JACOB & JACQUELIN, OUR NEW TWINS

This is our final week of celebrating Christmas at preschool with our Bible emphasis being "The Angels Tell the Good News to Shepherds and Wise Men." To finish our "Christmas Is. . ." books this week, the children will be making a hand-print wreath with finger print holly berries. You will then be able to take these home, wet paint included. In the center, we have a special picture of each child. During our opening time, we will continue our music and movement time with Christmas songs and playing our jingle bells. We will also decorate a Christmas tree with 16 different Christmas rubber stamps. We will sing "The First Noel," "O Come All Ye Faithful," "Away in a Manger," "Jingle Bells," and "The Great Kings" (fingerplay). Our snack will be cheese crackers or maybe a special Christmas treat if parents would like to bring these. Story time this week includes "The Christmas Star" which tells the birth of Jesus with a light up star. "I've Been Workin' on the Railroad" story/song should be fun as I will bring along our train whistle. If time and attention allows, we will also read "Llama, Llama Red Pajama." I am also bringing back the xylophone for another carol sing-a-long for fun.

Be sure to see our snowflakes hanging in our classroom. A couple weeks ago, the children made pine needle paintings, and I cut these into snowflakes.

I pray you have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year. Oh, if any of you are sending family photo Christmas cards out this year, I would really appreciate having one. Thank you so much.

Mrs. Shelly

Jack was a monkey for our Fall party and . . . . . . Katelynn was our zookeeper!

I hope you are enjoying the holiday season. This week, our Bible story will center on Baby Jesus is born. We will be making pages to add to our "Christmas Is . . ." book by making a Shining Star with yellow paint, star sponges, and glitter. We will also decorate a candy cane with red stripes. We will continue to sing our Christmas carols, "Joy to the World," "Away in a Manger," "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," and "5 Little Candles." We will also sing "Twinkle Star" and "ABC Song." We will work on board puzzles and have Christmas music for our opening time with twirlers/bells and bubbles. Our snack this week will be animal cookies and raisins. Our room now has a Nativity Set with "Little People" characters which we will place in our mystery bag. The children will take turns selecting a character and trying to identify who it is. Our storytime this week is "Christmas in the Barn," a Margaret Wise Brown book about Jesus being born in a barn with all the animals present. Our second story is "Guess Who's Coming, Jesse Bear." The children enjoyed "Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?" so much a few weeks ago, that I found a sequel and hope they enjoy it as much. If time and/or attention allow, we also have a story/song "Hush Little Baby" (don't say a word, Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird).

We were excited last week, as our room and playground has received many nice toys from the K-State Developmental Center, kind of like an early Christmas present.

We were also excited on Friday evening to win the "Best Youth Float" in the Mayor's Spirit of the Holidays Lighted Parade. We so appreciate all the parent support and the nice weather which made for a fun, memorable evening. Make sure to check out our trophy as you check in your children.

Have a blessed Christmas season,

Mrs. Shelly

We are entering the Christmas season and are looking forward to enjoying the season with your children. This week, we will begin with the Bible story of the angel appearing to Mary and Joseph with the promise of a Saviour. Our craft activity will include painting glitter wings on an angel. Also, we will make a nativity scene with popcycle sticks, straw, and paper figures of all who were in the stable. We are planning to incorporate each child's Christmas crafts into a book called "Christmas Is . . ." to remind all of the true meaning of Christmas. We will be enjoying Christmas carols during our opening music and movement time and singing "Joy to the World," "Jesus Loves Me," "Away in a Manger," and "Jingle Bells" during our circle time. I am also bringing in a xylophone that we can have a sing-a-long as I try to tap out Christmas tunes. We will also have a new fingerplay called "Five Little Candles" (words below) which I have prepared five candles with red felt flames with one through five glittered on each. For our snack, we will have cinnamon graham crackers. During our opening time, we will be making a pine needle paintings with dark paper and white paint. Our storytime this week includes "Off to Bethlehem" about everyone hurrying to get to Bethlehem to see baby Jesus. Our second story, I am excited to finally have as it is on loan from Emporia Library, is called "Dear Daisy, Get Well Soon" about being a good friend to Daisy who has chicken pox. It reinforces the days of the week and counting skills as each day an increasing number of animals take increasing numbers of items to Daisy's house to cheer her up. If we have enough time and attention span, I also have another story called "Big Red Barn" by Margaret Wise Brown which is also another favorite, but it may have to wait until next week.

Please remember to bundle your children up as we will continue to play outside weather permitting and as long as the temps are above freezing.

