October, 2014

The month of September has brought new faces and a beautiful new classroom space to my Rosa friends.  The toddlers have been acclimating well to their new space and learning a lot about each other and themselves.  We have been spending the past month focusing on keeping our classroom clean and putting works back on the shelf.  It is nice to see the toddlers fully immersed in cleaning tables and keeping classroom materials organized.    
We have been reading new stories and singing new songs during circle time.  A few of the favorites are Freight Train by Donald Crews and Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington.  Songs that can be heard several times a day are “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”, the Train Song and the Elephant Song.  If you hear your toddler calling elephants, that is where it comes from.  There are times when one toddler will start the song, and those who are nearby will join in enthusiastically. 

We talked a lot about apples this month.  A popular item in the classroom has been a basket of small apples that are transferred to a tall jar.  Everyone has enjoyed working with this and learning that these apples are just ones to look at, not to eat.  We wrapped up the month, by sharing in a snack of red and green apples for snack. 

The toddlers were very excited to watch the apples being cut and to see what an apple looks like on the inside. 

Next month, we will be continuing to focus on using our words to communicate with friends in the classroom.  We will spend time talking about pumpkins and leaves as the weather becomes crisp and cool.