Good Afternoon!

We continued on the theme of weather and today’s weather turned out to be much different than yesterdays! For PREK1 sign in, children had to share their favorite type of weather along with what activity they could do in that weather or something they could wear.

During sign in, a few children shared that their favorite type of weather was a season. So, in group, we talked about the difference between seasons and weather related words. We came up with a web for each. We started coming up with weather words and eventually, we were able to be off and running! Kids started blurting out weather words left and right. We ended up with quite a full web.

When we were done, we talked about being able to take all of the weather words and group them into seasons. For example, the weather word ‘thunder’ would probably be best suited in the season of ‘summer’.

Science: K.3.5 Describe and give examples of weather changes and illustrate how weather affects people and the environment.

The older kids have been asking to do some slime experiments.  Today the idea was brought up again, so it sounded like today was the day!  We have been collecting some natural slime recipes to try.  This is the first one we tried:

All Natural Slime

2 cups warm water

1 Tbsp psyllium powder

1 tsp corn starch

The older kids helped measure, pour and stir.  This one had to be cooked and cooled in five minute increments so there was a lot of waiting time for the kids.  They found that to be a down side for this type of slime, but the consistency really turned out!

The second slime we experimented with making was this one:

Chia Seed Natural Slime

1 cup water

2 Tbsp chia seeds

soak for 20 minute-overnight

1 cup of corn starch

This one was the most fun because there was no cooking involved and the kids loved how it felt.  It does need some work on consistency which I am sure the kids would be happy to experiment with.  It was very sticky!  We had to soak the chia seeds for 20 minutes, so we got to have a lesson on telling time and counting by fives during our slime experiment!

The work bench has been a very popular area lately.  Pounding the work bench with hammers seems to be the activity of choice for a group of our younger kids.  Based on that interest, we set up a pretend construction activity.  We hammered golf tees into a Styrofoam box with wooded mallets.  Then we used pliers to pull them out.  The kids were at it all morning!

PREK2: In group today we read the “The Bears in the Bed and the Great Big Storm”  At the end of the story we talked about different types of storms.  We decided what kind of storm might be interesting to watch if we could watch from a safe place.

Breakfast– Cheerios with fresh oranges.

Lunch– Peanut butter on whole wheat tortilla/bread, fresh kiwi/cantaloupe, and fresh cucumber/pepper.

PM snack– Whole wheat bagel with cream cheese.

Wee Sprout– Fresh cherry tomatoes/cucumber/pepper.

Have a great night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2024-04-23

Good rainy afternoon!

This morning we read books with a teacher, played on the Habi-trail with our friends, and looked at the fish in the fish tank.

We made our way to the kitchen with Miss Bekah for a water sensory activity. We were each given a shallow tray with soapy water, a plastic baby doll, a sponge, and a toothbrush to give our babies a bath.

After we finished in the kitchen, we went back out into the classroom to engage in other activities. We built with waffle blocks, Duplos and wooden hollow blocks. We practiced putting a purse on our arm, rocked in the rocking chair with a friend, and danced with silk scarves.

Breakfast: Whole grain Cheerios cereal with fresh apple.

Lunch: Whole grain wheat flatbread with refried beans with shredded Colby-Jack cheese, fresh oranges, and carrots.

Afternoon Snack: Whole grain wheat bagel with cream cheese.

Wee Sprout: Cucumbers.

Have a wonderful evening!

Tina and Rebekah

Link to pictures: 2024-04-23

Happy Monday!

We kicked off our week by starting to talk about weather! For sign in, PREK1 friends came to the board where they found their name and came up with a word or phrase to describe the weather in their picture!

Later on in PREK1 group, we read, ‘A Child’s Calendar’ which explores every month in the year. It shows imagines and shares stories of what might happen in each month and how weather affects that activities that we can do! A child shared, “We wouldn’t be able to sled today because we don’t have snow on the ground!”.

Science: K.3.5 Describe and give examples of weather changes and illustrate how weather affects people and the environment.

Today we began a seed growing experiment.  Everyone who was interested was able to plant some seeds in a plastic bag to observe as they grow.  We each had to get our paper towel wet so that our seeds would have water.  Next we added two bean seeds and some radish seeds to our wet paper towel.  We put all of that into a clear bag and taped it in the window to observe over the next couple of weeks.  Everyone who wants to will keep a journal to record both drawn and written observations and she seeds grow!

