Welcome, December! The Christmas season has officially arrived, and our Ladybugs are filled with excitement and wonder. This week’s theme was gingerbread, and from the moment the children stepped into the classroom, the sweet scent of gingerbread filled the air. To make the week even more magical, they were greeted by a very exciting surprise — our very own big Christmas tree standing proudly in the classroom, along with some winter decor.
At circle time on Monday, we discovered that we had a new friend joining our class — our very own gingerbread friend! He left us a note explaining that he had heard of how fun our classroom was, and couldn’t wait to be a part of the Ladybug family. We celebrated his arrival by reading “The Gingerbread Baby,” by Jan Brett. This beautifully illustrated story talks about a clever little gingerbread baby who escapes and outsmarts everyone trying to catch him. The story kept our Ladybugs fully engaged, and they loved predicating what might happen next as the adventure unfolded.
On Wednesday, we arrived to an unexpected surprise — our gingerbread friend was missing! Where could he have gone? To help us search for clues, we read “The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School,” by Laura Murray. Inspired by the story, our Ladybug family took their search very seriously. One group found him cleverly disguised in doll clothes and tucked into a high chair, while the other group discovered him hiding in the classroom refrigerator! We soon realized he had left us a note explaining that he was just playing a little game of hide-and-seek.
All of our classroom centers were gingerbread-themed this week.
Our reading center was refreshed with brand-new Christmas and holiday books that the children were eager to explore.
The building center was a huge hit, as the children worked together to build a “gingerbread house” to trap our sneaky friend. They also enjoyed experimenting with jingle bells, discovering with great excitement that the bells would stick to the tiles.
In our theater area, the winter themed puppets —along with our mischievous gingerbread man—absolutely stole the show! The children brought these characters to life with big imaginations and even bigger personalities. Snowmen went on snowy adventures, reindeer dashed through imaginary fields, and our gingerbread friend was always on the run, escaping from one playful storyteller to the next. Laughter filled the room as the Ladybugs created their own winter tales, practiced turn-taking, used expressive voices, and acted out scenes inspired by our stories. It was wonderful to watch their creativity shine as they played, pretended, and performed with pure joy.
Our play kitchen was busy all week as we baked Christmas treats and prepared cozy holiday meals for one another.
Our sensory bin this week was filled with the sweet, cozy aroma of gingerbread, turning playtime into a delightful holiday experience. The bin invited children to explore a variety of textures, colors, and scents. Using materials like scooping beans, soft marshmallow cotton balls, smooth cotton rounds, colorful candy canes, cheerful gingerbread people, and small cups for scooping and pouring, all loved making their teachers lattes. YUM!
In our Play-Doh center, our creativity ran wild as we made our very own gingerbread people. Complete with googly eyes, pom-poms, “sprinkles” beads, and buttons, our new little friends came to life!
Gumdrops made the perfect building material for constructing 2D shapes with toothpicks in our stem area. Using gingerbread shape cards as guides, the children explored shape characteristics, problem-solving, and fine motor skills. They each had the opportunity to taste a gumdrop as well. Much to our surprise, most loved them!
In our “snow” writing center this week, we practiced forming letters using gingerbread-themed letter cards. This sensory writing activity made letter practice both meaningful and memorable.
Everyone enjoyed creating a special gingerbread craft to hang on our Christmas tree. With googly eyes, sparkly rhinestones, shapes, pipe cleaners, and lots of festive decorations, each gingerbread person turned out unique and full of personality.
After completing the gingerbread craft, some of our Ladybugs also helped to decorate our classroom tree with other ornaments. They had so much fun carefully placing them, taking them off, and rearranging them again and again. For many three-year-olds, decorating a tree at home is often off-limits, so having the freedom to decorate their very own classroom tree was extra special and empowering for their little selves.
To finish off the week, we enjoyed a delicious surprise — gingerbread cookies! Most of the children absolutely loved them!
As always, Chapel and Music and Movement brought joy, laughter, and meaningful moments to our week.
In Chapel, Pastor Lee taught us about the Advent wreath as the countdown to Christmas. He taught us that God is our night light, and that with Jesus we do not need to be afraid of anything (because HE’S not afraid of anything).
Shelly got to step in for Pastor Lee for our Thursday group this week. She started with a fun wiggles activity, taught us about the Advent wreath, and read us a story called “Room for a Little One: A Christmas Tale” by Martin Waddell. It’s a popular children’s book about the Nativity where a Kind Ox makes room in his stable for other animals (dog, cat, mouse) and eventually Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus, empasizing that “There’s always room for a little one.”
In Music and Movement with Ms. Vicki, we sang our hearts out as we practiced for our upcoming Christmas concert. You are going to love it!
It was a magical, gingerbread-filled week in our Ladybug classroom, and we’re so excited for all the festive fun December will bring.
Next week we will focus on more traditional Christmas activities, and then the following week we’ll be busy hopping aboard the Polar Express, preparing for our concert, and celebrating with our friends!
Instead of a holiday party, we’d like to have a Polar Express Day in the Ladybug room. On Monday and Tuesday, December 15th and 16th, your children can wear their pajamas to school (get some extra use out of those cute Christmas pjs!). They will get a train ticket to get on our snack “train” and we’ll enjoy some popcorn and cocoa while we hear the Polar Express story. I am going to be sending out a sign-up genius over the weekend, and would love your help with making this Polar Express experience magical!
Our Christmas Concert will be Thursday, December 18th, in the Sanctuary. (It’s on a Thursday, but we want ALL of our classes to come that day, so MW(F) classes, please plan to join us!) Arrive at 9:00, drop your child in his or her classroom, and have a seat in the Sanctuary. We hope you can come, because it is our gift of love to you! Remember, the whole school will be assembled, so you may need to park in the municipal lots around Southern Village. The concert will only last about 30 minutes. Afterwards, you can take photos, and then we will say good-bye for the Christmas holidays.
In addition, “official” registration for the 2026/27 school year takes place in January. Currently enrolled students and younger siblings of former alumni should register by January 16th. Please encourage your neighbors and friends to apply at CCP as well. Their applications are due January 30th. We would love to have them join our amazing preschool family! They are also welcome to email or call for a tour to learn more about the program. The updated applications are already on the website if you want to check that task off your list early!
Important Reminders:
Polar Express Day- wear pajamas December 15th and 16th
Christmas Concert- December 18th
School Break starts after our concert! We start back to school on January 5th!
Lunch Bunch starts January 14th and 15th — more details to come!
Enjoy the weekend with your sweet Ladybug!
Miss Lisa, Miss Phoenix, and Miss Jenn