SHOW AND TELL
Bring a symbol or thing of Christmas.
(Think ornament, wrapping paper, greeting card, etc.)
Topic: Christmas
Why we celebrate Christmas
The value is peace, which is calm and quiet, like a starry night in the country.
For manners we’ll practice saying thank you and hello and goodbye.
Outside we’ll play circle jump and Santa, Santa, your present is gone.
The songs we’ll be singing are Let There Be Peace on Earth, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Deck the Halls, The Twelve Days of Christmas, Up on the Housetop, and Rudolf, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Our art activities are handy Christmas tree, Santa face lid, standup tree, snowman ornament, and candy cane animals.
Creative dramatics will be hearing The Night Before Christmas.
For motor development we’ll build coordination with carrying Santa’s toys and holiday colors. For body development, we’ll work on proprioception with pushups, passing a milk jug, leap-frog, and tow truck.
HAPPY HOUR
The first hour after you pick up your child in the afternoon can make or break the entire evening. You’re exhausted after a tough day, a miserable commute, and three errands to run before you can go home. Your child has missed you terribly and wants your full attention – NOW! Zen philosophy tells us to focus on the here and now. With children, these few minutes at the beginning can save you an evening of your child’s trying to get your attention. It’s an investment that can pay really big dividends. Here are some helpful tips from Working Mother.
- Spend the last 5 to 10 minutes of your commute focusing on your child and how glad you will be to see her. Did she have a good day? What happened when the firefighters came? What art did she do today?
- When you first greet your child, focus entirely on him. Greet him at eye level with at least one hug. Develop a ritual of things to do as you leave the school, including shaking hands with the faculty supervising your child, and go through the ritual as unhurriedly as possible.
- Once home, plan a small Happy Hour ritual with your child. Have a snack – yogurt, a cup of hot apple juice, or share an orange. Talk with your child about her day as you eat. Ask a few questions about specific things she mentions.
- As your child settles in a little, take a few minutes for yourself. Change your clothes, open the mail, or put up your feet and observe your child as he moves into his own activities.
- If your child is an infant, be prepared to spend a lot of time holding or rocking her. With babies, a ritual is even more important. They need things to be predictable. It’s that trust issue Erik Erickson talks about, and it has life-long ramifications. Keep the baby with you in the kitchen and talk, talk, talk. Say, “Now I’m going to cook the spaghetti.” It may not make any sense to the baby, but hearing your words is not only comforting to her, it also is essential to develop the understanding of language. TV or talking on the phone doesn’t get it.
- Let the kids help with evening chores. Children want to be doing what their parents are doing. Don’t send them away. Even very young children like to help with real work, and that can be a good time to relax, to talk, and to develop a lot of good practical life skills.
Home is the safe place, the place where everybody can fall apart. Kids are as stressed as their parents after a long day. They’ve had to try hard all day, and now they’re with someone who loves them. They’re trying to tell you they missed you. Enjoy!
Coming Up
Winter Open House – It will be here before you know it our last event of the year will be on Friday December 20 at 3P.M. We’ll begin with the students demonstrating some of the work they enjoy; we’ll follow up with about 3:30 gathering for a sing – along and end with the taking of our family picture in the back yard. All family and friends are welcomed to attend.
Teacher Gifts – In past years parents organized to give the teaches gifts, Anderson’s mom is the contact person interested parents please reach out to her by email at lu.valerie@gmail.com
Giving Project – Our giving project is geared to teaching our students about the world they live in and understanding the importance of giving to people who need. As you consider what gift you will be dropping in the box, if your child is three years or older you can involve him in the process. Talk about needs vs wants and maybe let him selected the gift. Have your gift donation in by Tuesday the December 11.
Be Aware – Although not recently theft has occurred in our parking lot during morning drop off, turning off the engine, locking the doors and put everything out of sight should become the norm.
Recent Comments