Sunbeam Classroom

Ages 4 years to 5 years

     Welcome Back!  I hope everyone had a wonderful summer. We are so excited to get the year started!  At the start of the year we are going to focus on following directions and the expectations of the room. We will take our time exploring the room. Some of the most popular activities are dramatic play, as well as playing with Magna-tiles and building with the large blocks. We will be working on activities that focus on the children’s names. Some examples are spelling out their name with scraps of paper, using play dough, magnet letters etc. Please encourage your child to write his/her name. Remember to only use a capital letter at the beginning and lower case letters for the rest of their name. This is helpful for kindergarten when they begin to read.

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     We will start the year with number and letter recognition as well. We will focus on a letter each week. I have many resources to use to expose them to letters and their sounds. We have mini-books, they practice in their journals, we search the room for words, and we have many center activities geared to help with letter learning. We use number games, flashcards, and many other fun activities that help with number recognition, positions, and even addition and subtraction. We will be exploring Science with various experiments, the Nature Center, and weekly activities set out in our science center in the room. The kids get the hang of it quickly and love all the challenges!

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     We will be walking to the library on Wednesday. This has always been an enjoyable adventure! We typically read a story then pick out a book of our own to keep in the room and enjoy throughout the week. We have a great year ahead, filled with exciting activities and learning experiences. For the month of September we will be focusing on “All About Me”. With in this unit we will focus on our name, friends, family, and our feelings. Some activities planned are All About Me Bags, Self portraits, and an I am Special Book. If you haven’t already done so, please bring in a family photo and a baby picture. We are looking forward to the new school year. I can tell it’s going to be filled with fun, crazy adventures!

    The Sunbeam Classroom works to prepare our students for kindergarten. Our teachers focus on skills and subjects that the students have been introduced to throughout their time at Palmer. Here they are able to work on larger interesting projects and units. One of the student's favorite projects is during our ocean studies week where the classroom becomes an aquatic wonderland. During this week the student's complete arts and crafts projects, read informational texts and have guided class discussions.

    As the students are preparing for kindergarten we work to increase their independence, especially during lessons students are able to work at certain stations without supervision. A large focus of the classroom is to ensure we care for the whole student including their social and emotional growth. They learn to communicate not only with teachers but also peers and how to express their needs or wants in an appropriate manner. As the teachers engage in the school's creative curriculum they are able to focus on the student's passions and work on creating life long learners.

    Some of the student's favorite events of the year include Thanksgiving luncheon and weekly library trips. 

Staff Ratio 1:6

Kindergarten Readiness

Weekly Library Trip

Independent Skills

Head Teacher

Cindy Yost

Associates in Early Childhood Education from RVCC

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 Miss Cindy has recently joined the staff at The Palmer School. She has four children. In her spare time she loves to garden, go hiking, and bird watching. 

Teacher

Megan Cain

Degree in   

Early Childhood Education

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Miss Megan has been with the Palmer School for 4 years. She is fluent in American Sign Language and enjoys cooking Italian cuisine. 

Teacher

Sofia Rolon

Pursuing Associates in Early Childhood Education from RVCC

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Born in Buenos Aries 

Argentina Miss Sofia has worked at Palmer School for 5 years. She enjoys reading. Her favorite book series is Harry Potter.