At the Gan we express our thanks throughout the day.

 We begin our day by singing our thanks.

Thank you Hashem for all the sunshine

and for the raindrops that must fall

For the flowers in springtime, 

and for the Torah we're thankful most of all

Morah Katie:  We are grateful for the sun, rain, flowers and the Torah.

We sing our gratitude everyday.  What are some other things you are thankful for?

Josiah: Gramma's and Grandpa's

Noah: All of our my preschool friends

Dena: A house

Tori: The Torah

Efraim: Hats

Dena: Coats

Aaron: Movies

Kian: Mom's and Dad's

In honor of Thanksgiving,

we created "thankful turkeys".

One of the things that generated a lot of thanks was food.

We talked about how the food comes to our table.

Morah Katie: How do you think the apples and tangerines made their way to our snack table?

Josiah: Well they grew from the a tree from a seed from the ground.

Morah Katie: They did, what do you think happened after they grew on the tree?

Kian: A farmer picked them.

Dena: And the farmer brought them to school or a store.

Morah Katie: We can be grateful for the work of the farmer and the clerks at the store, and our mom's and dad's for buying the fruit.  There is more to be grateful for, what do the fruit trees need to grow the fruit? 

Dena: Dirt

Tori: Sun

Morah Katie: Who provides the dirt and sun?

Dena: Well Hashem does.

Morah Katie: When we say our blessings before we eat, what are we doing?

Kian: Thanking Hashem for our food.

The last habitat we have been learning about is our very own Pacific Northwest temperate rain forest.

Similar to the Amazonian Rain Forest, our temperate rain forest has layers.

The tall emergent conifers, the canopy of deciduous trees, the shrubs and the forest floor.

Morah Katie: The Pacific Northwest is a habitat with some very cool trees.  Some of the trees we have in our neighborhood are Evergreen trees. They are always green.

Noah: Yeah I've seen some of the those around my house.

Morah Katie: These trees that are ever green have a special name, Coniferous. It is a big word.

Children: Con if er ous.

Morah Katie: Coniferous trees are always growing new leaves or needles, so these trees are always?

Dena: GREEN!

Morah Katie: Do we have any evergreen trees or shrubbery around the Gan?

Kian: Right outside.

Morah Katie: What other trees do we have in the Pacific Northwest, and around the Gan?

Dena: The ones that lose their leaves.

Morah Katie: They have a special name also, they are Deciduous trees. What are the deciduous trees doing right now?

Tori: They are changing colors and falling to get ready for winter.

Morah Katie: Why is the Pacific Northwest a rain forest?

Josiah: It rains a lot.

Morah Katie: Does it rain all the time?

Noah: Not all the time but a lot.

Morah Katie: Our rain forest collects the fall and winter rain, and in the summer the fog brings MORE water and moisture.   

We sang a song about trees; we were Coniferous Fir trees and Deciduous Willow trees.

There are some interesting animals in our temperate rain forest.

We used our binoculars to "hunt" for a bear and a moose!

We dodged trees, splashed across streams and rivers, tiptoed over beaver lodges, squelched in mud and pushed through grasses. 

On our "hunts" and "trail walks' we discovered our forest is home to not only to bears and moose, but also elk, cougars, owls, butterflies, beavers, deer, squirrels, eagles and so many more.

We also:

Enjoyed our lunch while watching a crane deliver construction materials

Greeted Ari's brother.

We continue to play, learn and build friendships.

The first Tuesday of November can be a very big day.
In honor of election day nationwide, we held an election at The Gan.
This particular election determined what fruit we enjoyed at snack.

Morah Katie:  We have been talking about our place in space, in the world. In the universe our place in space is on the planet....?
Dena: Earth.
Morah Katie: On Earth our place is....?
Tori: North America.
Morah Katie: On North America our place is...?
Kian: United States America.
Morah Katie: And in the United States of America, our state is...?
Noah: Washington.
Morah Katie: Today, all over the United States, adults will be voting. We are going to have our own election. An election is an opportunity to express what you want, your opinion.

We had 2 choices, apple or olive.

We tasted the apple; we tasted the olive.

We marked our ballot for which fruit we preferred.

We put our ballot in the box at our voting booth.
We tallied the votes and discovered which fruit was liked the most.















The votes were tallied and it was easy to see early on that Apple would win in a landslide.
Shouts of "Hooray"  "Yay" were heard through out the building.

We continue to develop our grace and courtesy.
Chalk is a wonderful medium for art. When everyone works together to erase the slate, it allows for a new canvas to be used.

It is always kind to hold the door for your friends.

Helping a friend write their name is a kind act and something to feel proud of.

Problem solving to create a solution which benefits the entire class is respectful to the whole community.

Participation in the preparation and offering of snack demonstrates grace and care of others.

It is always kind and gracious to help a friend in need.

We have left the wet South American rain forest, 

and we have traveled to the African savanna.

Morah Katie: Please remind what you will find in every habitat?

Noah: Animals.

Josiah: Oxygen.
Dena: Food
Kian: Water
Morah Katie: Anything else all animals need to be successful?  I can think of 2 more things.
Aaron: Shelter
Tori: Aplacetoraisethieryoung (translation - a place to raise their young)

Morah Katie: Looking at these 2 posters, the rain forest and the savanna, what do they both have in common?
Tori: Oxygen.
Noah: Trees, but the place with the lion doesn't have a lot of trees.
Morah Katie:  Please tell me what is different between a rain forest and a savanna.

Tori: The rain forest is wet and dark.
Dena: The savanna has lots of grass.
Kian: The rain forest is green.
Noah: You see more light sun in the savanna.

A trip to the savanna would not be complete without a safari:

Going on a lion hunt,
I'm not afraid.

Got my canteen.

Got my binoculars. 

Are YOU ready? let's go!

Look! what's that up ahead?

A tree.

Can't go over it, 

can't go under it,

Got to go around it. (side step x2)

Going on a lion hunt,
I'm not afraid.

Got my canteen.

Got my binoculars. 

Are YOU ready? let's go!

Look! what's that up ahead?

Tall tall grass.

Can't go over it.
Can't go under it.
Got to go through it. ( swoosh swoosh x2)

Going on a lion hunt,

I'm not afraid.

Got my canteen.

Got my binoculars. 

Are YOU ready? let's go!

Look! what's that up ahead?

A watering hole. 

Can't go over it.

Can't go under it.
Have to swim across it. (splish splash x2)

Going on a lion hunt,

I'm not afraid.

Got my canteen.

Got my binoculars. 

Are YOU ready? let's go!

Look! what's that up ahead?

Mud.

Can't go over it.

Can't go under it.
Got to go through it. (squelch squelch x2)

We continue with the chant as we cross a rickety old bridge, enter a cave, find the lion and have to run back to the jeep retracing our steps along the way.

This fun active song helps to reinforce the topography in a savanna.  

We went on a variety of savanna animal hunts.  

We could all agree we would feel better meeting a zebra over a lion or cheetah.

We played Green Light Red Light as savanna animals.
Lions, snakes and monkeys all move very differently.

Games are a helpful tool for learning theme concepts, and learning about sportsmanship.