early learning center journal

The Last Bear Cub Post

2011-08-13T19:03:00.000-07:00

Remembering the habitat...

of our classroom!

Are you ready to go exploring?

Bear Cubs looking at bear cubs...

Mount Rainier

Who is eyeing whom?

Our classroom habitat inspired many animal studies and art...

See if you can remember where to see these in our classroom habitat...

More Birds...

Where were these hiding?

See what you can sea...

Bear Cubs, you are wild, wonderful and dear to me,

forever and always...

with Bear Hugs to all of you and your families,

from a "deer" Preschool/PreK teacher,

Judith

Field Day with the Bear Cubs

2011-07-06T10:46:00.000-07:00

Be Who You Truly Are!

Many of us have passed by this sign everyday on our way to school... and it's a favorite. We have used it to encourage both cooperation and individuality in our class. As you can see, our Field Day is all about these qualities, emphasizing respect and collaboration for a fun outcome... Thank you, Nancy, for helping our children learn that it's all about doing your personal best, rather than outdoing one another! (Seabury couldn't dream of a better P.E. Teacher...we are so lucky!)

We had several "stations" to rotate between--- One was the amazing new climbers on the cork and wood chip playground. We each had to figure out how to surmount the challenges...

We used great problem solving, concentration,

and creativity!

Overheard from another Bear Cub: "Hey, look! He's going through that like a caterpillar!" Everyone had their own style... and no two children went through the suspended rings the same way.

Discovering a new way to communicate takes focus.

There is nothing like a slippery slide for a preschooler!

Our first organized game with Nancy was a series of activities in moving this giant ball down the green, grassy field. PreK Bear Cubs and K Superstars collaborated in the efforts.

How can we move this ball without our hands? We brainstorm ideas...

and then try them out.

We pushed with our tummies, our knees and our elbows!

Then we formed two lines and had to stay at our "latitudes" while moving the ball down the "longitude."

And then the camera gave out! Oops... the battery was only partially charged! Needless to say, we had a glorious time, ending with the water park and more time on the climbers, followed by ice cream for the whole school. The most amazing thing? It was actually a WARM AND SUNNY DAY!

If the truth be told, this is how so much of the battery power was used up...taking photos of our Bear Cubs at the local Brown Bear Car Wash, on the way to Field Day, proved to be irresistible!

Bear Hugs and Happy Summer!

Judith

Ramps and Pathways

2011-06-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

We're getting a "new slant" on things...

by making

creative pathways with inclined Ramps!

Using different sizes and weight of marbles, we delight in testing various factors...

such as angle of incline,

size and weight of marbles,

lengths of ramps,

and zig-zagging ramps for marbles to descend and ascend!

Our creativity abounds as we make complex structures for marbles to roll through,

as we race with the marbles to arrive at the end of the tunnel.

Which marble will be faster... the larger one, above, or the smaller, below? Shall we get out a stopwatch and time them?

Little do we consciously realize that we are learning about math, simple machines and physics... we just find that experimenting with ramps and marbles is amazingly fun, creative and satisfying!

It's time for a spring round-up down on the farm...

more creative building with magneatos,

while boys, bears and magnatiles build a rainbow world at the light table.

May your ramps and pathways in life be as delightful as ours!

Judith

P.S. To make your own ramps for use at home, you'll need:

1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inch cove molding cut into 2, 3 and 4 foot lengths. Sand the edges.

I bought the various sized marbles at Top Ten Toys in Seattle.

Sand, sand everywhere!

2011-06-04T22:44:00.000-07:00

Life's a Beach!

The weather finally warmed and the whole school was able to spend our annual day at Dash Point State Park! Bear Cubs had a nutritious and delicious snack before making "Sailing Circles" to run down the beach with as the ribbons rippled in the breeze...

We enjoyed welcoming a new friend who will be in our class next year!

But we could hear the water calling to us, and we answered with curiosity and joy!

Exploration was compelling...

As we tested our self confidence by taking on a big challenge!

Crossing this log, over the shallow flowing stream, became an individual feat of the day for many children.

This child received the "Surprise of the Day" award... He crossed the log to midstream, then spotted this piece of algae on the rock below. He carefully put his foot down on the rock and reached for it (see photo, below.) After examining it, he flung his leg back over the log and overcompensated. SPLASH! Down he went off the opposite side of the log and into the shallow flowing stream, sand and pebbles underneath his body. The stream of tears flowed as easily as the water bubbling by... Nothing hurt, just the shock of falling into cold water and getting wet from head to toe. After hugs and reassurances, he stayed "safe" out on the sand for awhile, digging and working, while his clothes dried out with the warmth of the sun. We were so proud of him when he spontaneously returned to the log to go for a more "successful" experience (second photo.) Afterward, I quietly reinforced how much courage it takes to get back up and try again (especially when not so long ago a minuscule owie was an event that took a long time to recover from.) We celebrate the gigantic leaps of growth, so evident at this time of year, we see in every child within our Bear Cub community!

We loved how each child figured out what he or she was comfortable with, and no one was pressured by anyone to try to cross or not. For the youngest member of our class, simply putting a tummy and arms against the log was enough!

A former Bear Cub, now in the first grade, helped a friend cross the rocks in the stream. He wasn't asked... he just saw the need and came forward. This is the spirit of community that I hope will stay with all of the Bear Cubs as they move on...

A mom and teacher, her younger daughter, and two life-long learners!

Talk about challenge... This child spent several hours throughout the day figuring out how to move from rock to rock in the stream. It took great concentration and coordination!

Thank you to the Parent Booster Club and a former Seabury family's Subway shop for providing lots of big sandwiches for inspired appetites!

Another highlight near the end of the day as the children discovered how good it feels to be covered in sand... they became s-o-o relaxed. This provides the body with deep pressure that is calming, and each child wanted to have several turns to be covered with the warm sand.

Inevitably toes wiggle and a foot emerges...

Now we Bear Cubs cover the older friend who helped us...

And we laugh as we watch her break free!

By the end of the day, we are sandy from head to nose to toes, and LOVING it!

And the next day, some of us are ready for Round 2, as we shovel our new "clean" sand into our sand box on a beautiful Saturday!

Thanks to all of you for doing your parts to make our sand filled days such wonder- full experiences! We look forward to a week of "digging deeply" to discover the joys of our sand box. Thanks again to PBC for the sandbox and the sand, to Nathan and Grandpa for putting the sandbox together, to Melissa for researching local sources of "clean sand" and making the arrangements for delivery. A dump truck of thanks to our hardworking crew of "diligent diggers" for working together with plastic beach shovels and pails, wheelbarrows and seriously heavy duty shovels, to move a yard of sand from driveway to sandbox! We celebrate our community!

Bear Hugs,

Judith

Three Special Days

2011-05-28T19:43:00.000-07:00

Bear Day!

The evening before our annual Bear Day, I unfolded the Seattle Times and found the picture, below, on the front page. The next morning, we began our annual Bear Day by reading the article with the children. This 2 year old bear, recently separated from his mom, was found wandering between an elementary and middle school in Bothell. The children became very excited as they conjectured what could have drawn that young bear to the schools... Someone suggested that the bear cub was probably looking for our class at Seabury, knowing that we are the Bear Cubs and today would be our Bear Day celebration! We were delighted at the brilliance of young cubs! After enjoying our mutual recognition, we decided that it was good that the little bear was taken back up to the mountains to find a safer, more suitable home in which to roam.

While we were at Gathering, all these bears found places to hide in the classroom---Some were well camoflauged, others were barely peeking out of secret dens. Every child went off in search of three bears, then brought them back to the rug.

Indeed, "we're going on a bear hunt..."

We had Bear Centers to move between, keeping us beary busy...

Bear Foot painting was popular,

squishy,

and wonderfully messy!

