Wee Friends has become the House of Singing Syllables.

This morning, Lisa brought in an array of hand mirrors. She guided the children in an exploration where they watched their mouth move as they created the sounds of multi-syllabic words. Among the many words sounded out were firetruck, ninja, pizza, Paulina, pouches, soccer, and basketball. This experience of sounding out syllables spread throughout the house and we heard whispered murmers of words as friends played together.

We’ve observed a growing interest in bridges over the last couple days. At breakfast, Finn and Marta created bridges across their cereal bowls using a spoon. In the hopscotch area, a small group of friends created another bridge today, this time using rectangular wooden flats. Another linear creation was laid out using large stacking blocks.

Many friends made felt pouches for their painted rocks. After sewing yard through holes, they filled their pouch with rocks and wore them throughout the morning.

A small group of friends worked collaboratively at the art table sorting, shuffling and counting poker chips. Friends practiced sharing, negotiating turns and compromising when choosing which color chip to work with.

Owen and Simon constructed various ships and planes out of the interlocking translucent plastic shapes. They also spent time at the art table creating the same ships and planes using pipe cleaners, straws, paper and glue.

Wee Sprouts today are cucumber slices and green peas. For breakfast, we served Cheerios and bananas. For lunch, we ate ham rolls stuffed with cream cheese, green peas and mandarin oranges. For snack, we will serve Tami’s homemade granola and yogurt.

Have a terrific weekend!

Throughout this morning, we heard Wee Friends of all ages sounding out syllables.

At the art table Lisa clapped out words with 1-4 syllables. Friends identified the number and chose that many beads to string onto pipe cleaner. On the oval rug, friends lined up and jumped up and down as many times as there were syllables in the word.

Melinda guided a small group of friends as they matched farm animals under eggs.

At the art table, friends painted rocks that likened Jack’s magical beans!

Friends requested another read aloud of Jack and the Beanstalk. Afterwards, they cast themselves and, using housekeeping this time, set the stage for another creative drama exploration. The second time around, Vivian volunteered to narrate the story as her friends listened and acted it out. Amazing!

Finn continues to build elaborate structures in hopscotch. He worked with Stephen today to create a bridge that started at a train and led to his house. If you fell off the bridge, alligators would get you. As soon as Nate arrived, he also worked on the project.

Umi and Alexandra built a house using every material they could find!

Parent/Child Conversation Starters:

• Which animal did Jack bring down the beanstalk with him?
• What colors did you use when you painted your rocks? How many rocks did you paint?
• Let’s discover how many syllables are in your name! I’ll tap on the car window and you tell me how many taps you hear: “A-da!”. What about “Mom-my!”
• How many bridges do we cross on the way home?

Our Wee Sprouts today are sweet bell peppers and broccoli. Breakfast was oatmeal and clementines. For lunch, Tami prepared brown rice with pork, roasted sweet potatoes and corn.

Have a happy, healthy day!

Today Lisa brought in a fabulous counting book called Elevator Magic. Using the message board, she created a Wee Tower with 10 floors and an elevator. As she read the book aloud, friends counted their way down from the top floor to the bottom floor. Afterwards, Laurie worked with a few friends to identify how many syllables were in each number when the number was spelled out. (ex: one (1), seven (2).

At the art table, we filled several trays with sand. Lisa held up a letter and friends traced that letter in the sand.

The next sensorial delight was the purple Play-Doh. We set out lower case letters for friends to work with, as well as cookie cutters and various Play-Doh tools.

Our princesses requested a round of acting out “Malificent”. We gathered in the reading area and looked through every fairy tale book we have to discover other stories with a villainous character. When The Three Little Pigs was pulled out, friends squealed (heehee!) with delight and we discussed first, what a villain is and secondly, who the villain is in the story. We read The Three Little Pigs, the kids cast themselves and we acted it out.

Afterwards, we found another villainous character in Jack and the Beanstalk. We read through it, friends cast themselves and away we went to the habitrail (the beanstalk) and acted out an original version of the story that involved a princess in captivity, two Giants, two Geese and a sparkly golden egg!

Later, we created a story board where friends drew the part of the story that made the biggest impression.

