Happy Friday!

Today we celebrated a birthday with our friend, Paige. She started with us when she was 2 months old and now she is 3 years old!  We are so happy we could celebrate with you.  Thank you for the delicious birthday snack.

Since we celebrated Paige’s birthday today, Miss Bekah brought up the stacking birthday cake.  We worked on our counting, patterning and sizing skills as we built multiple times.

We then headed outside to toss the balls around and draw with markers at the art table.  What a great way to end the week!

Breakfast:  Whole grain brown rice cakes with peanut butter and fresh pear slices.

Lunch:  Turkey lunch meat with cream cheese roll-ups, whole grain wheat bread, bananas and fresh cucumbers.

Afternoon Snack:  Fresh fruit salad with cream cheese fruit dip (Paige’s birthday treat), pretzels and cheddar block cheese.

Wee Sprouts:  Orange bell pepper slices.

Have a great weekend and Happy Mother’s Day to all of our wonderful mommies!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2023-05-12

Happy Friday!

Happy Mothers Day!  The kids have been working hard over the last couple of weeks painting and decorating their herb garden they made as a gift for Mom!  Each child layered their paints as process art, first laying down a base color and then rolling and stamping textures to build the surface.  They planted their basil, parsley and cilantro seeds all by themselves and placed a carefully decorated marker next to each planting so each herb is labeled.  We had many wonderful discussions about how different each kind of seed looked from the others.  The cilantro seeds were the favorite because for many of our friends they strongly resembled their beloved rolly- polly bugs!  Each of your children also spent a lot of time creating a colorful card and thinking of special things they loved about Mom to put inside!  We are sure you will all appreciate the hard work your children put into making mothers day special!

Breakfast– Brown rice cakes with peanut butter and banana.

Lunch– Ham and cream cheese rollups, whole wheat tortilla, fresh strawberries/banana, and fresh carrots/cucumber.

PM snack– Pretzels and cheese.

Wee Sprout– Fresh cucumber/carrots.

We hope all of our amazing mom’s have a fantastic Mother’s Day weekend!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2023-05-12

Good afternoon!

Today we enjoyed exploring a loose parts magnetic building activity at the round table.  We used magnetic tiles and magnets of different shapes along with a variety of nuts and bolts to use our imagination and build with.  Millie created an elaborate house covered with washers, nuts and bolts as decorations.  William was proud of himself for making the letter S.  A few friends liked building boxes to put their nuts and bolts into.  One long bolt was used as a “wand’” to “magically” pick up magnets. 

Many of us spent time at the new sensory bin for some construction vehicle imaginative play.  A few friends worked together to make a mountain out of sand and then pushed it around with bulldozers and back hoes to make a road. 

Breakfast– Chex and fresh watermelon.

Lunch– Brown rice with shredded chicken, fresh pineapple/banana, and fresh carrots/green beans.

PM snack– Sunflower seeds and whole wheat crackers.

Wee Sprout– Fresh carrots/green beans.

Have a wonderful night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2023-05-11

Good afternoon!

Enjoy the pictures from our day!

Breakfast: Whole grain Kix cereal with fresh oranges.

Lunch: Whole grain brown rice with shredded turkey, fresh pineapple and peas.

Afternoon Snack: Sunflower seeds with whole grain Triscuits crackers.

Wee Sprout: Cucumbers.

Have a beautiful evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2023-05-11

Good Afternoon!

We had a lot of fun using our imaginative skills to play with playdough. We used different tools like shape cutters and scissors to manipulate it. Emily said she made a birthday cake for Miss Jena.

While we were outside, Miss Bekah brought out a box for us to enjoy. Our friends took turns sharing it with others or sitting in it by themselves.

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

Lunch:  Farm fresh scrambled eggs with shredded cheese, fresh cucumbers/red bell peppers, fresh apple slices and whole grain wheat tortillas.

Afternoon Snack:  White corn chips with hummus and watermelon.

Have a wonderful evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures:  2023-05-10

Hello!

This week in K/PREK1 group, we’ve been talking about jobs that people have and the tools they need to do those jobs. Monday, we focused on dentists and Tuesday, we focused on construction workers. Today, it was all about firefighters! After we read a story focusing on Firefighters, we talked about tools they need to do their jobs and it was a long list including ladders, truck, water, hose, ax, and gear!

This morning a few friends noticed that the lady bug larvae are entering the pupa stage!  The larvae had gathered on the side of their habitat and hung themselves upside down like a caterpillar.  Some friends were concerned at first that they were not moving but their worries turned to interest as we talked about metamorphosis and how the larvae would now begin changing, inside the pupa, into adult lady bugs.  We talked about how their skin hardens almost like an egg shell as they change.  When they emerge it is almost like they are hatching for a second time!

This morning we had several trays out, each with a different set up of loose parts to interact with in imaginative ways!  Loose parts can be anything!  The outcome of a child’s interaction with them is completely open ended.  This type of play fosters creativity in pretend play.  The pretend play that is born of loose parts activities is often sustained for long periods of time.  Since there are few boundaries with this type of play, it tends to evolve from one thing to another to another… 

Breakfast– Whole grain oatmeal with cinnamon and banana.