We set the article on the science table for the children to look at. "I want to read this newspaper because this bear is awesome!," our Bear Cub told us.

We made Brown Bear cupcakes...

Where do you think most of the frosting went?

(Thanks to Sonja, there was plenty of chocolate frosting!)

Bearlicious!

We had so much fun making one, that we got to make a second cute cupcake bear to take home!

We made bear ears, which we proudly wore all day!

We each wrote our own name and "bear" on our headband.

And we each brought a bear from home to celebrate the day with us!

"I'm roaring like a big bear!"

And the best surprise of all---

Bailey Bear!

(just in from New Orleans)

What a great day...We had bear-rels of fun!

Spring Performance

"The Three Javelinas"

A former Bear Cub, now a lively little javelina!

Onstage with maracas...

We create the sounds of building the houses, this time with boomwhackers.

When the javelina settles into her house, we stop playing our instruments.
Everyone did such a fabulous job playing music, speaking their parts, and following their cues by using their eyes and ears to focus... Special thanks to Jessica Blackwood for her wonderful and patient teaching of music and drama to our young and eager children!

Sisters...
"Judith, Do you know that Grace is the best sister ever?"

Grandparents and Special Friends Day!

We began by making "Name Necklaces" with our grandparents and friends, then took each by the hand for a tour of our classroom "Art Show."

We put on our body vests as everyone came to the rug for a group time. We wanted to show how much we have learned about our bodies so we sang three "Body Songs" that Judith wrote and one by the musical group, Tickle Tune Typhoon.

Our favorite is the digestion song, which we sing with some sign language...

"Eat good food and chew, chew, chew..."

Our audience appreciates our singing and all we have learned.

We celebrate the circle of love we share with family and friends!

We all celebrate the circle of community!

Bear Hugs,

Judith

Putting our Hearts into Art...

2011-05-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

With Artist-in-Residence,

Joni Joachims!

Joni guided our Bear Cubs through so many creative art explorations these past two weeks! Every project took a number of days to complete, and Joni always had the next activity ready to go while the first was drying. We had a fabulous time and learned so much!

We are taking care of all of our plants. As the weather warms we LOVE enthusiastically watering them!

We have been working with the decimal system, comparing the proportions of a single unit, a ten, one hundred and one thousand. We are composing numbers using numerals and wooden materials. A few of us are ready to see what happens if we add our quantities together!

Let's see... One of us brought 2365 and the other brought 1223. We'll start by adding the units... (counting while moving them one by one down to the bottom) That's 8! Let's put the big numeral here and add the tens. And so forth... All absolutely hands-on.

Wait a minute, something doesn't look quite right when we double check... Let's count those hundreds again!

We figured out the mistake and wrote down the addition problem... then did another one the next day. Wow, we agreed that this was a different kind of "big job!"

Remember those clay figures we made and painted last week? This week we painted an undersea background on cardboard, then glued our dried figures on.

We had to be s-o-o-o careful because our pieces were fragile!

We think that our seascapes are beautiful!

Joni traced around our bodies and showed us her talent by giving us quick facial and hair details. It is amazing to see what an artist can do with well placed simple lines! We then added lots of details that we needed to think about before drawing...

Next to our heads, Joni asked us to draw two things: something we liked to see and something we liked to smell. Above: "I like to see long green snakes crawling."

Below: "I like to smell a flower."

"I really liked seeing the Statue of Liberty."

"I like seeing AND smelling watermelon!"

"I like smelling an orange. I ate it and it's going down my esophagus!"

"Flowers smell good... and they're pretty to look at, too."

"I like seeing birds fly."

We adults never fully realize the influence we can have with our children, and what they might be absorbing from our choices!

On our first warm day, Cathy came to school with her jeans rolled up. Mid-way through the morning, our friend noticed and rolled up his own jeans. Later, when asked why he had decided to roll up his pant legs, he said, "I saw Cathy's and it was a good idea!"

What is that saying? Something about great minds thinking alike?!

Judith

The Joy of Learning

2011-05-13T12:49:00.000-07:00

BEGINS WITH OUR CREATIVE

BODIES, MINDS AND SPIRITS!

We worked on our "body vests" this week, identifying and reviewing how different organs and skeletal features function.

The children were very excited to make something they could wear that represented so much of what we have learned! We really enjoyed discussing our bodies as we colored...

Do you see the red strawberries from snacktime in the green stomach, above?

These weeks of talking about keeping our lungs healthy really had an impact, as nearly all the children spontaneously chose to color their lungs pink!

We sing the chorus from a Tickle Tune Typhoon song,

"My body belongs to me, my body belongs to me.

I am happy, I am free,

Loving every part of me!"

The life size skeleton floor puzzle is still popular with our Bear Cubs!

The last few weeks, these bowls were filled with the beads we each had chosen for our Mother's Day necklaces. I placed the now empty bowls in the Creation Station, amid great bursts of imaginative energy! Many hats were constructed (above) and other ideas followed, such as the bear house (below.) It is always delightful to see how a small, yet intentional, provocation (such as recycling the bowls into an innovative "station") can result in so much creative problem solving!

We take turns acting out spring songs... we are frogs getting ready to hop!

James was our substitute teacher assistant last week. He did some practice teaching by becoming a "mad scientist" with a few children... and soon had a larger group gathered 'round. The next few days, they asked him to "do it again!," so he expanded on the theme. Not only was it interesting for the children, James learned firsthand about the power of emergent curriculum!

We are fortunate to have the opportunity to work for two weeks with talented local artist, Joni Joachims, as our "Artist in Residence."

We worked on several projects with Joni. Our first exploration was with Model Magic, which she showed us how to roll, twist and flatten. The possibilities were endless!

We let the pieces dry for a couple of days, then we painted them.

Our efforts were very concentrated!

Using paintbrushes also helps us refine our pincer grasp and eye-hand coordination for writing!

While the Model Magic was drying, we worked on creating sculptures. One day we painted blocks of syrofoam, and the next day we built using a variety of mediums...

Of course, every sculpture---just like the artist who made them--- was unique!

Teachers, too, were drawn into the process of creative discovery!

Thank you, Joni... we love the creative process!

Judith

Appreciating...

2011-05-04T13:46:00.000-07:00

Mothers and Teachers!

Thank you to Margaret, and to all of the caring families of Seabury School, for the absolutely amazing week of surprises for Teacher Appreciation Week! From the gorgeous Monday brunch (who knew that the Teacher's Lounge could be transformed into an elegant setting?) to the abundance of plants, flowers, notes and letters, gift cards and treats, we were showered with love and appreciation.

Thank you for entrusting us with the most precious gift of all...

your unique, spirited and beautiful children.

It is a blessing to be in community and partnership together!

How exciting to go out on the playground and see our old classmate and friend waiting for us to play! We greeted him with boundless joy and shared an hour of outdoor play and literature circle together. We all had lots of news to exchange with one another!

~ ~ ~

We started on our Mother's Day gifts two weeks ago, because we were making something special and lovely... surprises for our mommies that took lots of loving time, patience and concentration. Because I'm waiting to publish the blog until Sunday evening, hopefully you moms will have opened your special card/envelope before seeing the following photos... Here is your child carefully working on his or her gift to Mom. Happy Mother's Day!

And on each card/envelope, your child's drawing of Mommy!

May you wear these until we are all wisened old women... (WOW!)

Enjoy,

Judith

ith

No Bones About It...

2011-04-28T13:23:00.000-07:00

We have had a great time being

"a skeleton crew!"

As our study of the human body continues, we have focused on bones this week---and learned so much about how we are put together! Mr. Bones was very helpful as we talked about why certain bones are the particular forms that they are and that every bone has a purpose (curved rib cage to protect vital organs, many small phalanges in hands and feet for bendable dexterity, etc.) We also learned that although bones are hard on the outside, they are spongy on the inside because that is where blood cells are made. As you take a jog through the blog, you'll see more related activities we did this week!

