WELCOME TO EC3A

2018-2019

IMPORTANT DATES:
December 10   Santa Secret Shop- Kids shop for loved ones 
                      No Hot Lunch ( Pizza will be provided)
                      Scholastic book order due
                      Adopt a Family items due
December 11   No Hot Lunch 
                      Spirit Rally 1:30 
December 14   Early Dismissal 11:35  NO EAGLES CLUB  
December 21   Tag Day- (christmas wear) 
                       Pretzels for those who ordered 
                      Christmas Lunch Party (more information to come) 
December 24   Christmas Break 
January 2        School Reopens
January 18     No School for EC3A (Conference Day)

******Daily News******

Scholastic book order is coming home today. If you would like to order books for the holiday please have the order placed by December 10th. I want to ensure delivery before we leave for Christmas Break.

November 20, 2018,
I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and are able to spend time with your loved ones. Thank you so much for sharing your children with me and sending them to SJB. I feel so blessed to be your child's teacher. They bring so much joy to our classroom everyday.

Thank you also for spending time in our classroom for our Thanksgiving Feast. The children worked hard learning all of the songs for you. They looked so cute dressed up as turkeys.  I was so proud of them. Thank you for all of the contributions for our feast. A special thank you to Mrs. Ferris for organizing. We always apprectiate all of your help.

Our class went to Thanksgiving Mass at 9:30. My friends did a fantastic job and were very reverent during mass. Please let them know how proud you are of them.

We made turkeys out of toilet paper rolls today. I then read the book: The Amazing Turkey Rescue. After the story my friends were challenged to use the materials provided to hide their turkeys. The children each worked really hard building a contraption to hide their turkey from me. They are bringing their turkeys home so that they can build something for it to hide form you. 

Happy Thanksgiving
Ms Mekulski



November 15, 2018,

We were so excited to see snow today! I used the forecast as a teachable moment this morning. I put the weather radar map on the smartboard and googled our location (SJB). We discussed that the weather forecasters predicted that it would start to snow around 9:10 at SJB. We spoke about how they predict weather and the tools they used. We then put on our jackets and went outside. Sure enough while we were on the playground it began to flurry.. then snow. My friends were so excited. I was never so happy to see snow. Their reaction was priceless.

It was so great to see some of you at the book fair last night. I hope you all had fun and enjoyed your night out.

We did a Taste Testing with Three Types of Teddy Grahams Today. Chocolate, Honey and Chocolate Chip were the flavors of teddy grahams my friends tasted. Chocolate was the most popular (of course).

We also discussed the first Thanksgiving. The children had a chance to play in a teepee.

I will not be in school tomorrow. I have to take my son to AI for a medical test that will last all day. It is nothing too serious but could use some prayers. Ms Marilyn will be my substitue. The children all know her and are very comfortable in her care. I hope that you all enjoy your weekend and will join us for our feast on Monday.

Below are some pictures from our Thanksgiving/Turkey week:









November 14, 2018,
We had such a busy morning. Gym was in our classroom. Mrs Schock did an activity on the smartboard about healthy foods. They danced and exercised to bring their heart rate up and then slowed down. My friends all said they could feel their heart beating going fast.

We then went to the Library for our vision screenings. After three friends were screened the machine broke. We patiently waited for it to be fixed, but no luck. The screening will be rescheduled for all students in our class. The date is to be determined. 

The children we able to have a few minutes of Spanish class. This was enough time to sing a few songs that they have been learning.

We completed the Turkey Time Scholastic Big World Magazine. My friends watched a few short videos on Turkeys and then we completed the back side together. We then played an interactive game on the smartboard with turkey Feather parterns. The children needed to finish an AB color pattern by choosing the correct color of feather.

During center time we worked on a surprise craft for our Thanksgiving Feast. We also continued with our same theme learning centers as yesterday. 

I hope to see you all at the Barnes and Noble book fair tonight. My sons will be playing in the band starting at 7:00, (I know that is late for some of my friends)

November 13, 2018,
We learned two more Turkey songs today. My friends will be sure to put on quite the show during our Thanksgiving Feast. Our Feast will be on Monday, November 19th at 10:00. Please let me know if your child will not be attending the Feast. I will make sure that they have all of their crafts and gift sent home with them on Friday. Thank you!

My friends finger painted feathers on a turkey for their craft during center time. We also worked on counting by making a Turkey Stew. The children also used their fine motor stills by adding beads to pipe cleaners and water bottles. The children used the blocks and materials to build, Thanksgiving theme objects in our building center. They also enjoyed making turkeys out of playdough by adding feathers, eyes, feet and a beak.

