Rainbows, Creating Color

The Rainbow
-Christina Rosetti

Boats sail on the rivers,
And ships sail on the seas;
But clouds that sail across the sky
Are prettier far than these,
There are bridges on the rivers,
As pretty as you please;
But the bow that bridges heaven,
And overtops the trees,
And builds a road from earth to sky,
Is prettier far than these.

This week we are exploring rainbows and creating color!

We will be reading the following books:

The Rainbow Goblin by Ul De Rico
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Whlert
All the Colors of the Rainbow Allan Fowler
Rainbow and You by Edwin Krupp
A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman
Color Dance by Ann Jonas
A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni
Rainbow Crow by Nancy Van Laan
Rainbow Rhino by Peter Sis
Light and Color by Peter D. Riley
Colors by Chuck Murphy
Color Me A Rhyme: Nature Poems for Young People by Jane Yolen
Vincent's Colors Vincent van Gogh and The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Living Color by Steve Jenkins
Growing Colors by Bruce Mcmillan
Color Kittens by Margaret Wise Brown

Color has a deep effect on us and can often set a mood as we enter a space. Primary colors that are typically used in childcare settings and school environments can often seem harsh and irritating. Soft colors and natural light work to soothe the senses and we strive for this type of atmosphere here at Apple Blossom Preschool.

We will hear a story told called The Sunbeam's Visit by Cornelia Fulton Crary that is about the colors of the rainbow and how each unique beam shines in their own way, just as little children who are bright and happy help others to be bright and happy as well.

Activities for the week include observing photos of rainbows, creating a magical rainbow with colored lights in our classroom, mixing colors to create new ones, making rainbow play dough, natural plant dyeing, experimenting with rainbow colors in a jar, rainbow ice,

Nature Walk Verse:

"I'll be a little sunbeam true,
A tiny ray of light,
And try in all I say and do
To make the world more bright"

This Week's Reflection: Creating Color

"The white light streams down to be broken up by those human prisms into all the colors of the rainbow. Take your own color in the pattern and be just that". - Charles R. Brown

"Each of us has been given our own color and light that we are to share with the rest of the world. what are your true colors? How can you best serve humanity and those around you? Meditate on what your unique talents, desires, and gifts are. Then, consider how you can use them to the best of your ability in all aspects of your life. This can be a life changing process if you are truthful with yourself."

-Little Acorn Learning

Spring, Shamrocks, Luck, and Leprechauns

We are continuing our theme of shamrocks, luck, and leprechauns this week as we also celebrate Spring!
Thanks to everyone who brought in a green snack to share last Thursday. We had green apples, pears, jello, celery, and soybeans! The children were delighted and happily devoured all the treats.

Miss Meghan will be back to teach here on Monday. Her schedule will be Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 2 to 5:30. We are all very excited for her return!

Miss Casey will also be helping here three mornings a week from 8 to 11 and may help even more within the next two weeks.

Our planned activities for the week include:

Exploring shamrocks/four leaf clovers
Four leaf clover hunt
Pot of gold hunt
Painting Shamrocks
Clover sun catchers
Setting up a Spring nature space
Spring mural
Wind socks
Wind games

The books we will read together:

Clever Tom and the Leprechaun: An Old Irish Story by Linda Shute
Billy Beg and His Bull; An Irish Tale by Ellin Greene
Brigid's Cloak: An Ancient Irish Story by Bryce Milligan
Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato by Tomie dePaola (what other book has this author written?)
The Spring Equinox: Celebrating the Greening of the Earth by Ellen Jackson
Spring by Gerda Miller
Spring Thaw by Steven Schnur

Nature Walk Verse:

Spring!Spring! Spring!
You are a brave thing;
On the ground you will not lie,
Always up from it you fly.
Your own force
Does, of course,
Take you up so high.

This week's reflection: Luck

"Some luck lies in not getting what you thought you wanted but getting what you have, which once you have got it, you may be smart enough to see, is what you would have wanted had you known."
-Garrison Keillor

"When we think of being lucky, we usually think of getting what we could only wish for. More often than not, however, what we wish for is not all we imagined it be in the first place. Spend time this week imagining yourself without all of the blessings in your life. Realize how very lucky you are. Be grateful and understand that when we do not get what we want, it is sometimes for the best."
-Little Acorn Learning

Outdoor Play Space

Our first parent workday is scheduled for this coming Saturday, March 26th from 10 a.m. to noon, weather permitting. We will also be having a potluck lunch together, so bring your favorite food to share.
There are now some photos posted of what we are striving to accomplish in our outdoor play area to give you a sense of what needs to be done. Of course this will not happen in one day, but we hope to get a good start on cleanup and finishing the sand area. If you can find any of the needed items and would also be willing to donate time in the future to help us install them, we would be grateful.

