Thursday, November 17, 2016

NOVEMBER NEWS

Sorry for the delay in the delivery of this month's news due to technical problems. 

Nov. 18th - PD Day: No School.
                                                          

Our November focus in both English and French is "My Body"/ “Mon Corps”.  The five senses act as a doorway to the world for young children and this unit emphasizes the discovery of God's gifts through these mediums.  Students will have several opportunities to use their senses to explore their surroundings and to reflect on their observations.  Children's natural curiosity about themselves and how their bodies work will be reinforced throughout this unit.           
                                                        
In both the English and French classes we will be using songs, poems, stories and finger plays to introduce our monthly vocabulary, such as:

body/ corps     head / tête      nose/ nez            ears/ oreilles         eyes/ yeux

mouth/ bouche    knees/ genoux      shoulders/ épaules      the senses/ les sens   

touch/ toucher     smell/ odorat      taste/ goût      sight/ vue       hearing/ ouïe

Math focus includes patterning, counting and numeral recognition.  Science activities include a study of the body and how our 5 senses work. As part of the Religion program (In God’s Image) we will be giving thanks for our wonderful bodies.  Language activities include a focus on letter recognition and continued work on *printing our names using one upper case letter followed by lower case letters. (Please model and reinforce this* habit also at home.)
                                                                         
Recent changes in weather have made it necessary for the children to wear heavier outer clothing.  Dressing and undressing can be very challenging and stressful for young children.  In order to make these tasks a little more enjoyable, we will be teaching and singing a 'pants-boots-jacket' sequence song. 

Please note that MITTENS are put on LAST because children need their hands to complete dressing independently! Also, to promote self-reliance, please encourage your child to dress themselves at home and continue to teach them how to zipper or button their jackets. We request that children wear mittens (in lieu of gloves) as they are easier to put on and warmer.  For safety reasons, we also request that neck warmers be worn instead of scarves.  (*Just a reminder to please label all your child's clothing and boots.)
                                                                    
We will be having a 'Christmas Craft Day' on Thursday December 15th.  A request for volunteers will be sent home in a few weeks and we would love to have parents also join us on this day to sing a few Christmas songs after the craft (in lieu of performing in the Christmas concert).