Giving Thanks

Today we read the book Giving Thanks by Chief Jake Swamp of the Mohawk Nation.  The words are taken from an ancient Iroquois prayer.  The book beautifully expressed gratitude for all of the gifts of nature.  After we read the book the children wrote their own page for our classroom version of Giving Thanks.   It is helpful to cultivate an attitude of gratitude:-)

Winter Program ~ Friday, December 20 ~ 10:00 a.m.

El Día y La Noche

The Day and The Night
An Abington Friends Lower School Winter Program
Friday, December 20, 2013 ~ 10:00 a.m.
Abington Friends School Muller Auditorium

~ Winter Program Concert Attire ~
All children, 3 years old through Grade 4 should dress in black shirts, long, black pants, and comfortable shoes.  Children are welcome to add a white accessory as a way to connect to our program theme (a white bowtie, white hair accessory, a white scarf, etc.)  We encourage children to be creative with this choice!  All children are encouraged to bring their concert attire clothing to school on Thursday prior to the program.  Children will be given the opportunity to change at school on Friday morning prior to the 10 a.m. performance.

Please note that all children will be involved in movement activities on stage and should wear pants and comfortable shoes (no heels please).  In addition, we ask that third and fourth graders wear black socks for their movement performances.

We look forward to celebrating our accomplishments with you on

Friday, December 20^th in our Muller Auditorium beginning at 10:00 a.m.

If you have any questions, please contact Aedín Larkin, alarkin@abingtonfriends.net or Jason Novak, jnovak@abingtonfriends.net.

Shining Pennies

Here are a few photos from our latest chemistry experiment in Kindergarten.  Is there any way to clean a penny once it gets dull over time?  That's the question that the Kindergarten students set out to answer last week.  We tried four different solutions to see if we could bring a shine back to our pennies.  Three of our solutions didn't work, but it was exciting when our last combination of vinegar, water and salt worked and made our pennies look new again!  Take a look on the experiment page of my blog if you'd like the recipe.  I'll post it there so you can try it at home.

Los Colores

In the last couple of classes we have studied los colores (colors) and what some of the objects, animals and food that we can find with those colors: manzana roja, pollito amarillo, pez azul (red apple, yellow chicken, blue fish).

Writer's Workshop

During Writer's Workshop the children rotate through a variety of skill building activities.  At this age, children are filled with curiosity and an eagerness to learn.  When we introduce activities to them it is in this spirit of excitement and fun.

                                             Exploring Letter Blocks - Builds letter recognition and decoding skills                                                  and phonemic awareness (symbol-sound correspondence)

                                           Journal Writing -  Builds fine motor, letter formation, and decoding skills                                              and  phonemic awareness

                                          Handwriting - Builds letter formation and fine motor skills and phonemic                                             awareness

                                          Reading Books - Builds letter recognition, word recognition,  and decoding                                           skills and phonemic awareness


Remember to find time to read to your child as they lie in bed or sit on your lap.  It is an experience that you both will treasure forever, and it helps them to cultivate a love of literature!

Lots of chocolate...

Estimados Padres (Dear Parents),

You should have received a couple of flyers in the Friday Folders about an event that's taking place this coming Friday, Nov. 22nd. More detail is in the flyers we sent but I also wanted to encourage you through this blog to take your children, if possible, to this cultural event related to Spanish classes. I think they will enjoy it very much. We have also managed to get you, the parents, a 50% discount on adult tickets as long as you show the flyer with my name one it. Feel free to email me if you have any questions: ebermudez@abingtonfriends.net

El Escondite

We are continuing our subject of los números with the game El Escondite (hide-and-seek) as a way to reinforce counting numbers from 10 until 20. As a request from students and teacher, this week we will sing and dance to "Conga, Conga". I will also teach them a new game as a way to relax and transition into our next subject: colores (colors).

Science Seed Party!

During our seed study, a lot of students asked if we could eat the seeds we were working with.  Our seed mosaics were made from a lot of beans and seeds that you see in the grocery store.  We decided it would be fun to try eating some of those seeds.  So, today we had a seed and bean party!  We had black beans, black-eyed peas, 16 bean soup, lentil stew, split pea soup, edamame, kidney beans, baked lima beans, pomegranate seeds, popcorn, flax seed chips and sesame seed crackers.  It was a real seed and bean feast!  Students were adventurous and tried all of the different beans and seeds, and even went back for seconds.  It was a great culminating event for our study of seeds this fall.

Skills Development in Kindergarten

Here are a few snapshots of the children engaging in fun activities that incorporate a range of social/emotional, literacy, and mathematical skills development.

Shelby's Dad, Gordon, came to kindergarten as a seed expert and taught us about all of the great foods that come from seeds.  He also taught us about all the different ways seeds travel before they turn into new plants and flowers!  Here the children are taking turns picking out a chestnut seed.  During this time tey practiced the important literacy skills of listening to Gordon, and then speaking when they asked questions and offered comments.  They also practiced cooperating with each other as they took turns.

Comparing, estimating, and measuring with Squash

Number recognition, number formation, and fine motor skills.

Writing about seeds - letter formation, letter recognition, phonemic awareness, fine motor skills

It is a pleasure to be in partnership with you all in helping your children develop their skills while maintaining their curiosity, creativity, excitement for learning, and their core goodness.