Community Helpers Reporting for Duty

Unit of Inquiry and Language 

From patrolling traffic all the way to letter writing, Preschool focussed on learning about some of the important members in our community and had a lot of fun in doing so (and of course so did their teacher!). 

The week started off with Preschool inquiring about Police Officers and all the jobs that these important Community Helpers are in charge of. They brainstormed a long list including: catching robbers, protecting us from bad guys and driving in fast cars. 

Without further ado it was time for Preschool to put themselves into a police officer's shoes and no police officer would be ready for duty without their police officer identification. On Monday, Preschool became a police squad, was fingerprinted and sent outside to practise directing each other just like a real police squad! They did an excellent job and understood how important their roles were! 

DESK Police Department 

Mail Carriers 

Feeling pretty confident about their police officer skills, Preschool moved on and started to learn about mail carriers. They inquired about their work place, what they do and how they carry out their tasks. To take a closer look at the complex world of mail, Preschool practised writing letters and got to visit the post office, in order to mail their letters to their pen-pals in Switzerland at the International School of Rheinfelden. They saw how the letter was registered, weighed and stamped, ready to be delivered. 

Letter writing 

Maths 

In maths, Preschool continued to practice subtraction, gaining more confidence in their ability to solve problems and understand concepts. 

Cooking 

Cooking this week, was different to other weeks, instead of getting messy with many ingredients and turning on the oven, Preschool constructed their own gingerbread houses. This tied in nicely with our work on communities as well! 

Reminders 

• This Monday (November 30th) will be the last swimming lesson of the year. 

• Cooking will take place on Friday,  December 4th this week instead of Wednesday. So please send in their containers on Friday. 

• Semester 2 will start December 7th, 2015, please check the blog later this week for the new timetable. 

• Monday, December 7th, Preschool will be presenting their summative assessments. This will be in the form of a "Living Museum," where students will choose one Community Helper to become. If you would like to come, this will be taking place period 7 at 15:30 on December 7th, in the Preschool classroom. I will put another reminder in next week's blog! 

• Starting on Tuesday, Preschool will have a new student coming to the class. A very warm welcome goes to her and her family! 

• Show&Tell- if students could bring in something that shows a job they are interested in (this can be something they want to do or like). 

Have a wonderful weekend! 

Sabina Michelotti

We are all part of a community!

The days are getting shorter and I feel that time is passing faster and faster. Whilst still adjusting to the temperature drop, the warmth of the Preschool Classroom is definitely making it more bearable. I apologise for not posting last week and really appreciate that you all remembered to send in Show&Tell regardless. 

Unit of Inquiry

Preschool spent a lot of time working on their speaking and listening skills, doing an excellent job of identifying different ways in which they help at home and then acting them out to the class.

Helping with the cooking

Helping to build furniture in the house 

Helping to wash clothes and fold laundry 

They gained insight into the different roles people have in their own and their friends' families by looking at the family trees. Thank you for preparing those, they were all very proud to share!

From families, we moved to the classroom community and to the wider school community. By taking a tour of the school, Preschool identified a number of individuals who play an important part in the smooth running of the school. They were quick to realise that each member has more than just one job and that they belong to more than just one community!

Some of the people that make up and help in our school community. 

We finished creating our own Community, and it looks great, it is on display in the classroom if you wish to pop by and see their hard-work. 

Preschool created their own community with much creativity. 

Language

Since the half-term break, the pace of Preschool's Language development has really picked up. They have been able to play with words, practise speaking and play games to reinforce their learning, work with nouns and practise their letters as well as read and start to write their own simple sentences! I am extremely pleased with their progress!

November (sang to the tune of "Oh My Darlin' Clementine) 

Leaves are falling, winter's calling. 

We are thankful for our friends

NOVE-M-BER 

It's November once again. 

Maths 

These past two weeks, Preschool continued to practice adding numbers, impressing me with their ability to add big numbers.  We started looking at subtraction, which  is proving to be slightly more difficult but we are just warming up to it.

Cooking 

After a few parents have asked me for the recipes, I will start posting them on the blog, so that they are here for everyone. The ones we already did will be compiled in a book and I will send those out to you (aiming for before the break).

Ham and Cheese Muffins (last week's recipe) 

This was big hit with the Preschoolers, extremely easy to make, allowing them to take charge!

Ingredients (makes approximately 16 muffins)

300g white flour
100g ham (cubed)
200g Greek yoghurt
1dl milk
1.25 dl sunflower oil
4 heaped tbsp of grated cheese
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
season to taste (e.g. pepper and herbs)

Instructions

1) Preheat the oven to 200°C.

2) Add all the ingredients up to and including the baking powder. Mix well (approximately 2 minutes) with the mixer, until you have smooth, thick dough.
3) Add salt and season to taste.
4) Place dough in muffin tins.
5) Bake for 20 minutes in the middle of the oven.
6) Allow to cool on a rack before serving.

Reminders

• There will be NO swimming this coming Monday (November 23rd). Preschool will have regular P.E lessons instead, so please send in their P.E kits. 

• Show&Tell on Tuesday is free choice, so they can bring anything they wish to share with the class. 

• If you could send in tissue boxes for the class again, as we have gone through the boxes that you sent in at the start of the year, I would be most grateful. 

• Most of the students have run out of glue, so if you could provide them with new glue sticks. 

• Thank you for sending in the milk cartons, our finished community looks great! 

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to email me. 

Wishing you all a lovely and restful weekend. 

Sabina Michelotti

...and just a few more pictures of Preschool enjoying some playtime after swimming at the park!