Planets and stars were still the topic in the Ladybug room this week, as we continued our unit on The Solar System. 

The rain didn't dampen the Ladybugs' spirits on Tuesday, we had fun! We painted more planets while working on our Solar System mobiles. Between our celestial conversations, the Ladybugs either stenciled different shapes using colored pencils or gave our baby dolls a bath in the sensory table. We read Solar Systems by Gregory Vogt and looked at more beautiful photos of our planets. The Ladybugs also fashioned space rockets out of foam blocks, and blasted them off with a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1!

Mr. Sun and warm weather returned on Wednesday, as we wrapped up our unit and finished painting our mobiles (whew, we did it!). In chapel, Pastor Amy told us the story of how the tiny mustard seed grew into an enormous, beautiful tree. She taught us that we all have seeds inside us, and our love for God needs nourishment to grow. That day we read a class favorite, B is forBear by Roger Priddy, in which each letter is represented by a word and bright photograph. We also introduced a few more difficult puzzles to our shelf--some of the Ladybugs really enjoyed them and were quite successful! 

On Thursday, we decided to talk about families again, because it's a topic that is near and dear to the Ladybugs' hearts. We cut little people out of sugar cookie dough to represent the important people in our lives. In music class, we showed Mrs. S. how much we have learned this year, as we sang our songs and performed our finger plays. And we each had an extra spring in our step during our dance party! We read Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton to review our colors.

We wanted to thank you all for coming to our Garden Party last Saturday night. It was so great to look out and see the Ladybugs dancing and having so much fun together. A special thank you for your generous donations to our playground. What an amazing group of families we Ladybugs have! Because of you, our playground will look amazing next year. 

This Saturday, May 19 from 10-11 am, is our Caterpillar Graduation! You are all invited to watch our Pre-K friends turn into butterflies as they complete their time at Grace Garden and fly off to Kindergarten. Please join us for a brief ceremony in the chapel and a reception in Fellowship Hall. One day, your little ones will walk across that very altar to receive their diplomas!

Next Wednesday, May 23, is officially Water Day! Please bring your child dressed in a bathing suit and swim diaper, if applicable. Please apply sunscreen before drop off and bring a towel and a change of clothes. We will spend 9:30 until 10:30 outside at different water related stations, including shaving cream art, bubbles, and sprinklers. We'll top off our morning fun with a Popsicle.

On our last day of school, Thursday, May 24, we will throw an end of the year party! Please sign-up in the room to bring in goodies to share with the Ladybugs. We'll celebrate our summer birthdays and commend each other on how much we've learned this year.

Until then, have a wonderful weekend. We'll look forward to a special last week together as the Ladybugs!

Love, 
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

5, 4, 3, 2, 1! The Ladybugs blasted off in their rocket ships this week to explore our Solar System. Our color of the week was yellow, like the sun, and our letter was Q.

The Ladybugs started off their week by coloring pictures of astronauts on a space walk. We looked at photographs of the planets, and talked about how they are all big stars circling the sun. We embarked on a big project, making a Solar System mobile! The Ladybugs crumpled newspaper into balls and began painting them to look like each of the planets. Tuesday, we painted Mercury, Venus, and Earth, while comparing their sizes and colors.

On Wednesday, the Ladybugs made comets by scrunching foil over strands of curling ribbon. They were thrilled to throw them around the room and watch their trailing tails. In chapel, Pastor Amy taught the children that God gave us curiosity, which allowed us to discover the other planets. We also sang a favorite song, "I am Amazing." After chapel, we switched gears to Mother's Day. The Ladybugs worked on a special gift for their beloved mommies, and listened intently when we told them their mommies deserved a giant hug on Sunday morning!

The Ladybugs painted Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn on Thursday, as we continued working on our mobiles. They were surprised to see Jupiter's grand size and red eye! They also smiled and danced with Ms. S. in music class, as they sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star".

We hope to see everyone at our Garden Party this Saturday night from 5 to 7 pm! Please bring a blanket and a picnic and get ready to dance to Joe McDermott, while helping us raise money for new playground equipment. There will be fresh squeezed lemonade, goodies baked by the Grace Garden teachers, and photographs of the children for sale. It's going to be a ton of fun, and we would love to have our sweet families there!

Next week, we will continue our study of the Solar System. Have a terrific weekend together!

