PRIMARY Room 9

Back to School

Summer Recap: Aloha, My name is Mallorie Kahanu and I am the new teacher for Room 9! I have a little over four years of Montessori experience and am very excited to start this new chapter with you! In August we learned about different farm animals such as chicken:

1. We learned that these birds eat seeds, insects, and they also eat larger prey like small mice and lizards
2. We learned that baby chickens are called chicks
3. We learned that the male chicken is called a rooster

We also learned about pigs:

1. Pigs can eat both plants and other animals
2. Pigs have an excellent sense of smell
3. There are over 2 billion pigs in the word

We also learned about sheep:

1. There are over 1 billion sheep in the world
2. Adult female sheep are known as ewes
3. Adult male sheep are known as rams

Our Montessori lessons entailed washing dishes. Children learned how to wash their own dishes after eating snacks. This is how they can help at home by washing their own dishes after eating. The special project we did this month is that we made paper plate chickens, pigs, and sheep. This month was a great opportunity for the kids to learn about different farm animals and the importance of these animals to us and the environment 

September 2019

September Recap: In September we learned about ourselves and our friends with All About Me. What our favorite colors, shapes and food are. We talked about how our bodies are special and how we should keep our bodies and hands to ourselves. You also took home a fun poster to decorate and then shared in class. In September we learned about our continents. We discuss the names of each continent and sang songs. In Using the sandpaper globe and the colored globe, the children really got a hands-on experience and learned the difference between land and water. With the start of a new year, we also learned a lot about grace and  courtesy. We had a good discussion about manners, please and thank you. Every morning, before we begin work, we all shake hands, make eye contact, and say Good Morning. For our Montessori lesson, we re-introduced how to roll, unroll, and carry a rug. We also worked with our globes as stated before to better help understand our seven continents. Dry pouring helps the children prepare for water pouring and be ready to pour things at home one day. We also worked on spooning with dry beans. The transfer items from one bowl to another helps with hand-eye coordination but it is the importance of how they hold the spoon to further prepare to hold a pencil. Enrichment this month was to follow the concept of a recipe. Learning how to measure and use different utensils to complete a recipe for our cooking class. We sliced apples, spread sun butter, talked about the different types of apples and make made playdough for the entire school!

October 2019

October Recap: In October, we learned about fire safety, pumpkins, emotions and our five senses. We discussed that we call or use 911 in emergencies and what an emergency means. We role-played Stop-Drop & Roll. In addition to reading A Day at the Fire Station by Richard Scary. The children learned “don’t hide-go outside,” when discussing fire alarms. Since it was October, we definitely discussed pumpkins!  We learned and distinguished parts of a pumpkin: vine, rind, ribs, stem, and blossom end. We also discussed the lifecycle of a pumpkin and decorated a pumpkin. We learned about emotions and discussed the types of different emotions we all have. We read the book Color Monster by Anna Llenas to help us understand visually what our feelings look like. We learned how we display appropriate feelings in the classroom. It is all right to be angry, but it’s not OK to hit when you’re angry. It is all right to be sad but it’s not OK to cry for a long period of time. We also talked about our five senses. We did a fun activity with a lemon. We asked and answered questions like: How did the lemon feel? How did it taste? How did it smell? How did it sound? How did it look? Ask your children about what they thought about our lemon activity. Our Montessori lesson entailed the North American map, where we learned about Canada, The United States of America, and Mexico. We used the sandpaper globe to see where in the world North America is located. Using the number rods allowed for the children to visually see a difference between numbers.  October enrichments were based on measuring and continue to follow a recipe. We measured our ingredients to make muffins for the whole school. We also made pumpkin playdough, enjoyed sliced apples, sun-butter, and pretzel to create a spider and lastly, created fruit kabobs with fresh fruit and cheese cubes. October’s special projects were all related to pumpkins. We made Jack-o-Lantern faces. Our friends chose to make either a happy face, a sad face, or a scary face. This project allowed for another learning opportunity related to discussing emotions.  We asked ourselves: How can we tell the difference between a sad and a happy face? We completed a project about learning the lifecycle of a pumpkin and learned some new pumpkin songs. October is one of my favorite curriculum months to teach. Our weather is changing and all the fun Halloween activities we get to complete.  We all had such a great time learning new things. Please remember to look in your child’s folder every day, some days will have important letters and information that you won’t want to miss out on. ​

