Tag: Halloween

Celebrating the Fall Season at The International Preschools

Fall is a busy season here at The International Preschools. We celebrate the seasonal changes that occur in the fall (i.e. apples, pumpkins, leaves, acorns) as well as the holidays that occur: United Nations Day, Halloween, Diwali, and Thanksgiving.

United Nations Day (October 24th) is a special day for the IPS community. Much of the month of October is spent highlighting and appreciating the multiculturalism that sets IPS apart from other schools. The children and teachers spend time observing what is the same and different about each other.

Preparing for our United Nations Day celebration with families via Zoom in the Pre-K 2 class at 76th Street.

After United Nations Day, our school quickly jumps into Halloween mode, with festivities at both locations. On November 2nd, IPS then celebrated the Hindu holiday of Diwali with Zoom presentations from the Ajna Dance Company, as well as “culture shares” initiated by families who observe the holiday. Rounding out the month of November is the American holiday of Thanksgiving, which is commemorated at IPS with classroom “feasts” as a way of coming together to share a meal with friends.

Please enjoy some highlights from the last month, which includes photos from our classroom learning about United Nations Day, Halloween, Diwali, and the fall season!

  • Happy Halloween from Pre-K 2!
  • Picking pumpkins in the Red Room!
  • We are different, yet we are the same! Multicultural floor puzzle completion.Represen
  • Representing our families’ heritages and traditions on United Nations Day.
  • Happy Halloween from Pre-K 3!
  • Red Room United Nations Day Sing-Along
  • Bringing nature into the classroom via acorns and leaves.
  • Halloween in the Pre-K Room at 86th Street.
  • Creating a whole-group “world collage.”
  • Sampling the “Pancakes From Around The World” snack in the Red Room at 76th Street!
  • Happy Halloween from the 76th Street Green Room!
  • Painting a self-portrait in the Green Room at 86th Street.
  • Happy Halloween from Green 1 at 86th Street!
  • Group painting using corn as a roller.
  • Red Room celebrates United Nations Day!
  • Painting with pinecones at 86th Street.
  • Halloween parade at 86th Street.
  • Exploring with mini-pumpkins.
  • Happy Halloween from Green 3!
  • “Around the World” floor puzzle in the Pre-K 3 classroom.
  • Exploring pumpkin seeds at 86th Street
  • Multicultural floor puzzle with Pre-K 2.
  • Examining the insides of a pumpkin.
  • Shaving cream + mini pumpkin = fun in the Red Room!
  • Representational drawings, using our flags as inspiration.
  • Happy Halloween from 86 Pre-K!
  • Halloween 2021 at 76th Street with the Red Room
  • All About Me bulletin board at 76th Street
  • Halloween Bingo at 86th Street.
  • Painting mini pumpkins at 86th Street!
  • Using a magnifying glass to discover what’s inside of a pumpkin at 86th Street.
  • Discovery Center filled with pumpkins and gourds at 86th Street
  • Learning about pumpkins (and what’s inside) at 86th Street

Ready to join the IPS community for the 2022-2023 school year? Learn more about our admissions process on our website.

October Events at The International Preschools

The first month of school has been a huge success! Over the last several weeks, the children have acclimated nicely to the daily routines at IPS. The children and teachers are building strong relationships and creating a sense of community within their classrooms. The 2021-2022 school year is definitely off to a great start!

What If We Were All The Same! by C.M. Harris is a wonderful book appreciating similarities and differences between people…and is simply worded for young children.

During the month of October, a variety of topics are covered within our classrooms. The overall theme is “We Are Different, Yet We Are The Same,” a nod to the celebration of multiculturalism at our school. IPS was founded more than 50 years ago as a place for those families affiliated with the United Nations to come together as a community. (For more on why United Nations Day is so important to The International Preschools, click here.)

