Look how we have grown!
“Reflect on the ocean crossed and how to improve the journey.”
Assembly Read Aloud: I Am Enough by Grace Byers
This is a lyrical ode to loving who you are, respecting others, and being kind to one another!
Other Books about Relection:
YOUTUBE Songs that teach REFLECTION:
Books about REFLECTION on YOUTUBE:
Our word of the month for April was persistence, sticking with something even if it’s difficult. Often children will ask for help with a task they perceive to be difficult, but if just try it, they are able to accomplish the task on their own. Whether it be opening their snack, zippering their coat, tying their shoes, or even what to do if a pencil breaks. We talk about always trying your best first, and then asking for help if you really need it. It’s okay for something to be hard. Then the accomplishment will feel so much greater. Along with persistence, this is a great time to talk about encouragement, cheering a friend on. With some kind words, we can all go a long way.
We learned about goal setting and the power of yet. We might not be able to do some things now, but with practice and persistence, we can get there! We shared our ideas with the school to help teach about the power of “yet!”
We practiced being flexible in our thinking with the story The Squiggle by Carole Lexa Schaefer.
After we read the story, we each used a red (ish) crayon to make a squiggle on a paper. We then passed our squiggles to another friend in the class and turned the squiggle into a drawing. We all did such a great job! This helped us to practice being flexible to think about what we could turn the squiggles in to. Look what we created!
I made the ocean. -Dylan
I made a shark. -Olivia
I made a boa constrictor. -Luke
I made the ocean. -Gabriel
I made a butterfly. -Anabelle
I made a duck. -Logan
I made a foot. -Andrew
I made mountains. -Oscar
I made the ocean. -Dakota
I made a snake. -Concheta
I made hills. -James
I made a snake. -Nicholas
I made a shark. -Charlotte
I made a sloth. -Avery
I made a mountain. -Ryan
I made a snake. -Grant
i made a snake. -Adam
I made a snake. -Alannah
Do you make New Year’s resolutions? What is a resolution? A resolution is a promise. It is a promise that you make to yourself! It is a tradition for people to make resolutions at the beginning of a new year. There are different kinds of resolutions.
One sort of resolution has to do only with oneself. You might decide to stop eating candy, to exercise more, or to watch less TV. Other resolutions might involve family or friends. You could resolve to be more patient with your little brother, to be more helpful to your mom, or not to get into fights with your friends. Some resolutions are about school and the outside world, such as getting to class on time, trying for better grades, or not teasing the neighbor’s dog.
Let’s make a change in the world and help make the world a better place. We have a motto in our class, “Look with kindness and think, ‘How can I help someone?’” We are trying to be problem solvers and help make things better. How can we make the world better? Little people can make big changes, just by spreading love, making the world more awesome!
What can you do to make the world more awesome for someone else? I challenge you to help make the world more awesome. I think we can all do a little something to make the world a better place. Me? I will start by singing loudly, dancing more, complaining less, probably watching Star Wars a few more times and making sure to have fun with all of my kids every day! I think I’ll start with this song:
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
We have been talking and learning about our brains and how we can calm our brains and calm our bodies. We have practiced breathing techniques and yoga. Today we tried doing some meditation using a YouTube video. We learned that we can use these at home as well if we are feeling like we need to calm down or if we want to relax. Some of us found that it is really hard to stay focused on our bodies and not get distracted. We will keep practicing, but if you want to try this at home, you can subscribe to the YouTube channel. Here is the introduction and first video that explains a little bit about the series:
Be compassionate!
“Be the wind that fills another’s sails!”
Compassion is a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.
Assembly Read Aloud: We’re All Wonders by R.J. Palacio
BOOKS:
SONGS ABOUT COMPASSION:
Books About Compassion Shared on YouTube:
Sometimes just the words you choose can make a difference in showing compassion….
Compassion – A definition
JellyTelly Kids Talk – Compassion
How To Change The World (a work in progress) | Kid President
Be compassionate!
“Be the wind that fills another’s sails!”
Today we read the book Balloons Over Broadway by Caldecott Honor artist Melissa Sweet. This book introduces us to Tony Sarg, the self-taught puppeteer who created the enormous half balloon, half puppets that distinguish the Macy’s parade from other holiday festivities.
You can see some of his designs here
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-puppeteer-who-brought-balloons-to-the-thanksgiving-day-parade-180947863/
See more about Tony Sarg here:
Learn more about Tony below:
Tony Sarg bio
Learn more about how the balloons are now made here:
You can go to the parade website and learn more, watch videos, play games and more! Click on the link below
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
And have a very Happy Thanksgiving!
Gratitude is the quality of being thankful; the readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness. To feel grateful is to feel thankful for something. Gratitude is a feeling of thankfulness.
Assembly Read Aloud: Bear Says Thanks by Karma Wilson
Read books about gratitude:
Sing About Gratitude:
Books About Gratitude Shared on YouTube:
The Thank You Book by Mo Willems
Are you thankful for the little things? Here’s a new perspective on gratitude that might make you think again. Be GRATEFUL!
We celebrated Halloween with our annual school parade yesterday. I hope everyone had a happy and safe day.
Block building is an integral part of the early childhood curriculum. Students learn on multiple levels as they move from stacking and balancing blocks in the kindergarten program to the creation of intricate structures that represent knowledge attained from in-depth studies conducted later in the year. Used on a regular basis, blocks provide the means for children to express their understanding of the social and physical world around them and foster skills in negotiation, cooperation and collaborative problem-solving. We began learning about our block center by exploring the different blocks and helping to organize the blocks. The children each helped to trace blocks, and create a “map” of the block shelf to help us find blocks, and to put them away neatly. We then learned that we can use teamwork to build one structure together rather than building many small structures that may run out of blocks. This can be very difficult as we have to be able to compromise and negotiate with others. We are learning about teamwork and cooperation. Look what we have built:
