Pre-K Newsletter

Units of Study:

Current Unit: Buildings

Next Unit: Wheels

Summary of Unit: 

Summary of Building Unit: Image life without buildings. All living creatures need a shelter to call home. A building is a structure with a roof and walls intended as a permanent structure. In our society we have a variety of buildings: small, large, tall, short, wide, etc. The students will have fun using recycled items to construct different types of buildings.. We will explore how buildings in our community are the same and different; what is needed to build buildings; who builds these structures; what materials are used;  what jobs are needed, and  purposes for different buildings. 

At home you can:

• Take a walk around your neighborhood and identify different types of buildings and their functions.
• Compare different buildings: size, color, number of windows, trees near the buildings, 
• Investigate your home: create a checklist: how many windows, doors, rooms, steps, etc. 
• Measure a window in your house, use a measuring tape or use a non standard unit of measurement (Shoe, cereal box, your hand)

Summary of Wheels Unit: 

Wheels are all around us. They are on cars, buses, shopping carts, riding toys, pizza cutters, etc. Children love to explore how things move and how wheels help us do things easier.The students will discover the physical attributes of wheels, how they work, how people in their community need wheels to make their work easier, and even use different materials to create their own wheels.  Through this unit we will focus on language, literacy, math and science skills to enhance their learning.

At home you can:

• Take a nature walk around your neighborhood and identify different types of wheels.
• Make pizza and have your child use a pizza cutter to make pieces.
• Compare different types of wheels
• Ask them why a car has 4 wheels and a bicycle has 2 wheels?

Reading: 

Pre-k students have spent an entire year listening to and interacting with a read aloud each day! They have grown to love books and understand some basic concepts of print. In these upcoming units we will read books about wheels, buildings, and kindergarten. As we continue to explore our daily read aloud, we will review the various parts of a book, including the title, author, and illustrator. Additionally, pre-k students will be challenged to answer high thinking questions by simplifying adding a why after a question. 

At home you can:

• Read books about buildings and wheels.
• Take a picture walk through a book before reading it together. Have your child make observations, connections, and ask questions. For example, “I see a family traveling in a car. I wonder where they are going. I’ve traveled in a car with my family to visit grandma before.”
• Let your child show off how to properly hold a book and turn the pages! See if they can tell a story using the pictures. Look out for letters in the text.

Example: Can you find the letter that makes the /m/ sound.

Suggested Books:

• Don’t let the Pigeon Drive the Bus By:Mo Willems
• The Most Magnificent Thing By:Ashley Spires
• Where’s the Ramp? By: Lisa NAdrea McCarthy
• ABC on Wheels By:Roman Olivera
• The Three Little Pigs 
• Amazing Buildings By: Kate Hayden
• Construction Zoo By Jennifer Thorne

Writing: 

It’s been a great year for our writing development!  As they continue to practice writing their letters, we will be working on the understanding that when  letters are put together they form words. We will be labeling our pictures in connection with our units. Ex: car, door, names of different vehicles, counting the wheels in the different vehicles and writing the numbers, window, door, roof, etc.  

At home you can:

• Encourage your child to write their first and last name, making sure to leave a space in between by Kindergarten they should write their first and last name by memory.
• Make it fun by making a name train! (See image below.)
• Provide your child with a list of family member’s names and have them try to write them. Notice how the first letter is always uppercase and the rest are typically lowercase.
• Have your child try to label their pictures by sounding out the letters.
• Have your child draw a picture of what they see at a park, zoo, or farm and label the picture.

Math:

Our pre-k students will begin to learn basic addition and subtraction. In class we will use different objects to visually demonstrate these concepts. For example, we will show two children at the park and show three more joining them. Then students will be asked to identify how many children there are all together. Similarly, students will begin to explore subtraction by showing a group of people, taking some away, and identifying how many are left. Finally, students will practice writing numbers 0-10 on their own. Of course for our students that are beyond 10, we are always challenging them. 

Thank you to the parents that attended our math family learning conference. Please review the slides in order to get some great everyday ideas to enhance your child’s math skills. Math Around Us Learning Conference Slides

At home you can:

• Use a toy car to practice tracing numbers or letters. (See image below.)
• Have your child practice writing numbers 0-10 using any fun type of writing tool, such as colorful markers or a fun pen.
• Make simple addition and subtraction problems at home. For example, “You have five blocks out. If we put two away, how many will be left?”
• Practice counting at least to 20 but if your child can go beyond encourage it.

Gross Motor: 

 ThePre K students participate in gross motor play daily. They engage in balancing activities, yoga. walking and running, as well as freeze dancing to gain strength. Some of the students also practice riding the tricycle. Students practice a variety of physical tasks as well as completing obstacle courses. games with balls, and bowling. They enjoy the fun games and exercises everyday during their scheduled time.

Parent & Student Voice:

Zarah: I liked making a flower out of different materials that we can reuse. 

Khadijah:  Self portraits fun to draw.

Malakai:  I liked reading about the garbage truck and drawing it too.

Jiana’s mom Jasmanie - Jiana progressed a lot in the last few months. She is able to put what she learned in school into her daily life e.g when a container is empty at home she would tell me how that can be recycled. She knows her letter sounds and is able to put them together to form words.  Her counting improved a lot too and now she is able to do little addition and even basic subtracting. Jiana became more independent also wanting to get ready/undress by herself and even clean up and organize after play. I also noticed she is more curious on how things work and also the meaning of unfamiliar words.

Selena: I like to play with my friends. We like to do art.

Tauren: I like to play with Selena doing art. 

Arha: I like to say the letters and my friends say it.

            Pre-K 2 Recycle Art Projects