L’hitraot, See you Again!

Dear Families,

We have had a wonderful end to a wonderful school year.  We re-visited several favorite activities this week.  Last week, as we begun to discuss the coming of the end of the school year, the children were invited to suggest some of the things that they would like to do again.  And so, we made one last batch of challah, played with the marble run as much as humanly possible, and read many, many books.

We enjoyed our author study of James Marshall this week, and focused on some of our favorite stories: those about George and Martha, two hippos who are very good friends.  James Marshall wrote several books telling humorous stories about these two hippos, each book containing several stories.  On Monday, we had a discussion about the two characters, and the children worked hard to put together some of the information that they had gathered about each character throughout the various stories.  On Tuesday, we wrote a letter to George and Martha.  The children wanted to know if they go to school!  On Wednesday, we acted out a favorite story about George and Martha.  Our combined experiences of discussion, writing, and acting served to deepen the children’s comprehension of the stories, and to allow them to begin to understand the concept of characters and perspective in stories.

We enjoyed investigating materials related to the study of insects this week.  We used small plastic insects and cards with sequential pictures to learn about the different stages of metamorphosis.  We also tried camouflaging toy insects onto floral fabric and photographs of flowers, leaves, and other natural objects.  We discussed how insects use camouflage to protect themselves from predators.  Finally, we even looked at x-rays of real insects, and matched them to photographs of different kinds of insects.  Many of the children present a natural curiosity in relation to the study of insects.  While many of us adults would rather avoid an encounter with a spider, it is a gift to see the world through the eyes of a four- or five-year-old: full of wonder and intrigue.  Insects present children with opportunities to learn about important biological concepts, including growth, predator and prey relationships, and natural defenses. 

We also spent time this week working on gifts for Father’s Day.  We hope that you enjoy them.  However, the majority of our work this week was spent in preparing for the “Big Goodbye Day.”  The children finished using writing and drawing to share some of their thoughts and memories of the school year, and we have put their work together in books.  Focusing on positive memories is a wonderful coping skill for young children as they say good-bye to a special time in their lives.  Talking at home about wonderful memories of days in school can help children to cope with the change. 

The end of a school year is often a time for mixed emotions for both children and adults, particularly in families who are leaving preschool behind.  We feel both happy about the accomplishment and the new adventures to come, but also sad about the change and the end of a wonderful time.  It is hard for all of us to know how to act when we encounter mixed emotions, and it is particularly hard for young children.  They cannot identify if they are feeling happy or sad or both, and they therefore cannot figure out how to act on their feelings of cope with them.  At school, we often say, “At the end of school, some children feel sad and some children feel happy, but most children feel both.”  This can help children to recognize what they are feeling.  Related to children’s mixed emotions and confusion surrounding the change, you may notice some regression in behavior at home.  Some children find it helpful to be reminded about the things that are consistent in their lives – the things that are not changing.  For example, you might say, “Even though school is over for the year, Mommy and Daddy will still take care of you.  You will still have bedtime TV every night.  The rules at home are still the same.”  Consistency at home can ground children and make them feel more secure when there is a change in their school situation.

We wish a hearty congratulations to our first TCEE graduates.  We will miss them dearly, but wish them all the best in the new adventures that lie ahead for them.  We hope that they will be in touch often.

We would like to thank you all so very much for sharing your children and your families with us their year.  It has been such a delight to watch them learn, grow, laugh, learn, and come together as friends this year.  We are so grateful for the trust that you placed in us this year in teaching the TCEE’s first pre-kindergarten class, and we were honored to be their teachers. 

L’hitraot, and we look forward to seeing many of you in camp this summer!

-Morah Larissa, Morah Marla, and Morah Kate

Welcome Morah Marla

Dear Families,

This has been an eventful week in the Owls’ Room.  We observed Shavuot by continuing to study and build an understanding of the Ten Commandments.  We talk about the Ten Commandments in ways that are accessible to young children and relate to the rules that they encounter in their own lives.  For example, we talk about how we shouldn’t say bad words, how we should tell the truth (or “true words), and how we shouldn’t take toys without asking.  On Monday, the children enjoyed a teacher-performed puppet show about the Ten Commandments.  On Tuesday, they used water colors and dictation to express their understanding of the Ten Commandments.

On Tuesday, we also enjoyed tasting a traditional Shavuot food: cheese blintzes.  These crepes stuffed with a cheese mixture are traditionally served on Shavuot because they contain milk and are sweet.  This is symbolic of the Torah, which is said to be sweet like milk and honey. 

