In spite of the stops and starts this past week- no school Thursday and Friday, early closing on Monday and no school this coming Monday- Room 1 is in full swing! The routines and structures of the day are embedded and everyone transitions easily and eagerly to the next activities. I am amazed how quickly this has come together.
I would like to take this opportunity to caution parents of something that I see happening every year at this time. From my experience, parent's see their children beginning to read words-Words on the morning message,words around them (called environmental print)and high frequency words. Because of this "reading" parents often assume that their child should now read to them at home- NO! STOP! please do not do this. Your child is not ready. They cannot decode words at this point and it is not only frustrating, but tedious for both parent and child. Best practice is to continue to read to your child! Reading to your child is a precious time- A time that passes all too quickly and shouldn't be rushed. What is important is to talk with your child about the story. Ask questions- Who were the characters? What was the problem? Was the ending what you thought it would be? Did the story make you think of something else? You can also encourage your child to re-tell the story using the pictures. Keep "family reading time" enjoyable!
I am including some pictures of Room 1 using "sketching" pens for the first time in Artists/Writers Workshop. Emila said "using sketching pens makes me feel like an artist" and Ethan said "I feel like a grown-up" I have also included pic's of helpers making applesauce and Sensei and friends have a tea party in Dramatic Play.
Enjoy your weekend!
