What a great week we had as we wrapped up our Balls unit! The children had a blast exploring different types of balls—bouncing them, rolling them, sorting them by size and color, and even talking about professional sports that include balls along with famous players, such as Messi, Jokic, and other superstars! It was a wonderful way to explore physics and observation skills through fun activities – and to watch your littles enjoy the true joy of play.

What’s Coming Up Next Week: Exploring Trees! 🌳

Get ready to head outside and look up! Starting next week, we will begin our exciting new unit all about Trees! This unit is especially relevant as we see the leaves changing colors all around us.

This is a rich topic with so much to explore, and we will be focusing on several key questions, including:

• Where we can see trees (in our neighborhood, parks, forests, and even city sidewalks).
• What trees are (We’ll learn about the main parts: the hidden roots that drink up water, the sturdy trunk that holds them up, the branches that reach out, and the leaves/needles that make their food).
• How trees grow and change over the seasons and years. We’ll compare deciduous trees (those that lose their leaves, like maples) to evergreen trees (those that stay green all year, like pines).
• What lives in and on trees (We’ll explore the tree as a habitat for birds, squirrels, insects, and even moss and lichen).
• How different trees can be (We’ll compare their shape, size, bark texture, and the different kinds of leaves they have, from tiny needles to big, broad leaves).
• Why trees are important for our environment and how they are used (We’ll explore items made from trees and talk about the importance of conservation).

We plan to incorporate nature walks to collect leaves and observe bark patterns, art projects using leaf and bark rubbings, and reading lots of wonderful picture books about forests and the seasons. If you have any tree-related books at home, feel free to share them with your child this week to get them excited!

We are also looking for tree-related books, items, games, toys to borrow to make this unit extra special. If you have any items you think we could use to make preschool even more fun, feel free to do so. We will be collecting items next week and return them at the end of our unit. It would be a dream come true to have a small (child or toddler-sized) picnic table/benches with or without an umbrella – especially since we are hoping to set up a picnic space for our Dramatic Play Interest Area.

Halloween Party Reminder 🎃

Don’t forget that we will be having our Halloween Party on October 31st! It’s going to be a fun afternoon of games and treats. Our schedule will be the following: 

1:15-1:30: Change into costumes; food setup
1:30-1:40: Read Aloud
1:40-1:55: Snack
1:55-2:35: Activities (small groups of students will rotate); food clean up
2:40: Dismissal
2:45: Coronado Elementary School Halloween Parade – you are welcome to participate!

A friendly reminder that the Signup Genius for treats and volunteer help is now active. Your help makes these events extra special for the children.

We wish you all a safe and restful weekend, and we look forward to seeing everyone on Monday!

Kindly,

The Preschool Team