We also had a “Good-bye Day” for Morah Kate on Tuesday.  We informed the children on Monday that we would say good-bye to her the next day.  We tell young children about changes closer to the time that they will happen at school, because we find that it is difficult for most pre-school aged children to truly conceptualize time.  When we tell them that they will go to kindergarten soon, they often think that it will happen the very next day!  We prepared the children for Morah Kate’s “good-bye” by giving them clear information the day before it happened.  We find that it is helpful to support young children through separations by using a three-step process.  First, we give them clear information about what will happen and when.  Then we talk about the things that will stay the same.  This supports children in coping with the change – they know that they have some consistency to rely on.  For example, we acknowledge that even without Morah Kate, the routine will be the same at school, the toys will be the same, and Morah Larissa will still be there to take care of them.  Finally, we discuss the children’s mixed feelings.  We talked about the fact that they will feel sad, but that we will always remember the nice times that we had with Morah Kate in the Owls Room this year.

To that end, we had a wonderful time composing a list of our favorite moments with Morah Kate this past year.  The children remembered how much they liked sitting next to her at lunch, playing hide and seek or soccer with her on the playground, and reading books with her.

We will use the same three-step process to support the children in getting ready for the end of the school year.  On Thursday, we began talking about the “Big Goodbye Day” that is coming next week.  We noted that some children will stay at home over the summer, and some will come to camp at the TCEE.  We also noted that some children will go to a new school next year, and that others will return.  We support the children in coping with the diversity of their experiences by reminding them that “Moms and Dads know just what’s right for their children,” and that it’s the parents who will decide what the children’s individual plans are.  While the end of the school year is an exciting moment of accomplishment with the anticipation of a fun summer, it also represents change for young children.  We remind the children about all of the other things in their lives that remain consistent throughout that change – in this case, their home lives!  Finally, we have begun to make a list of some of our favorite activities that we remember from the school year – in the interest of revisiting some of these activities one last time!  The children had fond memories of the marble run, our new weights and scale at the Science Center, making challah, and, of course…the worms! 

The children have begun to work on individual books about their school years.  Each child is writing and drawing about some of their favorite (or least favorite) toys and experiences, and some of the new things that they have learned.  These will be a nice keepsake to take home and to remember their year, and the process of creating them also supports the children in their preparation for the end of the year.

We enjoyed welcoming Morah Marla this week, who is subbing for Morah Kate for last few days of school.  Marla Beller is an accomplished early childhood educator with a Master’s Degree from the State University of New York at Albany.  She currently teaches at a Head Start program in New Hampshire and has previously taught at Temple Israel in Boston.  She is also…and perhaps you’ve heard…Morah Larissa’s mother!  The Owls find this absolutely hilarious! 

This week we have started an author study of James Marshall, who has written some of the Owls’ favorite books this year, including the Miss Nelson books and the George and Martha books.  Conducting an author study, or reading and discussing many works by one author, allows even the youngest of children to gain insight into the writing process.  They are able to make observations about an author and illustrator’s style, and to use these observations to deepen their comprehensions and gain insights.

We are looking forward to having you join us for the Shalom Picnic at 11am on Friday, June 17^th.  We will be sending home much of the Owls’ work that day, as well as their extra clothing and other things that they’ve kept in school. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa, Morah Kate, and Morah Marla

The Story of Ruth, the 10 Commandments and New High School Buddies!

Dear Families,

This week, we have continued with our study of Shavuot. We have been studying the story of Ruth, which is traditionally read on Shavuot. This biblical story teaches of Ruth’s loyalty to her mother-in-law and her acceptance of Torah. We have relied on multiple strategies to teach this story. First, the children saw Morah Kate perform a puppet show telling the story. Then, another day, Morah Larissa led a storytelling circle and told the story aloud. The children were instructed to try to see the pictures in their imaginations! In a day and age when high-tech toys eliminate the need for much imagination in young children, storytelling is a valuable way for children to develop their creative and abstract thinking skills.

Another fun Shavuot activity this week was the initial work on the creation of our own Torah! On Tuesday, we used Hebrew letter cookie cutters to do some printing on a large piece of butcher paper. On Friday, we will work together to turn our work into a scroll, like the real Torah.

We have also begun learning about the Ten Commandments this week. On Thursday, we read No Rules for Michael, by Sylvia A. Rouss. This book tells the story of a boy learning about the Ten Commandments at school. When the teacher in the book makes the connection between the Ten Commandments as rules for living and school rules, Michael announces that he wishes there were no rules at school. The teacher agrees to try a day with no rules, but Michael discovers that he is unable to get what he needs when there are no rules at school. We then discussed our own class rules, and the children drew and wrote about school rules that they know about. Many of the children thought about things that are prohibited, such as tackling, punching and saying bad words. We then discussed some of the rules about things that we should do at school, including being kind to friends, being a good listener and taking good care of our things.

In relation to our study of the Ten Commandments, we have been working with the number ten and building the children’s number sense in regards to numbers one through ten. Number sense is built gradually, and it is defined as a general understanding of numbers and operations in a way that is flexible enough to develop useful strategies for solving problems. For example, number sense indicates that children are able to relate a set of 7 objects with the spoken word seven, the written digit 7, and able to understand that a set of 5 objects and a set of 2 objects can be combined to yield 7 objects. Number sense is heavily emphasized in the new prekindergarten Mathematics curriculum in the new Common Core State Standards that are being adapted in Massachusetts as well as 46 other states.

