Trinity Preschool Activities for Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Willow Room: MWF class

We read "Bear snores on" by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman
We asked the children "What do you do in the winter?"
For art, we decorated a paper with Christmas cookie cutters dipped in glitter paint.
We had bell shapes at the easel and we painted them with glitter paint.

We did the Hello song, Animals exercising song, and Tap your toe and follow me song for music today.

We talked about what animals do in the winter and we did a game of finding some "Nuts" that were hidden in the room for the squirrels.

Maple Room- morning class:

We read "Bunny Cakes" by Rosemary Wells
We used snowflake stampers on tissue paper to make wrapping paper for our special presents we make our parents.
We had painting at the easel with textured brushes.

We did the December song and we are learning our Holiday songs for our program.

We did some letter H activities and read the letter H book.

Maple Room- afternoon class

We read "Clifford's Birthday Party" by Norman Bridwell

We painted on small paper plates- green; then we added crumpled up tissue paper to look like the ornaments and lights on a tree.
We had watercolors at the easel.

We did "Santa in the brown straw",  "The Pirate song", The December song", and practiced singing some of the holiday songs.

Oak Room: Pre- K class

We continued our Eric Carle series which the children are enjoying by reading "Rooster's off to see the world" .  We also read The letter K book.

We had new play dough in the room, we made pretend cookies and stick building.

We practiced our holiday songs, including "Hot cup of cocoa" and "She'll be coming around the mountain"

We did a small group game "Eric Carle's ABC's"

Stay & Play:

We read "When I grow up" by Al Yankovic

We used plastic rollers and did a large group project painting on a big piece of paper covering the whole table.  The children loved this.

We did "The freeze dance", "Face the facts", and "Hands are for clapping" for music time.

We had a great time with the art and a lot of wonderful building went on with the large wooden blocks.

Trinity Preschool Activities for Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Willow Room- Terrific 2's and 3's class

We had the librarian visit today to read the class stories and tell a flannel board story.

We asked the children "How was your Thanksgiving break?"
We painted using dish scrubbers as a backdrop for a special project we are making.
We painted stars using glittery gold paint.

We did 2 little blackbirds, If you're happy and you know it, and Wiggly Woo for music time.

The chameleon blends in with his background.

We are doing an Eric Carle series of books in the Oak room

Look at all the hidden Chameleon's in the Oak Room

Oak Room- Pre-k class

We read "The Mixed up chameleon" by Eric Carle and "slowly, slowly said the sloth" by Eric Carle
We used roller brushes to paint on paper that we had placed a chameleon on, he blends right in.
We did Baby Bear, and Come and get a smiley face for music time.

The librarian came to our class today to read some stories and do some flannel boards with the children.
We did the letter K mystery bag.  What is in the bag that starts with the letter K?

Dramatic Play Bakery Fun at Trinity Preschool

In all of our classrooms during the month of December we set up our dramatic corners at bakery centers. We tend to not put an overemphasis on holidays at our school, we don't use holidays as our main theme or focus, so for us, having a bakery is a good way to tie in Christmas. 

One of our classrooms uses this store front type of set up , but the other two rooms use a puppet theater as the bakery store front.
We give the children some props for baking as well as for running the bakery store and taking orders for food.

Closer view of items we have in our bakery.

We have a "window" in our bakery too.  

We make each of the children their own baker's hats using paper, and a good quality paper napkin or paper towel as the top.  We add their name too.  These are a huge hit!

We have an assortment of store bought and homemade items for our bakeries.  We have donuts made from socks, flannel shaped cookies, and later the children will make salt dough cookies too. 

Close up view of the donuts made from socks.

Trinity Preschool Activities for Monday, November 26, 2012

Welcome back- we hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Willow Room: MWF class

We had the librarian from the Mount Prospect public library come to visit our class this morning, she read us some stories and did a felt board rhyme.


We asked the children "How was your Thanksgiving week?"

For art, we painted with dish scrubbers to make a special picture. At the easel we painted with gold glitter paint on star shapes.

We sang "If you're happy and you know it", "2 little blackbirds", and "strolling down the road" at music today.

We did our days of the week and weather today too.
We have the dramatic corner set up as a bakery this month.

Maple Room: morning class

The Mount Prospect librarian came today and read us stories.

We did marble painting with blue and purple paint. At the easel we used broom bristle brushes with red and blue paint.

We are doing letter H activities and talked about the sounds the letter makes.  We looked to see what our alphabet monster ate that started with the letter H. We asked the children if they have the letter H in their name?

We did the November song and started to learn the songs for our holiday program.

We have our dramatic corner set up as a bakery.

Maple Room- afternoon class

We read "Clifford's first school day" by Norman Bridwell

We painted with dish scrubbers dipped in paint.
At the easel we had rollers.