We were able to go outside after lunch and play on the blacktop and take a walk around the building. We saw those mysterious foot prints again.. but this time they were child size. The children measured their feet to the prints. As we kept walking the prints disappeared. The children searched and searched for another footprint the entire way back to our building. I have feeling we are going to be searching for fiootprints all year.

November 12, 2018
I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. I wanted to inform you that I left today during the children's lunch time to take my son to the Doctor. Miss Marilyn took my place while I was gone. The children were in good hands. They seemed really confused when I was packing up to leave. Ms Kavanaugh said they had a great afternoon. Lunch, long recess and rest.

My friends started off the morning with music class. This class really enjoys to sing. I am amazed at how quickly the pick up the words to all the songs.

During cirle time we said good-bye to the letter "L" and I introduced the letter"T". We used our invisible crayons to make the letter. We also helped Tony the Tiger name objects that begin with the letter T from our class letter Jar. I read the story Tilly Turtle's Tea Party. We also learned two Turkey songs.

My friends made a turkey out of the letter "T" for our end of the year alphabet book during our center time. We also worked on spot the dot and push pin activity for the letter. They played with a Thanksgiving set including the Mayflower, Pilgrims and Native Americans. The fall dramatic play area has continued to be a huge success. The children are raking leaves in a pile, jumping in them, throwing them in the air and filling wheelbarrows. Our sensory table is filled with all things fall, leaves, stones, pinecones, acorns, sticks, apples and pumpkins.

November 8, 2018,
We took adavantage of the beautiful Fall day and went on a Leaf Hunt this morning. My friends each had a bag to collect leaves. We challenged ourselves to see if we could find one of each of the Fall colors (red, orange, yellow and brown). I think we were very successfull. The bags are coming home with my friends today.

After our walk we made a harvest mix for our cooking project. We followed a recipe giving each of my friends a chance to add an ingredient to the mix. We enjoyed eating our mix while listening to the story We are Going on a Leaf Hunt. 

Our science project today was leaf investigation. Each friend had to pick a favorite leaf from their collection. We filled out an infromation sheet on their leaf. They used magnifying glasses to explore each leaf a little closer. We shared our results with the entire class. Most of our friends picked a yellow leaf as their favorite. We two had two friends that picked red and one friend that picked a multicolor leaf. We had fun with our leaves today!

During art my friends painted leaf rubbings and made color monster out of a scribble paper.

November 7, 2018,

Scholastic book order will be submitted on Friday for anyone interested in books. I would like to have the order arrive before Thanksgiving Break. Thank you!

We were so excited to get outside for both morning and afternon recess. We even went on a squirrel hunt walk around the school. We found 4 squirrels and one even had an acorn in its mouth.

We had gym in the classroom this morning due to the hall repairs. Mrs. Schock gave the children a dance party, which they absolutely loved.

During Spanish the children prepared a party for "Dia De Los Muertos". 
They each had flowers, food and a small gift to bring to their party.

During circle time I read the book Leaves. We learned two new songs: Im a Little Acorn and Leaves, Leaves Everywhere. The children have been singing them all day. We will perform these songs for you at our Thanksgiving Feast.

The children used marbles and the color of fall paints to create a leaf during our center time. We have also been working on a counting activity. "Fall Stew". The children pick a recipe card and count all of the objects in the recipie to put in a pot. Once finished we stir and sing a song. My friends are all doing really well using one to one coorespondance and recognizing their numbers. 

November 6, 2018,
We have been making the most of this rainy weather. It has been challenging for my friends not getting a chance to run around outside.

We got our wiggles out by doing some dancing today and some activites on the smartboard.

My friends all received a mystery postcard today during circle time. Each card had a letter written about a fall object. They had to guess the object and find the stamp with its picture on it. Once they found the stamp,  they mailed the letter in our Fall Mailbox. This was a great game for using our listening ears. i read the story Leaves Fall down and we played a letter Leaf game on the smartboard.

During Technolgy class the children watched video and learned information about Fall and our letter of the week "L".

Some center time pictures form today.




November 5, 2018
Wow! the time change really had my friends super tired today! This is always a hard adjustment with school.
We celebrated Cassidy's Birthday today! Happy Birthday and thank you for the yummy cookies!
During Circle time I read the story Nuts to You. We discussed squirrels and how they are working hard to gather their nuts for the winter. We then Learned the song"Grey Squirrel". We also completed an activity using discriptive words. I put a Fall scene on the Smartboard. I asked each child to describe an object in the scene or tell me where it was located. This was challenging for some of my friends at first. They wanted to point at the object but after a little coaching yhey began to uses their discriptive words. This was a great activity for this class. It was Lyla's turn with the letter Jar. She shared all of the objects she could find from home that began with the letter"L"

During our center time the children made a grey squirrel by glueing cotton balls for a tail and then painting them grey. They also played in a fall themed block area building tractors, scarecrows and cornfields.

