Greetings Peach Room Parents!
As we continued preparation for Pesach, there was much to explore and investigate this week. Our focus was on the Seder meal and the meaning of each element included in this special meal. Morah Ora created individual Seder plates for each child to match like a puzzle.
Our friends also made grape juice using mallets and smashed the grapes as we talked about how we drink four cups of juice/wine with the Seder. The mallets were loud when they accidentally struck the table rather than the grapes. Some friends liked this sensation and continued doing it purposely, while others covered their ears and preferred using their fingers to pinch. Then they literally got to enjoy the fruits of their labor and drank the grape juice!
Our friends also explored the taste of the bitter maror as well as celery dipped in salt water and Morah Ora explained that this was meant to remind us of the tears and hardships experienced by the Jewish people while in Egypt and as they made their way across the desert. Their reactions were so funny: some friends made funny faces as they bit into the maror while others really liked the taste of salt. Celery was a bit more familiar to most of our friends and some enjoyed the taste.
We continued to taste test Matzah this week as well. By the end of the week, when we hid the Afikoman, and they took turns finding it, they were all exclaiming, “Matzah!”
Next week our class will be joining the rest of the preschool for a Seder. Valley Metro Transportation will be coming to give us a tour of a bus and we will tie in a brief exploration of transportation with Pesach for the shortened week. There will be no school on Thursday or Friday or the following week as we are on break for Pesach.
Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
Wish List Items:
Plastic disposable spoons
Gallons of drinking water to refill water cups
Friday, March 23, 2018
Friday, March 16, 2018
Pesach
Greetings Peach Room Parents!
We continued our exploration of Pesach with another action packed week. Our friends are creating their own pillows for Pesach. They started this project by painting the fabric this week using brushes and then painting their hands to make prints and finally just painting with their hands as they explored the tools, texture and colors. Next week they will finish by stuffing their pillows. Another highlight this week was making homemade matzah. Each friend poured water onto their tray of flour, mixing it together to create dough. Some friends enjoyed the sticky texture while mixing the ingredients with their hands. Other friends did not so they opted to use a fork or spoon. Once their dough was ready, they rolled it into a ball and patted it. Then they took turns using our rolling pin to get it nice and thin. Morahs helped them move their matzah dough to our baking paddles and they each got a turn to put it into our matzah "oven". We counted to five in English and then in Hebrew and the matzah was magically baked for them to taste! Most friends seemed to enjoy their matzah though they did ask for water. We had an impromptu snack in our dramatic play kitchen complete with kiddush cups. One friend did not care for his matzah at all, saying, "Yucky!" and trying to scrape it off his tongue. He went to get a drink of water to wash it down. It's always interesting to see their reactions to trying things. All of our friends enjoyed the process and worked hard on this project.
Friends are continuing to explore the concept of constructing pyramids in two areas of our room: our sensory table with wet sand and trays/containers for brick making and also our block area with duplos and cardboard builders. They loved building duplo pyramids and then knocking them down over and over!
We are noticing more and more how the friendships have developed within our class. It is truly incredible to watch as they greet one another and us each morning, especially after an absence. They notice and ask about friends who are not at school. They help each other with simple tasks. They love to dance and play together. They are quite simply amazing little people!
Wishing you a joyful Shabbat!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
Wish List:
Plastic spoons
We continued our exploration of Pesach with another action packed week. Our friends are creating their own pillows for Pesach. They started this project by painting the fabric this week using brushes and then painting their hands to make prints and finally just painting with their hands as they explored the tools, texture and colors. Next week they will finish by stuffing their pillows. Another highlight this week was making homemade matzah. Each friend poured water onto their tray of flour, mixing it together to create dough. Some friends enjoyed the sticky texture while mixing the ingredients with their hands. Other friends did not so they opted to use a fork or spoon. Once their dough was ready, they rolled it into a ball and patted it. Then they took turns using our rolling pin to get it nice and thin. Morahs helped them move their matzah dough to our baking paddles and they each got a turn to put it into our matzah "oven". We counted to five in English and then in Hebrew and the matzah was magically baked for them to taste! Most friends seemed to enjoy their matzah though they did ask for water. We had an impromptu snack in our dramatic play kitchen complete with kiddush cups. One friend did not care for his matzah at all, saying, "Yucky!" and trying to scrape it off his tongue. He went to get a drink of water to wash it down. It's always interesting to see their reactions to trying things. All of our friends enjoyed the process and worked hard on this project.
Friends are continuing to explore the concept of constructing pyramids in two areas of our room: our sensory table with wet sand and trays/containers for brick making and also our block area with duplos and cardboard builders. They loved building duplo pyramids and then knocking them down over and over!
We are noticing more and more how the friendships have developed within our class. It is truly incredible to watch as they greet one another and us each morning, especially after an absence. They notice and ask about friends who are not at school. They help each other with simple tasks. They love to dance and play together. They are quite simply amazing little people!
Wishing you a joyful Shabbat!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
Wish List:
Plastic spoons
Thursday, March 8, 2018
Introducing Pesach (Passover):
Greetings Peach Room Parents!