One of the fun ways that we have built number sense this week is by working with our Snap-Cube builders and a seriating chart. This chart shows a picture of one Snap-Cube in the first column, followed by a picture of two Snap-Cubes in the second column, and then three in the third column, etc. A seriating chart allows the children to engage in hands-on work to discover that five is one more cube than four, but one less cube than six. In addition, the children are able to discover that the “two” Snap-Cube set and the “three” Snap-Cube set can be combined to create the “five” Snap-Cube set. Allowing children to make their own discoveries about quantity and addition is much more meaningful than memorization of addition facts because it builds understanding as well as problem-solving skills.

This week, we have had the pleasure of doing some collaboration with students in a Spanish class at the Meridian Academy, the independent high school that rents space from Temple Ohabei Shalom on the floor above the early childhood center. The high school students have been learning about language acquisition, and as part of their work, they have developed curriculum designed to teach the Owls simple vocabulary. This week, we worked with the first group of high school students as they implemented their curriculum. They used charades, art, movement, and games to teach the children vocabulary words including house (“casa”) and alien (“marciano”). They even read us a fun book about a boy visiting outer space, in which many of the new Spanish vocabulary words were used. This has been a delight for the Owls! It has been a rewarding social and emotional experience for them, as they have gotten to know and come to admire high school role models. They have also been intrigued by the Spanish vocabulary. Second language development supports young children in developing a broad and deep vocabulary, which is of integral importance in the children’s future reading skills. The Owls enjoyed teaching the high school students a little Hebrew when they thanked them by saying “Todah Rabah!” We will continue to work with the Meridian Academy students next week.

We're so excited to welcome a new friend, Ayden, to our class this week. The Owls have been so wonderful about showing Ayden all the fun things to do in our classroom and helping him learn our routine.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

So long worms...hello spring!

Dear Families,

This week, we concluded our study of worms by inviting the children to use multiple forms of expressions to convey their learning. First, at the art table, the children used a combination of drawing with explanations for their drawings to describe what they think and understand about worms. While drawing is fun for young children and builds fine motor skills, it is also an important means by which children can convey how they understand their world. In early childhood education, we value the expressive arts as unique languages by which children can communicate beyond and with their verbal abilities.

The children also engaged in some dictations with Morah Larissa on the computer. We use dictation in a variety of ways and for a variety of reasons in the classroom. This week, our intent was to assess what the children had learned about worms, and also to introduce ways that children might organize story-writing. Before beginning the dictation process, each child was asked to decide if they wanted to tell a real story that would convey information about worms (non-fiction) or a “make-believe” story from their imaginations (fiction). They were then encouraged to think of a beginning, middle and end of their writing.

We have spent much of this week engaged in a long-term collaborative art project inspired by a wonderful children’s book, Up Above and Down Below by Sue Redding. This book has beautiful, detailed pictures showing profiles of what is above and what is below ground in a variety of places and situations, including a city sidewalk with a subway underneath and a picnic in a playground with ant tunnels underneath. The children have been working on their own mural to show what they know about what is above ground and what it below ground. First we used tape on a large piece of brown paper to create tunnels, and then painted over it with brown paint. The next day, we did some brainstorming about animals that live above ground. The children thought about raccoons, rabbits, worms and ants. They then used a variety of materials to creatively make their own underground animals. On Thursday, we started to work on the above ground portion of our mural, covering a large piece of paper with green paint. On Friday, we again engaged in the creative process to make animals that live above ground. We spent the latter half of the week talking about spring, in relation to the upcoming spring holiday of Shavuot. We began by playing an “I Spy” game indoors at Morning Meeting on Wednesday, searching for signs of spring indoors. We found many, including short sleeved shirts and shorts on children, sunglasses in cubbies, and the sun shining through the windows.
Later in the morning, we went for a short walk to look for signs of spring outside. When we take walks at school, we walk around the block immediately surrounding Temple Ohabei Shalom, so that we can remain on sidewalks and avoid crossing streets. We also preview the children about safe walking before venturing out, and are sure to take our backpack of emergency supplies and a cell phone with us. Our walk this week was very successful, and we discovered that we were able to notice signs of spring with many of our senses! We felt the warm sun on our skin, and smelled flowers and freshly-cut lawns. We saw flowers, sunshine, and people playing outside, and we heard birds chirping. Later, we came inside and recorded our observations through group discussion, drawing and dictation.

On Friday, the children made a paper chain to count down the days until Shavuot. Using a paper chain for a countdown not only supports children in building counting skills and number sense, but also makes time more concrete for them. Young children are not able to understand time concepts such as “five more minutes” or “next week.” Making concrete symbols of time passing supports them in being able to know when things will happen. This can be a helpful strategy when talking with children about upcoming changes as we transition to summer schedules and plans.

