Experimenting with Light and Shadow
November 30, 2012, 02:55 PM
turning...leaping...jumping...twirling...spiraling...spinning...crawling...posing...flittering...flapping
smiling...turn taking...sharing...arguing...grabbing...laughing...exploring...looking...watching...twinkling
Emily
Comments
November 28, 2012, 03:51 PM
On Monday, we became adopted parents of a dwarf frog. It was given to us by an alumni parent whose daughter no longer wanted it and I suppose she thought I was a vulnerable victim (clearly she was right!) and I said "Yes, we would love it,". Well, there is truth in that because the children already love this little creature. The Junior OSC children made Do Not Touch signs posted near the mini aquarium and our preschoolers made the frog pictures today and wanted to shower him/her with gifts. On Monday I asked them to go home and think about a name for the frog and bring their suggestion back to class on Wednesday. So, this morning we compiled our potential name list, with the understanding that we would be voting on the name. The name suggestions were as follows:
Cynna: Badgie
Colin: Jack
Brooke: Flower
Kayla: Froggie
Luca: Penguin ( NOT Penguino)
Alexa: Flower
Bryn: Froggie
Cole: Froggie
Emily: Ella
Zev: Spot
Chloe: Eric
Cash: Benji
Wayne: Jackie
The big vote was therefore between Flower and Froggie with Froggie coming out the winner by 2. A highly original name it is not but it seems to be endorsed by all. It will be interesting to see how long the interest for this little pet lasts since he really doesn't 'do' very much. I will keep you posted!
On our visit to Terra Nova last Friday, we received some beets from the Richmond Schoolyard Society garden (the gifts never stop coming) We added some yellow beets from our garden and made roasted sweet and sour beets for snack. I only had a few helpers because children were so engaged in what they were doing they did not want to leave their activity. Alexa, Brooke, Wayne and Colin helped out cutting the beets and Alexa and Brooke combined the ingredients for the sauce.
While it was cooking, Brooke said "It smells like potato and corn." and Chloe said " It smells yummy. The honey makes it yummy.". As always, we all ate together and followed our rule that everyone tries at least one bite.
Comments about the beet recipe:
Little Emily: I don't like it.
Cash: Good
Colin: I like it.
Cole: I like it a bit The yellow beets.
Luca: It's really good. But I didn't like it ( this is not a typo, this is what he said)
Zev: I think I can try it. I think I like it. I like yellow beets. I like red beets ( I would like to add that Zev really really REALLY did not want to try it but finally he caved in and then had 2 bowls. Yes, 2 bowls!!
Creative moments at the art table, working with plasticine, wire and beads.
and a request for markers...
Some children were very interested in our letter "C" explorations. We brainstormed a list of words that begin with C and looked at objects that start with C and then wrote the words in cornmeal.
After class on Monday, the teachers discussed where we thought the children were going with the penguins and eggs. We reflected back on our day and found that many children were talking about the roles within a family so we decided to open up a discussion on family members. The complicated roles of parents, grand parents, great grand parents, aunts and uncles. We made a chart at circle and tried to make sense of who is who. All the children were very responsive and wanted to share their ideas. We will most definitely continue the conversation on Friday. Chloe brought up the idea of getting hair colour from our parents so maybe some genetics too?
emily
Cynna: Badgie
Colin: Jack
Brooke: Flower
Kayla: Froggie
Luca: Penguin ( NOT Penguino)
Alexa: Flower
Bryn: Froggie
Cole: Froggie
Emily: Ella
Zev: Spot
Chloe: Eric
Cash: Benji
Wayne: Jackie
The big vote was therefore between Flower and Froggie with Froggie coming out the winner by 2. A highly original name it is not but it seems to be endorsed by all. It will be interesting to see how long the interest for this little pet lasts since he really doesn't 'do' very much. I will keep you posted!
On our visit to Terra Nova last Friday, we received some beets from the Richmond Schoolyard Society garden (the gifts never stop coming) We added some yellow beets from our garden and made roasted sweet and sour beets for snack. I only had a few helpers because children were so engaged in what they were doing they did not want to leave their activity. Alexa, Brooke, Wayne and Colin helped out cutting the beets and Alexa and Brooke combined the ingredients for the sauce.
While it was cooking, Brooke said "It smells like potato and corn." and Chloe said " It smells yummy. The honey makes it yummy.". As always, we all ate together and followed our rule that everyone tries at least one bite.
Comments about the beet recipe:
Little Emily: I don't like it.