This week we began exploring the holiday, Pesach or Passover. We worked on cleaning our room and talked about the importance of cleaning away all of the Chametz or bread and breadcrumbs and other foods with yeast in preparation for Pesach. Our friends swept floors and scrubbed tables and washed trays.
In the sensory table this week we mixed sand and water and added ice cube trays to make bricks to build pyramids. We talked about how Pharaoh promised the Jews presents if they came to Egypt to help him build the pyramids. But he was mean and didn’t keep his promise. So they worked so hard and were not treated well. Hashem punished Pharoah and the people of Egypt by sending plagues- frogs, bugs, sicknesses and the brave Moshe stood up to Pharaoh and said, “Let my people go!” The Jewish people were finally able to leave Egypt! While they traveled through the desert they did not have time to use yeast and wait for their bread to rise and so Matzah was created from flour and water and it baked on their backs as they were traveling out of Egypt.
In dramatic or pretend play we opened a Matzah bakery and all of our friends have been enjoying taking turns making matzah in our special matzah oven. Our friends have enjoyed listening to music and reading books about the story of Pesach this week as well.
We are continuing to work on social skills such as asking for a turn or a toy before grabbing it. Using statements like “Turn please?” Or “My work/turn” if someone is attempting to grab something they have. We are encouraging the children to use words to express if they don’t like something that a friend is doing to them “Stop” and/or “I don’t like that.” We starting to work a little bit on personal space as well, “Move please.” or “Space.” It is typical behavior at age 1 and 2 for our friends to get frustrated trying to negotiate these things without the necessary verbal skills. This can sometimes be overwhelming for them. We will often see hitting, grabbing and sometimes biting at this stage in their development. Morahs are there to help give them alternatives to these unwanted behaviors.
As always, thank you for sharing your children with us and for all of the support at home. We hope you have a restful and wonderful weekend!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
This week we began exploring the holiday, Pesach or Passover. We worked on cleaning our room and talked about the importance of cleaning away all of the Chametz or bread and breadcrumbs and other foods with yeast in preparation for Pesach. Our friends swept floors and scrubbed tables and washed trays.
In the sensory table this week we mixed sand and water and added ice cube trays to make bricks to build pyramids. We talked about how Pharaoh promised the Jews presents if they came to Egypt to help him build the pyramids. But he was mean and didn’t keep his promise. So they worked so hard and were not treated well. Hashem punished Pharoah and the people of Egypt by sending plagues- frogs, bugs, sicknesses and the brave Moshe stood up to Pharaoh and said, “Let my people go!” The Jewish people were finally able to leave Egypt! While they traveled through the desert they did not have time to use yeast and wait for their bread to rise and so Matzah was created from flour and water and it baked on their backs as they were traveling out of Egypt.
In dramatic or pretend play we opened a Matzah bakery and all of our friends have been enjoying taking turns making matzah in our special matzah oven. Our friends have enjoyed listening to music and reading books about the story of Pesach this week as well.
We are continuing to work on social skills such as asking for a turn or a toy before grabbing it. Using statements like “Turn please?” Or “My work/turn” if someone is attempting to grab something they have. We are encouraging the children to use words to express if they don’t like something that a friend is doing to them “Stop” and/or “I don’t like that.” We starting to work a little bit on personal space as well, “Move please.” or “Space.” It is typical behavior at age 1 and 2 for our friends to get frustrated trying to negotiate these things without the necessary verbal skills. This can sometimes be overwhelming for them. We will often see hitting, grabbing and sometimes biting at this stage in their development. Morahs are there to help give them alternatives to these unwanted behaviors.
As always, thank you for sharing your children with us and for all of the support at home. We hope you have a restful and wonderful weekend!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
Friday, March 2, 2018
The Power of "No"
Greetings Peach Room Parents,
Happy Purim! Spirit Week was a huge success- our friends were adorable in their pj's, with their crazy hair and in their costumes! Thank you for helping them participate. This morning we celebrated Purim CJP style with a performance from Lovely Buttons the clown, a masquerade parade, lots of outdoor time with a bouncy house and face/hand painting. We sent home all of the Purim projects our friends worked hard on creating- masks, graggers, crowns etc.
In other classroom news this week, we are noticing an exciting social/emotional development in several of our friends. Maybe you have noticed it too...they are starting to use the word "No". Why do I use the word exciting to describe this development when it's often viewed as the onset of the terrible two's? Well, I find it exciting because it's normal and expected in typically developing children and it is an important developmental milestone. It signifies their development of sense of self, separate from the important adults in their lives and also a burgeoning development of independence and autonomy. Of course we want our children to be respectful, but does that mean they should always be compliant? When I child says "No" what they are really telling us is,"please give me more choices, I'm ready". The ability to make choices is an important executive function we want to help them grow and develop. It also shows they trust the adults in their lives enough to test this out. Sometimes this resistance can be a sign they want your attention and a better sense of connection. So how do we best navigate this?
