Speech Weekly Notes from Ms. Stacy Torrence:

12.11.09

Wow! The children are doing an amazing job in the language groups. It is also great to see the teachers work on speech sounds in the classroom as well as carry over language activities. This week I saw teachers working on the animated alphabet, using sign language, and addressing speech sounds that needed a little extra help. Speech and language skills are emerging at Bright Beginnings!

Toddlers and young 2’s

We began by reading a “Noisy Story” to practice our speech sounds. Noisy Stories are simple stories that very young children can “read” because they are asked to make a specific sound in a repetitive manner. We read the Noisy Story about a “Beautiful Coat”. We worked on the following sounds /m/, /t/, /sh/, /s/, and /o/. Please ask your child to name the sound that rain makes /t/, /t/, /t/ and the sound that the wind makes /sh/, /sh/, /sh/. The Noisy stories are definitely a hit! We had a ladybug pop toy that the children really enjoyed. They had to say at least 3-4 words to get a turn or use sign language. Becca Bunny came to visit to work on specific language concepts shapes and counting. We also did some simple categorization with animals and food that we eat. In some classrooms we were able to read the Hungry Caterpillar with our flannel board.

Older 2’s

We also read also read the noisy story about the beautiful coat and really focused on /s/ and /sh/. We also categorized animals, foods and clothing. The children were given several small pictures and they had to place the picture in the correct pocket. We made a graph of our categories. They also had to name their picture and tell their friends where they were placing the picture At home, be sure to ask you child to name animals that live on the farm or at the zoo, name five food items, name 5 things you wear at the beach, or five things you wear when it is cold. You can categorize anything! Finally we worked on the concepts of up and down using a pig that moves up and down the silo and barn.

3’s and 4’s

We reviewed comparatives/superlatives this week, reviewed our animated alphabet, and worked on serious categorization. We categorized transportation, clothing, animal, foods, and toys. We made a graph of the items we grouped. I asked each child to name 3-5 items in a specific category on their own. They were asked to name things you wear when it is hot or cold, things you would find in a classroom, and things you would find on a playground. Buddy Bear came to visit again and we focused on using correct grammar by using comparatives and superlatives in sentences. We worked on the following comparatives/superlatives:

Close, closer, closest

Tall, taller, tallest

Fuzzy, fuzzier, fuzziest

Short, shorter, shortest

Narrow, narrower, narrowest

Bight, brighter, brightest

Thin, thinner, thinnest

Stacy Torrence M.S. CCC-SLP

What’s Cooking?

Oatmeal Raisin (or Craisin) Cookies

Ingredients:

½ C. Flour

¼ tsp. Baking soda

¼ tsp. Salt

¼ tsp. Cinnamon

½ C. (1 stick) Butter, softened

¾ C. Packed brown sugar

1 egg

½ tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ C. Quick Cooking Oats

½ C. Raisins (Or Craisins!)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; set aside. Cream butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with electric mixer for 2-3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture and beat until well blended. Stir in oats and raisins. Drop by rounded teaspoon onto the wax paper lined cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy!

This week at Bright Beginnings in Crozet…

The Pelican Class

The Pelicans are having so much fun making Christmas art! We’ve made Santa hats, Christmas trees and boots. We’re working on greeting everyone by their name with clapping and singing out loud. Maegan, Berkeley, and Jackson jump up and dance as we sing their name. Ashlyn, Sami, and Gray love to scribble with red and green paint! Making ornaments with glitter was a big hit! We’ve been singing a lot of Christmas songs to get into the holiday mood! Have a fun and nice weekend!

The Kangaroo Class

The Kangaroos have been busy measuring in our water tub with spoons, bowls, and cups. We had a super time mixing different colors in the water. You should have seen the children’s eyes they were surprised at how it happened! We measured our table and chairs and bookshelf with paperclips to see how many we needed. We measured each child on the floor with a ruler, it was so much fun! We talked about our families and what they do for us. We graphed how many members were in our families. We are having a super time making our holiday crafts! We made a Santa hat with paint and cotton balls, handprint Christmas trees, ornaments, and listened to Christmas music! Have a super weekend!

The Peacock Class

Hello Peacock families and friends! This week in the Peacock class we have had fun, fun, fun while practicing our language arts skills and learning about the letter “Mm.” We played a classroom game where each student found a toy in the class that started with the letter “M.” We also enjoyed learning about the plants around us on the playground including the trees, grass, and leaves! During Circle Time each morning we have started practicing a friendship song called “The More We Get Together.” This is where each friend holds another hand forming a circle while singing a tune, everyone loves to participate in this song. With Christmas coming up we are also practicing some Christmas carols like “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer,” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas!”

