Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Tuesday, April 24, 2012 Pod B

Hello Families,

Today was the last day of the Spring semester! Today all of the 409 and 402 teachers say their goodbyes, as new teachers will be joining the children in a few short weeks. Today was filled with exploration, creativity, and excitement. In both the morning and afternoon we have welcomed guest readers in both of the classrooms. The guest readers were parents of a few of the children within our class. The children enjoyed being read to someone new! The children were in all areas of the classroom as they participated in a number of different activities. Some children helped Mrs. Nims paint eggs for the birds nest while other children explored the sensory tables in discovery. This has been a great experience for all of us teachers and we are honored to have the pleasure of working with your children. We have bonded with each child individually and have seen them grown throughout the semester!

Have a great couple of weeks off, see you May 14th!

Ms. Brady



April 24, 2012 POD A

Hello Everyone!

Today was the last day of the Spring semester! This is a bittersweet moment as we say goodbye to 409 and 402 teachers, but have the added excitement of thinking about new teachers!

This morning and afternoon we had the pleasure of welcoming guest speakers into the classroom. Alex's grandma even read a book to the Oak classroom over a video chat all the way from metro Detroit!

The children continued to explore the new tent in the pretend area and the water balls in the wet sensory table. Over in the Oak classroom children were finger painting and the collage table was a hot commodity.

Well, it was a pleasure working with you and getting to know your children this semester! Have a great couple of weeks off, we'll see you May 14th!

Ms. Tabeek

Monday, April 23, 2012

Our Last Monday!!

We had 3 guest readers today! Thank you to Tierney Popp, Andrea Purrenhage, and Tracey Galgoci! We had an experiment outside in the Zehn garden. We put mentos in diet coke, cherry 7 up, and sprite and watched what happened. Tomorrow is the last day this week before a 2 week break. It was a great semester! We will miss you!

Ms. Nash

Teaching Strategies: Demonstrates knowledge of physical properties of objects and materials.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

POD A 4/19/12

Hello Friends and Family!

It was so nice to meet new faces and talk more with everyone tonight at family night! :)

Today was also a very busy day all around in Pod A.

The children continued to paint pictures of the flowers at the light table using a black marker to trace it onto a transparency and then painting it with paint when it was finished.

Kyassie, Summer, Aisha and Carson H. painting flowers

Also in the Oak classroom the children continued to play with play dough at the texture table and did a lot of finger painting at the art studio.

In the walnut classroom we also have a lot going on such as at the wet sensory table we have aqua gems in there which are transparent balls that they children get to feel with their hands that disappear in the water. We also have colored noodles in the dry sensory table which the children have been looking for the foam letters at the bottom to make the whole alphabet!

Pretend has been a big hit this week the children were pretending to be puppies while the other children were doctors that would take care of the puppies to make them feel better.

                                              Jordyn and Sydney playing puppy and doctor

I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend! :) See you Tuesday!

Ms. Camilletti

TS Gold
Social Emotional- Objective 2 interacts with peers
Physical - Objective 7 uses writing and drawing tools
Hello Families and Friends,
Today was very eventful! There was cooking in the kitchen for family night, the children were able to join Mrs. Weller in making the nest, and their was jump roping and hula hooping in the large movement room. The children continued to build houses and habitats in construction. In pretend, the children were being doctors, moms, dads, babies, kitties, and patients. In art, the children were busy molding the playdough into spaghetti and hot dogs. They were also able to sketch flowers and then paint them with watercolor. In discovery, the children were busy making chicken nuggets and french fries for delivery. In the writing center, the children were tracing cats, hearts, and other stencils.


Bess painting a flower

Mya, Serenity, and Laken making playdough food

Favour and Aiden M. constructing a chair

Connor, Sidney G., and Katelin playing house



TS Gold : Science and Technology #25 Demonstrates knowledge of the characteristics of living things.


Miss Crescentini

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Wednesday Pod B

What a Jolly Jersey day! Larissa was here to work on some clay activities with us. This afternoon we took a trip to Scree in Finch Fieldhouse. Scree is a university event where CMU student show the research they have been working on all semester. We walked there, had snack outside and then took a trip around looking at the posters in our small groups. After walking back, we decided it was such a nice day that we headed right outside to play!

Haily Fabish

Social Emotional 3
Cognitive 11
Social Studies 30

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Pod A Tuesday, April 17th

 Hello,
What a busy and exciting day today was! In the morning a couple of kids from each pod went to Meijer with Mrs. Kauppi to buy the ingredients for the food they will be making for Family night this week. In the discovery area, the scales were a big hit as they were weighing things and testing what items weigh more than others. The sensory table was very popular as the aqua gems, or crystal balls continue to grow! Pipe building was also happening as they explored the different ways to drop balls through the pipes and where they would land.