Lunch– Farm fresh scrambled eggs with whole wheat bread, fresh watermelon, and fresh cucumber/green beans.

PM snack– Air popped popcorn with butter and raisins.

Wee Sprout– Fresh pepper/cucumber.

Have a wonderful night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2023-05-10

Good afternoon!

Its finally time for lots of seed planting!  Many Wee Friends helped plant seeds in the garden today.  Others helped water and break up soil…and some of us alternatively hunted for insects. We planted beans, beets, zucchini, sun flowers and cucumbers!  Everyone was so helpful and careful to plant the seeds and cover them well.  We have learned a lot about how fragile plants are growing our bean indoors so we got to apply that knowledge outside. 

While we worked we snacked on some deliciously fresh kale!

During our ever popular bean journaling this morning, Daniel noticed that the stem of his bean was purple while others were green or white.  Millie exclaimed with excitement that her bean in fact had a purple stem as well.  We talked about why that may be.  We realized that we had different kinds of beans.  We talked about how the bean plants that produce purple bean pods often have other parts that are purple, so this is a possibility.  The two used purple markers in their bean journals today!  It is so encouraging to see excited young children developing their observation skills, learning and having fun doing it.  At Wee Friends we  believe whole heartedly that this is how learning should be…filled with wonder!

Breakfast- Whole grain cheerios with fresh apples.

Lunch- Peanut butter on whole wheat bread, block cheddar cheese, fresh cantaloupe/strawberries, and fresh carrots/green beans.

PM snack- Whole wheat bagel with cream cheese.

Wee Sprout- Fresh carrots/green beans.

Have a great night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2023-05-09

Happy Tuesday!

We had a great start to our morning as friends all chose different activities. Dax shared smiles as he used his imaginative skills in the play kitchen. Our friends collaborated with each other to make a huge train track for their cars and trains. Hannah listened to Miss Bekah read different stories to her. Emily flipped over her plastic block and turned it into a boat. Paige engaged in dress up and tried on different hat and scarf combinations. Eleanor enjoyed playing on her mat with different toys.

We made our way outside to enjoy the beautiful weather.  We engaged in the sandbox with trucks and dinosaurs, explored the texture of the grass with our hands and cooked in the housekeeping area.  Today we helped in the garden.  One of the garden beds had clumps of dirt.  We helped to break up the clumps and feel the different texture between our garden soil and sand, to get it ready for planting.

Breakfast:  Whole grain Cheerios and fresh oranges.

Lunch:  Refried beans and cheese on whole grain wheat flatbread, fresh strawberries and corn.

Afternoon Snack:  Whole grain wheat bagels with cream cheese and fresh cantaloupe slices.

Have a terrific evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2023-05-09

Happy Monday!

**Wee Friends will be closed on Monday, May 29 for Memorial Day.

Our FAB focus for the week deals with jobs that people have as well as the tools needed to do those jobs. We read, ‘Andrew’s Loose Tooth’ since one of our K/PREK1 friends was heading to the dentist this afternoon! While this story is highly fictional, we did talk about real dentists and what they need to do their job. As children were rolling up their mats, they had to say aloud one job and a one tool that worker needs. A few jobs that were shared were: painter (who needs paint), dentist (who needs toothbrushes), army (who needs weapons), plumber (who needs a wrench), and mechanic (who needs a hammer).

Social Studies: K.4.2 Identify and describe different kinds of jobs that people do and the tools they use.

We have all been enjoying the out door space at Wee friends!  Our outdoor art center has been very popular allowing both Wee friends and Wee wees to create art together.  This is something new for them as part of the change of seasons that they have enjoyed!

Rowan found a little pet rolly- polly today!  She made a habitat for her pill bug in the lid of a jar using a wood chip, a pebble and some grass.  She put her bug inside and was amazed to he exclaimed out loud “how did he get out?” finding him on the outside of the lid.  We talked about how many members of the arthropod group can climb vertically in ways we could never because of their very small size as well as hooks or barbs on their feet allowing them to hang to seemly smooth surfaces.

The first seeds we planted this season have begun to come up in the garden!  Hopefully we will begin enjoying fresh snap peas as summer begins!

We hope you have a terrific rest of your day!

Breakfast– Whole wheat toast with butter and fresh apples.

Lunch– Whole wheat noodles with marinara sauce and shredded cheese, fresh pears, and fresh carrots/cucumber.

PM snack– Whole milk yogurt with graham crackers.

Wee Sprout– Fresh carrots/cucumber.

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2023-05-08

Reminder:  Wee Friends will be closed on Monday, May 29th in observance of Memorial Day.  Thank you.

Happy Monday!

This morning several of us sat on the reading step or in the rocking chair to read a book independently.

Paige, Arthur and Emily worked independently or together to create a Magna-Tile structure.

We then headed outside to ride on the teeter totter, bikes, pull the cart up the hill, spend time with our sibling or engage with the dinosaurs in the sand.

Breakfast: Whole grain wheat bread toasted with peanut butter and fresh apple slices.

Lunch: Whole grain wheat penne pasta with butter and shredded chicken, fresh oranges and red/orange bell pepper slices.

Afternoon Snack: Whole milk yogurt with graham crackers.

Have a marvelous evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2023-05-08