We did get a chance to take a walk around the building to get some fresh air today.

My friends were all asleep seconds after the lights went out today. 

November 2, 2018

During circle time I introduced the letter "L" and our new theme "Leaves". We will be discussing the season of Fall. My Friends helped Leo the Lion name items that begin with the letter "L". We read the story The Lamb that Loved to Laugh. When we were finished we named all of the animals in the story that began with the letter "L". We learned a new song "Leaves are Falling".

During center time we played with all things "L",  Legos, Lincoln Logs, Lacing, Links, Ladybugs, and Lolipops. We made a Ladybug out of the letter "L" for our end of the year alphabet book and completed a spot the dot and push pin activity.

Have a wonderful weeked!







November 1 

I hope everyone enjoyed their Halloween night. We were all a little tired this morning. We had a very low key day in the classroom and spent a good amount of time outside enjyoing the weather.
The children had art class in the morning and then we went to Church for Mass. That's right we did it!!! We went to our first school Mass of the year! My friends did a fantastic job! I am so proud of them! Please let them know how proud you are of them also! Each child sat and stood so quietly through the entire Mass! We recieved so many compliments from the school faculty about our reverent behavior! Way to Go!

October 31     
Happy Halloween! We had a great time celebrating with you today! Thank you for attending our parade and helping out with our classroom party. We had so many yummy treats! Thank you for all of the contributions. We appreciate your generousity. A special thank you to Mrs. Ferris for organizing! I will post pictures either tonight or tomorrow morning.

Pictures with our 4th grade buddies:







October 30, 2018,

What a fun day in EC3A! We had a visit from our fouth grade buddies. The fouth graders spent time in our classroom helping our friends with some special Halloween games and activities. The children (both classes) really enjoyed their time together, They played pumpkin bean bag toss, ghost bowling, brew ball toss and ring the witch hat. They also used scissors to make a ghost, colored a halloween sheet, made a lollipop ghost and built a pumpkin playground out of candy corn. Stations were set up around the room. The fourth graders helped our friends have fun at each station. Please ask them to tell you all about it. We will be getting together with our buddies once a month for a theme based activity.

Looking forward to a fun filled day tomorrow!

Our Halloween Party will be tomorrow. Special guests are welcomed to come watch the children parade outside in front of the Gerres Building. After about 6 loops around and pictures, our class will parade through the school. All are welcomed to stay for the party (in our classroom). We will meet you after we are finished in the school. 
Children are to come to school with their costumes. Please have your child wear their uniform under their costume if you will not be present to assist them with changing. Please bring a bag to store costume when finished.  I ask any parents that stay for the party to please help assist children out of their costumes. This can be quite a hectic time. After the children are changed we will head outside on the playground to make good-byes a little easier. Children are welcomed to leave after the party. I know it is a big exciting day and you may want them to rest at home since they will be out late. Thank you all for signing up to contribute items to our party. We really appreciate your generousity! Please let me know if you have any questions.

October 29, 2018,
The children all looked great in their orange today. Please feel free to have your child wear a special Halloween shirt or Halloween color tomorrow also. 

This morning the children had a special Halloween themed music class. Mrs Wagner sang songs, played insturments and books all about Halloween. They really enjoyed this class.

During our center time, We continued to play in all of our Halloween themed areas. The children painted a candy corn, and played Candy Corn Bingo. I also painted their hands for a special surprise. The children are doing a fantastic job with all of our learning centers. 

We went on a Ghost Hunt during our circle time. We acted out 
Halloween Characters with yoga cards and  played the Halloween guessing game again because the children really had a fun time with this activity. Since my friends like dancing so much , we danced along to two Halloween songs on the smartboard.

Tomorrow we will be meeting with our 4th grade buddies for some Halloween fun!


October 26, 2018,
Today I read the story, Pumpkin Soup. It is a story about turn taking and helping. After the story we completed a Science experiment by making our own" pumpkin soup". We took turns adding/stirring food coloring to water to make different colors. We made a guess as to what color we would make before mixing the colors.

This morning we worked on making treat bags for our 4 year old neighbors. We floated to their door like very quiet ghosts and yelled BOO! then ran back into our classroom. After Library, we had a very strange knock on our door and followed by loud BOOS. When we opened the door no one was there.. We were BOOED! We took lots of guesses as to who it could have been! There is a goody bag going home in their bookbags.