Music and Sounds, Listening

Our current theme is music, sounds, and listening.
We have explored the concepts of an echo, made musical pie tins with a variety of beans, played a cooperative version of musical chairs, and participated in a very interesting music class with Miss Casey. She brought special ear phones that cover the ear and block out most external sounds. They are used by people at a shooting range. It was fun to watch the children explore the absence of sound and not really mind loud screaming and beating on metal pans. They were also intrigued by the way their own voice sounded internally.

The books we are reading together:

Little Beaver and the Echo by Amy McDonald
Listen! Listen! by Phillis Gershator
Little Rat Makes Music by Monika Bang-Campbell
My Family Plays Music by Judy Cox
The Amazing Adventures of Andy Owl: A Children's Guide to Understanding Music by D.Z. Russell

How Music Came to the World: An Ancient Mexican Myth by Hal Ober
Animal Music by Harriet Ziefert
A Sound Like Someone Trying Not to Make a Sound by John Irving
Musical Life of Gustav Mole by Kathryn Meyrick
The Music Box: The Story of Cristofori by Suzanne Guy
Charlie Parker Played Be Bop by Raschka
The Listening Walk by Paul Showers
Too Much Noise by Ann McGovern
Marsh Music by Marianne Berkes
The First Music by Dylan Pritchett

This week we will be making our own tambourines, playing a game of hide and seek the sound, exploring the way a variety of music makes us feel, watercolor painting to music, starting special musical sounds at resting/nap time, learning many new songs and poems about music and sounds, hearing The Story of Echo, and discussing the anatomy of our ears.

A small sample of our morning talks:

Monday:

What part of our body do we use when we listen?
Let's be quiet and still for a minute and listen.
What sounds did you hear?
Name a few sounds that can be loud.
Name some sounds that can be soft.
Let's look at pictures of ear parts

Tuesday:

Sounds can make us feel different. Some sounds can make us feel happy, like listening to our favorite song. Other sounds can make us feel calm like listening to a running stream outside.
Today we will paint a picture as we listen to different types of music. You can paint how the music makes you feel.

Wednesday:

Do you enjoy listening to music?
What are some ways that you can hear music?
Have you ever played a musical instrument?
What types of instruments have you played? Which are your favorites?

Thursday:

Listening is very important in other ways as well.
Why is it important to listen to others?
When we listen to others speak, we let them know that what they are saying is important to us.
Listening to adults that we trust also helps us to learn and stay safe.

Friday:

Where are some places to go and hear music? (concert, band, chorus, church choir, musical, etc.)
Have you ever played an instrument in front of others?
Let's each play a song for our friends. It can be one you know or one you create.

Full Crow Moon:

This month we will see the first full moon of the Spring season. Native American tribes often called this moon the Full Worm Moon as the ground is no longer frozen and the earthworms soon reappear inviting the Spring birds to return. Other variations among tribes include the Full Crow Moon, The Full Crust Moon, and The Full Sap Moon.

Consider taking a Listening Walk during the evening of the full moon to listen to the nighttime sounds with your children.

Try to take your child to a local musical, concert, band performance, or church choir this week. In an age where most of our entertainment is provided by radio, I-Pods, computers, and television, many children rarely experience the clarity of sound and voices in a live performance. Going forward, try to seek out opportunities to take your family to live events.

Our new sleeping cots have arrived and we are now transitioning to them. We will be using them in the main house and introducing our new sleeping spots to the children one at a time, so that they are first comfortable sleeping on the cot, then sleeping on them in the classroom, and then sleeping on them as a group.

This week on Thursday, wear something green and bring a green treat to share for our St. Patrick's Day celebration. We will be exploring St. Patrick, shamrocks/four leaf clovers/ and Leprechauns and this theme will extend into next week as well in preparation for Spring!

