Extended Day Weeks Four and Five

 

Our outdoor mural has a new home in the darkroom! The transparency of the mural lends itself well to light and shadow play. The image above shows the children projecting shapes onto the mural and tracing them using permanent markers. In future weeks the children will continue to use this art piece in their exploration of light.

                            

      Morah Yachova has been setting up some really exciting experiences for outside play, 

such as:

              

        

nature rubbings, sensory experiences, magnifying glasses, and a variety of materials for  building.

     

The children have continued to build incredible creations! Recently, the materials of choice have been magnets and Legos.

The children have also been very interested in drawing, cutting, and gluing. Expect to receive some beautiful artwork!

                                        

                                        Check out our super fun specials!

Shabbat Shalom!~Morah Jessica and the Extended Day Staff

A Peek into Kitah Alef

Welcome to Kitah Alef! We'd like to invite you to take a peek into the activities occurring in our beautiful indoor and outdoor spaces. 

In the classroom we have areas and materials conducive for open-ended play and skill building. Table toys promote hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills and concentration.  

Sensory bags and bottles provide stimulating tactile feedback and are one way to bring nature into the classroom. They can be filled with just about anything and give insight into scientific properties like sinking or floating, color mixing, or sound. Mirrors add light and dimension to materials (and children love to look at themselves!).

The library is a cozy spot for looking at books or just "chilling out." Book familiarity fosters literacy and helps children learn about the world around them.

Art is a time for experimentation with different mediums, textures and effects. It is best as a process, allowing the children to interpret the matter as they see fit.

Throughout the day we practice self-help and responsibility routines, such as clearing away our own snack plates and pushing in our chairs. This encourages independence and the gratification of a job well done. 

Outdoors is an extension of our classroom where the children can run, jump and exercise their gross motor muscles. Our beautiful, organic playground offers plenty of opportunities for observation and interaction with nature.

Stay tuned for more windows into the learning and growing occurring each day at school.

Our Outdoor Mural Survived the Tropical Storm!

                                   Extended Day Week 3

 Our outdoor mural survived the tropical storm! This week the children added glitter-glue using brushes and sponges. Next week permanent makers will be available to draw on top of the glitter and paint.

    

We have noticed the the children's interest in building, beginning to emerge outside. They took apart this climbing structure have been using its pieces in different ways. New materials will be introduced to support this interest. We can't wait to see what the children create!

   

Unfortunately the bulb in our projector went out, but Morah Elie lent us this light pad to use until it is replaced! The children were able to continue their exploration with light and create compositions with loose parts. 

New manipulatives for indoor play!

   These materials support cognitive development and build fine motor skills.

             
New outdoor material! Children played with tennis balls outside this week. They enjoyed bouncing them, rolling them, throwing them, and collecting them in buckets!

Even though it was a short week, it was still an exciting one! It is truly wonderful to see your children brimming with curiosity and creativity, daily. It is a pleasure supporting their learning and exploring with them!

Stay tuned! We can't to see what your children create next week!

~Morah Jessica and the Extended Day Team

The Special Rosh Hashannah Prayers of Three Year Olds

     We enjoy gathering together during our Circle Time.  We sing, we chat, we share information.  Last week, we sat down to learn about the basic Rosh Hashannah concepts of Tefillah (prayer), Tzedaka (charity), and Teshuva (repentence.)  All these terms were expressed in child-language--and even a three-year old can relate to these ideas! 

       Yesterday, we spoke about our relationship with Hashem, G-d.  This is the time of year when Hashem is particularly close by, like a King warmly visiting everyone in his village.  What would we like to personally ask of Hashem?  This is the essence of our Rosh Hashannah  prayers.  And what is prayer like when you are three years old? Some of our ideas are very pragmatic, others are somewhat lofty.  (Much like adults' Tefillot!)

