Week of June 19, 2023

Weekly Reminders

-No afterschool program this week

-Friday, June 23, 2023 is the last day of school, dismissal at 11:45

                                                              

Dear PreK-4 Families,

I cannot believe this year is almost over. I am so inspired by all of you.

This past year we have grown, played, sang, laughed, and learned so much from one another. We have created lifelong memories throughout this year in our amazing classroom and throughout the school. We have all made great friends throughout our journey.

I enjoyed being a part of all of you and will take all our treasured moments with me. I will miss you, have an amazing summer.

 

Week of June 12, 2023 

WEEKLY REMINDERS

 

·      Thursday, June 15, 2023, Pre-k Father’s Day Celebration through Zoom At 10:00Am 

·      June 15th last day of After School Program

·      June 23rd Last Day of school, dismissal at 11:45am 

 

Always make sure to read the OLQM School Blog for additional information, located HERE! 

If you have any questions or concerns, you can email me at MrsHernandez@olqmnyc.org I will do my best to answer at the end of the day.

  

Unit Topic:  Babies

Essential Question for the Unit:

What are babies?

 

Focus Questions for this Week:

What do human babies need?

 

Focused Learning Activity for this Week

Pediatrician’s Office

The teacher will invite children to turn the Dramatic Play area into a pediatrician’s office.   The teacher will supply baby dolls and instruments for the children to use to take care of babies such as scales and measuring tapes, as well as writing utensils for children to take notes about the babies, schedule appointments, etc.  The teacher will use the term pediatrician and other related words such as appointment, infant, height, and weight throughout the experience to help children learn these vocabulary words.

 

Pre-K Common Core Learning Standard Addressed:

PK. ARTS.13. [TH: Pr4-6.PK] Performs Theatrical Arts

 

Foundational text for the week:

Babies Don’t Walk, They Ride! by Kathy Henderson Link to the foundational text HERE! 

Questions that will be asked throughout the week related to the foundational text:

Level 1: Recall

What are some of the ways babies ride?

Where did the babies in this book go?

 

Level 2: Skill/Concept

What does glide mean?

How can babies glide?

 

Level 3: Strategic Thinking

Why don’t babies walk or run?

How do buggies, strollers, backpacks, slings, and car seats, help grown-ups care for babies?

 

Level 4: Extended Thinking

The book says that sometimes babies smile. What might make babies smile? What makes you smile?

The book says that sometimes babies scowl and howl. What do scowls and howls look like? What do they sound like? What are some things that make you scowl and howl?

When you feel like scowling and howling, what are some things you can do to help you feel better?

 

Lessons and Activities for the Week:

Blocks-Students will be invited to use blocks to create a nursery. 

Dramatic Play - The teacher will invite children to turn the Dramatic Play area into a pediatrician’s office.

Art-Students are invited to create their own baby portraits with a variety of art materials.

Science-Students will be able to play a matching game, matching the adult animal to its offspring.

Math- Cutouts of babies of various lengths will be added to the math center.  Students will be able to measure each baby and tell which is the longest and shortest.

Library- Students are invited to read books about our theme, babies.

Writing-Cards will be supplied with pictures of animal babies as well as their names. They will be placed in a bin for children to reference as they create their own animal baby book.

Sensory-Students will be able to give babies a bath with their own containers and consider why babies need help to wash or take a bath.

If there are any questions regarding the Pre-K for All program that cannot be answered by the office or classroom teacher, please feel free to contact the Help Line at 888-227-8175

 Week of June 5, 2023

WEEKLY REMINDERS 

·      Thursday, June 8, 2023 – Pre-k for all closed for professional development 

·      Friday, June 9, 2023 - School Closed all grades and all classes.

·      Thursdays, June 15, 2023, Pre-k Father’s Day Celebration by Zoom At 10:00Am 

·      June 15th last day of After School Program

·      June 23rd Last Day of school dismissal at 11:00am 

Always make sure to read the OLQM School Blog for additional information, located HERE!

 

If you have any questions or concerns, you can email me at MrsHernandez@olqmnyc.org I will do my best to answer at the end of the day.

 

Unit Topic: Plants

Essential Question for the Unit:

How do plants grow and why are they important? 

Focus Questions for this Week: 

Why are plants important?  

  

            Focused Learning Activity for this Week            

Plant Taste Test 

The teachers will talk with the children about where food comes from and why it is important for their bodies. Highlight plant-based foods and parts of plants that people commonly eat. The teachers will then supply a variety of plants for children to sample and talk about their favorite and their least favorite.

 

Pre-K Common Core Learning Standard Addressed:

PK.SCI.4. [P-LS1-1.] Observes familiar plants and animals (including humans) and describe what they need to survive

 

Foundational text for the week:

The link for the read-aloud of this week’s foundational text, Rah, Rah, Radishes: A Vegetable Chant by April Pulley Sayre HERE!

