What a wonderful talent show!  We realize that any good performance takes time and a great amount of effort and flexibility.  Rest assured that this has not been wasted time, rather time well spent.  This is how St. James stands out from all the rest.  Some of our curriculum objectives that your child has learned through this experience are:  following limits and expectations, traveling skills, gross-motor skills, speaking clearly, following directions, attends and engages, and persists.  

They also gain a tremendous amount of self-confidence and self-control.  It’s not easy at the age of 4 and 5 to perform in front of an audience.  We think these children did a remarkable job. 

All of this would not have been possible without help from our parents, Mrs. Denise and her middle school helpers, and Coach Nicole.  A big thank you to all of these special people. 

After waiting 3 weeks, there was some indication that our chicks were ready to hatch. To our surprise, we were greeted Monday morning to the sound of three chirping chicks! We still observed a few eggs with small cracks in them. The process chicks go through as they hatch is long, it can take up to 12 hours, so we knew there was still some time to wait before the rest of them hatched.

The next morning there were two brand-new baby chicks in the incubator! Watching the chicks hatch was a real, meaningful, and fun learning process for both teachers and students alike. A big thank you to Cherrie Curtis, CEA - 4H and Young Development Leader, for helping us with this life cycle!

Our focus question this week was how can we make a road? The children had to work as a group to construct a road in the room. I was very impressed with their building skills.

We looked at a map, and talked about how maps tell you where you are going. The students were given a sheet of paper and drew a map of our campus. How impressive are these kiddos?

S is for Symmetry

I explained that something is symmetrical when it is the same on both sides. The children were given a paper with half of a butterfly on it and had to draw the other side. This was not an easy task, but I was so proud of all their efforts!

GOODBYE, BOX STUDY

Roads are all around us. Roads take us to school, to the store, and to visit family and friends. When riding in vehicles, children gaze out of the windows and watch the world go by. They delight in pointing out features on the road that, for adults, are simply part of the landscape: light poles, reflector bumps, overpasses, and bridges. In the classroom, roads become a key feature in the Block area, when children push toy cars from one building to another and outdoors when children ride trikes along paths they call “roads” that often include traffic signs and police officers.

Preschool-aged children spend much of their time in the Block area making connections: they move people, animals, vehicles, and objects from one place to another. They are using roads! A study of roads provides children with an opportunity to learn how roads are made, where roads take us, how we can stay safe on the road, and the features that make up a road. When children work together to create roads, they use a variety of skills to plan, write, draw, build, and negotiate with others.

The children water-colored crosses. As they painted a hidden message was revealed.

Our eggs are coming along nicely. The children have enjoyed looking at the developments of the embryo through the candling lamp.