Indeed, we gathered a skeleton crew for a photo op with Mr. Bones!

We also presented our "Earth Week" wild animal research projects that we ran out of time to finish last week.

Our youngest class member taught us about her favorite animal, otters.

We learned about vampire bats, too!

Many members of our class community brought their notes, which were as fun to see as their presentations! Some were handwritten with invented spelling, others dictated in crayon, or highlighter, and traced. One was printed into a book with downloaded photos... Everyone did a FABULOUS job, and each child was so proud to be the "expert" on his/her chosen animal!

"It's a strong flyer but it can run on four arms and legs. It uses echolocation to know its obstacles. It's the only mammal that flies. People make laws to protect them."

Polar Bears

We were good listeners...

and after each presentation, we asked questions, which each expert answered.

Elephants,

Pandas and

Tigers!

With Mr. Bones as our guide, we made "skeleton pictures" of ourselves using our unique skin tone body cut out, with dried pasta representing bones. Before we placed each "bone," we walked over to Mr. Bones to inspect size, shape, number and placement to be as aware as we could in the creative process.

Each child's "skeleton self portrait" was different, yet they all understood the idea behind it. We discussed the various bones, and shapes of pasta to represent them, as each was carefully chosen and placed.

Just as we have a shape defined by our skeleton,

we can build our ideas using a "skeleton" that defines the shape of our construction.

This was a thought provoking exploration and extension for the children,

and lots of fun when they discovered that their bodies provided the "mass" of their massive creation!

In P.E., we practiced independence, motor planning, problem solving, jumping, hopping, balancing and other types of body movement as we followed a pattern across the floor of the multi-purpose room...

When a star was in a space, the child had to jump past it!

At the end, there was a choice... How will you move to get down this padded incline?

There were as many creative ideas as there were imaginative children!

Coming up next week--- the spinal cord and central nervous system.

Happy May Day!

Judith

Planting Seeds of Peace

2011-04-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Earth, Every Day!

We began Earth Week by reading a beautiful story about Wangari Maathai. In 1977, she began her work in Kenya by planting 9 tree seedlings in the barren earth, where once trees had grown abundantly. The old forests had been cut for firewood and razed for development. Other village women became interested and began to raise the seedlings, planting them in villages and countryside, nurturing their growth. Wangari called this effort "The Green Belt Movement." It spread far and wide throughout Kenya.

In an ancient forest that developers wanted to cut, Wangari stood her ground and refused to move. At circle time, we talked again about ideals, the courage of civil disobedience, of standing up to power for a greater good. (We had discussed this before, especially with Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, and the many people who walked and marched proudly to change unjust laws in our country.) Wangari was arrested and jailed. Inspired by her courage and vision, many more people joined in the tree planting--- and, over the years, 30 million trees were planted! The renewed forests impacted the climate, so that once again rains fell, crops grew, people thrived. Wangari, who had started with just 9 seedlings in 1977, "was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her contribution to world peace through the Green Belt Movement." (from Wangari's Trees of Peace.)

Discussions of Wangari, and others who have worked hard to help the earth, have been at the center of our focus this week. One of our children has decided that she wishes to make the earth a better place and "win" the Nobel Peace Prize! Yes, we are planting seeds of peace as the awareness and compassion of our children broadens and deepens...

We prepared the raised garden beds in our play yard, weeding and turning over the soil.

We explore a different kind of digging using a more sophisticated lever system...

It takes concentration!

This will be even more fun when our clean sand arrives!

Recycling is an everyday experience in our class, but this week we are recyling something that doesn't go into our bins... old crayons! These are crayons that have seen better days, are broken or getting too small. We had to peel the paper off of many crayons, which gave us lots of fine motor reinforcement!

We placed our crayon pieces in one indentation in the pan, trying to fill the cup with a variety of different colors.

We made a "map" together to keep track of each child's work. Then we placed the tin in a barely warm oven. Slowly the crayons in each cup melted together to make a giant "rainbow" crayon...We were so excited to use our "new" crayons!

We also recycled thicker crayons by making melted crayon pictures. We placed very thin cardboard on a small surface warmer--- When we slowly drew, the crayon would melt and ooze along, creating intense trails of color. We like creatively recycling crayons!

We saw two meaningful performances this week, related to people helping the earth. "The Man Who Planted Trees" was at the Seattle Children's Theater. Though it was a quieter performance than others we have attended this year, it spoke volumes about one humble person making a difference.

The story was about a shepherd who lived in the mountains of France with his faithful companion, a playful dog.

The mountainsides and valleys were bare and windswept, because the forests had been cut. People had to leave because the weather was too dry to grow their food.
The shepherd began planting acorns--- every morning 100 acorns, every afternoon 100 acorns, every single day.

Over the decades, an Englishman visited him three times, stayed over in the shepherd's hut, and saw the trees growing. The fun-loving, mischievous dog kept the visitor awake at night (below.)

The last time they saw one another, the shepherd was old and had slowed his pace, but still planted trees. The mountainsides were now heavily forested, birds had returned, rains fell, streams ran down to the valleys below. Again, trees had healed the ecosystem.

People returned to the now fertile valleys, and villages were restored. To celebrate the trees and streams, they built a fountain in the town's center.

The humble shepherd lives on in the beauty and lifegiving green of the many thousands of trees he planted, one acorn at a time.

Afterward, we went outside and explored some of the sights at Seattle Center...

one of us, with visiting grandparents!

We spotted the skateboarders in their special park, and were mesmerized!
Now and then, we have been talking about centrifugal force, and as the young people swerved up and down curved walls, we saw the force in life-sized action!

We had to take a closer look...

Over lunch, we talked a little about the play, everyone sharing an impression or two.

After lunch, we made it a "Double Feature Day," and went to the 3-D imax movie, "Born to Be Wild." This time we were treated to a view into the lives of two women, working across the world from one another, who chose to make a difference by saving endangered species. Primatologist Dr. Birute Galdikas rescues orphaned orangutan babies in the rainforest of Borneo. They are loved and cared for by a team of people who respect their need to return to the wild when old enough to "make it" on their own. Meanwhile in Kenya, Dame Daphne Sheldrick rescues elephant calves whose mothers have been killed by poachers. They, too, are raised by a loving and dedicated team, and later released into a herd of elephants that were once once raised at the compound. Throughout the 3-D movie, the eager hands of the children were reaching out to pet the fuzzy fur of the infant orangutans or the floppy ears of the tiniest elephant calves... so sweet! In the days since, we've had some great group discussions about how "movie" 3-D is so different from "real-life" 3-D. We have learned that movie 3-D is kind of a trick played on our eyes and brains, and we've decided that we like real-life 3-D much better!

We have had some big and beautiful experiences this week...

as we reflect upon all these amazing people to whom we have been introduced through books, stories, performances and movies.

How powerful to see our Bear Cubs growing and changing the world, one beautiful child at a time!

Judith

eliminating elimination

2011-04-13T15:13:00.000-07:00

I've gotta go, quick!

is a commonly heard phrase in our Pre-K class. Many of us never want to miss out on anything that might be happening around our classroom community, so we tend to wait for the last possible moment to seek relief... This week we reviewed our digestive system, then talked about our urinary system. We have learned lots of new vocabulary, names of organs and what they do to keep us healthy. And we have been drinking lots of water in order to put our learning to the test!

Mitchell opened up his back so that we could have a good view of kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra. We learned that our kidneys are like filtering sponges, keeping our blood clean. The old cells get carried to the bladder and flow out of us in our urine.

That is water... the children wanted it yellow, "Like urine!," they chorused with great glee. We practiced pouring with a funnel using science beakers, which made the children feel like they were doctors in a medical lab.

Wrapping up our study of the digestive system early in the week, we enthusiastically measured our "small intestine" (a properly sized length of yarn-like rope), using long, dry fettuccine (less breakable than spaghetti.)

