Good Afternoon!

I’ve attached an article that stuck out at me today. It revolves around the question, “What are you doing?”, when directed towards a child. Children at this age get so deeply invested in their play, when an adult asks them, “What are you doing?”, they have a challenging time answering that question! I loved this quote that is toward the end of the article: “Sometimes play= silence”.

https://www.naeyc.org/resources/blog/self-directed-play-moment

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After we read our story in pre-k/k group, we learned a new song. The song talks about coins physical attributes as well as how much each coin is worth. We’re going to sing this song each day throughout the week so that we become more confident in singing it!

After, we passed around real coins: specifically, penny, nickel, dime, and quarter. We talked about how each coin have a heads side as well as a tails side.

Social Studies: K.4.1 Explain that people work to earn money to buy the things they want. Introduce money names and values.

Our rainy morning was full of puzzles, play dough, and books!

Play dough was requested this morning and children kept rotating all morning, up until we were ready for lunch! Children used play dough knives and cookie cutters to manipulate the play dough.

“Play is the highest expression of human development in childhood, for it along is the free expression of what is in a child’s soul.”

-Friedrich Froebel

Breakfast– Whole wheat toast with no nut butter and fresh apples.

Lunch– Whole wheat pasta with butter and shredded beef, PPC pears, and PPC cucumbers/fresh carrots.

PM snack– Whole milk yogurt with PPC strawberries.

Wee Sprout– PPC cucumber/snap peas.

Have a great night!

-Mindy

The website that generates the picture link is down. I’ll try and post it tomorrow! Thanks!

Happy Monday. We hope you all had a fantastic weekend and Mother’s day!

While the rain may have kept us inside this morning, we did not let that stop us from having loads of fun.

Monday’s are always full of excitement because we know the trash man comes with his big trash truck!  As soon as our friends hear the loud sound of his truck, they come running to the habi-trail area as fast as they their little feet will take them. We LOVE trash Monday’s!

Breakfast: Whole wheat toast with Sunflower butter and fresh PPC pears.

Lunch: Whole wheat/grain pasta with butter and shredded beef, corn and fresh PPC pears and oranges.

Snack: Whole milk yogurt and graham crackers.

Wee Sprouts: Corn.

Have a lovely evening.

Marty

LINK TO PICTURES:  https://1drv.ms/f/s!AtTCDmdhjIuljJoq1Of4WRYNFisbyA

Good Afternoon. Enjoy some pictures from our chilly Friday!

Breakfast:  Whole grain wheat bagels with sunflower butter and fresh PPC kiwi.

Lunch:  Hummus on whole grain wheat flatbread, fresh PPC mango and mixed vegetables.

Afternoon Snack:  Goldfish cheese crackers and colby-jack block cheese.

Wee Sprouts:  Peas.

Have a fabulous weekend and Happy Mother’s Day!

Rebekah

Link to pictures:  https://1drv.ms/f/s!AtTCDmdhjIuljJoBkPR31JAOcdiS-w

Good Afternoon!

**Just a reminder: our young 4’s/3’s farm trip is scheduled for Monday! Hopefully the weather cooperates . Please make sure your child is dressed for the weather AND wearing rain boots if possible. We’ll leave around 9:45 am. Thanks!

We want to wish all of our Wee Friends moms a fabulous Mother’s Day! You all deserve the world; we don’t know what we’d do without you!

“A Mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.”

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While our pre-k/k group went to the campus of Saint Mary’s to see a children’s dance/movement program, the rest of us transitioned into our morning and moved throughout the house. The art easel was requested while trio blocks and housekeeping were filled with imagination.

Breakfast– Rice cakes with peanut butter and PPC strawberries.

Lunch– Hummus on whole wheat flatbread, PPC banana/pears, and PPC cauliflower/snap peas.

PM snack– Pretzels and string cheese.

Wee Sprout– PPC cherry tomatoes/snap peas.

Have a lovely weekend!

-Mindy

Link to pictures: WF 5/11

Good Afternoon!

**Just as a reminder, Wee Friends is closed Monday, May 28th in observance of Memorial Day. Thanks!

Our pre-k/k group read the story, ‘Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site’. After the story was finished, we made the web of all webs! We came up with different jobs and wrote them onto the web. We used our background knowledge of jobs we have heard of or have experience with as well as a few that we WISH were jobs (i.e., unicorn wrangler).

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

A theme during our journal time was our families. Maxwell wrote all of the members of his family while Lucy drew her family. Anna wrote the words, ‘Sister, brother, mom, and dad’.

An art activity was made available at the art table this morning. It involved three items: paint, cotton swabs, and aluminum foil. We noticed that the aluminum foil made noise when we touched it as opposed to regular paper which doesn’t make noise. A few friends also pointed out that it had a shiny property to it.

Anna and Max have been tackling the pattern blocks this week. The pattern blocks are quite challenging. The blocks have to be placed in a specific way; otherwise, it doesn’t work! Friends and teachers offered to help but they were insistent on trying to complete it without help.

Our outside time was splendid today! Our bug search continues on for some friends while the rest of us used our gross motor capabilities as we rode bikes around the circle!

Breakfast– Whole Grain Cheerios and PPC kiwi.

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

PM snack– Graham crackers and raisins.

Wee Sprout– Fresh carrots/PPC cucumber.

Have a fantastic evening.

