April 2024

 

Happy April!  With the arrival of spring weather, it is the perfect time to learn about Spring and plants.  We will spend two weeks learning about the changes happening during Spring, the growth of new plants and flowers and how plants grow.  It is a fun, hands-on month for the children!

 

Monthly Themes:

• Spring
• Plants
• Conservation
• Insects

• Jack and the Beanstalk
• Monet: Water Lilies
• Thomas Edison

• Letters x,y,z,q
• Connecting sounds to words

• ordinal numbers
• patterns

• Friday, April 19th: No School
• Friday, April 26th: Dress of Choice

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 2024

With the arrival of March, there are only three months left of the school year!  March will be a short month due to Spring Break, but it will be filled with fun and many exciting activities!

 

Monthly Themes:

• Dr. Seuss
• Reptiles and Amphibians
• Ocean

• The Tortoise and the Hare
• Leonardo Da Vinci

• Letters H, K, V
• Beginning Sounds

• Greater Than and Less Than
• Time of Day

• March 18th-March 22nd: Spring Break
• March 29th: Dress of Choice

 

 

 

February 2024

It is hard to believe it is February with all of the beautiful weather we have been having!  The last week in January was spent learning about what it means to be kind and how we can spread kindness.  I encourage you to continue to talk with your child about how they can show kindness to others and applaud them when you catch them doing something kind!

 

Monthly Themes:

• Mammals
• Valentine's  Day
• Presidents Day
• Geography
• Health and Nutrition

• The Little Red Hen
• Van Gogh's Starry Night
• Lewis and Clark
• Presidents (Biden, Washington, Lincoln)

• Writing names in proper formation
• Letters: E, R, P, J

• Number recognition to 10
• Counting, ordering and grouping numbers to 10

 

 

January 2024

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone enjoyed their time off with your families!  We will begin January with a review week.  After having two weeks off, it is always helpful to review rules and curriculum in the classroom.  We will also be learning about geology, landforms and mammals.  I also wanted to thank the room parents and all of the other parents who volunteered at our holiday parties.  Your participation made our wonderful parties possible! 

Monthly Themes:

• Rules and Curriculum Review
• Geology and Landforms
• Mammals

• The Three Little Pigs
• Egyptian Dynasty: Blue Hippo

• Letters: A, G, D, S

• Numbers 6-10

• January 15th: Closed in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• January 31st and February 1st: Conferences 

December 2023

 

December is filled with learning, fun and festivities!  Along with learning about the winter season, the children will get to learn about many different winter holidays and how children around the world celebrate them.  We will also have a holiday movie day and our winter party! 

 

Monthly Themes:

• Winter
• Winter Festivals

Classic Tale and Works of Art:

• The Gingerbread Man
• Sonia Delaunay’s Rhythm Colour

Literacy:

• Letters: O, A, G, D, S

Math:

• Shapes
• Numbers 6-9

Important Dates:

• Book Fair: December 4^th-8^th in MB Library
• Pajama/Movie Day: December 18^th and 19th
• Winter Parties: December 20^th and 21^st
• Winter Break: December 22^nd-January 8^th

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November 2023

 

November is a month filled with history!  We will be learning about Native American history, pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving.  When we return from Thanksgiving Break, we will begin our unit on States of Matter.

 

November Themes:

Birds, Native Americans, Pilgrims, and States of Matter. 

 

Classic Tale and Art:

The Lion and the Mouse

Little Dancer of Fourteen Years by Edgar Degas

 

Important People:

Sacagawea

 

Literacy:

The letters for the month are C, O, A, G

We will continue practicing fine-motor skills through writing and tracing.

 

Math:

Review numbers 0-5

Shapes

 

Important Dates:

• Class Pictures: November 1^st and 2^nd
• Dress of Choice: November 17^th
• Thanksgiving Break: November 20^th-24th

    

Halloween fun: 

    

 

 

 

 

October 2023

 

It's hard to believe we are already starting the third month of school!  October will be a busy month with filled with themes and festivities!

