Hello!

We started this morning off with a little music time. Maya prompted us to dive into the musical aspect of play. Out of the blue, Maya started singing ‘Do-Re-MI’ from ‘The Sound of Music’. We found an audio recording of this and listened to it. Maya helped us out throughout the song by singing what parts of the song she knew.

“I don’t sing because I’m happy, I’m happy because I sing.”

Anna and David had a happy naptime. Anna loved clapping and trying to stand up on her own while David played with toys and blocks.

It was a gross motor infused afternoon. The habitrail was a crowded place as friends moved their bodies throughout the environment.

For breakfast, children had cheerios and blueberries. Lunch consisted of avocado chicken salad, english muffins, cheddar cheese, tomatoes/carrots, and strawberries. PM snack was strawberries and pretzels.

Have a great night.

Today we played outside! For the long winter days when playing outside is not an option, we often integrate another sensory experience. Today it was Moon Sand. Other days it is Play-Do, shaving cream or warm sudsy water. Mindful sensory play calms and focuses the mind and imagination. It’s a way of experiencing the world through textures and temperatures. Friends sing and socialize and strategize.

Jessica invited friends to join her in a gross motor extravaganza! “Simon says…..be a dog!”

The hammock invites quiet observation. Swinging to and fro. Taking turns.

The piano keys actually have the same letter as some friend’s names.

The Wild Kratts inspired a shape exploration.

Wee Friends: a sensorial buffet of learning. Have a great day. –Laurie

 

Breakfast: Brown rice cakes with PB and clementines. Wee Sprouts: Cherry tomatoes

Lunch: Whole wheat English muffins with chicken avocado salad, carrots, and bananas.

Snack: Blue corn chips and refried beans. Food For Thought: http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/inbal_kashtan2.html

 

Good Afternoon!

Friends took turns this morning to paint at the easel. Maya was quite vocal when she wanted a new color. She let Miss Mindy know, “I want yellow, please.” A few friends stayed within a certain area of their paper while others took up the whole page.

While sitting at the lunch table, friends looked up at their paintings and we talked about the colors that we saw.

Music was put on after PM snack. Lucy and Tate walked around the table while singing a few of their favorite tunes.

For breakfast, children had kix and blueberries. Lunch consisted of whole grain noodles with cheese, broccoli, and oranges. PM snack was strawberries and string cheese.

Have a terrific evening!

                         

Today marked the beginning of our next swim session. Six friends were very excited to jump into the pool, especially our friends new to swimming lessons. Lots of kicking feet,  stroking arms, floating, blowing bubbles and jumping in!

Have a splash-filled Tuesday. –Jessica

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Kix and grapes. Lunch: Whole wheat pasta with kidney beans, broccoli, and pear slices. Snack: Cheese sticks and oranges. 

Happy Monday!

Hope everyone had a terrific weekend!

For breakfast, children had toast with cinnamon and butter along with kiwi. Lunch consisted of melted cheese on tortilla, snap peas, and oranges. PM snack was homemade banana bread and string cheese.

Have a wonderful evening!

*Our new swimming session begins tomorrow! Please make sure your Wee Friend has a suit and goggles (if needed).

K.4.1 Literacy FAB states:  “Identify and describe common geometric objects.”

Our classroom was abuzz with Monday activity, Blue Bus, conversations, puzzle work, Play-Do, Bob Books, news reports and exploration. Many times, when we check in with our friends, we integrate the FABS in a context appropriate way. This morning, this literacy FAB was a natural conversation piece. Shapes were out everywhere. Angles were under toes and above heads. Semi circles and cylinders were identified and articulated. Gelled color shapes were combined and built with.

 

And all these great learning materials are super fun to play with. So together we create a balance and let the conversations flow.

Have a perfectly balanced Monday. –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers/Romanesco cauliflower. Breakfast: Whole wheat bagels with peanut butter and pear slices. Lunch: Whole wheat tortillas with cheddar cheese, orange slices and pea pods. Snack: Organic whole yogurt with Tami’s whole wheat/homemade banana bread.

 

Happy Friday!

After a snow day yesterday and a late start today, we got back into our Friday groove.

Anna is enjoying going up the stairs on the habitrail and crawling her way around to the slide. She’s figured out how to move around and go down the slide backwards!

Tate and Anna had fun with one another in the gross motor area after nap time.

After naptime, it was a combo of stories and baby play for most of our friends.

For lunch, friends had ham and cream cheese on whole wheat bread, broccoli, and banana. PM snack was graham crackers and string cheese.

Have a terrific weekend! Stay safe and warm.

*Pre-conference sheets due today!

*The new swim session starts on Tuesday. If your WF is new to the group, make sure they have a swimsuit. Per Tami: “I will not transport the kids to the pool if the roads are bad.”

We’ve only been in the classroom for about an hour as I write, but there has been an unbelievable amount of information shared, that we’d like to share with you! It makes us ask the question: “How much time REALLY makes up a WF minute, or a WF day?”

When Bill Jackson (Elliott’s dad) walked in, several friends rushed him and jumped up and down expressing recent news:

“Look how long my hair is!”

“Today is Hazel’s last day!”

“Eight more days ‘til Mexico!”

“One more day until tomorrow!”

Other big kid news:

“Big Hero 6 is coming on Tuesday!”

“No! You talk Turkey, which is not in Romania. But it is close to Romania.”

Tami news:

“Look at this. It’s from the Purple Porch. We love getting new super cool foods from the Purple Porch.”

Lastly, we say goodbye to dear Hazel today. Her future includes time with Grandma, a trip abroad to her beloved Iceland AND Denmark and kindergarten in North Liberty. We have loved having you Hazel (aka Elsa) here.

Have a terrific weekend. –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Sweet peppers and broccoli. Lunch: Ham and cream cheese on whole wheat bagels, PPC Romanesco Cauliflower and watermelon. Snack: Peanuts, PPC kiwi/plums/strawberries.

 

Good Afternoon!

Anna girl stood up multiple times today by herself! She gets SUPER proud of herself and smiles while clapping quite fiercely .

A little sensory play took place this morning. Friends worked with shaving cream and purple paint. While for some it didn’t last too long, each child put their own twist on the experience!

We had a bunch of smiley babies today!

For breakfast, children had kix and strawberries. Lunch consisted of egg salad on flatbread, broccoli, and banana. PM snack was pretzels and strawberries.

Have a terrific night. Stay warm!

Today has been a busy day! We have been folding and building.

Drawing and puzzling.

 

We also continued our study of vertices [FAB K.4.2]. Yesterday friends found, sorted and glued wooden blocks to cover the surface of their paper. Today, friends painted their wood blocks, counting the number of vertices as they went along. These puzzle-like creations had many vertices to find!

 

 

Happy Wednesday! –Jessica

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Rice cakes with peanut butter and pears. Lunch: Egg salad and cheddar cheese on whole wheat bagels, fresh broccoli/sweet peppers and bananas/oranges.  Snack: Hummus and pretzels.