Early in the morning, when the autumn air turns chilly, there’s something magical that happens outside: the earth is covered with frosting (say Nate and Ellie).

“Everyone, look around you and tell me where you see frost!” invited Melinda as we made our way outside this morning.

 

“Now look down at your feet! What happens to the frost when you step on it?”

Jane told us who Jack Frost(ing) is: “He’s a bad guy who sits on a throne. He makes the goblins do all the things, like tell the fairies what to do.”

Look what your Wee Friend did this morning: EVERYONE hung up their own coat by attaching either the little hook at the nape or the hood to the hook in the cubby. This Life Skill has been progressive and non linear in its growth! We celebrated this moment with a big congratulation as friends joined Lisa on the oval rug.

She started with an impromptu rehearsal of our caroling repertoire. They read Frosty the Snowman and sang the song. Today’s question and message board was “When you were outside, where did you see frosting?”

We collected ice cubes, a plastic bin and a pitcher of warm water. We tried to imagine how Frosty felt, melting, and also discussed what happens when an ice cube meets a stream of hot water. We counted the seconds it took for the ice cube to melt in Macy’s hand, and then how long it took to melt in the bin. We all counted as high as 20!

At the art table, we set out bins of sparkly confetti, Styrofoam spheres and rods, measuring cups and spoons. Friends imagined they were rolling snowballs and stirring cake batter.

At the other table, Melinda set up bubble wrap and a basket filled with different materials to pop with. She led them as they explored which tools made popping easy or hard. One friend discovered stepping on the bubble wrap was the easiest (and most fun!) method. Others followed suit.

At the art easel, we set out black paper and blue and sliver paint.

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Corn Chex and pear slices. Lunch: Peanut butter and jelly on whole wheat sandwiches, corn and pear slices. Snack: Popcorn and raisins.

Have a great weekend.

Yesterday, I read a short article on “what is school readiness” that perfectly describes our work here at Wee Friends.   I have woven our pictures from today into this beautifully written snippet from Let the Children Play http://progressiveearlychildhoodeducation.blogspot.com/.

We watch our children spread their wings and start to fly.
They become masters of their preschool universe.
They are strong and secure in the relationships with their friends, their teachers and their surroundings.

Their play is complex, independent and intricate.

They can do things themselves.  Practical things.  Self-help things.  Problem solving things.  Conflict resolution things.  Negotiation things.
In fact, if we have done our job well, they rarely need us at all.

They want more, different, bigger, newer, harder, riskier, faster, longer and higher. They climb – high.  They hang upside down.  They somersault.  They run – fast.

They are at ease.
They love to tease us and joke with us -and to push us.

Their artwork is detailed, and often tells a story.

They push boundaries and limits.
They stand up for themselves.
They are curious.
They question.
They like games with rules.

They build cities with blocks and create magic out of boxes and tape.

They look after the younger ones – mostly. 
They tell us what they want, in no uncertain terms.
They take on challenges.
They experiment with power.
They persist.
They play with words.

They write letters.  They write their names.  They write books.

They create their own play spaces.
They teach us things.
They undertake feats of complex engineering.

They tell us when we need to water the garden, feed the worms, pick the beans or feed the chooks.
The delight in ‘real work’.

They roll their eyes but then get on with the business of packing away the block area or the sandpit like a well oiled machine.
They make us laugh.

They are explorers, artists, scientists, mathematicians, authors, actors, musicians, athletes, dancers.
They give each other comfort and support – most of the time.
They can be still, and are learning that sometimes they need to be.
They know what they like.  They know what they can do.  They will tell you that they are good at everything.
They still like a cuddle, but then they are off again.
They like nonsense.  The sillier, the better.
They strut.
They run through the bush, naming the landmarks along the way.  The creek, the short cut, jump rock, the cave, boat rock.

They spend the days as mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, babies, cats, dogs, lions, ninjas, superheroes, aliens, princesses, astronauts and pirates.

They are special.  They are needed.  They belong.

For breakfast we had farm fresh scrambled eggs and fresh pear slices.  WeeSprouts were cucumbers.  Lunch was warm whole wheat flat bread/ham/mozzarella, corn & green beans & banana.  Snack is home-made oatmeal/banana/blueberry bars and fresh orange slices.

Have a great day!

Tami 

 

Good Afternoon!

Here are pictures that were taken throughout the day.

For breakfast, children had cinnamon toast and banana. Lunch consisted of homemade chili, mixed vegetables, and apples. PM snack was string cheese and animal crackers.

Have a great evening!

-Mindy

One of this week’s FABS is exploring the W’s: who, what, when, where and why. Both this morning and in our older friend’s post lunch large group, we are exploring these 3-5 W’s and how they show up in stories.

Friends rotated throughout the classroom listening to stories, sculpting with Play-Doh and sketching with stencils and crayons.

Lisa led a sing-a-long to “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “We All Sing with the Same Voice”.

We finished up our morning time with a caroling rehearsal. We have chosen parts of 4 songs to sing and Wee Friends are belting it out! Here are the songs so you can practice at home, too: “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”, “O’ Christmas Tree”, “Jingle Bells” and “Frosty the Snowman”.

Lisa’s small group after lunch read Robert Munsch’s Aaron’s Hair. She went around the circle and invited each friend to share something about their hair. Ellie explained in full detail the cutting of her bangs!