Have a wonderful Christmas season,

Mrs. Shelly

FIVE LITTLE CANDLES

Five little candles burning so bright. (wiggle fingers)

The first one said, "We make great light!" (arms up)

The second one said, "The child is born." (rock baby)

The third one said, "Our light will adorn." (arms out in front, palms up)

The fourth one said, "We shine for Him." (palms forward at sides of face, fingers spread)

The fifth one said, "Let's not be dim." (cover pointer finger with other hand)

So they stood very tall and glowed very bright.

And the Christ child smiled that very night.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING--
This week will be our Thanksgiving week, and our Bible story will be "The 10 Lepers" and how only one remembered to return and thank Jesus for healing him. We will be painting "Thankful Turkeys" and using our cutout handprints for his feathers. Our songs this week include "I've Got Peace Like a River (joy like a fountain & love like an ocean)," "I'm in the Lord's Army," "Thank you, Lord for Saving My Soul," "ABC Song," and "I'm a Great Big Turkey" which we did last week also.

Our storytime will include an Eric Carle story, "Does a Kangaroo have a Mother too?" about 10 different baby animals and their mothers. "Thank You, Thanksgiving" is about all we can be thankful for at Thanksgiving time. We will be playing our felt board game of Turkey Feathers, which one is missing? as we say a rhyme and take one of the red, yellow, or green feathers away. The children then say the color that has been taken away.

This week, we will be learning to play the memory game using vegetable pictures at opening time. Also, we will trace their hands, and they can color and decorate and see how their handprint can become a turkey.

Please continue to dress your children so they can play outside warmly for about 30 minutes. Thank you.

Have a blessed (not stressed) week!
Mrs. Shelly

THANKSGIVING IS COMING SOON, and this week, we are planning on making a cornucopia full of fruits and vegetables. I am planning to bring in real examples of the paper foods that we will glue to our cornucopia so the children can see and feel them as we talk about the names of the foods and about thankfulness. Our Bible story this week is "Jesus Turns Water Into Wine." We will be learning a new turkey song set to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot" called "I'm a Great Big Turkey" (see words below). For our felt board, we have a turkey with different colored feathers which we will be singing a rhyme as I take a feather away. The children will guess which color was taken away from our turkey (see rhyme below). Other songs we will sing are "Praise Him," "This Little Light of Mine," Jesus Loves the Little Children," and "Itsy, Bitsy Spider."

Our storytime this week will be "Today is Monday," an Eric Carle story/song about the foods we eat on different days of the week. Also, "How are You Peeling?" which shares different fruits and vegetables with faces showing all the different emotions.

I'M A GREAT BIG TURKEY

I'm a great big turkey

'Cause I'm well fed.

Watch me spread my feathers.

Watch me bob my head.

When I strut around
I waddle, waddle, waddle.
And when I talk
I "gobble, gobble, gobble."

I'm a great big turkey
And I'd love to stay.
But Thanksgiving's coming.
So it's time to run away!


TURKEY FEATHERS

Turkey feathers, turkey feathers,
red, yellow, green, red, yellow, green.
Which one is missing? Which one is missing?
Name it now. Name it now.

Please continue to bring warm outerwear as the children play outside even as the weather is getting cooler.

Also, several weeks ago, we found a ring in our room on the floor after several children had been checked in. It seems as if it might have fallen off of one of those children. If you are missing a ring, please check at the office to claim it.

Have a blessed week,
Mrs. Shelly

PLAYING IN OUR BLACK TRUCK

Hello--This week our class Bible story will focus on the "Wise Man Builds His House on the Rock." I am planning to build a Lego house and place it on a rock and in the sand where it will crash as a part of the story illustration. We will be singing "The Wise and Foolish Man," (words below). We will also sing "Jesus Loves Me," "Twinkle Star," "ABC Song," and "2 Little Eyes." We will introduce another new song this week called "Johnny Works with One Hammer" (words below). We will show four paper shapes: square, rectangle, triangle, and circle to make our own houses for our craft time.

During opening time, we will use our Lego blocks to build a house. I am also bringing a tunnel in this week to crawl through and roll balls through. Our snack time will be animal cookies and fruit snacks.

Storytime this week will be the fun tale, "This is the House that Jack Built." We will also be singing/reading "Over in the Meadow," which the children always love the books with big animal pictures.

Thank you to the families who brought in extra wipes. We now have plenty for a while. Also, thank you to all the families who brought in special treats last week to make our week very sweet. And, a thank you from the teachers for the appreciation bags that we were surprised with last week. We really appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Also, the front wheel on our playground black truck has broken, and the children are sad about that. If you know of a similar "Little Tikes" vehicle or a Cozy Coupe that someone might want to donate or sell for a reasonable price, please let us know.

