Georgia's Pre-K Program teacher newsletter, Vol. 3, Issue 3 (Nov. 2006)

November 2006

NOVEMBER IS PACKED FULL OF FUN
Your Refrigerator Day

Bright From The Start Georgia's Pre-K Program
Teacher Newsletter

Who knew November would be so busy! November is... Good Nutrition Month Peanut Butter Lover's Month International Drum Month Georgia Pecan Month Diabetes Awareness Month PLUS~ National Children's Book week is the third week in November.
Be sure to promote reading and plan some special activities for your children and families.

And the list keeps going!
Nov. 1--National Family Literacy Day, National Author's Day, Men Make Dinner Day
Nov. 2--National Deviled Egg Day, Cookie Monster's Birthday
Nov. 3--National Sandwich Day
Nov. 5--National Donut Day
Nov. 7--Election Day, Hug a Bear Day
Nov. 8--Try A New Recipe Day, National Parents as Teachers Day, X-Ray Discover Day (1895)
Nov. 9--Parade Day
Nov. 11--Veteran's Day, National Young Reader's Day
Nov. 12--Moms and Dads Day

Nov. 17--Homemade Bread Day, World Peace Day Nov. 19 Mickey Mouse's Birthday Nov. 21--Pumpkin Pie Day Nov. 23--Thanksgiving Day Nov. 26 National Cake Day
Have fun with these by planning your own celebration or finding activities in your community!!!
Bright from the Start offices will be closed on November 23 and 24 in observance of Thanksgiving Day.

Volume 3 Issue 3
November 2006
Special points of interest:
Vocabulary Development Turkey ideas Songs and finger plays Writing in Pre-K Bakery

Nov. 13--World Kindness Day Nov. 14--National Clean Out

What are you thankful for?

VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT

Remember it is very important to be constantly introducing new words to children. Vocabulary can be displayed on chart paper or on sentence strips. Be sure to include a picture or symbol to go along with each word. Try this idea: Collect photo albums (the free ones you receive when you have pictures developed are great). A small index card fits perfectly in the slots where

you would normally put pictures.

Add topical vocabulary with

Also, consider this idea: download

simple illustrations (drawing, seasonal or topical clip-art from

photo, sticker, clip-art, etc.) to your computer and add the word or

blank index cards. Insert the phrase at the bottom of each page

cards in the blank pages. Use that describes the art. Compile

the front page to title your

the pages in a three ring notebook,

collection of vocabulary words. using plastic page protectors for

If you begin to do this regu- longer life. These are fun to make,

larly, soon you will have a di-

and you can keep and add to them

verse collection of vocabulary over time.

you can use year after year.

Contact information:
Pre-K Consultant of the Day 404-656-5957 888-4GA-PREK
Suspension/Disenrollment Dana Evans 404-463-0009 Dana.Evans@decal.state.ga.us
RC Program Lori Smith 478-471-5311 Lori.Smith@decal.state.ga.us

TURKEY TALK

This is a great time to talk turkey with your children. Introduce turkeys to your children by sharing facts. Draw a picture of a turkey or have a picture of a real turkey (or both) and then label the turkey's parts. Great new vocabulary will be introduced! Be sure to label the following: beak, feathers, caruncles (fleshy growths of skin found on head and neck of turkey), snood (growth of skin above its beak), wattle (piece of skin hanging from a turkey's throat), beard, and spurs. Here are some other turkey facts: A male turkey is called a tom or a gobbler. A female turkey is called a hen. A newly hatched turkey is called a poult. Turkeys feed along the ground, pecking for acorns, berries, seeds, insects, nuts, and mushrooms. They roost in trees to sleep.

Some books about turkeys and Thanksgiving: Sometimes It's Turkey, Sometimes It's Feathers by Lorna Balian A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting `Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey One Tough Turkey: A Thanksgiving Story by Steven Kroll Farmer Goff And His Turkey Sam by Brian Schatell Thanksgiving At The Tappletons' by Eileen Spinelli Thanksgiving Treat by Catherine Stock Albert's Thanksgiving by Leslie Tryon Daisy's Crazy Thanksgiving by Margery Cuyler Thanksgiving At Our House by Wendy Watson A Visit To Grandma's by Nancy Carlson

More Vocabulary Development
As you continue to "talk turkey", introduce other vocabulary for this time of year. Some vocabulary you might want to include: Pilgrim, Mayflower, passenger, king, Native Americans, tools, plant, hunt, build, hungry, harvest, corn, squash, pumpkin, deer, family, relatives, buffet, travel.
Any others you can think of?

