Happy Friday!
Here are a few pictures that were taken throughout the day!
For breakfast, children had cheerios and apples. AM snack was pears. Lunch consisted of turkey and cheese whole wheat tortillas, green peas, and a mixture of raisins and pineapple. PM snack was a birthday treat that Emma brought in for her birthday! She turned one year old yesterday. The treat was wonderful zucchini bread and fruit kabobs.
Have a terrific weekend!
-Mindy
Happy Friday! From the window of the cottage climber, all summer long, friends have been selling things. The currency has been rock and sand. Today, friends discussed which materials would be needed to create a lemonade stand. They created paper tickets, mixed and poured the lemonade, created a banner and headed to the backyard to set up shop.
Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Kashi and pears. Lunch: Whole wheat tortillas with turkey and mozzarella cheese, peas and pears. Snack: Whole wheat rhubarb muffins.
Have a great weekend.
So today wasn’t your ordinary day here at Wee Friends… First, it is Kai’s 6th Birthday today. Kai, who has been with Wee Friends since he was a two month old tiny little infant. Kai who was a joy filled baby who charmed us with his beautiful blue eyes. Kai, our rambunctious wobbler who showed no fear….ever. Kai, our emotionally intense toddler who spent his days waffling between jubilation and devastation. Kai, who as a preschooler was overflowing with curiosity and energy and a love of nature. Kai , our Kindergartener who has shown a sense of leadership, helpfulness, and stability that has guided our classroom throughout the year. Kai, who is leaving us at the end of the month (sniffle..sniffle) to move on to his next journey: 1st grade at Good Shepherd Montessori! Kai, we will miss you dearly and feel blessed that we had you for the entirety of your early childhood years.
Second, we had a special day in honor of Kai’s Birthday and his love of reptiles. Miss Lisa, arranged with Aaron and Ryan to come out and teach the children about their reptiles again. They also left with us an Anole Lizard (named Kai) as our new classroom pet! He’s the tiny olive green dude in the pics…not intimidating at all
I will let the pictures tell the story of our fantastic experience enjoying the hands-on activity!
You can hire Aaron and Ryan for your own reptile show. Aaron Honchell, at Ra Ra Reptiles can be reached at 574-315-0771. That were magnificent and worthy of the referral!
A few quotes we overheard:
Jane, “ Big Daddy, I love ya!’
Arleigh, “ That’s a dinosaur.”
Kai, “That’s what snakes do, they smell with their tongues.”
Vivian, “They can bite your fingers off!”
Elliott, “ I saw a fire truck and dinosaur at the park.”
Simon, “How big do they have to get before they die?”
Sydney,”Oh that feels good!”
Ada, “ Did he burp?”
Taylor, “It feels like a rock.”
Macy, “It’s softer than a feather.”
Breakfast was whole wheat bagels and cantaloupe. Lunch was egg salad on flat bread, cucumbers and fresh pear slices.
Happy Thursday!
We started off our day outside! The sun was shining and our friends loved the weather!
Chloe took sand from her hand and transferred it into a cup. She leveled it with her hands.
The deck was a popular place to play this morning. Friends loved building with the Legos! Ellie stacked multiple Legos together and called it a ‘big tower’. While playing with the Legos, P.K. was fascinated with bugs! He pointed to an ant he saw crawling in the sand. He became very concentrated as he was putting two sections of Legos together.
Ellie pulled a dump truck along. She said they were going on an ‘adventure’.
Marina took a scooper and dumped sand onto her plate. She then took the scooper and made sure the sand was even. The actions were extremely precise!
Miss Zoey came into Wee Wee Friends sporting her Notre Dame outfit today! She loved her floor time and is having a blast playing with her feet! Her thumb gives her much comfort throughout the day.
Chloe took a car and drove it along the window panel. She kept it straight and then drove it up the side! She said, “beep” as she was driving it fast.
