Thanksgiving in the Green Room

This week in the Green Room we continued our theme of Thanksgiving and being grateful.  We sang "Thank you Hashem" and each friend went around the circle and said who they are grateful for.  We baked pumpkin pies and made mashed potatoes for our Thanksgiving Feast.  Thank you to everyone for coming to celebrate with us.  Our class really enjoyed performing their dance for you!

We explored different textures this week.  On Monday we played with shaving cream.  This sensory activity helps develop spacial awareness by learning where their body stops and another person's begins.  This skill was shown when the friends covered Morah Mirele's arm with shaving cream.

On Tuesday and Wednesday we cooked for the feast.  Mixing and mashing the potatoes and baking the pumpkin pies encouraged self-regulation because we had to measure ingredients and mix slowly so the food wouldn't spill.
                                                                      Parsha
We discussed the parsha every day and also read the book "Kind Little Rivka".  We told a story about the parsha with pictures and you can say this story with your child and have them fill in the blanks:

The parsha this week is (Chaya Sarah).  Eliezer went to the well to find a wife for (Yitzchak).  Her name was (Rivka).  Rivka gave water to Eliezer and his camels to drink so he knew she would make a great wife for Yitzchak.  He gave her presents and (jewelry).  She became one of the mothers of the Jewish people.  Rivka had the same three miracles that Sarah had so everyone knew she was the true wife for Yitzchak.  Her tent was protected by (clouds), her challah stayed (fresh) all week, and her Shabbos candles stayed (lit).

Good Shabbos and Happy Thanksgiving!
Morah D and Morah Shoshana



Ben exploring shaving cream.

The Green Room baking pumpkin pie.

The Green Room exploring shaving cream.

Nechama mashing potatoes.

Shira covered in shaving cream.

Vella and Shira looking cute as can be!

Vella checking the eggs for blood.

Vella being silly with shaving cream.

Nature, Literacy,Thanksgiving and Parsha!

                                                                Nature
In the Green Room this week we explored nature.  We went on a nature walk outside to collect different materials to make natural paintbrushes.  Our friends collected sticks, leaves, rocks, and flowers and we bound them together to make a paintbrush.  The hike outside developed their gross motor skills, imagination, creativity, and was a whole-body sensory experience.

Vella, Nosson, and Shira use their natural materials to paint bubble wrap!

The green room on their nature walk.

Vella found a great twig to use as a paintbrush handle!

Our friends create their paintbrushes as an after-nap activity.

Shimmy explores the outdoors and searches for natural paintbrush materials.

                                                                 Literacy

We also explored play dough this week and used ABC cookie-cutters to spell our names.  This was not only a sensory experience but it developed their literacy as well.  Shira, Nechama, and Nosson decided that the large popsicle sticks looked like toothbrushes when they put play-dough on the end.  This cracked everyone up and we all made toothbrushes and pretended to brush our teeth.  How creative!

The green room uses play dough to spell their names.  They also enjoyed filling baby food jars with the dough and Nosson figured out that if the cap is too big you can use play-dough to help it stick shut.

Shira and Nechama pretend to brush their teeth.

Thanksgiving

This week the we are  busy working on our Thanksgiving project.  We discussed different words this week within the theme of Thanksgiving.  We learned the words thankful, grateful, and appreciate.  Each day we went around the circle during davening and shared what we are grateful for and who we appreciate.  We made bowls out of clay as a Thanksgiving gift and they will be displayed at the Thanksgiving Feast on Wednesday November 23 at 11 am.  You will be able to see videos of your children saying what they are grateful for so please don't miss this yummy and fun party!  All parents are welcome.

Tamar creates her bowl out of clay.

Ben and Shimmy work on fine-motor skills by exploring legos.

