Happy Lunar New Year!

Dear Monkey Class Families,

This week has been a whirlwind of activity! We had individual and class photos on Tuesday, whole school photos on Wednesday, and the Lion and Dragon performance on Thursday. These changes to our usual routine naturally led to many "why" questions from the children. Why no snack? Why no circle time? While they had lots of questions, they all adapted remarkably well, and I am incredibly proud of their flexibility. Let's be honest, it was quite a week for me too!

Amidst the busy schedule, we had a lot of fun exploring Chinese New Year. The children were particularly captivated by the Story of the Great Race and learning about the zodiac signs. We incorporated role-playing into our class with zodiac headbands, and many children enthusiastically shared their own zodiac signs and those of their family members.

In Monkey Class, we have been focusing on collaboration and teamwork over the past few weeks and had a blast creating long dragons together. It was heartwarming to see the children understand the joy of playing with them cooperatively. They even shared lai see and gold coins with their friends, demonstrating their understanding of sharing. Of course, we couldn't resist taking a class photo in our beautiful Lunar New Year outfits, which elicited many questions about why Peter (The Photographer) wasn't taking the photo this time!



The Lion and Dragon dance at Bradbury was a significant milestone for many. As we prepared the children for this new experience throughout the week, some expressed hesitation and even fear about the choice between staying at Hillside or going to see the dance. However, all the children bravely agreed to give it a try, comforted by the presence of a teacher or a special friend. They knew they would be safe with their Monkey Class family.

January Birthday Celebrations

We also made sure to make time to celebrate our Monkey Class friends who have birthdays in January. Click on the links below to watch a glimpse of our celebration. 

Monkey AM - January Birthdays  |  Monkey PM - January Birthdays 

Google Albums and Spotify playlists


Wishing you all a Happy Holiday and a Happy Lunar New Year! May the Year of the Snake bring you happiness and health.

I look forward to seeing the children on the 4th of February!



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