Today was a great first day of school! I know that Mrs. Salouma, Mrs. Karen, and I all enjoyed today, and I am sure the kids did tooJ. Mrs. Salouma and I are each going to write up what we did with our classes, and then after the recap of today, there will be additional info regarding the new school year.
Mrs. Salouma’s Class:
The First Day of School
What a fabulous and smooth first day of the new school year! All the children were so excited and happy to see their teachers and friends again. Ms. Lindsay and I will give the children free time each morning from 9-9:30am. They will have the freedom to play in all the discovery rooms. Both classes will have free play together each morning. At 9:30, we will ring the bell and gather the children to go to their classes. At 12:45 we will prepare for dismissal. I will bring the children into the classroom, read a non-fiction book, then quietly have them line up with their things to go home.
Today we talked about good manners during circle time. We toured each discovery room and talked about what you can and cannot do in each room. We had calendar time and sang the song Days of the Week. The concept of time is very hard for children to grasp. I don’t expect they will get the idea right away, however, I can tell you that with repetition and discussion they begin to understand the concept over time. Today’s read-aloud was…Boomer Goes to School. When I read stories to the children, I always ask questions before, during the story and at the end to check for prior knowledge and listening comprehension. Beginning next week, the children will have their own journals for daily writing and drawing. This is fun writing that gives the children more experience with fine motor skills and encourages them to write or draw about things we talk about. Also, next week we will start daily sharing. Students will bring in something special that goes with the letter of the week. I plan to begin with the vowel letters first. Next week, A will be our letter of the week. Have your child bring in something special to share next week.
I am so excited for this school year. Parents you are always welcome to volunteer. If you have any questions or concerns, please send me an email.
Mrs. Salouma
Ms. Lindsay and Mrs. Karen’s Class:
It was so exciting to start the first day of school at Discovery Garden! There was definitely a feeling in the air that the school year had begun…yay! Today we mostly worked on classroom management. We began the day with free play…something the students really love! We started off with our morning meeting, which included a song about the days of the week, calendar, identified that today was Thursday, put up our first number of our 100 day tree, and listened to the story Brand –new Pencils, Brand-new Books by Diane deGroat. We then had snack, outside time, and came back in for a tour of the school! (We did change some of the rooms around, so this was very helpful!) We all held hands and walked through the discovery rooms in the front of the school to discuss how to play with the items in each room AND how important it is to help clean up when done in the rooms. We then gave the students time to explore the different rooms and then help with the clean up too. Next, we had art time where each student did a name mosaic. They traced the letters of their name with a glue stick and then placed small squares on the glue. This was a bit lengthy, so we will be finishing these up throughout the week and then hanging them in our classroom! After lunch, the kids then had time to explore in the dramatic play rooms in the back of the school. Next week we will begin to incorporate math, science, literacy, etc. Today was really about having fun and learning how to help take care of our school!
Also, I just wanted to touch base on our closing routine… Each day I like to gather the students up to see how their day was, sing a good bye song, put their shoes on, and gather up their projects for the day. We will begin this around 12:40/12:45. If you arrive early, please wait on the bench or peek in the window instead of coming into the classrooms. We are in no way trying to keep you out, it is just easier for everyone if we can finish without distractions. Also, this will help you out, as you will not have to chase your child around to get them ready to go home. Thank you so much for being understanding!
Ms. Lindsay
Here are a few notes….
· When you first arrive at school, please guide/remind your student to visit their classroom to drop off coats, backpacks, lunches, etc.
· School Picnic! Saturday, September 17th 12-3pm at Grass Lawn Park in Redmond. This will be a potluck! More information on what to bring will be available by Monday. Here is the link that has more information about the park, as well as the address: http://www.redmond.gov/cms/one.aspx?portalId=169&pageId=4010 · We will be sending home an information packet regarding tuition, emergency preparedness kits, school calendar, and other helpful information on Monday. These will be on the front counter all week, so feel free to pick one up as you come in!
· We are already beginning to plan for our field trip in October. We will be going to the pumpkin patch! This will be on Friday, October 14th. More information will come regarding location and time.
· I will post the schedule for next week this weekend. We also we beginning show-and-tellJ The letter for next week is A. Students will bring in something special that begins with the letter. More information regarding this will be included on the next post.
Feel free to call/email/or talk to one of us about any questions or concerns!
We all love the families of Discovery Garden, thank you so much for everything!
Ms. Lindsay, Mrs. Salouma, and Mrs. Karen
