Happy Friday!

Today, we say goodbye to two of our friends.

Eren is heading across the bridge on Monday where he’s going to become apart of Wee Friends. He has been visiting over the last month and we can already tell he’s going to feel right at home. We’ve watched Eren grow and become just an amazing little man. From starting in September 2012 to today, there has been so much growth in all aspects of Eren’s life. We’re excited to watch him continue to blossom next door . We’ll miss you Kemal, Shelia, and Eren!

We say goodbye to Henri who is going to be staying at home with his momma and older brother Leo. Since January, we’ve seen this little boy grow into a strong and tough kid. Between his faster than lightning crawling and kissy faces, he will surely be missed. We all love you buddy! Come visit us soon!

For breakfast, children had toast with butter and cinnamon along with nectarines. Lunch consisted of hummus on tortillas, mixed vegetables, and banana. PM snack was pretzels and cheddar cheese.

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“The sun did not shine, it was too wet to play.

So we [played] in that house all that cold, cold, wet day.

[We sat there, Wee Friends, in twos and in threes,

And we stared out the window, ‘til Tami said “Please!”

“Take a run ‘round our circle, breath in deep, breath in long.

Don’t worry about raindrops-let your bodies grow strong!”

So we did just that, we ran and we ran. Then back to our classrooms, and the learning at hand.

We say goodbye to Leo today! We love you Leo! Come back and visit us soon.

Have a great weekend. –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Cereal and peaches. Lunch: Hummus on whole grain flatbread, bananas,  and fresh cauliflower and carrots. Snack: Celery and apple slices with peanut butter.

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Last week, I read the article, Children and sleep – A Real Health Issue, and I wanted to share it on the blog today.  Maybe because it is May the 16th, it is 39 degrees out,  and it is drizzling rain AND I want to nap instead of doing real work.  So my compromise is sip my coffee while I  write about napping:)

The article was a very concise write up of what I have been reading about for years:  GOOD SLEEP IS CRITICAL FOR EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY CHILDREN.  Lack of sleep is connected to being at high risk for obesity, chronic disease, developing ADHD, and it is detrimental to learning.  The author shares, “Up until age five, naps are an important part of healthy sleep habits. Research shows that young children learn best when they are able to nap during the day. The brain is active during sleep and helps to transfer information learned earlier in the day to a different part of the brain that controls long-term memory. The ability to focus and control behavior are affected if children do not get adequate sleep including a daytime nap.”  http://extension.psu.edu/youth/betterkidcare/news/2014/children-and-sleep-2013-a-real-health-issue

In another article, Daytime Naps Enhance Learning in Preschool Children, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130923155534.htm the author shares Rebecca Spencer’s research on napping preschoolers. Spencer is concerned because with the surge of information on the importance of early learning, the shift is to take naps away to make more time for learning.  However, she concludes that, “children should not only be given the opportunity, they should be encouraged to sleep by creating an environment which supports sleep.”  Her research conclusively showed that children were better able to remember what they had learned after an average nap of 77 minutes than without one.  Specifically, “While the children performed about the same immediately after learning in both the nap and wake conditions, the children performed significantly better when they napped both in the afternoon and the next day,” the authors summarize. “That means that when they miss a nap, the child cannot recover this benefit of sleep with their overnight sleep. It seems that there is an additional benefit of having the sleep occur in close proximity to the learning.”

Wee Friends offers a quiet environment conducive to good napping in both classrooms and our teachers value naps.  For the preschoolers we often get requests to discontinue napping and we do work with parents and respect their wishes.  However, I wanted to offer some research as to why we value the nap.   As always, ya’ll know I love to talk about this stuff.  So, I’d be happy to dialogue and brainstorm with any of you on how to ensure your child is getting enough rest during the day.

When you can’t figure out what to do, it’s time for a nap. ~Mason Cooley

Stay warm today!

Tami

Other links on sleep:

Your Guide To Healthy Sleep http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/sleep/yg_slp.htm

Napping Helps Children Retain Memory, Learn New Skills http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1113116770/children-learn-more-retain-memories-with-naps-040914/#KctKWGROeTodObpC.99

From Learning in Infancy to Planning Ahead in Adulthood: Sleep’s Vital Role for Memory http://www.cogneurosociety.org/sleep_memory_cns2014/

Infant Sleep Research: Bedsharing, Self-Soothing, and Sleep Training http://scienceofmom.com/2012/03/09/infant-sleep-research-cosleeping-self-soothing-and-sleep-training/

Happy Thursday!

Water. Splash. Bubbles. Toys. Our morning was filled with joy (and damp clothes).

Lucy has enjoyed the wonders of walking. With taking five to ten steps at a time, it’s a whole new world for her!

Tate ended his afternoon with a couple modeling shots in the cubbies. He’s very photogenic .