Love,
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

The Ladybugs dove headfirst into this week's theme--the ocean! Our color of the week was blue, like the sea, and our letter was P, as in porpoise.

Toy sea animals, shells, boats and water occupied the sensory table all week. What fun to splash in the water and pretend the creatures were swimming in the sea. The Ladybugs held a conch shell to their ears and imagined they were playing on the beach!

On Tuesday, we soaked chalk in water and drew designs on construction paper. The children enjoyed the chalk's softened texture and the vivid colors that it made. We later turned those designs into seals! In the garden, we checked on our terrariums, some of our seeds are sprouting, as well as our zinnia seeds, which are also growing! Our green thumbs are back! We also watered the plants and smelled the mint. We have a little green tomato on our tomato plant, and we're still holding out for some red delicious strawberries. We read All the Water in the World by George Ella Lyon and Katherine Tillotson, which explains the cycle of water and how we depend on it.

We made a wave machine on Wednesday out of a plastic bottle, water, and mineral oil! The children loved tipping the bottle left to right as little waves formed before their eyes. The Ladybugs also crumpled paper, put it in plastic baggies, and made little fish out of them. Please check out our school of fish in the hall! Pastor Amy taught us in chapel that God's love and guidance is wider than the ocean. After lunch, we looked at photos of ocean life, including dolphins, fish, coral reefs, and manta rays. Some of our friends were mesmerized by those fabulous-looking rays.

The Ladybugs learned about the importance of water on Thursday, as we talked about how we must drink a lot of it to stay healthy. We also stressed that we must turn off the faucet, to conserve that oh so precious water. We looked at the shimmery pictures in The Rainbow Fish, a classic book by Marcus Pfister. Those pictures inspired us to make our own rainbow fish out of aluminum foil and paint. The Ladybugs got their grooves on during music class, when they celebrated what's become their weekly song and dance party.

We look forward to meeting with each of you on Monday during our parent teacher conferences. We will send out a reminder this weekend! Also, we hope you plan to attend our Garden Party on Saturday, May 12th from 5 to 7 pm. We would love to have you all there, to picnic, dance to Joe McDermott, and help us raise money for the playground.

Next week, the Ladybugs will study our Solar System and learn about Mother's Day. Have a fun weekend together!

Love,
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

Save our Earth! has been the mantra in the Ladybug room this week, as we've poured, planted, and painted in honor of our beloved planet. Our color of the week was green, of course, and our letter, O. We also worked daily on our very own shape study books.

The weather was so gorgeous on Tuesday, we spent a lot of time in our garden. Aside from our regular watering and weeding, the Ladybugs made terrariums! Thank you so much, families, for bringing in those plastic bottles. Each child filled his or her bottle with dirt and poured some seeds and water on top. The Ladybugs also planted zinnia seeds in our garden, so that it stays beautiful for the church staff this summer. Back inside, we read, Ten Little Ladybugs by Melanie Gerth, a fun counting book in which, one by one, all of the ladybugs disappear! Our Ladybugs had fun counting, and the book led to a chat about how important ladybugs are to our Earth.

On Wednesday, the Ladybugs looked at a globe, and we talked about how green represents land and blue, water. We illustrated the green and blue concept when we painted the children's hands with green and blue paint, and then press them onto paper. They were amazed to see their hand prints form an Earth! In chapel, Pastor Amy delivered a dramatic sermon--she began by throwing plastic bags and paper onto the altar! The children's eyes grew big and their jaws dropped! We pretended to board a rocket, which could take us to a cleaner planet. We returned after we found that there were no other planets suitable for human life. Upon our return, Pastor Amy cleaned up the altar and put items into a recycling bin. The children loved it! Later that day, we read Growing Vegetable Soup by Louis Ehlert, in which a father teaches a child how to grow and tend a vegetable garden, and then how to make delicious soup using their harvest.

We focused on the color green on Thursday, as the Ladybugs matched green shapes. We read Less is More by Alison Klosser, a book that features a creature who overindulges on a planet and leaves when there is nothing left. The children were happy to see another type of creature arrive, who decides to take less and save more for later. In music class, Mrs. S led us in our usual songs and dance party, which is always a hit! How the kids love to boogie. 

Next week, please sign up for one of our 30-minute parent/teacher conferences, all of which will be held Monday, May 7. Free childcare will be available that day. We can't wait to show you how much your children have grown, and all they have learned this year. They amaze us.