 

Questions that will be asked throughout the week related to the foundational text:

Level 1: Recall

What are some of the vegetables in this book? Who gets a “thank you” in this book?

 

Level 2: Skill/Concept

There is a page in this book about sweet corn. It says to “shuck an ear.” What does it mean to “shuck an ear” when you are talking about sweet corn? This book suggests many different things we could do while we read. Let’s look and see if we can find and try some. Examples include Carrots are calling, take a bite! Broccoli, cauliflower, shout it out! Pile up peppers Celebrate celery, give a cheer! Root for rutabagas. Bounce for beets! Potatoes. Tomatoes. Yum a yam! Slice ‘em. Mash ‘em. Wham! Wham! Wham!

 

Level 3: Strategic Thinking

Have you ever had any of the vegetables in this book? What did you think? If you haven’t had any of these vegetables, which ones do you think you might want to try? Why?

What do you notice about the vegetables in this book? Why is it important to observe, or look carefully at something?

Level 4: Extended Thinking

This book is all about vegetables. Why do you think the author, April Pulley Sayre, might have wanted to write a book about vegetables? Vegetables can be different colors. We saw many of them in this book. Why do you think vegetables are different colors?

 

Lesson and activities for the week:

Blocks- Students will be invited to build a garden using blocks and materials added to the block center.

 

Pretend Play- The teacher will turn Dramatic Play into a flower shop by adding pretend flowers, containers, pictures of flower arrangements, a cash register, a notepad, writing utensils, etc. Children can pretend to make, buy, and sell floral arrangements. Vocabulary words such as bouquet, floral arrangement, florist, and flower will be highlighted.

 

Art- The teacher will supply pipe cleaners as well as tissue paper circles. Children can pierce the middle of the tissue paper circles with the pipe cleaner, adding as many as they would like, then fold the circles up to create a flower. After creating these flowers children can use them in the Dramatic Play flower shop.

 

Science- The teacher will provide individual pictures of the plant life cycle. Students will be asked to sequence the pictures. The teacher will provide pictures/diagrams for children to refer to as they discuss each stage in the life cycle.

 

Math- The teacher will cut out several paper watermelons, add a number to each one, and ask the children to put the appropriate number of seeds on each watermelon. Students are encouraged to write the corresponding number.

 

Library- Students are invited to read books about our theme, plants.

 

Writing- Students will write letters on a sheet of construction paper.  They can glue seeds onto the letter.  The teacher will talk with students about words that start with the letter.

 

Sensory- Students will be able to play with their own individual containers of play-doh.

If there are any questions regarding the Pre-K for All program that cannot be answered by the office or classroom teacher, please feel free to contact the Help Line at 888-227-8175

 

Week of May 30, 2023

WEEKLY REMINDERS

June 2, 2023- Friday, School Closed all grades and all classes 

June 15, 2023 -The last day of the Afterschool Program

June 23, 2023- Last Day of School, Dismissal at 11:00am

Always make sure to read the OLQM School Blog for additional information, located HERE

 

If you have any questions or concerns, you can email me at MrsHernandez@olqmnyc.org I will do my best to answer at the end of the day. 

Unit Topic: Plants

 

Essential Question for the Unit: 

How do plants grow and why are they important?

 

Focus Questions for this Week: 

What are some different kinds of plants?

Focused Learning Activity for this Week

Seed Patterns

The teacher will work with students in the math center.  The teacher will provide an assortment of seeds as well as a large leaf. Children will be invited to create a pattern with seeds on the leaf cutout. The teacher will explain that a pattern is made of a core unit that repeats (e.g., red, blue, and red, blue, and red, blue).

  

Pre-K Common Core Learning Standard Addressed: 

PK. MATH.8. [NY-PK.OA.2.] Duplicates and extends simple patterns using concrete objects (e.g., what comes next?)

  

Foundational text for the week: 

If You Plant a Seed by Kadir Nelson 

Link to the foundational text HERE

  

Questions that will be asked throughout the week related to the foundational text:

  

Level 1: Recall 

What types of seeds did the animals in this book plant?

What vegetables did the animals grow in the garden?

 

Level 2: Skill/Concept

What is a seed of selfishness?

How does a seed of selfishness grow?

What happens when a seed of selfishness grows?

  

Level 3: Strategic Thinking 

What are seeds of kindness? What seeds of kindness could we plant? If we grew seeds of kindness, how could we care for them?

  

Level 4: Extended Thinking

What is the difference between vegetable seeds and seeds of selfishness and kindness? Can you be a gardener? Why or why not? If you were going to grow a vegetable garden, what would you need? What would you do? If you were going to grow a kindness garden, what would you need? What would you do?

 

Lesson and activities for the week:

Blocks- Students will be invited to build a garden using blocks and materials added to the block center.

 

Pretend Play- The teacher will turn Dramatic Play into a flower shop by adding pretend flowers, containers, pictures of flower arrangements, a cash register, a notepad, writing utensils, etc. Children can pretend to make, buy, and sell floral arrangements. Vocabulary words such as bouquet, floral arrangement, florist, and flower will be highlighted.