For breakfast, children had corn flakes and strawberries. Lunch was homemade pizza with spinach and cheese on a whole wheat crust, fresh mixed fruit (blueberries, honeydew melon, cantaloupe), and broccoli. PM snack was whole milk yogurt and string cheese.

Have a wonderful night!

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What’s the point? It’s not a question we ask very often at Wee Friends. Most of the time, in our Early Childhood learning environment, we understand that the process is the point.  And repetitive, child initiated processes will cultivate concrete skill development over time.

Emma loves spinning the Lazy Susan. We covered it with paper. First, she pressed a marker down to create circles. Then she used her hand to spin the Susan. Over and over, round and round. Emma’s point was not creating a work of art, it was giving her a chance to dive into a gross motor exploration that connected to her interest.

Under the habitrail, a small group of friends created a hospital bed. They build EVERYDAY with blocks! What’s the point? Collaboration, vocabulary, empathy and putting shapes and angles together to create a familiar object, to name a few.  And here’s some of what we heard, to assess their understanding of the topic:

“Her heart is bumping fast.”

“Her kickers are good.”

“Here’s a pressure point.”

“She’s about to be dead.”

“Her blood pressure is leaking out of her heart.”

“Her eyes are blood bleeding.”

“I’ll call the medicine order.”

“Pretend you have a baby in your heart.”

“Her teeth are not straight and she has a crooked heart.”

“Do you want to play car mechanic now?”

And off we all went…..to discover the next point of the next idea, flesh it out and watch the Wee peeps grow.

Hope you are enjoying the point of YOUR day! –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Edamame.  Breakfast:  Melted ham and cheese on whole wheat English muffins and bananas. Lunch: Homemade whole wheat pasta with fresh spinach and mozzarella,  blueberries/cantaloupe/honeydew fruit salad and broccoli. (ALL PPC veggies/fruit) Snack: Cottage cheese and cherry tomatoes.

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Good Afternoon!

*Just as a reminder, WWF will be closed May 26th in observance of Memorial Day. Thanks!

Even with the dreary, rainy day, we found different activities to keep ourselves occupied. Before we went outside, friends got together in the reading area and took turns reading different books. Our older friends did fantastic job of retelling the story in their own words. Our younger friends are becoming more and more aware of print in different stories. Most times, we make sure the book is facing the right way! Yay!

Our vocabulary all around is shooting through the roof! Not only is print and books helping our language but conversations with friends as well as teachers allow our vocabulary to grow.

As we went outside, we noticed that the benches and slides were wet. This brought up a discussion of the rain that we had last night. Eren said that he was a little scared of the thunder and lightning we’ve had recently.

For breakfast, friends had eggs with cheese and oranges. Lunch consisted of rice with pork, corn, and banana. PM snack was cheddar cheese slices and animal crackers.

Have a great evening!

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Questions for your farmers:

1) What did you find when you were digging in the ground?

2) What sounds did you hear when you were walking in the woods?

3) What root vegetable did you smell?

4) What flowers did you see?

5) What is the farm potty like?

6) What song did we sing to Farmer Charlotte?

Enjoy your conversation and your day! –Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and grapes. Lunch: Brown rice with pork, mixed veggies and bananas. Snack: Strawberries and yogurt.

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Happy Tuesday!

Hope everyone is having a lovely day!

We started off our morning with a little music. We got out the pianos, drums, and xylophones. Friends took turns with different instruments but we were sure making loud and awesome music!

With the outside area a little wet, friends focused on driving the trucks around the yard. Something so simple is an awesome gross motor activity for our friends. Not only are we working on our balance but our leg muscles are getting a workout. Eren had a take a break .

After he took a break, Eren went to the sandbox where his friend Daniel was in the middle of building a big birthday cake! Eren and friends offered their assistance.

For breakfast, children had cheerios and grapes. Lunch consisted of cheese filled tortillas, mixed vegetables, a spinach salad, and bananas. PM snack was cottage cheese and graham crackers.

Have a great night!

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We kept ourselves pretty busy while the swimmers were away. We also welcomed two new Wee Friends: Nora, who is coming over from Wee Wee in mid-June, and Emerson, who will be a full time Wee Friender in June. We are so glad to have them joining our classroom!

Enjoy this day! – Laurie

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Cereal and bananas. Lunch: Peanut butter on flatbread, spinach salad with yogurt ranch dressing. Snack: Cheese sticks and grapes.

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Happy Monday!

The pictures in the album are from this past Friday and today (Monday) combined since there was no blog for Friday.

For breakfast, children had toast with butter and cinnamon along with raisins. Lunch consisted of noodles with butter and kidney beans, cucumbers, and a mixture of pears and apples. PM snack was cheddar cheese slices and pretzels.

Have a lovely evening!

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