Dear Pre-K2 Parents,
Time flies! We have to say GOODBYE to January! The highlight in February is the Valentine’s Day Party. The party will be held on Friday, February 14th at 3pm. During the party, we will be handing out Valentines, singing songs, and having some special activities for you. Please only have “who it is from” written on the valentines. There are 12 friends in Pre-K2 class. In addition, please make a Valentine box with your student at home and bring it to school on the day of the party. Thank you very much!
January Highlights:
We talked about why it is winter, how do you know it’s winter, and what kinds of activities people like to do in winter. We also created a T-Chart named “What Is Your Favorite Things to Do in Winter?” In addition, we learned about what animals do in winter, why some animals hibernate and some animals migrate south in winter, how animals know when to leave, and how migrating animals find their way.
To celebrate Chinese New Year, we talked about the traditions of Chinese New Year in China and watched Chinese Lion Dance and Dragon Dance from YouTube. We also learned “Happy New Year” song in Chinese, made the Chinese lanterns and Hong Bao (red envelopes with fake money inside), and tasted Chinese noodles with chopsticks. When I gave them Hong Bao, they said “Gong Xi, Gong Xi! Xin Nian Kuai Le! Xie Xie!”
The last theme was Art Studio. We watched a short video from YouTube to learn about what an art studio looks like and explored different art tools and materials. Your student also did Finger Painting, Texture Brush Painting, and Acrylic Painting both on poster board and fabric. The acrylic paintings are displayed on the wall of hallway. Every student is a great artist and very creative!
In STEM, we learned all about The States of Matter. We talked about what matter is, the three most common forms of matter (Solids, Liquids, and Gases), what their molecules look like, the properties of matter, and how matter changes its form through melting, freezing, evaporation, or condensation. Water is the only natural thing on Earth found in gas, liquid, and solid forms. We also made Gloopy Goop with cornstarch, water, and food coloring. How does it work? When this mixture is put under pressure, the cornstarch molecules are forced together. It behaves like a solid. When it is handled gently, the cornstarch molecules can move freely. It flows like a liquid. In addition, we played with ice cubes and explored the change of matter from solid to liquid. Please ask your student how they picked up the ice cubes with yarns.
In Math, we talked about different measuring tools, such as ruler, protractor, squares, tape measure, calipers, level, pressure gauge, scales, compass, thermometer, anemometer, rain gauge, and measuring cups/spoons. We focused on how to measure length, weight, and volume with ruler/tape measure, scale, and measuring cups/spoons. We also talked about what capacity is and compared capacities of containers in the order from the smallest to the largest. We weighted our body and measured how tall we are as well.
In literacy, we studied Letters Gg, Oo, Ll, and Ff and their sounds, some words that start with the letters G, O, L, and F. We also finished our Sight Words Booklet. Please help your student to review these sight words at home. It is very important for their beginning reading. In addition, we talked about what a plot is in the story, “The Mitten” written by Jan Brett. We studied who are characters in the book, what happens in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. It is a great honor to let you know about your student already started to read simple beginner books in class.
The themes of February:
Week 1: Groundhog Day/Day and Night
Week 2: Friendship and Valentine’s Day
Week 3: Jungle Animals
Week 4: Under the Sea
STEM: Animal Habitats
Math: Count by 2s, 5s, and 10s
Literacy: Letters Bb, Qq, Uu, and Jj and their sounds; Sight words; Beginning reading;
Plot of a story; Adjectives
Special Day:
02/04 Declan’s birthday
02/13 Aria’s and Cora’s birthday
02/14 Valentine’s Day Prty at 3pm
02/17 President’s Day
Best regards,
-Ms. Guoli