Kindergarten Beavers: May 15-19, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

Our school year has finally come to a close and we are grateful for the growth and precious memories we shared together in our beautiful forest. Our last week of school flew by so fast and was filled with much joy and laughter. 

The children enjoyed delicious strawberry sorbet two days in a row. Thank you for donating the strawberries! They enjoyed the refreshing coolness and sweet strawberry flavor. Children created bubble wands and had fun running around the forest, blowing bubbles and trying to catch them. We painted bird houses and some children decorated them with moss we discovered in the forest. Field day was the peak of excitement during our eventful week. Each kindergarten class set up a special station and we rotated classes to enjoy each station. 

We had two special gifts made for our class that the children took to playing with right away! Thank you Dana (Lily’s mother) for building our class a beautiful sand box that opens up and also comes with a miniature platform! The children had fun building sandcastles and working together to make a village with special pathways. Another special thank you to Nathan (Dominik’s father) for building us a charming doll house! The children immediately took out the peg and felted dolls and started playing house. 

Thank you to Amanda (Oliver’s mother) for being our class parent for the second year in a row! We appreciate all that you have done for our class and for relaying important information to parents. 

We were sad to say goodbye to our friends who are moving on and up into first grade but wish them well on their new adventure. We hope that the beautiful memories we made together over the course of the school year will stay with the children as they look back on their time spent in kindergarten.

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us! Have a wonderful summer!


Announcements and Reminders:

  • May 22: Start of Summer Break!

  • May 22-26: Teacher In-Service

  • August 5: Community Work Day

  • August 9: Grades First Day of School!

  • August 10: Kindergarten First Day of School!

  • August 14: Joyful Beginnings First Day of School!


Peace & Light,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: May 8-12, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

Thank you so much for making us feel appreciated during teacher appreciation week! We are so blessed and grateful to do what we do and be a part of your children’s lives.

It’s hard to believe our school year is winding down. We are making the most of these last few days of school. Thankfully the weather has been in our favor and we could finally play in the creek this past week. The students were delighted to play in the water again and dig in the sand. It was interesting to see how the creek had changed since the last time we played in it. We discovered new pockets of blue clay hidden beneath the sand, students worked together to dig it up with their shovels and found buckets worth! Students also enjoyed watching the plays by the First and Second grade students. We also celebrated our dear Glenn’s sixth birthday! This past week students also worked on Mother’s Day gifts. The children molded air-drying clay into ornaments or pinch bowls, after letting the clay dry, the children selected pressed flowers of their choice and used Modge-Podge to decorate their gifts. 

The last week of school will be filled with fun activities and enjoying each others’ company. As a reminder, there is NO SHARED SNACK this week, and our activity schedule for the last week is as follows:

MONDAY: Bring your favorite stuffed animal

TUESDAY: Bring your favorite stuffed animal

WEDNESDAY: Field day (T/Th students welcome 8:45-12:30)

THURSDAY: Enjoying strawberry sorbet! 

FRIDAY: Enjoying strawberry sorbet! 


We are looking forward to this special time together, and a brief celebration of our Golden Knights, who will be moving on to First Grade at the end of the school year. Please make sure to send water shoes and a change of clothing each day, as we will visit the creek as often as possible.


Announcements and Reminders:

  • 5/17:  Field Day

  • 5/19:  Last Day of School (Full day: dismissal 3:00-3:15)

  • 5/20: SUMMER BREAK BEGINS! 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your wonderful children with us.


Warmly,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: May 8-12, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

The Beavers class continue to make new discoveries in the forest as springtime plants emerge in the crevices- no area goes unnoticed by the children. We discovered our very own honeysuckle patch and wild sage growing in our play areas. Some dead trees were felled during our community work day and were cut so that the children could use them for building. A little log shelter was built and they immediately began to use it in their play. The class also took a trip to the farm this past week and picked radishes from the garden. On their way, they spent time on the boardwalk overlooking the pond. This time of year is especially exciting as there are more feathered friends and turtles around. Inside, we did something different for our painting day. The students drew a picture with crayons on their watercolor paper first, then we painted over the pictures with watercolor and the children were so delighted to see the water resistant effect. They kept asking, “is this glow in the dark?” 

We shared our story of, “Smush the Mighty Ant” again this week while the students acted it out in a play. We have the perfect space in our forest to put on a play and the students quickly got into their roles and positions. Our little ant crawled from creature to creature, there was our ladybug in the log, our butterfly drinking from the honeysuckles, and our spider who climbed up into the tree and down the web (on a perfect net we found). They loved putting on a play so much they created their own afterwards, and called the teachers to come watch. 


