Little Busy Bodies Preschool
Newsletter
January 23rd & 25th
Dear Preschool Parents,
“And so they lived happily ever after…” This week we concluded our fairy tales unit! On Monday we read the story “The Tortoise and the Hare,” by Janet Stevens...not a true fairy tale, I suppose, but it has talking animals and the kids don’t know the difference (wink, wink). After reading the story, we held several races of our own: Ring on a String, a classic relay race in the back yard, and Pass It Down. Good weather, good exercise, and a fun time were had by all. We didn’t even have any sore losers.
On Wednesday, we read the book, “The Three Billy Goats Gruff,” by Paul Galdone. After reading this book, the children made their own stick puppets to retell the story. Story retelling is when children recount in their own words a story that they have heard or read. It is one of the most effective strategies for developing children’s comprehension and their understanding of story structure. The children were very engaged in this activity and wanted to do it over and over again. Ask your child to tell you the story!
The children thoroughly enjoyed each of the books we read in our fairy tales unit. Despite the somewhat grim storylines that are presented in each book, children are always fascinated and want to hear more (hence Disney coming along and making millions in movies). We sometimes shy away from these stories thinking they are too frightening or disturbing for children. However, Fairy tales benefit children in so many ways. They provide children the opportunity to get a sense of what is real and what is pretend. They also expose the children to rich vocabulary, the opportunity to discern good from evil, as well as discover the moral. Fairy tales encourage the use of imagination and they teach the elements of a story (beginning, middle and end). So, do not discount fairy tales as a bad influence on your children. Rather, be selective, and choose age-appropriate stories to give to them. But do not be afraid of unleashing their imagination and letting them confront their darkest fears. By giving them heroes to identify with, you are letting those fears surface in a subtle manner, and allowing your child to find his courage and make moral choices vicariously-choices that will build his character and have influence on the rest of his life. (Susanne Lakin)
*KING/ QUEEN OF THE WEEK FEB 1st : AJ
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
*NO SCHOOL: JAN 30th
*MAKE-UP DAYS: Friday, March 2 & 9
*NO SCHOOL: March 12, 14, 19 & 21 (My son has the first week off from school and Marana School District has the second week off from school)
See you next week! Have a nice weekend!
Sincerely,
Amber