We found that a 20-23 foot, or nearly 7 meters of "intestine," equaled 34 fettuccine sticks!

So we got out a new box of pasta and counted out 34 fettuccine noodles per child. Then we cooked them in a huge pot on the stove.

After draining them, we carefully placed 34 cooked fettuccine noodles in each bowl... (just imagine carefully counting our 34 steaming hot, slippery noodles seven times to illustrate a concept, and you can see the definition of either "dedicated," "creative," or "crazy"... or perhaps all three!)

The children exclaimed, "Wow, this is sort of what my own intestines look like all curled around and smooshed together inside my tummy!" (Except that the pasta wasn't tubular, like our intestines are.) We mixed tomatoe sauce with cream cheese to cover it with a glossy pinkish tint. Now, we decided it was most definitely "lifelike"--- at least realistic enough for our needs! We had fun filling our stomachs with 23 feet of fettuccine, imagining it sliding through, strand by strand, filling our entire small intestine!

We developed different strategies to get it from bowl to mouth...

We were very full by the end of the morning (and barely touched our lunches!),

but we all ate every last bite! (Luckily, we had delicious fruit and yogurt smoothies to even out all those carbs.)

We made necklaces, following a new pattern, ABBA. I wish we'd had the corresponding music to go with it!

The light table brought out the translucent colors of the straws and the brightness of the beads! We all made several necklaces to share with family members, collaborating with friends to create new patterns.

We're predicting that there will be lots of blooms in several weeks, as we practice our monthly calendar saying: "April showers bring May flowers!" Let's just hope it warms up enough for all those flowers to burst into bloom!

Judith

Digestive System and More!

2011-04-03T19:26:00.000-07:00

We have a big appetite for learning about

the digestive system...

We're eating it up!

We LOVE learning about the digestive system! Mitchell, our medical doll, opened up his abdomen this week to reveal his stomach, liver, pancreas, small and large intestines.

He helped us learn more about how the food flows through us, is broken down, the nutrients absorbed, and the energy passed to our blood to carry to every cell in our bodies.

We sang "The Digestion Song," written by Judith, every day to Mitchell (and to anyone who passed through our classroom and wanted to hear it!) You probably have been hearing at least parts of it at home...

Our body model has removable organs, so we passed the plastic stomach and intestines around the circle, which really intrigued the children. Outdoors, we stretched a lengthy rope out to see exactly how long our small intestine is--- at 20-23 feet, we were amazed! We crumpled up the rope and, sure enough, we saw that it would fit into each one of our bellies. We have another activity related to this planned for our "digestive review" after Spring Break.

Our "Bear Cub Market" opened this week! We are talking about how important it is to give our bodies good food to be strong and healthy. We have "fresh food" such as wooden/plastic fruit, veggies, eggs, whole grain bread,etc., as well as all the cans, boxes and plastic bottles of healthy foods that our wonderful families sent in. We have lots of organic foods, too, reflecting the interests of families in our class community. We are making good choices as we shop, reading the boxes and cans, and figuring out numbers with prices and pretend money. There are plenty of literacy, science, math and social-emotional learning opportunities associated with our home-grown market! As we talked about food, spontaneous interest was piqued by looking at and reading child oriented cookbooks. A group of prospective chefs gathered to figure out the directions together, and to plan our "pizza party." Meanwhile, we also used fruits to make paint prints. Most exciting was hammering open the coconut, then trying the milk and "meat" during snack! Thanks to all of you for sending such a nice variety of foods this week... To prepare for our pizza making, we read the book "Pizza Face," then each child brought in ingredients to use for toppings. Wow! We had such a variety of fresh, healthy toppings to choose from... tiny tomatoes, carrot curls, spinach leaves, mini pepper circles, brocolli, sliced mushrooms, pineapple pieces, sliced olives, tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. The pizza dough was a bit difficult for 4 and 5 year olds to work with, so some teacher assistance was available to get it stretched without holes developing. Once the dough was somewhat circular, we each had our own vision of what our pizza would include. Enjoy the photos of assembly, the "raw" footage and the finished product! (Thanks to Cathy for cleaning the flour off the camera after this process!)

We're really not sure which was more fun... the process or the product!

But we all agreed--- studying digestion is fun, fascinating and yummy!

With perfect timing to welcome spring, our amaryllis plants burst into bloom. We have been enjoying watching the bulbs grow more leaves and a stem, then buds develop and grow bigger, and finally, observing closely day by day, as each huge bud opened.

Reading about spring this week, we enjoyed several stories that featured birds. This inspired "emergent curriculum," in which several of the children began to design and make wings for themselves. Like each child, every pair of wings is unique!

We are digesting, blossoming AND flying with all we are learning!

Enjoy the Spring Break!

Judith

Creativity Intertwined With Literacy

2011-03-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

We Are Creative Learners!

You may regret our latest gain in literacy... We learned to read and spell the word "No!" Earlier in the week, we read a book about when it's good and appropriate to say no. I suggested that this word was short,

and easy to read because it just had two letters, then inquired if the children would like to be the ones that read it in the story? Of course, and everyone caught on very quickly. Later in the week, we heard this in the classroom: "I think no. That's spelled 'n-o,' NO." You can put the blame squarely on me if you hear this at home... (and understand that it's a powerful concept and word that your child is "mastering!" ) There are times that a child's "no" is appropriate, and other times that we wish they had never heard the word... which was part of the book, and a part of lifelong learning, Are overcommitted you still learning about when it feels right for to say no? Me, too!

Would you like to see more creative ways we are expressing our literacy learning?

The Creation Station continues to provide inspiration and a creative bridge to increased literacy. We are imaginative story writers!

"This is the bear den...

and I made these bears that I'm going to cut out."

"And here is a town I made for Bert."

" That's Bert! (pointing to bottom right corner.) See, I wrote 'BERTS SHOP' all by myself... And that box (pointing to lower right) is the opera house!" At these beginning stages of reading and writing, we encourage the exuberance of invented spelling!

Now back to the bear den... Our friend dictates a story, which we write in highlighter so that she can trace over the words. At the end, she writes her name in pencil. It says, "A daddy bear guarding the den. A mommy bear just had her cubs."

Meanwhile, a friend creates a picture story, complete with "word bubbles." He tells me, "That's just like in the comics."

"Look, the owl says 'HOO!' "

" The bear is coming out of his den because it's spring. He likes to eat the herbs to help his tummy digest again. And look where I wrote what he's saying, (pointing to blue letters camouflaged between bear den and sun) 'GRR.' "

The picture was painted with watercolors early in the week, clearly illustrating something that this child was thinking about. He was excited about it and wrote, "The hot lava, the lightening in the night sky." Do you see the silver lightning bolts between the sky and lava? Art and storytelling are ancient creative expressions, the roots of literacy, often depicting big events in the natural world. Now we Bear Cubs are branching out, blossoming into recognition of writing and reading as also providing meaning, purpose and pleasure in our modern daily lives!

Welcoming the Spring Solstice, we are eager to engage with materials that symbolize life and new beginnings... Using tongs strengthens the pincer grasp, and it takes considerable coordination to grasp the egg and move it to the other nest or place on the tray!

Mitchell, the medical doll, opened up to us this week and showed us his heart and lungs. We have been talking about red blood cells that carry oxygen, and white blood cells that help us fight disease and infection. We are going to look at real blood (mine) under the microscope next week when our twin friends have returned to class... We'll be doing this on Monday with the Beacons, who are just finishing studying the human body.

To honor the first music we ever heard, the heartbeats of our birthmothers', we made drums. At circle, we talked about how anthropologists tell us that drums were the first musical instruments made by people. We thought about how the ancient ones might have made them, and imagined what rhythms they played on their drums...

Every child was drawn into the process with deep focus.

