Another busy week at Sunnybrook! We continued our discussion on family and community. The children considered the types of places they see in their community. Some thoughts were: schools, stores, the library, the post office, the fire station and churches. On Thursday we embarked on our first outing to the library! The children enjoyed story time and got a lesson on the proper treatment of books. Then they participated in a special project and got to check out some of the fun activities in the children's library section.
We continued our science experiments this week by testing objects to see if they were magnetic or not. Our Friday group did a measuring activity where we learned how to measure in inches and that 12 inches=a foot.
Some of the more exciting news of the week-the art easel is back! It must have been greatly missed because the children have been busy creating beautiful art work. I hope the paint stains are washing out of the clothes. The art smocks only do so much...
We checked out some nature sounds at music/movement time and did a little yoga and stretching.
It's "Take a Child Outside" week! Read more about it here: www.takeachildoutside.org
Sunnybrook Montessori School is an independent preschool (ages 3-7) in Lancaster, NH. For over thirty years Sunnybrook has been a vibrant community for children and their families. www.sunnybrookmontessori.org
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
9/18/09
I guess it really is time to say goodbye to summer weather. The children (bundled in fleece jackets and sweaters) enjoyed playing out in the September sunshine and autumn air this week. Inside the classroom we were quite the scientists. With help from a science project book we talked about tightrope walkers at the circus and the center of gravity. Our experiment consisted of having our Sunnybrook friends stand with their backs against a wall and then lean over to pick up an object. They discovered that it was impossible to do so without falling over. We then tried it in open space and it was much easier. We concluded that your center of gravity really is necessary to pick an object up off the floor...or to be a circus performer.
The beautiful food coloring paintings you may have seen were the results of a science discussion/experiment about air turned art project. They really did come out nicely.
Our Friday students did an experiment in which we tested different objects to see if they sank or floated in water. We hypothesized which objects would float and which would sink. Most of the time we were right but there were a few surprises (the plastic glove floated but the plastic cheetah did not). We also got out the microscope and viewed a few slides. Very interesting and hopefully an activity we will repeat with different slides in the near future.
We enjoyed the "Dinothesaurus" book which has some great poems and facts about Dinosaurs. We heard about some of our favorites (Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops) and learned about some new ones. We also tried hard to pronounce Micropachycephalosaurus.
Our community and family theme lead us to talk about different jobs and people in a community such as, the librarian, the postal worker, the fireman, the doctor, etc. We even have a great song about the people in the community (sung to the 'Wheels on the Bus' tune).
We've had some colorful music activities this week with the movement scarves and Hap Palmer's color song. The children have also enjoyed singing and moving to 'London Bridge' (and eagerly wait to get '"locked up" by the bridge) and the kangaroo song.
The beautiful food coloring paintings you may have seen were the results of a science discussion/experiment about air turned art project. They really did come out nicely.
Our Friday students did an experiment in which we tested different objects to see if they sank or floated in water. We hypothesized which objects would float and which would sink. Most of the time we were right but there were a few surprises (the plastic glove floated but the plastic cheetah did not). We also got out the microscope and viewed a few slides. Very interesting and hopefully an activity we will repeat with different slides in the near future.
We enjoyed the "Dinothesaurus" book which has some great poems and facts about Dinosaurs. We heard about some of our favorites (Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops) and learned about some new ones. We also tried hard to pronounce Micropachycephalosaurus.
Our community and family theme lead us to talk about different jobs and people in a community such as, the librarian, the postal worker, the fireman, the doctor, etc. We even have a great song about the people in the community (sung to the 'Wheels on the Bus' tune).
We've had some colorful music activities this week with the movement scarves and Hap Palmer's color song. The children have also enjoyed singing and moving to 'London Bridge' (and eagerly wait to get '"locked up" by the bridge) and the kangaroo song.
Friday, September 11, 2009
First week of school!
It has been a busy first week at Sunnybrook. The returning children eased back into their routine and the new students had a great time exploring their new classroom and materials. This week we started our first theme of "Families and Community". We listened to a Spanish song about 'la familia' and talked about our own family members.
Some of the older children have been enjoying an activity called "popcorn words". They pick a "kernel" (scrunched up paper with word written on it) out of the basket and practice reading and writing the word with a small group. It's been fun reading and writing but I think the real enjoyment comes from making the popcorn popping noises.
One of our students shared a great book about the moon, planets and stars. We learned some interesting facts and enjoyed dramatizing the solar system. We had the Earth, the Sun and the moon and the other children took turns being far away and nearby planets.
We had a great discussion at circle about how the Earth is made up of dirt, water and air. We had a surprise visitor when we were investigating the dirt cup- a worm! After the children said hello we returned him to his outside home.
We've also been busy making many art projects. Come on in and peek at our apple tree! The play yard has been a busy place with our new jump ropes, sand, balls and an imaginary game of "picnic with T-Rex". Great first week!
Some of the older children have been enjoying an activity called "popcorn words". They pick a "kernel" (scrunched up paper with word written on it) out of the basket and practice reading and writing the word with a small group. It's been fun reading and writing but I think the real enjoyment comes from making the popcorn popping noises.
One of our students shared a great book about the moon, planets and stars. We learned some interesting facts and enjoyed dramatizing the solar system. We had the Earth, the Sun and the moon and the other children took turns being far away and nearby planets.
We had a great discussion at circle about how the Earth is made up of dirt, water and air. We had a surprise visitor when we were investigating the dirt cup- a worm! After the children said hello we returned him to his outside home.
We've also been busy making many art projects. Come on in and peek at our apple tree! The play yard has been a busy place with our new jump ropes, sand, balls and an imaginary game of "picnic with T-Rex". Great first week!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Back to school
Welcome to the new blog for Sunnybrook Montessori. The blog will be updated weekly to give families and friends a glimpse into the classroom and keep you updated on the activities, themes, stories, songs etc. the children explore throughout the year.
So glad to see so many of you at the Welcome Back picnic and cleaning night. Your support is really appreciated.
Enjoy your Labor Day weekend and we will see you Tuesday morning!
So glad to see so many of you at the Welcome Back picnic and cleaning night. Your support is really appreciated.
Enjoy your Labor Day weekend and we will see you Tuesday morning!
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