In Library the children made Jack-O-Lanterns, went on a leaf hunt and picked pumpkins.

We created mummies out of tissue paper, played candy corn bingo and worked on making spider webs.

Our Halloween Party will be on October 31st. Special guests are welcomed to come watch the children parade outside in front of the Gerris Building. After about 6 loops around and pictures, our class will parade through the school. All are welcomed to stay for the party (in our classroom). We will meet you after we are finished in the school. 
Children are to come to school with their costumes over their uniform. Please bring a bag to store costume when finished. Our Halloween tag day will be on Tuesday. I ask any parents that stay for the party to please help assist children out of their costumes. This can be quite a hectic time. After the children are changed we will head outside on the playground (weather permitting ) to make good-byes a little easier. Children are welcomed to leave after the party. I know it is a big exciting day and you may want them to rest at home since they will be out late. Thank you all for signing up to contribute items to our party. We really appreciate your generousity! Please let me know if you have any questions.

October 25, 2018,

Picture re-takes are tomorrow. If you would like your child to have their picture taken please send me an email or a note in their folder. Thank you!

I realize the field trip payment process was confusing with the new Smart Tuition system. There are a number of chaperones that have still not paid. The cost of the trip was $13 for students and an addtional $13 for chaperones. This included admission and bus. I am truly sorry for the inconvenience and confusion.

Scholastic Flyers are going home today. Due date is November 9th. 

Today we read the story of Spookly the Square Pumpkin. After the story we created our own very yummy Spookly out of rice crispy treats. The children decorated their Spookly with orage icing and added eyes, a stem and a leaf. 

During circle time, we played a Halloween guessing game. I gave the children clues and they had to guess the Halloween object I was describing. This is such a good game to practice our listening skills. We also read the story of "Crakenstien". We spoke about how we all have our "Crakenstien" moments. We then played a Halloween freeze dance game on the smartboard.

Tomorrow we will be working on a color changing Science project and candy corn tasting.

October 24, 2018,
Justin with the letter Jar "C"

Using teamwork with a Halloween Puzzle

Exploring with a Halloween themed Playdough Tray

Playing in our Halloween themed Sensory Table.

Important news: The Hall will be closed for repairs starting on October 29th. There will be no hot lunch from October 29th to November 30th. We will have lunch in our classroom during this time.

Our Halloween party will be on October 31st. Mrs Ferris is working on a Sign up Genius for contributions to our party. Thank you! I will post more information about the parade/party this week.

During circle time I read two books about 5 Little Ghosts. The first story was about Ghosts that changed color when they ate a particular food. I used story props and the children had to predict what color the ghost was going to change. The second story was about ghosts playing tricks at school. We also took turns discussing our Halloween costumes.

For our center time we worked on writting the letter "C". The children used Q-tips and small pencils to make the letter formation. They also created a ghost out of a paper plate. This craft is hanging in our classroom. My friends also counted candy corn and put costumes on potato heads.

October 23, 2018,
Below are some pictures of our Pajama Day and Pet Parade:



In your child's folder you will find a consent for vision screening. The screening will be held on Wednesday, November 14th. This is a very simple test and easy for the children. The actual screening only takes a few seconds. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

It was such a beautiful day that we tried to spend a little extra time outside today.

We discussed the letter "C" during circle time. My friends helped Cathy the Cow name items that begin with the letter "C". It was also Justin's trun with the letter Jar. He brought in  items from home that begin with the letter. Great Job Justin! I then read the story Copy Cats. We then played a game where the children had to copy all of my actions.

During center time my friends made a cat out of the letter "c". We also completed the spot the dot and push pin activity for the letter. Other activities inculde a Halloween theme building Center, the children are making spider webs, haunted houses and pumpkin patches. Halloween puzzles, matching games and sorting are also available to explore.

Tonight is our Home and School's takeover at Cafe Napoli. Please try and support our school by either dinning in or taking out!

October 22, 2018,
Thank you to all of the chaperones that attended our Field Trip. The children all said that they had a wonderful time. We took turns talking about our favorite part of the trip during circle time today. We all really liked getting pumpkins and riding the special Disney bus. Thank you for helping us make our trip so successfull. Ms Kavanaugh and I really enjoyed spending time and getting to know all of you.

Mrs Murphy created a facebook group for our class. This is a great way to share pictures and communicate with each other. The group is: SJB Class of 2029 (current EC3A class)

We went on a pajama pet parade through the school. The children were so excited to spend the day with their special pets. I will post pictures soon. We said good bye to the letter "P" and began to discuss the letter "C". This is our fun Hallowwen theme. We use the letter "C" for costume and candy
Here are some pictures from our cooking and science experiments last week:
After we worked on our Scholastic Magazine about Pumpkin Science, we decided to test if a pumpkin really floats. We added water to our sensory table and then put in a pumpkin. Our pumpkin did not float at first. We decided we needed to add more water. We continued to add water until our Pumpkin floated. We also expolred the inside of the pumpkin. We kept a few seeds to dry out for planting.