Have a wonderful, blessed week,

Mrs. Shelly

THE WISE AND FOOLISH MAN

1. The wise man built his house upon the rock.

The wise man built his house upon the rock,

The wise man built his house upon the rock

And the rains came tumbling down.

(Chorus)

The rains came down and the floods came up,

The rains came down and the floods came up,

The rains came down and the floods came up,

And the house on the rock stood firm

2. The foolish man built his house upon the sand,

The foolish man built his house upon the sand,

The foolish man built his house upon the sand,

And the rains came tumbling down.

(Chorus)

The rains came down and the floods came up,

The rains came down and the floods came up,

The rains came down and the floods came up,

And the house on the sand went SPLAT!

JOHNNY WORKS WITH ONE HAMMER

1. Johnny works with one hammer, one hammer, one hammer.

Johnny works with one hammer, then he works with two.

(Hammer one fist lightly on leg).

2. . . . two hammers

(Hammer both fists on legs)

3. . . . three hammers

(Hammer both fists on legs and one foot on the floor)

4. . . . four hammers

(Hammer both fists on legs and both feet on the floor)

5. . . . five hammers

(Hammer both fists on legs, both feet on floor, and nod head down and up)

Then he goes to sleep

(Rest head on joined palms, pretending to go to sleep)

HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY, ANDERSON & CHLOE!

This week, our Bible lesson will be "Joseph & His Coat of Many Colors." Along with this lesson, we will be emphasizing our families and how God shows His love for us by giving us families that love and care for us. Our craft this week will be a foam picture frame that the children will decorate and place cartoon images for each member of their families. The side of the picture frame is open, and a real family photo may be slipped inside the frame at home. Our songs this week will be "Praise Him," "Joy in My Heart," and "God gave us Families," (sung to "Are You Sleeping?"). Two fingerplays will be "5 Little Pumpkins" with our felt board pumpkins on a fence and "God Gave Me a Family" (words below).

Our opening time will include a special surprise of orange balloons during our music time. We will also have our board puzzles at the blue table.

Storytime this week will be a favorite I have read to my kids many times over the years, "Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?" This story is about a little bear and his family sharing his activities and what he wears as he goes through his day. Our second book is "Little Cloud," an Eric Carle story that shows clouds taking shapes of a tree, airplane, clown, and various animals.

We will also be continuing our color leaf sorting we did last week. I pretend to be a tree with laminated leaves falling down. As I sing "All the leaves are falling down," the children collect the leaves and then place their leaves in the matching color bag for red, orange, and brown.

This week, we also have 2nd birthday special treats for Anderson and Chloe.

Have a wonderful week. Our classes will run like normal this week, even as the older classes are on their conference schedule.

Mrs. Shelly

GOD GAVE FAMILIES

(Tune of "Are you Sleeping?")

God gave families

God gave families

Yes, He did. Yes, He did.

God gave me my family.

I thank Him. I thank Him.

GOD GAVE ME MY FAMILY (fingerplay)

God gave me my family. I love each one everyday.

God gave me my family, so we can have fun and play.

God gave me my family. They love me more each day.

God gave me my family. I serve them with lots of love.

God gave me my family. I thank God up above.

10/18/10

This week, our focus will be "Feet that Walk," and the Bible lesson is "Jesus Heals the Lame Man at the Pool" from John chapter 5. We will sing a new song called "Silver & Gold Have I None" (the words are printed below). We will also sing "My God is So Big" as we stretch out arms wide on the "so big" part and "Jesus Loves Me." We have felt pumpkins on a fence to see as we do "Five Little Pumpkins" (words also below). We will be examining the parts of a pumpkins and opening one up to see the inside and removing the seeds. We will use some of the seeds to decorate our paper plate pumpkins which the children will paint orange and add a stem, leaves, and some seeds. We hope to have these hanging from our room very soon. During our opening time, we will have some ears of corn to roll through ink and onto paper to see the designs the kernals make. We have red, orange, yellow, and brown felt bags which we will use to sort out the different color leaves that will float down on us as we sing "All the Leaves" (words below) and place them in the matching color bag. Storytime this week will include: "Grow a Pumpkin Pie," "How Do Dinosaurs say Goodnight?" and if time and/or attention permits, "5 Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree."

Thank you so much for the two packages of baby wipes last week. We are requesting each family to bring in a package to replenish our supply as we use a lot to keep little hands, faces, and bottoms clean.

Next week will be our Halloween celebration. We will have balloons and special treats. On Tuesday, we will have birthday treats for our celebration, but Wednesday and Thursday are open for a family to bring treats for snack time. The children are also welcome to wear their costume (the simpler the better) if they would like, and we will line them up for a Kodak moment. Probably, we will have to remove the costumes before snack as they could get messy and it would be difficult to change their diapers.

