We have planned pajama days the coming 23rd, 24th, and 25th, as always this is optional. We do recommend sticking a pair of pajamas in their backpacks should they change their minds (tends to happen as soon as they see their peers).
Flowers
Thank you to Wiley’s family for the beautiful flowers and bundle of eucalyptus this week. These bouquets brighten up and refresh our spaces!
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0449afa629a02-flower
Parent Zoom Meetings
Thanks to everyone who was able to join us for our Parent Zooms on Wednesday. Our next Parent Zoom will be on Wednesday, December 2 at 3:00 (Cilantro) and 3:30pm (Dandelion). If you missed our parent zoom, or would like to revisit the conversation, here are the relevant links:
Cilantro:
Dandelion:
Thanksgiving
Just as a reminder, we will be having a pizza and fruit lunch for children on Wednesday, November 25. If your child has any food allergies or sensitivities — or if your child doesn’t like cheese pizza! — please plan on packing a lunch as normal. In either case, make sure to remember to still pack a snack and a water bottle.
NSW will be closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday, November 26 and Friday, November 27. We will reopen on Monday, November 30. Have a safe and happy holiday!
Group updates
Cilantro
Birthday!
“My birthday was tomorrow and now it’s today!” – Oona
Traditionally, we have invited parents in to read a child’s favorite story to the class. The storybook was then donated in the child’s name. With this new school year that has us reinventing ourselves with mandated restrictions, we are learning the true value of flexibility and creativity. Yesterday, in honor of Oona’s fourth birthday, we projected the recording of Rebekah, Oona’s mom, reading aloud one of Oona’s favorite books, Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty. It’s about a young African-American girl who is really curious, remarkably tenacious, and determined to solve the mysteries around her through scientific inquiry. Thank you Oona’s family for welcoming us into Oona’s room with the warmest smiles and for inviting us to think together on the whys life has to offer.
In honor of Oona’s birthday, the Cilantros created a water coloring painting using droppers with Oona’s favorite colors; silvers, golds, and blues. The Cilantros are in a space where all the other groups can see us and have sparked curiosity of how the children play and who we are. They too have sent us cards to honor the Cilantros’ birthdays. These cards have modeled what entails in a message with a greeting as well as the questions: Who’s it for? Who’s it from?
Thanks to the Dandelions, a mailbox system for children to independently send posts to each other is in full effect! Children are really enthusiastic about giving notes to each other. We are slowing down the process for their notes to convey and invite reciprocal communication. Many cards have also been made to Wendy. We plan on mailing her a package soon for her to have a tangible connection and know we all miss her!
Dandelion
This week, the Dandelions continued work on our mailbox for the West Wing. They created a prototype out of a sturdy cardboard box, and the group took turns using a small handsaw to cut the two doors on the sides. Next, the children used large paintbrushes to cover the surfaces of the box with gesso to prepare it for acrylic paints. Then we thought about how we could decorate the box in such a way that spoke to the growing connections and relationships between the Dandelions and the Cilantros. After discovering that both groups shared a love of the color purple, we worked together to mix different shades of purple paint to decorate the box. We’ve already had quite a few notes pass back and forth through the mailbox!
Inside, the children have also been spending a lot of time in the Exploration Space. Speaking of colors: on Tuesday morning, we discovered that the walls of the room were full of rainbows! The children came up with lots of ideas where the rainbows were coming from: maybe the watercolor vials, maybe the crystals, maybe the trees outside. These rainbows reminded us of a song that Roleen traditionally sings with our community:
We look forward to continuing to investigate our theories — and to see how we can add both color and shadow to the space with our new-to-us overhead projector.
Outdoor experiences continue to be tape as a resist this week in addition to introducing loose parts materials composition. After practicing their tape as a resist steps and adding it to our large piece of paper, the children move on to a choice of riding bikes, painting, dramatic play area, books, outdoor building, and woodwork. On our wood chip area days, the children have been requesting to begin our morning by playing “duck, duck, goose.” And today we also set up a short obstacle course which they really enjoyed.