Our Wee Sprouts today are green pea pods and carrots. Breakfast was Corn Chex and clementines. For lunch Tami prepared cream cheese and melted cheddar cheese on whole grain tortillas, applesauce and cucumber slices. Snack will be cheese sticks and pretzels.

Enjoy your day!

The day started on a happy note!

Note from Tami about swimming…

“Today we started our spring swimming lesson session at the YMCA. Because our size is so large, it took some manipulating to make us fit with the YMCA for this session and this meant it happened literally at the last moment, that our kids were able to be in the Tuesday class that we started today. I apologize for the last minute notice! To be clear, I only contacted families that I invited to attend this session.

We cannot take every child to swim lessons, so we rotate the children. Please understand that every effort is made to keep it balanced and that I understand that most families really do want this opportunity. I will be contacting families in the next few weeks about signing up for the Spring 2 class that starts mid-April. Back to Laurie:)…”

While our swimmers were away, our friends explored a variety of sensory/fine motor experiences. First, we set out trays with wooden clothespins, pipe cleaners and coffee filters. Friends practiced opening and closing the pins, clipping them to coffee filters and sticking pipe cleaners in one of the few holes on the clothespin.

Next, we placed Lisa’s flower bouquet (thanks, Lisa!) on the table with scissors, construction paper, glue and glass vases. Friends cut all parts of the flower, glued flower parts to the paper, and stuffed flower petals and leaves into the vase.

Marta arrived from Florida with a bag full of shells. A few friends joined her as she sorted the shell pieces and cooked a hot cake.

FAB – Week of 2/27 – Literacy: K.1.14-Match all consonant sounds (mad, red, pin, top, sun) to appropriate letters. K.1.7-Listen to two or three phonemes (sounds) when they are read aloud, and tell the number of sounds heard, whether they are the same or different. Math: K.1.7-Find the number that is one more or one less than any whole number* up to 10. K.1.6-Count, recognize, represent, name and order a number of objects (up to 10). K.1.8-Use correctly the words one/many, none/some/all, more/less, and most/least.

Our Wee Sprouts today are green pea pods and carrots. For breakfast, Lisa served English muffins with peanut butter and pear slices. Lunch was melted ham and cheese on whole wheat tortillas, peas and more pear slices! Snack will be yogurt and apples.

Have a great day!

This morning, gymnasts worked on the climbing ladder and incline mat. They used the rope ladder to climb to the top of the bus and touch the ceiling. They learned glide and tuck swings and on the incline mat, did forward and backward rolls.

Last Friday afternoon, Simon brought in face paints! Wee Friends flipped through many pages of faces, chose which design they wanted and the teachers got to work painting! Kai has requested that every Friday afternoon be a face painting afternoon!

While the older Wee Friends were on the Blue Bus, our smaller Wee Friends worked with wine corks. First, friends counted and sorted the corks into baskets. Next, they used ink pads to stamp the corks onto construction paper. We they discovered that the corks did not hold ink so well, they switched to paint. Older friends joined in when they returned from the Blue Bus.

Ada, Simon and a few other friends worked with the mathematical concept: more than/less than. Using a message board filled with numbers, we first explored which numbers were ‘1 more than’ and ‘1 less than’. Then we matched our small number boards the corresponding written number. After that, we sorted piles of oranges according to the number board we chose. This exercise turned into a shape exploration with Simon and Ada stacking/balancing and arranging oranges artfully (a shark!). When the fruit came out, more friends joined in to see what was being worked on.

Over the weekend, Chase and Kaitlyn created a castle at the workbench. Tami set this out and a small group of friends sat down to cut and create felt clothes for the wooden clothespin people.

Elliott picked out two rhythm sticks and started singing “Twinkle Twinkle” tapping the sticks in an even rhythm as he sang. Other friends joined in and we continued exploring rhythm by singing two nursery rhymes and comparing which was faster/slower by the way we tapped our sticks. We played “Puff the Magic Dragon” and let the CD run. When an instrumental arrangement of a Beauty and the Beast song came on, a group of princesses gathered on the rug and danced as gracefully and slowly as the music they were listening to.