Have a Blessed Week,

Mrs. Shelly

SILVER & GOLD HAVE I NONE

Peter and John went to pray

They met a lame man on the way.

He asked for alms and held out his palms

And this is what Peter did say:

"Silver and gold have I none,

But such as I have give I thee.

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth

Rise up and walk."

He went walking and leaping and praising God,

Walking and leaping and praising God,

"In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,

Rise up and walk."

FIVE LITTLE PUMPKINS

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate,

The first one said, "My, it's getting late."
The second one said, "There's a chill in the air."

The third one said, "Fall in here."

The fourth one said, "Let's play and jump and run."

The fifth one said, "I'm ready for some fun!"

So whoosh went the wind that blew through the trees,

And the five little pumpkins were covered up with leaves.

ALL THE LEAVES

(Tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star)

All the leaves are falling down

Red and yellow, orange and brown.

They are coming off the trees

Watch them blowing in the breeze.

All the leaves are falling down

Red and yellow, orange and brown.

LINING UP TO PLAY OUTSIDE

This week, our Bible story emphasis is "Noah's and the Flood" as we talk about how our hands can help serve. We will sing "Mr. Noah Built an Ark" which is the same tune as "Old McDonald had a Farm" with our felt animals going into an ark. We will also sing "Whole World in His Hands" and "5 Little Ducks." For our art this week, we will be painting an ark brown and choosing a different animal pair to add to their arks. For snack time, we will give each child an ingredient (Cherrios, Goldfish, raisins, etc.) to add and stir into our snack bowl and then share. During the opening time, we will enjoy our music and movement and bubbles. At our table, we will enjoy coloring and building our own arks with wooden blocks.
For storytime, we will read "Great Big Animal Book" and a new twist on the story/song "I'm a Little Teapot" as the Teapot goes on adventures to China, Mexico for a bull fight, outer space, the opera, on a fox hunt, and to the jungle.
The children always enjoy playing Sink or Float? and we will play this week as each of the children will have a turn to place items in a tub of water to see if they will float or sink to the bottom.
We will continue to play outside as the weather allows, so please send jackets.

We use baby wipes a lot in our room from diapering to art time to eating time. We are requesting that each family bring in one package of baby wipes to keep our supply well stocked. Thank you very much.

Mrs. Shelly

ENJOYING OUR NEW FRIENDS

This week will continue with an emphasis on our senses with our Bible story about Zechariah and a mouth that speaks. We will sing "Praise Him," "I've Got the Joy," "Twinkle Star," "ABC," and our fingerplay "Two Little Eyes." We will be matching up unusual animal mouths to a pelican, a mosquito, a snake, an anteater, and a fish. We will discuss that our mouths can speak, sing, praise, and also enjoy eating as we create art with chocolate pudding painting. We have shape stampers that we will be using at our blue table and learning the names of seven shapes. Everyone wish Miss Kayla a Happy Birthday this week, and we will hopefully surprise her with some brownie bites for everyone to enjoy for snack time. Storytime this week will be a story/song "Down by the Station" which will include other exciting stops such as the truck stop, construction site, airport, water, racetrack, firehouse, and launchpad. The "Wee Little Lamb" will also be read as our little lamb overcomes her shyness to make new friends. At the end of our day, we will also discover more shapes in our new "Mystery Bag" where the children will pull shapes out of the bag, and we will discuss the names and colors of the shapes.

TWO LITTLE EYES

Two Little eyes to see the bright sun

to see the little raindrops falling one by one.

Two Little eyes to see the green tree, to see the flying

bird, and the buzzing bee.

Have a blessed week,

Mrs. Shelly

HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY, ANNABEL.

HAVING FUN ON THE PLAYGROUND

As you can see from the pictures, preschool is off to a great start with many new friends being made. This week, our Bible story will be "Perfume for Jesus," and continue with our senses of "A Nose that Smells." Various smells, such as lemon, pine, cinnamon, coffee, and perfume will be smelled with pictures of what the smell is. Our songs this week include "My God is so Big." The kids enjoy this song as we stretch out our arms very wide to show how big He is. Other songs will be "Isn't He Wonderful?" "I'm in the Lord's Army," "Into My Heart," and "Itsy, Bitsy Spider." Our craft activity will be painting with red, yellow, and orange using cotton balls attached to clothes pins to create Fall leaves on a tree. Our storytime will include "Let It Fall" a story about kids playing in the Fall time leaves. "The Very Quiet Cricket" will also be read which is an Eric Carle story about a cricket meeting various insects and trying to find his chirp. Sometimes, the children are so attentive during storytime that I am prepared with a third book this week if time and attention allows called "Senses at the Seashore." We will also be enjoying our parachute this week which will be possible as we now have a second helper in our room in addition to Miss Kayla. Mrs. Shauntae joined us last week, and we are very happy to have her join our group.