Also, we hope you will join Grace Garden's teachers on the playground on Saturday, May 12, from 5 to 7 p.m. for our Garden Party fundraiser! Joe McDermott is performing, and the teachers will be baking their favorite treats to delight your families. We hope you will pack a picnic dinner and come enjoy each other, while considering a donation to new playground equipment.

Next week, we will talk about the ocean, all that lives there, and all the ways we love it. Have a beautiful weekend!

Love, 
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

We wore sunglasses and held umbrellas in the Ladybug room this week, as we studied weather! Our color of the week was pink, and our letter, N.

The Ladybugs started off their week giggling, as we painted the bottoms of their ticklish feet to make footprints on sunny beaches (construction paper)! We tried on sunglasses and sat on towels as we threw a beach ball around the room. Because it hasn't rained over the past few days, we needed to water our garden. Back by popular demand, each child got to take a turn at the big hose, as we helped along our thirsty plants. We also read It's Too Windy! by Han Wilhelm, in which a dog and a baby stroller have to fight the wind during their walk.

On our sunny Wednesday morning, making bubbles was our top priority--we headed out to the playground with our sensory table full of bubble solution! The Ladybugs blew bubbles of all sizes using yarn, plastic wands, and different shaped stencils. Not much is better than watching little ones chase bubbles while shrieking with laughter. We also took turns finger painting different colors on huge pieces of paper. We later cut them to form a really special rainbow! We read The Little Cloud by Eric Carle and talked about how clouds can look like different shapes floating in the sky. The Ladybugs had a super time in chapel that day, because St. John's senior pastor, Pastor Paul, led our sermon! He taught us new songs and told a story about how Jesus and his disciples were caught on a boat during a rain storm. Aside from making the story hilarious for the children, he taught them how to make the sounds of pitter pattering rain using their fingers. It was wonderful!

We read The Rain Came Down by David Shannon on Thursday, in which a rain storm puts all the townspeople in a bad mood. As soon as the rain stops and the sun shines, everyone is happy again. (We explained that Texans actually LOVE rain!) The Ladybugs made it rain on paper at the easel that morning, as they sprayed paint out of squirt bottles! We also sang to weather songs with Mrs. S. during music class and worked on a fun finger play called "Here is the Bee Hive, Where are the Bees?", which we hope your child will share with you.

Please remember to donate to or stop by St. John's United Methodist Women's annual garage sale on May 4th and 5th. Donations will be received in the Fellowship Hall from April 22 until May 2. Monies will fund mission projects, and there will be just about everything under the sun to buy.

Speaking of raising money, please mark your calendars for Saturday, May 12th from 5 until 7 p.m.! Our very own Grace Garden teachers want to raise money to improve the playground and buy new equipment for the children, and therefore the school will host a benefit concert starring the fabulous, nationally recognized children's musician Joe McDermott! Home baked goodies, hot popcorn, freshly squeezed lemonade, and beautiful photos of your children will be on sale that evening! The concert is free, so please bring a blanket and picnic dinner, and come enjoy the evening while you consider donating specific pieces of playground equipment, of which we will have photos and prices displayed.

Next week, the Ladybugs will celebrate Earth Day and learn the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling to preserve their planet. Have a wonderful weekend!

Love, 
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

The Ladybugs rolled through this week, as we talked about wheels and vehicles that GO! Our color of the week was blue, and our letter, M.

We started off the week singing one of our favorites, "The Wheels on the Bus," and the Ladybugs joined in, remembering the finger plays. We painted circles (wheels!) by dipping spools into blue paint and stamping them on paper. Our garden needed some love and water this week, as the warmer weather left our plants thirsty. Each Ladybug took a turn watering with the big hose--what a blast! We also planted more seeds, lettuce this time, and we hope these will take. The Ladybugs were thrilled to see our gorgeous passion flowers in full bloom on our garden's vines.

On Wednesday, we read Trains and Trucks, both by Byron Barton, terrific board books that simply show different examples of each mode of transportation. The Ladybugs also rolled toy cars in brown paint, which we pretended was mud! We then "drove" the cars over paper to watch the different patterns the tires left. Pastor Amy talked about boats in chapel, as she told us the story of when Jesus and his disciples crossed a lake by boat to take a break from the crowds of followers. She taught us the song, "Michael Row the Boat Ashore, Hallelujah!"