Later, we followed our hearts as we drummed the rhythm of our heartbeats, then our names. We compared the rhythms, counted beats and syllables.

With so many of our families literally fighting the "spring fever" germs, we reviewed (again!) how important it is to do a good job washing our hands. This is a nice sequence caught with the camera as I was walking by...

Get those hands wet and soap them up...

Rub and scrub while singing the abc's (20 seconds), rinse well.

Pull a paper towel,

dry your hands and use the towel to turn off the faucet. That keeps your hands from getting germs on them again!

Stay well! Happy Spring!

Judith

Heart to Heart

2011-03-18T11:46:00.000-07:00

Heart to Heart...

We had a number of guest visitors this week! Odin, the therapy dog was our first. He showed us the commands he knows and follows by voice or hand signals. We reviewed how to approach a dog: to ask permission to pet, to put out one's hand for the dog to smell, then to gently pet with the direction of the fur.

Our friends who live with Odin take good care of him, and give him lots of love. Do you see him smiling as he is stroked?

If asked, Odin will give a big hug... we decided to stay low and pet him instead.

Odin is so soft and fluffy...

He has helped several of us work through our fears about dogs... Odin is an excellent "Therapet!"

Mitchell, the medical doll, came to school this week for a thorough check up.

How does his heart sound?

His temperature is above normal. Let's see how his blood pressure is...

We may need second and third opinions...

One doctor decides that giving an injection into the thigh would help reduce the fever.

Now let's see how his reflexes are... tap, tap!

It's important to monitor blood pressure, perhaps even every few minutes! We are learning so much about the heart and circulatory system. Next week we are diving into our red river of life... our beautiful blood!

We examined a pig's heart several times this week, which we found fascinating, but rather smelly. We wore XS vinyl medical gloves, which were still so big for us! Still, we were able to cradle the heart in our hands, put a finger into the aorta and look inside to view the chambers.

The children had no qualms about holding it... every child wanted a turn. Each child showed remarkable attention to the detail and wonder of a real heart.

Many of us wanted more opportunities to look closely...

Some of us were even smiling with the delight of truly experiencing "hands-on" learning!
(Talk about putting our hearts into it!)

"Look at the chambers inside! That's where the blood goes through!"

Science Fair

For our class exhibition to the Science Fair, we invited the second grade Beacons into our classroom to show them a few of our science activities. Thanks to Mrs. Gellert, who stayed and helped to take photos.

We briefly talked about the various exploration stations, then separated into small groups, guided by a Bear Cub. Each Bear Cub was a "specialist" at one or more science stations in our classroom.

(Being with the big group on the circle was special for me as many of the Beacons were in my first Seabury preschool class a few years ago...)

footnote: "emergent curriculum"

The earthquake in Japan brought many questions... "What is an earthquake, anyway?," was heard from several children. Responding to this emergent topic and awareness, we set up a model for the children to test. We'll continue to experiment with different types of blocks and "structures" (cardboard boxes) to explore what types of shapes, sizes, widths and heights are most stable in our homemade model. Our earthquake model became one of the Science Fair stations that the Beacons could try. We also practiced, again, what we would do in an earthquake. Ask your child to show you as your family does an earthquake drill at home!

Next week we'll also be setting up a model of a "sumommy," (as more than one child pronounced tsunami,) using the water table under (shall we stress) somewhat controlled circumstances. Even our 4 and 5 year olds are very aware of the disaster in Japan, and are relieved to be part of a compassionate community raising money for the Red Cross. (The Science Fair Bake Sale raised over $730 --- Thanks to everyone for lots of sweet generosity!)

The Beacons were excited to examine the pig's heart. One of my former students said, with glowing intensity, "Judith, this is so interesting to me... You know that I want to be a doctor when I grow up, so looking at a real heart today will help me. And this heart doesn't gross me out...it really doesn't!"

Once again, the high levels of curiosity, wonder and concentration were astonishing!

We also had a "Lung Power" station, mixing paint colors by blowing them with straws. We had to take deep breaths, fill our lungs, then puff the air out with vigor. We loved how the colors were blown together, and the designs they made.

Color experimentation is also vibrant at the light table!

During the mid-winter, we studied how wild animals cope with the cold and snow. We found that they either migrate, hibernate or adapt to life in the cold. We set up our "animals in winter" sorting as a station at the Science Fair.

"think green"

Since Science Fair coincided with St. Patrick's Day, we had a designated site to examine green growing things with magnifying glasses. We had paper and colored pencils (especially many shades of green) available to document our observations. We included the shamrock plant, other leaves, moss, several types of lichen on wood... but, alas, couldn't find a leprechaun to join the fun!

(Though we did look very hard to see if we could spot one...)

Leprechauns or not, we do feel like lucky lads and lassies...and sometimes it's nice to simply sit and contemplate the beauty of a single blossom.

We are lucky to be part of a loving, learning community!

Judith

Rhythms of Life

2011-03-10T13:06:00.000-08:00

Rhythms of Life

We moved a short distance in our personal "treasured chest," from studying the lungs to the heart. We began by listening to our own heartbeat with a stethoscope... as you can see, it took lots of concentration and a keen ear!

As we ran and played in P.E. and outdoors during Large Motor time, we placed our palms flat on our chests to check our heartbeats. We all felt our hearts beating more rapidly when we were moving fast! Why does our "pump" work harder when we play vigorously? We're going to investigate and learn more about what's happening and why. (Next week we're going to look at a real heart.) We'll let you know what we're thinking and learning!

In P.E., we're working on refining our balance and equilibrium. P.E. teacher, Nancy, sets up tasks that involve maintaining physical stability in a controlled, changeable circumstance. We are working with body and brain together in order to execute motor planning. Keeping one's center of gravity when the wide balance beam shifts on the fulcrum is challenging, yet rewarding!

Time to enjoy a lever in a familiar way, to see-saw!

The rocking board gives just enough tippiness to have to be constantly compensating with a body and brain connection. Activities such as these also provide vestibular stimulation, circulating more oxygen rich blood through the brain.

The rounded "steppingstones" give another type of unstable surface to negotiate. Note how high the arms are raised to accommodate the sense of balance... Though this course is short, it is not easy!

Step by step upon varying heights is another opportunity to practice motor planning--- the different colors and heights give visual clues to help compensate; the small but flat stepping surface makes this a more moderate transition for a 4 year old's sensation of equilibrium. In the activities pictured above and below, spatial awareness in the messaging between body and brain, is a key to success!

We are also practicing rolling a ball toward a "target,"

while learning to make a triangle with the pins!

Catching and throwing a ball is one of those "developmental leaps," again involving a high degree of motor planning and sense of timing! Think of how hard it is for your favorite ball player who, despite having many years of experience, doesn't get anything close to every hit, basket or goal. It makes an adult appreciate how challenging a skill this is to master. Now look at your child, who in 4-5 short years, is gaining eye-hand coordination, more complex motor planning skills, and a sense of timing with catching and throwing a ball! This is a nice sequence of photos to demonstrate the action and skill... Thank you to Nancy for working so hard with Seabury's children to maximize their physical and cooperative potential in a non-competitive atmosphere!

A few other classroom motor challenges...

Hammering golf tees into syrofoam is less about force and more about precision--- eye-hand coordination, spatial awareness, motor planning---but don't mention that to the children. For us, it's all about the pride of "big job" well done!

"Look Judith, I made a T!"

Lincoln logs are a very logic based building medium that require a high degree of order and precision.

"I made a ramp coming down from the roof!"

We celebrated another "turning 5" birthday this week... our Bear Cubs are all so excited to be growing older!

We went to

at the Seattle Children's Theater.

We adults were amazed by how SCT can take such a simple story and make such a grand and delightful production! (The following photos are taken from the ones on display in the lobby--- not from the actual production.)