Cash: Good
Colin: I like it.
Cole: I like it a bit The yellow beets.
Luca: It's really good. But I didn't like it ( this is not a typo, this is what he said)
Zev: I think I can try it. I think I like it. I like yellow beets. I like red beets ( I would like to add that Zev really really REALLY did not want to try it but finally he caved in and then had 2 bowls. Yes, 2 bowls!!
Creative moments at the art table, working with plasticine, wire and beads.
Some children were very interested in our letter "C" explorations. We brainstormed a list of words that begin with C and looked at objects that start with C and then wrote the words in cornmeal.
After class on Monday, the teachers discussed where we thought the children were going with the penguins and eggs. We reflected back on our day and found that many children were talking about the roles within a family so we decided to open up a discussion on family members. The complicated roles of parents, grand parents, great grand parents, aunts and uncles. We made a chart at circle and tried to make sense of who is who. All the children were very responsive and wanted to share their ideas. We will most definitely continue the conversation on Friday. Chloe brought up the idea of getting hair colour from our parents so maybe some genetics too?
emily
Comments (2)
Farm to Table Dinner Reflections and Eggs...
November 22, 2012, 01:45 PMOur Farm to Table evening with all our families was so lovely on so many levels. I know all our staff felt very proud of our class and we were thrilled to share our work with you. The process of getting the dinner organized was intense... both in and out of class. But the outcome could not have been more rewarding; the sense of community, the learning around eating locally, being environmentally responsible and the knowledge that as a group we can set goals and see them through proved to resonate strongly. We greatly appreciate all your support and spirit.
The children were so excited leading up to the event I was very curious to know what stood out for them after the event. Would it be the food? The music? The guests? The tiffins? I really wasn't sure so I asked each child what their favourite thing was about the dinner and these are their answers:
Loreli: The Sponge Bob Square Pants song
Sidney: The music... I liked dancing with Alexa's brother, Dominic
Emily: I like getting my tiffiin cause I was so excited
Zev: I liked the quinoa.
Bryn: I have 2 favourite things, shelling beans and getting the tiffin
Cyanna: Getting the tiffin cause I was so excited
Cash: I was being excited at getting my tiffin
Luca: Getting my tiffin cause I love it.
Chloe: I liked dancing and you watching me and my mom watching me.
Kayla: I like having my pictures out.
Cole: I like my tiffin and my brother comed.
Nico: Getting my tiffin cause I like it.
Alexa: Getting my tiffin cause it can open easily and I don't make garbage.
Almost everyone brought their tiffin to school and one child slept with their tiffin!
We really wanted to enjoy our day, spend lots of time outside and relax after our big night. The free art station was busy:
Playdough and lego... lots of good conversation and creativity...
I watched the most wonderful play unfold today. As you know, Luca set us off on a study of penguins which led to a study of eggs. The children have been very involved in these discussions and were all very happy to meet Luca's stuffed penguin, named Penguino. Last week, for his All About Me Bag, Penguino came to the seniors home with us. Yesterday, while on the turf, Luca gathered four soccer balls, sat on them and said " I am hatching penguin eggs." Cyanna joined in and the two of them hatched many many eggs, taking turns. Other children were intrigued and would watch for a while then go off and play.
As we were leaving the turf, Luca asked if he could use the balls to hatch more eggs so when we went back to the classroom, Emmett dug up some smaller balls that were more appropriate for the classroom. I was amazed at the play that continued. Out hatched Penguino, Augustine, Ketchup and Waddles. Sometimes Mustard was born, too. Soon other children were involved and they were negotiating roles:
Emily: I am the mommy penguin and Luca is the daddy penguin.
Sidney: And I am the sister.
Emily: I sat on them.
Sidney: Are they ok?
Luca: Yea.
Sidney: One is hatching, one is hatching
Luca: In one minute it is out. They are hatched.
Emily: Them is hatching, look, it's penguins.
Sidney: This one is born.
Colin ( who was nearby reading a book) That is Penguino.
Emily: Colin is the brother.
Sidney: Who's the baby?
Luca: These are the babies (pointing to the balls)
Sidney: Oh yea, I forgot.
Luca then kissed each "penguin" (ball)
Sidney: Pumpkins start as a weed, the leaf turns into a flower and the flower turns into a pumpkin.
They held the balls, they talked about whether they had a soft or hard shell, they nestled them in a blanket and when Luca wanted to go eat snack he delegated someone to watch over them.
Emily took one of the penguin books off the shelf to teach her friends about the life cycle of a penguin.