We have also begun to talk about how dairy products are traditionally eaten on Shavuot. On Thursday, we turned heavy cream into butter. No need for a mixer with a class of energetic four- and five-year-olds around! We shook the cream into whipped cream, and then shook it even more, until it turned into butter. We tasted some at lunch time on mini-bagels, and it was a big hit. Later, we read a book about how milk is turned into ice cream: From Cow to Ice Cream, by Bertram T. Knight. One literacy skill that has been a focal point this week is phonological awareness. Before they can become readers, children need both phonemic awareness (the awareness of the sounds in spoken language) and phonological awareness (the awareness that particular letters make particular sounds). We played a version of “I Spy” relying on phonological and phonemic awareness. Morah Larissa gave the children a clue, “I spy with my little eye, something that starts with the /T/ sound, with the letter T,” and then the children guessed the answer. We have some great guessers! This can be a fun game to play at home too, or while waiting in the car during a long drive or at a restaurant. We also enjoy using magnetic letters for a similar game, in which a song is sung asking children to find the magnetic letter that makes a particular sound.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Have you heard about our newest friends?

Dear Families,

Have you heard about Zara, Luis, Alice, Caillou, Tosie, Curious George, Morris, All Different Colors, and Shiny? They are our new class worms! Originally purchased as fish bait, they are currently living in a clear recycled plastic container in the Owls Classroom. We will keep them in the classroom for a couple of weeks before releasing them into our garden. Each day, we take out individual worms to place on moist paper towels on trays for the children. The children are invited to watch the worms move, to look at them under magnifying glasses, and to touch them with or without gloves on.

Bringing worms into the classroom is a joyful opportunity for young children to gain hands-on experience with nature, and to develop a comfort with and respect for even the smallest and least attractive of life forms. We have spent a lot of time talking about how to humanely handle and treat the worms, keeping in mind the Jewish value of Tza’ar Ba’alei Chayim, or kindness to animals. We’ve also discussed how worms help humans and other life forms by aerating and fertilizing soil. The children have truly learned to value earthworms.

We did unfortunately experience the death of a worm (Rosie) this week, as a child was playing with it. To support the children in their growing understandings and feelings regarding death, we emulated a popular children’s book about the death of a pet, The Ten Good Things About Barney, by Judith Viorst by each talking about the good qualities of Rosie before disposing of her body. We then discussed the Jewish tradition of naming a baby after someone who has died, and thus decided to name the replacement worm Tosie, after Rosie.

We have conducted a couple of simple science experiments involving the worms this week. First, we made some predictions about whether or not the worms would prefer light or darkness. The children thought the worms might prefer the light. Next we placed a few worms on a tray, half-covered by a sheet of dark paper. Then we shone a flashlight over the worms, and noticed that they slowly began to slither underneath the sheet of paper. Later, while reading a non-fiction book, Wiggling Worms at Work (by Wendy Pfeffer), we learned that worms prefer the darkness because they most able to breath in dark, moist conditions.

We have also experimented with feeding the worms scraps from our snacks and lunch, including apple peels, sweet potato peels, and bits of a pancake. The children are anxious to see if the worms will eat the food, but we have learned that they can only eat food once it has started to decompose.

We have also played some fun games involving worms this week. A fun rainy day game (and we’ve had quite a few rainy days!) has been Worm, Worm, Snail, our latest version of the ever popular Duck, Duck, Goose. The children have tried slithering after each other around the circle instead of running. This supports their growing core strength (the strength of their abdominal and back muscles, necessary to sit up and remain balanced). We’ve also played a game using different colored pieces of yarn, or “baby worms.” The children have used tweezers to move the baby worms to egg cartons labeled with corresponding colors in various patterns. This game supports the children in developing strength in their hand muscles through use of the tweezers (necessary for writing) as well as color matching and in understanding and being able to extend patterns.We enjoyed a guest reader from the Temple Ohabei Shalom Sisterhood, Amy Holzid Plancon, this Thursday. She read the children an old favorite, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, by Virginia Lee Burton. This was a wonderful opportunity for the children to come to know the synagogue membership betterA literacy skill that we have focused on this week is phonemic awareness, or the awareness of the sounds in language. We reinforce phonemic awareness throughout the day, even during transitions, when children are asked to line up when the first sound of their name is called. Rhyming games and songs and nonsense poetry are also fun ways to reinforce phonemic awareness. We also enjoy supporting the children in noticing alliteration in the world around them. We have begun to model listening for beginning and ending sounds in a word as well. Phonemic awareness is a crucial skill to the children’s future reading abilities.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Happy Yom HaAtzma'ut!

