October 25th-29th

We began our week with a visit to the HCA pumpkin patch!

We got to pick our very own pumpkin!

Paint pouring to decorate our pumpkins!

Our sensory bin was made up of cooked, dyed pasta, plastic spiders, pipe cleaners, and plastic pumpkins.  The children were able to scoop, pour, tweeze and tong.  They also enjoyed the feel of the pasta.

Reminders:

• Kindergarten only - winter uniforms will begin on Monday, November 1.

• There is no school for students on Friday, November 12. 

• Looking ahead - there will be a 12:00 noon dismissal on Tuesday, November 23 and there will be no HCA Plus. Thanksgiving break runs from Wednesday, November 24 through Sunday, November 28. Classes will resume on Monday, November 29. 

Have a great weekend!

October 18th- 22nd

 Tracing our names with Do-A-Dot markers.

The Do-A-Dot markers allow children to practice hand eye coordination as they direct the stamp to go where they aim on the paper.  In this case, it is the letters in their names. Hand dexterity improves as they hold and flip the dot markers and practice their fine motor skills.

👻 Nursery 3 is Fab-BOOOO-lous! 👻

Nursery 3 Prayers

Below are the prayers that we recite in N3 daily.

Our Daily Affirmation

I am kind

I am smart

I am loving

I am a blessing

Jesus loves me

Our Morning Prayer

O my God, I offer you, all that I think, say and do.

I'll work, I'll run, I'll sing, I'll prayer

Jesus be with me all through the day.

Prayer Before Meals

God is great

God is good

Let us thank him for our food and friends.

Conversation starters to ask your child about their day.

Ask questions that are specific as children of this age are still developing the language skills to describe their day in its entirety. It's easier for them to reply "I don't know" or "nothing"  when asked about their day. 

Questions to start the conversation:

1. Who did you play with today? What did you play?
2. Where did you play outside?
3. Who made you laugh today? What did they do to make you laugh?
4. Did you learn a new lesson?
5. How were you a good friend today?
6. What was the hardest thing you did today?
7. What is your favorite part of your classroom?
8. Did you feel proud of yourself today?
9. Did you try something new today?
10. What did you read today?

-On Friday, October 29, we will have our annual HCA Mission Party. Students may come to school dressed in their Halloween costumes and sneakers. Please make sure costumes do not reflect an evil or frightful tone! We are planning a day filled with games and Halloween fun for the students. Dismissal will be at 12:00 noon that day and there will be no HCA Plus. Please see the emails and Happenings for more details.

_Pre-K and Kindergarten students are organizing a drive to support our troops stationed abroad. We are looking to collect the following items: individually wrapped snacks: beef jerky, protein bars, trail mix, candy bars; Chef Boyardee or cup of soups (the kind that have a peel top), and travel size toiletries (toothpaste, shampoo, sun lotion, etc.). Donations can be sent in through the Mission Party on the 29th. 

Have a great weekend!

October 11th -15th

 

Founder's Day Celebration

On Wednesday, we gathered in prayer honoring our founder, Cornelia Connelly.

Cornelia Connelly

The society of the Holy Child Jesus was founded by Cornelia Connelly, in England, 1864.  Cornelia was a wife, a mother of five children, and a religious woman.  Her unique educational philosophy continues to guide Holy Child Schools all around the world.

The Nursery 2 & 3 classes have been called to be "Beacons of Joy" for their service project this school year.  Aubree accepted our frame for our class.  We will send letters and pictures throughout the year to community members who provide a service and/or keep us safe.

Founders Day Activities

Our games and activities were run by our middle school friends.

We colored pictures of Cornelia Connelly.

We drew pictures and colored brown bags to be filled with snacks  for children in need.

We enjoyed a soft pretzel for snack while being read a story by a middle school student.

We used side walk chalk to color in the Holy Child symbol. 

Stations 5 through 9 - activities in the gym

Cup stacking & Block building!

Can you roll a pumpkin?  We sure can!

Mousetrap

Ladder Climb

Obstacle course

Balloon Toss

Reminders:

• EC progress reports will be emailed home next week. We look forward to speaking with you at conferences via Zoom on October 20-21. Zoom links will be sent home next week.

• Student Council will be hosting a tag day on Friday, October 22. Students may pay $1.00 to wear something pink. All proceeds will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

• On Friday, October 29, we will have our annual HCA Mission Party. Students may come to school dressed in their Halloween costumes and sneakers. Please make sure costumes do not reflect an evil or frightful tone! We are planning a day filled with games and Halloween fun for the students. Dismissal will be at 12:00 noon that day and there will be no HCA Plus.  

Have a wonderful weekend!

October 4th - 8th

 

On Monday we celebrated the feast of St. Francis with the Blessing of the Animals! 

Rev. Tung led the blessing for all our HCA pets. 

Sensorial Material

Our sensorial area of the classroom focuses on lessons and activities that help to develop the five senses: seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling.  The lessons and activities provide and isolate concrete examples of abstract concepts that are perceived through the senses such as dimension, form, color, texture, sound and scent. 

 

 The Cylinder Blocks promote the pincer grasp, the coordination of the thumb and two primary fingers.  This is a strength needed for a child to begin to write. 

The knobless cylinders consist of four sets, ten cylinders in each set, varying in height and/or diameter.  Each set is in its own wood box with a lid painted the same color as the cylinders: red, green, yellow and blue. 

• Yellow cylinders vary in height and diameter.
• Green cylinders vary in height and diameter.
• Red cylinders vary in diameter only; height remains the same.
• Blue cylinders vary in height only; thickness/diameter remains the same.

The purpose of these lessons is to develop a child's fine motor skills, concentration, hand-eye coordination, and visual perception of dimension.  The material also provides experience in seriation and basic math vocabulary.

Da'Vina and Lucas are working with the knobless cylinder box. 

The Brown Stair is meant to develop child's awareness of size difference.  All of the blocks are the same length, but they vary in depth.  The material trains both the eye and the hand to discriminate and compare between wide and narrow.

This week was fire prevention week.  We talked about how to get out of our home or school safely if we were ever in a fire.  We got to hear the loud fire bell in school and practice a drill with the UD fire Department.  

With the help of our (pretend) fire fighters, we practiced spatial awareness. Spatial awareness is knowing where your body is in relation to objects or other people. To have good awareness, you also need to understand and respond to a change in position from these people/objects.  This is a complex skill that children develop at an early age.   

As a class, we built a building using magna tiles.  I then asked the children, one at a time, to place their fire fighter inside, next to, in back of or in front of our building.

The children were given some time to build their own structures and share where they place their firefighter. (inside, next to, behind, in front of)

• Monday, October 11th is a faculty in-service day. There is NO SCHOOL for students.

• On Friday, October 15th, Active Image will take individual student photos.  Please look in your email for a link to purchase the photos in advance. Students may wear free dress, but everyone should still wear sneakers. They will not be seen in the picture.

• EC parent/teacher conferences will be held via Zoom on the evenings of Wednesday, October 20, and Thursday, October 21. Please sign up for a time if you have not already done so: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0c4bada62ca6fd0-preschool

• On Friday, October 29, we will have our annual HCA Mission Party. More information will be sent home in the coming weeks. Dismissal will be at 12:00 noon on that day and there will be no HCA Plus.