Sunday, March 29, 2009

March 23-27

This week we learned how sharing is a very important practice for each of us to learn. How it "Feels" to share and how it feels when someone does not share. The children experience sharing a lot through out the day. We share toys, crayons, paint, glue, toys, books, etc. We talked about sharing our time too.

In keeping with learning about the letter T we talked about turtles. How big the grow, where they live, and how fast they walk.

This week HGCP was treated to a New "Alphabet Center" from Elizabeth's mommy - Amy. The children had fun helping to get it ready, and matching the letters to their matching pockets. This Center will be very useful as a word wall too! THANKS AMY!
Our letter focus this week is the letter D.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

March 16- 20

The week of week – March 16- 20
This week the children were introduced to the letter S. Learning the “S” sound as in the words Sammy, sound sight, soft, soap, sand, sip, sock, soup and then the “SH” sound such as shoe, shock, shiver, shirt, shamrock, shiny, ship, sheer, shelf, sheep and shape.
The learned the ASL sign for the letter S.
They made Shamrocks using their hand-shape.
Our Scripture verse Psalm 31:24 “Be strong and take hear, all you who hope in the Lord.” We talked about how God wants us to be strong on the outside and on the inside. (outside) We talked about exercise, going for a walk, playing… (inside) We can read our Bible, talk to others about God, pray to God, and study his word.
Our Science project was putting green food coloring in water and placing white carnations in the vase to see if anything would happen.
On St. Patrick’s Day we ate green food and talked about St. Patrick. Our Scripture verse: Psalm 16:11 “Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”
Discussion: God will guide us in our life’s journey. This is a poem that we shared.
“May your life be filled with joy
And lots of hearty laughter,
May it overflow with happiness
Today and ever after.
We discussed spiders… How many legs they have what they like to eat, I asked them if they ever saw a spider – and you will be happy to know that your houses are all Spider free – According to the children they have NEVER seen a spider… Funny thing is the very next morning there was one in my bathroom sink! It was too early to show them – and quite frankly I wasn’t asking it to “hang around” –eeeewwwwww! I gave him a “ride” down the water spout! :-D
Our Scripture for Wednesday: Colossians 3:13
“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against on another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” We talked about how God wants us to have faith in him. Bu trusting God it allows us to forgive others. We discussed the things that we might have to forgive someone else for, such as forgiving someone who took our toy away or hit us, or called us an unkind name.
Thursday closed due to my cousin Funeral – thank you all for your prayers and understanding.
Friday’s Christian message was – Psalm 148:3 “Praise him sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars.”
We talked about the importance of the sun. Why it is important and if it was shining today. What are some ways you can protect your skin, eyes, in the sun.
We make a smiley sun using ovals as the sun’s face.
Working on eye hand coordination… Gluing was the skill we worked on for this activity. Scissor skills for this activity were not appropriate at this time.
The children were introduced to some new recipes this week. Spinach soup (with white beans) and Sloppy Joe Mac (ground beef with Pinto beans) They liked them both.
Next week I will introduce the letter T.
Please have your child bring in something that begins with the letter T...
We will talk about the earth, rocks, Squirrels, Turtles, and the number 13.

Family Wellness

Fall Asleep Soundly to Comforting Sounds

If you haven't already, establish a bedtime routine for the whole family. Allow plenty of time for stories, teeth brushing, changing and relaxing so that everyone is in bed at a decent time. Younger children will need earlier bedtimes than you and your older children.

According to the American Sleep Association, the sleep needs of toddlers, kids, and adults all differ greatly:
Toddlers & Preschoolers (ages 2-5): 10 to 12 hours each night, plus daily naps
Children (ages 7-12): 9 to 10.5 hours each night
Teenagers: 8 to 9.5 hours each night
Adults: 7 to 8.5 hours each night
Add some noise to help your whole family fall asleep soundly. Is it true that the bedroom should be as quiet as possible? Well, up to a point, yes. The darker and quieter the room is, the more deeply you'll sleep, even if you don't realize it. But, adding "white noise" into the background of your kids' bedrooms can actually help them slumber.