Dear Families,

This week, the Owls have studied Israel in observance of Yom HaAtzma’ut, Israeli Independence Day. We began the unit by once again using a Word Web. As the children have grown in their understanding, we have begun to use a Word Web not just to record ideas, but to talk about connections between ideas. Visual Word Webs support young children in developing executive functioning skills, or the ability to think about and organize their thinking. Organized thinking is crucial to children’s future success as learners in all academic areas.

We have enjoyed experimenting with blue and white this week, the colors of the Israeli flag. We created collages with blue and white pieces of paper, sponge painted with blue paint (using sponges shaped like Hebrew letters), and even used blue and white finger paint. Exploring color supports children in learning to love art and to understand how color can convey mood and emotion in art.

We enjoyed looking at some real images of various terrain in Israel, and Morah Kate talked to the children about how almost every single kind of climate can be found in Israel! We also looked at a map of the world, and found the United States and Israel on it. The children noticed that there was an ocean in between the two countries. They inferred that you can only get there by taking in airplane or a boat, but decided that an airplane would be a faster way to get there. We also enjoyed looking at a map of Israel itself, and finding some of the cities we learned about this week, including Haifa.

Haifa is of special importance to us because it is a Sister City to Boston. Through Morah Rhona’s participation in the Boston Haifa Connection, we are lucky to have preschool-aged pen pals in Haifa. This week, we drew pictures for them and dictated some writing about our school. We also reviewed the book of pictures that they sent us for Purim. The children were fascinated to discover that their pen pals in Haifa like to draw some of the same things as them, including rainbows and houses.

We have been exploring music as well, revisiting a familiar favorite folksong about a train, Hinei Rakevet. In addition, we have been learning Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem. The children learned about how we stand respectfully when we sing a national anthem.

We have also discussed some of the foods grown in Israel. On Tuesday, we made our own fresh-squeezed orange juice. The children worked hard to each squeeze their own oranges. This was a fun way to incorporate emphasis on building hand strength, which is crucial in preparing the children to be physically able to write. First we squeezed out the oranges, and then we used a juicer to get the remaining juice. The children remarked that the juice tasted even “gooder” than the juice at Trader Joe’s! On Thursday, we tasted three Israeli fruits: dates, olives, and oranges. The children used a graph to record their favorite fruit. They have become well adept at interpreting the data of a graph, and often root for their choice to “win,” or have the most votes. The dates were most popular, followed by the oranges.

Hebrew letters surrounded us this week, as we took out Israeli matching games and puzzles. We also used stencils and stickers at the Writing Center. At the play-dough table, we used cookie cutters shaped like Hebrew letters.

We have especially focused on the Western Wall this year. We read a book, The Western Wall: and Other Jewish Holy Places, by Mandy Ross. The children learned that the Western Wall (or Kotel) is in Jerusalem, and that it is a part of the Holy Temple. They learned that people go there to pray. We painted some of our cardboard blocks, and built our own Western Wall in the hall. We then used dictation and drawing to record our own blessings. The children worked hard to ask and thank God for “big ideas” and “special things,” not just toys.

We have been working hard this week to support the children in having fun playing safely on the playground. We have begun to help the children in trying to think of games that do not involve chasing. While chasing games are naturally fun for children, they can quickly become a little too rough and tumble for a crowded school setting. This week, we used a “Social Story,” (or a teacher-made book discussing, in a positive framework, social and emotional expectations) to talk about some of the different things that the children can do on the playground. The children have thought about running races, playing soccer, hunting for insects, and making sandcastles instead of chasing each other.

As our afternoon group has grown in size, we have begun to have Rest Time in the Owls’ classroom, with a few friends joining us from the Bears’ Room. This allows the older children to have a shorter rest time. After 20-30 minutes on their mats, they are invited to clean up and choose a quiet spot to play.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Let There Be Light!

Dear Families,

This week we have continued our study of Shabbat by building a strong understanding of the story of Creation, which explains why we celebrate Shabbat and that on the seventh day of Creation, God rested and made that day holy, commanding us to rest as well. We have used a sequential set of images on the felt board to tell the story. The images make the story more concrete and accessible for young children. We have also been singing a fun song about each day of Creation, and what God made on that day. This has allowed the children not only to understand the story of Creation, but also to continue to build their sequencing skills. Sequencing is important to the children’s ability to organize themselves to carry out a plan independently, as well as to increase math skills and reading comprehension. At school, we often use sequencing to break down a task for the children to complete by saying, “First…then…and last…”

We have had fun combining our study of Creation with science activities this week. We have spent some time conducting an in depth study of each day. First, we began studying light (on the first day, God created light), and experimented carefully with flashlights at the Science Center. Next, we moved onto the second day, on which God separated water from the sky. We experimented with water at the Science Table, and borrowed a tornado tube from the Bears classroom. It was fun to watch the water moving down as we turned over the tornado tube.