Connect with them. Slow down for even just 10-15 minutes a day and meet them in their world, at their pace doing something they enjoy. Let them lead the interaction and give them your full and undivided attention. Then, when that "No." inevitably comes, you can take a deep breath and be thankful they trust you because you've built that connection strong.
We can also help support them by avoiding yes or no questions and giving them lots of choices throughout the day at school and at home. At this age and stage, giving two acceptable options is developmentally appropriate and shouldn't overwhelm our friends. Let them choose between two outfits, two breakfast options, two lunch options...whenever you can, let them choose. If mornings are hectic, let them choose the night before. By taking that extra time to allow them to choose insignificant things now, you are giving them much needed practice for the more important decisions they must make as they grow older.
For tasks you know they do not like try to give a small choice about when it gets done to avoid the dreaded power struggle. For example, "Friends, do you want to clean up for snack now or in 5 minutes?" They may still complain or start to refuse and you can remind them, "Oh you chose 4 minutes and it's been 5 minutes so now it's time to clean up." Or set a timer and take yourself out of the equation, "The timer says it's time to clean up!"
There will be times where there really is no choice and we need to set firm limits for safety or sanity's sake. Say for instance a child is throwing food, "The food stays on the table or in your mouth. If you throw food, you are showing us you are all done." The natural consequence follows that their food goes away if they choose to throw it again and we might say something like, "All done. We can try again the next time we eat."
For a playful approach, you can also try making "No" into a game. When one of our friends was saying "No" about everything, I started asking them really crazy questions like, "Do you want bugs/worms/rocks for snack?" to which they squealed and exclaimed, "No!" This gave them a chance to tell me no repeatedly and in a clearly teasing way much to their delight. Then I threw in questions like, "Do you want cookies for snack?" just to see if they would catch themselves automatically saying "No!" This friend caught it and then laughed and yelled, "Cookies!"
"No" is a very powerful word and so is the way in which we respond to it. Thanks for reading and for being such kind and supportive parents.
Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
Happy Purim! Spirit Week was a huge success- our friends were adorable in their pj's, with their crazy hair and in their costumes! Thank you for helping them participate. This morning we celebrated Purim CJP style with a performance from Lovely Buttons the clown, a masquerade parade, lots of outdoor time with a bouncy house and face/hand painting. We sent home all of the Purim projects our friends worked hard on creating- masks, graggers, crowns etc.
In other classroom news this week, we are noticing an exciting social/emotional development in several of our friends. Maybe you have noticed it too...they are starting to use the word "No". Why do I use the word exciting to describe this development when it's often viewed as the onset of the terrible two's? Well, I find it exciting because it's normal and expected in typically developing children and it is an important developmental milestone. It signifies their development of sense of self, separate from the important adults in their lives and also a burgeoning development of independence and autonomy. Of course we want our children to be respectful, but does that mean they should always be compliant? When I child says "No" what they are really telling us is,"please give me more choices, I'm ready". The ability to make choices is an important executive function we want to help them grow and develop. It also shows they trust the adults in their lives enough to test this out. Sometimes this resistance can be a sign they want your attention and a better sense of connection. So how do we best navigate this?
Connect with them. Slow down for even just 10-15 minutes a day and meet them in their world, at their pace doing something they enjoy. Let them lead the interaction and give them your full and undivided attention. Then, when that "No." inevitably comes, you can take a deep breath and be thankful they trust you because you've built that connection strong.
We can also help support them by avoiding yes or no questions and giving them lots of choices throughout the day at school and at home. At this age and stage, giving two acceptable options is developmentally appropriate and shouldn't overwhelm our friends. Let them choose between two outfits, two breakfast options, two lunch options...whenever you can, let them choose. If mornings are hectic, let them choose the night before. By taking that extra time to allow them to choose insignificant things now, you are giving them much needed practice for the more important decisions they must make as they grow older.
For tasks you know they do not like try to give a small choice about when it gets done to avoid the dreaded power struggle. For example, "Friends, do you want to clean up for snack now or in 5 minutes?" They may still complain or start to refuse and you can remind them, "Oh you chose 4 minutes and it's been 5 minutes so now it's time to clean up." Or set a timer and take yourself out of the equation, "The timer says it's time to clean up!"
There will be times where there really is no choice and we need to set firm limits for safety or sanity's sake. Say for instance a child is throwing food, "The food stays on the table or in your mouth. If you throw food, you are showing us you are all done." The natural consequence follows that their food goes away if they choose to throw it again and we might say something like, "All done. We can try again the next time we eat."
For a playful approach, you can also try making "No" into a game. When one of our friends was saying "No" about everything, I started asking them really crazy questions like, "Do you want bugs/worms/rocks for snack?" to which they squealed and exclaimed, "No!" This gave them a chance to tell me no repeatedly and in a clearly teasing way much to their delight. Then I threw in questions like, "Do you want cookies for snack?" just to see if they would catch themselves automatically saying "No!" This friend caught it and then laughed and yelled, "Cookies!"
"No" is a very powerful word and so is the way in which we respond to it. Thanks for reading and for being such kind and supportive parents.
Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey
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