A couple weeks ago Tami introduced geodes into our environment. This morning, as friends were arriving, we placed a basket of them on the circular table and, using a felt foundation, explored the beautiful crystallized rocks.

Wee Friends counted the geodes, stacked them and used pipe cleaners to string them.

Macy expressed that her geode, when on the pipe cleaner, looked like a clock, tick-tock. We discovered the word pendulum. Several friends went on to make jewelry with their geodes. We explored the spatial concepts above and on the table when discussing where the fragile geodes needed to be placed to avoid breaking.

A large group of friends helped the teachers fold laundry!

Fly me to the moon and let me live among the stars….ladadadadadadada…..Using cardboard paper and markers, Wee Friends designed airplane wings and attached them to their arms with pipe cleaners. Simon managed to turn the pages of a book with his wings attached!

We made it outside just before the large raindrops and thunder struck!

Elliott used the top step of the porch to take off and away they all went!

Macy and Annie took on the great task of switching out our marker blocks with new markers. Their muscles got a workout as they pulled out old markers, pulled caps off and stuck new markers in!

Macy found a couple different uses for her airplane wings.

Wee Friends have learned about poetry this week and have studied words that rhyme. We chose a Shel Silverstein poem to memorize and it goes like this:

When the light turns green you go!

When the light turns red you stop!

But what do you do when the light turns blue, with orange and lavender spots?!

Today’s Wee Sprouts are carrots and turnips. For breakfast we served Cheerios and bananas. Lunch was Lisa’s delicious chicken salad, peas and applesauce. Our snack today will be the rare WF treat: popcorn!!

Have a terrific weekend.

Lisa stopped by the airport this morning to drop off our thank you note. She met Mike Daigle, A.A.E., Executive Director of St. Jo County Airport Authority and he expressed that he was told Wee Friends were the most well behaved and delightful group of students who had toured the airport in recent days. Sharon, a airport spokesperson, called Lisa this morning to ask if they could put our thank you note on display in the airport.

WEE FRIENDS WEE FRIENDS MIGHTY MIGHTY WEE FRIENDS…..WE GROW FRIENDSHIPS ALL DAY LONG!!!!!!!

The day started in a whirl! After all of our friends were dropped off and breakfast was eaten, a couple different work projects began, lasting the whole morning. Melinda worked with a group of friends on learning a new game: Richard Scarry’s Busy, Busy Airport. As the name suggests, (and in the spirit of Richard Scarry’s books) it is a busy game and engages players with multi tasks and directions. Friends loaded cargo, flew to a choice of four destinations and endured cancelled flights, to name a few things! (Literacy K.4.7)

While Elliott was playing with planes, he expressed to Tami that he needed a runway. With painters tape, she laid out runways of different sizes. Later, Lisa introduced a measuring tape to a small group of friends and they measured the runways. They used clipboards to record their findings. They continued measuring trees, benches, sidewalks and lots of outdoor materials when they went outside. (Math K.5.1)

Inspired by Teacher Tom ([email protected]) we invited Wee Friends to the art table and explored clouds and rain with jars of water, shaving cream and droppers filled with watercolors.

First, friends measured half of a jar and we discussed how two halves make a whole. Next, they filled their jar halfway full of water. We filled the top half of the jar with shaving cream. We asked the question: “What color is rain?” Friends chose a variety of water colors to work with. They filled the dropper up with watercolor and squirted the top of the shaving cream to determine of the paint would seep through the clouds, creating rain. (Math K.5.1)

After this portion of the exploration was complete, many friends poured their rain jars into a larger sensory bin for more ooey gooey play.

This week’s FABS are: Literacy: K.4.7-Identify pictures and charts as sources of information and begin gathering information from a variety of sources (books, technology). Math: K.5.1-Make direct comparisons of the length, capacity, weight and temperature of objects and recognize which object is shorter, longer, taller, lighter, heavier, warmer, cooler or holds more. K.5.2-Understand concepts of time: morning, afternoon, evening, today, yesterday, tomorrow, week, month, and year. Understand that clocks and calendars are tools that measure time.

We enjoyed spending our morning with two more visitors from Family Connection as they continued to exercise their new assessment tool.

Our Wee Sprouts today are broccoli crowns and carrots. Breakfast was whole wheat cinnamon toast and pear slices. For lunch, Tami prepared whole grain rice with shredded beef, mixed veggies and fruit salad.

What a beautiful day to be alive!

 

While the swimmers were away, the remaining Wees enjoyed having their heads (and airplanes!) in the clouds!

With cotton balls, glue and a cardboard base, WFs began creating a cloudy sky through which their airplanes could fly.

Once there was sufficient cloud coverage, WFs used felt runways to ascend through the air.

When they had finished this part of their exploration, we moved the materials to the sensory bin. Elliott requested an air traffic control tower and the work continued.

Viv found an air traffic controller.

Arleigh discovered that she could pull the cotton balls apart and went on to make a pie.

Later, Viv and Marta practiced the piano.

Parent/Teacher Partnership Info:

On another note, this Saturday the WF staff attended an outstanding conference with Michael Brandwein (www.michaelbrandwein.com) as the keynote. His focus was “Life Skills: Getting Kids Ready for Life”. We were all inspired, affirmed and excited about a formula that he presented to use when communicating with our Wee Friends. When working with our friends, we first DESCRIBE what they are doing. Secondly, we LABEL it in a positive way. Lastly, we ENCOURAGE the positive behavior. An example is: Sally is playing dominoes with her friends. She sees that another friend would like more dominoes. Sally chooses to share her dominoes with her friend.

Teacher: “Sally, I see that you have shared your dominoes with Mary. You are choosing to be very cooperative. When you are cooperative, we can all play together peacefully. Sally, thank you for being cooperative.”

Our Wee Sprouts today are broccoli crowns. Breakfast was Cheerios and clementines. For lunch, we are serving melted cheddar on whole wheat tortillas, fresh beets/peas and fresh fruit salad (strawberries, raisins and clementines.

Have a terrific day!