     The children shared their thoughts:
Annabel:  I want to clean up with my Mommy.
Asher:  I want to play with Mommy with my toys.
Avraham Chaim:  I want to have a birthday party with Goldie with a pretend rocket ship.
Ben:  I want to read a lot of books.
Dalia:  I want Hashem to hug me and kiss me.
Gabi:  I want to play with my garbage truck.
Eli L:  I want Hashem to build the Bais Hamikdash.
Eli S:  I want to play with Riva.
Eliza:  I want to play with all my friends.
Emmett:  I would like Mommy and Daddy to play with me.
Ezra:  I want to cleanup my room.
Harper:  I want to eat candy and ice-cream.
Leah:  I want to help clean up.
Logan:  I want to be happy.
Rafi:  I want a lot of birthday parties.
Maddy:  I want to take care of baby Delilah.
Menny:  I want to play with my cook Lego toys.
Shane:  I want to see how firemen put out fire.
Shayan:  I want to play with Mommy, Daddy, baby Nori and my Latte.

     We enjoy our discussions, but we're not all talk.  Our Rosh Hashannah conversations lead us to some very hands-on activities.  Yesterday, we prepared delicious honey cake.  Why?  We know that we are asking Hashem for a sweet New Year.  What could be sweeter than honey?

     (Above, we learn about bees and honey from an authentic bee keeper . . .the Bee Lady shares info about her bees, and all of us get a close-up look.)

L'Shana Tova Tikatevu

Have a Happy, Sweet New Year!

The Kitah Gimmel Morahs--along with the sweet Gimmelniks

Extended Day Week Two

Extended Day Week Two

Threads of interest have started to develop during week two of the Extended Day program!

This week, new materials were introduced for Light and Shadow play. The children created a honey comb pattern with cut up toilet paper tubes. They have also begun to explore how their own shadows interact with the projected ones.

Building continues to be popular among the children. Large rectangular wooden pieces have been added as well as carpet and fabric squares. New materials will continue to be introduced to foster this interest.


Art is another strong interest among the children. We make art  both in and outside of the classroom. This week the children manipulated play dough using natural materials, made their own books, and drew hurricane together on the chalkboard! The children have also been working on an outdoor mural. Last week the children used permanent markers to draw on a clear, plastic shower curtain. This week they printed on top of their drawings using pinecones and acrylic paint. We will continue to add layers to the mural using different mediums and methods of mark-making.                                                                    

Thank you for sharing your wonderful children with us!
~Morah Jessica and the Extended Day team

  

Conversation + Cooperation = Building!

     After a long weekend, it usually takes a few minutes to settle in.  Not so this morning, the day after the Labor Day break.

     A few of the guys began a building project with the Magna-Tiles.  Shane announced, "We're building a fire station!"  Asher noticed some of the Magna-Tiles on the floor, counted them and said there's only three. Shane thought some of the tiles would make a perfect satellite dish for the rooftop.

     Ezra took a look and joined in.  "Hey, there's two helicopters!"  Eli S. called out, "I'm making a door!"

     The boys enjoyed pushing several cars in and out of their structure.  Then they noticed the roofs that belong to the Lincoln Log set.  Could they be used, too?  Shane wondered aloud, "How do these go together?"  The boys experimented with the roofs for a few minutes.  Together they decided that these roofs didn't belong on their building, so they returned them to the Lincoln Log basket. 

     There were some major engineering skills at work here.  The structure grew taller and taller.  More cars were placed inside.  There were several doors that could open and close.  Later, when another boy knocked it down, the group expressed disappointment.  The offender apologized and we spoke about it together.  Some serious re-building then followed.

     Later in the day, a second group created a different, yet similar, structure.  A Morah asked the group, "Would you like to build on the floor or on this platform?  If on the platform, we can save it for another day."  Shayan answered, "On the floor!"  Emmett noticed the "door" on the building.  "It needs to be open!" he told the group.  Rafi contributed several tiles, laughing as he put the tiles carefully in place.  It was almost finished.  Emmett said, "We need a roof."  And then it was done.  For the day.  Who knows what type of building will be constructed tomorrow?  And will the group decide to save their future structures?  (Exciting stuff!)

Kitah Gimmel, with the Kitah Gimmel Morahs . . .