We hit home our wheel theme on Thursday, when the Ladybugs made their own wheels out of paper plates, black paint, and sand. The Ladybugs sang a variety of transportation songs with Mrs. S. in music class, too, including "Down by the Station."

We took several opportunities this week to talk about using our walking feet inside, sharing with our friends, and treating our friends as we would like for them to treat us, specifically by using gentle words and touch. 

The St. John's United Methodist Women will host their annual garage sale on Friday, May 4 and Saturday, May 5 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. They will be taking donations of gently used household items, working appliances, jewelry, lawn and garden supplies, sports equipment, tools, children's clothing, toys, games, CDs, DVDs, books, linens, and kitchenware. If you would like to donate something, please bring it to the Fellowship Hall beginning April 22, after the 11 a.m. service, until Wednesday, May 2. Thank you!

Next week, the Ladybugs will learn all about weather! Have a relaxing weekend!

Love,
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

The Ladybugs have been hopping down the bunny trail this week, as we've prepared for Easter!

The first order of business, on Tuesday, was for the Ladybugs to make their Easter "baskets" by placing stickers on gift bags. The Ladybugs LOVE stickers and they don't even realize that peeling gives those fine motor skills the workout they need. There's something else the Ladybugs love, and that is glitter! So, we made some extra fancy bunny ears for them to wear. It's easy to see how much stronger their hands have gotten since the beginning of the year, as they can really squeeze a glue bottle now. The Ladybugs helped weed and water our garden that morning, and we re-read The Story of Easter by Patricia Pingry, hoping to plant seeds about the true meaning of Easter. 

Speaking of the true meaning of Easter, Pastor Amy gave a show stopping sermon during chapel on Wednesday, when she turned out the lights! The Ladybugs were very brave as they sat in the dark and watched Pastor Amy light candles, one representing God and the others representing each of our classes at Grace Garden. She then extinguished each flame, one by one, teaching us that although Jesus' flame went out, we can still see and feel his love around us. We then sang, "This Little Light of Mine".

After chapel, the Ladybugs headed back to the room to learn about the tradition of dyeing Easter eggs. We first read Here Comes Peter Cottontail  by Steve Nelson and Jack Rogers, and looked at pictures of colorful, decorated eggs. The children then got to dye eggs of their own! What fun to watch the white eggs change colors. We chilled the eggs and ate them for snack after our big egg hunt on Thursday.

Wow, parents! Thank you so much for bringing in all of those fabulously filled plastic eggs for the hunt. All of their patience during the week paid off, because the Ladybugs had a blast discovering the eggs and putting them in their bags. After all of the eggs were found, we dumped the eggs on our rug, and made sure each child received eggs numbered one through eight, so they can practice counting at home! After all of the excitement of the hunt, the Ladybugs experimented with mixing colors, as we used eye droppers to drop our leftover dye onto white paper. It was magical to see the different colors one can make from just green, pink, and orange. Music class carried an Easter theme that day, as the Ladybugs learned to sing "Little Bunny Foo Foo"!

We Ladybugs have been working on using our walking feet in the classroom, to keep us safe, and putting imaginary bubbles in our mouths as we walk through the halls of the church, to keep us quiet!  We also visited our growth chart and were amazed to see that on average, the Ladybugs have grown over three inches since November! 

We hope you have a beautiful, blessed Easter this weekend. We will be thinking of those precious happy faces on Sunday morning. Next week, the Ladybugs will learn about transportation! 

Love,
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

The Ladybug room has been abuzz this week, as we finished our bug unit and began talking about Holy Week. The Ladybugs loved using orange spoons to scoop bird seed in the sensory table (orange is the color of the week!) and learning about the letter K.

We talked about our favorite arachnids on Tuesday--spiders! The Ladybugs made spiders by adding google eyes and eight legs to coffee filters, which they painted black. We sang, "The Itsy Bitsy Spider", one of our all time favorites, and read a little board book called Little Spider by W. Lei. We headed out to the garden to look for spiders, and took a peek at our carrot and cucumber plants. Keep your fingers crossed...even after the Ladybugs' tender loving care, it's hard to say whether the seedlings are going to make it!

On Wednesday, we switched our chats to caterpillars. The Ladybugs painted egg cartons green and turned them into pet insects. They then crawled around on their tummies, pretending to be caterpillars. We switched gears for chapel when Pastor Amy talked about how Jesus was treated like a king during his last trip to Jerusalem. She even washed one of our friends' feet, just as Jesus washed the feet of the people who came to see him.
 