Take a look inside of our classrooms and learn about what’s going on at IPS…

  • The Pre-K 2 children at 76th Street have been working on their cutting skills! The children cut out shapes and tried to follow along the lines while doing so.
  • 86th Street students create their own “world” by painting circle-shaped paper in green, blue, and brown. This activity reflects our overall October theme of “We are different, yet we are the same.”
  • During snack time, children learn to socialize with each other, take turns, taste different foods, and strengthen their self-help skills by cleaning up after themselves. It’s a fun (and educational) time for all!
  • A Red Room student at 86th Street creates a pumpkin using textured paint.
  • An apple-themed project is a big hit in the Red Room at 86th Street!
  • Throughout the entire school year, the children learn about the cultures represented by the students at our school. Here a child at 86th Street plays a matching game with boys and girls of different skin tones, hair color, and eye color. Even though we may look different, we are still children that need food, water, and a home. We are different, yet we are the same!
  • The Pre-K Room at 86th Street spent some time at nearby Carl Schurz Park.
  • The Red Room at 86th Street explored the inside and the outside of a pumpkin.
  • The 76th Street Red Room welcomed the return of the sandbox to the school playground!
  • Green Room children at 86th Street strengthened their fine motor skills by threading beads onto “hair.”
  • The Pre-K 2 children at 76th Street practiced lacing by threading yarn into and out of small holes.
  • In honor of United Nations Day, the Pre-K 2 children created paintings of flags that represent their families.
  • Gross motor skills are exercised on the monkey bars at Carl Schurz Playground!
  • Pre-K classes at both locations began the Handwriting Without Tears program, a weekly foray into the proper formation of uppercase letters.
  • Lacing activities with a multicultural theme! 86th Street students work on their fine motor skills using cards with people dressed in traditional, multicultural clothing.
  • The Green Room children welcomed their first culture share/family tradition of the year. The theme was decorating for the fall/Halloween season.
  • Technology class with Ms. Chelsea started in September for the Pre-K classes at 76th Street. The Green Room children will begin technology classes in January.
  • The 76th Street Red Room prepares for cooking class by wearing IPS aprons!

Be sure to return to the IPS blog next month for more photos, curriuculum, and events taking place at our wonderful school!

Are you interested in joining the IPS community? Learn about the application process by visiting our website.

Happy Halloween from The International Preschools!

Halloween, like United Nations Day and other IPS events during the 2020-2021 school year, looked a bit different than years past. We weren’t able to have our usual school-wide Halloween fashion shows or parades. Happily, there were many things we were still able to do. The children and teachers had a great time attending school in costume. Many classrooms held Halloween-themed activities, including pumpkin carving and the baking of Halloween treats. Everyone had a great time!

Here’s a look at Halloween 2020 at The International Preschools:

Pumpkin experimentation in our Green 3 Room…with bubbles!
The Green 2 children (and teachers) show off their amazing costumes.
One of our Pre-K classes in full costume!
A surprise match-up! Pre-K and Red Room superheroes!

A great time was had by all!

Interested in joining the IPS community? Visit our website by clicking here: https://www.ipsnyc.org

Halloween 2019 at IPS!

86th Street students pose in their Halloween costumes!

The fall season at The International Preschools is filled with many different events, from Curriculum Night to United Nations Day to Thanksgiving, not to mention Parent/Teacher Conferences, Diwali, Thanksgiving…the list goes on!  Of course, the year would not be complete without celebrating a holiday that the children (and teachers) look forward to all year…Halloween!

Here at IPS, our 76th Street and 86th Street locations commemorated Halloween in a variety of ways.  Keep reading to learn about our Halloween curriculum and view photos from Halloween 2019!

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Fall, Harvest, Families, Food: November Classroom Themes in the Green Rooms (3 year olds)

At 76th Street, a three-year-old class painted and decorated their own pumpkins to take home.
At 76th Street, a three-year-old class painted and decorated their own pumpkins to take home.

The month of November truly reflects the season of fall here in New York City.  The weather is noticeably cooler, the leaves on the trees have changed colors, and with the recent celebration of Halloween, fall finally feels upon us.  At The International Preschools, fall, food, families, and Thanksgiving are the topics that we focus on within the classrooms from late October through November.  The blog posts over the next few weeks will focus on how these themes are implemented into the classrooms.  This week, we will take a look at Halloween and the overall theme of fall in the Green Rooms (3 year olds) at all three locations….

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