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Bagels and cream cheese with bananas. Lunch: Chili, mixed veggies and cornbread. Snack: Goldfish and bananas.

Have a great day.

Happy Tuesday!

Our Tuesday started off with friendly touches toward one another. Clara gently tickled Eren while P.K. gave him hugs. We sat with one another while involved in multiple interesting activities. Friends Clara, Emma, and Daniel sat with each other working with the krinkle blocks.

Clara and Emma love to dance. They bounce and move to the music. Whatever mood or period of the day we’re in, music sure gets us in a happy place!

Children headed over to work with different blocks. Eve chose to work with the wooden blocks. She placed them one on top of another and then put them away once she was done. Daniel used the train blocks. Once he started, he put one block on each of the train pieces.

Clara and P.K. sat with one another as they rocked back and forth in the rocking chair. It’s great for our friends when they’re able to take a break from their play and have quiet time by themselves or with a friend. Sometimes friends play so hard that they need a little down time.

A few children darted for the jungle gym where they partook in all aspects of the apparatus.

Clara and Daniel stood with one another as they bounced up and down to a song that was playing.

As friends were on the jungle gym, P.K. shouted out “tweet, tweet”! He saw many birds outside in the tree next to the house. Children gathered to look at the different birds that were there.

Daniel started a project where his friend Clara later joined. Daniel took all of the animals and lined them up onto of the shelve. He was adamant about the order that the animals were in.

Clara called out Emma’s name. Where was she? Clara scurried off and found her hiding in the coats! Silly friends!

Zoey has found that one of the perks to being able to stand is reaching for toys that are within her reach.

Daniel enjoyed playing dress up this afternoon. It’s always fun to put on a costume and act out a character or another person!

For breakfast, friends had cinnamon toast squares and banana. AM snack was cucumbers. Lunch consisted of turkey on whole wheat bread, banana, and cucumbers. PM snack was yogurt and graham crackers.

Have a fabulous night!

-Mindy

Wee Sprouts: Celery stalks. Breakfast: Cheerios and apple slices. Lunch: Turkey on whole wheat bread, cucumbers and bananas. Snack: Pumpkin bread and yogurt.

Have a good day.

Good Afternoon!

***Just as a reminder, Wee Wee Friends is closed on Thursday, November 22nd and Friday, November 23rd in observance of Thanksgiving. Thanks!

Friends partook in gross motor activity on the jungle gym multiple times today. Children bounced up and down and slid down the slide.

We smiled and laughed all day long!

We headed into the kitchen where friends took turns painting. We painted coffee liners along with pieces of white paper.

Our friends did a great job at using soft strokes on their paper.

We were all so proud of our work!

Daniel sat and built a tower with many blocks. During this time, he was very concentrated and admired his work from afar.

Zoey loves being so mobile throughout the day. She stands and crawls everywhere. When she hears music, she claps her hands together.

The music was turned on and our friends got on their boogie shoes! It’s a great time for our friends to let loose and dance!

Clara danced and then went and played peek a boo with Miss Marty!

Peek-A…Peek-A…BOO!

Daniel and Eren climbed on the gross motor apparatus.

We patiently waited for our lunch .

For breakfast, children had eggs and apples. AM snack was mixed vegetables. Lunch consisted of homemade macaroni and cheese with whole wheat noodles, apples, and green peas. PM snack was hard boiled eggs and whole wheat crackers.

Have a terrific evening!

-Mindy

Just a quick reminder that the Blue Bus will be coming the next two Mondays and then be off for all of December. We will notify you in January of the new registration cycle.

It was a morning filled with math explorations. We played the egg matching game where two halves of a farm animal are hidden under two halves of an egg shell. Our small group of friends who gathered to play mastered the exercise of waiting patiently for their turn and flipping over two egg shells at a time. They also navigated well the disappointment of not making a match at every turn.

At the art table, a shifting group of friends patterned multi colored pegs in a peg board. After the peg board was full, each friend took a turn, pulling one out, identifying the color and reporting their finding to Macy, who tallied the numbers of colored pegs.

Lisa noticed Macy writing her numbers,and invited other friends to practice as well. She called out numbers and friends wrote them down.

We set out ice cube trays, cardboard tubes and fuzz balls. Friends explored these materials in many different mathematical ways!

Finn requested the plastic chain links. Friends use these materials in a variety of different ways as well. We saw necklaces, pirate ropes, hair braids and  yard sticks. Ada decided she wanted to chain 100 links together. She linked, then counted, linked then counted 3 times over until she had counted all the way to 100.

Jane and Macy are on a puzzle kick and today Tami brought in 50 and 100 piece puzzles. As I write, they are tackling a 50 piece puzzle together.

A warm sudsy pirate bath was the final table exploration before we headed out to the VERY COLD backyard!

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Whole wheat toast with cinnamon and bananas. Lunch: Homemade cheesy whole wheat rigatoni, peas and fruit salad. Snack: Cheese sticks and apple slices.

 

Happy Friday!

Here are a few pictures that were taken throughout the day.

For breakfast, children had cinnamon toast and raisins. Lunch consisted of roast beef, cheese, whole wheat bread, corn, and applesauce. PM snack was soy butter on rice cakes.

Have a terrific weekend!!

-Mindy

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

  

 

 

 

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Whole wheat toast with peanut butter and fresh fruit. Lunch: Roast beef and cheddar cheese sandwiches on whole wheat bread, corn and applesauce. Snack: Cheerios and bananas.