Once upon a time there was an apple tree growing in Kansas. After the apples and leaves all fell off the tree was bare. Then the season changed from winter to spring and something appeared on the tree. What were those pink things?

Read on to learn more about the new growth on the tree, the ball with a tail, scary T things, running out of time and trail mix!

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1. What kind of tree was at Circle Time?

An apple tree!

We looked at a paper apple tree going through the seasons as though it was alive in Kansas. This simple conversation is adding knowledge about seasons, months, tree types, regions, growth patterns, cyclical time and more.

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2. What did Sophie’s ball have attached to it?

A tail!

How silly that ended up being since we usually think of tails being on animals or kites. We took it outside with all the other Show and Tell things and had a great time.

Not all items are here…some are still on the playground being played with!

I was on babysitting duty for sweet Stripey doll. She was very content for over 20 minutes.

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3. Did you see any scary T things on the big picture?

We found teeth, tornadoes, tigers, tunnels, a giant T-Rex and a trailer with chainsaws. This big picture was started in 2022 and has been added to often.

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4. What month is coming up soon?

April! Because of Easter Break, we don’t have many preschool days in March left. Our Project Table got a lot of action today since we’re running out of time for the green supplies,

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5. What T things did we have at snack?

Tasty oranges that grew on a Tree, Teddy Grahams and Trail mix! Thank you, Heath!!

Enjoy more photos and videos from our day…

Once upon a time there was teacher who never called children “bad.” She never even said that what they DID was bad. She never said that anything was BAD. Then one day during clean up she laughed and said, “Oh no…the Family Corner is BAD.” Why in the world did she say that?

Read on to find out why she said it was bad, the teapot mystery, the changing tree and our triple T snack along with an update on our treehouse.

Why did Ms Kristin say the Family Corner was bad?

Because it was so messy it made her laugh. We played hard in this corner today!

We talked about what I meant: that the mess was so big I called it “so bad.” Making a mess is never bad, being messy isn’t bad. I used the word “bad” to mean “a big challenge.” Bonus: these kids know how to clean up quickly and effectively!

What did Henry R bring that matched our song?

A real teapot with a handle and a spout!

We had just finished singing the song “I’m a Little Teapot” (and debating the language like curious preschoolers will) before Show and Tell.

We did the telling part of Show and Tell on the steps inside, then did the showing part outside! When we went outside we found out that Henry had something in the teapot as well.

What are the pink things on your Spring Tree?

Apple blossom flowers! We looked at all the phases of an apple tree during Circle Time and compared them to our book from September about Apple Farmer Annie before making our own Spring trees.

Look at those light green baby leaves and pale pink flowers.

What did you do with your tropical umbrella today?

Malcolm and Max brought tropical fruit cups, turkey on tortillas and toffee filled chocolate bars. Thank you for the tasty treats!

Some friends used their umbrella as a toothpick to eat the fruit, some put them in their cup, some put them in their backpack right away.

Treehouse update:

So far we have toys, snacks, drinks, cups, a broom, pet fish, a fan, a steering wheel, a trampoline, furniture and more.

Enjoy more photos and videos from our day

Pictures of things to show their siblings at home.

Believe it or not there are 5 children in the above photo.

We were gifted a cardboard house from a former preschooler and church friend, Dominic. It has been so very busy and a bit like a clown car with how many friends can fit inside! This week we have markers inside so there is a lot of scribble work going on.

Once upon a time there was a school bathroom that had a sink and a toilet. Every time they turned on the water, it was clear. Then one day that clear water was green, even with soap in it! What in the world was going on?

Read on to find out what was going on with the green water, building a treehouse, tomatoes and being turtles.

How did the water turn green?

From washing our hands after painting the big paper!

We will be using the paper for a tree top.

Can we climb in the treehouse at Circle Time?

No. It is only a cardboard picture of a treehouse.

But every day we are thinking of things to add to it. So far we have toys, snacks, drinks, cups, a broom, pet fish, a fan, a steering wheel, a trampoline, furniture and more.

The relaxed focus of the group was so fun to be part of.

What did Asher bring for snack today?

Tomatoes, Triscuits and vanilla wafers. Thank you, Asher!

Some friends are very used to eating tomatoes and ate a lot of them. Some friends got used to having tomatoes on their tray. Some friends called them tom-ay-toes and some called them tom-ah-toes.

Can you have your body do a turtle breath?

We started on our knees, took a deep breath in to make ourselves tall, then on the out breath leaned over all the way to be a turtle in a shell.

Back in the 70s this was our storm safety position in the hallways. Maybe still?