We also completed a second science experiment using warm water and salt. We made a salt crystal pumpkin. The children are still observing the pumpkin and the way the salt crystals have formed. The pumpkin is on display at our science table.


Our cooking project this week was pumpkin patch dirt cups. My friends helped make dirt by crushing oreo cookies. We then stirred milk to make pudding. Once the pudding was finished we each made our own little pumpkin patch. We scooped pudding, then dirt and added a special worm and pumpkin. This project got a special thumbs up!





October 17, 2018,
Information about our Field Trip and a Special Tag day can be found in your child's folder.

This week we are still working on the letter "p" and having fun with Pets and Pumpkins.
We finger painted pumpkins

We worked on writting the Lettter "P"

We picked Pumpkins in our PumpKin Patch

We made pumpkins out of Playdough

We used teamwork to build a huge tower!

October 12, 2018,

We worked on various activites with the "5 Little Pumpkins" this week. I read the book and then we acted out the story with hand motions and flannel board props.

 

October 4, 2018,
This morning we were visited by firefighter Tim from the Wilmington Fire Department. He spoke to the children about how Firefighters are their friends and to not be scared. He dressed in full gear for the children and walked around the room giving each child a high five. We are so thankful that firefighter Tim took time to visit us today.

Our Saint of the week is Saint Francis. We spoke about how he is the patron Saint of Animals. We celebrated his feast day by saying a special prayer and making a St. Francis puppet.

We did a science experiment today. We made fireworks in a bottle. We used food coloring and oil. We observed the beautiful colors as I poured the two ingredients into warm water. We repeated the experiment with diffrent color combinations. 

During our circle time we palyed a fun game with STOP, DROP and ROLL. I also read the story My Mom is a Firefighter.

At our centers the children made a 5 little Firefighters craft out of their handprint. The children had fun together exploring with various firehouses, trucks and firefighters with the blocks.

Tomorrow is a half day with a 11:35 dismissal. Children will need a snack only. If your child is attending Eagles club...they will need a lunch and afternoon snack. Eagles club will do their best to follow our schedule and routine.

October 3, 2018,

For those of you that are having difficulty paying for the chaperone portion of the field trip. The link https://bngn.smarttuition.com/?id=4gqzcyp4a5g will take you immediately to the site for payment. I tried it myself this morning. You must click the green button until you get to the checkout screen. Please let me know if you are still having difficulties. 

During gym class the children played various games with balls and in Spanish they counted and learned words for different emotions. 

During circle time I read the story" Spot the Firehouse Dog". We also spoke about things that we safe and not safe to touch. We charted our responses.

My friends made a Dalmatian by fingerptinting spots during our center time. We also worked on cutting "thumbs up" by getting a firetruck to the fire. 

Tomorrow our class will have a visit from a fire fighter. We will also make a Firework in a bottle for our science experiment. 

October 2, 2018,
We went on a surprising adventure today. During our walk back from technology class we noticed big muddy footprints. We measured our feet to compare the size. We made a guess as to who's footprint it could be. We walked the same path and noticed the footprints disapeared. We found out at lunch that it was our maintance man who left the muddy footprints. This was a fun and very unexpected activity to tie in the letter "F".

During circle time Cooper shared all of the items he could find from home that began with the letter "F" for our letter Jar. Way to go Cooper! I also read the story "Fire Engines" and we sang our song and fingerpaly.

My friends sorted Fire Hats by color, counted spots on a dalmatian, used magnetic fire extiguishers to put out fires and created a fire truck during our center time.

October 1, 2018,
We had a fantastic begining to "F" week. Millcreek Fire Company visited us today after lunch. We had a chance to meet 3 firefighters, climb in a firetruck and learn all about how they are our friends and keep us safe.

During our clircle time I introuduced the letter "F". Freddie the Frog helped us name some objects that begin with the letter. I then read they story Fifi the Ferret's Flute. We played I spy and named some objects in the book that began with the letter "F". We also learned "10 Little Fire Fighters" finger play and sang the song "Hurry, Hurry Drive that Fire Truck"

Our dramatic play area has transformed to a fire station. My friends put out lots of fires today. We worked on making a fire fighter out of the letter "F" for our Alphabet book. At the sensory table , the children used spray bottles to squirt fire (Paper flames). They also completed the spot the dot and push pin activity. 

