Turkey Dance Freeze

Free as a Bird

 
A turkey is nothing without feathers.  Our friends are busy tracing and cutting out feathers.  Great small motor work!  
Trace and cut...

What are you thankful for?  Make a tally mark and press 'the easy button'. 

I Am Thankful to Be A Preschool Teacher

I am so thankful to be your child's preschool teacher.  Here are my top ten reasons why I am thankful to be a preschool teacher:

1. I am thankful you chose MCP for your child's first school experience.  It means a lot. 
2. I am so thankful that we teach your child to learn in new ways.  Blocks, art, science and puzzles.  I love seeing the 'light bulb' go off and those Aha! moments.
3. The struggle is hard but when your child puts on their coat, places the last piece in the puzzle or counts to ten and says, "I did it!", it's well worth it.  
4. I am thankful I get to express my inner child every day. 
5. Teaching preschool has made me more creative and resourceful.  I look at things differently and for this I am thankful.  Plastic caps, cardboard tubes, cereal boxes and much more have a creative and academic impact on our classroom.
6. Fifteen kids in a classroom.  Teaching preschool has made me a patient person even outside the classroom.
7. Teaching preschool allows me to see the wonder and excitement of simple things.  
8. I am thankful I have been allowed to develop our own curriculum for MCP.  We are able to explore art, chemistry, artists, science, travel the world and much more.  I have learned a lot from teaching preschool like what cropolite is.  
9. I love it that preschoolers are completely honest and super funny.
10. I am thankful to share the day with your child. Every day is something new!  

MCP Thanksgiving

Our MWF preK students have been hearing all about the different traditional Thanksgiving foods and today we had a miniature Thanksgiving dinner.

MCP Staff---Thank you! You Rock!

The three ladies that work with me at MCP are just the best...THE BEST.

To say 'thank you' for all that they do for your children and me personally doesn't seem like enough but it will have to do for today.  They are absolutely dedicated to the MCP program and put in many extra hours to make sure that everything that needs to get done gets done.

So R, D and A:
Thank you all for your creativity and talent.  Thank you for singing and dancing with our kiddos.   Thank you for making my job a little easier. Thank you for attending fund raisers and always stepping up and helping out where you are needed. Thank for everything.

Thank you for being there when I needed you the most.
Thank you.  You're the best.  THE BEST!

2017-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2017/11/my-happy-place.html

2016-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2016/11/thank-you-for-everything.html

2015-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2015/11/gratitude.html

2014-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2014/11/be-thankful.html

2013-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2013/11/i-have-plenty-to-be-thankful-for.html

2012-
http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2012/11/thank-you.html

Pass the Cranberries

We spend the month of November talking about all the foods our students may encounter on Thanksgiving.  On Monday, we had our Thanksgiving dinner.  We are hoping your child might take a taste of something new at your holiday gathering.

Fun Food Friday was ice cream.  Did your child like the ice cream?  It was a little too sweet for some.

Morning Class

Afternoon Class

Our friends were very busy with scissors this month.  We are thankful for so many things!

Turkey Hill

Our friends are busy dressing our turkey!

More info and 'how to'-

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2015/11/wild-turkey.html

Pass the Turkey

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2017/11/birds-of-feather.html

Birds of a Feather

Our turkey needs some feathers!  MWF prek students will trace and cut feathers.  Our TTh 3 y/o class will cut feathers and teachers will write what they are thankful for on the feather.  

More info---

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2015/11/wild-turkey.html

2016

Thank You for Everything!

 MCP students are very thankful for...

Mommy, Daddy, their family, brothers & sisters, babies, Mrs. C, Mrs. U & Mrs. Q.  They are thankful for the easy button, barns, dogs & cats, adventure, fall and the Cubs!  MCP students are thankful for soccer, Saturdays, the seasons, their bed and their toys. 

Since I was not very eloquent at the Thanksgiving program,  I just want to say again how thankful I am for being able to do a job I love! Our MCP staff is always the best and devoted to your children and our program. Each day is a wonderful adventure at school and I am so thankful that you choose MCP to be your child's first school experience. 

There is so much to be thankful for this holiday! 

Give thanks and enjoy the day with your family!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

The Importance of Good Manners

What we need in the world is manners... I think that if instead of

preaching brotherly love, we preached good manners,

we might a get a little further.  

Eleanor Roosevelt  

"My Day"  

February 17, 1938

Imagine fifteen hungry preschoolers.   Now, get their hands washed, seat them at a table, feed them a snack and keep everyone happy.  Snack time is a busy time at school but it is also a teaching opportunity.  We focus on good table manners at our snack time and that is an important life-long lesson.

The children must wait until everyone is served and we say a short prayer before they can eat.  This is really hard at first but now the children understand they must wait for their friends.  We thank our friend who brought the snack. We ask the children to keep seated in their chair with their knees under the table.  The children say 'Please' and 'Thank you' when their snack and drink is served.  They are learning patience.  They now know there are fifteen hungry children and only two teachers getting everyone snack.

The children are encouraged to talk with their friends at the table.  When they are finished, they must remain seated until everyone is finished and we clean up.  They wait for our 'garbage' helper and throw away their trash before leaving the table. Good manners are taught, encouraged and praised. Showing good manners is showing brotherly love.

The holidays are great time to encourage and reinforce your child's good manners. For more information---http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2013/05/mind-your-manners.html and thank you!