Enjoy more photos and videos from our day

We were gifted this cardboard house from a former preschooler and church friend, Dominic. It has been so very busy and a bit like a clown car with how many friends can fit inside!

The igloo graph is from when Dominic was a preschooler here.

This game is called Crokinole and it’s a game Ms Kristin grew up playing. Grandpa Chuck made it for us right before the pandemic started. It’s made from a tree and you can see where the branches used to be!

Found the bacon just in time to move in to their house!

We did the telling part of Show and Tell on the steps inside, then did the showing part outside!

Once upon a time there was a big piece of paper with green paint blobs on it. The teacher said that she wanted the paper to get all the way painted green. Children came by and noticed there were no paintbrushes. Oh no! What would they do?

Read on to find out about the paper paint problem, our treehouse with no tree, playing a game made from a tree and eating twisted fruit.

How did we get the paint on the paper?

With our hands!

What big thing did Ms Kristin bring out for the treehouse?

A huge piece of cardboard from a huge box. We started adding ideas of what we’d like to have in a real treehouse.

How do you play the new game made from a tree?

You flick the pieces of wood across the board to try and get them in the middle.

It is called Crokinole and it’s a game Ms Kristin grew up playing. Grandpa Chuck made it for us right before the pandemic started but this is the first time we’ve had it out this year.

What twisty things did Axel bring for snack today?

Fruit twists and pretzel twists! They were very tasty! Thank you, Axel!

T is for tasty twists!

Where did we do Show and Tell today?

At the sunshine rug. This is where the swing is usually hanging.

We made a pile of our things but called it a Tower so it was a T word.

Then we took our Show and Tell things outside to the real sunshine!

Enjoy more photos and video of our day:

I brought the shopping cart out which seemed to prompt a new level of “store” play. Look at this carefully stocked shelf!

Once upon a time there was a strong letter S. They were a bright pinkish-red with smooth curves. The letter S wanted to dress up like a strawberry! “But you ARE the color of a strawberry!” someone said. The letter S said, “But I want to be MORE like a strawberry.”

Read on to learn more about the letter S, the biggest mess of the day, real cleaning, hiding and seeking (there’s a movie!) and our scary work. Plus, you might notice a new friend in the pictures and videos…we had a visitor today!

Where did you put your strawberry stem?

Some friends glued them on top, some on the side, some on the bottom. It doesn’t matter since it isn’t a real strawberry…only a letter S pretending to be one!

Who made the biggest mess at snack time?

Ms Kristin! She was the veggie straw store and had a big mess by her feet! We also had Strawberries and cheese cracker Sandwiches all from Jackson!

Our Golden Letter friend Slava passed out all the napkins and our snack friend Jackson passed out all the strawberries. One friend said it was the biggest strawberry they had ever seen! Thank you, friends!

A quick stop on the Standing Swing on the way to hand washing.

What clean up work did you do?

At our preschool, clean up time can look very busy. Some people clean up toys, some people use wipes for furniture, some people sweep. Today was no different and we got the room clean in preparation for Show and Tell and Hide and Seek! We also have a new trash can that was very intriguing.

Rosie the Robot is still very glad to take all garbage for us. Thanks, Rosie!

Where did you hide during Hide and Seek?

After learning the safety plan for Hide and Seek at preschool, Ms Kristin hid 2 times while the children had some counting time in our Shelter Hallway (through the door at Circle Time) with Ms Brenda.

Then the children all took their turn being silent and still while they hid!

How do you make a snake sound?

We did more snake breaths together. Each pointer finger was a snake and after a deep breath in through our noses, we exhaled long making a hiss sound which let the snakes find each other. There was a story about a daddy snake hissing so his baby snake could find him.

We also found snakes on the Scary Things Pictures as we colored. Some of these ideas came from preschoolers who are now 1st graders!

Enjoy more photos of our day

A former preschool family donated these strawberry baskets for us and amazing creations were made. Some leprechaun shelters, some banks/hot air balloons and some cages for legless lizards. They were very creative because glue doesn’t work for this so they had to use tape or string/wire/zip ties.

The children are really digging the texture play dough blocks this week.

SH and S work

After Story Time, these Kindergarten bound kids found the only SH word in the book: Share.

We looked again at the S and SH words at Circle Time: The sun came out and made a shadow. I rode in a ship on the sea. I used a shovel to dig in the sand. I washed my hands with soap in the sink. I washed my hair with shampoo in the shower, etc.

This is an activity that can engage all levels of pre-reading and reading. Some friends are identifying the pictures only, some are looking for an H next to the S, some are reading the words.