 

On Friday our class made butter and had a vegtable tasting to go with our Farm theme. Please take a look at all of the pictures from the week under the Photo tab. 

​​​​​​September 27, 2018,

RED wear day tomorrow for our class! No uniforms!

I am so proud of my friends. They did a super job in Church during our visit with the Bishop. We were in the church for about 45 minuites. My friends did so well singing and sitting quietly. When we came back into the classroom, we shared a group hug and a each enjoyed lollipop. 

I did not have a circle time today because of all the sitting we did in church. We did have centers and play in the classroom along with morning and afternoon recess.

I painted the children's hands to make horses and we created a cow out of a paper plate. 

Tomorrow we will be working on 2 science projects, making butter and vegtable tasting. We will be busy in the classroom.



September 26, 2018,

My friends did fantastic with our wild Wednesday (2 specials). We laughed that our animal train sure did take us on a lot of adventures today. 

During gym Mrs. Schock had the big screen set up for dancing. The children had so much fun dancing in the gym. I can tell this is going to be one of their favorite activites. In Spanish my friends counted to ten, worked on colors and the prayer "Our Father".

We had a short recess on the black top after Spanish class and on the playground after lunch once it dried in the hot sun.

During circle time today Meara shared all the items that begin with "H" she found from home. Way to go Meara! We read the stories 'The Big Red Barn" and "Piglet and Mama". Our question today was- Do you like the song: Old MacDonald? 10 friends said yes and 3 said No. Since there was more yes votes we sang the song using animal props.

For our center time the children painted chicks by using forks. We also used farm magnets and worked on simple AB patterns. The writing table has been very busy this week. So many of my friends are writing the letter "H".

​​​​​​Tomorrow morning we will be visiting the Bishop in the Church. Please take some time tonight to speak to your children about listening ears while we are in "God's House" thank you!
 

September, 20, 2018,

Happy Thursday! My friends became scientists as we explored apples and made them erupt. We used one red and one green apple for our experiment. I cut a hole in the Apple and the children took turns adding baking soda and vinegar. We then watched as the apple erupted. The children were so excited. We also took the seeds from the apple and placed then into wet paper towels. We are going to let them germinate over the wekend and plant them on Monday. They are at the Science table for my friends to explore.

During our circle time we learned about St. Anthony our patron saint of lost items. We played a game of hide and seek and watched a short You Tube video. I also read the Big book "Annie the Apple Farmer" We sang our apple songs and finger play.


The children painted with apple halves during center time. They also completed a search and find. We counted and sorted apples to number 5. We worked on a simple A/B pattern and used tweezers to add apples to an apple tree. This is a great activity to work on fine motor skills. 

Tomorrow we will use our apples form our classroom orchard to make applesauce.

See you all this evening for Back to School Night. 6:30 in our classroom (parents only). Please come directly to our building as the Main School building will be closed. Thank you

September 19, 2018,

Today was our very busy day with 2 specials.(Gym and Spanish) My friends did a fantastic job with all of our transitions today. I really am so proud of them. 

During our circle time I read the story "The Biggest Apple" and we learned a finger play "5 little apples" with a flannel board activity. Our question of the day was: Have you ever picked an apple? We graphed our responses.

The children painted an apple red, yellow and green using bubble wrap during our center time. We also played an Apple Picking ABC bingo game. My friends are really doing well recogonizing their letters. 

September 18, 2018,

What a fun day in ECP3-A! We started off our morning with Jacob sharing items from home that start with the letter "A" for our class letter Jar. Great job Jacob! We then had an apple tasting. We tasted green and red apples then graphed our favorite using stickers. The green apple seemed to be the class favorite. We spoke about how they tasted sweet and sour. 

We had technology class today. The children watched short video clips on "the letter "A" and apples.  After class we played outside with the chalk and monster trucks on the black top.

During circle time, I read the story "Im an apple". We discuused the life cycle of an apple, We then discussed our classsroom jobs, calendar and weather wall. We will start to do this same routine daily.

During our center time, the children sorted apples by color and counted apples up to number 5 for one to one coorespondence. Our Dramatic play area has been transformed to an apple orchard. The children went apple picking and weighed apples to be bought and sold at the market.
We also used stamps and q-tips to trace a letter "A" and created a tissue paper apple. They are displayed on our classroom windows. 


September 17, 2018,
I hope everyone enjoyed the beautiful weekend. My friends are doing so well with our morning routine. I am so proud of them. The good-byes are getting shorter and tear free. 

We started off our morning with music class. Mrs Wagner taught the children the song "Jesus Loves the Little Children". We will sing this song to the bishop during his visit.

