We have been having a fantastic time celebrating the month of love here in Room 3. On Valentine’s Day and the Wednesday after, we made scrumptious heart shaped French Toast with Strawberry Jam, Yum! We would like to give a special thank you to Amelie’s Mom and Dad for coming in to cook with us on Wednesday. In addition to our cooking project, we also decorated Valentine treat bags to collect our Valentine’s Day loot. Thank you to everyone who gave so generously, the kids loved all their special Valentines. We still have two weeks left in our month long celebration of love and we look forward to seeing what comes next.

If we had to use one word to describe the children of Room 1 it would be: CREATIVES! We have grown and continue to grow in our ability to create things. In September, when we first put markers in these little hands we saw LOTS of the early stages of emergent writing (random marks and scribbles, sometimes not even on paper… YIKES!). It is an incredible process we get to help children through! And as Early Childhood Educators, we always remember how important every stage is to the process of becoming a proficient writer.   Now it’s February and we see each child making leaps and strides toward becoming great writers through representational drawing, drawing distinct from writing, symbols, and partial phonetics. It is so exciting!

Our Writing Center features a variety of materials such as: markers, crayons, letter stamps, number stamps, letter punches, word cards, white boards, glue, scissors, and our favorite this year…TAPE!

In January, we said goodbye to plain white paper at small groups and now we journal on lined kindergarten paper!

Cards, lists, and books are just a few of our favorite things to create.

We enjoy white boards for a different tactile writing experience, especially on those days we don’t fall asleep at nap time!

Imagination, here in Room 1, is never in short supply. Check out some of our more elaborate pieces…

“And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the gifted artisans, that they may make all that I have commanded…” Exodus 31:1-4

Just as God called the artisans to create a place for His presence, we pray our little ones use their time and gifts to fellowship with the most spectacular creator, Father God! The One who deposits all of these gifts and skills into us for His glory, and as a reflection of Himself.

We are THRILLED to welcome back Ms. Daisy!!😍                                         

Room 2 has their Lead Teacher back in the classroom, and the crew is all back together again! We are so thankful for God’s faithfulness throughout Ms. Daisy’s time away. Now she is back and feeling healthy and strong! We celebrate this victory of health and wellness in her life, and we want to thank all the parents who prayed with us and who were so loving and intentional toward Ms. Daisy, especially with providing meals. That was such a kind and loving way to show your support, and we are so thankful! May God bless you over and over for honoring Him through that gesture.🍴💕Last week, Room 2 started Unit 6 in our curriculum: The  Nightingale. The Nightingale tells the story of an emperor who loved a nightingale’s music so much, that he had his people capture it and keep it in a gold cage. Our classroom friends love the new story! Aside from learning from a new story, our friends also had the opportunity to intentionally practice their writing skills using dry-erase boards and trays of salt! How cool is that? Take a look!🖍

Room 2 friends did so well as they practiced recognizing and memorizing their letters. We are so proud of them–it is always an accomplishment!☺️

As we do each week, we headed over to Chapel to worship Jesus with the big kids on Wednesday!🎶

Lastly, we want to share about something really important in Room 2 these days. We’ve been focusing on the topic of kindness, and what that means. What does it mean to be kind? What does it mean to treat friends and loved ones with kindness? Here in Room 2, we are doing our very best to teach our friends about God’s heart for people, and how Jesus teaches us to love one another and show kindness. Friends are quick to respond with examples of how to be kind. One friend shared that it is kind  to share toys in Room 2, while another friend said it’s kind to help friends if they get hurt, or help them to put away beds after nap time. We as teachers will continue to encourage this discussion, as well as practice it as much as possible. We believe that even at such a young age, friends can continue to thrive as they learn about kindness, and how that is God’s heart for us and His desire for one another. We are one body and family in Christ, and as we learn, grow, play, and pray together as a classroom each day, God’s love and kindness for us is something that we hope to instill in Room 2’s heart. We invite you to join us by talking about kindness at home, as we continue to grow in this area.❤ Ephesians 4:32

As we start the week with a little bit of rain ☔️ we hope that you are filled again with wonder at the goodness and faithfulness of such a loving God. All His promises are Yes and Amen. We pray that you are strengthened, encouraged, inspired, and filled again as you go about your week. May we be so filled that we overflow with the truths of God’s heart for us and His heart for each other. Blessings!💛

-Miss Wendy

P. S. As always, a few candids! Enjoy.😁

Last week Room 5 had a rockin’ hot cocoa bar with our morning snack and got a yummy lesson in applied math and graphing at the same time! One by one everyone came up to customize their own hot cocoa cup, and afterwards we voted on our favorite topping. We learned new vocabulary, made scientific observations about which items melted and at what speed (marshmallows take longer to melt than whipped cream!), and each friend cast their vote for favorite topping on our bar graph! Whipped cream and chocolate syrup tied for first place with marshmallows just one vote behind. This might be one of our favorite ways to introduce graphing to preschoolers. What do you think? 

Welcome back, Room 2 friends!☃️❤😁

We are so excited to be back in the flow of things here in Room 2! We say Yes and Amen to the New Year,  and to the many promises God has for us this next season! There has been so much outpouring of God’s goodness in our classroom since we came back from the Christmas break. It’s so beautiful to be back together pursuing God’s heart for our Room 2 friends, as we prepare to equip them well for academic success and set them on the path to thrive! 

We’ve gotten back into the flow of our Languange and Literacy curriculum, and we are so proud to report that it has been a smooth transition.😊 We are currently learning from Unit 5,  “Jingles, Poems, and Rhymes.” This unit teaches friends about rhythm and about the patterns that we hear in poems, like when words rhyme. Room 2 is really enjoying learning the fun structures of poetry! 

We had tons of rain since getting back, which we receive with open hearts!☔️ Rain is such a tangible reminder of God’s faithfulness and provision for us and our land. We celebrate the rain! But it was also nice to finally get back outside this week! Friends finally got to go to the big field this week and practice their motor skills. We played a huge game of “Simon Says!” and had a great time being out in the sun.🌞

We also went to chapel! So thankful to get back to worship Jesus together with “the big kids!”

We are so thankful for God’s faithfulness and timing for our Room 2 friends. Our Bible verse for the month of January is, “There is a time for everything…” Eclessiates 3:1 

We are excited to continue to thrive and succeed, with God’s hand guiding us. Lastly, we want to wish you a happy 2017, and thank you so much for the support and encouragement that parents provide teachers and students. You are a gift, and we are deeply thankful. We are so excited to keep partnering together with you in 2017. Blessings, and see you back here next week!❤

-Miss Wendy

P.S. Praise! Ms. Daisy is doing super well after her surgery! She is recovering and is due back soon! Amen!💜

Extra📸: Enjoy!