Aaron building a tower

                                                             Devin exploring the Aqua gems
                                                  Colton and Carson H. working with the scale

Art was fun with finger painting and using the easel. At the end of the day, they were able to play Red Rover outside on the playground with some of the teachers! Hoping for a great rest of the week!

~Laura Morris~



Mathematics: Objective 22-Compares and measures. Science and Technology: Objective 26-Demonstrates knowledge of the physical properties of objects and materials.
Tuesday April 17, 2012

POD B

Hello Friends and Family!

Today was an exciting day in Pod B. It was CMU/CDLL apparel day. Many children were dressed in their CMU/CDLL gear. There were many areas in the classroom that were visited by the children. In pretend, the children were being animals, doctors, hairstylists, and families. In the writing center, the children were busy tracing stencils. In the discovery, the children played in the gel crystals, sand, and with the ocean habitat. In construction, the children were building houses for people and animals. In the table toys area, the children were making patterns with the blocks and sticks. In art, the children were manipulating playdough, making tails, and coloring flowers and rainbows. 
Katelin making a pie.

Elliana painting the flowers.

Bess eating her birthday cake!


Have a great day! See you Thursday!
Mrs. Sanders

Skill: Science and Technology 26 - Demonstrates knowledge of the physical properties of objects and materials. 

Monday, April 16, 2012

Monday April 16 Pod A

Today was PJ day at school. Some children did not get the email so we will have another PJ day next Monday April 23! This morning some Nutrition students came in and showed a video they made about nutrition to the students who were interested in seeing it. Ms. Weller continued to work on the big bird's nest with some of the children. In the classroom there are some new things for the children to explore. At the art table there is finger paint and at the texture table there is glitter play dough. Also the water table now has water marbles in it, which the children explored with their hands. In pretend a grill was added to the camping area so the children can grill their food.

Have a great week!
Ms. Minotas

Teaching Strategy: Physical - 7. Demonstrates fine-motor strength and coordination, A) Uses fingers and hands


Alana, Aisha, and Sydney working on the bird's nest with Ms. Weller

Jordyn, Kyassie, and Remington playing with the water marbles

Remington, Alex, Jordyn, and Byanna cooking food on the grill

Monday April 16

Today was a windy day! We almost got blown away outside but we did have fun! Many children found worms and put them in the dirt from the cement. We had play dough in the art area again and many children were excited to work with it. In the discovery area we have gel cubes with green dye and farm animals. Campus Grow came in and we made newspaper pots for our flowers so we can plant them outside when it is warmer out.

Teaching Strategies: Physical #4; Traveling skills

Have a Great week!
Alura Nash

Thursday April 12- POD B

Hello Everyone!
Today was a great day!  We have many different projects going on through out the school.  We are working on birds nest, stepping stones, and art fair projects.  Many students have been enjoying volleyball that has been taking place in the large movement room this week.  We also played duck-duck-goose outside this afternoon.  We have had lots of student playing in construction and making homes for the different types of animals we have in the classroom.  The art center was also a huge hit today.  We had many students in clay sculpting different things and many student making different things with the blubber.  Remember that next week is spirit week!  Have a great weekend!

Teaching Skill
Science and Technology: Objective 25- demonstrates knowledge of characteristics of living things
The Arts: Objective 33- explores the visual arts.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Thursday, April 12- POD A

Hi everyone! This week was a fun week in Pod A. We have been really enjoying the warm weather and having two different opportunities to play outside each day. Today at school, some of the children made stepping stones from cement and other items for our upcoming MPAEYC art auction!
The cement stepping stones drying outside

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Miss Van Hamme

TS Gold: The Arts: Exploring the visual arts

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Tuesday, April 10th

Hello everyone!

Today we had a great day! Aside from the centers around the room the children were also able to join exercise in the morning and rough and tumble in the afternoon. At exercise today, children played volleyball with a balloon. The children were able able to paint ceramic bowls that were made by the children along with plant sunflower seeds in pots. Eventually the CDLL plans to plant the sunflower seeds outside in a giant circle to create a sunflower house for the children to play in! Only a few more weeks until break!

Ms. Brady

Connor is looking on the computer for different types of animals he thought about during rest time.

Kameron, Katelin, and Daysha were proud of their mister potato head creations!

Mya and Laken were taking quietly and sharing their colored pencils during rest time.

Jonah is playing in the blue crystals. He is picking them up and putting them into the sharks mouth!

Teaching Strategy Language 10: uses appropriate conversational and other communication skills

Wednesday, April 11 POD B

What a wonderful Wednesday!  This morning the children were able to join our balloon volleyball game going on in the large motor room.  The children enjoyed hitting the balloons back and forth with some of the Pod A children.  In the construction area, the children were making roads and towers to push cars and trucks through.  At the end of the day we went out to the large grassy area to play a new parachute game. The children enjoyed finishing up their day this way.  Hope everyone has a great day tomorrow!

Ashley Braley

Teaching Strategies: Regulates own emotions and behaviors (1), and Uses language to express thoughts and needs (9).