Our Wee Sprouts today are green pea pods. Breakfast was Kix and raisins. For lunch we served whole wheat penne pasta with ricotta cheese, mixed veggies and fruit salad (pineapple/apples). For snack, we will serve honey graham crackers and clementines.

Have a great day!

Happy Birthday, Nate!

After breakfast this morning, friends gathered ’round the art table to create a birthday card for Nate, who turns three tomorrow!

In the spirit of community building (and spreading simple Joy!!), a small group of friends learned, rehearsed and performed a Wee Friend’s original song “Jackhammer Joy” for the nice gentlemen who have been working on our street all week.

“What’s more fun than a rock? What’s more fun than a block? What’s more fun than 1-2-3?

Jackhammer Joy!

Jackhammer Joy! Jackhammer Joy, Jack-Jack Hammer Joy!” (repeat)

Back inside, Lisa guided an exploration with feathers and straws. Friends took turns sticking feathers into straws and then blowing them out. There were many observations: Umi: “The feathers feel soft. Pink is my favorite.” Ada: “I like blowing them!” Kai: “They feel soft and wiggly!” They observed how far or how near they flew. Alexandra shared “They are cuddly!”

At the workbench, Finn, Stephen and Nate set out rocks and were painting them with brushes. We invited them to bring their materials to two sensory bin, one filled with warm water and the other,warm sudsy water. They painted, dropped rocks back and forth between bins, and squeezed the paint brush bristles.

Elliott, Umi and Ada joined their friends in the exploration.

Melinda played several rounds of Crazy Eights and Simon and Ada took turns being the dealer in a few rounds of Zingo. Nate and Finn built a monster cave to protect themselves from a monster.

Annie and Jane organized and elaborate classroom, acting out the role of teacher. Later, Macy joined in as the baby sister. There was a lot of talking on the cell phones.

We created music, first by practicing rhythm stick/drumming dynamics. We beat slowly/quickly-softly/medium/loudly and then moved our sticks to Hap Palmer’s “Tap Your Sticks”. Then, we scrubbed our body parts with sponge balls while dancing to David Chicken’s “Bubbles in the Bathtub”. We ended our creative music time by snuggling near something we love and listening to Donny Osmond’s “Puppy Love”.

Our Wee Sprouts today are carrots and grape tomatoes. Breakfast was Kashi cereal and pear slices. For lunch, Lisa made a delicious scrambled egg casserole, corn and bananas. For snack, we will serve oranges, crackers and chocolate coins in honor of Nate’s Big #3!!!!

Have a peaceful weekend.

Our Wee Sprouts today are cucumbers, broccoli and cherry tomatoes. For breakfast, Melinda served whole wheat muffins with cinnamon sugar and oranges. Lunch is pizza sandwiches on whole wheat tortillas, roasted green beans and peach/banana fruit salad.

Have a great day!

This morning we delved into a project that was the “project that keeps giving”! First, the teachers cut out pictures of people, places and things for friends to create a collage and and inspire great conversation! We taped down paper, set out glue and a first group of friends sat down to work.

When they had squeezed the glue and stuck pictures to their heart’s delight, they asked to cut some more. We pulled out our magazine basket and got out the scissors.

Alexandra cut large and small triangles. Macy cut out a poodle and recognized the exact same picture of that dog on another page. Finn, Elliott and Marta worked with two different types of scissors, exploring how their fingers fit in and different angles to cut paper. Everyone, particularly our younger Wee Friends LOVE to squeeze things. The glue bottles were squeezed and squeezed and those finger muscles were getting a workout. The pictures of pets, flowers, mom and dads, children, food….all invoked descriptive words/observations and personal connections.

And then we turned the collage into a floor mat with contact paper. Friends pointed out which picture they had worked on. The slippery, slidey feel of the mat invited them to roll around and dance.

But no matter how much multi-faceted fun we had with our collage work, it was no match for the excitement of……

…the jackhammer.

And we leave you with that.

Our Wee Sprouts today are carrots. Breakfast was Cream of Wheat and pear slices. For lunch Tami made her fabulous three bean/veggie/ham soup with warm cornbread and apple slices.

Have a great day.

This morning, in every corner of the classroom our FAB’s K.1.4 -Divide sets of ten or fewer objects into equal groups and K.1.5 – Divide shapes into equal parts were being explored in full force!

