(no title)

Tricky parking, missing cows, a lost cat and a C snack : MONDAY C WEEK

C week started with REAL construction affecting our parking for the morning. Great job, families, navigating it all! Some people parked in our Pine Street parking lot and some on the street because there were workers and machinery using our driveway and parking area. Thanks to the generosity of some church friends, we have gravel and 5 more trees! It was fun to connect with the workers…2 of whom used to be preschool teachers years ago.

While inside we spent time finishing up all our September work before the shift to October and exploring some C things…read on for more!

1. What color was the Cat C you made?

Black!

Getting the shapes together to make a C shape was very tricky…like a complicated jigsaw puzzle!

At Circle Time we read the poem about a cat playing a fiddle from my favorite book of nursery rhymes. The cat in the picture had black as well!

2. What did Ms Kristin hide under the blanket at Circle Time?

Cows and cats!

Ms Kristin hid lions, tigers and cows from the block rug under a blanket. Then she snuck one toy away, hid it in her hand and said, “Abra cadabra ala kazam, can you guess what’s in my hand?” These kids are quick and sharp! They figured it out each time.

3. What C snack things did we eat?

We had a quadruple C snack: cheese cubes, Cheez-Its, cherries and cookies. Thank you, Owen!

Before Snack Time, children can help get it ready. During Hand Washing Time, Ms Kristin comes to sing songs with friends while they are lined up.

4. Where did we find Rex’s lost cat, Pink Lemonade?

At the top of the slide!

While we were playing along with the weekly tornado siren check, Rex discovered that Pink Lemonade was missing. We set off on a confident hunt to find the lost pink cat. Once found at the top of the slide, Rex went to the bottom to catch Pink Lemonade. There was a lot of celebrating and retelling the story.

5. Who held the water jug for us to drink outside?

Grandpa Kelven!

After a very warm time playing outside, we took a water break.

There was tire hauling and rolling, gingko fruit hunting, tornado playing, mud cake making, mud stew stirring, chalk drawing, tunnel hiding and log climbing.

Feeling spicy, block work, leaf crowns and a big wind : FRIDAY B WEEK

These sweet Friday friends are a fun bunch. Over half the class only attends on Fridays and the other half comes for their third time, so this is a unique day to pull everything together for all of us. There is plenty of September work happening and exploring all areas of the school inside and out. We had 4 volunteers today which means we were at nearly 1 adult for every 2 kids. Incredible!

Balancing, journaling, extra bananas and the run away blueberry: THURSDAY B WEEK

Today was a sweet day made sweeter by celebrating a birthday and having free reign on band aids. Grandma Bonnie has a routine of giving children turns to help in the kitchen which more and more are getting in on. This class continues to spend a lot of time at the Puzzle Corner and likes to share their successes. Read more to find out about our day.

Eating pencils, stinky gingko fruit and a lot of injuries : WEDNESDAY B WEEK

Our Wednesday class has four sibling pairs (three of the younger siblings attend with their caregivers until they turn three). We like to nurture familial relationships in the classroom setting whether it is siblings, blended family dynamics or cousins. Today could have fit in well as an April Fool’s Day with all the funny things… read on to learn more!

1. What did you eat for snack today?

Pencils!

It is true-we ate cookies decorated like cookies. We also had cheese crackers, oranges and bananas (except for the friend who knows that bananas hurt his mouth). Thank you Walter and Annie for bringing snack today!

2. What did you put in your journals today?

Band aids!

Some friends put in one bandaid, some friends put in 13, some friends made letter shapes out of them.

3. What did you say every time Ms Kristin rang the red bell?

Owwwwwww!

We spent time at Circle Time sharing what we know about injuries: who, what, where, when, why and how. Then I rang the red bell (in honor of blood) as I reviewed the injuries and everyone said, “Owwwwww!” These kids are full of injury knowledge! Then in a child led addition to my plan, they added band aids to the injury sites.

4. How can we get the creek to flow?

By pouring buckets of water from the sink or the water tables!

There is no hose available for creek filling, so it takes a lot of team work and patience to get it flowing. There is one faucet and 4 buckets which offers a great opportunity for a class of 13 to problem solve.

5. Do you like how the gingko fruit smells?

Maybe?

Ms Kristin describes it like a mixture of diarrhea and vomit/rotavirus, so maybe that can help inform your decision. It is amazing that something can have such a strong smell. It was still the prized item for the stew at the water tables.

BONUS: more photos from families!

a bug on a friend!

Daddies in the loft, planning for rain and mixing up toys: TUESDAY B WEEK

We were together as a class for the third time this year. We started our day inside as usual and it is delightful to watch each class settle into their own routines and preferences. Some play choices are consistent across classes like the library, puzzle corner, project shelf, block rug and running track.

“We like this area because we can make whatever we want here.”

FUN FACT: we do not ever determine how many children can be at a certain area at a time. We do not limit toys from traveling with them from one area to another. Yes, you can take a doll from the Family Corner to the project table. Yes, 12 children can be at the Tub Table at the same time and that’s going to be so crowded we’ll probably giggle!

EXAMPLE: Yes, you can bring cars from the Car Corner and blocks from different shelves to the big table.

1. Where do you go to be the tallest in the class?

The loft!

Many times today I heard my name, looked around and found someone calling from the top of the loft. Most often they liked being referred to as the king or queen of the castle. Two friends stayed longer and evolved into daddies at the office complete with computers, phones, notebooks, a toaster mailbox and their babies who were happy watching them.

I was handed a note from one of the daddies and it was from a notebook from 2018! Stella is a much older kid these days!

2. What will we get to put on our bodies the next time we come to school?

Band aids!

During Circle Time, along with talking about bumblebees and other things that scare us (lightning, monsters, spiders and bears) we found the card that says “B is for band aid.” It’s true, children will have access to bandaids and get fine motor skill practice in the process.

Today though, the same friend showed up when he heard that someone needed a band-aid. He has some from home in his School Box and this is the third straight day he runs to his box to offer a band aid…Bluey no less!

3. What is the plan if someone is standing still on the running track?

Go around them!

Even though it is a running track, people might be standing on it, sitting on it, walking slowly on it, crawling on it, doing a puzzle on it or being an obstacle on purpose. If anyone wants to run faster on it, they simply go around. No one is told to move or get off, we just go around. This class had no trouble following that plan AND trying out creating an obstacle.

“Our first day being friends and we both have our favorite shoes.”

4. What man who used to be a teacher came to visit?

Mr Micah, Ms Kristin’s son!

It was very fun for some friends who knew him from last year. It was equally fun for one friend whose own dad has the same name. “I never knew another Micah and now I have two!”

5. Why was Ms Kristin’s bike inside?

Because she thought it might rain and didn’t want her bike seat wet for the ride home.

Before we went outside, Ms Kristin checked the weather map and there was no rain anywhere near our town. We reviewed that if it was rainy without lightning then we could still be outside either under the pavilion or in the rain. If there was lightning, we would stay inside. We finished our day outside with hiding treasure, playing with bubbles, doing puzzles and visiting with Pastor Shana.