The Ladybugs continued their Easter lesson on Thursday, when we made stained glass crosses out of markers and paper. The children also decorated bunny cards for some of the home bound members of St. John's church. We read The Story of Easter by Patricia Pingry, a mild and extremely simple explanation of the first Easter.

This week, the Ladybugs focused on keeping their feet on the floor in the classroom (we have some climbers!) and being grateful for their friends. We practiced using our loving hands and our words, as well, and the Ladybugs are doing a great job!

Next week, we will continue our Easter celebration, which will culminate next Thursday, April 5th with an egg hunt! Please prepare to bring in eight plastic eggs, filled with small treats (no nuts or choking hazards, please). Some examples of treats include stickers, band aids, tattoos. The eggs should be filled and taped around the sides, so that the eggs can be opened at home. The hunt will take place during our morning outside time if you would like to join us. It should be a precious photo opportunity!

Until then, have a terrific weekend!

Love, 
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

The Ladybugs had a glorious time this week, hopping back into the swing of things, welcoming Spring, and becoming experts on bugs and birds! 

They started off the week "soaring" around wearing ladybug wings on their backs. They inspected interesting toy bugs in our sensory table and maneuvered tweeting toy birds around the room. The Ladybugs created speckled birds' eggs by spreading glue and sand on blue ovals. We read In My Nest, by Sara Gillingham, a class favorite, in which little fingers can manipulate a tiny blue bird puppet throughout the book. Our garden time got rained out that morning, but on Wednesday, we poured a couple inches of rain out of our drowning cucumber planters!

Later that day, we put together a new bird feeder and began waiting for our feathered friends to find it! We painted letter J's with purple paint to illustrate our letter and color of the week. The Ladybugs sang, "I'm Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee", which you may remember singing as a child! Pastor Amy taught us in chapel that God gives all his creatures what they need to live. She read us a book about the metamorphosis of butterflies and encouraged us to grow up to be beautiful and wonderful, just like those fluttering insects!

The Ladybugs began their Thursday by painting a robin to hang with our nest of blue eggs. And we just had to make paper ladybugs--the children sponged black spots onto their insects' backs. We sang our hearts out with Mrs. S in music class and delighted in what's become a weekly dance party. 

We couldn't help but notice on Tuesday how much the Ladybugs have grown. Not only their bodies have grown, but also their vocabulary! Because the Ladybugs are talking more and more, we focused this week on how to use words to be a good friend. We practiced using words when we wanted to share a toy, play with a friend, or tell a friend you like his new shoes! 

Over the next couple of weeks, we will learn about Holy Week and Easter. We hope you have a fun-filled weekend outside in what's supposed to be gorgeous Spring weather. We can't wait to see you all next week!

Love,
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy

Spring was in the air in the Ladybug room this week, as we planted, cleaned, and talked about critters who welcome back warm weather.

Our week began with a batch of lemonade! We squeezed, smelled, and even sucked the yellow fruit before we stirred up a yummy pitcher of refreshing drink. Some of us loved the sour taste, while others shut their eyes and shuddered! We Ladybugs headed out to the garden and planted cucumber seeds in cups, which we hope will soon go home to be planted in your own gardens. We pulled on garden gloves and scooped soil in our sensory table while filling and dumping flower pots.

On Wednesday, the Ladybugs gave our back doors an official spring cleaning! They sprayed water from squirt bottles and wiped up with towels. They painted paper butterflies and learned a garden finger play and a song, “Signs of Spring.”  We later took a buggy ride and hunted for green grass and dandelions. Pastor Amy taught us about forgiveness in chapel and explained that when we forgive, we allow others to begin anew. When others forgive us, we may begin anew. 

The Ladybugs glued paper circles together on Thursday to form cute little caterpillars. We sang and danced with Mrs. S. in music class, where the Ladybugs are really learning the words to the favorite tunes! The Ladybugs also painted at the easel with yellow, our color of the week, before having a birthday celebration for our friend, Grace. By the way, thank you for the delicious snacks, birthday girl!

Next week is Spring Break! We hope you have a safe and happy week off together. We'll look forward to seeing you the following Tuesday when we'll talk about bugs and other creepy crawlies.

Love, 
Ms. Shannon and Ms. Tammy