Animals Avenue!

Welcome to Mitzvah Street! 

Each week we will be travelling on a different themed 'Street' learning with all our senses and having a blast along the way!

This week was:

  Hashem's Animals Avenue!

We filled the week with learning about the many different animals that Hashem put on this earth. Through different centers and experiences the children discovered many fascinating facts about all sorts of animals!

Enjoy the different ways your child has learned about animals.

 Animals in our Art center:

 Posters with different animals and punch out stamps with animals helped create animal inspired art!

 

Levi and Aron visiting the animal poster deep in discussion.

Story felt board:

We are excited about this new dimension  added to our library center! A supersize felt board which will be home to a different "Book of the week" connected to the theme, rotating each week.

This week we choose the book "I go to the farm.' 

we created copies of the characters right out of the book for the children to use as "felt puppets" to bring the story to life and act it out using the movable pieces on the board.

Enjoying quiet relaxing time with lots of new animal books in the library.

Animal yoga

Stretching our bodies to form many different animal moves and positions.

Graphing animals:

The children helped divide a collection of animal pictures into different groups.
Two legged, Four legged and those who move on their belly!
(Sorting activities are a great way to exercise the math and organizational component of  children's brain development.)

 

Cow shaving cream?!

With a picture of a cow in the middle we gave the children shaving cream and a drop of black paint to use their imaginations to create a visual of a cow.  Was interesting to see some children using the Popsicle sticks provided while other 'dived right in' ;)

 

oooh that feels good ;)

 Animal foot print play

Play dough helped us see the different footprints that animals make!

 As we were playing, Noah remembered the big giraffe in our block area, and wanted to see what those foot prints would make!

Cookies!

After practicing on our play dough we washed the animals and created animal print cookies!!

Tasting our hard work!

 

Giraffes helping with our fine motor skills!

Inside the giraffe we had different size circles the children were invited to match the right size button to the circle.

Animal show!

Thank you Rabbi Rodal for a fantastic animal show. It was an educational and hands on experience for everyone!

 

Noah holding a two day old chick! 

Animal masks! :)

Thank you Chani Davdison for volunteering in our classroom!

Water fun!

So refreshing!

End of the day line up!

What a fun filled week!!

Donuts with Dad!

Parents as Partners in education.

Donuts with Dad was definitely a highlight of this week! Pat on the back to EVERY one of you devoted Fathers for re-scheduling your day to come in for a special moment with your little one!
The message to your child of love, dedication and commitment to family (and your child specifically) from your presence is more than you will ever know.

Enjoy some pictures from our special morning!

The children gifted their Dad's with their footprints alongside this Poem:

“Walk a little slower Daddy” said a child so small,
“I’m following in your footsteps and I don’t want to fall.

Sometimes your steps are very fast,
Sometimes they’re hard to see;
So walk a little slower, Daddy,
For you are leading me.

Someday when I’m all grown up,
You’re what I want to be;
Then I will have a little child
Who’ll want to follow me.

And I would want to lead just right,
And know that I was true,
So walk a little slower, Daddy,
For I must follow you.”

Riding cars down our rain gutter tunnels are much more fun WITH Dad!

Trip to FoodShare- Hands on Lesson on Tzedaka!

One of the values we strive to teach our students is the understanding and appreciation of “Tzedakah.” 

Tzedakah – צדקה – is the Hebrew for a concept that is often translated as charity and involves giving money and help to the poor. “Charity” comes from the Latin root “to care.”  It is something a person does voluntarily. However, the Jewish concept of tzedakah is very different.  The word “tzedakah” comes from a root that means justice. Giving tzedakah is an act of righteousness and a mitzvah, an obligation.

Money is an abstract concept for children, and it will take years for them to completely understand what it means.  We sow the seeds for understanding by explaining what money is for and how we get it.  In the classroom, when we show children what we use money to buy, we can sow the seed and tell them that there are people who don’t have enough money to buy these same things. 

This week our Pre-k Class went on a trip to the FoodShare of Ventura County- as a way to make this Torah teaching a real and relevant part of our childrens lives.

Upon arrival at the Foodshare, the children gave all the coins from our classroom Tzedaka Box!

We learned about the people who founded this wonderful organization, and the reason for it
starting.

We also learned about what types of foods are nutritious, and which types of foods might not be that good for our bodies!

In the warehouse, we saw all the foods that get distributed to people who are not lucky enough to have food in their homes!

In the week leading up to our trip, each of the students brought in canned foods, pasta and other non perishables for our class food-drive! We contributed a total of 53lb of food for the foodshare to distribute !

 After weighing the food that we donated, our whole class had a chance to stand on the grand scale!! All together we weighed a total of 464lb!!

'

Lesson on planting!

We planted corn, lettuce and other fresh vegetable!

A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL THE PEOPLE AT VC FOODSHARE for making the time to show us all the good work they do, and for being such a wonderful partner in educating our students!