5 years, 11 months/3 years, 9 months.

Will and the boys held down the fort in Brooklyn this weekend while Apryl, Mac & I feasted on fried chicken & biscuits in Nashville (thanks Will)!  With a packed itinerary of indoor soccer, birthday parties, chuckie cheese, chocolate chip pancakes, and burgers, I don't think anyone missed me too much.

5 years, 11 months/3 years, 9 months.

The boys beat us up this morning.  We came into the living room and discovered Graham reading to Connor on this camp, which I believe was keeping them safe from the hot lava carpet.

Therese's e-mail of the week, entitled "The blackest night sky":

Dear parents,

We read In The Night Kitchen and went into the big room to create our
own night sky. We began by rolling our little cars through the black
paint, then moved on to rollers and brushes to complete the darkness.
As our outer space night sky dried, we rode wheels and axles, bowled
with balls down our inclined plane, and moved items across the room
using our pulley and rope.

We used a Jackson Pollock technique to add stars to our outer space
night sky. We looked at photographs of forming stars, our galaxy the
Milky Way, and an astronaut before getting to work dripping white
paint onto our big black mural. It is outer space and outa sight!

The children have been experimenting with rolling different things
down the inclined plane. Some tried changing the angle of the board
too to see how that would affect the rolling items. At the same time
on the other side of the big room children pinched clothes hangers to
use the pulley while strengthening hand muscles important for drawing
and writing skills.

We made our first four planets this week using papier mache. We asked
the children what they know about planets and wrote a list. They knew
the rings are really made up of rocks and ice, they orbit, the sun is
not a planet but a star, the sun doesn't really have those pointy
parts, it is round, they float around in the sky, and they are big. We
spent three messy days using papier mache to strengthen our planets
with each layer. We added color on the last day and discussed which
planet was which.

We read Looking At The Planets, a book about our solar system, and
examined the pictures in the book to see which are the largest and
smallest planets. We saw that our planet Earth looks blue. The
children said it was the water.

We had our first Lava tumbling class with Alexis. Some children said
they did a somersault, and some didn't say anything. We reviewed our
list from yoga with Jovan to remind everyone to use listening ears and
looking eyes while tumbling. A couple of people had to be reminded
during the class to listen to Alexis especially if they want to learn
some new tumbling moves.

Next week we will continue making more planets, go to Puppetworks to
see Puss n Boots, and Wednesday we will wear sleepwear for (finally)
Pajama Day! Yes, Wednesday the children can wear pajamas to school.

Have a wintry weekend,
Therese

5 years, 11 months/3 years, 9 months.

Graham and I scooted/jogged around the Prospect Park loop this afternoon while Connor was at his first solo (no Graham) drop-off playdate.  Graham has done the loop with me on his bike a handful of times and did a great job on his scooter.  After Graham ate his ice cream bribe, we picked-up Connor, who refused to acknowledge our arrival in apparent hopes that we would leave and let him keep playing with Freya.  

5 years, 11 months/3 years, 9 months.

King Kong Jrs take on NYC at the new Alamo draft house movie theater.  We saw "Sing."  The boys' favorite part was the bunnies who sing "Oh my gosh, look at her butt."  Both boys think butts, along with potty humor of all varieties, are hilarious.

Therese's e-mail of the week, entitled "Simply simple machines":

Hello and how do you do?

This week we read Machines and in the big room made an inclined plane
using the same wood we used for our big lever. We made our inclined
plane three different levels and predicted which would make our cars
roll further. We also predicted whether a big car would go further
than a small car. Everyone got many, many turns rolling many cars and
trucks down the ramps. Over and over.

We also got to use our new (old) helmets and hats. We have a couple of
engineers, a fireman, an astronaut, a policeman, and some goggles for
eye protection. One person said it's okay to throw blocks now because
we have protective helmets but then noticed everyone didn't have on a
helmet. We agreed our no throwing toys policy still holds true. What
goes up, must come down.

