WWF, 4/1/2015

Happy April!

We spent a beautiful morning outside! Friends started with hats and we quickly were able to take them off! It was quite the active morning outside. We saw two airplanes and heard a fire truck and train! Children were definitely able to use their senses.

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Friends loved playing ‘catch’ outside with friends and teachers! Our hand eye coordination is steadily improving!

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Nahla and Lucy were very determined to climb up the log in between the two slides. They did this multiple times! Gross motor at its finest Smile.

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It was tandem teeter totter this morning!

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We were wore out. Sleep does the toddler body good!

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For breakfast, children had kix and oranges. Lunch consisted of hummus on tortillas, cauliflower, and banana. PM snack was pretzels and raisins.

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Have a great night!

WF Tuesday 3/31 Dance Party!

*Reminder: Wee Friends will be closed Friday, April 3rd in observance of Good Friday. 

New toys often generate a lot of interest. This week’s most interesting toy is our new music box record player! It plays a variety of songs and friends love switching out the records and changing volume.

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Elliott decided to have a dance party with the record player and wrote out invitations:

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We love dancing!

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This morning we also read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. If you read that book to Wee Friends, they’re going to want to make their own cookies! We got out the play dough and got to work.

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Hope you have a joy-filled day. –Jessica

Wee Sprouts: Orange and red bell peppers. Breakfast: Cheerios with pear slices. Lunch: Whole wheat quesadillas, fresh cucumbers/bell peppers/tomatoes, and honeydew melon . Snack: Cottage cheese with oranges. 

WWF, 3/30/2015

Happy Monday!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

**Just as a reminder, it is a short week here at WWF. We will be closed on Friday, April 3rd in observance of Good Friday. Thanks!

Friends worked together this morning to build with waffle blocks. A big hit was building a cube. Maya built a track with her blocks. Lucy pointed out the different colored blocks she had.

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It was a gorgeous morning. The sun was shining so we got a lot of vitamin D! Looks like most of the week will be AWESOME outside weather Smile.

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For breakfast, children had toast with butter and cinnamon along with banana. Lunch consisted of whole grain noodles with kidney beans, apples, and green beans. PM snack was block cheese and raisins.

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Have a terrific evening!

WF Monday 3/30

Among the many works that emerged today was alphabetizing letters. (FAB K.1.19- Learn and apply knowledge of alphabetical order (first letter) when using a classroom or school library/media center)

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To support Jessica’s library book read alouds, we invited friends to make library cards to stamp with every book they read. The library cards sparked some interest, but the shape stampers definitely did.

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Under the habitrail, friends investigated through movement the many ways their bodies could move on a straight/zigzag/squiggly line.

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Have a great Monday! –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Buttered whole wheat toast and pear slices. Lunch: Whole wheat pasta with beans, green beans and orange slices. Snack: Whole milk yogurt with fresh apples. 

WWF, 3/26/2015

Hello!

Friends worked on their fine motor skills this morning as they manipulated waffle blocks. Maya rebuilt a castle that she had built earlier in the day at home. We’re pretty good at vocalizing when we need help but it’s also important for friends to try to work it out on their own.

At this age, we learn a lot of problem solving ideas and skills from other friends as well as family and teachers. Our toddlers are quite independent lately Smile.

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Anna and Annabelle, aka the pony tail girls, played in the kitchen this afternoon as their older friends took their nap. Annabelle took her bowl and banged it with her utensil making a loud sound. Anna soon imitated this!

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BIG cheeses to end the day.

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For breakfast, children had Kashi and kiwi. Lunch consisted of whole wheat english muffin pizzas, strawberries, and peas. PM snack was kiwi and graham crackers.

Have a terrific evening!

WF Thursday 3/26 Robot Creationing

The language of a play-based curriculum: “I watched Elizabeth while she was creationing.” “I’m still working!” ”Can you save my work?” Hey watch out! You’re stepping on my creation!” “Look at the book! There are some more destructions!” (instructions) “I just don’t know who to be today, or what to do.”He said I can have that after him.”

 

Today’s big creationing was robots. Jessica first read (well, a stack of library books that ended with) Clink by Kelly DiPucchio and Matthew Myers.  First Wee Friends studied Clink’s blue print on the interior of the cover. Next, they brainstormed about what sort of robot they could make. They got to work with paper, markers and scissors. Using yarn and straws, Wee Friends made their paper robots fly. Great Wee work. Great Wee play. Great Wee creationing.

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Great Day. –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Corn Chex and pear slices. Lunch: Whole wheat English muffin pizza, broccoli, and oranges. Snack: Kiwi/oranges with nuts.

 

WWF, 3/25/2015

Good Afternoon!

Nahla, Tate, Maya, and Lucy had a fantastic painting experience this morning. We worked with many colors and friends were vocal about what color they wanted to paint with!

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Maya used a certain pattern for one of her painting. She took the paintbrush tip and pushed it down all around her paper.

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Lucy had some colorful hands at the end of her sensory experience!

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For breakfast, children had toast with butter and cinnamon along with banana. Lunch consisted of egg salad on flat bread, pears, and cucumber. PM snack was string cheese and kiwi.

Have a great night!

 

WF Wednesday 3/25 Emergent Curriculum: Building a Dam

Here is how we create emergent curriculum and an illustration of how the process unfolds in Wee World.

The day began with some friends interested in researching different types of holes: black holes, dirt holes, sinkholes, and water holes. We looked at pictures of natural watering holes and man-made water holes in dams. This conversation led to questions about dams! We compared man-made dams (Hoover Dam, Three Gorges Dam) and dams made by animals (beaver dams).

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We capitalized on this interest by creating a hands-on sensory activity: let’s build our own dam!

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We started with Magna tiles and friends tested their first dam design. After adding water there were some leaks, so friends decided to change it up. We added blue watercolor, shells, and sand to simulate a real river and introduced popsicle sticks as a new dam-building material.

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Friends came and went as they pleased, feeling the water and sand. Younger friends poured the water in shells and in their hands while older friends focused on building the dam.

The finished result!

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We didn’t begin the morning planning to build a dam; this sensory science experiment flowed from our friends’ interests. Emergent curriculum naturally engages friends and leads to fulfilling learning experiences. 

Happy Hump Day! –Jessica

Wee Sprouts: Grape tomatoes. Breakfast: Rice cakes with peanut butter and strawberries. Lunch: Egg salad sandwiches on whole wheat flatbread, fresh cucumbers and honeydew melon.  Snack: Refried beans and whole wheat crackers.