WWF 3/29

Our friends enjoyed their time in the sunshine today! The outside world offers opportunities to observe, discover, and learn that aren’t found indoors. It also provides more opportunities for large muscle development because of the space and freedom given to crawl, walk, climb, run, and jump!

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Breakfast was Corn Chex, blueberries, and pears. Wee sprouts was peas. Lunch consisted of whole wheat flatbread with hummus, snap peas, and pears. Afternoon snack was toasted whole wheat bagels with cream cheese. PM Wee sprouts was mixed veggies.

Have a great night!

Amanda

Link to photos: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=A58B8C61670EC2D4!83853&authkey=!AIEyT3CpoanEbSU&ithint=folder%2cJPG

Tuesday 3/29/16 Sweet Beets

This morning we explored some sweet beets! Last week the Purple Porch brought us a bag of organic beets. What to do with beets? Pickle them, of course!

First, friends had a chance to touch and smell the beets. One friend remarked that the beets smelled like “rotten socks,” while another said, “these smell like carrots!”

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Next we got to scrubbing. Children took turns washing off the beets with water and a towel. This process was both a sensory exploration and a satisfying real work activity.

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We took a look at the water leftover in the bowl and saw how much dirt we scrubbed off! Lastly, we wrapped the beets in foil to roast them. Up next—taking the skin off, cutting the beets up and preparing them for the pickling process.

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After putting the beets in the oven, Miss Mindy asked friends “what color is the inside of the beet?” We had lots of different responses, but most children picked “red.” Once we start the pickling process, we will get to see who guessed correctly!

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Kindergarten: This week in large group we have been working on FAB K.W.1: Write for specific purposes and audiences. Yesterday, with Miss Mindy, the group wrote a piece of persuasive writing together—a letter to Tami asking for a new T-rex dinosaur! Today we brainstormed all sorts of different lists (“lists to remember things”, “grocery lists”, “lists of things to do”, etc.) and wrote a list of our own—“Places to Play at WF”. When children see writing at work in a variety of contexts, it highlights the usefulness and importance of learning to write.

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Wee Sprouts: Red bell peppers and carrots. Breakfast: Corn Chex and fresh strawberries. Lunch: Whole grain flatbread with hummus, peppers/carrots/pea pods, and watermelon slices. Snack: Cottage cheese and roasted chickpeas.

Link to the photo album: WF 3/29/2016

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Have a wonderful afternoon! –Jessica

WWF 3/28

I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend! Here’s some of our favorite moments from the day.

Peek-a-boo on the habitrail…

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Scooping and pouring corn in the kitchen…

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Looking through family photos…

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And being sweet to our friends!

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Breakfast was whole wheat toast with butter and bananas. Lunch consisted of whole wheat pasta with pork, strawberries, blueberries, pears, and peas. Afternoon snack was goldfish and string cheese.

Have a great night!

Amanda

Link to photos: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=A58B8C61670EC2D4!83659&authkey=!AN2_ibOPQhzTtw8&ithint=folder%2cJPG

WF, 3/28/2016

Happy Monday!

Hope everyone had a terrific holiday weekend.

We got back into the swing of things here!

The art easel was open for business. Multiple friends showed interest in painting so they asked for the apron when they were ready. Not only does it give friends a chance to work on their fine motor skills along with creativity but the sensorial benefits are always high Smile.

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Children were engaged at the art table where markers, stencils, and scissors were used to create!

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Elliott and Jackson took it upon themselves to get the insides of the markers out (they had dried out). It was quite a demanding job and they stayed focused on the task at hand.

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Wee Sprouts– Broccoli and cauliflower.

Breakfast– Whole wheat bread with butter and banana.

Lunch- Whole wheat pasta with butter and pork, pears, and carrots.

Have a lovely night!

Link to pictures: WF 3/28

PM Snack– Organic whole milk yogurt and fresh strawberries.

WF Thursday 3/24/16 PJ Day!

What a day! Today was not only a special pajama day but also our friend Luke’s last day. We wish both him and his family all the best with their upcoming move. We will miss you!

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This morning’s festivities started off with a little nail painting action. Friends had the opportunity to have their nails painted in any colors they chose. The glittery and sparkly colors were the most popular!

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After their nails were done, friends went to the “drying station” to wait for their nails to dry. Elliott had the ingenious idea to use the air registers as a nail dryer!

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Next, friends decided to put on a PJ Fashion show. They constructed the runway with blocks and then a teacher helped them hang up a curtain. A little music and they were ready to show off their pajamas and nails!

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We loved showing off our nails!

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Later, the stage was converted to a fort…

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Before lunch, we spent time singing a silly song—“icky sticky bubble gum”! Friends took turns choosing body parts to stick our pretend gum on. We got gum on our heads, legs and toes! Ask your child if they can teach you this funny song Smile 

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Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Corn Chex and fresh strawberries. Lunch: Whole wheat flatbread with cheddar cheese, fresh broccoli/cauliflower, and oranges/bananas. Snack: Fresh pineapple and carrot cake in honor of Luke’s last day!