Parsha

The parsha this week is Vayeira.  We discussed the main themes of the parsha using pictures and Morah D read a parsha story.  Hashem sent three angels to visit Avraham after he had his bris.  This facilitated a discussion about the mitzvah of bikur cholim (visiting the sick).  We talked about Yitzchok being born and why he has that name.  Your child can tell you it's because it means laughter and Sarah laughed when Hashem told her she was going to have a baby even though she was 90 years old!  We asked everyone how old their mom was when she had them.  These are their answers:

Nechama: 40 years old

Vella: 63 years old

Nosson: 68 years old

Shimmy: 2 years old

Ben: 3 years old

Tamar: 5 years old

Shira: 91 and 2 years old

Please ask the following parsha questions at your Shabbos table this week:

1. What is the name of the parsha this week? (Vayeira)

2. How old was Sarah when Hashem told her she would have a baby? (90)

3. What was her baby's name? (Yitzchok)

4. Hold old was Yitzchok when he had his bris? (8 days old)

5. Who came to visit Avraham in his tent? (3 angels)

Good Shabbos,

Morah D and Morah Shoshana

This week in the Green Room we explored shapes.  We painted ziti noodles and discussed the shapes we saw.  Vella noticed that the ends of the noodles were circles so we learned about the cylinder.  After we finished painting our noodles we let them dry and then strung them together to make beautiful necklaces.  This activity developed their fine motor skills and creativity and our discussion promoted literacy.  Tamar and Shira noticed that when they mix the paint colors together it makes a swirl-another shape!  In the sensory bin this week we had flour with many different shaped objects.  Everyone loved digging through the flour and then naming the shapes they found.  Nosson noticed that the lids to the spice containers are circles and he added them to the sensory bin for his other friends to discover.  Ben and Shimmy loved building with magnatiles on the light table.  We talked about triangles and squares and the different things we can build.  For a craft this week we glued different shaped color paper and made beautiful collages.  You can see them hanging in the hallway outside the classroom!

We discussed Parshas Lech Lecha and the friends made amazing connection between the parsha and real life!  We discussed that Avram had his bris at 99 years old and Nechama pointed out that Ben & Shimmy's brother will have his bris as a baby.  Then Shira said, "Perach's baby also having bris".  Here are a few parsha questions you can ask at your Shabbos table:
1. Who did Avram believe in? (Hashem)
2. Where did Hashem tell Avram to go? (Canaan)
3.  Who did Avram take with him to Canaan? (Lot and Sarai)
4.  Where was the special place that Avram welcomed guests? (His tent)
5.  How old was Avram when he had his bris? (99)

On Friday we davened together as a school and baked challah.  We also made candles out of paper and glue.  This explored our shapes concept further because the friends made cylinders out of paper to represent the candlesticks.

Shabbat Shalom,
Morah D and Morah Shoshana

Tamar, Nechama, and Shira glue shapes as an after-nap activity.

Shimmy explores magnatiles on the light table.

Nechama and Shira practice balancing.

Tamar works on her Shabbos candlestick project.

Shimmy and Ben paint noodles.

Shira, Nosson and Morah D discover shapes in the sensory bin.

The green room paints noodles.

Shira and Tamar hard at work.

Vella noodle painting and lining them up.

Hello from Morah D

Dear Parents,

Allow me to introduce myself,  my name is Mrs. Diana Musaev and I am thrilled to be the new teacher in your children class.

I have been an early childhood educator for over 9 years and I absolutely love working with preschoolers. I love reading books to children helping them gain an appreciation and understanding of literacy. My hope is that by the end of the school year we will have explored  many new stories, songs, colors, and letters together and really gained a love for  learning and school.

 I will always available for you to ask any questions and to address any concerns. I have worked with your children these last two days and it has been a wonderful experience. They are all very smart and eager to learn and I hope that we will continue to explore and make many new discoveries together through out the year, and that they will go home each day and share with you what they have learned or created and how happy they are. As a mother of 3 children I have learned, that when they are happy I am happy :)

I look forward to keeping your children happy and safe in a fun and exciting learning enviornment full of exploration and discovery,

Shabbat Shalom

Morah D

Please ask your children to share with you all about Noach and the Teiva and all of the animals he had inside. They can describe to you the 3 floors , the rains that came pouring down and the rainbow he was shown afterward!