During our study of the third day of creation, in which God separated land and water and created plants, we tried moving all of the water from one water table to another. We also used magnifying glasses to study plants, and drew our observations.

Next we studied the fourth day of Creation, on which God created the sun, moon, and stars. We put together a huge puzzle depicting outer space, and used paper towel tubes to make telescopes. At the Science Center, we looked at books about outer spaces, and were fascinated to see photos of black holes, supernovas, and different planets.

When we studied the fifth day of Creation (on which God created fish in the seas and birds in the sky), we used feathers and a variety of other art materials to make our own birds. During our study of the sixth day of Creation (on which God created animals and humans, we used non-fiction literature to study a wide variety of mammals, insects, and other animals.

We have also spent much time this week preparing for our Family Day Celebration Breakfast. We enjoyed practicing familiar songs that family members might know, writing a book about families, baking banana bread, creating checklists of things to show our visiting family members and making our guests beautiful paper flowers to welcome them to our classroom. We are so grateful to all of you who could join us, and those who thought of us from afar. It is wonderful to have you all in our “Owl” family!

This week, we have continued to support the children in becoming more independent in negotiating and solving problems with each other. As the children become more able to resolve their own conflicts, we use the strategy of “mini-meetings” more and more. When a disagreement arises between two or more friends, they join a teacher in a “mini-meeting.” Each child is asked to stop playing and to take a turn speaking about how they are feeling and what the problem is. They are then each asked to suggest a solution to the problem, and to ask each other for consent to that solution. It is wonderful to see the children moving beyond taking turns and sharing on command to this next step, in which they are able to take ownership over their own solutions to problems. This is a deeper level of teaching than coercing children into sharing or taking turns because it is the rule, and teaches them to do so because of how it affects their friend’s feelings.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Shabbat is Here!

Dear Families,

We have returned from the April Vacation week to begin a more in-depth study of Shabbat. We have spent some time engaging with some of the materials associated with Shabbat rituals, including candlesticks, a Kiddush cup and a challah cover. On Tuesday, we put them out on the art table for observational drawings. Observational drawings encourage children to engage in complex thinking about shape and scale, which provoke their growth not just in art but also in mathematics. They also support children in learning to slow down and carefully observe the world around them, a skill which many of us adults need to nurture as well! The children noticed the complex shape of the candlesticks when they slowed down to carefully look at them and tried to recreate them in two-dimensions. At school, we work hard to strike a balance between times when the children are invited to draw what interests them at the moment and times when they might engage in careful study of an object through observational drawing. Both experiences are valuable as they support growth and development in different areas.

The children also used verbal and written language to observe and describe aspects of Shabbat at Morning Meeting on Thursday. We turned off the lights and quietly looked again at our candlesticks, Kiddush cup and challah cover. The children took turns talking about their favorite objects or favorite parts of Shabbat, and used a word to describe them. Together, we built a poem with our words. This activity supported the children in thinking about language and building vocabulary, particularly in the area of adjectives, or “describing words.” At school, when we take the children’s dictations, we not only write their words, but also model how adults think about written language by doing a “think-aloud.” For example, when writing the word “beautiful,” Morah Larissa might say, “Beautiful…that starts with a /B/ sound. I should write the letter B, because that letter makes the /B/ sound.”

Our Shabbat Poem

Peaceful Shabbat,

Beautiful challah cover,

Beautiful challah,

Yummy yummy challah,

Funny songs,

Purple juice,

Thankful blessings.

Part of our study of Shabbat has included observing Havdalah in the classroom, which we do every week. Havdalah rituals separate Shabbat from the rest of the week; it is the way that we “say goodbye” to Shabbat. One of the children’s favorite parts of Havdalah is smelling the besamim, or spices, in the spice box. This week, at the Science Center, the children used their sense of touch, sight and smell to examine cloves and cinnamon sticks, the spices which are frequently used in the besamim box.

We have also spent some time this week counting out the coins in the tzedakah box. The children have worked hard to count the coins with one-to-one correspondence and sorted the coins by their various types. We have noticed the various sizes and colors of the coins and introduced the names of each coin. Parents are invited to send in coins with their children on Fridays to contribute to the tzedakah box. If any of you would prefer to keep a roll of pennies or other coins at school for us to distribute to the children weekly, please let Morah Kate or Morah Larissa know.

On Thursday, we enjoyed finding many of the places where we observe Shabbat and many of the things that we use on Shabbat throughout the synagogue. We used a checklist to go on a scavenger hunt. We found the bima in the chapel, a Kiddush cup, the Cantor’s office and many, many Stars of David.