Link to the photo album: WF 3/24/2016

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Have a wonderful Easter! See you on Monday. –Jessica

WWF 3/24

Please note: Wee Friends is closed tomorrow, March 25 for Good Friday.

Enjoy the photos from our day!

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Breakfast was scrambled eggs with cheese and bananas. Lunch consisted of tortillas with cheese, blueberries, and corn. Afternoon snack was wheat crackers with sweet pea butter.

Have a great weekend!

Amanda

Link to photos: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=A58B8C61670EC2D4!83428&authkey=!AFIOJjM8gPkC3NU&ithint=folder%2cJPG

WWF 3/23

Please note: Wee Friends is closed this Friday, March 25 for Good Friday.

Our friends loved the sensory kitchen activity this morning! Moon sand is soft and somewhat moldable. They loved running their hands through it and using the tools in the bin to scoop, pour, and sift.

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Anna’s family photos were added to our growing photo albums today. She was so excited to look at them and to show everyone else “Anna banana’s family!” Our friends take out the photo albums everyday to look through!

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Breakfast was whole wheat toast with butter and cinnamon and bananas. Lunch consisted of homemade French toast casserole, pears, and peas. Afternoon snack was wheat crackers with hummus.

Have a great night!

Amanda

Link to photos:  https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=A58B8C61670EC2D4!83335&authkey=!AA5_Bieb_LHxgK4&ithint=folder%2cJPG

WF Wednesday 3/23/16

Today children immediately gravitated to one of our newest materials—a bunch of tiny chairs. There are 8 different chair designs and friends arranged the chairs in various arrangements both by color and style.

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After arranging the chairs in the way they wanted, they started seating the audience of Little People. This was a group effort and it took a lot of time to get everyone seated. After putting the audience together, they decided to put on a show for them!

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Lots of building happened in the habitrail area today. After playing with the small car ramps, Addi and Jackson decided to build a BIG ramp! This took lots of communication and trial and error, but eventually they ended up with a very long ramp for cars.

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Today the Wee Friends also practiced their rhythm by tapping wooden sticks along to a variety of songs. We love getting to sing, dance and move! 

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Outside, Ms. Melinda led friends in a garden activity to repot some flowers. Children took turns filling the new pots with soil, and then we replanted the plants. Our gardening season is almost here! Look out for more information about helping with our garden soon.

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Now our plants have new homes!

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Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Hot wheat cereal with fresh pears. Lunch: French toast casserole made with whole wheat bread and farm fresh eggs, tomatoes/cucumbers, and oranges/bananas. Snack: Refried beans and blue corn chips.

Link to the photo album: WF 3/23/2016

See you for PJ Day tomorrow! –Jessica

WWF 3/22

We love our story area of the classroom and spend a great deal of the day there! Reading to toddlers sets the foundation for later independent reading. When you read to your toddler, you help them to learn about new words and concepts, learn letters, and learn about the way the printed word works.

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Our friends and a few of the Wee Friends spotted each other through the door while we were outside, much to the delight of Anna, Ruby, and David. There was a few giggly minutes spent making funny faces through the glass. Then our Wee Friends joined us outside and we all enjoyed the fresh air together!

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Breakfast was Whole Grain Cheerios and bananas. Wee sprouts was corn. Lunch consisted of whole wheat tortilla with hummus, pears, and corn. Afternoon snack was brown rice cakes with cream cheese.

Have a great night!

Amanda

Link to photos:https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=A58B8C61670EC2D4!83200&authkey=!AIoMcAQcrZ0Ka7Y&ithint=folder%2cJPG

WF, 3/22/2016

Good Afternoon!

There was an activity that was made available at the table this morning when our Wee Friends arrived!

We worked with looms and ties. This activity allowed for differing developmental levels to participate! For our little friends, they worked on securing the ties anywhere on the loom along with working on their fine motor skills. Our older friends took the ties and stringed them in a specific way. Each child had a clear cut objective and end result that they were striving for!

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We received a new set of toys that we introduced today: a LOT of tiny chairs. We brainstormed how to use them and we’ve come up with a few things so far. The most popular idea is using them with the little people. “Of course the little people need chairs too,” said a Wee Friend!

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Dominos were requested this morning that led to lessons on spatial recognition as well as talking about numbers.

Maddie took the dominos and stood them up on the table. She quickly found out that the dominos were very fragile so she talked to herself about how she was going to space the dominos to build a house. Self talk and problem solving at its finest!

She later took the dominos and started pairing them up using the numbers that were shown on the domino. If she had a domino that had ‘2’ dots, she found another one with ‘2’ dots and put them together. Peers later joined to work on their 1-1 correspondence by counting the dots on each domino.

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Wee Sprouts– Cherry tomatoes.

Breakfast-Kix and strawberries.

Lunch– Hummus on tortillas, peppers/snap peas, and apples/banana.

PM Snack– English muffins with cream cheese.

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Have a terrific afternoon!

-Mindy

Link to pictures: WF 3/22