Preschool Schedule for 2008-2009

September

Lara:

Tues. 9^th: Welcome to preschool, explanation of rules, expectations, routine, how to treat our friends, teachers, getting to know you, make new preschool bags

Thurs. 11^th: Seasons overview: each year there are 4 seasons, changes in the earth/trees

Becca:

Tues. 16^th: Flags: different countries’ flags, showing respect for flag, Betsy Ross (Lara has flag stickers from around the world)

Thurs. 18^th: Fun with Magnets: experiment with magnets

Andrea:

Tues. 23rd: Trains: historical importance, play with toy train, identify different cars, human train

Thurs. 25^th: Apples: Johnny Appleseed, apple treat, craft

Fri. 26th: FIELD TRIP: Cox Farms (Jana)

Alex:

Tues. 30^th: Fossils: dig for fossils, make your own fossils, see some real ones (Lara has some)

Thurs Oct. 2^nd: Dinosaurs: identify different types, meat eaters vs. plant eaters, have fun!

October
Field Trip Ideas: Fire Station

Jana:

Tues. 7^th : Community Helpers (heroes): fire men, doctors, teachers, etc., role play

Thurs. 9^th : Safety: Basic safety rules (fire safety, stranger danger, 911, streets, etc.)—be careful to keep it positive, so the kids don’t end up scared

Rebecca R.:

Tues. 14^th: Christopher Columbus: What did he do? Take a boat ride (in a box or blanket across the floor)…look for land with telescopes, sing songs (Columbus sailed the ocean blue, ocean blue, ocean blue, Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 14-92—to Mary had a little lamb tune), world flat? etc

Thurs. 16^th: Basic World Geography: introduce globe, continents, oceans

Fri: 17th: FIELD TRIP: Fire Station (Becca T.)

Andrea:

Tues. 21^st : Oceans: basic geography (show on globe), salty vs. fresh water, how big they are, float/sink experiments, ocean life

Thurs. 23^rd : Dolphins: have fun learning all about these intelligent creatures

Jana:

Tues. 28^th : Autumn: seasonal changes, trees, pumpkins, etc.

Thurs. 30^th : Halloween: fun traditions, games, wear costumes??

November
Field Trip Ideas: National Zoo

Alex:

Tues. 4^th : NO SCHOOL (Election Day): ZOO FIELD TRIP (Alex)

Thurs. 6^th : Animals: fur vs. no fur, differences and similarities between different kinds, animal charades?

Lara:

Tues. 11^th: Rhythm and drums: try different activities using rhythm, make your own drums? , marching

Thurs. 13^th: Native Americans: traditions, try some food (like popcorn), make teepee, etc.

Rebecca R.:

Tues. 18^th: My Family Tree: who is on it? Showing respect for ancestors, have students bring pictures, importance of families

Thurs. 20^th: Thanksgiving/Gratitude: why we celebrate, pilgrims/Indians (tie in what they learned from Native American day), etc.

Tues., Thurs. 25^th, 27^nd: NO SCHOOL: THANKSGIVING

December
Field Trip Ideas: Christmas Program at Madison HS (Andrea)

Becca T.:

Tues. 2^nd : Animal Habitats: exploring where animals live, why they live in certain places, etc

Thurs. 4^th : People’s homes around the world: explore the different kinds of houses people live in throughout the world, show on a globe, emphasize gratitude for our homes (Lara has a cool book)

Jana:

Tues. 9^th : Sharing, unselfishness, serving others (Stone Soup)

Thurs. 11^th: Winter: changes of winter, snow

Alex:

Tues. 16^th: Penguins: have fun learning about these cute little cold weather creatures

Thurs. 18^th: Christmas around the World: why we celebrate, fun traditions, look on globe to find out where they are…maybe focus in on one country, mentioning some different ideas around the world, make special gift for parents

23^rd, 25^th, 30^th, Jan. 1^st : NO SCHOOL: Christmas

January
Field Trip Ideas: Cub Run Pool

Andrea:

Tues. 6^th : Rhyming: have fun rhyming words, listening to poems, etc.

Thurs. 8^th : Setting goals, Heber J Grant (how he set goals), have them set a goal, make a goal chart (learning to write names?, learning address or phone number?)

Rebecca R.:

Tues. 13^th : Africa: find on globe/map, make mudcloth, traditions, languages (keep working on goal)

Thurs. 15^th: Martin Luther King, (MLK day is 1/19) who is he?, his dream, treating people with respect (brown/white egg activity) (keep working on goal)

Fri. 16th: FIELD TRIP: Cub Run Pool (Rebecca R.)

