Kerkstra Room 18 celebrated Halloween by carving a pumpkin, playing pumpkin bowling, and painting with our color of the month- orange!

Loads of Halloween fun was had by all! K-9 enjoyed fun and games during our Halloween celebration! A fan favorite, pin the nose on the pumpkin! Of course, our little perfectionists really wanted to get that nose in just the right spot.....ehemmm, no peeking!! And of course, no Halloween party would be complete without the toilet paper mummy game! So much fun making a big mess with the teachers’ permission!!

B15 learned about animals at an animal farm.  They practiced skills of turn taking, waiting, and interacting with people in the community.  They had a wonderful adventure!

     K22 took advantage of Fire Prevention Week by visiting the Oak Forest Fire Department!  Local fire fighters treated us to a tour of where they worked, played, ate and slept. We were even able to see the fire fighters leave for an actual fire call!  We asked many questions to learn what its like to be a real fire fighter!  After our fire station visit, we went to Commissioners Park, Frankfort to play on the amazing playground and eat lunch. 

Kerkstra 18 celebrated September by making apple smiles and visiting Konow's Corn Maze--all while practicing the 3 B's of CD! Check out our students Being Responsible, Being Respectful, and Being Safe!

    During the month of September, our students reviewed the 3 B's of CD:  Be Respectful, Be Responsible and Be Safe.  School wide, as well as classroom expectations were taught and reinforced.  K22 then joined the entire CD Program to celebrate the PBIS kickoff at Konow's Corn Maze in Homer Glen. 

The CD program celebrated our PBIS kick off at Konow's Corn Maze in Homer Glen. Room B6 students showed the community our great skills at achieving the 3B's CD programs. Check out our photos! Spot our students Being Safe, Being Responsible, and Being Respectful!  

K9 is off and running!  With old friends and new friends, we have jumped right back into our busy schedule!  We can't believe how much they have all grown!  Looking forward to a fun and exciting school year!

K-9 spent a week honoring Mom!  Look how much effort all these kiddos put into making a beautiful plant for Mom!  Now Mom's know why we may have come home a mess last week!  

Room 7 has been practicing our expressive writing skills using the First Authors Curriculum. Our students are given 30-45 minutes a day to write about a topic that was voted on by the class. As a group we "brainstorm" about the topic then get 15 minutes to free write. Then, every Friday, we host an "Author's Chair" where 3 lucky students are chosen to come up and sit in our specially decorated chair and share about their favorite writing passage from the week. During this time, the other students are also able to practice their active listening skills by asking questions and commenting on the the writing passage. Check out our proud authors and listeners below! 

What is SYMBOLIC PLAY? Symbolic play is the ability of children to use objects, actions or ideas to represent other objects, actions, or ideas as play. A child may push a block around the floor as a car or put it to his ear as a cell phone.
At around 8 months of age, as their symbolic thinking develops, children become familiar with objects, actions, and ideas through observation and exploration. An early example of symbolic play would be a child making noise with their baby toys by banging them or shaking them. As the child shows understanding of the object’s use, he may pick up a comb and touch his hair.
At around 18 months of age, children begin to engage in pretend play and use one object to represent another, like drinking from an empty cup or pretending to feed a doll. A toddler’s play is much more connected to imagination, with sticks becoming boats and brooms becoming horses. Their play is mostly solitary, assigning roles to inanimate objects like their dolls and teddy bears.5
Preschoolers, from ages 3 to 5 years, are more capable of imagining roles behind their pretend play. Their play becomes more social, and they enjoy make-believe play. They assign roles to themselves and others involving several sequenced steps often with a predetermined plan, like pretending to be at the doctor’s office or having a tea party.

​Floortime strategies for helping children build symbolic play:
*  Identify real life experiences your child knows and enjoys
*  Respond to your child's desires through pretend play
*  Encourage role play with dress up, puppets, etc.

    Kerkstra 22 joined Kerkstra 7 to welcome spring by visiting the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Chicago.  We enjoyed a variety of exhibits that were both interactive and educational!  Students learned about how the Darkling Beetle and Box Turtle moves and feels.  They loved seeing the living animals, fish and bug collections, as well as the real taxidermy exhibits.   "Mysteries at the Marsh" and "Butterfly Haven" were a couple of favorite exhibits!!!  Students explored the Green House area and discovered how to care for the environment within our own homes.  Lastly, we took an outdoor nature walk on the perfect spring day!!  

We had a great day together on April 10th where we had the opportunity to play and learn at Frankfort Kidswork Children’s Museum and Commissioner Park. At Frankfort Kidswork Children’s Museum, part of the Trolley Barn, there were many stations and exhibits that we could explore. Our students loved to play with the sensory table and play in the Lights and Shadows room. When we finished learning at the Museum, we went to play at Commissioner Park. While we were there, we enjoyed a pizza picnic. Below are a few pictures from the exciting day! ​