The joke of the week was:
"Which of Santa's reindeer has bad manners?
RUDE-olph!"
I wish you a restful, relaxing and joyous break! See you in 2015!
Lakewood Elementary ASD Program 1500 Bogie Lake Rd. White Lake, MI 48383 248-684-8030 |
Lakewood ASD |
Well, we made it! Happy Holidays to you and your family! We have been enjoying some holiday activities here at school. This week, we practiced some holiday-centered social skills, like opening a present you don't like, or handling the disappointment of not getting what you wanted or expected. We did a fun activity with Mrs. Szalay where the children actually opened (fake) presents and pretended to like them. This is a tough skill, even for many adults, so we continue to work on it each year at this time. We also made a little gift for you, which was a multi-day event. We talked about the benefits of giving to others and read a few holiday books just for fun! I don't expect to see any groups today due to parties, but I'm always prepared with some games and books in case the party scene gets to be a bit much!
The joke of the week was: "Which of Santa's reindeer has bad manners? RUDE-olph!" I wish you a restful, relaxing and joyous break! See you in 2015!
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Hi Everyone! As with any break or holiday, the days leading up to the vacation tend to fill up quickly and as much as we try, routines are hard to keep. This past week was no exception. The holiday shop was a great success--children were able to shop for family members. We always use this opportunity to talk about giving to others. The kids generated some great conversation! Also this week, we wrote letters to Santa (they will be coming home in sealed envelopes addressed to you this week). I used a structured letter that required the kids to think outside of the box a bit. Instead of just asking for a list of things they wanted, it asked them to think in terms of needs, wants and how they will help others. It is much more difficult, but I think it's a valuable activity. We also began a problem/solution writing project that began with a picture of Santa stuck in the chimney. The children were asked to think about what could have happened to get him stuck in the first place (answering those tough WHY questions) and how he might get out of the predicament. This was actually harder than I expected for most of the students, so we'll keep working on the concept.
This week, we also began a few projects for after the holidays. On January 16, Lakewood is hosting its first Leadership Day. We are excited for this opportunity and we have been creating projects to decorate the school with student work centered around our theme "Everyday Heroes". We discussed our "super powers"--things we are good at. I would like to take a moment to ask that you help me reinforce that kids do not actually have super powers. I have been referring to super powers are our strengths, but I still have a few children that insist they have real powers. It is important that no one tries to jump off of play structures because they think they can fly, so each time we talk about super heroes, I talk about how much fun it is to pretend they are real but no one has REAL super powers (the ability to fly, walk through walls, etc.). I've mostly been tackling the "powers" that someone could get hurt attempting. We ended our week with a painting project and game day. We were really busy but we had a good time! Our joke of the week was: "Why is it so cold at Christmas? Because it's Decembrrrrr!" Happy weekend! This week, we had a great time talking about our Thanksgiving activities. We practiced sharing what we did over the break and asking questions to further the conversations. We relied heavily on our WH question words to remind us of things we could ask about. It was great to see the progress they are making! On Tuesday, we read a book called Join in and Play. It is a picture book about different ways to approach a person or a group and join in. The children drew themselves asking to join in with others. On Thursday, we read Clark the Shark. The book is about a shark who is very energetic and overwhelms the fish in his school. (Get it? School!?!) The teacher tells him to "Stay cool", which the kids decided mean "relax and calm down". The rest of the story finds Clark making up rhymes to remind him of the social expectations in each area that he struggles. We practiced thinking like Clark and reflecting on our challenges and how we can conduct ourselves. Friday was an early release day, so the groups with which I met just did some make up work and conversational practice. I hope you had a wonderful weekend! 2 more weeks until holiday break! It hardly seems like Christmas already!
Oh yeah--the joke of the week!! The kids loved this one! "What do you get when you cross a bell and a skunk? Jingle Smells!" |
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June 2017
Ann Reece
Ann Reece is the upper elementary teacher in the ASD program. Categories |