Announcements and Reminders:

  • 5/9: First Grade Play 5pm

  • 5/9: Third/Fourth Grade Play 6pm

  • 5/11: Second Grade Play 5pm

  • 5/11: Fifth Grade Play 6pm

  • 5/13 Community Work Day 

  • 5/15-5/19 No shared snack

  • 5/15 & 16: Bring your favorite stuffed animal to school

  • 5/17: Field Day (T/Th students welcome 8:45-12:30)

  • 5/18: Lemonade day

  • 5/19 Watermelon day and Last Day of School 

Thank you for all that you do and for sharing your lovely children with us.

Peace & Light,

Ki Fatima



Kindergarten Beavers: April 24-April 28, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

Thank you for coming together to create our beautiful auction project and for all your time and support towards growing our Garden School! We couldn’t do what we do without our shared hope and vision for our children. 

We rolled beeswax candles this week as part of our class auction project. The students enjoyed wrapping twine around the candle bundles and decorating them with orange slices, lavender, and cinnamon. Some students also made pictures out of wool roving by pulling off tufts of wool and designing a picture over a felt square, after their picture was completed the teacher needle felted it together. We also painted with three watercolor paints this past week and it was beautiful to see how adding one more color could make such a difference in our creations. 

Last week we shared a story about Smush, the mighty ant, who walked a little bit slower than the other ants because he was accidentally stepped on once. Although he moved slower, he was very strong and very brave. The colony of ants was running out of their food supply and Smush determined to take his chances again and crawl out into the forest in search of food. Despite the critters and creatures in the forest being much bigger than him, he found them to be very helpful and friendly. Thanks to the help of his new forest friends, he was able to return to his kingdom with plenty of food. We shared this story as we are seeing a lot more ants on our platform and forest space lately and we want to make sure they know it’s a safe space for them too! 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your children with us.

Announcements and Reminders:

Bring EVERY day:

Warm coat–spring mornings are cool in the woods

Rain gear–classroom stays wet for a while after the rain

NEW items to send daily:

insect repellant

sunhat

water shoes (MUST have hard-soled, closed-toed. Can use old sneakers too!)

5/5 Half Day 

5/13 Community Work Day 

5/19 Last Day of School 


Warmly,

Ki Fatima 




Kindergarten Beavers: April 17-21, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

This Friday is our annual fundraiser!  We are so excited and we hope to see you all (adults only, please). Thank you for your participation in our class auction project and thank you for your continuous support of our school!

“As the warm winds blow, the grasses do shake, I wonder what other creatures are coming awake?” Each morning we sing this verse and every day we spot new friends in our forest. We saw a family of five turtles bathing on a log in the pond on our way to the garden, a tree frog resting under a leaf, caterpillars, and two wrens who have been frequenting our platform, with beaks full of nesting material. They have been hopping on book bags and even going inside our craft bags searching for where to build their nest! 

Students also became very busy in the mud kitchen this week, at one point almost all the children were involved in a cooking contest. They worked diligently together and the timekeeper kept extending their time until finally, they presented their special dishes. Afterward, they called for a dinner party. 

On Thursday, the students watched a puppet play about a little girl who was asked to help with chores but insisted on playing outside. On her outside adventure, she came across a red squirrel collecting nuts, an ant carrying back a breadcrumb to feed its family, a bee traveling from flower to flower collecting pollen, and a flower soaking up water in its roots and absorbing the sunlight with its leaves. All the creatures had work to do except the little girl. Upon realizing this, she ran home and asked her mother what she might do. She dressed in an apron and began to sweep and help her clean.

Announcements and Reminders:

Bring EVERY day:

Warm coat–spring mornings are cool in the woods

Rain gear–classroom stays wet for a while after the rain

NEW items to send daily:

insect repellant

sunhat

water shoes (MUST have hard-soled, closed-toed. Can use old sneakers too!)