November 2019

November Recap:  In November, our theme was “Harvest and Healthy Bodies”. The children learned about different farms and what harvesting means. We learned how to peel and cut fruit vegetables and of course sampled them. We had a class discussion on what foods are healthy and what foods are not. We also discussed about being consumed in moderation. As we celebrated Thanksgiving, we discussed what we were most thankful for. We read “The First Thanksgiving” and “Pete The Cat”.  We also did a fun painting project to make corn using our fingers. We celebrated Veterans Day and discussed The U.S.A.  We then used our globe to locate where we are in the world. Our class continued to work on their fine Motor skills by tearing small pieces of paper to create The United States flag.  Our Montessori lesson entailed the red rods. The children can visually learn and physically see the difference between the shortest rod to the longest rod. We also had a lesson on table setting. The children were able to take the work to a table and set out a placement, a napkin, a plate, cutlery, and a cup. After setting the table, the children needed to be able to master their fine motor skills to correctly place each item accordingly at the table.  The napkin, cup, bowl, cutlery, and placemat needed to be in the correct place before putting the work away. This activity involved memory, being able to take direction, and mastering listening skills. In addition to learning to set a table, we had a fun activity collecting leaves and sorting them be color. Again, using our fine motor skills and patience, each child had the opportunity to use small tongs to separate the leaves one at a time.   ​​​

December 2019

December Recap:   During December we learned about seasons and holidays. When discussing Hanukkah, we made menorahs and talked about the candle’s significance for lighting one each night. We made a book about Israel holidays with lots of fun, new information. We also learned about Kwanzaa. We did a fun worksheet to work on patterns and read a Kwanzaa wonder book. We recited the seven principles for each candle represented. For Christmas, we made gingerbread men and learned the parts of a reindeer with a fun worksheet to practice using our fine-motor skills with scissor practice. We worked diligently to prepare for our holiday show. We sang frosty the snowman, jingle bell rock, Rudolph the red nose reindeer, and jingle bells. We hope you enjoyed the show just as much as we enjoyed preparing for it. With the seasons changing, we talked about winter and how different it is across the world. For example, in Europe, winter looks very different than it does here in California. The class was introduced to “Europe-three-part cards.” The cards are to help the child recognize and learn about famous landmarks of Europe. While learning about different countries and holidays, we discussed being respectful and thankful to ourselves and others; even though life is different for everyone during the holidays, it is important to respect everyone! December’s cooking enrichment were yummy and fun! The children really enjoyed tasting the food they prepared for themselves. They have been able to remember all ingredients used for the recipes we have prepared and tasted thus far. In music, our scholars had the opportunity to hear some amazing holiday carols from around the world. Vincent Van Gogh’s art was introduced to the children. His artwork was reproduced by the children which created masterpieces to represent his work. Our Computer enrichment offers the children to continue mastering their computer skills through ABC mouse curriculums and using the mouse by hand. Some children have discovered the ‘mouse pad’ on their laptops and prefer using that technology to navigate. Lastly, for Spanish, the children continue to practice Spanish songs to learn colors and number counting learned in previous months.

January 2020

January Recap:   January was all about Winter Animals and Hibernation. We began our lesson learning about winter animals, such as penguins and polar bears, and what makes them different. Our class had fun creating art projects that were related to winter animals, such as penguins and polar bears. In zoology, we learned about parts of a penguin and a bear. We also learned about winter animals that hibernate, such as polar bears. In geography, we learned about Antarctica, we talked about the climate and the animal survival in Antarctica. In language, we focused on the letters o, p, q and r. Our book of the month was The Mitten by Jan Brett. January’s enrichments were filled with fun, exciting and educational lessons. In art, the children were introduced to Wassily Kandinsky and his most famous work Squares of Concentric Circles. In music, the children learned about Rodgers and Hammerstein and their most popular musical “The Sound of Music”. In cooking, the children made mozzarella olive penguins, polar bear paw pudding, bear trail mix and snow playdough. The children continued working on ABCMOUSE.COM in computer class. And in Spanish, the children reviewed what they learned during the first part of the school year.

February 2020

February Recap:  February was all about Cultural Awareness and Friendship. We began our month with learning about the Lunar New Year. We also discussed what it is to be a friend, and how to be a good friend. In Zoology, we learned about Asian Animals, such as panda bears and elephants. In Geography, the children learned about Asia. We talked about the people, culture, and traditions that make Asia so special. We also created art projects that incorporated Asian panda bears and Asian elephants. In Language, we focused on the letters s, t, u and v.  Our book of the month was Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni.

February enrichments were filled with fun, exciting and educational lessons. In art, the children were introduced to Yayoi Kusama. In music, they learned about different music from the continent of Asia including music from China, Japan, India, and Russia. In cooking, the children learned to make yummy “friendship” snacks. The children continued working on ABCMOUSE.com. In computer class and in Spanish, they were introduced to the vocabulary for friendship greeting books, songs, games and movement.

March 2020

March News:  March is all about Rainforest and South America. We will discuss the different layers of the Rainforest and we also will be talking about Dr. Seuss. In Geography, we will be studying South America. In Literacy, we will be reading some of our favorite books by Dr. Seuss.  March enrichments the children will be learning about Dr. Seuss books and they will make their own version of The Cat in the Hat and fun bookmakers in art. The children will be introduced to Latin American music. In cooking, the children will be making some fun snacks this month. The children will continue working on ABCMOUSE.com in computer class. And in Spanish, they will learn about South American culture.