While listening to music, Chloe and P.K. got dressed up in their usual! They laughed as they listened to funny music. P.K. has begun to hum the tune of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. He loves that song and his friends like listening to him.
Breakfast was kix and oranges. AM snack was cucumbers. Lunch consisted of pita sandwiches filled with egg salad, fresh pears, and cucumbers. PM snack was raisins and pretzels.
Have a great night!
-Mindy
Happy August!
We started the morning with a dancing session while listening to a random selection of children’s music. Ellie and Clara danced around in circles to the music that had a good beat.
Clara, P.K. and Emma walked and crawled off to the gate where they laughed with one another! Clara and P.K. were jumping to the music and Emma thought this was very funny.
A few friends gathered on the jungle gym where they jumped with each other while listening to music. They made sure to give each other a turn as they went down the slide.
We all travelled outside after snack. This was the first time that Zoey came out with us in the morning! Our friends loved being outside with her and she felt the same. Zoey gazed at her surroundings and enjoyed the breeze as we sat outside.
Chloe, Clara, and P.K. banged on the sensory table top with their hands. They found that it made a loud noise!
Emma loved crawling around on the ground and observing the different parts of the backyard. A special toy was brought out for her to sit in while enjoying the outdoors.
Many children swayed back and forth on the teeter totters. They asked their friends if they would like to join in on the fun.
Ellie used her arm muscles to throw a blue bouncy ball all throughout the backyard. It bounced and she ran after it as fast as she could.
For breakfast, children had Chex and pears. AM snack was bananas. Lunch consisted of brown rice with cheddar cheese, mixed vegetables, and bananas. PM snack was graham crackers and bananas.
Have a wonderful evening!
-Mindy
The latest communication from WNIT indicates that they will be here the week of August 13th. We’ll keep you posted as details develop!
This morning, Taylor passed out tickets to hear Miss Piggy talk about Healthy Food Choices. Friends gave their tickets to Ada and settled in for a very informative dialogue about healthy and unhealthy food.
Miss Piggy had a basket of pretend food and asked friends “Is this a healthy choice?” Friends raised their hands and offered a lot of insight as we explored different food choices.
Miss Piggy showed them cake, bananas, an egg, broccoli, watermelon and a bag of chips, to name a few. Other questions arose such as “Miss Piggy, why do wear gloves?” and “Miss Piggy, I like your dress.” Everyone wanted to kiss Miss Piggy when she had to say goodbye.
….
At one point, Cookie Monster burst out in song singing about the letter ‘c’.
After Miss Piggy’s show, one group of friends moved the art table to sketch different pieces of food as a Still Life drawing experience. Other friends, created art on the ticket stubs and enjoyed listening to the music as it rolled along.
Nate and Finn stayed busy DJing and making song requests. They asked to see the album cover of “Queen of Hearts” featuring a pleasant and appropriate photo of Juice, sort of waiting for a train…sort of…
Miss Piggy enjoyed being with her Wee Friends.
Friends were excited to share their detailed sketches.
Miss Piggy and Lisa played a game, “Which of these is not like the other?” They also listened to the song of the same title.
Elliott sketched a dragonfly.
Jada often reads books to her friends, holding the book up for a good view of the pictures.
Here’s some information Miss Piggy gleaned from her interview questions:
Miss Piggy: “What do you grow in your garden?”
Miss Piggy: “What is your favorite healthy food?”
Wee Sprouts: Carrots and grape tomatoes. Breakfast: Kashi and bananas. Lunch: Whole grain rice with cheddar cheese, broccoli and bananas.
Good Afternoon!
Children started their Tuesday morning off with gross motor development time. P.K. and Clara jumped together on the jungle gym.
Marina used her pretend skills to play ‘doctor’. She fixed Miss Mindy’s arm and back! She also fixed her own tummy. She used her doctor tool to bang softly on the affected area.
Story time occurred where P.K. sat down with Miss Marty to read a few books. Emma enjoyed looking at a book with interesting pictures.