  • 4/25-4/27 5th Grade Pentathlon 

  • 4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

  • 4/29 Community Work Day  (hosted by the Beavers class)

  • 5/5 Half Day 

  • 5/9: First Grade Play 5pm

  • 5/9: Third/Fourth Grade Play 6pm

  • 5/11: Second Grade Play 5pm

  • 5/11: Fifth Grade Play 6pm

  • 5/13 Community Work Day 

  • 5/19 Last Day of School 

As always, thank you for all you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima



Kindergarten Beavers: April 10-14, 2023

Greeting Dear Beaver Families, 

It’s good to be back together after our week-long break. The forest turned green while we were away. The children are delighted with all the new plants and creatures returning to our space. We spotted fuzzy Bunny Tail Grass seeds, flowering trees, ladybugs, and lizards! We also began our new spring circle; the students are quickly absorbing the words and singing along. Our first song is about the growing green grass and segues into the various creatures we will find therein including a grasshopper, butterfly, rabbit, squirrel, and bee. All these creatures have their own gesture and the favorite seems to be the squirrel that waves its tail- this gesture induces lots of giggles each time. 

Thank you parents for helping with our class auction project- we are so excited to see the final product of all our combined efforts. The children have made their stars for our lovely felted crown and we spent last week completing this part of the project. The children have each planted a sunflower seed, and each day they come to school they check to see if it has grown. They are very diligent about watering and caring for their seeds which is wonderful to see! Last week, most of the students' play consisted of big group play, running, and chasing each other in the forest. It’s clear they missed each other while we were away! They also excavated some interesting objects in the forest and put it on display on a wooden board; we have our very own exhibition of artifacts! 

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Bring EVERY day:

    • Warm coat–spring mornings are cool in the woods

    • Rain gear–classroom stays wet for a while after the rain

  • NEW items to send daily:

    • insect repellant

    • sunhat

    • water shoes (MUST have hard-soled, closed-toed. Can use old sneakers too!)


4/25-4/27 5th Grade Pentathlon 

4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

4/29 Community Work Day  

5/5 Half Day 

5/13 Community Work Day 

5/19 Last Day of School 


As always, thank you for all you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: March 27-31, 2023

Greetings Dear Families, 

Thank you for joining us with your families at Grandfriends Tea! It is always wonderful to meet the special people in our students’ lives and for them to get to experience this unique place where the children go to school. 

Last week was very full and flew by so quickly. We started our spring planting. The class planted mint, basil, and rosemary in our herb garden. We also planted snapdragons to beautify our forest space with colorful flowers and the students each planted their own sunflower seed in a little pot which they will eventually be able to take home. Students also wet felted stars for our birthday crown which will be a part of our class auction project. This craft activity was accompanied by the most fragrant rose smell as we used soapy rose water to wet felt. These sensory experiences are so enriching for all of us. 

In the afternoons, the children look forward to when the fifth graders come down to the forest to build their pizza oven. The kindergartners worked diligently together to collect mud for the fifth grade students. Our dirt mound has the perfect mud for the oven so the students wheeled the wagon back and forth, transporting dirt. The grades students in return, gave our kindergartners the mixed mud and straw which they then used to make pizzas. It’s so wonderful to see the interaction between our youngest and eldest at our school. We also received beautiful wooden cutting boards from Mr. Matan, our woodworking teacher, for the children to sand and use as cutting boards for next year. 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us. 

Peace & Light,

Ki Fatima


Reminders & Announcements 

  • Days are getting warmer, please remember to pack two water bottles and a sun hat.

  • We are sending back their winter blankets, please send lighter blankets to school.

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

  • 4/25-4/27 5th Grade Pentathlon 

  • 4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

  • 4/29 Community Work Day  

  • 5/5 Half Day 

  • 5/13 Community Work Day 

  • 5/19 Last Day of School 




Kindergarten Beavers: March 20-24, 2023

Greetings Dear Beavers Families,

Our week went by so fast. It started out feeling like winter but by the end of the week layers were shed and the warm sun came back to our forest. The students were delighted when they noticed the mint from last year started growing back. We are planning to start planting again this week. Last week, we received a very big bell pepper for our vegetable chopping day. The children collected the center bit that was full of seeds and planted them in one of our pots. We are ready for springtime to stay! 

Thursday was beautiful and sunny and we took a nature walk.  We visited the creek and the farm and collected nature tidbits on our way. When we reached the farm we were surprised to find one of our hens left a beautiful blue egg on the grass! It felt like a true Easter egg! Back in class, there’s been a lot of creative activity. The children used pipe cleaners to construct glasses for themselves and each other.  We also tied a pipe cleaner around a stick to make a bubble wand and the forest was filled with lots of baby bubbles! 

As always thank you for all that you do and for sharing your sweet child with us.  