I introduced our letter of the week "A" and apple theme today. We helped our friend Abby the aligator (puppet) name items that begin with the letter "A" using our letter jars. We then read the story "Abby's Adventure" and "Apples" We learned the song" Way up high in the Apple Tree"

During circle time we made an apple out of the Letter "A" for our alphabet book. (this will go home at the end of the year once all letter crafts have been completed). Our sensory table is filled with items to create an apple pie. This was a big hit with the children. We also worked on a push pinning and Spot the Dot activity for letter "A"


September 13, 2018,

The children looked fabulous for picture day! My friends did so well waiting for their turn to get their picture taken. I was so proud of them. 
After pictures and snack, we spent time outside playing with chalk on the black top. We made roads for our trucks. We even played a jumping and hopping game while counting to ten.

During circle time, I read the stories: "I'll Wait Mr Panda" and "Please, Mr Panda." We spoke about using manners and patience (which we had to use this morning with pictures). We made a coconut tree for "chicka chicka boom boom" and used stickers to spell out our name. Next week we will start working on name recognition by finding our name in the morning to sign in.

I have been slowly opening the centers in the classroom. This is so we all learn classroom rules and expectations. Today, the manipulative center opened. This was a big deal for my friends. The children did fantastic playing with a bin of toys and putting it away before they took out another.  Way to go!

September 12, 2018,

We had such a busy day! We made it to our first Gym class by 8:00 this morning! WOW! My friends transitioned very well. During gym, Mrs Schock played games with the children and had them running around the perimeter of the gym. She was so impressed with how well they did for their first class. After Gym we went to Spanish. The Children looked so cute sitting in the big desks. They were introduced to the "Our Father" in spanish and a few words. 

We celebrated Evan's Birthday during Lunch! Happy Birthday Evan!

During our circle time we read the story "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" and played a sound game to go along with the story. We worked on our Scholastic Magazine (In folder) as a class. My friends did so well following directions as a group. We watched a short video and played a game on the smartboard from the magazine.

We also enjoyed the weather and spent time outside on both playgrounds for morning and afternoon recess.

Picture day is tomorrow at 8:00. Please have your child to school early and ready for pictures. We have an early morning transition. Pictures are from the waist up so please have your child wear sneakers. Thank you for your cooperation.

We had our first Technology class this morning. My friends did amazing walking to the big building and up the stairs to class. Ms Luce was so impressed with how well the children listened and followed directions. 

During our circle time we read the story "Pete the Cat - I Love My White Shoes". and We played a "I spy color game". The children made a Pete the Cat by painting a small paper plate. they will be hanging in our classroom. We also played a Pete the Cat Groovy Button board game. This was a great game counting to the number 5 using one to one correspondance.

We played outside on the black top 2 times today. The children are playing so well with one another. It is so nice how fast friendships are forming among the class.

Our picture time has been moved to 8:00. Part time families please meet us in the Library with your picture form  by 7:55. thank you

September 10, 2018. 

We had our first Music class today! Mrs Wagner introduced my friends to scarves and sticks along with singing and dancing. 

We read the story "The Kissing Hand" during circle time. We spoke about how "Chester" the raccoon in the story was so sad and scared to go to school. His mommy kissed his hand so he would have a kiss to take with him to school. Whenever Chester was sad he could put his hand to his cheek and feel mommy's kiss.
We painted our hand and put our own special kiss inside. We also made a Chester the Raccoon craft that is on display in the hallway.
Our morning goodbyes are getting easier. My freinds are adjusting well. Please have your children finish their breakfast before entering school. It can be challenging when one Friend sees another eating. We have snack usually around 8:30. Thank you for your cooperation. 

Picture day is Thursday!
Picture forms are being sent home today in your child's folder. Please make sure they have this form or the online print out with them on Thursday.
If your child is a part time student and you would like them to get their picture taken, our picture time is scheduled for 8:30. You are welcomed to meet our class in the Library at this time. 

September 7, 2018,
What another great day! Our MWF friends started today! Everyone transitioned into the classroom well and began playing immediately after good-byes. I know it can be very difficult to leave your child when they are upset, but I promise you they become distracted right away and begin to play and have fun.

We had our first special today (Library). My friends did an amazing job walking in the "Big Building" to the Library. Ask them to show you how we walk in the hallway. (so cute) We walk with a finger on our lips and hand on our hips. This helps us to remember to stay quiet and keep our hands to ourselves while we walk. 

