Friday, January 21, 2011

Preschool Wrap up

It is so exciting to see the growth in Bear.  At school this week, she was invited to stay the whole day (instead of coming home at 12:30) so she can join the kindergarten students in the afternoon.  Bear is thrilled to be able to spend more time with her friends and I am thrilled to be able to have the afternoon to work with J-jo since he has been napping in the mornings while Bear is in school.  She will start staying for the afternoons in February.  (Bear goes to a Montessori school 3 days per week.  Montessori classrooms are multi-age from 2.5 years to 6.  This is why she gets the chance to move ahead.  We will most likely be full time homeschooling again when she is 6.)

Math:
She is internalizing some of her addition facts.  If I ask what 2 plus 2 is, for instance, she will automatically say 4.  She can now recognize the numbers on a die without counting the dots.  She spontaneously counts to one hundred by herself, though still needs help after sixty with some of the numbers. 

Language:
At school, she has been given readers to bring home as homework.  These are utterly boring to read, but we do them.  She prefers to read more challenging regular picture books and I just help her with non phonetic words or very long words.  She read two non fiction books about frogs alone to me.  Her writing is improving and looking more and more like a late kindergarten printing.  She retains interesting vocabulary words from books and uses them in her speech.  It is very amusing to hear such a little person use such fancy words.  Her love of Little House books has had us read the whole Kirsten series of The American Girl books and we are now starting the Rose Years books, which tell the story of Laura Ingalls' daughter Rose.  She has already asked for a Little House themed birthday party (her birthday isn't until August!)  Does anyone have ideas?

Culture:
She has been working through her frog work.  We've also been doing a bit of geology work but I haven't had time to post the unit yet.  We'll be starting a Chinese New Year art piece this week to prepare for Chinese New Year on February 3rd.

Art:
Bear painted a portrait after being inspired by the Mona Lisa and did a Matisse inspired Valentine.

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10 comments:

  1. Joyful LearnerJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:44 AM

    I think that's one benefit of Montessori schools over traditional schools. We ate definitely hOmeschooling as K is reading at 2nd grade level and doing everything else at first grade level. I wouldn't have her accelerate in school because she's shorter than most kids her age. As homeschoolers, she can have friends of all ages and still work at the level she's in.

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  2. The girl who painted treesJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:17 AM

    @JL Bear's short for her age too:) I normally wouldn't accelerate her, but because it is Montessori it feels right. They will be able to give her work beyond the kindergarten level as the need arises. I still get her two days a week to play and learn so it feels like the best of both worlds.

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  3. Alycia in Va.January 21, 2011 at 12:19 PM

    We're in our 2nd year of Montessori (first grade) and my daughter loves how she's able to work at her own pace in many areas. I love that she also gets to interact with a variety of ages and has set programs (computer, immersion spanish w/native speaker, PE, Music, Art, library, etc. that all takes place during the day, so we're free to work on whatever she wants in the evenings.

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  4. Natalie PlanetSmartyJanuary 21, 2011 at 12:22 PM

    This is a big advantage of Montessori school - multiage classrooms. My friend's son attends one and her one complaint is reading - it tends to be very primitive even for 6 year old. Bear seems advanced in every aspect - Anna's writing remains pretty much on her age level or even lower, so she will have something to learn when she goes to K.

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  5. CindyJanuary 21, 2011 at 9:58 PM

    For the Little House theme couldn't you have kids dress in pioneer garb and play pioneer games and do pioneer crafts? Make pioneer toys?

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  6. The girl who painted treesJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:08 PM

    @love2teach2day - those are good ideas. I had thought of pioneer crafts and games, but not of having them dress up. I think other moms would think I am crazy as their daughters are all having princess parties. Bear just has no interest in princesses (and that is a-okay with me!)

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  7. Joyful LearnerJanuary 21, 2011 at 10:29 PM

    K wsan't into princesses until just recently! But I am not buying her any princess costumes. Instead I tell her Mongolian dress which we got from a friend is a princess dress. She LOVES it! hee hee. :)

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  8. edieJanuary 22, 2011 at 7:59 AM

    I recently discovered your blog and I so appreciate all the ideas! As far as Little House goes, do you recall Laura's party in On the Banks of Plum Creek? They serve "vanity cakes" at the party and I've remembered those since I was a child. I don't have the book handy but I recall that Nellie has a city party and Laura has a country party. Each of those chapters might have some fun ideas. Love your blog!

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  9. The girl who painted treesJanuary 22, 2011 at 12:32 PM

    @edie - thanks! I totally remember those two parties. I'll get the book and see the specifics they mention. And I remember vanity cakes too. They just ate some in the first Rose book:)

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  10. AnonymousJanuary 23, 2011 at 5:02 PM

    Sounds like she is doing great!

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