If you haven’t yet, please send me an email to RSVP with the number of guests and their names, who will be attending the Grandfriends Tea on March 31st. 

Reminders & Announcements

3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea (11:00-12:00)

4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

4/25-4/27 5th Grade Pentathlon 

4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

4/29 Community Work Day  

5/5 Half Day 

5/13 Community Work Day 


Peace and Light,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: March 13-17, 2023

Greetings Dear Families,

Last week in the forest, King Winter returned, sweeping chilly breezes through our forest and covering our table tops with ice crystals. Some of the children even started singing Christmas songs again! We thought our bonfire days were over for the school year, but we had (possibly) one last bonfire and the children readily worked together dragging large pine branches to feed our fire. Although it still felt very much like winter last week, some of the children worked together to make a second spring-themed nature table on our platform. They found a large block of wood, covered it with a yellow silk, and we placed a beautiful bouquet of flowers in the center along with a few other spring-themed decorations. The flowers had frequent visits from wooly butterflies the children crafted, as they “drank” nectar from the flowers and took a nap among them. 

In the theme of Saint Patrick’s day, we shared a story about a very grumpy leprechaun. Although he was so small, his footsteps were loud as he stomped on the ground with his hands in tight fists. He was so grumpy that everyone would flee from him. The leprechaun scowled as soon as he woke up one morning. Every year, at this time the leprechauns grab their bags and go in search of gold. Well, this leprechaun was down on his luck and would always return home with an empty sack. But this year, something changed in him. He heard a bird song and his heart softened, and suddenly his luck began to change. In the end, he discovered more gold than all the leprechauns combined! But much to their surprise, he divided it among them all so each went home happy, with a sack full of gold. 

Announcement and Reminders

3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea (11:00-12:00)

4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day

4/29 Community Work Day (Beavers class is hosting)

* Please RSVP to your child’s teacher the number of guests, and their names, that will be attending the Grandfriends Tea on March 31st. Click here to email  Ki Fatima.

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious child with us.

Peace and Light,

Ki Fatima 

Kindergarten Beavers: March 6-10, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families, 

Our week was very full and peaceful. The days went by so seamlessly. The children are really living into our morning circle and singing the songs over the course of our day as they are playing and working. There was plenty of large shelters in our forest this past week. Students worked together to build a wooden home in the back next to the stream and another one closer to the platform. There are now multiple cozy corners and shelters where students have been huddling inside, using them for imaginative play. 

Handwork continues to be in popular demand. We now have a basket full of wool roving and felt available and the students are inspired to create crafts or their own design. This past week we had a lot of ladybugs, birds, butterflies, a cheetah, and even a smiling cucumber crafted! Thank you for providing vegetables for our soup Friday. We had a colorful assortment and the students worked hard peeling and chopping them. They were delighted to see how lovely the chopped vegetables were once they were all mixed together. 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima

Announcement and Reminders

  • 3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea (11:00-12:00)

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

  • 4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

  • 4/29 Community Work Day (Beavers class is hosting)

Kindergarten Beavers: February 27- March 3, 2023

Greetings Dear Families,

We had a lovely and warm week. As the rain gently tapped on our platform rooftop, the children enjoyed noticing when it would grow louder and softer. Even on our rainy days, the sun would occasionally reappear and the children would acknowledge how bright and warm our platform suddenly became. It’s so wonderful to witness the children make these small but lovely discoveries at school. 

As the students are getting older and more developed in their handwork abilities, they are gravitating to spending more time on the platform. The children worked on handwork projects like busy bees all week. At one point, all the students were on the platform quietly working on their individual projects, either rolling yarn balls, building cars with Lincoln Logs, or sewing turtles and ladybugs- they were so focused and there was a hum of peace as they worked. 

Our nature table has turned into a spring-themed table.  The class marveled at the little blue egg in the bird's nest and the beautiful fragrance coming from the hyacinths from Mary’s garden. We have a new spring-themed circle as well. The children’s favorite song seems to be “Little Bird, Little Bird”.  During this song, they join hands and walk in a circle, then make an arch and take turns being little birds who “fly through my window”. It’s very sweet and they love singing and playing along! 

Reminders & Announcements:

  • As the days get warmer, please pack a sun hat for your child if able.

  • 3/11: Community Work Day 

  • 3/17 Teacher Inservice- No School for students

  • 3/31 Grandfriend’s Tea and Half Day

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

  • 4/28 Annual Fundraiser - Half Day 

  • 4/29 Community Work Day 

As always, thank you for sharing your children with us and for all that you do. 