-Mindy

Link to pictures: WF 5/10

Good afternoon.

Today, the classroom was a buzz with all kinds of fun activities. Friends listened to music, read stories, colored, played on the habitrail, used their hands to beat on drums and play on the small pianos and had fun in the dramatic play center. We had a great day!

Breakfast: Whole grain Cheerios with fresh PPC Banana.

Lunch: Whole grain rice with shredded chicken, corn and fresh PPC kiwi slices.

Snack: Graham crackers and mozzarella string cheese.

Wee Sprouts: Corn.

Have a fantastic night!

Marty

LINK TO PICTURES:   https://1drv.ms/f/s!AtTCDmdhjIuljJgGQV6xoFUjJaPx7g

Good Afternoon and happy Wednesday!

Buckles, buckles and more buckles! Our little guys LOVE the kitchen chair buckle straps! It’s actually one of their most favorite fine motor activities to engage themselves in. One would think that these buckles wouldn’t be all that easy to manipulate, but the Wee Wee’s make it look super easy and always complete the task of getting them fully buckled together.  

According to penfieldbuildingblocks.org, “Fine motor skills are those that involve a refined use of the small muscles which control the hand, fingers and thumb. With the development of these skills, a child is able to complete important tasks such as writing, feeding oneself, buttoning and zippering.”

We then moved onto a different type of fine motor activity! Easel painting is another favorite that we just can’t get enough of! We also utilize our knowledge and skills of hand-eye coordination to get our paint brushes from their jars to the paper. We then make beautiful and very colorful creations.

Breakfast: Whole grain Kix cereal and fresh PPC Banana.

Lunch: Scrambled eggs with cheese, whole wheat buttered toast, peas and fresh PPC pears.

Snack: Whole wheat crackers with hummus.

Wee Sprouts: Peas.

Have a fantastic evening!

Marty

LINK TO PICTURES: https://1drv.ms/f/s!AtTCDmdhjIuljJZ-xm-sT8jCTw6bxg

Good Afternoon!

Our classroom was a productive and busy place this morning. Children moved their bodies throughout the environment and chose activities based on their current interest.

Chloe and Grady as well as other peers stationed themselves at the circle table where they categorized items onto mats. We talked about the similarities and differences of the items on each mat. Chloe quickly commented, “Oh! That shoe doesn’t go here!”

The art table was a crowded place as children used markers, stencils, and scissors to make individual creations. A lot of our children are working on their grips while holding a writing utensil. When they’re done, they either write their own name or have a teacher help them! Today, Ruby came up to a teacher and said, “I did my R and U but can you help me with my B before I write my Y?”

Our reading interest is high everyday. Children love diving into a good book with either just a teacher or a group of their peers. This morning, we read a variety of stories ranging from fiction to non fiction!

We went outside for a little while this morning before the rain came but once it started raining, we came inside and settled in before lunch. The art easel was used by several children. Painting rainbows seems to be a current theme with a few of our girls!

“Every student can learn; just not on the same day or in the same way.”

-George Evans

Breakfast– Whole grain oatmeal with honey and PPC banana.

Lunch– Scrambled eggs with shredded cheese, whole wheat bread, PPC cantaloupe, and PPC snap peas/tomatoes/cucumber.

PM snack– Blue corn chips and hummus.

Wee Sprout– PPC snap peas and cucumbers.

Have a lovely night!

-Mindy

Link to pictures: WF 5/9

Good Afternoon!

“It is before the age of 7 years when children desperately need to have a multitude of whole-body sensory experiences on a daily basis in order to develop strong bodies and minds. This is best done outside where the sense are fully ignited and young bodies are challenged by the uneven and unpredictable, ever-changing terrain”, said occupational therapist Angela Hanscom from the article titled ‘5 Reasons Outdoor Unstructured Play is Important for Preschoolers’.

We’re lucky here at Wee Friends. Our days do not involve a strict schedule so on any given day, we may go outside at 10:00 am or 10:45 am. Children guide the curriculum and ultimately our day. Thankfully, the weather has taken a turn for the better and we’ve been spending quite a bit of time outside.

Not only is outside play crucial to child development and our philosophy here at Wee Friends but the important part is having our outdoor time be ‘unstructured’. We don’t go outside and give orders or directions as to what children should be doing. This is a time for children to make their own, safe, and appropriate choices for their own body. There are children who could search for bugs for two hours straight while other children enjoy riding bikes, being involved in the sand area, or imaginative play with peers. At the end of the day, each and every child is leaving here with a meaningful learning experience in our outside environment.

I’ve attached a couple of articles that support outdoor play at this age.

http://www.healthworldeducation.org/industry-trends/item/284-5-reasons-outdoor-unstructured-play-is-important-for-preschoolers

http://www.communityplaythings.com/resources/articles/2010/outdoor-play

“because little nature lovers grow into big nature lovers.”

Breakfast– Corn chex and PPC banana.

Lunch– Refried beans on whole wheat tortilla, fresh honeydew melon/watermelon/blueberries, and PPC cantaloupe/snap peas.

PM snack– Whole wheat cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese and PPC strawberries.

Wee Sprout– PPC cauliflower/tomatoes/snap peas.

Have a fantastic night!

-Mindy

Link to pictures: WF 5/8

Good morning!

Here are the picture links from yesterday!

Have a great day!

-Mindy

WF 5/7 FARM

WF 5/7