Good Afternoon!

Happy Birthday Daniel!!! Daniel turned two years old today! We had a great time singing him happy birthday and blowing out the pretend candles. He even shared his birthday cake with friends!

Our friends showed us various faces today. Some cute. Some silly.

During the morning hours, friends stood along the window sill. They sang in harmony with one another. It was quite funny and had both teachers laughing .

We headed outside where Clara and P.K. got right to it…worm hunting!

Children stood in the garden area. They looked around at their surroundings. Suddenly, they started throwing and kicking the leaves! It was a wonderful fall morning with leaves blowing throughout the air.

Clara decided to run a marathon. She ran around the circle, down the hill, and back. This happened multiple times.

She was quite winded afterwards!

Friends gathered in the house where they played with rocks and leaves. They love opening the door quickly to see if they have a friend waiting outside.

Peek-A-Boo…I see birthday boy!

P.K. and Clara played follow the leaded. P.K. walked. Clara followed.

The details of this game got very intense! Clara even made sure to look at P.K.’s feet to see if he was on his right or left foot.

We ended our outside time with involved group play. Our friends played with Jane, an older Wee Friend.

Zoey enjoyed laughing as Emma put on a show with a bucket on her head!

Friends Eren and P.K. enjoyed laughs with one another in the cube.

Miss Zoey enjoyed getting her hair brushed and put into pony tails. Friends loved watching this and Zoey sure did have a ball!

For breakfast, we had toasted bagels with cinnamon and pears. AM snack was corn. Lunch consisted of egg salad on pita bread, mixed vegetables, and mixed fruit. PM snack was Daniel’s birthday treat: homemade zucchini bread with dried fruit and raspberries!

I’ll leave you with the multiple faces of Emma.

Have a great night!

-Mindy

Next Wednesday, October 31, Halloween, we will have our annual Halloween Parade in the backyard (more details to follow!). Today we got busy planning.

First, we gathered as a large group to get in the party planning mood. Lisa read                The Pumpkin Patch. She then recorded what everyone was planning on being for Halloween.

Friends discussed making the traditional banner , dressing up in costumes and what we thought Tami should be (she has a history of not dressing up) We also determined that there should be music. Once some of the details were in place, we split up for more ghoulish learning opportunities.

First, the pumpkin rind stamps. Friends had to press very hard on the ink to stamp out different shapes onto paper.

Next, counting with ghosts and pumpkins. Lisa called out and friends wrote it down.Then they put that many ghosts/pumpkins next to the number.

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Malt-O-Meal and fruit salad. Lunch: Egg salad on whole wheat tortillas, banana/orange fruit salad and mixed veggies. Snack: Goldfish and a cheddar cheese slice.

Happy Wednesday!

Here are some pictures that were taken throughout the day!

For breakfast, we enjoyed raisin bran and pears. Lunch consisted of couscous with black beans, corn, and pears. PM snack was crackers and raisins.

Have a terrific evening!

-Mindy

*Are you looking for a place to bring your bags of yard leaves? We’d love to have them in our garden! We have excellent Wee Gardeners who can help dump them and spread them out!

*No farm trip tomorrow.

Lea’s been talking a lot about tingalayo. When we were painting outside today she expressed “We’re painting tingalayo!” When we asked her what tingalayo meant she explained “Making sandwiches. It’s Spanish.” tingalayo: “Come Little Donkey Come” is how the song goes. Well, we didn’t worry about what the heck tingalayo really means, we just got busy creating it in our Wee World.

This summer, a squash grew into the chain link fence. We cracked it open a bit to see if any wildlife might partake of its goodness. We think, maybe, last night, something DID partake. What could it have been?

Finn: “I know how to find out! Let’s go!”

Finn: “I see tracks!”

Nate: “Those are dinosaur tracks!”

Ada: “Dinosaurs went away a long time ago.”

Pause.

Nate: “Uh-uh.” (as in no)

Let’s all make tracks!

Nate: “Let’s go find the dinosaur!”

Ada: “But dinosaurs went away a long time ago!”

The exposed squash seeds got us thinking about pumpkins and pumpkin seeds.

Lisa (brilliant at getting every Wee Friend, regardless of their age, to sit, engaged, as one community) read a book about how pumpkins grow. She asked friends “What do you think is inside a pumpkin?”

Macy: Seeds

Arleigh: Juice

Elliott: Seeds – “I like to eat them.”

Jada: Chocolate

Ada: Gooey stuff

Jane: Orange stuff

Finn: Roots.

So we checked it out. Our Past Its Prime Pumpkin Pound gave us an example of a veggie that has gotten yucky. Our new Matthys pumpkin was fresh, but also stinky.

Friends bravely picked out all the seeds.

Elliott: “You have to dry them. I can do it.”

Creating spooky witches.

Tingalayo. The song. Creating Tingalayo and tapping out rhythm in 4/4 time with sticks.

Creating future readers.

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Malt-O-Meal with applesauce and bananas. Lunch: Cous Cous with red beans, corn and pear slices. Snack: Whole wheat crackers and orange slices.

Did you create any Tingalayo today?

Hello!

Our friends are getting good at learning to read their friends. P.K. had to leave his Daddy this morning after being with him for a whole week on vacation along with the rest of his family. He was a little upset this morning and Clara could tell so she gave him a hug. It helped him settle into the day.

Every week, we notice that our friends are growing into their own person, an individual. Whether it’s coming into their own or noticing different things that make them upset or happy, we’re learning new things about each child daily. We learn so much about each other in the five days that we spend with one another each week. When Emma makes her first face, we can tell that she’s a little upset. In the second picture, Emma looks happy!

We love learning about one another!

Once the day started rolling, friends tossed and turned the blue material tubes. We got out the tube with the bells inside. A teacher said, “That sounds like Christmas bells!” (yes, winter is soon approaching )

Another activity that friends chose was reading books individually, with a teacher, and with a friend. Not only does this activity allow for children’s vocabulary to grow, but we’ve noticed lately that when a friend is done with a book, she/he will offer it to another friend. The concept of sharing is a hard one but our friends are starting to show the beginning signs of what ‘sharing’ means and including it within their play.

We strolled on outside where friends played by the log house. We worked with the rocks and sand. Since it rained overnight, most of the material was still wet which adds a great aspect of sensorial play outside.

Children hopped on the bikes as they went around and around! Our big Wee friend Sloane gave our friends a ride!

Zoey enjoys investigating a variety of toys. She feels everything with her fingers whether it’s soft, hard, or bumpy. The aspect of venturing out and playing with a new toy or person is important at this young age!

For breakfast, friends enjoyed corn flakes and pears. AM snack was string cheese. Lunch consisted of delicious ham and cheese tortillas, cucumbers, and banana. PM snack was hard boiled eggs and pretzels.

Have a wonderful night!

-Mindy

While the swimmers were at their last swim lesson (they all finished with flying colors, Lisa reported!) Mel made magic at Wee Friends. Using a penny magic trick that her father taught her, our Wee Friend’s eyes lit up with disbelief as she rubbed the penny into her elbow and made it disappear! Afterwards, friends gathered at the art table to give it a try.

Other magic is happening too.

 

Wee Sprouts: Carrots. Breakfast: Cheerios and bananas. Lunch: Ham and cheese, melted on whole wheat tortillas, bananas and cucumber slices. Snack: Yogurt and apple slices.

Have a good day.

Good Afternoon!

Daniel read animal books this morning with Miss Marty. He’s picking up the animals and the sounds associated with that animal very quickly!

Friends gathered in the kitchen to interact with one another. They baked and cooked food for their friends. Eve wanted a pot and Eren handed it to her. A goal throughout the day that we strive for is sharing or waiting until a friend is done with a toy and using as many words as possible!

Daniel and Eren lined up numerous cars along the shelves. They helped each other by handing one another different cars.

Eve played pretend this morning with a baby doll. She fed her baby a bottle and rocked her to sleep.

We headed outside where it was quite nice! Friends went down the slide together. Children helped Miss Mindy clean the slides off because they were wet!

