Greetings Turtle Families,

It was so nice to see our Turtle families together at Meet and Greet on Monday! On Thursday and Friday, the class had a lovely couple of days getting to know one another in the forest. It was a joy to see the children’s excitement as they explored our forest and indoor classrooms and made new friends. Everyone played so nicely together and it was fun to watch them play and discover all that our classrooms have to offer. Inside, the children played together in the kitchen, played games, and built with blocks. Outside, the mud kitchen area was a favorite spot, along with playing with peg dolls, blocks, and babies on the platform. The rain on Thursday and Friday morning provided water that was just the right ingredient for lots of stirring, pouring, and creating mud kitchen specialties. While playing, we found a daddy long-leg spider and had fun watching him crawl around our wheelbarrow. We also observed many ants, birds, and other creatures that we share the forest with. The week was wonderful and we are so excited to spend this school year together, learning and growing, in the Turtle class.

This week is all about getting to know each other and our space, and establishing a strong rhythm that will help us move through our days. We will enjoy a story that we started last week, about a Mommy Cloud and her little raindrops. One little raindrop is scared to fall to the earth below with all the other raindrops. The raindrop gathers its courage and joins the other raindrops. Together they help a flower bud blossom. They play on the flower petals until the afternoon sun is bright in the sky. Then Mommy Cloud, with the sun’s help, collects them all again. On Thursday and Friday we will have a puppet play of the story. We will also begin our other weekly activities this week, such as chopping vegetables, visiting the creek or farm, painting, and drawing.

Announcements and Reminders:

We will begin shared snack this week.

Monday- oatmeal with optional cinnamon and agave; also bring a vegetable to chop
Tuesday-rice with optional nutritional yeast, aminos, and seasoning salt; also bring an apple
Wednesday- vegetable soup with optional nutritional yeast, and with legumes in the colder months (probably lentils)
Thursday- quinoa with cooked apples and cinnamon
Friday- gluten-free cornbread with butter/dairy-free substitute, and apple slices

Upcoming Events: