Hello all,

“Community Week” has come and gone and boy, was it great!  Read on below to learn about the fun that was had and learning that took place.

Each day of “Community Week” was spent discussing and learning about a particular community member and their role in the community.  Seeing that the PPA students all live in very busy and thriving city neighborhoods, the list of community members to choose from was quite long!  Before the students could fully dive into the individuals who make up a community, they needed to identify  exactly what a community was.  Here is what they came up with.

Photo Sharing – Video Sharing – Photo Printing

On Monday, the students focused on one community member who creates delicious treats for the neighborhood.  Can you guess who that community member is?

If you said, “Baker” then you are correct!  Bakers are an integral part of a community – particularly a neighborhood like Jersey City or Hoboken.  People come from all over to get cakes, cookies, pies, fresh bread and more from a baker!  Life is not all strudels and scones for a baker though, it takes a lot of hard work to be a baker!  For starters, bakers usually arrive at work VERY early in the morning to start baking to ensure that their food is as fresh as possible!  The recipes that the bakers use involve a lot of counting and measuring.  For their morning work, the students transformed into bakers themselves when they made home-made school-made play-dough!

The students worked together to measure out, pour in, and mix all of the ingredients needed to make play-dough.  Once the mixture had been stirred, the teachers “cooked” it and it was set aside to cool.

Throughout the remainder of the week, the students enjoyed the fruits of their labor at the play-dough station!

On Tuesday, the students discussed not one, but several, important community members.  The students were shocked to learn they themselves were a part of the community.  When asked what role they play, the students explained that children help keep a community young, fun, and happy!  The teachers also explained that children have an important job but what is it?  Do you know what a child’s job is in the community?

A child’s job is to grow and learn as much as they can!  The teachers explained to the students that it is so important for children to do the best they can at their job because one day they will be the grown-ups in the community!  The classroom filled with giggles at the idea of the preschoolers being grown-ups one day.  After the giggles settled down, the discussion continued.

The teachers asked the question, “Who helps the children grow and learn?”  Hands flew into the air as three very important community members were identified, “Mommies, Daddies, and Teachers!”  Here is the craft they came up with to remind them of the important role both children and teachers play in the community.

Wednesday was a very exciting day because the PPA students were visited by the first community helper of the 2011-2012 school year – Paramedic Tom Shields from Jersey City University Medical Center.  Paramedic Tom, known to the PPA students affectionately as “E.M.T. Tom,” came in to discuss the role Paramedics and E.M.T.s play in the community along with ways to stay safe in our homes!   Topics discussed during Kitchen Safety included the following.

1. Stay away from a hot stove, pot, pan or anything sharp in the kitchen.

2.  Do not play inside the kitchen.

3.  Keep all things electric far from water!

4.  Most importantly – Never cook without a grown-up to help you!

The students blew both the teachers and E.M.T. Tom away with their awareness of kitchen safety!  Next, E.M.T. Tom discussed another area in the house that can be dangerous – the bathroom.    Here are some of the important tips that the students learned about staying safe in the bathroom.

1.  Never eat or drink medicine because it is not candy.

2.  Bottles found under a sink or in the bathroom might look like juice or squirt toys but they are actually cleaning products.  They are poison, DO NOT drink or play with them EVER!

3.   Never take a bath by yourself.  A grown-up must be with you at all times!

The most important thing that E.M.T. Tom taught the students was to always get a grown-up when something not safe or dangerous happens at home!

What an important and informative presentation E.M.T. Tom led!  The students posed for a photograph with E.M.T. Tom before he headed back to work for the day.

A special PPA thank you to E.M.T. Tom for showing us how to keep ourselves safe!  See you soon!

During the afternoon, the students reviewed the safety tips they had learned earlier in the day by reading the book – Safe at Home!  Indoor Safety.  Each page of the book asks an important safety question and gives three choices for the students to choose from.  The students LOVED answering the questions to find the correct or safest answer!  Let’s see how you do with a question…

What would YOU do if…

you found a piece of broken glass on the floor?

1.  Pick it up with your hands and throw it in the trash.

2. Get a Grown Up and tell them where the glass is.

3.  Say nothing.  Just play VERY carefully around it.

The SAFE answer is…

GET A GROWN UP

AND TELL THEM WHERE THE GLASS IS.

Children should never touch sharp things like broken glass because it can cut their hands.  Cleaning up things like your toys or your room is very important but certain things are too dangerous for children to clean.  Leave it and be sure to tell a grown up!

🙂