A small group of friends each chose one pattern block and took turns laying it down wherever they chose. We studied blocks that created whole shapes and used ‘artist eyes’ to see what shaped they created. On the next round, they chose another pattern block and set them down so that all the blocks were touching. Again, we looked for parts that made a whole shape and studied what shape we had created. Friends saw a head, a castle, a rocket ship and other shapes.

On the oval rug, Melinda worked with an ever shifting group of friends and pattern cubes. First, they divided sets of ten cubes into equal groups. Next, they created color and number patterns.

Later, Kai led a small group of buddies in a math exercise that involved guessing how many bugs were on the pattern template.

Lisa played a dice game in the reading area: friends rolled the dice and pulled out the corresponding number of pattern blocks. At the end of the game, they examined who had the largest/smallest pile.

Using a variety of square and triangular shapes cut out of construction paper, a small group of friends worked at the art table to created a collage, “Parts of the Whole”. We talked about “two halves make a whole” and studied how to glue the shape parts together to make a “whole” new shape. At the end, Jane created an elaborate castle and drew in characters who lived there.

Using several of our “how to” drawing books, a group of friends spent time creating marker drawings step by step.

At the light table, friends made cookies, counted candy and studied the translucent glass stones, dropping them one by one into a plastic tray.

Our Wee Sprouts today are cucumber slices and broccoli. For breakfast, we served Corn Chex and pear slices. Lunch is peanut butter sandwiches, carrot/lima beans and bananas. For snack, we will serve pretzels and cheese.

Parent/Child Communication starters:

• What word rhymes with car?
• What shape is the tire on our car?
• How many tires do we have on our car?
• What is your favorite color? Where do you see your favorite color in our house?

  

Have a restful day.

FAB (Framework for Academic Balance) Week of Monday, February 20th.

Literacy: K.1.20-Identify and sort common words in basic categories; K.7.3-Describe people, places, things (including their size, color and shape), locations and actions. Math: K.1.4-Describe sets of ten or fewer objects into equal groups; K.1.5-Divide shapes into equal parts.

As always, our friends were ecstatic to see Miss Jennifer and her Blue Bus! Today, they worked on the climbing ladder and incline mat. They used the rope to climb to the top of the bus and then they touched the ceiling. They learned glide and tuck swings and, on the incline mat, they did forward and backward rolls.

While the big kids were on the bus, a small group of four boys worked collaboratively in the block area, creating a tall structure. They listened to one another when discussing what they were doing and where they would place their block. They negotiated how to adjust the structure when it was getting too tall for their safety.

At the same time, Lisa worked with a small group at the art table tracing letters and gluing them to paper.

After the whole class came together again, friends split up into different areas to work. Kai and Annie described feelings about school and friends. (FAB K.7.3)

Lisa worked with friends at the message board and recorded other descriptions about what happened to them over the weekend. After finishing their message board moment, friends had the option to sit at the art table and record their descriptions in a story board format. Using three ‘windows’, friends chose their top three weekend activities and drew pictures of them, discussing them all the while. (FAB K.7.3)

Afterwards, as a large group, Lisa read aloud what friends had shared with her. We shared the story boards as well, but this time, friends (who were not the artist) described in detail what they were seeing. We heard about colors and shapes and a variety of perceptions. The artist then shared his/her intention with the group. (FAB K.7.3)

The High/Low card game is continuing to capture the attention of many friends. This work gives our older friends the opportunity to practice comparing numbers and their value (less than/more than). (FAB K. 1.2)

Back in the block area, another group of friends worked with the building blocks to explore math. We discussed the concept of “equal parts” and “the whole” and created and identified shapes accordingly. Questions were asked, such as “Are all the parts of your circle/square equal parts?” and “Which blocks, when fit together, make a square/diamond/rectangle?” Ultimately, all of Macy’s many parts equaled one whole house, with lots of detail! (FAB K.1.5)

Our Wee Sprouts today are organic carrots. For breakfast Melinda served whole wheat muffins with peanut butter bananas. Lunch was whole wheat pasta with pork, mandarin/banana fruit salad and French cut green beans. For snack, we will serve animal crackers and fruit.

Have a great day.