  

Art- The teacher will supply pipe cleaners as well as tissue paper circles. Children can pierce the middle of the tissue paper circles with the pipe cleaner, adding as many as they would like, then fold the circles up to create a flower. After creating these flowers children can use them in the Dramatic Play flower shop.

  

Science- The teacher will provide individual pictures of the plant life cycle. Students will be asked to sequence the pictures. The teacher will provide pictures/diagrams for children to refer to as they discuss each stage in the life cycle.

  

Math- The teacher will cut out several paper watermelons, add a number to each one, and ask the children to put the appropriate number of seeds on each watermelon. Students are encouraged to write the corresponding number.

  

Library- Students are invited to read books about our theme, plants.

  

Writing- Students will write letters on a sheet of construction paper.  They can glue seeds onto the letter.  The teacher will talk with students about words that start with the letter.

  

Sensory- Students will be able to play with their own individual containers of play-doh.

  

If there are any questions regarding the Pre-K for All program that cannot be answered by the office or classroom teacher, please feel free to contact the Help Line at 888-227-8175

 

                   

Week of May 22, 2023

REMINDERS

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

May 25, 2023, Thursday at 10:00 AM - Prek-4 Moving up Ceremony!

May 26, 2023- Friday, School Closed all grades and all classes 

June 15, 2023 -The last day of the Afterschool Program

June 23, 2023- Last Day of School, Dismissal at 11:00am

Always make sure to read the OLQM School Blog for additional information, located HERE!

 

If you have any questions or concerns, you can email me at MrsHernandez@olqmnyc.org I will do my best to answer at the end of the day. 

Unit Topic: Plants

Essential Question for the Unit:

How do plants grow and why are they important?  

Focus Questions for this Week:

     What do plants need and where do we find them?  

 Focused Learning Activity for this Week

 

The Parts of a Flower

 The teacher will work with students in the writing center. She will discuss each part of a flower and talk about its importance. Students will be encouraged to use flowers, green and brown piper cleaner, and leaves to create and label their own flowers. 

 

Pre-K Common Core Learning Standard Addressed:

  PK.SCI.5 Plans and conducts investigations to determine how familiar plants and/or animals use their external parts to help them survive in the environment.

Foundational text for the week:

An Orange in January - by Diana Hutts Aston 

           Link to the foundational text  HERE! 

 

Questions that will be asked throughout the week related to the foundational text:

 

Level 1: Recall 

Where was the orange at the beginning of the book? Where was the orange at the end of the book? 

How did the orange get from the tree to the grocery store?

 

Level 2: Skill/Concept 

The book says, “The petals fell away and the orange began to grow into what it was meant to be.” What was the orange meant to be? How did the boy get the orange?

 

Level 3: Strategic Thinking 

The boy shared the orange. Why do you think he did that? 

How do you think the other children felt when he shared the orange with them?

 

Level 4: Extended Thinking 

The illustrator of this book, Julie Maren, used curly lines to show the wind. Why do you think she did that? How would you show wind in a picture? How did Julie Maren illustrate the sun? Why do you think she did that? How would you show the sun in a picture? How did Julie Maren illustrate the rain? Why do you think she did that? How would you show the rain in a picture? This book talks about how an orange grows and travels. How do you think other fruits grow and travel?

    

Lesson and activities for the week:

 

Blocks- Students will be invited to build a garden using blocks and materials added to the block center.

 

Pretend Play- The teacher will turn Dramatic Play into a flower shop by adding pretend flowers, containers, pictures of flower arrangements, a cash register, a notepad, writing utensils, etc. Children can pretend to make, buy, and sell floral arrangements. Vocabulary words such as bouquet, floral arrangement, florist, and flower will be highlighted.

 

Art- The teacher will supply pipe cleaners as well as tissue paper circles. Children can pierce the middle of the tissue paper circles with the pipe cleaner, adding as many as they would like, then fold the circles up to create a flower. After creating these flowers children can use them in the Dramatic Play flower shop.

 

Science- The teacher will provide individual pictures of the plant life cycle. Students will be asked to sequence the pictures. The teacher will provide pictures/diagrams for children to refer to as they discuss each stage in the life cycle. 

 

Math- The teacher will cut out several paper watermelons, add a number to each one, and ask the children to put the appropriate number of seeds on each watermelon. Students are encouraged to write the corresponding number.

 

Library- Students are invited to read books about our theme, plants.

 

Writing- Students will write letters on a sheet of construction paper.  They can glue seeds onto the letter.  The teacher will talk with students about words that start with the letter.

 

Sensory- Students will be able to play with their own individual containers of play-doh.

 

 If there are any questions regarding the Pre-K for All program that cannot be answered by the office or classroom teacher, please feel free to contact the Help Line at 888-227-8175