Jan 12th 2009

Opening: Sing "Good Morning", Pledge of Allegiance, Calendar, Letter of the Week: P, Word of the Day: Pledge, Spanish Word of the Day: Paloma (Dove).

History: Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard. He was a pirate who was greatly feared. He would put Hemp in his beard and light the ends on fire so it looked like his beard was smoking. He did this during battle to intimidate his enemies.

English: Reading and Writing the following words, Pack, Pal, Pan, Pant, Park, Party, Pass, Pasta. Study poetry and try to write our own.

Science: Learn the different parts of a plant, Leaf, Petal, Node, Stem, Axil, Branch, Flower Stalk.

Reading:Pie Rats Ahoy! by Richard Scarry and Edward and the Pirates by David McPhail

Snack and Closing circle time: Play balance thingy, (we called it a foot puzzle). Play the piano. Sing favorite songs.

We had a lot of fun today! They always have a good time reading and writing the words. Lorien and Darius were especially impressed with how Blackbeard put rope in his beard and lit it on fire to scare people! We talked about poems and rhyming words. Then I had a bunch of words cut out that they could paste onto paper to make a "poem". It was pretty hard. So we ended up just making sentences. I thought it was a great activity that helped them read as well as think about how the words should fit together. Then I gave them each a paper with a diagram of a flower with the names of different parts of a plant written on them. I read a few of them allowed, then we went outside to find plants and the parts we had talked about. Darius found a part that we hadn't discussed, it was a bud. Since it isn't Spring yet we couldn't identify any flower petals. The balance thingy is called the Digger. It has five sides with different colors on each side and you play it like Simon Says. They each got a turn to play it. Of course it was the highlight of their day! I also showed them the piano and taught them how to make a thunder storm on it. Lorien was already accustomed to the piano and helped with the thunder. I showed Darius how to do the rain, but he didn't want to participate. After that Lorien pretended she was a Photographer and took Pictures of Darius, who tried not to be in the pictures.