We have a second birthday for Annabel in our room this week.

Also, please pack diaper rash ointment in your child's backpack if you would like for us to apply as we must have your permission to use on your child per KDHE regulations. It is considered a medicinal product by KDHE.

Have a Happy Week!

Mrs. Shelly

HAVING FUN ON THE PLAYGROUND

Having fun on the playground.

Our room is getting off to an exciting start this Fall with all our new friends and activities we are doing together. This week, our emphasis continues on our senses with "Ears that Hear." The Bible story will be the "Parable of the Sower" talking about hearing God's Word and our heart being good soil for His Word to grow. Our songs this week include "Oh Be Careful Little Eyes, Ears, Mouth," "Praise Him, Praise Him All Ye Little Children," "Whole World In His Hands," and a felt board with the animals to sing "Old McDonald Had a Farm." We will be finishing our rice shakers this week by making a collage of a leaf on the opposite side of the apple print from last week. We will use the shakers for the year during our music time. At the Blue Table, as is becoming its name, a collection of toy cars with a variety of wheels will be set up with ink pads to stamp and roll the tire tracks on paper. Storytime this week will be "Bunny's Noisy Book," a Margaret Wise Brown book about all the sounds the Bunny hears as he goes through his daily adventures. "Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?" will also be read which shows large, vibrant pictures of zoo animals and the sounds they make. The surprise box this week will be filled with noisy items such as a train whistle, a bell, harmonica, and other items we can listen to.

Blessings to you and your families,
Mrs. Shelly

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JANA

KEATON, RYKER, AND JANA PLAYING IN OUR RICE TABLE.

Well, we had a great first week, and a lot of fun meeting our new friends. Also, a special thank you for all the supplies that were brought in last week. This week, our Bible story emphasis will be "Eyes that See--Jesus Heals the Blind Man." We will sing "Oh be Careful Little Eyes What You See," "This Little Light of Mine," "Two Little Eyes" (a fingerplay with pictures), "This Old Man," and "Twinkle Star." For snack time, we will have apple slices and Scooby Graham Snacks. Our craft will be apple prints. We will slice the apple in half horizontally in order to find the star in the center and make apple prints on a large apple sheet and also on paper plates that will become our shakers for music time. During our opening time, we plan to color with buttermilk-soaked chalk to create vibrant pictures to take home. Storytime will be "Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?" and "The Wheels on the Bus." We are filling up our surprise box with items to reach in and identify, such as a candle, rock, pinecone, lock, comb, etc.

We are looking forward to another great week.
Mrs. Shelly

TWO LITTLE EYES

Two little eyes to see the bright sun

to see the little raindrops falling one by one.

Two little eyes to see the green tree, to see the

flying bird, and the buzzing bee.

WELCOME TO OUR FIRST WEEK OF PRESCHOOL

It was so nice to meet everyone at the Open House, and now we're excited for preschool to start this week.
We are hoping to snap a picture of each of the children this week to display on our apple tree on the bulletin board in the hallway near our room.
Our theme this week will be Moses and the 10 Commandments, which we will focus on God's love for us and rules show love by keeping us safe. We will be singing "Jesus Loves Me," "If You're Happy & You Know It," "The Bible, We Love the Bible," and "Twinkle Star." Our craft time will include sponge painting red hearts of different sizes and talk about small, medium, and large. Our snack will be animal cookies.
Since we plan to play on our outdoor playground weather permitting, please try to dress your children in clothing that can sometimes get messy. When the weather is not agreeable, we have a rice table that we play with in our room.
Over the summer, I prepared a low table for the children to do activities such as coloring, puzzles, blocks, etc. and be able to come and go as they would like. This week, we are planning to have blocks and animals at the new "Blue Table" and use the blocks to build fences to keep the animals safe inside.
After lunch each day, we will have storytime. Our books this week include "Who's Hiding?" a lift-the-flap book showing Bible friends and how God loves and cares for us. Our second story is "I Udderly Love You," a story of unconditional love of a mother cow for her baby calf. Time permitting, we will sing songs such as "The Wheels on the Bus," "Five Little Monkeys," "I'm a Little Teapot," or get out our soft animals to cuddle with until pick up time.
We are looking forward to a great first week.
Mrs. Shelly