Tsukuba International Preschool

Children at TIP have really been enjoying the freedom in choosing learning centre activities of their choice. Learning centre activities this week will focus on the letter Zz, Chicken & Egg puzzles, seasonal maths activities with a die, and spring art.

We have spent some time watching the plum and cherry blossoms change in our school yard, talking about spring in Japan and expressing these experiences through art activities. This week we will look at other changes in spring, such as differences in lifecycles of some animals, and activities and games that children around the world do. On Friday afternoon we will read a story about an Easter egg hunt and all have a turn at doing one.

Our current unit, “Faces and Places in our school” has had us spend lots of time thinking and talking about how we can be kind to our friends. We’ve been talking about what behaviours upset people around us, such as unkind words or excluding people. Talking with your children at home about this in their native tongue, would be valuable in reinforcing important social skills your children are learning. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to get in touch with us.

We also look forward to meeting two new classmates this week, Sarah and Asuka!

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Monday

This morning we will meet Zig Zag Zebra and practise our letter writing. We will also build a set for and use the puppets we have made to perform a puppet show about our school. In the afternoon we will talk about spring life, including chickens and do an egg-chicken activity.

Tuesday

Today we will play some movement games for PE, look at different egg designs and decorate our own paper eggs.

Wednesday

This morning we will talk about some seasonal celebrations and read a story. Students will choose a learning centre activity of their choice to work on (Maths/Phonics/Art).

Thursday

For language arts this morning we will visit TIS and grade 2 will read us some stories they have written. Students will choose a learning centre of their choice again today.

Friday

This morning we will draw a picture & write in our story books. In the afternoon we will make a basket and do an Easter Egg hunt.

This is a short but busy week at TIP and we are looking forward to two new friends joining our class, Len and Yohana.

In language arts we will continue our writing and phonics activities, this week focusing on Xx. We will also talk about characters and setting in the stories we read. We will continue to study “Places & Faces of our School”, make puppets of ourselves and prepare a mini set for a puppet show about our classroom actions.

We will also have a chance to be active and creative through afternoon activities such as Hula Dance, PE, and seasonal art activities.

We hope you all have a great week!

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Monday
No School today

Tuesday
This morning we will meet Fix-it Max and practise our letter writing. In the afternoon, students will choose from a learning centre of their choice.

Wednesday
Today we will share a story about a little dinosaur who discovers new friends, talk about the characters and do a book review. We will also work on our individualised puppets.

Thursday
Today we will work in small teacher-led and independent language arts learning groups. P2 & P3 will work on some simple number problems while P1 does some fine motor skills activities. In the afternoon we will do a seasonal art activity.

Friday
This morning we will have PE and draw and write in our storybooks. In the afternoon we will be creative and make something from recycled materials.

Last week we welcomed a new student, Nanase, into our class. TIP children have been doing a great job helping her to find her way around and get used to our classroom. A big happy welcome to Nanase!
This week at TIP we will be focussing on the letter Qq, alongside u. We will revisit independent learning skills and behaviors and apply them in independent learning centres. Children will be encouraged to choose a learning centre that they can work at for the duration of the lesson, and that they will enjoy learning about. This week these options will be language arts and unit of inquiry (Places and faces of our school) based.

We hope that as the weather starts to warm up we can spend more time outdoors exploring and noting changes in our environment.

We hope that you all have a wonderful and warm week!

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Monday
This morning we will meet Quarrelsome Queen and work in small learning groups as well as independently on language arts activities.

Tuesday
Today we will do a listening comprehension activity and play some number games. In the afternoon we will do a seasonal art activity.

Wednesday
This morning we will work in independent learning centres for language arts as well as practise our writing and letter sounds.

Thursday
Today we will draw and write in our journals. Students will also choose a hands-on learning centre activity to work on.

Friday
Today we will review our skills and knowledge from the week, and enjoy some PE as well as creative exploration.

What a busy and fun week we had at TIP before spring break. We made a class book with silly behaviours similar to “David goes to school”, visited grade one at TIS and learned how to sing The Rainbow Song in sign language, had a “Vegetable soup sharing party”, as well as our usual routines and activities.
This week in language arts we will continue our writing and vocabulary building activities with a focus on the letter Ww. We will share Window, by Jeanie Baker and talk about her distinct collage pictures. We will also try making our own versions. Continuing with our Ww letter theme, Preschool children will do some water experiments, learning about waves and buoyancy.
We hope that you have enjoyed spring break and look forward to seeing everyone back safely on Monday.

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Monday
This morning we will share stories about our spring break and draw and write about them in our story journals. In the afternoon we will review The Rainbow song in sign language and move our bodies to different kinds of music.

Tuesday
This morning we will meet “Walter Walrus”, brainstorm Ww words and do some writing activities. During maths we will do some wa- ter experiments. In the afternoon we will paint to music.

Wednesday
This morning we will visit TIS for some shared reading activities. We will also review our class rules and compare faces of people in our school, followed by an art activity.

Thursday
Today we will share Window, review collage, and make our own window picture with an original story.

Friday
Today we will work in small learning groups for language arts, to practice our writing, let- ter and word skills.