Collier County Public Schools
January 2021
Social Emotional and Skill Building
Composure is the ability to regulate our thoughts, feelings and actions and to actively calm ourselves in times of distress giving us access to the higher centers of our brain. Students practice calming strategies throughout the day by using belly breathing techniques.
What to look for: S.T.A.R. Breathing, Draining, Ballooning and Pretzel
Read: “I Calm Myself” book
CLASS Dimension: Teacher Sensitivity
Depending on their experiences during the pandemic, children in your classroom could display anxiety, stress or depression. Despite the health and safety protocols you are working within, it is still important to watch children’s body language and behavior so that you can catch subtle signs that they are having difficulty. Children need your attention and support to feel a sense of safety.
- Look for body language that indicates a lack of engagement, such as slouching or downcast eyes.
- Think about and address the emotional needs that may be causing a child’s aggressive or withdrawn behaviors.
- Prepare differentiated activities to meet the needs of children who are on target for age/grade-level work as well as those who may have fallen behind during the pandemic.
- Verbally check in on children about their academic and emotional well-being.
- Make time for children to share and discuss their feelings.
- Offer children strategies for self-soothing, such as deep breathing, self-hugs, or the ability to go to a quiet area. (Effective Interactions in Socially Distanced Classrooms during COVID-19/www.myteachstone.com)
TATS: Resources for Teachers and Families
Technical Assistance and Training System (TATS) has provided tutorials for teachers and families on their website. These tutorials guide teachers and families with self-care for families, supporting children through interactions, praising young children, tips for engaging young children, reading with your child, and examples of including concepts daily living skills.
Head Start/VPK Classrooms
The January ELLM Plus literacy-focused theme is “My Community and Moving Things.” The investigative topic from Creative Curriculum is Roads and Signs Study. Monthly activities are based on weekly read-aloud books: Many Places, Move!, What Do Wheels Do all Day? and Motion, Forces and You.
- Alphabet Knowledge: names 15 letters and sounds.
- Phonological Awareness: beginning letter sound application, rhyming, syllable segmentation, compound words.
- Math Concepts: counts to 20, writes and identifies numbers to 5, categorizes information using charts and graphs.
- Some activities to look for: letter, beginning sound, rhyming, syllable and compound word games, making a comparison chart of community helpers, drawing and writing about community helpers, how animals and things move, creating a Venn Diagram of items pushed and/or pulled, and charting animals that move on land, in air or water. Social-emotional focus for this month is feelings and emotions.
SharePoint Links:
- January Learning Goals can be viewed in the Year Long Plan Monthly Goals
- January Curriculum Month at a Glance documents
Pre-K ESE Classrooms
Scholastic Big Day theme for the month of January is “Awesome Animals”. Students will learn about life science through the exploration of animals and the animal life cycles. This month’s focus areas are “Creepy, Crawly Insects” and “Animals Grow and Change.”
Content areas covered: kinds of bugs, how they move, characteristics of insects, and life cycle of animals. Activities are based on theme related read-aloud books: Over in the Meadow, What Do Insects Do? Butterflies, Dora’s Eggs and Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! Alphabet Knowledge: Ll and review Aa-Ll.
Math concepts: grid puzzles, time words (before/after, and yesterday/today/tomorrow). Some activities to look for: bug investigation, big bug spy chart, math activities using Math Mat #15, create a bug, life cycle of butterflies, and letter caterpillars.
SharePoint Link:
January learning goals can be viewed in the Year Long Plan Monthly Goals document
Collier County Public Schools, Teaching and Learning
Email: TeachingandLearning@collierschools.com
Website: https://www.collierschools.com/Page/169
Location: 5775 Osceola Trail, Naples, FL, USA
Phone: 239-377-0001
Twitter: @CCPS_Curriculum