Good Afternoon!

**Reminder: Wee Friends will be closed on Monday, May 26th for Memorial Day. Thanks!

We’re continuing to focus on calendars and what we use them for. A PREK1 group member yesterday shared that we use calendars to highlight birthdays so today, children worked at finding their birth month on the sign in activity. We talked about how there are 12 months in every year!

Social Studies: K.1.5 Explain that calendars are used to represent days of the week and months of the year.

We have been observing tadpoles as a life science project in our class.  Today, we created a sensory rich imaginative play station around our study of tadpoles and frogs.  As I set up the habitat, we talked about what frogs and tadpoles need to survive.  We added rocks, water, plants and logs for them to climb on.  We added some bugs to the habitat for the frogs to eat.  We also added snakes, who share a habitat with the frogs.  We talked about how the snakes are predators to frogs, so the frogs needed to stay away from them.  We talked about ways the frogs could stay protected.  Most of the kids chose to build a fortress of plants, leaves and rocks where their frogs could hide from the snakes and eat their food in safety.  It was a morning rich in learning and cooperative play.

This morning at the art center, a couple of friends asked to paint.  They made pictures of haunted houses and began to splatter black paint on the pictures for effect.  It was a great idea, so we created a place to do this in a little more controlled way.  We looked at a Jackson Pollock painting and talked about using paint to drip and splatter in our own “abstract expressionist” art.  The kids started by painting a piece of mat board with blocks of color.  Then they used squeeze bottles to drip, then toothbrushes or paint brushes to splatter and spray.  The paintings were wildly dynamic and colorful!

PREK2:  We have been talking about seasons at group time.  Today we read “All The World” which covers several activities that are only able to take place in the summer.  At the end of the book we thought about our favorite thing to do in the summer time that we are unable to do in the winter.

Breakfast– Puffins cereal with fresh blueberries.

Lunch– Peanut butter on whole wheat bread, fresh apples/oranges, and fresh cucumber/green beans.

PM snack– Whole wheat bagel with cream cheese.

Wee Sprout– Fresh cucumber/pepper/green bean.

Have a fantastic night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-20

Happy Monday!

PREK1 group members came to sign in this morning where we talked about the number of days in a given month. We looked at a few months, specifically May and June to see if they have the same number of days. Children quickly figured out that the statement on the board was false!

Later on in group, after reading ‘What Do You Do With An Idea?’, we did our daily calendar activity. Our calendar activity consists of our ‘mat guard’ for the week crossing off the current day. All together, we say aloud the date: “Today is Monday, May 19th 2025.”. At the beginning of the calendar year, we work together to make a calendar for the year using our favorite journal entries from the current year. This makes it super unique and special to us as kids can’t wait to get to the month that has their journal entry!

We also talked about why we use a calendar. Some ideas that were shared were:

1. So we can know what day/month/year it is!

2. A place to write birthdays and holidays.

3. When vacations are coming up.

Social Studies: K.1.5 Explain that calendars are used to represent days of the week and months of the year.

Today friends explored a sensory science activity.  Kids were encouraged to mix and experiment in an open-ended way using color, water and a variety of tools.  Some enjoyed mixing the colors to make hues of green.  Others experimented with displacing the water in the jars as they added sensory balls to their mixtures.  Kids got plenty of time to practice fine motor, focused attention, creative problem solving and cognitive development.

PREK2:  This week older kids are talking about keeping track of the year using a calendar.  Though its a bit complicated an idea for some of our youngest, our group could talk about keeping track of time though the awareness of seasonal change.  We talked about different times in the year as a group.  Then we each came up to the board to sort what season we might do or see different things.  Our older kids in the group enjoyed chiming in to help the youngest kids if they were stumped on what season their card belonged to.  This not only helped younger kids, it helped older kids to gain more from the activity through teaching others. 

Breakfast– Toasted whole wheat bread with butter and fresh watermelon.

Lunch– Whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce and shredded cheese, fresh mango/pear/banana/orange, and fresh cucumber.

PM snack– Whole milk yogurt with granola and fresh blueberries.

Wee Sprout– Fresh pepper/cucumber.

Have a wonderful night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-19

Reminder:  Wee Friends will be closed next Monday, May 26th for Memorial Day.  Thank you.