PREK2:  In group today we read “The Tiny Seed”.  After our seed planting experiment earlier today, we thought about what will happen to our seeds as they begin to grow.  In a large drawing on the board, we looked at the different parts of the plant that will emerge from the seeds.  We chose to put our name next to the roots, seed or leaves on the plant.  We also pretended to be a seed.  We stared by curling our bodies into a ball like a seed.  Then we practiced growing tall and spreading our leaves in the sun as slowly as we could, just like a plant grows slowly.

Breakfast– Whole wheat english muffins with peanut butter and fresh oranges.

Lunch– Whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce and shredded cheese, fresh watermelon/oranges/strawberries, and fresh cucumber/carrots/broccoli.

PM snack– Whole milk yogurt with gram crackers

Wee Sprout– Fresh broccoli/carrot/pepper/cucumber.

Have a wonderful night.

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2024-04-22

Happy Earth Day!

This morning several friends were building with the hollow blocks.  Ben even added animals to his structure.

Some of them engaged in going down the slide.

We then all headed into the kitchen to engage with playdough.  We worked on cutting our playdough using playdough scissors, cookie cutters and pizza cutters.

We then headed outside to engage in many of our favorite activities on this bright, sunny morning.

Breakfast:  Whole grain wheat bread toast with buttery spread and fresh oranges.

Lunch:  Whole grain penne pasta with red beans, fresh kiwi and red bell peppers.

Afternoon Snack:  Whole milk yogurt and watermelon.

Wee Sprouts:  Red bell peppers.

Have a marvelous evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2024-04-22

Happy Friday!

Today we were engaged in many activities.  We built with Magna-Tiles and Duplos, tossed the balls in the habi-trail area,  went on a bear hunt with the stuffed animals, finger painted with blue, red and yellow tempera paint, then headed outside to enjoy the cooler, but sunny morning.

Enjoy the pictures from our day!

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

Lunch:  Hummus, whole grain wheat bread, bananas and sweet potatoes with buttery spread and cinnamon/sugar mixture.

Afternoon Snack: Goldfish crackers and mozzarella cheese stick.

Wee Sprouts:  Red bell peppers.

Have a great weekend!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2024-04-19

Happy Friday!

We wrapped up our week talking about plants and animals by working together to create a picture, full of both things! Each PREK1 member came to the sign in board where they got to choose which they would like to draw. Most friends chose to draw some sort of flower, even demonstrating the understanding of leaves and roots. Katherine chose to draw a dog!

While we were visiting the farm earlier this week, we ran across a collection of bird nests.  A few of us stopped to talk about the nests and how they were made.  Several were made with mud, sticks and grass materials.  So today we recreated that idea, giving our friends a chance to try making their own bird nests using similar materials.  We talked about how some birds build their nests out of stones so we also provided that possibility.  Everyone enjoyed building the nests and then engaging in imaginary play with their creations and friends at the table.

In the art center friends investigated some Audubon books about animals and plants.  Some chose to make books of their own.  Hannah Made a book that she wanted to title “Fish Book”.  Inside the book she made pictures of birds, a Canada goose, an octopus and a giraffe.  It seemed like a great read to me….full of twists and surprises!

William and Paige made books as well.  William created a book called “Caterpillar”.  He specified that this book was a picture book all about one caterpillar…so the grammar in his title was spot on.  Paige made a book about Butterflies and Caterpillars telling the story of their metamorphosis. 

Arthur pretended to be “A Table” today .

Breakfast– Brown rice cakes with cream cheese and banana.

Lunch- Peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat tortilla, fresh clementines/banana, and fresh cucumber/pepper.

PM snack– Pretzels and string cheese.

Wee Sprout– Fresh broccoli/pepper/cucumber.

Have a wonderful weekend.

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2024-04-19

Good Afternoon!

Today was all about adult and baby animals for our PREK1 group. For sign in, children were introduced to the fact that adult and baby animals have different names! There were six baby animals that were placed onto the chart paper. Each child had to pick one picture of an adult animal and match it to its baby

We read ‘Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother Too?’ in group. At the back of the book, it talked about the names of the baby and parents as well as what a group of different animals is called.

We continued to explore this idea in PREK1 group where we matched more adult and baby animals. Children quickly realized that many baby animals are called ‘calf’! Children started talking about the physical characteristics of the animals that were pictured and Nesta brought up the fact that some dogs have spots and some don’t. This started a conversation about how all Dalmatians have spots so my dog Maverick was a journal topic that Nesta and Hannah explored.