This play was so rich. There were so many themes woven through the play. The idea of caring for others and attachment, animal science, and roles within a family. I am interested to see where this will go...other animals. people? What else can I bring in to extend these deep moments?
A truly beautiful day.
Emily
The children were so excited leading up to the event I was very curious to know what stood out for them after the event. Would it be the food? The music? The guests? The tiffins? I really wasn't sure so I asked each child what their favourite thing was about the dinner and these are their answers:
Loreli: The Sponge Bob Square Pants song
Sidney: The music... I liked dancing with Alexa's brother, Dominic
Emily: I like getting my tiffiin cause I was so excited
Zev: I liked the quinoa.
Bryn: I have 2 favourite things, shelling beans and getting the tiffin
Cyanna: Getting the tiffin cause I was so excited
Cash: I was being excited at getting my tiffin
Luca: Getting my tiffin cause I love it.
Chloe: I liked dancing and you watching me and my mom watching me.
Kayla: I like having my pictures out.
Cole: I like my tiffin and my brother comed.
Nico: Getting my tiffin cause I like it.
Alexa: Getting my tiffin cause it can open easily and I don't make garbage.
Almost everyone brought their tiffin to school and one child slept with their tiffin!
We really wanted to enjoy our day, spend lots of time outside and relax after our big night. The free art station was busy:
Playdough and lego... lots of good conversation and creativity...
 |
| Cash's lego treehouse |
 |
| Kayla's sun |
 |
| Loreli's design |
 |
| Chloe's "happy sun" |
 |
| Nico's shooting machine |
 |
| Cole's something to shoot |
I watched the most wonderful play unfold today. As you know, Luca set us off on a study of penguins which led to a study of eggs. The children have been very involved in these discussions and were all very happy to meet Luca's stuffed penguin, named Penguino. Last week, for his All About Me Bag, Penguino came to the seniors home with us. Yesterday, while on the turf, Luca gathered four soccer balls, sat on them and said " I am hatching penguin eggs." Cyanna joined in and the two of them hatched many many eggs, taking turns. Other children were intrigued and would watch for a while then go off and play.
As we were leaving the turf, Luca asked if he could use the balls to hatch more eggs so when we went back to the classroom, Emmett dug up some smaller balls that were more appropriate for the classroom. I was amazed at the play that continued. Out hatched Penguino, Augustine, Ketchup and Waddles. Sometimes Mustard was born, too. Soon other children were involved and they were negotiating roles:
Emily: I am the mommy penguin and Luca is the daddy penguin.
Sidney: And I am the sister.
Emily: I sat on them.
Sidney: Are they ok?
Luca: Yea.
Sidney: One is hatching, one is hatching
Luca: In one minute it is out. They are hatched.
Emily: Them is hatching, look, it's penguins.
Sidney: This one is born.
Colin ( who was nearby reading a book) That is Penguino.
Emily: Colin is the brother.
Sidney: Who's the baby?
Luca: These are the babies (pointing to the balls)
Sidney: Oh yea, I forgot.
Luca then kissed each "penguin" (ball)
Sidney: Pumpkins start as a weed, the leaf turns into a flower and the flower turns into a pumpkin.
They held the balls, they talked about whether they had a soft or hard shell, they nestled them in a blanket and when Luca wanted to go eat snack he delegated someone to watch over them.
Emily took one of the penguin books off the shelf to teach her friends about the life cycle of a penguin.
This play was so rich. There were so many themes woven through the play. The idea of caring for others and attachment, animal science, and roles within a family. I am interested to see where this will go...other animals. people? What else can I bring in to extend these deep moments?
A truly beautiful day.
Emily
Comments (1)
Beans & Beets
November 15, 2012, 01:41 PMA beautiful day to head to the farm. Sun shining, fresh air and energetic children- a perfect recipe! Upon arriving at the farm, we went for a run which lead us to saying good morning to the chickens ( we are finally learning how to be quiet near the coop) and then to the built in benches at The Sharing Farm where we all find our own special spot, put our hands over our heads and close our eyes. We even tried doing the "stork" position which required a lot of balance. Down we jumped into a circle to work on our observation and listening skills. We closed our eyes and listened. Just listened. We try to do this every time we go to the farm. There were many common themes of birds, airplanes, wind....and one unusual remark of "I heard a bear!"
