Winnie Bear Newsletter March 12, 2010

For the past two weeks, we started our “Tree” unit.

Language: Vocabulary
Below is a list of theme specific vocabulary words that have been introduced:
1.Tree – 树（shu）
2.Leaves – 树叶（shu ye）
3.Branch – 树支（shu zhi）
4.Trunk – 树干（shu gan）
5.Roots – 树根（shu gen）
6.Fall – 秋天（qiu tian）
7.Spring – 春天 （chun tian）
8.Summer – 夏天 （xia tian）
9.Winter – 冬天 （dong tian）

Reading: Stories
We read a few books on the different parts of a tree, different tree shapes, and how trees look during each season.

Mathematics: Tree Shapes
Using a triangle and an oval, we talked about the different shapes that trees come in and made tissue paper trees.

Art: Seasons and Parts of a Tree
We made two mini-books. One of the different parts of a tree and the other was drawing pictures of how trees look during each season.

Music: 树
We learned a new song called 树.
树叶一片片轻轻地摇晃，（shu ye yi pian pian qing qing de yao huang）
花儿一朵朵慢慢地开放，（hua er yi duo duo man man de kai fang）
树干一圈圈越长越胖。（shu gan yi quan quan yue chang yue pang）

Cooking: Mushroom Salad
We made mushroom salad with the Panda Bears. The ingredients included mushrooms, iceberg lettuce, baby carrots, corn, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We split up in groups and some children ripped the lettuce, some cut cucumbers, and some cut tomatoes. We then mixed all the ingredients together with Thousand Island dressing. The children seemed to enjoy making and eating the salad. =)

Next week, we will be continuing our unit of inquiry, “Trees.”

Thanks,
Katherine
3/12/10