by Sarah Segall | Mar 18, 2016 | Preschool
El sistema solar
This week we continued working with the solar system. The kids learned how the planets orbit the sun with a fun activity. This gave the kiddos a hands-on hand, concrete, way to understand how planets orbit the sun in a large circle. We rolled a ball of orange playdough and stuck it in the middle of the circle plate to represent the sun. We put a blue balloon to represent the earth, and we made the earth orbit around the sun. The kids enjoyed doing this project. As well, we worked with constellations. With this project the kids used their imagination doing different shapes that they saw in the night sky.
Letras y Números
We incorporated our touch investigation with the letter/letra Gg. The kids practiced handwriting, we sang songs,
read a book of the letter Gg, and recognized the letter in our daily reading. The English letter name Gg, can be pronounced(lli). While the Spanish letter name pronunciation is (ge). The hard pronunciation of this letter is the same in English and Spanish. (The hard sounds occurs in all instances when it is not followed by i or e, which is the same rule in English and Spanish.)
Words we worked with this week were:
gorra/hat
gato/cat
gorila/gorilla
gusano/worm.
This week we worked with the number 15, counting falling stars and counting one-to-one correspondence and recognition.Counting things at home or when you are out and about is very important.
Be sure to only say the number as the item is touched or placed.
by Sarah Segall | Mar 12, 2016 | Preschool
El sistema solar
We created our own full moons. We also looked at the phases of the moon, and talked about the different images we see in the moon. We saw rabbits and faces. We also talked about why the moon glows at night. (It’s because of the sun.)
This was a simple and fun project, because the kids loved watching the marker bleed on the paper with just a few drops from the eye dropper.
We had fun singing moon songs and playing “una luna, dos lunas” (very much like “one potato, two 
potatoes”.
We looked at photographs of the moon that showed the surface. The kiddos pointed out the colors and craters they saw. We then had a blast making our own model of a trip to the moon.
We made our own space rockets where we imagined taking a trip to space. We used dirrection words: arriba / above, abajo /below , sobre / over, etc. At the same time we talked about space ships and their functions.
Las letras y los números
We learned all about the letter C this week by singing songs, reading the C book, and playing games. We also practiced writing this letter by first tracing with our finger and then with markers. This letter is just like the English letter C. It makes the soft /s/ sound when followed by i or e. (Think: city, center.) It makes the hard /k/ sound at all other times. Some of the specific words we worked with this week were:
casa/house,
conejo/rabbit
camion/bus
corona/ crown
cebra/zebra
concha/seashell
This week we continued working with number 14 as a review, we used fun and simple activities to help the kiddos build and consolidate their understanding of identifying the number and how it is represented using popsicle sticks and stickers.
Identifying the numbers and putting them in correct order is a big skill!
by Sarah Segall | Mar 5, 2016 | Preschool
Piratas
This week we finished with our unit of Piratas y Mapas/ Pirates and Maps. This topic was very creative with the little ones because it helped them to develop their imagination through many different activities.
This week we also started working with and learning about the solar system/ El Sistema Solar. This topic gave us the opportunity to talk about what we already know about the solar system and then build upon that. We worked with a little introduction of the planets such as How many planets there are and their position from the sun. A favorite from this week was our new song about the planets. This will help us to 
recognize the name and order of the planets.
The activities in this theme will be very fun for all of us. We would love some help with prepping some of the tasks, if you are able. I will put these projects our on the desk in the hallway. Please ask if you have any questions or need clarification.
Las letras y los números
Our letter focus for the week was the letter R. The English letter name is pronounced as, R (ar), while the Spanish letter name pronunciation is; R (erre). Some examples we worked with this week were; regalo/present, reina/queen, rana/frog, ratón/mouse, robot/robot.
Be sure to point out the letters we practice as you are reading with your child.
Our number focus for the week was number 14/ catorce. They did an excellent job counting 1 through 14. We did different activities with this number such as counting and recognizing the number through dots and shapes. We also used our find motor skills for tracing the number 14 and counting in groups.
by Sarah Segall | Feb 27, 2016 | Preschool
Los piratas y los mapas
This is our final full week with our pirate and map theme. We had fun walking the plank (or balance beam) while listening and singing to our pirate song. Walking on a balance beam is a great gross motor skill that we will continue to work on. 
We also did a few more fun pirate crafts, really focusing on
those location words from last week. Our pirate face and pirate ship hand were big hits!
We used a new rug and followed rivers with our finger to see where the water flowed. Guess what! The rivers usually flowed into the ocean!
We played a fun math game where we rolled dice and then covered that many parrots on our paper. The first one to cover all their parrots wins! This game was great because it worked on so many skills:
- taking turns
- counting or identifying the number on the dice
- one-to-one correspondence (to cover the correct number of parrots)
- good sportsmanship if you win and if someone else wins
Pirate Science
Pirate science? I’m sure your kiddos came home all excited about finding treasure. We had a blast doing PIRATE SCIENCE with Exploding Treasure Chests!! It was a great sensory experience as the solid, freezing cold chests turned to mush and exposed the treasures hidden within. The kiddos LOVED when the treasure chests “exploded”.
This activity also provided us extra practice with our fine motor skills while we squeezed the pipets.
Monday and Tuesday will be Preschool Pirate Day!! Send your child dressed like a pirate. We will also be welcoming back maestra Macky on Monday!
Next week we will start our new unit: El sistema solar – The solar system!! It will be a blast! We definitely have some big crafts associated with this theme and would appreciate any parent help! We find it easiest to set items on the desk in the hallway. Please be sure to ask if you need clarification on the projects.
Also, we need to collect paper bags for our astronaut suits and gallon milk jugs too!