Warmly,

Ki Fatima

Kindergarten Beavers: February 13 - 17

Greetings Dear Families,

Thank you for meeting us for conferences last week. It is always a pleasure to have the opportunity to speak together and share about your child and their growth. We had a lovely and very full week despite some of our days being shortened!

We shared a story over the last two weeks about an elderly lady named Salma who lived alone in the woods. It was late winter and she longed for the warm, golden rays of the sun. One day, she was inspired by an idea. She decided to make bird feeders using pine cones to invite the golden-winged visitors to her forest; this was her Valentine’s Day gift to the birds. Indeed it brought gold and much joy back into her life! Like Old Lady Salma in our story, the children collected pinecones, covered them in peanut butter, and rolled them around in bird seeds. They cut pieces of yarn to tie onto the pine cones and hung them on the tree branches in our forest as a gift to our forest birds. It was heartwarming to see the children’s delight when they came to school the following day to discover that much of the seeds had been eaten!

The children also crafted butterflies made from wool. After each child made their own design, the teacher needle-felted them and used pipe cleaners to make the antennae. The students fluttered around with their butterflies reminding us all that it won’t be long before we see them on campus again. We painted with red watercolor and cut out hearts to make into cards for our families, some children drew pictures inside and some wrote small messages to their loved ones. We also enjoyed a delicious hibiscus tea in light of Valentine’s Day. The tea was a beautiful red and was shared with our class by Ki Kim. Thank you, Turtles!  

Announcements and Reminders:

  • 2/20-2/24: Mid-Winter Break (No School) 

  • 2/27:  Teacher In-Service (No School) 

  • 3/11: Community Work Day 

  • 3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea 

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

Thank you for sharing your precious children with us and for all that you do! Have a lovely midwinter break! We look forward to seeing you again on Tuesday, February 28th,

Peace & Blessings,

Ki Fatima 

Kindergarten Beavers: February 6-10, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

We had a lovely past week with warm, spring-like weather. The children enjoyed watching the fifth graders put on a puppet play about the Chinese New Year. There was much laughter, especially at the animal sounds made by each animal in the zodiac. The children delighted in the origami rabbit gifts the third, fourth, and fifth graders handcrafted for them. In our own classroom, students made wet felted hearts with colorful sparkles of their choice. We strung together felted flowers, leaves, stars, and moons to add to our platform mobile. We took a nature walk around the forest, collecting pine cones which we plan to turn into a project for our special feathered friends. Speaking of feathered friends, our Hawk visitor from last semester visited us again during lunch and brought her own lunch with her too. The children marveled at the sight and how close it came to us! We visited the animals at the farm, admired the beautiful daffodils growing in pockets around our campus, and discovered a large hut with tunnels and rooms built by some of the grade students. The children promptly crawled through the pathways and inspected each of the rooms. 

The children continue to work on their tree house. Together, students successfully sawed off a piece of the wooden board.  There is only one more side to saw off. Once that is nailed in place, the foundation of the tree house will be complete. They are working hard on this project! 

I look forward to meeting with each of you at our parent-teacher conferences this week.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • 2/20-2/24: Mid-Winter Break (No School) 

  • 2/27:  Teacher In-Service (No School) 

  • 3/11: Community Work Day 

  • 3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea 

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima

Kindergarten Beavers: January 30-February 3, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

Thank you for attending our All School meeting on Saturday. Our future looks bright and we look forward to seeing how we grow and evolve together as a community.

We made it through a very wet, chilly, and muddy week! The mud seemed extra muddy and the students made the best of it.  Their favorite hill turned into a mudslide and they did not hesitate using it as such! We thank you for your willingness to deal with the aftermath of that! Our highlight of the week was Ki Derek visiting our class and getting a little tree house started for our classroom. The children themselves had asked him to help them build one.  He brought wooden boards and they all got to work hammering in nails. We haven’t finished it yet but the foundation is solid. 

We watched one of our favorite teas, our butterfly pea tea, turn from blue to pink as we added a few lemon drops to each cup. The children watched with wonder and enjoyed the warm cup. Now that the children are really developing their sewing skills, there’s been a high interest in sewing whatever they can! A few things they are working on: sewing pouches, purses, animal faces, houses, and some even took to sewing books! They colored on paper and sewed a few pages together- all on their own accord. It’s so inspiring to see what they’ll come up with next. 