SOME TURKEY IDEAS TO ADD AT CENTERS

Feather Match: You will need paper plates, dot stickers, clothespins and colored feathers. Begin by drawing or pasting a turkey face in the middle of a paper plate. Stick dot stickers around the top edge of the plate. Color each dot a different color. Color the end of the clothespins the same color as each of the dots. Glue a corresponding feather to each of the clothespins. Store the clothespins in a plastic bag, small can or basket. The children can clip the colored clothespins to the corresponding dot on

the turkey! You can create different versions of this game using letters or numbers. Be sure to make more than one of each!
Feather Number Match: You will need 10 Turkey cut-outs. Be sure to laminate for durability. Enter a number 1-10 on each of your turkeys. Add 55 feathers with your turkeys. Store the turkeys and the feathers in a plastic bag, can or basket. The children can read the numbers and then add the correct number of feathers!

It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge. Albert Einstein

SONGS AND FINGERPLAYS

GOBBLE, GOBBLE SONG (tune: "Pop Goes the Weasel")
A turkey is a funny bird, His head goes wobble, wobble.
He knows just one funny word...
It's Gobble, Gobble, Gobble!

Mr. Turkey (Tune: "If You're Happy and You Know It")
Hello, Mr. Turkey, how are you? (snap, snap)
Hello, Mr. Turkey, how are you? (snap, snap)
With a gobble, gobble, gobble, And a wobble, wobble, wobble, Hello, Mr. Turkey, how are you?
(snap, snap)

Turkey Pokey (tune: "Hokey Pokey") You put your right wing in, You put your right wing out, You put your right wing in, And you shake it all about. You do the turkey pokey And you turn yourself aroundThat's what it is all about!
Replace bold print with: left wing, beak, right spur, left spur, tail feathers

Volume 3 Issue 3

Page 2

WRITING IN PRE-K
Rather than using worksheets, provide writing opportunities that are varied and meaningful for the children. Writing progresses in stages from scribbles, to random letter formation, to copying words, to writing independently. Each child in the Pre-K classroom will be at a different stage of development.
Writing in Pre-K should occur naturally because skills develop over a period of time. Work sheets and tracing activities are not appropriate for instruction in a Pre-K classroom.
Before children can write, they must develop fine motor skills. Fine motor skills need to be practiced often in the Pre-K classroom. Be sure to provide fine motor activities for children on a daily basis.
It important that teachers model writing throughout the day, periodically discussing why it important to know how to write. It is also important that children be given daily opportunities to write in the classroom and that writing materials are interesting, abundant and, rotated often.
Here are some ways to offer children daily opportunities to write:
(1) Start a sign-in practice. You can begin this experience by explaining that teachers have to sign-in every day when they get to the school so that their "boss" will know they are there. You can then say, "I think that is a good idea, so I am going to have a place for you to sign-in every day when you arrive so I will know you are here." When you develop something for the children to sign-in on, please do not have them trace their name. Simply have a model of their name written in the correct form (upper and lower case) for them to look at if they want to. From these sign-in sheets, you will begin to see the progress the children are making. You must be willing to accept each child's individual signature even if letters are written incorrectly, out of order, or reversed. Remember that your goal is to establish a reason for the children to write, and that these are all acceptable stages of writing for young children.
(2) When you complete work in your class-

