We finished up L week and 2024 today! Here are things about this week you can look for in photos, videos, backpacks and conversation.

Coping Skill: Listen. Pausing to listen to things in our environment is a quick way to be in the present moment and increase calm….learn more about our Listening Game below.

Locomotives: We have trains and tracks on our lawn (fake grass) rug along with battery tea lights.

Lego Land: Legos have taken over the Circle Time corner. For the last day of Lego Land, we worked together to make color houses. We have both Duplo and regular legos…many were Ms Kristin’s kids’ when they were little and some were even Ms Kristin’s when she was little!

Here are 3 questions to ask your child:

What noises came from Ms Kristin’s basket? Tape, scissors, wrapping paper, a book, the Circle Time bell, a jingle bell and a candy cane. We played a Journal Time game where we listened to items and tried to guess what was making the sound. This can be played at home with any household items!

What kind of nose did you eat at snack time? A snow-person nose! For our Christmas Party Snack Ms Kristin brought huge carrots (and snow-person arm pretzel sticks with frosting to dip in). Check your backpacks…we sent unfinished noses home.

What was the Jingle Express made out of? Scooters and jingle bell bracelets. Children worked hard all day to get them connected and to navigate the classroom when pulling each other. Incredible team work!

More photos and videos along with bonus YES questions:

Were Gary and Lilah on the ceiling?

Was there a safe battery candle light that stayed on all night? (in the cloud dough!)

Did we get to take some other Alphabet Friends outside? (Kenny, Joey, Dotty and Holly)

Did we say goodbye to the pumpkin and wish her well? (Ms Kristin will take her home, transplant the baby plants and hope for the best!)

Coping Skill of the Week: Listen

We had a lovely time on a cold day. Here are things about today you can look for in photos, videos, backpacks and conversation.

Coping Skill: Listen. Pausing to listen to things in our environment is a quick way to be in the present moment and increase calm….learn more below!

Lights: We enjoy using our battery tea lights and this week we’re elevating them by turning them into taller candles using tape and toilet paper rolls.

Lilah the L: Lilah is our Alphabet Friend who is covered in shiny things and real lights. She’s going to like being around anything that lights up!

Locomotives: We have trains and tracks on our lawn (fake grass) rug along with battery tea lights. There has been so much magical play.

Light Table: There are new transparent blocks at the Light Table this week. We can see colors mix when pieces are on top of each other.

Lego Land: Legos have taken over the Circle Time corner. We have both Duplo and regular legos…many were Ms Kristin’s kids’ when they were little and some were even Ms Kristin’s when she was little!

Here are 3 questions to ask your child:

Who worked in the kitchen all day? Grandma Bonnie! She helped each child roll, cut and bake 3 kinds of cookies plus an egg free version. Check your backpack for a bag sent home for you to taste! Thank you, Grandma Bonnie for “being so nice in the kitchen and letting us taste the ones we just baked and letting us help with every part of it except touching the hot pans.”

What does “chum” mean? Friend! It was a word in our book today: Christmas Mice. They made friends with the cat and called her their new found chum. So we called each other that too.

What crunchy vegetables did we have along with our cookies? Carrots and celery! Even with my eyes closed I could tell when someone was eating a carrot or celery! You can try this at home too.

Bonus questions (all answers are YES):

Were there jingle bells on the swing?

Did we sit on a new rug for Story Time?

Did we look for the bunny outside?

Did we walk back and forth through the leaves in “the woods”?

Did we use the new scooters?

Is the pumpkin still getting new leaves?

Did we make a pretend campfire outside?

Are we allowed to change the lights on the Christmas tree?

Do we have a Sit-n-Spin?

More photos and videos of our day:

_{(click on individual photos to see them full size)}

Coping Skill of the Week: Listen

Welcome to L Week…our last week before Christmas break! Here are things about this week you can look for in photos, videos, backpacks and conversation.

Lights: we have special battery tea lights and flashlights children are using all aroung the classroom.

Lilah the L: Lilah is our Alphabet Friend who is covered in shiny things and real lights. She’s going to like being around anything that lights up!

Light Table: There are new transparent blocks at the Light Table this week. We can see colors mix when pieces are on top of each other.

Lego Land: Legos have taken over the Circle Time corner. We have both Duplo and regular legos…many were Ms Kristin’s kids’ when they were little and some were even Ms Kristin’s when she was little!

Christmas Wreaths: They are finally going home this week with a little accompanying poem: Christmastime is coming and here is what I’ll do…I’ll hide behind my little wreath and say hello to you!

More photos and videos of our day:

_{(click on individual photos to see them full size)}

Here are 3 questions to ask your child:

Was your chocolate milk warm or cold? For our Christmas Party Snack today we had popcorn and chocolate milk. There were 3 kinds of popcorn and the chocolate milk could be cold or warm…

What had to stay on the green pretend lawn rug? The train tracks! We used the word “locomotive” and “light” to talk about L things.

What colors did you choose for your candle light? We enjoy using our battery tea lights and this week we’re elevating them by turning them into taller candles using tape and toilet paper rolls.