Please join us on March 26th (weather permitting) from 10 a.m. - 12 noon for our first Parent Workday and Potluck. We will be cleaning up the outside play areas and putting finishing touches on our sand area. Bring your favorite lunch to share with everyone!

Nature Walk Verse:

"I listened, motionless and still;
And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more"
-William Wordsworth

This week's reflection: Listening

"There is a voice inside of you
That Whispers all day long,
"I feel that this is right for me,
"I know that this is wrong."
No teacher, preacher, parent, friend or wise man can decide
What's right for you - just listen to
The voice that speaks inside."
-Shel Silverstein

"Stop, Look, and Listen. What is going on around you? What do you hear? What do you hear inside of yourself right now at this moment? What is working right now? What is not? What does your body need? What does your soul need? What can you use more of in your life? What do you have too much of? The world is always speaking to you. Everything is a sign. Are you listening?"

-Little Acorn Learning

Owl Moon, Bean Bags and Spanish

We have discussed special relationships between children and adults and shared about meaningful experiences. Everyone has drawn a picture in their journals about a favorite memory. We have also made a variety of moon shapes to paste in our journals and hang up around the classroom. The different phases of the moon have been labeled as well. Lots of conversations about self-control, bravery, and patience have been inspired by our book study of Owl Moon. It takes a great deal of these important character traits to be out in the woods watching and waiting to see owls.
This week we will be going more in depth to learn about wooded habitats, trees, shadows, owls, daylight and darkness, and the lives of naturalists.

Lavender bean bags have been enthusiastically started. First, all the children were given the opportunity to scoop, pour, and feel bowls full of flaxseeds and lavender. They experienced a wonderful sense of these materials. Then they each received their own square sewn together on three sides and were shown how to turn them right side out and poke the corners out with a thin wooden dowel. The filling began! This occupied everyone's attention for a good 30 minutes and the bean bags will be finished this week. They have many fun and creative uses. The bean bags are to be handled with care and may be used in quiet play as a pillow for a small animal or doll, a load to be carried by a truck, or a soft companion for sleep. Lavender is a wonderful and relaxing scent that is very soothing.

This Monday morning we will be starting a 30 minute Spanish enrichment class with stories, songs, counting, games, and simple phrases. Our present focus will be on introductions and counting.
We will be using a unique language program that introduces children to the excitement of the Spanish language and makes them feel that learning another language and understanding a different culture are enriching and fun experiences.
Our activities will include:

1) A complete language course designed for early childhood
2) A wide range of learning
3) Age appropriate games
4) Spanish language songs
5) Information about the Spanish speaking world
6) Activity books
7) One on one time with fluent speakers and teachers

Monday Spanish class starts at 9 a.m.

We have exciting plans coming up for Spring and Summer this year. Miss Casey will be spending more time here at Apple Blossom during the week and has many great ideas she is looking forward to implementing with all the children including more music, art projects, gardening, science and nature explorations! Your child will not want to miss it!

Moon Phases, Owls, and Patience

This week our new book study is based on Owl Moon by Jane Yolen. The story is about a young boy who has waited very patiently to go "owling" with his father on a cold winter night. We will be learning about the moon, observing photos of owls and woodland habitats, and hearing about patience.

Other books we will be reading include:

The Boy and the Moon by James Carroll
Why Does the Moon Change Shape? by Melissa Stewart
Many Moons byJames Thurber
When You Look Up at the Moon by Allen Fowler
Moonstruck by Gennifer Chadenke
Sometimes Moon by Carole Schaefer
The Birth of the Moon byCoby Hol

Treasure Hunt

Thursday was an exciting finale to our study of Katy and the Big Snow!
We discussed the directions of North, South, East, and West, labeled our room, and went outside to work with a compass, find North, and make maps for a treasure hunt. Each child received their own individual map with a marked path and set off to find a hidden treasure. Then everyone took turns hiding treasures for their friends to find.
The wonderful weather of the week has been a welcome change and the children have been so eager to just run all over our outside play areas. They have been waiting a long time for that!
Please remember to work on a simple map with your child that shows the way from Apple Blossom Preschool to your own house. We will be sharing those with our friends so everyone can have a sense of where each child lives.
Also, be watching the moon at night and have your child draw what they see with you. Our next book study will be based on Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and we will be hearing and learning a lot about the moon!