Friday, March 23, 2018

Pesach Preparations

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 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



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

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





Friday, February 23, 2018

Parts and Purim

Greetings Peach Room Parents!

Our friends were all so happy to see each other after the long weekend apart. We also welcomed a new friend to our class this week. Welcome Lincoln, we are so happy to have you join us! We are continuing our exploration of Purim this week. Our friends are now much more familiar with the story and Guy even said, "Haman, Booo!" when we were reading one of our stories this week.

In art we have been continuing work and adding the finishing touches on our class contribution to the Purim Art Auction. We have created a large tile trivet and a set of four unique tile coasters. Our friends did all of the coloring using sharpies on tiles and today they added the alcohol solution using eye droppers for some excellent fine motor practice. The result is a tie-dyed effect. This project turned out gorgeous! Please consider bidding on our project or one of the many other beautiful works from CJP classrooms to support Chabad of the East Valley. Our friends also created Purim crowns this week using stickers and crayons, so we will be ready for next week's celebrations!

In our sensory table this week we have been washing dishes. This is a favorite activity and when we added it to the small sink in dramatic play, there was not enough space for all of our friends who wanted to participate. So we moved it to the sensory table in response to their enthusiasm.

Our friends have been showing us just how creative and industrious they can be this week with some loose parts play in our construction area. Loose parts are reusable, often re-purposed materials that can be taken apart and put back together in many ways without any specific set of instructions. Loose parts offer limitless possibilities for experimentation, exploration, construction and play. These passive objects invite children to actively imagine what to do with them if given the time and opportunity to explore. In our room this week's parts included pine cones of varying sizes and types, pool noodles sliced in half, sticks, cans, bottles and small blocks. Loose parts play is open ended and child led with constant supervision as we will often include metal and glass items as well as objects of all sizes. We encourage you to take a peek in your junk drawers and recycling bins to see what collection of "treasures"you can discover for your child to explore at home. Start small with maybe 3-5 objects. As long as you are available to supervise and explore with your child, there is really not much that's off limits. We set the limit of "Not for your mouth." to avoid choking hazards. Take pictures or record their work and see what beautiful stuff can be created from your junk!

Next week is Purim Spirit Week:
Monday- Pajama Day
Tuesday- Backwards Day
Wednesday- Crazy Hair Day
Thursday- Mismatched Day
Friday- Grand Costume Masquerade (please send your child to school in their costume with a change of clothes for later) there will be a clown performing, a bouncy house and some treats to share.

Wishing you a restful Shabbos,
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey

Friday, February 16, 2018

Introducing Purim

Greetings Peach Room Parents,

What a wonderful and wet week we had! In addition to playing in the rain and really breaking in that new mud kitchen in our outdoor classroom, we began our exploration of Purim this week. We began by introducing the main characters of the Megillah: King Achashverosh, Queen Vashti, Haman, Queen Esther and Mordechai through finger puppets, dancing and storybooks. "Purim Masquerade" by Samara Q. Klein was a class favorite. They each got to take a turn "reading" it to us by trying on the different pages which are masks.

In dramatic play, Morah Ora created a castle and we have added more dress up clothes. They have all had great fun playing dress up and looking at themselves in the mirror inside our castle.

Our friends explored rice, lentils and beans in our sensory table this week. Using funnels and bottles, they each created a gragger or noisemaker. They added some liquid water colors to the rice and some play gems. We practices shaking our graggers to make noise whenever they hear the name Hamman.

During davening, we give tzedakah, but this week we talked about how this is one of the four mitzvos of Purim. We touched on the other three mitzvos: hearing the Megillah, sending food gifts to friends and hosting a festive meal. We will continue to explore more about Purim in the next couple of weeks.

Our friends also began work on a group art project for the Purim Art Auction. I will leave it a surprise, but I can tell you that it was exciting to see how our friends pen/pencil grasps have progressed. A big "Thank You!" to those families who have so generously donated the outdoor or water play items for our Peach Room Purim auction basket. There is still time to donate your $5-10 item if you have not already brought something to contribute. Our art project as well as this basket will be up for auction at our Purim India Celebration on Saturday March 11th. Tickets to this event are still available. We hope to see you there!

Enjoy the long weekend with your families!

Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey

Wishlist items:
Plastic Spoons
Clorox Wipes
small dixie cups or bowls
Gallons of water to refill children's water bottles




Friday, February 9, 2018

"There's Only One You"

Greetings Peach Room Parents,

This week we did a brief exploration of rocks incorporating the storybook, "There's Only One You" by Linda Kranz. The book is about parents sharing their wisdom with a child on how to make the world a better place. The rock fish characters in this gorgeously illustrated book share words to comfort and guide their fish as he swims through life. We read this book several times.

Our friends worked on collecting rocks from our outdoor environment to bring into our indoor classroom. They compared sizes and shapes and textures and colors of the rocks. Leah and Shyli even compared how the rocks tasted. They worked on painting the rocks over several days and then we took their creations back outside to add to the CJP rock garden alongside the other classroom's painted rocks. We now have a colorful and collaborative sea of rock fish. Each rock exemplifying each child's own unique contribution.

Other exciting news in our outdoor environment, the new sand play area and mud kitchen are now open! Our peach room friends have particularly enjoyed going out a bit early to have some time with these new features before their older friends join them. They love it!

Have a restful Shabbos,
Morah Ora and Morah Lindsey