More info on why manners are important---

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/10/AR2011021005802.html

https://childdevelopmentinfo.com/parenting/the-importance-of-teaching-manners-to-kids/

http://www.scarymommy.com/10-reasons-all-children-need-good-manners/

Flying Turkey Trot

Well, the MCP turkey is not going to be flying anywhere but he will look a lot better soon.  Students are tracing and cutting feathers so he will be all decked out for the holidays. 

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2015/11/wild-turkey.html

Gratitude

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.  It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.

Melody Beattie

MCP Students Are Thankful

Before

What are MCP students thankful for?  A lot! 

Mommy & Daddy * Grandma & Grandpa*Crayons*Toys*Playing outside*Hearts*Dogs*Steak-n-Shake*Brothers & Sisters*Family*When Nana comes to stay at my house*Pizza*My scooter*Elephants*My favorite park*Trees*Blocks*Zebras

After

Wild Turkey

 Our Thanksgiving turkey is sporting some pretty wild plumage!  Our MWF classes use a stencil to trace on paper (scrapbook paper that was donated to our program) and then cut.  The TTh class has feathers to cut (no tracing).  

All children tell us what they are thankful for and get to press the 'easy button'.  The MWF classes make tally marks.  Why do we tally?  The children will count to see how many feathers have been cut.  We will count the tally marks at the end of the month.

Check back to see our turkey later in the month!  For more info and past turkey bulletin boards---http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2014/11/birds-of-feather.html

Healthy or Junk?

Today our MWF preK classes talked about healthy foods and junk foods.  Children were given grocery ads and scissors and started cutting and gluing on large chart paper.  It was a great group project. We have lots of fun planned around food in November!

 Looking for healthy and junk foods!  We like using scissors at MCP.

After we cut,  we glued the picture to the healthy chart or the junk chart.

Be Thankful

“Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough.”  Oprah Winfrey

Thanksgiving Bulletin Board

Today we are gathering with friends and family to give thanks.  At MCP, we are extremely grateful we are able to  provide a quality early childhood program for our community.  Our program has grown in so many ways and we look forward to providing the best start to the youngest students in our community for many, many years.

We are also very thankful for the support of our MCP families (past & present) and local businesses. We are a small not for profit community preschool but are doing BIG things with our little ones.  

Bulletin Board---http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2014/11/birds-of-feather.html

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2013/11/i-have-plenty-to-be-thankful-for.html

Birds of a Feather

Our November bulletin board needs some help!  Our turkey needs some feathers.  This activity is available in our art center to encourage scissor use.  The MWF preK classes have to trace and cut a feather.  Our preK classes also make a tally mark to record the number of feathers the class has cut.  We will often see them counting the tally marks.

The TTh classes cut pre-traced feathers.  After cutting out a feather, children share what they are thankful for and get to press the 'easy button'.

More info and past boards--- http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2010/11/plump-and-perky-turkey.html

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2012/11/run-little-turkey.html

http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2013/11/i-have-plenty-to-be-thankful-for.html

Gobblin' Up Our ABC's

 

This game is in our Discovery Center.  The children draw a turkey from the bag and identify the letter.  If the player picks 'Gobble', the turkeys are returned to the bag.  Our students love this game and all of the variations! 

You can easily recreate this at home.  Purchase two or three alphabet flash cards (you can often find them for a dollar at the 'dollar' type stores).  Pick a fun word---BANG-POW-BAZINGA-and write the word with a Sharpie on 3 or 4 of the cards. That's it---you are ready to play.

For more seasonal ideas---http://metamoracommunityprek.blogspot.com/2010/10/boo-bang-gobble-melt.html

I Have Plenty to Be Thankful for...

I am thankful for so many things in my life. I am really fortunate I can say I love my work.  Here's a list of what I give thanks for at MCP--

I am thankful that you choose MCP.  It means a lot that you choose us to provide your child's first school experience.  I am thankful that my husband is so understanding of ALL the things that I save at home---jars, milk caps, boxes. He gets it.  I am thankful that YOU save all the things that make our program fun---cereal boxes, jars, greeting cards, egg cartons, plastic lids and more. It takes time and effort and I thank you!  I am thankful for our MCP board members who take care of our school registration, fundraisers, family fun night, Facebook, Pinterest,  school website, bookkeeping, payroll, taxes, tuition deposits and so much more. They keep MCP running smoothly. I am thankful for the mom volunteer who said 'Yes' to setting up our Shutterfly account (again :-) I am thankful to our volunteer parents help out when teachers are sick.  I am thankful when parents volunteer to put together tables, carts, playsets, etc. (I am a lot of things but handy is not one of them) I am thankful for the community support we receive at MCP.  I am thankful for Christian Union Church.  We are so fortunate to be a part of their ministry.  Without their support, MCP would not exist.  I am thankful CUChurch shares so many of their facilities with MCP.  We cook in the kitchen.  We use the attic to store lots of our equipment.  We use the Fellowship Hall for large motor activities in the winter, our preK Thanksgiving program and end of the year program for the 3 y/o.  We use the sanctuary for our Christmas and Graduation program.  They are very good to MCP.  I am thankful I can wear jeans and a sweater to work most days :-)  I could go on and on but I am so very thankful for the opportunity to do what I love. The common core of our program is we love, we laugh and we learn.