"Do you like my hat?" said the pink poodle to the dog.

This was a favorite repeating theme that made an impact upon the children.

By reading the story beforehand, discussing the elements that were the same and different between the book and performance, through reviewing characters, locations and dialogue, we are enhancing our literacy awareness and skills.

We were delighted!

The following day, back in the classroom, many of us spontaneously headed to the Creation Station. Without discussing it, each child was ignited by the same spark... to make a unique hat!

"Do you like my hat?" took on a more personal meaning!

When we read the book again, the children felt deeply invested in that sentence and insisted on reading it together throughout the story!

Back to Seattle Center~
After lunch, we went back to the
Children's Museum to experience the exhibits that we didn't get to last time...

The museum gives us a concentrated opportunity to experience a "bird's eye view..."

while examining the details in our surroundings.

Construction involves envisioning the big picture, while working on the small steps.

Again, the small steps require precision, coordination, problem solving...

and sometimes an extra hand to steady the effort!

Poppa places his order at the only restaurant...

where food can be prepared on the floor!

At Metropolitan Market,

we enjoy shopping for healthy foods!

The Baker is in, with a wide range of culturally diverse breads--- challah and Swedish rye loaves, pitas, bagels, injera, tortillas, croissants, matzoh--- a whole world engrained in bread!

Look at all those bins of fruits and vegetables, every color of the rainbow!

Check out time! Sorting, counting, categorization literally come into play...

When the children were asked how much their huge baskets of food cost, the highest estimate was $5.00... Make believe is such a wonderful world!

We explored sizes...

BIG,

small,

and in between.

Again, the physical ties to literacy awareness were evident in table settings and chairs from "The Three Bears." The children enjoyed the roles they could play as they handled and sat upon the props, "trying them on for size." They engaged mathematical reasoning skills with their bodies and minds, as they compared and contrasted the various sizes.

Mama Bear's chair was still too big,

but the orca's blowhole was just right!

We went on adventures of the imagination...

on Safari in Uganda,

a mountaintop camping experience,

heading to a fire

in our turnout gear...

Or maybe we'll take a busdriver's holiday!

Wherever we went,

we had a wonderful week...

Friends, learning and growing together!

By the end of our short week, were we ever tired!

Sweet dreams...

Judith

2011-03-03T12:24:00.000-08:00

Here, There and Everywhere!

This was a full week--- making up activities from a missed snow day last Thursday, studying our breathing and lung power, working on our auction project, celebrating Dr. Seuss's birthday by wearing our pajamas and making scrambled eggs... Can you believe that we did even more than that?

Take a peek into our week!

As we learned about lungs, we became very curious about how a part of our body can inflate and deflate. And how does something we can't even see (air) do that? We decided to do an experiment to help us visualize it all...

We measured out white vinegar and poured it into a tall bottle...

We stretched out the neck of a balloon and put baking soda into it, then carefully placed the open end of the balloon over the rim. We formed hypotheses about what we thought would happen... "The vinegar will turn white." (lots of agreement on that one), "The baking soda will sink to the bottom." Then we lifted the balloon and let the baking soda fall into the vinegar. Wow... What a reaction in both the bottle and the children! Immediately they noticed the bubbling action... "Hey those are bubbles!" , "What's making them burst?" , "I think I know... it's air coming out of the bubbles." , "Yeah, and it's making the balloon blow up!" , "The balloon is getting more and more bigger!" "Our lungs fill up just like that with oxygen and get bigger!, "Look how big the balloon is now!" Every child had an observation and keen interest...

Afterward, we formed our conclusions, then took a big breath and talked again about how our lungs work: What things are similar between the balloon and our lungs (they inflate with invisible gas), and how are they different? (lungs don't need vinegar and baking soda to do their job! , they send the oxygen to all parts of our bodies.) We have also talked about keeping our lungs healthy for our whole lives long through making healthy choices for our bodies.

One member of our class went to the doctor this week and explained the respiratory system using the terminology we have been using: trachea, bronchi, lungs, finishing with "and the alveoli pass the oxygen to the blood, and the blood takes the oxygen to all the cells everywhere in your body!" The entire medical staff was astonished...
and so pleased!

We took turns working on divider pages for our Science Journals,and recalling the many areas we have explored this year!

The development of mathematical thinking is ongoing throughout the classroom. Inspired by the mazes we have been doing, a collaboration began among several children to develop a maze for the small wooden cars to go through...

Placement of each block was very precise...

The runs required lots of physical control to keep the blocks in place!
Sweet and stable success!

We are all learning about place value and that 10 is the "magic number."

The abacus makes it so much easier to keep track of tens and count to high numbers!

Translucent, colorful geometric shapes are enhanced at the light table. We love combining them to make new and different shapes, as well as creating designs, patterns and pictures.

We are learning to dial the telephone... What is your phone number?
Pressing the numeral buttons in order, and the seeming randomness of every phone number, makes the task even more challenging!

Mathematical thinking is encompassed in music: including rhythm, beat, tempo and tonal gradations.

Studies show that musical training increases a child's mathematical reasoning skills... What a fun way to "feel" the math!

We worked on our auction project, putting our beautiful handprints on the flattened lampshades of the three-tiered lamp. Thank you for your patient help, Nathan!

We moved from handprints to fingerpainting, mixing two primary colors to make a secondary.

We'll link this sensory discovery to math by making "Color Equations."

Red + Blue = Purple

Blue + Yellow = Green

Yellow + Red = Orange

We wore our pajamas to school for Dr. Seuss's birthday.

A friend began orally reading "Hop on Pop," and several classmates gathered around to listen and help with the rhyming!

We made scrambled eggs... We know that Step #1 is ALWAYS washing our hands...

(and we do love bubbles!)

We love to crack eggs, then beat them with an eggbeater or a wire whisk.

Each child used both the whisk and the eggbeater, trading places at the table. Several children observed that the eggs were "more bubbly" when they used the eggbeater.

When asked why they thought that was, the children discussed what might be happening. Several recalled the experiment earlier in the week. "It's the air making the bubbles..." someone exclaimed. Another child added, "The one [eggbeater] that you turn makes more air go into the eggs." A third child confidently chimed in, "And more air makes more bubbles!" Wow, we were impressed by this spiraling transfer of discovery and knowledge from one experiment to another!

Cooking really IS a science the Early Learning Center!

And as we sat down to enjoy our cheesy scrambled eggs, toasted English muffins and apple slices, who should walk in but...

THE CAT IN THE HAT!

Wishing you many delightful days of discovery together,

Judith

Snow Business

2011-02-25T15:44:00.000-08:00

"There's no business like Snow Business!"

We came back to school on Tuesday ready to inhale "Lung Lessons" in our study of the human body. By Wednesday as the snow started to fall, the spontaneity clause kicked in. ("All activities are subject to the magic of the moment as we learn and grow together.") We had an excellent opportunity to learn more about the Water Cycle, which we've been exploring the last few weeks. The children had been digging ponds and channels, which had been filling with rainwater from the clouds and with helpful little hands filling buckets from other outdoor puddles.

Taking a break...

We found some interesting uses for all that bark we were digging up!

We love to experiment!

And then today, the magic of discovering that our play yard was totally transformed by a blanket of white...

Yet our pond and canals were different... they had frozen into ice! This absolutely thrilled the children!

One of our favorite water sources for filling the ponds and canals is from the indentations on the top of the mini sandbox. But it too had changed, resembling a tiny skating rink!

At story time, we had read more about winter weather and the children were very curious about the icicles in the book. "What are icicles? How are they made?," various children asked. Then, lo and behold, we discovered them on our small play structure! We observed them dripping, watched with excitement, then understood how they had formed... what delight!

Icicles big, Icicles small,

We were enchanted by them all!

What better way to celebrate

than to leave

our angelic imprints

in the snow...

Though the snow is cold, we Bear Cubs are bold!

