Dear Parents,
It was so wonderful to see so many of you at Curriculum Night and to meet with you during Parent Conferences. Those occasions to meet with you are so important and are such a pleasure for us. If you ever have any other questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to email, call, or stop by the classroom.

It’s hard to believe we are almost at the end of November and Thanksgiving is practically upon us. While we don’t do plan curriculum around holidays, we do recognize it is an important and fun time in the children lives. We invite the children to share any plans, information or stories they may have about what they do with their families.

The children have shown us that they have a strong interest in trains. One day in the small yard, the children began to build trains out of milk crates. During a meeting we asked them what they know about trains! We learned that they have a lot of information about trains: (here is just a small sample of what they said!)

“I take the A train to school.”

“I know about trains. Trains go on the track.”

“I take the 1 train.”

“They (people) go out the door.”

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We decided to go for a walk to the subway station on 116th Street and Broadway to collect data about trains and train stations. In small groups, we went and explored the station with a teacher. We went downstairs and  through the turnstiles. The children were able to observe the 1 train pulling into the station, as well as all of the people coming up the stairs and exiting. There were so many things to notice!

 

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“This is the card swiper!”

“Look at the tracks, but where is the train?”

“There is the train, it’s the 1 train.”

 

We observed many things on our trips! We even got a subway map that we hung up on our wall in the classroom. 034

 

In addition to our trip, we are building train tracks in our block corner and painting with trains at art. We have many different stories and songs about trains, too. We will continue to explore the topic of trains and see where it takes us. Stay tuned!

Reminders and Thank You’s
Please check your child’s cubby to make sure the extra clothing is up to date weather wise. Also, as the days grow colder, we do continue to play in our Big and Small yards. Please make sure your child has a hat/hood and mittens/gloves.

Thank you so much for all of the wonderful snacks from home. We greatly appreciate them and the children are very much enjoying them.

If you would like to come in and share a story, a recipe, a musical instrument, or anything special that you do, please let us know. We love having parents join us.

Thanks so much.
Rachel, Pam, and Xiomara