Dear Parents,
We are looking forward to another festive week preparing for Rosh Hashanah! Last week we dove into the holiday preparations with an abundance of apples– the symbolic food of Rosh Hashanah. Miniature faux apples in the sensory bin, apple-shaped sponge painting, and real apples in bushel baskets (picked by the 3-6 kids on their field trip!) to feel, hold, and scrub in water.
This week, we will showcase another important Rosh Hashanah object– the shofar, the horn from a Ram that is blown on Rosh Hashanah. Our young toddlers will be invited to dip their fingers into brown paint, as well as sand. This will be a sensory art activity to feel the smooth paint, in contrast with the rough sand. The sand symbolizes the rough texture of the shofar. Rabbi Kalmanson will demonstrate the sounds for us from a real Shofar.
Throughout all of our holiday preparations and while doing our regular classroom work, we are always modeling and practicing language with the children. We go around the table and give names to snack and lunch items. We practice grace and courtesy by saying please and thank you, and we address our friends and Morahs by name. We model speaking in phrases and short sentences with clear diction and expression. We weave mini language lessons into all areas of the classroom so that it is an immersive experience. We are beginning to see young friends talk to each other more frequently. Many times this is exemplified by stating, “My work!” to a friend who wants to use the same material. We also observe friends asking, “You ok?” after a friend falls down. Some children like to repeat the Morahs’ words, saying to their friends: “Time for lunch!”
We extend a warm welcome to the newest member of our Young Toddler community, Nora! We are excited to have you and look forward to a wonderful time together!
Warmly,
Morahs Pallavi, Rachael, and Kristy