We then decided to go check on the progress of the play area. We ran, walked, hopped along the pathways with some children noticing that everything "looks brown". On the way to the play area,we saw a coyote. We are not sure if it is the same coyote who has now grown much larger or if it is in fact a different coyote. We marvelled at its ability to pounce on its prey, strongly leaping with its two hind legs. We discussed it is likely eating voles. I suggested we look at our book on coyotes when we return to the centre.I was impressed on our return when little Emily ran over to the book shelf, opened the page on what coyotes eat and pointed to a vole looking creature! Great connections:)
Eventually, we made it to the play area and were happy to see stairs had been built next to the slide.
After all this activity, we all decided a snack was in order so we sat at a picnic table and opened our goodies. Cyanna took a bite of seaweed and decided it looked like a chair. I had to agree!
Bellies filled and children happy, we plunged into our garden to measure the growth of our fava beans and wheat since our last visit. Rulers were quickly transformed into spades and weapons.
With great anticipation we began to pull out our carrots and beets. If only I could record the squeals of delight as the children dug out the vegetables! A very rewarding moment for me personally as I tend to this garden through rain, heat, early mornings and late nights- it all makes it worth it!
A good bounty...which will be used for our Farm to Table dinner. The children washed their own vegetables and then we headed back to school.
We traced and drew vegetables....
We shelled and counted beans ( an activity that never gets boring)
We wanted to continue our discussion on what animals come from eggs so Dustin read a book which then unravelled into many questions and some answers.
And the greatest, cutest moment of the day... during our exploration of the letter C, we were guessing our picture cards. I had a picture of a "cake" so I gave them "treat" as a clue. They yelled out, in unison..."CARROTS!". Wow, how fantastic is that?
Emily
We then decided to go check on the progress of the play area. We ran, walked, hopped along the pathways with some children noticing that everything "looks brown". On the way to the play area,we saw a coyote. We are not sure if it is the same coyote who has now grown much larger or if it is in fact a different coyote. We marvelled at its ability to pounce on its prey, strongly leaping with its two hind legs. We discussed it is likely eating voles. I suggested we look at our book on coyotes when we return to the centre.I was impressed on our return when little Emily ran over to the book shelf, opened the page on what coyotes eat and pointed to a vole looking creature! Great connections:)
Eventually, we made it to the play area and were happy to see stairs had been built next to the slide.
After all this activity, we all decided a snack was in order so we sat at a picnic table and opened our goodies. Cyanna took a bite of seaweed and decided it looked like a chair. I had to agree!
Bellies filled and children happy, we plunged into our garden to measure the growth of our fava beans and wheat since our last visit. Rulers were quickly transformed into spades and weapons.
With great anticipation we began to pull out our carrots and beets. If only I could record the squeals of delight as the children dug out the vegetables! A very rewarding moment for me personally as I tend to this garden through rain, heat, early mornings and late nights- it all makes it worth it!
We traced and drew vegetables....
We shelled and counted beans ( an activity that never gets boring)
We wanted to continue our discussion on what animals come from eggs so Dustin read a book which then unravelled into many questions and some answers.
And the greatest, cutest moment of the day... during our exploration of the letter C, we were guessing our picture cards. I had a picture of a "cake" so I gave them "treat" as a clue. They yelled out, in unison..."CARROTS!". Wow, how fantastic is that?
Emily
Comments (2)
Children with questions, answers, observations
November 7, 2012, 03:41 PMWe had a very interesting yet relaxed day. Right away the children were so completely engaged with the materials in the classroom that we decided not to do our typical morning circle so that they could continue to build on the play that was already established. We had a lot of activities on the go today: making cauliflower soup for our upcoming dinner (cauliflower from our garden), making centrepiece for our Farm to Table dinner, play dough, 2 types of building, drawing and cutting, a play arc with scarves and alphabet bean bags. Since we just got all new books from the library, the children were really immersed in the literature area. Luca had chosen a book on penguins because he has a stuffed animal at home named Penguino that he adores and speaks of with great frequency and fondness. This book sparked an amazing conversation later during our circle. The book talked about how penguins use the sound of eachother's cries to recognise family members. We discussed hearing and sound recognition in humans too, which developed into a game about recognising the voices in our classroom. This game prompted lots of laughter! And questions..."What if the other penguin's babies all sound the same? How will they know who is their baby?" (Chloe). Cole said " I don't sound the same as Nico". How do children process sound? How do sounds make them feel? What sounds do they like? What sounds bother their ears? I think further investigation is in order!
