Uu is for underneath.

 

This week we are listening for the sound and looking for Uu as we explore underneath things. We will be using many different position words, underneath, next to, beside, past, above, etc. We'll look underneath the ground at plant roots and draw underneath our tables!

 Our KDI for the week is Communicating ideas- Children communicate their ideas about the characteristics of things and how they work. What do they think happens underneath the ground, the snow, the water?  We'll have fun guessing and seeing if our guess is correct!

Table activities- The table activities for this week include drawing under the tables, playing Memory and Husker Du?, looking under cups, playing under water, putting letters inside envelopes and "mailing" them, worm playdough, coloring pages of underneath and a dirt sensory bin.

Small Group Activities-  This week our small group activities include drawing under a chair, looking under plants, adding Uu is for underneath to our journal and planting a seed under the dirt.

Large Group Activities-  The large group activities we hope to do are London Bridge, an obstacle course, looking underneath things outside.

Books of the week-  "Tops and Bottoms" by Janet Stevens, "Underground" by Denise Fleming and several "Over and Under" books by Kate Messner.

Bible Story- For the next several weeks, we are going to be listening to parables that Jesus taught. Parables are earthly stories with heavenly meanings. Jesus often used storytelling to teach his followers deeper, spiritual truths. Our first parable was told after a student of the law asked Jesus what he needed to do to go to heaven. Jesus replied that he needed to keep the law perfectly. The y man thought he had. When Jesus asked if he had loved God with all his heart soul and mind and if he had loved his neighbor as himself, he tried to justify himself by asking "Who is my neighbor?" 

Jesus told this story, there was a man who was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho when he was attacked by robbers, they beat him, stripped his clothes and left him lying on the side of the road half dead. 

A priest walked by, instead of helping the man, he walked as far away as he could while still staying on the road. A temple worker (Levite) saw the man and did the same thing. A Samaritan came by and he stopped and helped the man by cleaning him up, covering him up, putting him on his own donkey and taking him to an inn. At the inn, he gave the innkeeper money to care for the man until he was well enough to go home. He also told the innkeeper he would come back through and pay him more if he needed more. 

Jesus asked the man- who acted as a neighbor to the hurt man? The one who helped him. Jesus said "Go and do likewise!"

A little background on the Samaritans- The Jewish people and the Samaritans did not get along at all. In fact, Samaria was in the middle of Galilee and Judea  and rather than traveling through it, the Jews would go around it. They had different beliefs and the Jews treated the Samaritans horribly. I don't think there is anything comparable in the US today, but if you think of maybe the Serbians and Bosnians. Different heritage, different beliefs and a lot of animosity. The fact that this Samaritan helped a Jewish man was remarkable, especially since the man's own religious leaders wouldn't help. 

Everyone is our neighbor, we need to think- how can I help? How can I love my neighbor as myself. 

Pictures from this week's Alaska adventures-