room simply say, "You know, I need help remembering whose paper is whose, so please write your name on your paper so I can remember." Again, accept what they write.
(3) Children can sign-up for a turn on the computer or at the paint easel
(4) Children can write a message on the daily message board.
(5) Children should have access to a wellequipped writing center daily--see our website for writing center ideas if you need them.
(6) For class graphs, have children sign their name on a post-it note and then post under their choice.
(7) Children should have access to writing materials in every learning area
(8) Set aside a time for children to write in journals.
(9) Set-up experiments for the children, and have them "record" what happened.
While all this is taking place, the teacher is constantly modeling for the children how and why we write. The teacher models on the morning message board, chart stories, graphs, dictations, etc. Every time the teacher writes, he/she should model appropriate writing skills and correct letter and sentence form.
Teachers can also create portable writing centers for children. Try filling a pocket book, a tool box, a tackle box, a make-up bag or kit, a small suitcase, a briefcase or a tool apron with writing materials. Introduce the portable writing concept to the children and suggest they take it anywhere they want. You can also send the kits home with parents when the need arises or if you know a child would like to use it in their home.
Make writing fun and exciting in your classroom. Add new vocabulary words, stickers, cool pens and pencils, colored and shaped papers, cards, stamps, envelopes, etc. If you are excited about writing, your enthusiasm will carry-over to the children.
If you would like more ideas about writing in Pre-K, please visit our website and look under PreK/Teachers/PQA Resources/Language and Literacy/Reading and Writing in Pre-K.

A teacher affects eternity: he can never tell where his influence stops.
Henry Adams

Volume 3 Issue 3

Page 3

TURN AN AREA OF YOUR ROOM INTO A BAKERY!

Nov. 2 is Cookie Monster's Birthday. Nov. 17 is Homemade Bread Day. Nov. 5 is National Donut Day. Nov. 26 is National Cake Day, and of course... Nov. 23 is Thanksgiving, which begins the holiday baking season. Why not turn an area of your room into a bakery? Here are some items you could add:
Baking pans--all shapes and sizes
(muffin, loaf, pizza, pie, etc.)
Baking utensils: spatulas, spoons, egg
beaters, rolling pins, bowls, egg separator, timer, hot pads and gloves, whisk, measuring spoons and cups
Baking tools-- electric mixers, blenders
(be sure to cut off the cord)
Aprons and chef hats
Cookie cutters
Empty spice containers
Empty baking boxes and containers ,
empty egg or milk cartons
Flour or sugar canisters

Cup cake liners, wax paper, alumi-
num foil
Pretend plastic look-alike cook-
ies, cakes and muffins
Recipe books, magazines, cards Trays Cake decorating books and maga-
zines
Cake decorating supplies Cash register and pretend money Pads and pencils

I Can Be A Baker by D. Lillegard, Chicago Children's Press Ruth's Bake Shop by Kate Spohn A Visit to the Bakery by S. Ziegler Tony's Bread by Tomie dePaola
Be sure to introduce the center and its materials. Pick up some menus from local bakeries. Be sure to discuss any new vocabulary with the children.

You can name your class' bakery and create a sign with the help of your children. Be sure to pull in your oven, sink and refrigerator if you are not using your house area to create your bakery. You can create a pretend oven by using a large appliance box.
You can kick off your bakery activities by reading some books about baking. Try some of these titles:

CONNECTING ACTIVITIES--BAKERY

Four-year-old children learn best by connecting activities from the world around them. It is always good to have a variety of activities related to any topic of study in your classroom. Here are some activities you might want to try to expand your children's learning: 1. Have a cake maker, cake
decorator or baker visit your classroom. 2. Visit a local bakery (or your school kitchen). 3. Organize cooking activities. 4. Create a class cookbook. 5. Find pictures, books, and web pages about bakeries.

6. Have children create advertisements for the baked goods on at their bakery.
7. Host a real bake sale--in your class bakery!
8. Create a menu for your class bakery. Be sure to include prices.
9. Have children find food for baking or baked goods in the local advertisements from the newspapers.
10. Let children decorate their own cookies or cupcakes.
11. Add cookie cutters and rolling pins to play the dough center for pretend play.
12. Add recipe cards and cookbooks to the writing area.

How to evaluate the effectiveness of your bakery center and activities?
1. Are children talking about the bakery and related activities?
2. Are children creating their own recipes?
3. Are children reading books and asking questions about bakeries and baking?
4. Are children role-playing in the bakery?
5. Are children participating in reading and writing activities related to baking?