A Week Full of Luck in the 3's

Good afternoon 3’s families,

We had another fun week at school! We wanted to let you know how well the children have been doing putting their coats on for recess. At school, we drop our coats on the floor, UPSIDE-DOWN with the tag or loop closest to our toes. We sing this song:

“Put the tag to your toes, arms in the holes, and up and over the head it goes!” It was difficult for the children at first because it is basically putting your coat on upside down. They are getting the hang of it, and they are SO proud of themselves when they get their coats on independently. This is an excellent skill for them to practice at home too. Let us know if you would like a demonstration, we would be happy to show you at pick-up!

This week at CIRCLE TIME,

· We read Pop-Up Baby Dinosaur by Clare Lloyd. A baby T-rex was looking for his mom. He looked behind logs, trees, and bushes. On each page, the children guessed whether or not the mom T-rex would be hiding there. They really enjoyed when each dinosaur popped-up on the page. Ask your child where the baby found his mom!

· We played a new game to help us practice shape identification. We learned a song that helps us remember each shape. Each child had a shape and took turns coming up to match their shapes on the easel. I have attached a handout with the shape songs in case you want to sing them with your child at home. Each song goes to the tune of The Farmer and the Dell.

· We also danced to some of our favorite songs: The Freeze Dance and A Very Simple Dance.

What’s new in CENTERS this week

Playdough Bins: We are having lots of fun with the purple, sparkly playdough. The children have been using the dinosaur skeletons to make imprints in their playdough. They come out really cool!

Sensory Bins: Still enjoying playing with our kinetic sand. This week, the boys and girls liked hiding their gold coins and shamrocks and digging them up.

Art: We had a couple of different art activities happening this week. We had different dinosaur coloring pages and lots of STICKERS! We also had a cutting activity. We “trapped” dinosaurs in a muffin tin with tape over the top of each cup. The kiddos used scissors to “rescue” the dinosaurs. They LOVED this activity. This is a simple activity you can try at home too, when you have a few minutes to supervise them with child-safe scissors.

Discovery Bins: The boys and girls practiced matching with wooden dinosaur puzzles.

Yellow Bins: Shape matching practice at this center: students used magnetic pattern blocks to build dinosaurs. They had to find the matching shapes in order to complete the dinosaurs.

Green Bins: dinosaurs, landscape blocks, laminated paper ponds or “oceans” as the children call them.

Red Bins: This week, we added a dollhouse to this center. We also kept the community helper vehicles and Paw Patrol figures. The ambulance and fire truck have been busy transporting patients to the hospital and putting out fires!

Pretend Center: pizza and sandwich shop

Next Friday, 3/26 is Tie-Dye Day! Your child is welcomed to wear tie-dye or colorful clothing. It will be a BRIGHT way to finish up the month of March. Have a fabulous weekend!

Your teachers,

Brenda Daday & Christina Renoni