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Tuesday POD A

Hello Everyone!

Today flew by!  This morning we played volleyball in the large motor room for exercise. This was very popular and lasted all morning! Now that volleyball is in the large movement room, we have moved our basketball nets and basketballs outside. 

Today we also started to plant sunflowers in small pots.  We will eventually plant the sunflowers outside around the cement circle, this will create a sunflower house for the children to play in during the fall. 

We also had some discussions at group about what we will do with the beads we have been painting in the art center! So the children continued to paint the wooden beads so we can discover another project to work on once we have enough beads!

During the past few weeks the children have been sculpting bowls, fruits, vegetables, and people with the clay in the classrooms.  Now the children are working on painting these sculptures as a great addition to the upcoming art auction.

Have a wonderful day! We'll see you tomorrow!

Ms. Tabeek

Teaching Strategies Gold: The Arts: 33. Physical: 6. Language: 9.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Monday April 9th

Even though we were short staffed today we had a very good Monday. During center time Mr. Jonaitis found a spider and let it spin a web in his hands for the children to see. There were new materials in the centers that the children were able to use. The campus grow group came to tour our school and see the different gardens we have outside, also the plants we have inside.  To end the day we played toilet freeze tag in the large grassy area. Have a great week!

Ms. Nash & Ms. Braley

Teaching strategy: Traveling Skills

Friday, April 6, 2012

POD B - Thursday, April 5, 2012


Hello Families and Friends!


 Today the children were active in pretend and construction.

In the construction area some children were building dog houses and boats while others were building houses for animals.
Morgan working on building a house for her cows.
Sheila building her "bunny fort".


 In the pretend area, children were transforming into doctors and patients. They were creating different illnesses and broken bones.

Katelin wrapping Serenity's head in an ace bandage.

The children stayed engaged in the many areas of the classroom today.

Skill developed: :Social Studies #30 Shows basic understanding of people and how they live.

Mrs. Sanders

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Wednesday April 4

Today was a fun day we had a few children still working on the art projects for the art auction. In pretend today we had children playing doctor with x-rays. We made Deviled eggs in the morning for snack today.

Alura Nash

Teaching Strategies Cognitive #12

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Pod A Tuesday, April 3rd

Hello!
Today was an exciting day in the Oak and Walnut rooms! The children continued to explore in the teacher part of the pretend area, quite a few of them leading their own groups with their peers! In the hallway throughout the day, there was painting with Mrs. Gursky of the clay sculptures they created. It was a very busy place to be!

One very exciting part of the day was when we took them upstairs in the education building for a lunch picnic! We were able to be on the 4th floor and eat our sack lunches, and read a book and work on a puzzle before heading back to the classroom. What a great thing to do on such a gloomy and rainy day!
Hoping for a great rest of the week!

                                                       Enjoying our lunch picnic in the EHS

                                                                    Elian in the teacher area

 Creative Development 4-2: Use dramatic play to represent concepts, understand adult roles, characters, and feelings.



~Laura Morris~
Dear families and friends,
Today we went to the rainforest exhibit, in the Rowe building on campus we walked through campus and got to look at everything that campus had in it. When we arrived we split up into two groups and got to see and hear animals that lived in the rainforest. The other half got to do activities that involved animals and scents from the rainforest. After each group did both opinions we got in one large group and Had a story read to us about the animals and any others that may be in the forest. We came back and had a picnic lunch outside on the picnic tables. The children then got to enjoy centers and more outside times for the rest of the day.



The children are Listen to all of the rules and options for the rainforest activities

Here the children are learning all about a butterflies life cycle.


Gold strategies: Social studies,  32 demonstrates simple geographic knowledge.


Nadia Crescentini

Monday, April 2, 2012

Pod A Monday April 2

This morning we had kite making in the large motor movement room. After the children made their kites they went outside and flew them. During both outdoor times today the children continued to fly the kites. Experimenting with the vinegar and baking soda is still going on and the children are still painting with wooden beads as well. 

Have a good week!
Ms. Minotas

Teaching strategy: Physical 4. demonstrates traveling skills B. Runs.

Remington experimenting with vinegar and baking soda.

Alex making his kite.

Alana flying her kite.

Monday, April 2, POD B

Welcome back!  Today we had plenty of new things ready for the children to do today.  In the art studio, we had a corn starch and water mixture, sponge paint and clay.  In discovery, we added color to the gel crystals which caught the children's attention.  The children are still enjoying the ice cream shop out in the hallway, and have even made their own specialty desserts.  We are in the process of making spring hard boiled eggs, which we are dying with food coloring.  There are a variety of art pieces located in the front of the building that some of the children have created and are showing off.  Tomorrow will be a fun day, the children are going to visit the Rainforest Museum on campus!  Bring warm, dry clothing because it may rain, and have a ton of fun on the fieldtrip!

Miss Braley

Teaching Strategies: 24 and 9