We also made challah again! It was amazing how much the children remembered making challah in the winter. Repeated experiences baking challah at school give the children a deep and memorable experience that supports their joy in Shabbat and their understanding of this special day. Here is the challah recipe that we use at school, which is easy to do with young children as it occurs over two days. It yields about 16 small loaves of challah:

In a small bowl, mix:

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  2 packages of yeast – NOT fast rising


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  1 Tbs. sugar


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  ½ cup warm water


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  Let sit for 10 to 15 minutes

In a large bowl, mix:

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  1 cup sugar


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  ¾ cup oil


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  1 Tbs. salt


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  4 eggs

Next:

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  Add 1 ¼ cup hot water to a large bowl, then immediately add the yeast mixture. Gently mix together.


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  Mix in approximately 8 cups of flour – use as much as needed to make the dough not too sticky.


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  Dump onto a floured counter top and knead for 10 minutes, adding more flour if needed.


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  Place dough in a very large, clean, oiled bowl.


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  Tightly cover bowl and place in refrigerator overnight to rise.

The next day:

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  Take the bowl of challah dough out of the refrigerator and let sit for 30 minutes. Punch the dough down.


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  Dump challah out onto floured counter top and divide into 16 balls of dough.


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  To make a traditional challah, divide each abll into three sections, roll each section into a long snake and then braid the snakes. Use a little flour to prevent sticking.


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  Place each challah onto a greased cookie sheet and paint with egg whites.


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  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Alternatively, click here for the challah recipe that the children took home this past winter.

In our read-alouds this week, we have focused on the story of Creation in relation to why we celebrate Shabbat. We have read Creation, by Gerald McDermott as well as The Beautiful World that God Made by Rhonda Gowler Greene. Next week, we will focus further on developing a deep understanding of Creation.

We have also been working hard to teach the children appropriate and respectful behavior for Shabbat and other holiday celebrations both at school, and at the synagogue outside of school time. We have found that previewing the children, or talking with them about the expected behaviors, is particularly effective. We have also asked the children to think of some of their own rules for behavior during Shabbat. This has supported the children in feeling ownership over the rules and expectations.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Passover is Here!

Dear Families,

It was a delight to welcome our newest friend, Cindy Huang, to our class this week. The children have all been very excited to help her acclimate to our classroom environment. It is with great joy that we observe the children’s growing sense of empathy and ability to understand what it is like for Cindy to be new. Many of them have begun to try to recall their own experiences with being new at our school.

One of the ways that we support children in building empathy at school is to do a lot of talking about what other children and adults might be thinking or feeling. The ability to understand and predict others’ emotions and thoughts is something that we take for granted as adults, but is exceptionally challenging to the cognitive development of four- and five-year-olds. At school we try to speak a lot about the perspectives and motives of others! For example, if a child is sad, we might say something like, “It looks like Joey is sad. Maybe he is missing his dad,” and then ask the children if they can think of a way to help.

The children have greatly enjoyed our final week of preparations for Passover. Thank you all so much for supporting the children in researching the questions that they wrote last week. They were all so excited and proud to share what they had learned with each other. Engaging in research (even simple research with the aid of a parent) supports children in beginning to feel confident in their ability to learn.

Late last week, we created a paper chain with the number of links corresponding to the number of days before Passover begins. Each day at Morning Meeting this week, we have removed a link from the chain. This supports the children’s counting and time-telling skills by making the passing of time more concrete.

We have engaged in several scientific explorations of parts of the Seder Plate this week. On Tuesday, we observed a few kinds of horseradish. The children each looked at and touched a fresh horseradish root. We made connections between the horseradish and the roots growing in the Root Viewer Planter that we use at the Science Center. The children all smelled some grated fresh horseradish, and noticed the deep purple color of horseradish jarred with beets. The children were then all invited to taste a tiny little bit of the fresh horseradish on a cracker, after Morah Larissa and Morah Kate determined that it was mild enough for a young child’s palette. A few of them tasted it, and some even liked it! We related the bitter taste of the horseradish to the bitter experience of the slaves in Egypt.

We also experimented with salt and water this week, as saltwater appears on the Seder Plate as a symbol of the Israelites’ tears. The children each started with a cup of salt and made predictions about what would happen when we added water. Many of them remembered the experiment that we did with baking soda and vinegar many months ago, during our study of bread. Some of them thus predicted that a mixture of salt and water with bubble and fizz, while others predicted that the salt would dissolve. We discovered that indeed, the salt did dissolve. We noticed that the saltwater was a little cloudier than regular water. The children then became curious about adding more salt. We did, and discovered that if we added too much salt, not all of it could dissolve in the water.

On Wednesday, we enjoyed another guest reader from the Temple Ohabei Shalom Sisterhood. The children loved meeting Margie Kahn. She read us two books about Passover, and we thanked her by singing one of our favorite songs, “Lotsa, Lotsa Matzah,” for her. We are so lucky to have volunteer readers in our school, as this helps to support the children in forming a deeper connection to the synagogue and its members.