We did 5 little monkeys with nothing to do, "come and get a smiley face", and played the "which cloud is the airplane hiding behind?" for music time.

We have our dramatic corner set up as a bakery this month.

Oak Room: 

We read "The grouchy ladybug" by Eric Carle
and "Does a Kangaroo have a Mother too? also by Eric Carle

The children cut out a circle shape and painted it with watercolors.  Then they used number stampers to stamp numbers to look like a clock around the outer edge.  It will look like a clock.

We did brown bear, deep in the jungle, silly dance contest, and a game of "which cloud is the airplane hiding behind?" for music time

We turned our dramatic play area into a bakery.
We are learning about the letter K.

Stay & Play:

We read "Zoomer's summer snowstorm" 
We had various sizes and kinds of brushes and 3 colors of paint, pink, turquoise and mint green.

We did the freeze dance- but with directed movements, and "sailing, sailing, row, row, row your boat, using rhythm sticks.
We had fun in the dramatic play bakery.

Thanksgiving Feast at Trinity Preschool

The children in or Maple room and Oak Room join together to celebrate being Thankful.  We spend some time in the week before talking about being thankful, and about the reason we celebrate Thanksgiving in the first place.  We talk about how the Native Americans helped the Pilgrims their first winter and taught them how to plant crops like corn.  They had a harvest feast together to celebrate and we now have Thanksgiving to remember that and to show our appreciation for all we have. 

The children in our Maple Room come to the feast as the Native Americans and the children in our Oak Room are the Pilgrims.  They welcome the Native Americans into their room.  We enjoy corn muffins and homemade butter (the children make it from heavy cream) and we also have the children each bring in something that we put together as a "friendship mix" - cheerios, m & m's, corn chex, pop corn, raisins, pretzels, etc..  We all sit at one long table and the children wear vests and head feathers or pilgrim hats and tops.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Trinity Preschool Activities for Thursday, November 15, 2012

Willow Room:  Terrific 2's and 3's class

We read "Thanksgiving at our house" by P.K. Hallinan

We asked the children "What is your favorite holiday?"
We made wreaths using real leaves and some paper leave too.
We had roller brushes and turkey shapes at the easel.

We did "The turkey hop", "turkey feathers", and "cool bear hunt" for music.

We baked corn muffins and made our own butter out of heavy cream.

Maple Room- Thursday class
We read "Turkey trouble" by Wendi Silvano

We did The "bear hunt", "bubble gum" and "Take that bean bag" for music time.
We divided the children into two groups and played beginning sounds lotto and what is the opposite game with each group.

Oak Room: Pre- K class

We read "Albert's Thanksgiving" by Leslie Tryon

We put feathers in a pine cone to look like a turkey.
We had easel shapes with watercolors at the easel.

We had a spatial relations play set out, lacing cards, and a cookie shape match game.

We did some turkey rhymes, bean bag alphabet rag, and line up in order of the number on the disk you are holding.

We asked it their name had letter J in it.

Trinity Preschool Activities for Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Willow Room- MWF class

We read "Mouses first fall" by Lauren Thompson

We asked the children "What do you like to play when it is cold outside?

We used water colors and eye droppers to paint coffee filters, They will be our Thanksgiving turkeys.

We had magnetic scare crow pieces to make a scare crow at the easel.

We did "The turkey hop", "Turkey feathers," and "cool bear hunt" for music time.
We did our weather and days of the week.


Maple Room- morning class

We read "Franklin's Thanksgiving" by Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark
We painted with real feather dusters on big sheets of paper.
At the easel we painted with letters

We did "The November song", "Old Mc Donald had a band" and used musical instruments.  We did "turkey in the brown straw", and the alphabet sounds song.
We did letter G activities, and played the color game "Where is the rainbow?"

Maple Room- Afternoon class 

We read "How to catch a star" by Oliver Jeffers

We are learning about star shape and diamond shape.

We used gold glitter glue and star shapes on wax paper to make sun catchers.

We had rollers and glitter paint on star shape stencils.

We did "Twinkle, Twinkle, little star" by Debbie O'Neal  and Jerry Pinkey

Oak Room- Pre- K class

We read "Arthur's Thanksgiving" by Marc Brown and "The Berenstain Bears Thanksgiving" by Stand and Jan Berenstain

We worked in our journals writing and drawing words that start with the letter J.

We did "turkey feathers song", "tap your toe and follow me", and "5 elephants went out to play"

We read the letter J book, and we talked about magnets and why they stick to things.

Stay & Play:

We read "The bear snores on" by Karma Wilson

We painted with real feathers.

We did two little blackbirds, and "stinky cake" for music time
We did a letter sounds BINGO game and enjoyed the construction zone.