November 2016

Fall is definitely upon us. The leaves are falling along with lots of rain. It's getting chilly when we go out to the playground. Please make sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather: layers are great, a sweatshirt and raincoat works well. I hope everyone had a great Halloween, the kids said that they did. 


Our unit on plants has ended. The kids have enjoyed our growing experiment as well as looking at seeds and leaves of different plants. We have learned the names of the parts of a plant and their functions as well as what a plant needs to survive and grow. We ended the unit by tasting food that comes from different parts of the plant, understanding that we eat all parts of the plant.


Our next unit will be on the ocean. The students will learn the names of the oceans and where they are located. They will learn about some of the animals and plants that live in the ocean. We will also do some experiments based around water and the difference between salt and fresh water.


This month I am introducing a new concept to the classroom to help with problem solving and teaching empathy called the love light. A love light is a center of goodness inside each person. When a child is feeling happy, calm, focused or helping another their love light shines bright. When a person is feeling sad, angry, scared, or tired, their love light dims. We are using this phrase in conjunction with the Zones of Regulation to talk about how we feel. We will also use this to help us talk about how we feel when someone else hurts us or how another person feels when we hurt them. The kids will also work on determining ways to make their love lights shine when they are sad or angry. If you would like more information about this please let me know. 


School will be closed on November 11th for an in-service day and on November 23rd, the day before Thanksgiving. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.