Circle Time Joy - Learning Through Songs, Movement, and Fun! (Ongoing)

This virtual Ongoing, Circle Time Joy class for ages 4-5 will meet 2 times per week, for twenty-five minutes. We will learn about letters of the alphabet (ABCs), numbers, and other concepts typically covered in a Morning Meeting type of class. 

In this fun-filled Circle Time class, I will introduce a variety of early academic concepts throughout the class such as the days of the week, the weather, upper and lower case letters, numbers, shapes, colors, and patterns. Whether these concepts are new to students or a review, it will be a fun time for them to learn by singing songs, playing a number game, counting, and identifying, using hand motions, and much more. As we talk about each concept, I will be putting an item on the board to serve as a visual aid for the learning concept. Learners will develop letter recognition and identification (letter ID) skills for both the uppercase (capital) and lowercase versions of one letter per class. We will use fun activities to introduce and reinforce letter and number recognition. We'll talk about the sounds that a letter makes and words that start with that letter (initial sounds). 

Learners will have the opportunity to participate in engaging activities that stimulate their minds in a variety of ways. By the end of each class, students will be able to recognize a letter of the alphabet  (upper and lower case), a number, a shape, and a color. They will learn about the days of the week and the current month. They will understand the basic ideas about weather and seasons. 

I will be using a variety of modalities to accommodate a variety of learning styles. For example, I will address auditory learning by speaking and singing about concepts, visual by showing illustrations and demonstrating each concept, and kinesthetic by having students use hand motions to make letters and sing songs. This small, online course is a great addition to any homeschool program for preschoolers and it helps to prepare learners for Kindergarten (pre-K).  

⭕ This is an ongoing course to help learners reinforce various concepts. As such, learners can enroll and withdraw as they would like to review specific skills without affecting their learning progress.  Students will not need to attend a previous class or continue classes to benefit from the course because the content for each class is independent of other classes. 

🍎 On some occasions, learners will be encouraged to bring an item such as a printed file or an item for Show and Tell. In such cases, this request will be posted in the classroom the day before class to allow time for preparation. 

CLASS AGENDA:
Calendar - Day of the Week, Month, Day, Season and Weather
Song and Make a sentence
Letter of the day (learn capital and lower case, learn sound(s) that the letter makes, a word that starts with the letter)
Number of the day and/or counting
Shape, Color, or Pattern
Social skills - listening, taking turns, speaking on topic, following directions

SCHEDULE:
Week of May 2nd:    Introductions, Letters A & B, Numbers 1 through 5 
Week of May 16th:    Letters C & D, Numbers 6 and 7. 
Week of May 23rd:    Letters E & F, Numbers 8 and 9. 
Week of May 30th:    Letters G & H, Numbers 10 and11
After these weeks, the letters will continue in order until Z, with the cycle ending June 23.  Once we reach that point, we will cycle through the alphabet again). Dates will be updated as necessary to help parents be informed of what letters are being covered.

🔵 If the meeting time or date is not compatible with your schedule, please reach out to me to request a date & time that works for you. 

🟠 If your learner needs extra accommodations, assistance, or support, please let me know at least 48 hours prior to the first meeting so that I have time to prepare any extra materials, teaching tools, or strategies that may be used for accommodations. 

🟢 If you would like to enroll a child who is outside of the age limits of this class, please reach out to me to discuss it. 

🟡 Learners are encouraged to keep their cameras turned on because it helps to improve the teacher's ability to meet the learners' needs. 
Some of the benefits are:  
~ I depend on visual cues to help learners distinguish between the pronunciation of similar letters, sounds, and words. Without that visual aid, I won't be able to see whether they are making the correct sounds for each letter or word. Some examples of similar letters and sounds are: “m” and “n.”  Other examples are "p" and "t" or "d," "b," and "v," or "f" and "s.  
~ I depend on visual cues to assess if the children are comprehending or whether I need to explain something a different way. 
~ I depend on visual cues to help me determine whether I need to adjust the pacing, slow down, repeat, or move on. 
~ Being able to see each learner's face helps me to understand what learners are saying, especially if they are not very loud, the audio is muffled, or they struggle to pronounce a word. 
~ With some classes and learners, we may not have the benefit of using the chat feature to communicate because they may struggle to read or type. 
~ Sometimes an activity or discussion requires that a learner raises their hand or perform a motion to participate. This visual cue may serve as a signal that the learner has a comment or question.  

⭐ CLASSROOM RULES
1. Be prepared for class.
2. Always try your best and do your best work.
3. Raise your hand or use the Raise Hand feature to ask a question. 

📌 CLASS RECORDINGS: This class is designed to be a LIVE class. It is intended for the instructor and the learner to meet and interact in REAL TIME. When you pay for this class, you are paying for Real Time interaction between the learner and the teacher. 
I do not typically share recordings of this class. 
However, you are welcome to contact me if you have any questions that are not addressed in class. Parents are also welcome to view this class live (off screen, according to Outschool Policy) with your child so that you are seeing and hearing the same content. 

🟣 REFUNDS, CANCELLATIONS, and RESCHEDULING: Your payment reserves a spot for your child. Refunds are not given when your child misses this class. If you discover that your child will not be able to attend, you may un-enroll your learner in advance (before the Sunday that precedes the class meeting) to open up their spot for another child. Due to Outschool's policy of no cancellations within 24 hours of the meeting time, I am unable to cancel or reschedule without more than 30 hours' notice. 

✅ Please review Outschool's Learner Safety and Privacy information and Parent Guidelines for How to Use Outschool linked below:
https://support.outschool.com/en/articles/579976-learner-safety-and-privacy-for-parents
https://support.outschool.com/en/articles/2086860-how-to-use-outschool-as-a-parent

I’m so excited to meet your child and start this new adventure with them!