Wow — what a super short week we had thanks to the weather! We truly missed seeing our Ladybugs on all of those icy days, but we hope they enjoyed some cozy winter fun at home. Our hearts were happy that we were able to see each class at least one time — it made those days feel extra special.

This week, we expanded on our winter theme by welcoming bears into our play, alongside our arctic and polar animals. We read the beautiful story Bear Snores On, and the children were completely drawn into the cozy, snowy world of Bear’s lair. As we read, we moved our bodies and acted out the story — tiptoeing like quiet forest animals, stretching and curling up like Bear in his den, and pretending to snooze while the storm raged outside. It was a wonderful way to connect literacy, imagination, and movement.

Our sensory bin was filled with blue polar kinetic sand, and the children eagerly matched penguins to their iceberg rafts and igloos. This hands-on play encouraged number, shape, and color recognition, all while sparking lots of conversation and creative play.

In the building area, we worked on creating bear dens and cozy houses using Lincoln Logs. Some of the uniquely shaped pieces inspired lots of laughter and imagination — they transformed into other things including a crown for me and even a silly snake tongue! We also explored balancing, rhythm, and tempo as we tapped and stacked the pieces together. They’re really good with tempo. Using a random object from around your home, try and challenge your child by using that object to make a sound pattern, and have them mirror what sound pattern you made! You’ll be surprised! So fun!

At the art table, we painted using traditional paint — and when I said we were painting penguins, the children took that quite literally! Instead of painting pictures of penguins, they painted the plastic penguins themselves, which was a perfect reminder of how wonderfully literal and creative preschoolers can be. At the easel, we tried paint sticks, which were soooo fun! They dried quickly, and offered a completely different (and exciting) painting experience!

In our Play-Doh center, the children created several animal habitats, shapes, and food dishes, carefully molding and designing with lots of focus and creativity.

As always, our book area was a cozy hub, filled with fun winter-themed stories. All of this reading we’ve been doing has truly sparked a growing interest in letters. The children are excitedly recognizing letters all around the room, and pointing them out during play and transitions. They are being encouraged to write the letter/s in their names on their work, and they’ve been practicing both recognizing and forming letters using whiteboards and Etch-A-Sketchs. It has been so fun to watch their confidence grow as they proudly identify and practice letters in meaningful, hands-on ways. You’ll recognize more art coming home with their hand-written letters and names.

Our one day of Lunch Bunch was a blast! Even with the delay, it felt like a normal three-hour day. We ate together in Ascension Hall and topped it off with a super fun snowball fight using our soft snowballs — lots of giggles and happy memories were made!

We also celebrated a very special birthday this week — Emma turned four! Her mom joined us to read a special story, and we enjoyed a sweet gummy treat together. Happy Birthday, Emma!

All in all, it was a short but very fun two-day week. Who knows what the weather will bring next week, but stay tuned for weather updates! Groundhog Day is coming, so we will have to see how much more winter we will be having. We’re excited to see our Ladybugs again soon!

LOOKING AHEAD:

Groundhog Day, Love and Kindness All Around, Valentine’s Day (week), and Community Helpers
- We are still looking for volunteers to visit and teach us about their jobs during our community helpers theme in February! We have had dentists, physical therapists, artists, doctors, carpenters — all sorts of interesting jobs to learn about in past years. Let us know if you’d like to share something about your work with our class, and we can schedule a time!
Our annual Valentine Dance will be on Friday, February 13th, from 6:00-7:30 pm. Put on your dancing clothes and shoes! The fellowship hall will be transformed into a party! This event is for your whole family. It’s always a favorite!
Valentine’s Day - Please send in Valentines with your child the week of February 9th. They will deliver them to one another using their decorated bags we’ll make here in the classroom. Have your child sign their names on their Valentine cards and leave the “to” part and envelope, if there is one, blank. This way it is easier for them to personally pass out their cards and not be overwhelmed by reading all of their friends’ names. Give your child a chance to help create and personalize their Valentines in some way. This can be by adding stickers, drawing a picture, writing their name on their own (or even just a letter or two), or decorating homemade cards. Whatever they do will give them ownership and pride, and will make the experience of delivering the cards soooo much more meaningful to them
SCHOOL WILL BE CLOSED ON FEBRUARY 16th for teachers to prepare for conferences!