Coping Skill of the Week: Listen

Welcome to K Week! Here are things we did this week you can look for in photos, videos, backpacks and conversation.

Two little red birds sitting in the snow
This one is Mary, this one is Joe
Fly away Mary, fly away Joe
Come back Mary, come back Joe

---

Photos and videos of our day:

Today we referenced both of our Story Time books. The mouse is so diligent about guarding his presents but the book ends with Little Mouse and the Big Hungry Bear exchanging gifts. However, the book ends before the present is opened. Here are our ideas of what we think could be in the big present:

---

Here are 3 questions to ask your child:

What did you eat for snack today? In the morning we had animal crackers and fruit snacks from Gus and Max. In the afternoon we had Santa oranges, candy canes, chocolate cereal and fruit loop cereal from Annie. Thank you friends!

Where did we glue the red feathers? On the big red birds, Mary and Joe. They look beautiful!

What did the paint smell like today? Strawberries…kind of! Just like in the summertime book, we had paint that was supposed to smell like the mouse’s strawberry (Kool Aid packet in the “ketchup” paint so there is no sugar, only color and smell). Some people really smelled the strawberry scent and some thought it was like a strong fermented yucky paint smell .

---

Bonus Questions (all the answers are YES)

Did Kenny the K turn into a king and sit at tables with us?

Did Claudia the C turn into Santa because her clouds look like a beard?

Did Bobby the B come out of the bathroom to see the bubbles at the water table and the robot shaped like a B?

Did Santa climb up and down the ladder?

Did we throw all the pillows and blankets behind the book shelf?

Coping Skill of the Week: Power Pose

Welcome to K Week! Here are things we’re doing this week you can look for in photos, videos, backpacks and conversation.

Coping Skill: Power Pose! Learn more in the Coping Skill section below.

Story Time books: Merry Christmas, Big Hungry Bear! and The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear (both available at our local library). We will compare the books (there are many common illustrations), look for the key, talk about kin and notice the leadership qualities in the mouse.

Dirt Pumpkin: This has been a very exciting addition to the classroom. After a couple of weeks of no action above the dirt, we are up to many plants-and one that even broke through the rind of the pumpkin! We cut 2 holes in the pumpkin and discovered many more plants!

Kin drawings: Children are drawing their families this week while practicing the word “kin.” With a wide open invitation to think of their kin, some children drew a few people and others drew many. A family is a family! Kin is kin! Remember that young children’s drawings of people start by resembling a tadpole- with arms and/or legs attached directly to the face. The face may not have any features. Next children start to add features (eyes and mouth). It is usually not until after the age of 4 that children start to draw a separate body.

Kings: We are using the fictitious story of King Keenan (a kind ketchup loving king who shares the key to the castle) to explore leadership qualities. We have crowns to wear and to color in our journals.

Kenny the K: Kenny is getting covered in ketchup (it’s actually paint in a ketchup bottle which makes for a fun joke so that’s where Joey the Jokey J is hanging out) this week and we pretend that they love anything red (because they think it’s ketchup!). Oh silly Kenny.

Kris Kringle: We have books and dress up clothes about who we’ve been referring to as “Santa”…this week we say Kris Kringle! There are other names for him too like Papa Noel, Father Christmas, St Nicholas, St Nick.

Kitchen Play: We moved our Family Corner kitchen stove to the Play Dough Corner for some pretend Christmas cookie making.

Keys: Using a lot of fine motor skills, we’re working with real and pretend keys this week.

Kitchen Sink Water Play: We have real kitchen tools in the water table this week!

Christmas Wreaths: The layers of paint are dry and this week we’re adding leaves, berries and pine needles!

Poem of the Week: 2 Little Red Birds: We’re adding real red feathers to the birds that go with our poem (this is done with two hands acting as birds who take turns going behind our backs):

Two little red birds sitting in the snow
This one is Mary, this one is Joe
Fly away Mary, fly away Joe
Come back Mary, come back Joe

---

Photos and videos of our day:

---

Here are 3 questions to ask your child:

What did you eat for snack today? In the morning we fruit kabobs and rice Krispie treats from Heath. In the afternoon we had applesauce, honey cheerios and strawberry cookies. Thank you, friends!

What would you do if you were in charge? We practiced our Coping Skill Power Pose, learned about King Keenan and came up with ideas of what we’d do if we were in charge. These kids will go on to rule the world in one way or another!

How did Little Mouse keep his key safe? In the summertime book where he was guarding the strawberry, he carried it over his shoulder while marching around. In the wintertime book where he was guarding his presents, he stood on it! These are very exciting books that show a lot of the feelings Little Mouse goes through.

---

BONUS YES QUESTIONS

Did we talk about the mountain lion sighting?

Did we get out the big swing?

Can the whole class fit on the big swing?

Did a new Ms Emily from Bethel College visit in the afternoon?

Did you color your king crowns right after Snack Time?

Will your socks get wet if you stand on the green rug?

Will your knees get wet if you kneel on the green rug?

Is the water table on the green rug?

Does Ms Kristin keep making up new verses to Jingle Bells?

Did we have a busy day and didn’t take a lot of pictures?

---

Coping Skill of the Week: Power Pose