The next day we set up our inclined plane with bowling pins and used
balls to try to knock them down. Several people got strikes! We played
in groups of three. The children experimented using  balls of
different sizes and weights. They figured out which knocked over more
bowling pins.

We looked at a picture of a wheel and axle and drew circles in the air
and on the carpet. We also made circles with our fingers and arms. We
looked at little cars and counted how many wheels and axles each had.
Using pencils we drew wheels and axles on paper. A perfect prewriting
skill, circles and straight lines galore. We then each drove little
cars through silver and gold paint to create a pattern in the paint as
well as a pattern we could hear.

After looking at pulleys and noticing pulleys on the tops of cranes we
thought about what we could pull with our own pulley. The children
wanted to pick up Old First Church. Some had the idea of connecting a
rope between houses and then pulling the entire church to a new
location. After admitting it was too big they wondered if we could
pull up the jungle gym to the ceiling of the big room. Someone said if
we drop it though it might break a big hole in the floor. Two people
wanted to try to hook up balls with our clothes pins. They attempted.
We finally settled on our dress up clothes, helmets, purses, and
monster feet. Success.

Next week we create a black hole and go into our outer space study.

Have a simple weekend,
Therese

5 years, 11 months/3 years, 8 months.

Connor had the best time playing freeze tag with Archer at the playground this afternoon.  He gets so excited to have one of his friends to play with, rather than being the little kid at the big kid playdate.

5 years, 11 months/3 years, 8 months.

Warming up in the tub after a chilly afternoon at the park, the boys decided to attempt to recreate this classic shot from December 2014.

Therese's e-mail of the week, entitled "Chicks cheep and sleep":

Hi you all,

Monday we observed pip holes in four eggs. After many hours of waiting
we welcomed our first baby chick into the world. She had lots to say.
Afterward, we reread a book about how animals communicate. We learned
that a hen comes to the chicks not because she sees them but because
she hears them.

We added new pretend money to the big room. Now in addition to
wheeling, they're dealing.

We asked if anyone played in the snow this weekend. We made a big snow
mural for the classroom. It's freeeezing and white. We used a simple
machine to cut snowflakes to add to our blizzard. Brrrrrr! We used the
same simple machine to cut play dough. Thursday we again used a simple
machine to cut cucumbers and cheese for our snacks.

Everyone sat calmly, and gently held baby chicks; some chicks fell
asleep in laps. One child wanted to show the baby chicks a baby chick
book. The chicks were too busy being petted to look. Suki, my
daughter's rabbit, came in to meet the children and the baby chicks.
The children were so quiet and gentle that Suki hopped up to many of
them allowing them to pet her.

Farmer Eric came Thursday and took our baby chicks to the farm. We
imagined what noises they would hear on the farm. Some children made
other animal sounds and also said they might hear the sound of
machines, a tractor or a milking machine.

In the big room the children have been using the pretend tools to
build ramps aka inclined planes, new houses for the teachers, tall
buildings, and just general contracting work.

We read The Curious Cow and noticed that Farmer Green used a simple
machine to get Katy the cow down off of the porch.

We made snow dough. Children sculpted a snow globe, snowmen, a snowman
house, snowballs, something to count numbers with, a monkey, and a
hotdog. Some children cut paper snowflakes and added glitter. No two
were alike.

Next week, more simple machines,

Therese

5 years, 10 months/3 years, 8 months.

Completely terrible pictures of very, very adorable chickies hatched in Connor's classroom.

5 years, 10 months/3 years, 8 months.

Snow day!  We had a perfect morning of sledding.  The boys took a couple rides with us, but have really graduated to solo-sledding.  They both stayed toasty warm, pulled their own sleds up the hill, didn't complain (except about the hot chocolate being too hot...??!), and generally had a great time.  Maybe we're ready to try skiing??

5 years, 10 months/3 years, 8 months.

While Graham played indoor soccer, Connor and I headed out into the first snowstorm of the season.  Connor was thrilled to discover his friend Jack at the playground.  They ran around eating snow together until Jack had to go home for lunch, at which point Connor switched his focus to jumping and checking out his footprints in the snow.

