Early Childhood Curriculum Update
November/December 2017
Mott Class - Preschool
The Mott Class has been learning about families. During circle, we shared how many people are in our families and what their names are. We used this information to make a class family graph. We have invited members of our family into our classroom to get to know them better and have learned about family traditions and history. We have shared music with family members and even learned how to weave!
We prepared for Thanksgiving by making a Friendship Vegetable Soup. Students’ families each sent in one ingredient which was added to a slow cooker. Before the vegetables were cooked, the students explored the ingredients and each made their own soups in separate bowls. We then combined everything together and tasted it at lunch! We even drew pictures of the vegetables afterwards.
The Mott Class also had time to do a science experiment. The teacher told the students we would be mixing baking soda and vinegar and asked them what they thought would happen. The children suggested things like it would turn into syrup, fairy potion or make soup. After we made our predictions, the students had fun watching the chemical reaction.
Hicks Class - Preschool
The Hicks Class has begun learning about family traditions and immigration. Families have been coming into the classroom and sharing stories, pictures, special foods, and other items that help us learn about them. We are noticing how we are the same and also how we are different. It’s a great way to get a better understanding of where our traditions come from.
In science, the students have been doing experiments as they learn about chemical
reactions. They had a great time using pipettes as they dropped colored vinegar onto baking soda. There was lots of laughter as they watched the fizzing and bubbling.
Students continue to learn about diversity through stories and activities. During the holiday season we have discussed different types of activities that we do during this time of year.
Rustin Class - Kindergarten
In November and December, the Rustin Class participated in a project based unit of study on light. After our initial discussion of light, the students wanted to study electricity. The past two months have been filled with experiments with batteries, LED lights, and squishy circuits. We created small bug robots with toothbrushes, batteries, and motors in the UFS Maker Space. Students were amazed to watch as they raced around the room! We are completing this study by creating informational posters to be displayed in school.
During literacy time, we continue to work on sight words and initial sounds in addition to reading books. We always remember to “frame the word” so we are seeing all the letters of each word. We have continued to write in our journals and have completed our first journal! We are becoming proficient at writing what sounds we hear in words for our captions. Students are now reading books to friends during our listening lessons. They sit “elbow to elbow and knee to knee” so that their friend can see the illustrations in the book. We also have been very proficient in sharing our strategies for reading with the group. Asking for comments or questions from the group continues to be a favorite part of sharing.
Many math lessons were embedded in our study of light and electricity, including counting and graphing all the light switches, outlets, and lights in the UFS building. There are many! We have introduced some new concepts such as symmetry to our math study as well as skip counting by 10’s. We actually counted to 800 together!
The Rustin Class worked hard to create the query for our Meeting for Worship in November. We discussed things we would miss during a hurricane such as our house and family but we wanted to know what small things our friends might miss. We have also been busy creating our Wishes for the World to present to our school community. One of the best Quakerism studies was learning how to name our classroom fish by finding a “sense of the class.” We had to think of what the best name for the fish would be for EVERYONE. After many class discussions and help from Nancy, we named our Beta fish “Little Blue.”
The best part of the past two months was practicing for our Early Childhood Show. We performed a Readers Theater of the book “Mouse Count” by Ellen Stoll Walsh. We finished by singing one of our favorite songs “Waddle-lee-Acha.” This group can perform that song extremely fast - it is impressive! It has been a busy few months for the UFS kindergarten class!
About UFS
Email: frontoffice@unitedfriendsschool.org
Website: unitedfriendsschool.org
Location: 1018 West Broad St Quakertown PA 18951
Phone: 215-538-1733
Facebook: facebook.com/unitedfriendsschool
Twitter: @quakerschool