This morning we engaged in kinetic sand, with rocks, seashells and dinosaurs in the blue tray in the kitchen.  The friends molded the sand in their hands and walked the dinosaurs around in it.  A friend held up a rock and said “fossil”  as we had talked about them from a previous activity outside.  Clark held up a sea shell, not knowing what it was, and Miss Bekah told him and his friends what he was holding up.

Cece and another friend engaged in a sensory activity exploring the feel of pom-poms in their hands.

We then headed outside to engage in our favorite activities.  Arthur came down to play with Cece on her mat, Clark and another friend drove the small construction cars on the balance beams, a friend carried a baby doll, Charlotte worked on her balancing skills, walking down the balance beam, and Eleanor pulled her baby dolls in the cart.

Breakfast:  Multi-grain wheat bread toast with buttery spread and cinnamon/sugar mixture and fresh oranges.

Lunch:  Whole grain wheat penne pasta with red beans, fresh sugar snap peas and watermelon.

Afternoon Snack:  Whole milk yogurt and fresh blueberries.

Wee Sprout:  Cucumber.

Have a great evening!

WWF Teachers

Link to pictures:  2025-05-19

Happy Friday!

This morning we engaged in the blue tray table with shaving cream.  Miss Bekah added cars/trucks, rubber bugs and people for us to use to enhance our play.

We then headed outside to get some fresh air and engage in water play.

Breakfast:  Whole grain brown rice cakes with cream cheese and fresh strawberries.

Lunch:  Black Forest Ham lunch meat and mild cheddar cheese slice roll-ups, fresh sugar snap peas and bananas.

Afternoon Snack:  Pretzels, mozzarella cheese stick and fresh pear.

Wee Sprout:  Cucumber.

Have a great weekend!

WWF Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-16

Happy Friday!

This morning we worked at a “garden building” activity.  We used kinetic sand and Lincoln Logs to build garden beds.  Next we planted “seeds”.  We used tiny shovels and rakes to prepare the garden as we planted.  Lastly we pretended our seeds grew and added plants and flowers to our gardens.

Outside, we put our practice into action planting our first seeds in our real garden.  We made a furrow and older kids took turns planting snap pea seeds in the furrow.  Younger kids got a chance to be the first to water the new seeds with watering cans.  This was a popular activity and everyone ended up doing some watering.  The seeds are well saturated!

PREK2:  During group today we read “Up in the Garden Down in the Dirt”.  We talked about the things that were happening in the book that were similar to what we did today in our own class garden.  After the story, we each answered the question: “what would you plant in your own garden?”

Breakfast– Brown rice cakes with peanut butter and banana.

Lunch– Turkey and sliced cheese on whole wheat bread, fresh honeydew melon/strawberries/banana, and fresh green beans/cucumber.

PM snack– Goldfish and cheddar block cheese.

Wee Sprout– Fresh pepper/cucumber.

Have a wonderful weekend!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-16

Good Afternoon!

The market was back open for business this morning as it had as much interest today as it did yesterday! So many spontaneous conversations and learning opportunities happened when the children in our multi-age classroom worked together, buying and selling goods with one another. There was even some bartering happening:

Child 1: “These apples are three dollars.”

Child 2: “How about I give you four dollars for two apples?”

Open play opportunities such as this one are crucial to development for many reasons. Play requires a lot of different dynamics and below, I’ve posted a short article about essential aspects of meaningful play. Majority of this play experience required absolutely no teacher input mainly because children did a fantastic job cooperating with one another and when that wasn’t possible, an older friend immediately stepped in, trying to help their peers solve the problem. We work for years on helping children gain the confidence and wording to help solve their problems when they arise. Our older friends are at that point where they’re jumping in with their younger peers, being the “teacher” in the situation as they help their younger peers navigate social dilemmas.

It has been an amazing thing to watch the last few days!

https://www.naeyc.org/our-work/families/five-essentials-meaningful-play

This morning several kids repurposed a big group water color painting from outside, to make skirts and dresses.  A group of older kids carefully attached strips of watercolor painted paper to a waist band.  As they worked, they problem solved and shared ideas about how best to put everything together.  Our oldest friends were very helpful showing interested younger friends how to make the skirts.  It was an imaginative and artistic group project. 

Many of our friends enjoyed the rich sensory experience and fine motor practice at the light table this morning as they covered the tree with blue rings.

PREK2: We read the book “The Magnificent Thing” in group today.  After the story we make a class list of what we would make if we had the ability to make anything we wanted.  We have also had some thoughtful journals made with great care from our younger friends this week!

