Dear Families,
The colder weather has moved in and it is time to check your child’s extra clothes bag for seasonal
changes such as long sleeved shirts, pants, sweatshirt/sweater and extra socks/underwear. Please
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also make sure your child has a jacket for each day. Along with the colder weather, come beautiful
changes in the leaves. Children are noticing reds, yellows, and oranges as they walk to the
playground.
Curriculum
Monarch life cycle ~ The children continued to visit the Studio to construct three-dimensional
representations of the Monarch life cycle. They children’s work in the Studio reflects their knowledge
gained through observation, conversations and research. We read the book, Gotta Go! Gotta Go!
Which informed us that our Monarch would travel to Mexico to hibernate.
Pumpkins ~ The children have been exploring the pumpkins from Harvest Festival. Teachers began by
setting them at journal as a provocation and many children drew images of the pumpkins. Last week
we cut into our pumpkins and explored the inside. Children collaborated to scoop out the flesh and
sort the seeds into a bowl. We then washed, dried and baked them in the oven. The children were
able to sample the seeds and write the results of their taste test on a chart. This week the children
met and brainstormed what they would like to bake using a fresh pumpkin. Many ideas were shared
such as cookies, bread, muffins, soup and pie. The children indicate their preference by drawing an
‘X’ over their choice. The first item we will cook is Pumpkin Muffins. We will order our ingredients and
bake next week. YUM!!!
Easel ~ On recent trips to the Studio the children have observed specialty paint brushes and asked,
“Can we use these?” The children have been collaborating to paint on large pieces of butcher
paper. Once dry we have cut the paper into strips and added it to our message center. The children
have been designing beautiful creations.
Cow barn ~ On a recent wet morning, we traveled to the Fairchild Dairy and Research Center to visit
the dairy barns. The children were courteous and followed the farm rules. They used quiet voices and
walking feet inside the barns. Many children were eager to pet the cows and have teachers read
the names of each cow. We then walked around the barn viewing different machinery, touching the
bedding for the cows, and meeting some of the farm workers. The children then took over
documenting items that they had questions about in order to ask the farmers later. They noticed a
yellow ring in a calf’s nose, a pink ‘W’, a newborn calf, a pregnant cow and a cow named
‘CHELSEA.’ (Also, a name of a Preschool 1 teacher)
Occupational Therapy students ~ During the past two weeks the children have been provided with
fine motor activities. These have included coloring, cutting with scissors, gluing, and beading.
Self-portraits ~ The children have been observing themselves recently. Teachers brought out small
mirrors with different sized magnification, small paper and felt pens. The children looked closely at
their reflection noticing their features. Teachers sat and listened as children discussed what they saw
and the shapes they noticed. The children then worked carefully to sketch their image. These are
hanging above the children’s rest cubbies inside the classroom. Please take a moment to view their
work.
Birthday News
We would like to wish Nam (10/14) and Kiana (10/18) a very happy birthday on your special day.
Happy 5th Birthday to you both!!
Share from Home
Our next share from home is ‘Your favorite book.’ The children are welcome to bring in their favorite
picture book to discuss with their peers. They are also invited to share their favorite page. To help us
with the time element please preview the book with your child and have them place a post-it on the
page they would like to share.
October 30th - Adam, Sommer, Hattie, Nam
November 6th – Max, Victoria, Norah, Sachin
November 13th – Samuel, Julia, Emma, Sam
November 20th – Anyan, Kiana, Lily, Siddharth
Upcoming Events
October 27th - Curriculum event: Building a Classroom Community. From 2-3:00pm in the Studio.
Teachers will share how we have been working with children to develop our classroom community.
October 30th thru November 3rd - Beth on vacation.
November 11th – CSDC will be closed in observance of Veterans Day
November 18th & 19th - Family/teacher conferences. We will post a sign-up list outside our classroom
door next week. Please sign-up for a 30 minute time in which we will discuss your child’s journey and
collaborate to develop goals for the upcoming semester.
Beth and Freedom