Later in the book, we learnt that the daddy penguins look after the eggs. This discovery then lead to questions on which animals lay eggs. We asked the children what animals lay eggs. The responses were interesting:
Chloe: Giraffe
Emily: Zebra
Bryn: Elephant
Sidney: Chicken
Cole: Rooster
Luca: Penguin
Cyanna: Hen
Cash: Dog
Alexa: Crocodile & Dinosaur
Loreli: Turtle
Brooke: Cat
Zev: Shark
Niko: Shark
It seems like this might be a good area to study further. The children were very interested in this discussion and then proceeded to wonder about humans. It was time to say goodbye so we got cut off from our conversation...cannot wait to continue!
Several children wanted to help make the soup. Some worked long and hard (Alexa- to the bitter end!) and others picked apart only a couple of florets and then went back to building. But, together we got the job done!
As it was cooking Luca said " I love the smell of onion". I must agree with him; the room smelled delicious!
Almost everyone helped make the centrepieces and Sidney said " This is going to be the best dinner ever" and Alexa said " We have to leave space for the candle". Bryn informed me that you have to break the stick before you are able to glue it onto the plate.
We played outside for a long time- sunshine, warm weather in November! How lucky. The sandbox has been stellar for building as the water makes the sand very malleable and easy to work with to create structures. Cyanna played a lot with her brother Koltyn as she was instructing him on how to pull the upside down bucket off the castle. With a firm but gentle tone she repeatedly said " Slowly and gently". He listened and was thrilled with his creation.
While in line to wash hands for lunch ( which was quite late since we played outside for so long) I heard the following conversation, which I am sure you will agree, is a gem.
Bryn: "That's a beautiful shirt"
Little Emily: " It's not a shirt, it's a dress."
Bryn: "That's a beautiful dress."
At lunch today, the children began calling out, with no prompting whatsoever, about their packaging. Alexa began this conversation by exclaiming with pride " I have no garbage today!". Cyanna then said " I have no garbage too.". Niko said "I only have one garbage." Zev said " Nico has a plastic spoon and that is garbage". Niko responded quickly with " But I am going to keep it!. Are these children ready for tiffins or what? I am so proud of them for thinking about their snack containers and becoming aware of reducing their garbage. And, thank you parents for your support! Soon we will get our worm compost going again.
As you can tell, I marvelled at the children today. What a fun and rewarding day!
Emily
Later in the book, we learnt that the daddy penguins look after the eggs. This discovery then lead to questions on which animals lay eggs. We asked the children what animals lay eggs. The responses were interesting:
Emily: Zebra
Bryn: Elephant
Sidney: Chicken
Cole: Rooster
Luca: Penguin
Cyanna: Hen
Cash: Dog
Alexa: Crocodile & Dinosaur
Loreli: Turtle
Brooke: Cat
Zev: Shark
Niko: Shark
It seems like this might be a good area to study further. The children were very interested in this discussion and then proceeded to wonder about humans. It was time to say goodbye so we got cut off from our conversation...cannot wait to continue!
Several children wanted to help make the soup. Some worked long and hard (Alexa- to the bitter end!) and others picked apart only a couple of florets and then went back to building. But, together we got the job done!
Almost everyone helped make the centrepieces and Sidney said " This is going to be the best dinner ever" and Alexa said " We have to leave space for the candle". Bryn informed me that you have to break the stick before you are able to glue it onto the plate.
We played outside for a long time- sunshine, warm weather in November! How lucky. The sandbox has been stellar for building as the water makes the sand very malleable and easy to work with to create structures. Cyanna played a lot with her brother Koltyn as she was instructing him on how to pull the upside down bucket off the castle. With a firm but gentle tone she repeatedly said " Slowly and gently". He listened and was thrilled with his creation.
While in line to wash hands for lunch ( which was quite late since we played outside for so long) I heard the following conversation, which I am sure you will agree, is a gem.
Bryn: "That's a beautiful shirt"
Little Emily: " It's not a shirt, it's a dress."
Bryn: "That's a beautiful dress."
At lunch today, the children began calling out, with no prompting whatsoever, about their packaging. Alexa began this conversation by exclaiming with pride " I have no garbage today!". Cyanna then said " I have no garbage too.". Niko said "I only have one garbage." Zev said " Nico has a plastic spoon and that is garbage". Niko responded quickly with " But I am going to keep it!. Are these children ready for tiffins or what? I am so proud of them for thinking about their snack containers and becoming aware of reducing their garbage. And, thank you parents for your support! Soon we will get our worm compost going again.
As you can tell, I marvelled at the children today. What a fun and rewarding day!
Emily