Breakfast– Toasted oatmeal squares with fresh strawberries.

Lunch– Brown rice with shredded turkey, fresh pineapple/banana, and fresh cucumber/pepper/snap peas.

PM snack– Whole wheat crackers with peanut butter and a mixture of sunflower seeds/pumpkin seeds.

Wee Sprout– Fresh pepper/cucumber/snap peas.

Have a lovely night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-15

Good Afternoon!

We started off our morning by marching with rhythm sticks. Our friends listened and followed along to Ants Go Marching as they marched around the front.

We then made our way to the kitchen for sensory play with playdough. Our friends used their hands to manipulate the dough at first and then integrated tools into their play. Miss Bekah discussed how using our hands to engage with the dough helped strengthen our hand muscles. They used their fine motor skills to pull apart the dough with their fingers and roll them into “balls” or “snakes” as some of our friends shared.

We headed outside on this warm morning to cool off with water play at the table. Our friends explored two different water play activities with their friends.

Breakfast:  Kix cereal and fresh pear slices.

Lunch:  Whole grain brown rice with shredded turkey, fresh strawberries and cooked corn.

Afternoon Snack: Whole grain Ritz crackers with peanut butter and fresh pineapple slices.

Wee Sprout:  Yellow bell peppers.

Have a terrific evening!

WWF Teachers

Link pictures: 2025-05-15

Happy Wednesday!

This morning we engaged in the light table.  Miss Bekah filled the table bin with pink fabric petals, rubber bugs, small baskets and tongs for us to use to strengthen our hand muscles and to pick up the bugs and petals.

We then headed outside to enjoy another nice morning and engage in our favorite activities.

Breakfast:  Overnight oatmeal with cinnamon/sugar mixture and bananas.

Lunch:  Farm fresh scrambled eggs with shredded mozzarella cheese,

Afternoon Snack:  Hummus and whole grain wheat tortillas.

Wee Sprout Cucumber.

Have a wonderful evening!

WWF Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-14

Good Afternoon!

We had a fun, relaxing trip to the farm this morning! A few highlights were picking our fair share of dandelions, getting to eat strawberries from the garden, swinging on the rope swing, and getting to ride on the back of the golf cart!

We were able to really to connect to nature, take our time exploring Miss Charlotte’s property, and appreciate the time we were able to spend together.

In the classroom we put on a “market day” where kids could play the roles of buyers or sellers.  Each shop sold something different.  We had a vendor that sold flowers, one that sold strawberries, one for apples and one for cherries.  Kids could try out the role of being a vendor with the responsibility of accepting cash or running credit cards, asking how many each item the customer wanted and handing out the proper amount.  Kids could also pay the role of the shopper.  Each shopper received some cash, a card, a shopping bag and a purse.  If there were not enough kids playing venders, then that store was “closed”. There was a point in the game where multiple shops were closed and some looting took place…but the kids quickly realized they needed an equal number of friends playing each role for the game to be fun. 

Breakfast– Overnight oatmeal with cinnamon and fresh watermelon.

Lunch– Farm fresh scrambled eggs with whole wheat tortilla/flatbread, fresh cantaloupe/watermelon, and fresh cucumber/carrot.

PM snack– Hummus and tortilla chips.

Wee Sprout– Fresh cucumber/carrot.

Have a wonderful night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-14

Good afternoon!

We want to thank Miss Linsey for bringing us some new fish from her home. In addition to fish, Miss Linsey also added tadpoles to our fish tank. Our friends were eager to observe all of the fish and tadpoles.

We made our way to the kitchen for an art activity that was inspired by an activity the older friends did in the WF’s class. We first began with squeeze bottles that had paint inside. We worked on squeezing them and using our hand-eye coordination skills to move them around our black cardstock paper to create a design. After our initial paintings, we then moved to using sponge brushes with the same paint in the bottles.

We then headed outside for another beautiful morning. Our friends explored the musical instruments by the log area table, sand in the sandbox and played with older friends in the grass area.

Breakfast: Whole grain Cheerios cereal with banana.

Lunch: Whole grain wheat flatbread with refried beans and shredded mozzarella cheese, fresh cantaloupe slices and cooked green beans.

Afternoon Snack: Whole grain wheat bagel with peanut butter and fresh watermelon.

Wee Sprout: Orange bell pepper.

Have a wonderful evening!

WWF Teachers

Link to pictures: 2025-05-13