April 2024

Our new theme is Veterinarian/Pets.  This extends some of the same roles and vocabulary from Hospital in new scenarios having to do with animals.  We will be having a Vet office, pet store, grooming area, and even a bakery for animal treats! 

The children will work on taking care of animals, training them, and even make them beautiful by grooming them! Some new vocabulary we will introduce is “Obedience”, “Grooming”, “Diagnosis” and “Humane Society”, along with various names of pets.

During our math block we play a game called “Remember and Replicate”.  It helps the children to develop their memory skills, use position words and also develop fine motor control.  You can play it at home with a little bit of play dough!!  You make something out of play dough and put it on a bit of paper/cardboard telling and showing your child where it is (for example:  I made a big ball and I am going to put it on the top of the paper).  Then you cover yours and ask them to make the same shape in the same location. You can add multiple shapes and harder positions as they get better at remembering!

Rhyming is a fun way to practice phonemic awareness and understanding word families – both great pre-reading skills.  Even on the way to school you can play a simple rhyming game.  You start by saying one word – like “CAT” – and tell your child to say as many words they know that rhyme with cat.  You can help out at first and then change to another rhyming “family” when you think you have got them all!!