Becca T. :

Tues. 20^th: NO SCHOOL (Inauguration Day)

Thurs. 22^nd : I am a Child of God: Everyone is unique/special, explore our talents and what makes us each so special

Becca T:

Tues. 27^th : NO SCHOOL (Teacher Work Day)

Thurs. 29^th : Groundhog’s Day--have fun learning all about groundhogs and the traditions with Groundhog’s Day, shadows

February
Field Trip Ideas: Dentist office
Mount Vernon (free on President’s Day)

Lara:

Tues. 3^rd : Exploring our 5 senses: try all kinds of fun activities and experiments using each of our senses

Thurs. 5^th : Helen Keller (tie in the 5 senses), make their names in Braille, have them feel a Braille page, try sign language, amazing things she overcame, etc.

Becca T.:

Tues. 10^th : Bodies: What makes our bodies special?, Taking good care of our bodies

Thurs. 12^th: Friendship/love: have fun with Valentine’s day!

Jana:

Tues. 17^th: George Washington (president’s day is 2/16), life in the colonial days, make corn cakes, play old-fashioned game, etc.

Thurs. 19^th : Teeth: taking care of them, different types (in humans and animals)

Fri. 20th: FIELD TRIP: Dentist Office (Jana)

Andrea:

Tues. 24^th : Inventions: talk about important inventions, what life was like before its invention, make their own invention (with Legos or blocks or something similar)

Thurs. 26^th : Musical Instruments: Try different instruments, make a preschool band/parade

March
Field Trip Idea: Petland Pet Store

Lara:

Tues. 3^rd : Peter and the Wolf: recognizing different instrumental sounds, listening to the story and the different tones, tempos, and moods of the music—maybe a cd for them to take home

Thurs. 5^th : Asia: look on map, learn a couple of words, Japanese Calligraphy?, eat with chopsticks

Alex:

Tues. 10^th : Wind: talk about the wind, make kites

Thurs. 12^th: Ducks: Make Way for Ducklings

Rebecca R.:

Tues. 17^th : Collage: read Eric Carle books, look at different types of collages, make their own collage (paper scraps or photos)

Thurs. 19^th : Opposites: have fun learning all about opposites

Fri. 20th: FIELD TRIP: Petland Pet Store (Rebecca R.)

Jana:

Tues. 24^th : Spring: the seasonal changes of spring, review the different seasons

Thurs. 26^th : Flowers: notice the differences and similarities of different kinds, examine the parts of a flower (a real one if possible), what they need to grow

Alex:

Tues. 31^st : Bunny Rabbits: (meet a real bunny?), what they eat, make ears and tails for everyone

Thurs. Apr. 2^nd: Easter (April 12^th is Easter) why we celebrate, symbols, fun

April
Field Trip Ideas: Frying Pan Park
Eakin Park (pond)

April 7^th and 9^th: NO SCHOOL (Spring Break)

Rebecca R.:

Tues. 14^th : Tadpoles/Frogs: learn about their process of change

Thurs. 16^th: All about Color: Using paint, play dough, colored water, etc. experiment with color mixing

Fri. 17th: FIELD TRIP: Frying Pan Park (Lara)

Lara:

Tues. 21^st : Rainbows: Make rainbows with prisms, mirrors, etc.

Thurs. 23^rd : Leaves: take nature walk, look at the differences and similarities in the leaves, make leaf book, leaf rubbings, collection

Andrea:

Tues. 28^th : All about Farms & farmers, Food: where does our food come from? Working hard. Little Red Hen—use hand wheat grinder and grind wheat and bake some bread (Lara has hand grinder)

Thurs. 30^th : Volcanoes: all about volcanoes, make your own volcano to explode

May

Field Trip Idea: GreenSpring Gardens
Hidden Oaks Nature Center

Becca T.:

Tues. 5^th : George Frederic Handel: conducting & composing music

Thurs. 7^th : Honoring your parents (Mother’s Day is May 10^th)—make special present for Mom

Andrea:

Tues. 12^th : Outer space & astronauts: planets, solar system

Rebecca R.:

Thurs. 14^th: Jungles: where in the world are they? Jungle animals

Fri. 15th: FIELD TRIP: Greenspring Gardens (Alex)

Alex:

Tues. 19^th : Manners: the basics of manners and being respectful

Lara:

Thurs. 21^st : Life cycle of butterfly

Becca T.:

Tues. 26^th : Bugs: the basic parts, have magnifying glasses for everyone, different kinds

Jana:

Thurs. 28^th : Sports/Exercise/Olympics: Have fun learning about why exercising is so good for our bodies, play games, run races, obstacle course, etc.

Tuesday June 2^nd: Graduation Day (evening or during preschool time)

Lara: Booklets and certificates

Jana: Food assignments and planning

Rebecca R.: host

Alex: Activities