Hola New Tradition parents,

             We learned a lot of different things last week, so I tried to make this week a little more fun and decided to focus on animals (animales). Considering that the class seemed to really like Easter (Tasqua), rabbits (conejos), and colorful eggs (huevos colorados), I thought that it would be enjoyable for the children to combine their study of animales with Tasqua! On Monday we did a few worksheets that involved matching, using vocabulary, and lots of art. We also did a lot of other crafts that included creating an Easter collage and a drawing our favorite animals.

              There are obviously many different species of animals, but since we”re beginners here, we only focused on the most common types of animals and household pets (gato=cat, perro=dog, pez=fish, pajaro=bird, pato=duck, conejo=rabbit, rana=frog, vaca=cow, caballo=horse, abeja=bee, oso=bear, leon=lion, rata=rat). Today the class did a worksheet that asked them to draw a specific number of a particular type of animal and also did some riddles about pets. After recess today, we reviewed color and basic commands with the aid of our handy-dandy parachute (which was a huge and I mean HUGE success). The parachute proved to be a great way to get some energy out and really learn in a more dynamic and fun manner. We concluded our class today with our Easter projects and a little Easter surprise from me.

              As you may know, I will be away this Friday and teacher Johanna will be substituting for me (I reminded the class of this as well). I gave her some supplies and our basic lesson plan for Friday which will conclude our lesson on animals. I omitted “El Doctor” this week because there was so much to cover in animal vocab and describing animals that I felt that we could put it off until a little later; plus the kids seemed to really enjoy saying the animal names in Spanish. Next week will be a little short with the furlough day and all, but we will be focusing on common expressions (and possibly some advanced greetings), expressions in music (through songs and chants), and will also begin practicing for our end of the year show. I hope this has been helpful and that you all have a wonderful remainder of the week. Adios!

-Joanna