This morning we enjoyed some water color painting in the art canter.  We chose to make our own individual paintings or to make a large collaborative painting with a friend.  Our drawing and writing abilities as a class are getting ever more sophisticated!  Some of our younger friends have made the leap from scribbles to depictions of people just in the last week which is very exciting to see! 

Outside this morning many of us worked together to pick spring dandelion and grass to make a variety of natures soups and salads in the outdoor kitchen.  It was a cooperative effort as they divided up the labor of running this small enterprise all on their own and without friction.  What great independent team work!

Breakfast– Puffins cereal with fresh cantaloupe.

Lunch– Brown rice with shredded pork, fresh pears/banana, and fresh carrots/cucumber.

PM snack– Hummus with whole wheat crackers.

Wee Sprouts– Fresh cucumber/carrot/pepper.

Have a lovely night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2024-04-18

Good Afternoon!

Our friends started off their morning by playing with Magna-tiles. They used them to build different objects like “walls” Ben shared or “cheeseburgers” as Eliza said. Other friends held it up to their faces to look through them.

We then made our way to the kitchen to draw with markers. Friends used makers to make a variety of patterns including spirals and horizontal lines.

We went outside to enjoy the nice weather and going down the slide, riding teeter-totters, pushing construction vehicles and plastic trucks in the rock area, and riding or pushing bikes down the hill.

Breakfast:  Kix cereal and fresh apple slices.

Lunch:  Whole grain brown rice with shredded pork, corn/pea mixture, and cantaloupe.

Afternoon Snack: Peanut butter on whole grain Wheat Thins crackers.

Wee Sprouts:  Cucumbers.

Have a wonderful evening!

Tina and Rebekah

Link to pictures: 2024-04-18

Good Afternoon!

Our PREK1 kiddos came to the sign in board where we worked with animal habitats! Each child got to pick an animal card from down below and figure out to what animal habitat it belonged to.

Hannah found a tiny fossil cemented into the table outside. It looked like a crinoid to me and we had a conversation about fossils.  This led to a fossil collection I have which contains a variety of crinoid parts.  I brought that in today.  Given her interest and the fact that the big kids have been learning about animals, I felt it was fitting for everyone to enjoy!  Nesta took a strong interest in the fossils as well.  she carefully investigated each one and absorbed all of the information I gave her about the different parts of crinoid fossils.  I know that because she communicated all of that information to a younger friend who later came to the fossil table!

After looking at the fossils for a bit some friends discovered that there was dirt inside some of the cracks.  It was decided that a brush of some kind was needed…and since we were doing that why not do an all out fossil dig.  That was a great idea so we set that up in the sensory bin.  Everyone who visited had a great time at the dig site!

We were so thankful for the great weather this morning before the storm, allowing us to enjoy time outside!

Breakfast– Overnight oatmeal with cinnamon and fresh pineapple.

Lunch– Farm fresh egg casserole with shredded cheese, fresh mango/cantaloupe, and fresh carrots/cucumber.

PM snack– Whole wheat crackers with peanut butter and trail mix.

Wee Sprout– Fresh pepper/cucumber.

Have a lovely night!

-Wee Friends Teachers

Link to pictures: 2024-04-17

Happy Wednesday!

This morning several friends got out the big plastic blocks from under the habi-trail.  They climbed up and stood on one block or put 2 blocks together to stand on.  Eleanor stepped up from a single block to double blocks.

We then engaged ourselves in a variety of activities.  Several friends sat on the reading step to look at books independently, Eliza engaged with lining up the color bucket people, Charlotte moved the beads on the Zany Zoo Activity box, Eden built with Duplos and another friend watched our fish swim in its tank.

Miss Bekah switched out our moon sand sensory table to a bird seed/rice sensory table.  We were busy scooping with a measuring cups and some cups with holes at the bottom, so we watched as the mixtures ran out of the holes and back into the table.  We also used our measuring cup to pour it into a pile.

We then headed outside to enjoy some fresh air and our favorite activities before the rain came.

We then engaged in some dancing songs and playing musical instruments before lunch was ready.

Breakfast:  Overnight oatmeal with cinnamon/sugar mixture and fresh oranges.

Lunch:  Farm fresh scrambled eggs, whole grain wheat tortillas, fresh apple slices and cooked carrots.

Afternoon Snack:  White corn tortilla chips and refried beans.

Wee Sprouts:  Yellow bell peppers.

Have a wonderful evening!

Rebekah and Tina

Link to pictures: 2024-04-17