Dinosaur--ROAR!!

DINOSAUR'S

"The Dinosaurs are getting married, and the ponies are invited!"


WOW! The Dinosaur unit has really taken off! We talked about Volcano's and what happens when they explode. "S" and "A" are digging for Dinosaur bones (when you find them all, they actually make a Dinosaur)! The girls on the left are pretending to be scientists digging through the moon sand looking for fossils!

On Thursday of next week, we will explode our volcano! The kids are EXTREMELY excited for this!

Our Valentine's Day party is also approaching fast. This will be on Thursday Feb. 11th in the morning. We will open Valentine's and have a snack. Feel free to be creative with your Valentine's "homemade" cards is something you can do together! I will have a list of all the children's names on a sheet for you.

What a busy month for us in the Cardinal Room!

The Computer Buzz!!

I have recently brought in a computer, as most of you have noticed. The children are VERY excited and eager to use it. I have been looking around for online educational games that are age appropriate as well as fun! So far, we have found several letter games, and a few matching games. If you have any suggestions for games please let me know.

I did want to take a moment and explain my reasoning for introducing a computer at a four year old level. The first and foremost reason is for extended learning. I have had a few children ask me questions about different subjects; sometimes I can answer them, and sometimes I can't. Now, instead of telling them I will look into their question, we go to the computer and look it up online. This has been a great resource for our Dinosaur unit.

Another reason for the computer is for them to have yet another way to learn their letters and other skills we are working on such as fine motor. It is challenging to be able to move the mouse, click an object and move it to another location (our ABC matching game is a great example of this).

Ask your child about the computer in our classroom. I am excited to hear some feedback on what they think.

Please rest assured, your child is NOT sitting in front of the screen all day. The children are allowed to have 10 minutes each taking turns playing a "game of the day."

If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.

January 2010

Welcome Back from a long Christmas break. One of my New Year's Resolutions is to keep up with this blog better! Sorry for lacking in information. My Goal is to post weekly what we are doing and provide you at home access to our daily events. Time is passing so fast, I think I just updated the blog, then two months go by.

The children all seemed excited to be back (after the parents left this morning of course). We are working out a new routine and trying to get back in the groove of "learning."

Please check back later in the week, for I will be posting new pictures as we learn all about water and ice!

Also, please remember hats, mittens and winter coats... it is cold out there! One more house keeping reminder. Children enjoy (and are more comfortable) with a small pillow and blanket. I do have extra, however my stock is getting limited. If you could send these items from home so each child has his/her own blanket that would be great! Thanks for your help!