Clara threw a ball across the yard to work on her gross motor skills. Ellie and Chloe smiled on as Clara did this.
While playing in the wooden house, Clara fell down and P.K. rushed to give her a hug immediately. He showed great emotion towards Clara and excellent caring characteristics.
Marina yelled from the roof tops as she opened the windows in the house.
Our flowers are continuing to blossom! Clara and P.K. walked through the garden with their friends gently smelling the flowers. They used soft touches and let their other friends know to do the same.
Friends went down the slide at lightning speed! Clara was hesitant at first but with the help of her friends, she became fearless! Our older friends orchestrated a new game. Two friends sat at each slide at the same time. Ellie yelled out, “one, two, three!” and our friends slid down at the same time.
Zoey lights up the Wee Wee room with her smile. She loves looking at the variety of toys and the fans spinning above her head.
Marina used a phone to take pictures of Chloe. Marina used the knowledge of seeing this done before whether it was family or acquaintances.
For breakfast, children had raisin bran and oranges. AM snack was raisins. Lunch consisted of ham and cream cheese roll-ups, banana, green beans, and whole wheat bread. PM snack was whole wheat crackers and string cheese.
Have a terrific evening!
-Mindy
A while back, WNIT and the local Sesame Street producing team scheduled with Tami to be here these first few days of the week. While Tami hasn’t heard from them , we are optimistic that they will follow through. We will keep you posted as we learn more!
Today, Lisa asked the kids “Who are the people in your neighborhood and what are their jobs?” Next we talked about our own community of Wee Friends and friends expressed what their jobs are. Here’s what they said:
Later, we read Nate’s book:
We talked about courageous Olympic athletes and all the ways we practice courage throughout our day.
Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Oatmeal with cantaloupe. Lunch: Ham and cream cheese rolls, green beans and applesauce.
Have a great day.
Happy Monday!
The chalk board was the first thing on our list this morning! We travelled to the backyard where children worked together to draw different images on the chalkboard. We turned the backyard into our classroom for the morning. Ellie took her time drawing circle after circle. Clara made vertical lines with her pink chalk. Marina made big circles and said, “Dolphin.”
Chloe enjoyed sliding down the slide at a high rate of speed. She asked Marina if she wanted to slide with her. Marina waited until Chloe was done to take her turn.
Marina filled bottles with sand and transferred them to her big bucket that she later filled to the top with sand.
Ellie decided she wanted to build with Legos. She said, “Can I play with the Legos?” She headed to the porch where she sat down to build a high tower of Legos. A few friends joined her.
Zoey spent some time on the floor this afternoon. She has begun to put her feet together and kick them rapidly.
Marina and Miss Marty read a few books out of our collection of small books. Marina went to the bucket and picked a few of her favorite books out. She knows certain parts of the book and can recite the thoughts.
Friends joined one another to do puzzles. They shared a few different puzzles with each other. Our friends do a great job at lending a hand to help when it is needed.
For breakfast, children had eggs and bagels with butter. AM snack was fresh cut apples. Lunch consisted of whole wheat noodles with shredded chicken, fresh cantaloupe, and cucumbers. PM snack was pretzels.
Have a great evening!
-Mindy
Parents:
We didn’t see the Sesame Street crew today (thank you for flexing with us as we wait for them to connect with us for plans!) but our morning was filled with outdoor discoveries and interesting indoor explorations.
Lisa read the Sesame Street job book and acted out different jobs with Wee Friends. Mel talked about Count Dracula and played a poker chip/dice game in which Wee Friends practiced counting. Laurie worked with friends as they drew their houses and streets. Later, friends shared their work with a larger group, describing what they had drawn.
Wee Sprouts: Carrots and cucumbers. Breakfast: Kix and raisins. Lunch: Whole wheat penne pasta with chicken, sour cream cucumber salad and cantaloupe.
Have a good day.