Valentine’s Day is Friday, Feb. 14! We will play some games, along with passing out valentines to friends. We have been learning the days of the week and months of the year in Spanish with Ms. Christina and in Japanese with Ms. Ayako. We will check out French (love language), too.
We will practice how to say “I love you” in Spanish, Japanese and French. Spanish is “Te quiero,” Japanese is “Watashi wa, anota o aishiteimasu,” and French is “Je t’aime.” Our mystery bag will have objects with the beginning sound of H. There will be seven different color hears on the flannel board that the children can rearrange and use to work on their colors. Our shape this month is a heart.
For science, we will mix up a borax recipe, then watch like scientists and observe crystals grow into sparkly hearts! We also will mix up some foam for our sensory bin. For art, we will collage guitars inspired by Picasso. He had many pieces with guitars.
Songs & Fingerplays
I’m a Little Valentine
(To the tune of “I’m a Little Teapot”
I’m a little valentine
Red and white.
With ribbons and lace,
I’m a beautiful sight.
I can say, “I love you”
On Valentine’s Day.
Just put me in an envelope
And give me away.
My Special Friend
(To the tune of “London Bridge”)
My valentine is red and white,
Red and white, red and white.
My valentine is red and white.
It’s for a special friend.
Can you guess my special friend,
Special friend, special friend?
Can you guess my special friend?
Did you guess? It’s you!
Won’t You be a Friend to Me
(To the tune of “London Bridge”)
Won’t you be a friend to me?
A friend to me? A friend to me?
Won’t you be a friend to me?
And I’ll be your friend, too!
Finger Rhyme
I put my hands together. This is how I start…. I curve my fingers right around, and I can make a
heart!
Do You Know My Valentine?
(To the tune of “Do You Know the Muffin Man”)
Do you know my valentine, my valentine, my valentine? Do you know my valentine? Their name
is ______.
Felt Board
I have seven kisses that I want to give away.
Who should I kiss this Valentine’s Day?
I think I’ll kiss my _____.
(Fill in with Mommy, Daddy, Grandpa, Grandma, Brother, Sister, Dog & Cat. I also have seven
fuzzy stuffed animals I will pull out of a basket to kiss.”
Primary Classroom Move Ups
Several of our toddlers will move to the Primary level in the fall. We will begin visitations/orientations to the next classroom level in the coming weeks. Please schedule a visit to observe both of our Primary classrooms so if you have a preference for a specific room for your child, you can request that space.
The Toddler Community
Dr. Montessori’s discovery of the absorbent mind of the child from birth through age 6 was a vital contribution to education. She realized that the child’s mind unconsciously absorbs impressions from the environment. In this way, the children accumulate the material, which will later build up their conscious life.
In the Toddler community, the major task of the adult is to help the child toward functional independence: physical, emotional, and intellectual. As the adult enables the child to recognize him/herself as separate from the adult, the child begins to gain a clearer sense of self. Through activities that help the child develop control, the child gains greater self-confidence.
The child at this age is especially sensitive to the acquisition of language and culture. Lessons involving stories, books, songs, picture cards, objects and contact with the natural world are all incorporated into the curriculum to help develop the child’s oral language. Since this is usually the child’s first contact with other children, this is also a time for them to learn how to participate cooperatively in a group. Social harmony is achieved through helping the children learn how to move purposefully, put materials away and not interfere with another’s activity.
Primary Environment
It is between the ages of 3-6 that the child most easily learns the ground rules of human behavior. These years should be constructively devoted to freeing the child through the acquisition of good manners and habits to allow him/her a place in society. The child who has had these opportunities in the Montessori environment is better prepared to devote more effort to the development of his intellectual faculties. In an established Montessori class for 3-6-year-olds, there are no timetables to regiment activities or a fixed syllabus to cramp the expansion of the mind. Here, in an orderly atmosphere of freedom, the children work independently at chosen tasks, working at their own pace and rhythm for as long as they wish to fulfill their needs. From the foundation of sensorial experiences, the child builds his mind in the world of abstract ideas.
The Primary years are filled with a wide range of factual materials. The whole world of culture-embracing subject areas, such as geography, history, science, music, art, language and mathematics, is open to the child. These early experiences will form a basis for the wide fields of inquiry and research during the 6-12 years.
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