Thank you to all of our families who joined us this past Saturday for our All School meeting.  Coming together as a community to support our lovely school is what keeps us strong and helps us grow.  

Announcements and Reminders:

  • If your child borrowed clothes from school, please wash and return them so they can be available for another child, if needed. Also, if you don’t recognize a clothing item your child brings home, please send it back!

  • Snacks should be protein and long-lasting carbs (such as grains) along with vegetables and/or fruits. Treats such as cookies, candies, fruit snacks, and other sugary foods should be enjoyed at home.

  • 2/15-2/17: Half Days and  Parent Conferences - If you haven’t signed up, you can sign up for a time here.

  • 2/20-2/24: Mid-Winter Break (No School) 

  • 2/27:  Teacher In-Service (No School) 

  • 3/11: Community Work Day 

  • 3/31 Half Day - Grandfriend’s Tea 

  • 4/3-4/7 Spring Break (No School) 

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,
Ki Fatima




Kindy Beavers: January 23 - 27

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

We had a chilly week! Jack Frost visited us in the morning and made a sparkling path for us all the way down to the forest. The water left in our mud kitchen pots and pans turned into ice overnight and we even had icy mud! There were a lot of high-energy running and chasing games in our forest, especially on the colder days. The children enjoyed playing Marco Polo and creating big obstacle courses using wooden boards and tires. On the platform, we worked on pompoms, finger knitting, sewing animals and houses with felt, and sewing on beads for the eyes or door knobs. We also visited the large playground one warm afternoon, which is always a favorite for the kids. On Thursday, we celebrated Mary’s sixth birthday and it was so nice to hear the precious stories from her childhood. The week went by so fast! 

On Friday, the children saw a puppet play of a folktale from China called, “The Most Beautiful Thing in the World”. The story follows an Emporer who is growing old and must choose one of his three sons to carry on his crown. He gives each son 9 days time and one hundred golden coins to find the most beautiful thing in the world. The eldest son gallops on his horse through the marketplace and finds a beautiful painting. The middle son travels on horseback to the mountain, where he finds a beautiful pearl under the chin of a sleeping dragon. The youngest son goes on foot to the town but finds more sadness than beauty. There were people there with clothes that were worn and torn, people who had barely anything to eat, and those who were sleeping in the alleyways because they had no home of their own. Upon seeing this, the prince gave away each of his coins to the townspeople until he had nothing left. He returned to the kingdom empty-handed. Each son presented his beautiful find but when it was the youngest son's turn to present, he had nothing to show. He hung his head and apologized to his father, who told him to stand up, for word of his kindness had spread through his kingdom every day in the last nine days. He had seen his caring heart and a caring heart is indeed the most beautiful thing in the world. Thus the youngest prince earned the crown of his father and ruled over their Kingdom for a long, long time bringing peace and happiness to all who lived there.

This Saturday, February 4, is our All School Meeting (adults only, please)!  Following our community workday, we ask you to please join us at 12:00 for a faculty-sponsored, complimentary soup bar before we join together to hear about the “State of the School” at 12:30.  As an added incentive, each family represented receives 2 volunteer hours.  Adults only, please.

Announcements and Reminders

  • Please sign up for a conference time for your child here. 

    • Conferences will be in person at the school

    • If you need to meet virtually, on another day or may need longer than our usual 20-minute time slot, please let me know 

    • We ask that children do not attend conferences, allowing us to communicate in confidence.

  • If your child borrowed clothes from school, please wash and return them so they can be available for another child, if needed. Also, if you don’t recognize a clothing item your child brings home, please send it back!

  • Snacks should be protein and long-lasting carbs (such as grains) along with vegetables and/or fruits. Treats such as cookies, candies, fruit snacks, and other sugary foods should be enjoyed at home.

  • 2/4: Community Work Day / All-School Meeting–A Community Event (adults only, please)

  • 2/15-2/17: Half Days and Parent Conferences

  • 2/20-2/24: Mid-Winter Break (No School)

  • 2/27: Teacher In-Service (No School)

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima

Kindergarten Beavers: January 16-20, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

We started our week inside on Tuesday. After morning circle, we had our painting lesson. It was nice to start our day with quiet painting.  The children painted with yellow and blue, and of course, green always joins them whenever they play together. Over the week, we had a lot of rain visit us which meant lots of delightful puddles in our outdoor space. This resulted in a good bit of mud play and splashing in the puddles. Some of the students are developing their sewing skills, sewing pieces of felt together to create the animal of their choice, and sewing on beads for eyes. 

