Merry Christmas from Preschool!

Mat Man all decked out for Christmas!

A Beautiful Class!

Sophia is all decked out for Christmas!

Hello, Everyone!  I meant to get these pictures posted sooner...you know how it is.  I hope everyone is having a wonderful time with their families.  I sure am!  Thank you so much for the very generous Target gift card.  I will be using it to buy some new items for our classroom.  Thanks also for the fun and lively Christmas party.  I hope that our sick little ones are feeling better and I am so sorry that some of you could not attend.  I bet that another week of rest will help us all to have a great start in 2013!

Christmas (and Birthday) Snacks

Rice Krispie Christmas Trees

Cheese, Pretzel, and Craisin Reindeer

Bagel Wreaths

Happy 4th Birthday, Nick!

Hello, parents (and kids, too, if you are there)!  Thought you might enjoy seeing us with some of our fun snacks during Christmas Week.  Thanks so much, Fielstra family!

Enjoying our snacks and in flight movie!

We each had to find our seat number for the flight.

Preschool Race Cars!  Thanks Mr. Newton (and Pinterest)

Sophia and Delilah displaying their Advent wreaths.

Hello, Parents!  We have been having a blast this week learning about transportation.  We read a great book about airplane trips and then pretended our class was flying to Florida.  We packed pretend suitcases and carry-ons then waited for our turn to board at the airport.  Each student had to present their ticket and find their seat, and then relaxed as the "cabin crew" passed out snacks.  This week we also painted and decorated race cars made from recycled items and then raced them in our room.  Our Advent wreaths turned out great and were a fun way to work on fine motor skills.  We have also had some great discussions about Advent and what it means to have to wait for something.

Next week we will move onto Castles and Fairy Tales and will continue to learn about the Advent season and the Christmas story.  Our last week before break will be all about Christmas.

Teddy Bear Fun!

We had so much fun with bears this week.  We sorted them by color and size, danced and sang with them, and then had our own teddy bear picnic at snack time.  

Next week our theme will be Transportation.  We will be having loads of fun and learning with planes, trains, and automobiles.

Just a friendly reminder: it has been quite chilly lately at our morning recess time as we usually go out around 9:40ish.  Please check the weather and send a heavy coat, hat, mittens, etc. for your child when appropriate.

Vet Visit        

                                            

Dr. Fielstra, Callie, and the Preschoolers

Sophia and her fish, Ellie

Sydney and her dog, Jet

Wow, what a great time we had during Pets Week!  The visit with Dr. Fielstra was a big hit and the kids got to learn all about how vets examine animals.  Callie, the dog, was very well-behaved and so much fun for the kids (and teachers, too.)  We loved meeting and hearing about your family pets.  Thanks so much for your support.

This week we will learn about Thanksgiving.  Remember Tuesday is Bedlam Dress Day.  Send in Box Tops and vote for your favorite team.  No School Wednesday - Friday.  Have a Blessed Thanksgiving!

It's Pets Week in Preschool!  We had a great time meeting Taylor's kitten, Kitty Soft Paws.  If anyone else would like to bring a pet in for Show-and-Tell just let us know.  Pets can be shown with parent or other adult present and provided your pet can handle lots of small children.  You could also to send a picture of your family's pet(s).  On Tuesday, 11/13, Cadence's mom will be coming in to tell us about her job as a veterinarian.  Thank you so much, Dr. Fielstra!  Wednesday, 11/14, is pizza day so be sure to send money for your child or a lunch with a drink as the cafeteria will be closed.

Thanks so much for your support of the Appalachia Mass.  This week we will be involved in another service project, decorating sacks for the Meals on Wheels program!

Making Spider Snacks on Halloween

Hope you have all recovered from Halloween week.  That extra hour of sleep last night should help!  

Just a quick note about the Appalachia Mass on Friday, November 9 - although we will not be attending Mass, we will take any donated items to the church on Friday morning and we will be placing them on the altar.  On Monday and Tuesday we will be discussing this important mission project and that Jesus calls us to care for the poor and vulnerable.  We will also look at a map to see where Kentucky is located .

Happy Halloween!

Hello, Parents!  Happy Halloween Week!  I thought you might enjoy seeing how great our door decoration came out (thank you to Kyia's mom and Andrew's mom for your help.)  Also, we got a great group picture after carving our class pumpkin.

This week we have our Speech and Hearing screening coming up on Friday, Nov.2.  Please fill out the consent form that was sent home in folders Friday.  If your child comes on T-Th and you are interested in the screening, let me know and we can make arrangements.  Also, picture retakes are this Wednesday, Oct. 31.  This is a regular uniform dress day.  Please send back your picture packet if you want your child to have retakes.

I got some GREAT pictures of the kids exploring the inside of the pumpkin.  I will include them in a separate post.

It was wonderful to see many of you at Fun Day!  Thanks for all your support of this community activity.

Hello, parents!  I am posting a few pics from our Fire Fighter visit.  Thank you, Mr. Kannemen, for sharing your time and talents with us.  He spoke with both Preschool classes and it was very exciting for all.
The other pictures show us enjoying some delicious and fun donuts as a belated celebration of Mrs. Bierig's birthday - thank you, Homeroom Moms!

Thank you also to all of the parents who attended the Endowment Dinner/Event.  We truly appreciate you!

Our theme for this short week is Autumn Leaves.  Don't forget that Pizza Day is Wednesday and the cafeteria will be closed.  Also, we do not have school Thursday and Friday due to Teacher Inservice and Fall Break.

I thought you would all enjoy these pictures from Farm Week.  As you can see, the kids were working hard to shuck corn.  Prior to this we talked about all of the things that come from corn (corn oil, popcorn, corn meal, etc.) and we also got to touch some of these things.  So some of us got a little bit covered in corn starch!  The bottom picture is after we finger painted with chocolate pudding to make muddy pigs.  All in all it was a great week in Preschool.

This week we will be learning about Fire Safety.  It's going to be very exciting and Mr. Newton even made a  cardboard box fire truck for us to play with in Dramatic Play.  On Friday we will have a visit from a real fire fighter, James' dad!

Thanks for sharing with us how you chose your children's names.  They loved hearing about it, and we did, too :)  We'll save your responses and include them in our end-of-the-year books.

Square

Triangle

Circle

Here we are:  having fun and making shapes!  Now we are gearing up for a fun week of learning about farms, the letter F, and how we each have a special name.

Don't forget free dress Tuesday, 9/25 for those who contributed to the coin drive.  Wednesday, 9/26 is the Flu Shot Clinic.  And, of course, the Endowment Dinner is coming up on October 6.

Thought I would share some pictures from our color diffusion experiment.  These future scientists sure are cute!

There is a lot going on this week!  Tuesday is our School Picture Day.  Please send your child in uniform.  M-W-F students are welcome to join us for pictures.  Our time slot is 9:00 - 9:15 in the Parish Hall Building.

Wednesday is Pizza Lunch Day.  Remember that the cafeteria is closed so no school lunches or milk will be available.  Please send money for pizza or a lunch with drink for your child.

The Book Fair will be open in the Parish Hall all week.  We are also collecting coins for the St. Francis Tuition Assistance Fund all week.  Any student who donates earns a Free Dress on Tuesday, Sept. 25.

Flu shots will be available on Wednesday, Sept. 26.  See the Wednesday Packet for more information.