We learned so much from this snowy day!

Judith

Love is all you need...

2011-02-16T09:26:00.000-08:00

Homegrown Bear Cub Love

This is a short week with Inservice Days, so even though we've been working on wonderful learning projects, in today's blog we're going to feature our loving celebration on Valentine's Day.

We began the day with centers where the children could explore and create...

printing with heart stampers was most popular!

Every project starts with writing your name.

The names with lots of letters take longer to learn... now how do all those letters go together?

Comparing and contrasting images, sizes and colors keep us wondering and thinking about our choices as we print.

We also had a Valentine book reading center, which the children thorougly enjoyed. Every child had their own book to take home... but first we read it together, discovering more heart shapes found in the natural world! (We've been on the look-out lately for "hearts" in nature...The children sense that they are a sure sign of affirmation and goodness!)

(oops, lost an image... Sorry S, K, V,and E!)

We played our circle game, "Will You Be My Valentine?" We noticed such wonderful singing and skipping! We have played this game a number of times in the past week... the children enthusiastically request it!

Life intertwined in brotherly love from the very first moment for our much loved dynamic duo (double the love x 3 = the third successive generation of twins in their family!)

Look at that skipping... that's a high level skill for this age! Our whole class is now able to skip---- in this educator's decades of teaching, that's a first for a group of 4 and 5 year olds! (We have been working on skipping in P.E. and during our everyday large motor times.)

Snack was so healthy and pretty... "tea sandwiches," heart shaped cheese slices and pink smoothies in red cups. Everyone was delighted!

(This photo was taken before second helpings were served... then the remaining food and the smoothies were devoured with gusto!)

And finally it was time for the highlight of the day, our Valentine exchange. Every child created one beautiful handmade Valentine at home to place in our classroom "mailbox." Then we each reached in (with eyes closed) and picked a card. Every card was special, and each child was so pleased with their unique and special surprise Valentine.

Anticipation...

Big Thoughts on Love...

Who do you love? How do you show love?

"I love my mommy and daddy because I just do. I give them hugs and kisses."

"I love my dad and mom and brother and Grandma and Grandpa and Nana and Poppa and Cathy and Judith. Love is when somebody loves someone. You say,

'I love you,' or hug or kiss them."

"I love my mommy because she worries about me. You give love to your family. You give your family a hug."

"I love my sister because she's my best sister. Love means that you love each other by giving cards, chocolate or hearts. Or you can buy heart necklaces!"

"I love my mommy and daddy because I love them. I love Astrid, Nana and Papa, Auntie, Karl... that's all! I give them hugs."

"I love Mom, Dad and Ellery because I like to play with them. I think love is that you, like, make Valentines and monster trucks."

"I love my mom and dad because they're so special. Love is something when you love somebody and it's really great. Love is the best thing in the world! And if you're shy and don't want to say 'I love you,' you can do the signs." [demonstrates with hands the sign language expression of "I love you."]

Love makes our world go 'round!

Judith

Water, Animals in Winter, Lots of Love

2011-02-10T11:06:00.000-08:00

Learning About the Water Cycle

Water is so amazing! We have been doing investigations to better understand this oh-so-common, magical, mysterious element. We love water in all it's forms, but lately, we have discovered how very fascinating water droplets are!

We have learned to use pipettes to place water droplets onto wax paper.

"The droplets look like little bubbles," commented several children.

We became mesmerized in our explorations...

and discovered that we could move one droplet to join another... Now the water drops grew bigger when they were pushed together!

We discovered that if we moved the toothpick slowly and carefully, we could move water droplets out again...

and the little water pools would shrink!

"How many droplets are in this big water drop?"

I wonder what we'll discover about the water cycle from this exploration?

Hibernating Bear (In PJ's) Day!

Last Friday, we ended our "Animals in Winter" study by asking our Bear Cubs to come to school in their pajamas, ready to celebrate the season in which wild animals either adapt, hibernate or have migrated. In honor of the special day, we made beary berry parfaits...

with every Bear Cub determining their own balance of berries, cereal, yogurt and granola in creating the layers.

M-m-m... bears love the sweet scents of all berries!

Thanks, Melissa, for helping us, and to Sonja and Christopher for the ingredients!

We put together books about how bears prepare for the winter, then read them.

We classified animals as to whether they migrated, adapted or hibernated for the winter months. The children love these big words and understand what they mean for the animals in our NW habitat. We introduced the concept of Venn Diagrams to show that, for example, some birds migrate and others adapt to their cold habitat. And once in a while, an individual bird of a type that supposed to migrate doesn't--- and somehow continues to thrive by adapting!

We helped a grizzly bear find her way through the huckleberry patch of a maze to her winter den, then drew her sleeping in the heart of the huckleberries--- the great bear's dream come true!

This was the most complicated maze that we have done this year...
so many twists, turns and "dead ends."

"I'm a hard working guy... See how I put my pencil behind my ear?"

We built a bear den to see how it would feel to crawl in and take a rest. It was good that we had our teddy bears with us to cuddle with!

We don't think that bears really wear pajamas in their den, but it sure was fun for us!

Our hamster, Pepper, had the run of the classroom so that he could watch all that we were doing. Pepper most definitely doesn't hibernate!

Lots of Love

Early in the week we began making hearts and wrote Valentine messages on them to our friends who moved to Milwaukee. Our fine motor and cutting skills have come such a long way these past months... We can even cut curves! We thought you might enjoy seeing the concentration it takes to carefully cut a heart card for someone you love (and this series of photos could have been taken with any member of our class community...)

and then we wrote and drew on them...

We put our hearts into it!

Creating Valentines offers great incentive for practicing our writing/reading skills in combining letters to create words, realizing that we can share our thoughts and feelings with friends far away...

and comprehending that our words are so powerful that they will convey our heartfelt messages to our friends when they receive them!

We all feel so happy... We agree that sharing love is the best feeling in the world!

So much love to life, so much life to love...

Judith

Animals in Winter

2011-02-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

Winter Brings...

the warmth of old friends to our door!

A former Bear Cub who is now a first grader stopped by for a visit,

along with her brother, who was a tiny baby during her last year here. Their daddy is back from Iraq, and they are all together again--- That last year that she was a Bear Cub, in class we baked many double batches of chocolate chip cookies that their mommy sent to Daddy's squad in the Iraqi desert. Our class tied yellow ribbons around the trees next to our play yard awaiting his safe return, and our friend frequently brought her "daddy doll" to school to snuggle with during rest time. Needless to say, their visit brought back many sweet and poignant memories...

The joy of learning is written all over our faces!
We recently added lots more Duplo wheels and ramps to the mix... with lots of new impressive explorations as a result.

One day the children decided to build a floor out of the wooden unit blocks. They engaged in a great deal of planning, conversation, collaboration and cooperation, utilized mathematical reasoning skills, measuring and patterning with the various sizes of blocks. It was a spontaneous, yet complex task, that captivated the imagination and attention of nearly the whole group for much of the morning...

In the end, the children declared that it was perfect... and then took it apart!

They offer a reminder for we adults that for young children, learning is in the PROCESS rather than the PRODUCT. (Wouldn't we all be happier if we could understand this and LIVE IT as fully and naturally as children do?)

We have been talking about animals in winter: how they either migrate, hibernate or adapt to survive the cold, snowy months. Using our plastic animals, we sorted them into the above categories, introducing the mathematical concept of Venn Diagrams with hands-on materials. Developmentally appropriate Science and Math conceptual strands intertwined, weave a tapestry of integrated curriculum! More about this as we go on...

We filled our sensory table with ice, so that our plastic animals that adapt to winter conditions, could wander about in a "wintry habitat."

We integrate the science and math with sensory awareness... This is COLD!

These animals must be very good at adaptation to survive in the frigid winter conditions.