The class enjoyed viewing model trains brought to our school from the Southern Museum last week.  They did wonderfully listening to the educators share about trains and were memorized as they watched the trains run around on their tracks, collect cars, and make many exciting sounds!  The class also learned train signals to help keep things running smoothly!  Thank you, Southern Museum!

Please sign up for a conference time for your child in the link here. Conferences will be in person at the school, however if you need to meet virtually instead please let me know and we will arrange for that. If you do not see a time that works for you, please let me know and we will schedule a different time. Conferences are planned for 20 minutes. If you feel you may need longer for your child's conference, please let me know before scheduling so we can work out a time that respects your time and that of other families. We ask that children do not attend conferences, allowing us to communicate in confidence.

Announcements and Reminders

  • Please send your child with snacks and lunches that will provide them with lasting energy for a busy day in the forest. Protein and long-lasting carbs (such as grains) are important for our full, active days. Vegetables and fruits also help keep us healthy, especially in the winter months. Please keep treats such as cookies, candies, fruit snacks, and other goodies to be enjoyed at home.


  • 2/4: Community Work Day / All-School Meeting–A Community Event

  • 2/15-2/17: Half Days and Parent Conferences

  • 2/20-2/24: Mid-Winter Break (No School)

  • 2/27: Teacher In-Service (No School)

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us!

Warmly,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: January 9-13, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver Families,

It’s wonderful to be back together and into the swing of our rhythm. We really missed each other's company. There was a lot of big forest play this week; with the colder days the children seem to play more chasing games and games that will keep their bodies warm. They also practiced stringing beads, finger chaining, and got to visit their favorite large playground and play there for a while. The much anticipated Golden Knights class has finally commenced. The rising first graders look forward to being called in the morning to join Ki Ieva and Ki Annabelle. They went for nature walks, visited the farm and petted the animals, played games like duck, duck, goose, and practiced making yarn balls. 

The students are living into our new morning Winter circle. We begin as always by greeting the day, acknowledging the sky and the earth, as well as in between, where we stand. Our next song is about dressing up for the cold winter day. We go through the motions of putting on our boots, scarves, hats, and mittens, then we pretend to step inside, and proceed to imitate taking it all off. It’s a good way to get moving on these chillier mornings! Next, we step into our Woodsfolk role as we climb a misty mountain, watch it snow, and then get our saws and axes ready to prepare wood for our fire to keep warm. Below are the words to the Woodsfolk song, which your child might enjoy singing and showing you:


We are woods folk sawing trees

Sawing, sawing, sawing trees

We don’t stop for winter weather

We keep sawing all together


We are woods folk sawing trees

Sawing, sawing, sawing tress

The tree falls down with a great big crash

Now it’s time to take our axe



We chop and chop with all our might

To cut some wood for the fire tonight

Now we carry our logs along

Singing gaily this merry-a-song

Tra la la la la la la, Tra la la la la la la


We are working, working hard

Chopping firewood in our yard

Hold the chopper, hold it tight

Lift it high with all your might


Chopping, chopping, chop, chop, chop

Merrily the pieces drop

It’s the finest game we know,

It makes us warm from head to toe



Now a bundle we will tie

We’ll put it in the shed to dry

Chopping, chopping, chop, chop, chop

Merrily the pieces drop 


Mark the date: February 4th is our All School meeting, please see the Main Messenger for more information . This is an event for our entire community and all families are asked to attend. We share in a soup bar, compliments of our faculty and staff, and focus on the State of the School. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us!

Announcements and Reminders

  • Please send your child with snacks and lunches that will provide them with lasting energy for a busy day in the forest. Protein and long-lasting carbs (such as grains) are important for our full, active days. Vegetables and fruits also help keep us healthy, especially in the winter months. Please keep treats such as cookies, candies, fruit snacks, and other goodies to be enjoyed at home.

  • The All School meeting will be on February 4th, following the work day. 

  • February 15-17 are early dismissal for all students (12:15-12:30), and conferences will be held on those afternoons. A sign-up for spring conferences will go out soon.

Thank you for sharing your precious children with us and for all that you do.

Warmly,

Ki Fatima




Kindergarten Beavers: January 5-6, 2023

Greetings Dear Beaver families,

Welcome back for the spring semester! We enjoyed getting back into our daily rhythm and are excited for a full week together this week. We hope you and your families had a restful break.  It was so good to see the children and hear about what they did over the break.