These steady, quiet sounds will block out other more disturbing noises that might keep your kids awake. Plus, once they fall asleep, they'll be less likely to wake up from other noises. Try keeping a fan blowing at night--a cool bedroom is more conducive to sleep anyway. Or, try playing relaxing music or natural sounds, especially something that can be set on a timer. You can buy CD's that play gentle rain, waterfalls, or wind noises--there are plenty of choices. Let each of your kids pick one that they enjoy

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Building Character By Puttting God First

Building Character By Puttting God First
by Steve Arterburn

The thing you should want most is God's kingdom and doing what God wants. Then all these other things you need will be given to you. Matthew 6:33 NCV

The best way to build character-and the surest way-is to do it with God as your partner. So here's a question worth thinking about: Have you made God a full partner in your life's journey? Or are you in the habit of giving God little more than a few hours on Sunday morning? The answer to this question will determine, to a surprising extent, the direction of your day and the condition of your character.

As you contemplate your own relationship with the Creator, remember this: Everybody, without exception, is engaged in the practice of worship. Some folks choose to worship God and, as a result, reap the rewards that He has promised. Other folks who seem determined to do it "their way," inadvertently distance themselves from God, and from the path He intends for them to follow . . . and when they do, they suffer.

In the book of Exodus, God warns that we should place no gods before Him (20:3). Yet all too often, we place Him in second, third, or fourth place as we allow ourselves to be sidetracked by the temptations, addictions, and distractions that are woven into the fabric of 21st-century life.

Are you working to keep God first in your life? Do you talk with Him seven days a week, not just on Sunday mornings? And do you make big decisions after you've consulted Him, not before? Make certain that the honest answer to all these questions is a resounding yes. If you sincerely wish to build your character and your life on an unshakable foundation, you must put your Creator in first place. No exceptions.

We become whatever we are committed to. Rick Warren

Our ultimate aim in life is not to be healthy, wealthy, prosperous, or problem free. Our ultimate aim in life is to bring glory to God. Anne Graham Lotz

God calls us to be committed to Him, to be committed to making a difference, and to be committed to reconciliation. Bill Hybels

Character builder

Think about your priorities. Are you really putting God first in your life, or are you putting other things- things like possessions, pleasures, or personal status-ahead of your relationship with the Father? And if your priorities for life are misaligned, think of at least three things you can do today to put God where He belongs: in first place

Sunday, March 15, 2009

030909--031309

Here is the post for last week. Please let me know your thoughts on this (once a week vs. daily) . .
You can also read the weekly report of the ABC Music and Me on my Kindermusik blog
http://kindermusikbymsmarianne.blogspot.com/
We focused on the color green and one of the Scripture verses pertaining to Green is in Genesis 1:30 “…I give every green plant for food.” God created all living things, which include plants, food and animals. God feeds all living things. We talked about how the grass is green (well it will be soon! ) ;)
Their Science project was mixing blue and yellow food coloring in a zippered plastic bag. Tipping it back and forth to see the colors blend and turn green.
Circle Time was guessing who was wearing something green. Naming some green vegetables.

We discussed Opposites : Rough & Smooth Using our sense of Touch we passed around a variety of objects and tried to guess which was rough and which was smooth.

Once of our project’s was making a Hat for St. Patrick’s Day. And a discussion about Leprechauns. The Letter R was our Focus. We also practiced making the sign for the letter R. This one is pretty easy for the children to do and remember.
Our story of Opal Oval was followed up with discussion about How God wants us to love one another and have that love continue and never end or stop. Just like an oval continues and never stops. God’s love for us never quits or ends. Romans 13:8 “… love one another, for He who loves his fellow man has fulfilled the law”
We Made a “Pot of Gold” this was challenging as they still have to work on their fine motor skill before mastering this task. .
Children at this age love to use scissors but it can be challenging to work with a group of preschoolers and scissors. The songs and fingerplays that they do in Kindermusik Class, and the ASL they are learning are helping them develop their fine motor skills.
We will continue working these skills, and practicing the proper grasping technique.
(Placing thumb and middle and ring fingers in the handles of the scissors. Placing the index finger on the outside of the handle to stabilize the scissors and offer a better grip. Then, curl the pinky finger into the palm) Model the proper grasp for them. Teaching your kids to properly hold and use a pair of scissors helps develop the same muscles needed to correctly grasp a pencil.
We Closed the week with a Bible Story from Luke 15:3-7, John 10:1-16
THE LOST SHEEP. The children learned that Jesus was living on earth, he went everywhere teaching people about God. And how he often told people stories. They listened while I told the story about the Shepherd who had 100 sheep and lost 1. I ended the story with telling them how Jesus told us that he is like the good shepherd – He loves us. He doesn’t want any of us to wander away from him, just like our mommies and daddies would not us to wander away from them.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Apology/Parenting Humor removed