We came home to discover Connor's first koala crate had arrived!  After 2 years of watching Graham get these in the mail, Connor could barely believe one had come just for him.  He absolutely loved doing and showing off all his projects.  Thank you Grammy!

Therese's e-mail of the week, entitled "Chicks rule":

Dear parents,

Our Monday began with the arrival of Farmer Chris and twelve baby chick eggs. He introduced us to the mama hen and daddy rooster, Jack and Jill. Everyone who wanted got a turn to pet them. The children asked a couple of questions: Do you have any cows on your farm? and Do the chickens sleep? The answer was the same to both questions. Farmer Chris tried like the dickens to get Jack to cock-a-doodle-do but to no avail. He asked us to cock-a-doodle-do to encourage Jack. The children replied loudly but still Jack only stared. We learned about the rooster's hackle feathers and spurs that he uses to protect Jill and the baby chicks when the fox comes around. We learned that many other animals live on the farm.

We read Out Of The Egg, a version of The Little Red Hen. We also read From Chick To Egg and saw illustrations of what goes on as the chick grows in the egg. We guessed whereabout our chicks were in the process based on what Farmer Chris told us. We learned that a chicken fetus, a fish fetus, and a human fetus all start out looking the same.

Wednesday we made a list of machines we know. We asked what makes the machines work? The children responded gas, motors, and electricity depending on the machine. We looked at a hammer and asked what makes this simple machine work? The children answered hands and people. After hammering a nail into a wooden 2 x 4, we asked the children if they thought they could pull it out. Everyone who answered yes (all but one), got to try. Then using our simple machine the lever, aka hammer, we pulled it out, demonstrating our definition of a simple machine: makes work easier.

We have been reading books about farm animals and baby animals all week while observing our resting, growing baby chick eggs. Yes, an incubator made it onto our list of machines.

Family shares!! Please, oh please, book yours today. Let us know what you'd like to do and on what date. It can be as simple as reading a book, showing family photos, or bringing a pet or extended family member in for a visit. Any other family member can do it too. About 10-20 minutes during circle is fine. Circle is about 9:45am.

We made a list of baby chick rules so we know how to handle them. 1. Sit criss-cross applesauce. 2. Be nice. (No hitting) 3. Quiet body. 4. Wash hands after. We asked someone in our class who has a new baby at home how she has to hold the baby, the rules were almost exactly the same. We talked about other animals that bite and scratch if not treated gently. A few children eagerly gave examples of dogs and cats at home that have bitten and scratched.

In the big room we have been building with big blocks, rolling on wheels, floating in the boat, climbing, playing with dress-ups, babies, and pretend food. The children are continuing practicing asking and waiting for turns. They are becoming more successful at both. We added more pretend food and two boxes of pretend tools. The children hammered, sawed, and screwed a big piece of wood on the stage. We read The Toolbox and talked about the difference between real tools and pretend tools.

We asked the children if they could pick up a teacher. Many responded with an enthusiastic, "Yes!" All who wanted to attempted and some wanted to try again still convinced they could. We then introduced another kind of lever and let the children try again. It turns out they could pick up a teacher!

Many continued playing with the big lever in the big room picking up each other. We used a big piece of wood and a small one from our blocks to make a sort of see saw. When one person realized it took three students to pick up a teacher on the lever he wondered if the same three students could pick up a teacher using their hands? Hmmm.

Have a restful weekend,
Therese

5 years, 10 months/3 years, 8 months.

Connor started crying immediately when I picked him up from school today.  He showed me a bandaid covered thumb.  When I took off the bandaid, I discovered a pus-filled, bright red, swollen cuticle area, so we relocated the playdate (and iPad with "Robin Hood" downloaded) to the doctor's office.  Connor has a strep infection in his thumb (?) which he probably got from one of the three other people at our house with strep.  He is on an antibiotic and should be better very soon.  The playdaters were remarkably cooperative about the whole thing.

5 years, 10 months/3 years, 8 months.

Kicking off the New Year with some play-doh haircuts!