We even had an "ice cube transfer" using special clasping tongs and colored glass cubes.

Everyone wanted many turns... and no one realized that we were refining our fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination, as well as strengthening our pincer grasp for writing.

Now we integrate the science, math, sensory awareness with a "service project" for the wild birds who are brave enough to stay and sing through the winter blues! We all brought in a clean plastic gallon milk jugs that we transformed into bird feeders. Using scissors, we cut a hole in the lower side for the bird to perch, lean in and eat.

We used permanent markers, so our bird feeders will be vibrantly colored in the gray of winter. We gather our visual, auditory and echoing verbal perceptions from

outside in,

and inside out!

Finally, we punched holes in the upper sides, threaded cord in and out (our practice with sewing helped with that task!) We tied it all off to form a strong, stable hanger to slide onto a tree branch or a hook on the porch. We filled baggies with wild bird seed---5 scoops each--- and were proud to take them home to hang up in our yards! We love to learn and be able to help animals in our backyard habitats!

It's time to integrate art into the winter theme, doing a wild winter collage, liberally sprinkled with iridescent "snow..."

while some of us prefer pictures of precision and exactness.

Remember our mystery of the missing crystals from several weeks ago?

Our super sleuths are at it again...
We left off with the primary suspect being the old black crow, such a smart, high flying and crafty bird... We present another chapter of

"THE MAGIC CRYSTAL"

"Where did that crow go? Do you think that he took the magic crystal outside? Let's search in the treetops!"

"LOOK! A squirrel nest!" Questions abound... Are the squirrels involved? Could the old crow have given the magic crystal to a squirrel to hide in its nest? The mystery deepens...

We'll check it out and get back to you!

TO BE CONTINUED...

with laughter and bear hugs,

Judith

A Stitch in Time...

2011-01-20T14:00:00.000-08:00

A STITCH IN TIME SAVES NINE!

(THAT'S 7 + 2 IN OUR BEAR CUB COMMUNITY...)

The children were so excited about learning to sew buttons... "My grandmother sews! I saw my dad sew a button on his shirt! My mom knows how to sew..." were a few of the comments heard as children came to our "sewing circle" at the table. Each child chose the shape and color of the two holed plastic button desired, then the shade of felt, and finally the hue of thread to use for the project. We used darning needles, which are thicker, easier to grasp, and not as sharp as sewing needles. As each child learned how to go "up and down" through the holes in the button, the thrill settled into deepened concentration. This was challenging work!

We felt pleased, and so very proud, when our efforts were successful!

There was another flurry of activity in the Creation Station, with more construction and stories to record! It is often interesting to observe how one child may start a project and that action suddenly ignites the passion of several others to visualize, plan and build while creating a story around their individual ideas. As we teachers ask open ended questions, our Bear Cubs really have no awareness of how care-full-y we are watching and listening. The children are gaining further skills in math, science, problem solving, language expression, creative writing, as well as fine motor and sensory development. This is part of the wonderful surprise that remains "hidden" to unaware adults: Leaps of development of the body and brain are integrated into every hands-on idea the children experiment with as they work with dedication on their latest creations!

We're working with the concept of fractions in a totally sensory manner...

We think about our friend who moved last weekend, and wonder about what he is doing...

We think about him living on Lake Michigan, which remains a powerful image...

"Here are the waves on Lake Michigan and see the boat? That's me and (names other class friends and family members) riding on the boat. There's a rainbow (blue and purple arches---top right.) The purple circle is Nana and Papa's beachhouse and the yellow one on the other side of the lake is a tall building in Milwaukee. We're all going to visit A.'s family on the boat. We're going to play, all of us together, and have a picnic in Milwaukee! Then we'll all go back on the boat to Nana and Papa's house. A and J will come, too, and they'll stay with us." An elaborate plan, mapped out and "documented" using the imagery of magnetic shapes!

It's always a good time to count candles to place on birthday cakes... You never know when we might need to celebrate!

"How many more candles do we have left? How many cakes still need more candles? Do we have enough candles?---- Oh great! We have one extra!" Lots of math problems to solve... and together we can figure them out!

"Let's sing Happy Birthday to You... Now blow!"

Sorting by shape seems more challenging than sorting by color...

Our last Friday goodbye photo together!
(minus one Bear Cub on holiday hibernation!)

It's already fun for us to look back at the photos from last week... We think that we're going to write our Milwaukee friend a letter next week!

Bear Hugs to friends near and far,

Judith

Farewell to a Friend

2011-01-13T10:58:00.000-08:00

We Bid a Friend Farewell --- to a Fare Thee Well!

We had so many activities to do in order to bid our friend farewell! We had to make plenty of time between the more structured moments to have plenty of opportunities for creative spontaneity. On Monday morning an engaging mystery developed in the imaginations of the children... The "magic crystal" was missing... Who had taken it? Where was it?

We hunted throughout the classroom and interviewed classmates. The crow became the main suspect. We inspect the crow intently with our homemade binoculars...

We don't see the crow carrying the crystal, but we certainly realize how clever those old crows can be. Some of us work undercover in the tipi, guarding the other crystals (the blue geometric solids) and doing phone recognizance. The mystery deepens...
To be continued in installments! (Can you "bear" the suspense?)

Meanwhile, another surprise comes to us from a friend, who has sewn us a bear!
(And he didn't even know that beginning to sew is in the lesson plan for next week!)
Of course, we all admire our newest bear cub, take turns hugging and holding it, and thanking our friend for working so hard to make it with his very own heart and hands, stitching together...

Speaking of hearts and hands together, we make a book for our friend who is moving away. Every child tells something that they appreciate about him, which is written on the page, then illustrates their thought. On the facing page, we glue a photo of each child.

Our friend who is leaving makes a page, too! He says, "It's fun playing with my friends at school!"

We make a copy of the book so that we can send the original with our friend and keep the copy for our class to enjoy.

Together, we made wrapping paper by doing handprints.

Looks easy, doesn't it?

Still think it looks easy?

It's all in a day's work when one works with four and five year olds!

The world of the imagination is compelling!

We can sort translucent buttons by color or shape... they glow on the light table!

Deciding which attribute to categorize is part of the process. Touching and sorting these beautiful, smooth buttons offers us experiences that encourage language, math, science, fine motor skills and sensory development. We focus intently on this mesmerizing activity, as well as the one below, thus lengthening our attention spans.

We added the wooden Connectagons this week, which reinforce similar areas as mentioned above. There are lots of opportunities to explore, experiment and discover when working individually or collaboratively...

Now that many of us are learning to write using invented spelling, we feel so free to express our wishes. When we want to leave our project out, we write signs that say "Please Save," and then sign our names. Other children like to come by and "read" our signs!

We are learning that our own written words have meaning and power...

That feels GREAT!

More collaboration with lots of practical problem solving, discussion and negotiation (below)... Notice the differing building styles on the left and the right (above.)

Can you can see the mathematical concepts being visualized, created and synthesized?

We have worked hard and we want to save this!

In P.E., we are learning and practicing more gaits... here is a "side slide," an alternative type of "slide show," (above)

skipping,

and dancing like a spiraling snowflake.

What joy!

It is with some sadness and many good wishes that we say farewell to our good friends. I realize that in my four years at Seabury, I've always had a Woods child in my class---and I love "having a family," brothers and sisters, as part of our class community over a period of years! We will all miss them... Just to give you a "heads up," the children decided that when the family comes back to the NW for a visit, we're all going to get together. I told them that's called "a reunion." They are all looking forward to our first class reunion! In the meantime, K and K have made summer plans to boat from Nana and Papa's lakeshore house in Michigan, across placid little Lake Michigan, to A. and J.'s house in Milwaukee, so that they can have a play time together. I hope that they take turns with the paddles, water skis and inner tubes and send us lots of photos!

Bear hugs, laughter and a lingering tear,

Judith