Themes:

Fall

Force, Motion and Magnets

Community Helpers

Classic Tales and Works of Art:

The Three Little Pigs

Squares and Concentric Circles by Wassily Kandinsky

 

Person of Interest:

The Wright Brothers

 

Important Dates:

• Wednesday and Thursday, October 11th and 12th: Conferences (Parents Only)
• Friday, October 13th: School Closed 
• Monday, October 16th-Friday, October 20th: Fall Break
• Monday, October 30th: MWF Fall Party
• Tuesday, October 31st: T/THURS Fall Party

 

 

 

September 2023

 

It has been so much fun getting to know the children the past two weeks!  Their little personalities are starting to emerge and they are becoming comfortable with our routine and each other.  I know this is going to be an amazing year!

 

September is a busy month.  We will be learning about body parts, five senses and Autumn.  The children will be provided with many hands-on activities to enhance their learning of these themes.  We are also introducing our literacy and math curriculum.  The kiddos have already got to meet Echo, our classroom owl, who helps us learn our letters and sounds and they got to practice counting using a 5-frame. September's classic tale is The Boy Who Cried Wolf.  The person of interest is Helen Keller and our works of art are Head of Man by Paul Klee and Pablo Picasso. 

 

Once a month, a calendar will be sent home in your child’s folder.  This calendar has some “homework” ideas for your child to complete while at home.  This calendar is 100% optional and is not required to be completed but does give you some ideas on how to support your child and our curriculum while at home.

Folders will be sent home at the end of this week.  Please take out all papers and return the empty folder on Monday/Tuesday depending on the day your child attends school.  I will put classwork on the right side of the folder and important info or papers that need returned on the left side of the folder.  This week, you will find a message about bringing a photo to class the week of September 4^th. 

 

A few reminders:

• Snacks, water bottles and lunches need to be taken out of blue bags in the morning and put in the appropriate bins before the start of school.
• Snacks should be one or two small, healthy items. We eat at 9:00, so there is no need to provide ice-packs with snack.  Please do not bring snacks in lunch boxes.  We do not have enough room in our snack bin for 12 lunch boxes. 
• Sunscreen stays at school. Please no spray sunscreen. 
• Label ALL items, including sheets and blankets, with your child’s name.
• Dress Code: Navy blue, white or red tops, navy blue bottoms. No boots, sandals or light-up
• Please have girls wear shorts under skirts.
• Take ALL belongings home at the end-of-day.  Check the top of the cubbies for water bottles and snacks.  Check the lunch bin for lunch bags. 
• If your child will be absent, please send me an email. This helps me plan accordingly for the day.

Important Dates:

• Friday, September 22^nd: No School. Professional Development for Staff
• Friday, September 29^th: Dress of Choice

 

Thank you all for making the beginning of the year a great one!  As always, feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have. [email protected]

 

 

 

Welcome to the KindiePrep 2023-2024 school year!  I am so excited to be starting this year with all of you!  My name is Laura Starrett.  I have been teaching preschool for twenty years and have been at American Academy for the past seven years.  

I am a Colorado native, and I live in Castle Rock with my family.  My husband and I have been married twenty years and we have two amazing boys.  My oldest son is a junior in high school and my youngest son is in sixth grade.  I love reading and traveling.  My favorite places I have visited are Ireland and Croatia!

Please visit this website at the beginning of every month.  It is this webpage where you will find important information about our classroom including themes, ability groups, classic tales and important dates.  For the month of August, we will be learning about school, school rules and safety, and we will share things that make each one of us special. 

Each month we also have a classic tale, a famous work of art and an "important person" we will learn about.  This month our classic tale is The Ugly Duckling and the work of art is The Snail by Henri Maitsse.  Our important person is Mother Teresa.  I am excited to provide the children with many hands-on, multi-sensory activities which will pique their interest and foster a successful learning environment for them!

• Thursday, August 17th: Open House 4:30-6:00 (Bring non-labeled school supplies)
• Thursday, August 31st: Back to School Night 5:00-6:00 (Parents only)