Las letras y los números
Our letter focus for the week was K. The letter K is the exact same in English and Spanish. In fact, all words with the letter K are foreign words that did not originate in the Spanish language: karate, kimono, kiwi
We also had the great opportunity to have the first graders come read to our preschoolers. This was a big hit!!
by Sarah Segall | Feb 20, 2016 | Preschool
Preschool lunch fun!
Los Piratas
What a great week! This week we really focused on maps. We had a great time placing ‘treasure’ on a map according to Maestra’s directions. Maps provide a great opportunity for us to practice our prepositions or locations.
Try asking your child to lo
ok for something under/debajo, over/sobre, on top of/encima, next to/al lado de, around/alrededor. If your child is a pre-K kiddo, try using right and left in your descriptions. Ask them to hide something and then have them use their words to give you hints. (Telling or giving directions is a huge skill!!)
We did a fun craft this week using circles / circulos and half circles / medios circulos. We practiced following directions and placing certain colors on top of or under other colors.
Las letras y los números
Our letter focus for the week was the letter B. This sound makes same sound in English and Spanish.
Next week we will work with the letter K.
This week we worked with numbers 1-13. One activity we did this week was multi-task. Maestra worked with a couple students on correct letter and number formation while the other students played ‘escondite‘ / hide-and-seek, counting in Spanish to 13 or higher of course! This was great fun!! We also counted everything around us!
It was also fun to work with our special shape, the heart/ el corazon.
by Sarah Segall | Feb 12, 2016 | Preschool
Piratas
This week we the preschool students did such an amazing job! They were all so receptive to having new teachers in their classes. They even helped out with the tunes to the songs!
The preschoolers had the very fun opportunity to join and be joined by older classes during special valentine projects. Here is a picture sample of their week:
counting Valentine hearts on trees
Las letras y los números
Our letter focus for the week was the V. In Spanish this letter can sometimes sound like a V or a B. We teach the kiddos to form this letter from the top down. It’s fun to use other objects to make this letter and then say it’s sound. You could use pretzels, carrots, green beans, legos, pencils, etc.
Our number focus for the week was the number 13. Can your child count up to 13 in Spanish and English? Developmentally, preschool students should be forming groups of objects: 13 legos, 13 cheerios, etc.
by Sarah Segall | Feb 6, 2016 | Preschool
Los Piratas
This week, we started with our Piratas y Mapas/ Pirates and Maps topic. This topic is very creative with the little ones because it helps them to develop their imagination through different activities that we work with. Throughout the month we will work with this topic, it promises that the little ones are going to have fun with our games and activities. They are going to f
ind the little imaginary pirate in them. As well, we are going to learn new vocabulary. This week the kids have a lot fun making a pirate ship, pirates and pirate hat. They used their fine motor skills for cutting paper and tissue paper (very tricky!). They also did these same tasks by tearing the paper. This is a definite skill that proves tricky at first. Tearing paper engages the muscles in your pincher grasp while moving your hands in opposite directions.
We played games such as memory cards while practicing our vocabulary.
Las letras y los números
This week we incorporated our touch investigation with the letter Ll. Be sure to point out the letters that we practice when you are reading. The English letter name is L (el), while the Spanish letter name is; L (ele). Some examples, of letter L;
leche/milk
lámpara/lamp
lápiz/pencil
lechuga/lettuce
lagartija/lizard
león/lion
Números
This week we worked with the number 12, el número doce. The students did an excellent job counting 1 through 12. We did different activities with this number such as counting and recognizing the number through dots and shapes. We played “finding treasures” and counting how many they found. We also worked on our number formation by tracing the number 12, and count in groups.
by Sarah Segall | Jan 30, 2016 | Preschool
Rimas Infantiles
This week, we continued with Nursery Rhymes/ Rimas Infantiles. We worked with Humpty Dumpty/ Humpty Dumpty.
Spanish Version
Humpty Dumpty
Sentado en un muro,
Humpty Dumpty
Se dio un golpe muy duro;
Todos los caballeros y jinetes del rey,
Fueron a levantarlo y no pudieron con el.
English version
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall
All the king’s horses and
All the king’s men
Could not put humpty Dumpty
Together again.
The kids played with this rhyme. Singing in Spanish and English was really fun for them. We did different activities related with this rhyme. We sang songs, made puzzles, and the children made a Humpty Dumpty from their imagination. They were very excited doing these activities while singing the rhyme.
Las letras y los números
This week we incorporated our touch investigation with the letter Dd and Ff/ letra Dd y letra Ff. Be sure to point out the letters that we practice when you are reading. The English letter names can be pronounced as D (di), and F (ef). While the Spanish letter name pronunciation is; D (deh), and F (eh feh).
Some examples of letter D;
delfin/ dolphin
dientes/ tooth
diez/ten
delantal/apron
Example of letter F;
foca/seal
foco/lightbulb
futbol/soccer
falda/skirt
frio/cold
At the same time, we reviewed the number 11. The kiddos did an excellent job counting 1 through 11. We did different activities with this number, such as counting and recognizing the number through dots, as well as playing with dice in order to find the number 11.
by Sarah Segall | Jan 23, 2016 | In The Loop, Preschool
SWS will host our 2nd PNO of the school year. This is a great time for parents to have a date night while students are having a blast!
Who: SWS students
When: Saturday, February 13th 4:30-8:30
Cost: $20/student
What to bring: A bag with PJs and toothbrush
We will play LOTS of games, eat a yummy dinner, and watch a nice movie. Your child will be ready for bed when you pick them up.
(Limited to the first 32 students to sign up. The sign-up form is located in the SWS office.)
PNO February