Eren has almost mastered the stairs! When he first started, he walked around the stairs to avoid them. Now, he takes them straight on! Along with Eren, our friends love the different challenges that are posed to them outside.

Eren enjoyed working with wet sand and feeling it between his fingers. The sensorial input the our friends get outside is great!

Zoey worked on trying to pull herself up using the table. She was all smiles as she tried again and again.

Our newest little friend sat with Zoey as they looked at different toys together.

A few friends played with animals this afternoon. Eve worked on saying the sounds that each animal makes.

Peek-A-Boo I see you!

For breakfast, children had cinnamon toast and pears. AM snack was corn. Lunch consisted of whole wheat noodles with marinara sauce, apples, and green peas. PM snack was animal crackers and string cheese.

Have a terrific evening!!

-Mindy

Boy, do Wee Friends love the Blue Bus! Today they worked with balls and the parachute to practice hand-eye coordination. They played catch with beach balls and small plastic balls. They kicked soccer balls. They used the balls and the parachute together for a popcorn game. Then the parachute became a tent that friends could run under and hold around the perimeter.

We found some cool sponges that we set out with brown, red and orange paint. Wee Friends experimented on the different textures the sponges could create.

The reading area is always occupied and many times our ‘on their way to reading’ friends pull out the books they see our readers reading to practice. Holding a book and turning the pages from right to left is actually an Indiana Standard for Language Arts Learning Expectations, for preschoolers!

Another small group of friends worked with Melinda, exploring patterns and structures with the linking shapes.

 

Jane, Macy and Arleigh decided to create more patterns on paper, with markers.

Lisa read Robert Munsch’s Love You Forever. They held their own babies as they listened to the story. Later, friends created a message board expressing what they loved about their mom.

Laurie worked with a few friends on the music rug, exploring different patterns in music.

And, as always, friends ripped up the sidewalk (not literally) with bikes, bikes, bikes…..

Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Peanut butter on whole wheat toast and pear slices. Lunch: Egg noodles with marinara, green beans and pear slices. Snack: Elliott’s Birthday zucchini bread and raisins.

Have a good day.

Happy Friday!

Smiles filled the Wee Wee house today! It’s a great feeling to watch our friends smile and be happy .

Friends played with one another while doing various activities. Sharing took place this morning with all of the children!

A few friends took action while some watched and observed.

Our gross motor occurred in the morning where friends jumped and slid down the slide.

We headed into the kitchen for some quiet time this morning where friends worked with insects and cars. Children picked which one they were most interested in. It’s important to let our friends pick their own activity because it makes it valuable to them.

Zoey enjoyed investigating Miss Mindy’s water bottle! She loved the sound it made when it was pressed in and out. She must have been thirsty because she was trying to get a drink!

Eve played hide and seek with her friends and teachers. It’s been a great first week for Eve! She’s enjoying making new friends and we’re having fun getting to know her as well as her family!

Emma crawled through holes and played peek a boo with Zoey! Zoey thought this was very silly. She laughed and laughed.

We turned on music in the afternoon so our friends could dance. Emma bounced up and down while Daniel clapped his hands and moved his arms all about.

For breakfast, children had eggs with cheese and banana/pears. Lunch consisted of homemade chicken noodle soup with carrots, celery, corn, and peas (thanks Miss Lisa!) and apples. PM snack was goldfish and hard boiled eggs.

Have a terrific weekend!!

-Mindy

Lisa asked the kids if they wanted to make chicken soup! We started the conversation with two books about preparing recipes: To Market, To Market and Piggie Pie.

Mel guided friends as they, first, made a grocery list and secondly, went shopping.

Friends split up into different parts of the house and prepared pots of soup!

When the pots were set to simmer, friends went on their way and began rainy day play.

Mel read Clap Your Hands, an interactive book that has friends clapping, standing on their heads and hunting for certain objects, just to name a few.

Happy Birthday, Mindy!

We are ready for the cold.

And the mud.

And with that, we wish you a happy weekend.

Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Malt-O-meal with applesauce. Lunch: Chicken soup and apple slices. Snack: Yogurt and raisins.