Spring Break Fun

As Spring Break is coming in just a few weeks (March 17-21) here are some suggestions and activities to keep your kids engaged and learning until school resumes on March 24.

• Starfall is a website and app that the students enjoy every week 

• Have a StayCation: take a day off of work and spend your day somewhere around the city with your kiddos. Maybe try a zoo, new ice cream store, bike ride, picnic at a park. Something fun and different without having to spend much money.

• There are a lot of YouTube channels that we have used in class some days, here are some suggestions that you can type into the YouTube search bar: 
• RalphsWorldVideo, TheLearningStation, KidsTV123, HooplaKidz
• You could also search YouTube for books we have read this year, some are Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Pete the Cat, Glad Monster Sad Monster, or Chicka Chicka 123

• Get outside and get some sunshine! Go on a nature walk and see what interesting things you can find, have a lemonade stand, bring a color checklist on your walk and try to find every color in nature, use twigs to make letters and numbers, play a made-up version of kickball at a local park, try walking around the block backwards or sideways, or go out in the rain! 

• Check out this website for free app suggestions. I have used a few myself and would recommend you try them out as well!

• Take a trip to the library and cuddle up in a corner reading for a few hours. Try finding different genres of books, maybe some without words so you and your child can make up a story to match the pictures.

The point is: have some fun and stay engaged doing a variety of activities! If you have babysitters encourage them to get the kids moving and not on technology all day long. Take some pictures or do some artwork and bring it in for show-and-tell the following week. I can't wait to hear stories!

Pete the Cat

Our book for the week is Pete the Cat! This is a fun story that teaches our students to be ok with change. Pete is a cat who has some favorite shoes, but the shoes keep changing colors depending after he steps in blueberries, strawberries, mud, and water. But every time they change colors, Pete decides it is going to be ok!

We did a fun project to help the students understand the story. They got to put on a pair of Crocks, step in different colors of paint, and walk on the paper. Some students had trouble walking, but we were by their side the whole time. Doing unique activities takes time out of the day but it is beneficial for them to try new things! Here is a picture of our project.

We also made our own Pete cats using a lot of different shapes, and we colored paper to make different colored shoes! These should be coming home sometime in the next few weeks.

Class Projects!

Over the next few weeks our students will be completing some creative art projects to relate to upcoming books. I'm getting excited for these weeks! Doing unique projects allows our students to get used to a larger variety of activities, and it encourages language and social development.

If you could supply any of the following items for these projects, please send them to school with your student at any time. It would be terrific if every student could bring a few items by the week of April 7.

• Gallon jugs (from milk, OJ, etc.)
• Toilet paper rolls
• Paper towel rolls
• Plastic or styrofoam cups
• Brown paper bags
• Cardboard boxes, any size
• Newspapers
• Magazines

Also continue to read the red slips sent home when your child needs more personal items such as diapers, clean clothes, or specific snack food. Our day runs much more smoothly when students have what they are used to! Thank you for your help!

Fun Videos!

Our class has great appreciate for music, and how much we can learn during songs! We always find songs to teach specific skills each week. Here are a couple class favorites that we wanted to share. 

This first video specifically went along with both Chicka Chicka weeks as we read about letters and numbers going up and falling down the trees. Learning the different between up and down is an important developmental skill for our students to learn, and I would encourage you to watch the video with them at home!

The next video is perfect for practicing counting, and identifying numbers 1-10. Being able to count all ten numbers without needing help is an important skill we have been focusing on during Chicka Chicka 123 week, and weeks where we practice counting and sorting apples. Encourage your children to practice counting all throughout the day!

All About Emotions

This week our focus is on emotions. We are reading the book Glad Monster, Sad Monster. This book explores lots of different emotions, how these emotions make us feel, and how we might look when we experience these different emotions. 

For children with Autism, identifying and understanding emotions is harder to do. However, emotions can be taught, and it is best to start exploring and learning about emotions at a young age. This week we practiced making monster emotion puppets, and matched emotions drawn onto different balloons. 

There are also a variety of iPad apps that can assist students in learning about emotions. This website has a few suggestions about apps that teach emotions; we use "Touch and Learn - Emotions" in our class.

Chicka Boom and Alphabet Fun

This video is one of our class' favorite videos to watch during Literacy Circle. Abby's Alphabet Soup is a different take on the alphabet, and helps our students learn the sounds that each letter makes.

 

Practicing letter sounds fit's perfectly with this week's theme: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom! This book seems to be a favorite every year. This week we have practiced matching letters and identifying our names through games, crafts, Smartboard activities, and even matching letters on balloons. Here is a picture of one craft we did to hang on the wall.

Winter Events and Family Fun

As the ice and snow pick up, here are some ideas for what to do with your kids at home. 

-Build a puzzle, even make your own

-Make snowmen with marshmallows

-Bake some cookies for a neighbor or friend

-Put pieces of bread on the snow for the birds

-Write letters in the snow or on windows

-Count ornaments as you put them on a tree

And don't miss out on these winter events and important dates!

Dec. 6 Family Fun Movie Night - Elf!

Dec. 13 Winter Wonderland School Concert, featuring choir and orchestra

Dec. 16 Dads and Donuts monthly morning gathering

Dec. 18 Report Cards (Second Quarter) sent home

Dec. 20 Winter break starts after school!

Jan. 3 Third Quarter begins

For more information, check the school website by clicking here.