The children listened to a story and played a game "Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar" (this helped the teacher learn all of the children's names. (if you havent done so already please make sure your child has their name on the front of their shirt. thank you)
After Library we walked to visit the nurses office to visit with the nurse. I wanted the children to see the office so that if there was ever a reason for a visit they would not be scared.

We then took a walk around our school building to practice walking in a line behind a friend. We worked on walking on the crack of the side walk pretending it was a bridge and that there was water all around us. We even spoke about all of the sea life that might be in the water. The children had so much fun with this game they didn't even realize how well the were doing walking.

Once in the classroom we had a short circle time. We read the story "David Gets in Trouble" and charted poor choices and good choices. I held up a picture of a behavior (hitting, sitting on the carpet, quiet voice, pushing etc.) and my friends had to tell me if it was a good choice or poor choice. They did a great job!! Thumbs up! We then did some more playing in the classroom exploring more toys and painted a paper plate to make a David face that corresponded to our story.

We were able to go outside for morning and afternoon recess and use both playgrounds today. 
I will not be sending home crib sheets and blankets today because it was a short week. They will go home next Friday. 
Look for picture forms in your child's folder on Monday.

Have a great weekend!

September 6, 2018
We did it! We successfully completed our first day of school! My friends did such a fantastic job! There were a few tears this morining but the children transitioned nicely into playing and had a great day! 

The children had time to explore the classrom this morning while playing with playdough, cars, magnet blocks, kitchen and tool bench. Once we cleaned up the room (they are amazing helpers) we transitioned to our special animals on the carpet. We discussed a few classroom rules (after we clean up we always sit on our animal)  and then lined up on our animal train to use the potty. The bathroom today went well. My friends are very independant with their potty skills. After the potty, we ate snack. (please remember to label your child's snack). My friends sat at the table on their special animal chair and enjoyed their snack. We then went outside onto the "Big Playground" for about 10 minuites. Once the weather breaks we will enjoy more time outside. 

When we came back inside we had a short circle time. I read the story "No David" and we played a game with our special animals (to help us remember). I will slowly start to introduce more circle-time activites each day. We then moved onto more playing. The children made a special "David" craft to go along with our story. They are displayed on our classroom bulletin board.

The children did really well at lunch. We walked in a line, behind a freind,  staying on the sidewalk over to the lunch hall. The children did a great job sitting at the table waiting for all of their friends to finish eating. We did not have outdoor recess after lunch because of the heat. The children were happy to come back to the classroom to play. 

Before rest we used the potty, read  a Pete the Cat story and watched a short 10 minute Pete the Cat Video on our smartboard. My friends transitioned well into rest time. Please remember to bring in any item from home that will help with rest. Let me know if it is to be returned home at the end of the day.

Have a wonderful night!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!
Looking forward to a new adventure tomorrow.

               

Welcome to EC3-A. I, Ms Mekulski will be your child's teacher along with my para Ms Kavanagh. We have been very busy getting our classrrom ready for your arrival. I am so excited about this year and look forward to meeting you and your child at our small group orientations on Tuesday 9/4 and  Wednesday 9/5 . I will go over classroom and school information and answer any questions you may have about our upcoming year.

Please remember to bring:

 

• Child Information Sheet

• OWL ABOUT ME SHEET

• Change of Clothing (labeled with your child's name)

• Towel or blanket and crib sheet for rest (labeled with your child's name)

• 1 box of Tissues

• 1 clorox wipes

• 1 pack of wipes

 

BACKGROUND CHECK INFORMATION:

Anyone that is interested in participating in any school/class activities will need a background check (this include our loving grandparents that take part in our fun). I am including the steps needed to complete this check.  I ask that you take care of this ASAP.  I can not allow you to attend the first field trip if you are not given the OK. Each adult will need their own $30 check along with their own background check. If you have a background check please send an email to Mrs. Maltesta so she can update her information.

Contact person will be Marie Maltesta.  Please contact her at mmaltesta@sjbdel.org 
Send in a check for $30 made out to Saint John the Beloved.  Please send the check to Mrs. Albert in an envelope.  The envelope should be labeled BACKGROUND CHECK and who the background check is for. 
Once Mrs. Maltesta receives your check will be sent an email with the code and directions to complete your background check.   

I thank you for following through with this promptly.  The great thing is the background check is good for 5 years!!!  We have lots of fun activities planned and would love for you to be part of them!!! 

All school parents who wish to volunteer and participate in Field Trips, Field Days, Lunch/Recess Monitors, etc. must request a Background Check (if you have not already had one done).  Please submit your name, a $30.00 check made payable to "SJB", and your email address to Mrs. Marie Malatesta.  Her email ismmalatesta@sjbdel.org and her phone is 998-5525 ext. 205.