2025-26 Smart Start Week 8

This week was all about the letter T—and what a terrific week it was! With Halloween excitement in the air, our friends explored all kinds of T words like teeth, treats, and teamwork!

We had a special visit from Dr. Andrea Owens, who taught us all about how to take care of our teeth! She showed us how to brush for two minutes, two times a day, and reminded us that healthy foods help keep our teeth strong. Everyone loved getting new tools to take home and practice what we learned—thank you, Dr. Owens, for helping us keep our smiles shining bright!

Our friends were busy building with tools this week! Using Magna-Tiles, Tinker Toys, and other building materials, they worked together to design towers, houses, and creative structures. These hands-on invitations encouraged teamwork, problem-solving, and lots of talk about how things fit, turn, and twist—perfect words for our letter T week!

In our Imagination Stations, our friends pretended to be teachers and hosted tea parties! They practiced taking turns, using kind words, and showing creativity as they poured “tea,” served snacks, and led their own classroom lessons. It was wonderful to see their imaginations at work as they explored more terrific T words through play!

Our week was filled with terrific T-themed invitations! Friends used tongs to pick up orange pompoms and fill containers to make cheerful jack-o’-lantern faces—a fun way to build fine motor skills. They explored holiday-themed cookie cutters and pumpkin dough, rolling, pressing, and creating seasonal shapes. We worked on telling time puzzles, pretended to be dentists caring for teeth, and used tissue paper squares to fill in a spider web collage. To top it all off, we even spotted some friends twinning this week—what a fun way to celebrate our letter T!

In Science, we explored what happens to our tummies when we eat too many treats—a perfect lesson for Halloween week! We also became little bakers, making and tasting warm apple and pumpkin turnovers, noticing how the ingredients changed as they baked. Our sensory invitations were full of texture and fun as friends stretched and squished slime and drove tractors through a tray of corn. It was a week full of discovery, delicious smells, and hands-on learning!

Our Visual Arts invitations were full of creativity and color! Friends painted ghosts with tempera paint as they hung from the ceiling—creating a spooky and fun display. They also used watercolors to paint treats and Halloween-themed pictures, exploring how colors blend and flow. We even explored different types of trucks, learning how each one has an important job to do. In Wiggle Room, we kept the Halloween spirit going with movement and music—friends practiced tapping to the beat and danced to some of their Halloween favorite songs. They also used toilet paper to transform friends into mummies. It was a terrific and tuneful way to wrap up our Letter T week!

We ended our week with a special Halloween celebration! Friends came dressed in their costumes, shared smiles and treats, and enjoyed watching a fun Halloween movie together. A big thank you to all of our families for sending in snacks and goodies to share—it made our celebration extra special! It was the perfect way to wrap up our terrific Letter T week filled with teamwork, creativity, and festive fun!

From teeth to treats and teamwork to twinning, our Letter T week was one to remember! We can’t wait to explore and see what our next letter inspires!

See you soon,

The Smart Start team