We have also been practicing sorting and matching this week with our blocks in our classroom from size to color. This not only is helping to develop our fine motor skills but also our visual perception of our surroundings. If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to stop by the classroom! And remember, every Friday is show and tell!

Ms. Lee

The Bunny Class

Hello Bunny families! The Bunnies had a great week discovering new things! In math this week, we discussed measurement. We learned that ruler are one way to help us measure objects. We also discovered we can use things such as blocks to help us measure. Riley and Nathan liked to find things around the room, line up the blocks, and count how many blocks long the objects were! This is a new concept, and we will continue to work on it! During Science time we discovered winter weather! We talked about snow, ice, and how cold it is getting outside! Makayla and Addie loved telling the class about the snow they saw over the weekend! In Language Arts we are still reading fairy tale stories and we also started reading Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa stories! Martin and Emily loved listening to the stories about Santa! In Art we are doing all things holiday! We drew pictures for Santa, helped Santa make gift wrap, made Christmas ornaments, and even made Santa’s reindeer! Elara loved all of our craft projects this week, especially the ones that get messy! Thank you all for another wonderful week in the Bunny class! Have a great weekend!

Ms. Whitney

The Walrus Class

Jingle bells are ringing and the Walrus class is having a wonderful December so far! In math we’ve been estimating! We learned what estimating means and how to estimate based on what we see. WE each estimated the amount of straws in a bundle and then counted them to determine the actual amount of straws in the pile. We then compared our estimates to the actual number. In science we learned lots about deciduous trees. We discussed the characteristics of deciduous plants and looked for them while we were outside. We found a few deciduous trees right outside of our playground! In language arts we worked on “M” sounds and words that begin with the letter “M.” We also traced “M” in our personal journals. We colored our Ready Readers, “Lots of Love” and came up with words that begin with “L” for the part of the Ready Reader that we get to fill in!

In art and humanities we’ve been creating lots of holiday crafts. We made homemade gift tags, wrapping paper collages, ornaments, and personalized holiday stockings! We’re getting into the holiday spirit with all of our festive arts and crafts! Four our cooking project we made oatmeal cookies from scratch! We measured, stirred, and baked our delicious and chewy treats! While the cookies baked, we read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and Merry Christmas Big Hungry Bear. In Social Studies, we learned about holiday traditions. We read a story about Kwanzaa and discussed differences and similarities between Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Hanukkah traditions. We had our weekly show and tell where Mathew’s trucks and Cate’s dancing dog were the hits! We all shared our toys very nicely and enjoyed learning all about why everyone’s toys are so special to them. We have had so much fun preparing for the upcoming holiday and even had a chance to write letters to Santa! Take a look below to see what we had to say to the jolly man in read!

Dear Santa…

“I want a snowy surprise” – Matthew

“I want you to bring me a candycane. I want a book and princess stencils. I have movies!” – Cate

“I want candy and candycanes! That’s it.” – Rye

“I would like to tell you that I want a Barbie.” – Sophia

“I want a babydoll and princess shoes. I want a princess dress for me!” – Bree

“I want a present!” – Alan

“I want a Barbie and a Barbie for my sister!” – Sarah

“I have to get a toy! I would like a Tinkerbell movie. I eat candycanes!” – Lucy

Hope you’re enjoying the holiday season!

Ms. Erin

The Rooster Class

In the Rooster class this week, we prepared for the holiday season! We made dove ornaments out of white paper plates. We also created Kwanzaa placemats by weaving black, yellow, red, and green papers together. We also made potato latkes to celebrate the upcoming Hanukkah holiday!

In science, we discussed the differences between deciduous and evergreen trees. We learned that Christmas trees are evergreens! We also used various materials (soap, water, water and baking soda) to clean old pennies. The baking soda did the best job! In math, we estimated how may bows were in a basket. We also worked on using cubes to measure classroom supplies.

In Language Arts, the Roosters continued working with the letter “M.” We wrote the letter “M” by ourselves and drew something that started with “M.” We also worked with the alphabet flip books and phonics Ms. Stacy gave us to work with! Finally, we worked with our new sign words: a, the, my, no. These are words that do not follow phonic rules and must be learned by looking at letters and their patterns. We hope to learn four a week until we go to Kindergarten!

In Social Studies/Awareness, we discussed what Kwanzaa is and how people celebrate it. We did the same to learn about Hanukkah! It was a great week!

Ms. Amanda