I have removed the "gadget" Parenting humor because it contained ads that were offensive to Christianity. I did not see this before today - so my apologies if anyone did see it and was offended. PLEASE let me know if ANY of the ads or link that appear here are offensive and I do not control their content but I WILL remove the ones that put them on.
Thank You!
Ms. Marianne

Monday, March 9, 2009

From Our Circle Time:

Circle Time discussion was about St. Patrick’s Day. We talked about leprechauns – Whether they are “real” or “pretend” and asked “Who” Celebrates St. Patrick’s Day… I explained that there is no such thing in the Bible about luck – that it pertains to Faith and how God loves us and wants us to live by His word. However we can be thankful and feel lucky that we have God in our life!

They were introduced to Opal Oval (shape we are talking about this month) They listened while I read the story Opal Oval Says, “Take Care of Your Body” They listened to Scripture verses through out the story. Such as Proverbs 15:13 “A Happy heart makes the face cheerful…” When we talked about brushing our teeth after eating meals and snacks.

Psalms 51:10 “Create in me a clean heart, O God and renew a right spirit within me.” After reading about Exercising and how it is good for our heart.

And how our bodies need to rest and relax and eating a good breakfast gives us energy to do all the things we want to do. Psalms 118:24 “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Through out the story we practiced some of the signs for keeping our body healthy such as brush teeth, comb hair, exercise, and rest, just to name a few.
Oval is a little confusing for the children at this age.
The Children colored a Birthday picture for my brother – he told them that he is going to put them up on his refrigerator. (R word)!

Today’s Menu
B- Kix, Milk, Banana
L- Pasta, Meatballs, peas, tangerine, milk
S- milk, trail mix

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Thursday

Today was Kindermusik Day for 2-4 year olds. We welcomed a new student - Angelina & her mommy Vinnie. This was lesson 4 of Home Sweet Home. The weekly take home sheet will be sent via email.
Our Bible lessons are focusing on getting ready for Easter. Yesterday we did a "flannel board" story - "Jesus grows up" Although we don't know much about that period of time, we guessed at some of the things that Jesus may have done as a child. eg. Help Joseph with Carpentry, help Mary clean, played with other children.
Today the children made their own individual pizzas for lunch
Today's menu was:
Breakfast cereal,milk & tangerines (thanks to Elizabeth and her mommy for sending them in yesterday)
Lunch English Muffins, Mozzerella cheese, sauce, milk, peas, apple slices
Snack Cinnamon Graham Crackers (or as Elizabeth calls them - the sparkley ones) :-) milk
Please send in an item that begins with the letter R on Friday.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Getting Back to "Normal" :-)

I would like to apologize for the lack of communication through the blog recently. As you know I had a stomach virus and quite frankly between that and my insomnia - it has zapped me of my energy(including my brain cells)and I just could not think another thought at the end of the day!! The newsletter will be a little late as I am trying to compile all of my Tax info and due to procrastination through out the year I have a pile of data entry to do! I worked on it ALL weekend and every free moment that I have. Not to mention that 2-3 less days in the month REALLY do make a difference! Wow where did February go? The GOOD news is -- that the children have been quite busy with their, prayers & lessons and having fun playing and they are all eating well & getting along just fantastic and I couldn't be more proud of them! You should all take great pride in what a fantastic "Job" that you are doing as Parents!!! It makes my job easier when at a time I would have just liked to have crawled under the covers and stayed in bed for a week!
But we made it and ready to enter March like a Lion!

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