What an amazing week we have had here at school. We started the week by celebrating Hannah’s birthday. The children sang songs for her and presented her with drawings they had made for her. We ate cupcakes and celebrated all day long. The children also cut fruits to make a fruit salad in celebration of the special day. Throughout our week, we continued our conversations regarding the holiday of Tu BiSh’vat. We delved deeper into the physical aspects of a tree, the meaning of the holiday, the importance of nature within our lives and how we interact and can protect our environment daily. We read the book, “A Tree Named Steve,” and discussed all the amazing ways in which the tree became a part of the family and how Steve, the tree, helped and interacted with the family in all aspects of their lives. As we thought about what else to create with the wonderful natural materials that we collected on our nature walk last week, we remembered a child pointing out that within our shadows, we do not see our faces. So, we thought we would take a closer look at our shadows and our faces. We began by studying together our faces within small mirrors. Samuel noticed his tongue, while Olivia saw her mouth and Dylan saw his eyes. The children used the materials from our nature walk, leaves of different shape, small sticks, flower buds, as well as reused cork circles and wooden beads, to create what they saw within the mirrors. We have faces with hair, eyebrows, eyes, checks, noses, mouths, and chins all created with these materials. The children enjoyed and worked very hard looking in the mirror and deciding what materials to use to represent their facial features. While playing outside, the children noticed a special spot where they could see their shadows. We decided to take out some paper and markers to see what their shadows might look like when traced onto a piece of paper! It was hard to stand still long enough, especially when one friend was tracing another, however, it was so exciting to see the outcome. You can come “see” our shadows hanging on the outside of our Light Room and our Nature Faces displayed within the classroom. With all this talk about shadows, it happened to be the perfect time to celebrate Groundhog Day! On February 2, we learned all about Punxsutawney Phil, the very special groundhog, living in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, who tells us if we will have six more weeks of winter or an early spring, based on whether he saw his shadow! The children thought this was a very silly way to tell the weather. We took a vote to see if we thought he would see his shadow or not, and then we were even able to watch a few minutes of the ceremony that took place in Punxsutawney! The class watched as the very large groundhog was taken out of his den and placed on top of his stump. We waited in excitement and finally they announced that Phil saw his shadow and that, this year, we will have six more weeks of winter! This week, during snack time, we introduced pitchers of water. The children had the opportunity to pour their own cups of water (while still using their water bottles at lunch time and throughout the day). This important self-help skill builds motor control and eye-hand coordination. Throughout the rest of the week, we had the joy of celebrating Olivia’s birthday with her family! We heard a fantastic story from Rabbi Josh about the importance and meaning of being sweet on the inside, just like a maple tree. We sang and played instruments with Andrew, our music teacher. And we ended our week by celebrating a beautiful Shabbat with Skyler and her family. Shabbat Shalom, Your Room 13 Teachers Reminders: *Please remember to sign your child in and out, with a legible signature, EVERY day. If you have a high-lighted section, it means we need your signature or time in that space, as well as your normal spot for the day. *We continue to begin our circle at 9:20 AM. Please do your best to arrive before then. *February 6th – February 10th – Father’s and Grandfather’s Week Monday, the 6th- 9:15-10:00 - school wide Havdalah service in the Sanctuary Tuesday, the 7th- 9:30-10:30 – our class Tu BiSh’vat Seder Wednesday, the 8th- 9:30-10:00 - story time in the classroom Friday, the 10th- 9:00 – 10:00 – challah baking and circle time 10:00 – 11:00 – Father’s and Grandfather’s Day Brunch 11:00 – 11:45 – Father’s and Grandfather’s Day Shabbat
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