On Thursday, we enjoyed spending the entire day with the Bears! It was great for the children to have an opportunity to engage in a larger group for the whole morning, as this provides them with more varied social opportunities. It is especially beneficial and enjoyable for the Owls to begin to serve as role models. We all enjoyed making homemade matzah together, which, to great surprise, many of the children enjoyed eating! This was a fun sensory experience, in which the children worked on fine motor skills by pushing the dough down with their hands, using a rolling pin and pricking it with a fork. The children also worked on sequencing skills.

We worked hard on decorating trays this week that the children can use for their four cups of wine (or grape juice!) traditionally used at a seder. The children used a tissue paper decoupage technique to carefully decorate their trays. We talked about how we drink four glasses of juice at a seder, and then asked the children if they could think other sets of four. Right away, the children made the connection the Four Questions asked by the youngest child at a seder. We also found many sets of four in the classroom – four legs at the Sand Table, four chairs at the Dramatic Play table, and four stools at the Snack Table. Being able to recognize a set of a number is an excellent way for children to build number sense (the understanding of what “four” is, for example). In the new Common Core Standards that will affect preschools not just in Massachusetts but in most states, there is a heavy math emphasis on building number sense in preschool. You can support this skill with children by looking for sets of a particular number in your home and as you go about your errands each day.

We wish you all the best for the vacation week and look forward to seeing you on April 26 when school resumes. Chag Sameach!

-Morah Larissa and Morah Kate

Passover Plays, Puppets and Ponderings

Dear Families,

We are enjoying our second week of study involving Passover. This week, we have reviewed and deepened our understanding of the story of Exodus. We have also begun to study some of the symbols of the story that are present on the Seder plate.

The children continue to enjoy “doing a play” of the story of Passover while Morah Larissa reads a book to narrate. This has nurtured and deepened their comprehension of the story. They enjoy taking turns being Moses, his sister Miriam, his mother Jocheved, the Pharaoh, etc. We pretend that the entire classroom is Egypt, creating the Nile River, the Red Sea, and even the mountains to where Moses was exiled by the Pharaoh.

Our deep understanding of the story of Passover has enabled the children to work on re-telling it themselves. We are working hard to record their words to create our own Haggadah, the book used at a Passover seder. The children have had the opportunity to look at several kinds of Haggadot. The children take turns telling parts of the story, and each part is recorded on a small strip of paper. Using smaller strips of paper allowed us to work hard on sequencing the story. This is especially appropriate considering that the word Seder translates to order, or sequence, in Hebrew. Learning to tell a story in the correct sequence is important to children’s literacy and language development, as well as in building organizational skills necessary to continue learning later in life. The children will bring home a class Haggadah next week, complete with their own illustrations.

Our dollhouse is now completely transformed into Pharaoh’s palace. The people that we use in the block corner are in the middle of their own transformation, as the Owls have been using fabric and pipe cleaners to create costumes for them so that we can pretend that they are the Israelites. The children delight in opportunities to use a variety of recycled and other art materials creatively. Besides being enjoyable, such opportunities nurture creative thinking, problem solving, and invite children to express their knowledge and ideas in a variety of ways. We are looking forward to using the decorated dollhouse and decorated people with the “Baby Moses” dolls that we made last week to re-tell the story using small props.

We have also begun to create puppets this week, representing Miriam, Moses, and even Pharaoh. The children spontaneously performed their own puppet show of the Passover story on Wednesday morning. It was impressive to discover how much they remembered!

On Tuesday, we learned about the word symbol, and explained that a symbol is a picture or an object that tells us something. We went on a symbol hunt in our classroom. We found symbols everyplace! There are symbols on the toy road signs in the block corner, on the recycling bin, and even on children’s clothes. Next, we read a book about the various symbols present on a Seder plate: Passover: Celebrating Then, Remember Now.

One of the symbols that we have focused on this week is charoset, or the mixture of apples, wine and nuts that represents the mortar used by the Israelites to build cities during slavery. We made our own charoset using apples, raisins, cinnamon and grape juice. It looked sticky just like the paper maché we were pretending was mortar last week when we created our pyramid! The children tasted the charoset with crackers for snack on Wednesday, and greatly enjoyed the treat.

We have also begun to enjoy some Passover music. A new favorite is “Lotsa, Lotsa Matzah,” about the many foods present at the Passover Seder. We have also enjoyed singing “Frogs Here, Frogs There,” about one of the plagues. Later in the week, we began learning the Four Questions as a song, which are usually asked by the youngest Jewish child at a Seder.

Asking questions and understanding the story of Passover are central values to the celebration of Passover. In honor of this value, and in support of the children’s increasing ability to ask questions and drive their own learning, each child was invited to write a question to take home on Thursday as “homework.” Please help your child to find an answer to their question via books or internet research. We encourage you to not directly give your child the answer, but to give them the tools to find the answer. The children can dictate their answer on the paper that they took home and bring it to school on Tuesday morning. We are looking forward to finding out what they learn!

Shabbat Shalom, Morah Larissa and Morah Kate