We are excited for our older students, students who are 6 years old before June 1st, to begin Golden Knights on January 12th. All Golden Knights’ parents received an email explaining the program.  If you have additional questions, please email Ki Fatima.

A reminder of our weekly rhythm, as we head into the new semester:

Monday: Farm, and herbal tea with snack

Tuesday: Painting, and Oatmeal for snack. Golden Knights 9:15-10:15

Wednesday: Vegetable chopping, and herbal tea with snack

Thursday: Farm, and herbal tea with snack. Golden Knights 9:15-10:15

Friday: Puppet show, and soup for snack. Golden Knights 9:15-10:15 

It is the winter season!  As our classroom is in a shaded part of the school property, it is cooler and, after a good rain, it is wetter than it is by the parking lot or at home. Please send your child with the following items every day, regardless of the forecast:

*winter coat

*hat and gloves

*rain suit or rain pants and water resistant coat

*insulated, waterproof boots

*change of clothing in wet bag (pants, shirt, sweater, socks, underwear) 

*warm blanket (for full day students only)


With gratitude,

Ki Fatima and Ki Annabelle






Kindergarten Beavers: December 12-16, 2022

Greetings Dear Families,

It’s hard to believe that our first semester has already come to an end! We finished off the last week before our Winter break with a lot of different festive activities. The children made pomanders with tangerines and cloves; it was a very fragrant and fun activity for the children. Students were very creative with the design- some decorated with faces and spirals and some even named their pomander. 

The children painted their own wooden sleds bright red, like the red sled in the story they have been listening to over the last two weeks about a brother and sister named Finn and Salma. 

On Thursday, students decorated their own cookie stocking and fashioned it with colorful sprinkles. 

As always, thank you for all that you do! Have a lovely Winter Break!

Reminders & Announcements:

  • Please remember to pack a warm blanket for your child if they are full day when they come back from break. 

  • As we begin the new semester, please be aware Ki Fatima will be away the first week back from school through January 11th. Ki Annabelle will lead the Beaver class with Ki Samantha, a familiar substitute teacher, assisting for that time period. During that week, please direct any questions to Ki Annabelle at annabelle@thegardenmarietta.org. Thank you!

Peace and Gratitude,

Ki Fatima 



Kindergarten Beavers: December 5-9, 2022

Greetings Dear Families,

It’s hard to believe Winter break is fast approaching with all the balmy weather we have been having! Thank you all for attending our precious Winter Spiral, contributing greens, and helping to set up and clean up.  Watching each student navigate the greenery and cradle their candle is always a wonder to behold. It’s a joy to observe each child and see how much of their character shines forth as they make their round to the center of the spiral. 

In the forest, the children hammered nails into a pumpkin and log. Sparks even began to fly as the hammer hit the nail,  the children called them “shooting stars”. Hammering is a beneficial fine motor activity and perfect for developing hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills. Next term, we plan on incorporating sawing and chopping bamboo, which we hope to use for building forts and structures in our forest space. The children were definitely in the holiday spirit too! Basecamp was full of the children working like elves, crafting gifts for each other. They colored pictures, cut them out, and gifted them to each other or saved them to gift to their parents. 

The class has been listening to a story about a brother and sister named Finn and Salma. Finn and Salma’s house was surrounded by hills. When they woke up one December morning to see the hills covered with snow, they put on their winter gear and headed to the hills with their beloved, red sled. They sped down the hills until their noses were cold and their cheeks turned rosy red. Mother called them for hot chocolate. After enjoying a drink by the wood burning stove inside the barn, mother asked Finn to help prepare the table for supper while Salma was to collect the sled. On her way to get the sled, Salma heard a beautiful song coming from the forest. When she went to take a closer look she saw a beautiful winter spiral like the one she had at school except this spiral was tiny, with tiny greens and tiny candles! In between the boughs of green, little elves sang and danced about! She was overjoyed at the sight, but her unexpected sneeze made the elves quickly hide for cover. She promised she would not harm them and began to sing to comfort their hearts, and one by one they joined her in song. She never saw them again after that day, but she had a lovely story to share with her mama and Finn. 

Over the semester break, it would be wonderful if families can practice tasks with their students at home to help build independence. We work with the students daily to help them move toward the ability to care for themselves and their belongings. Our goal and expectation is for rising first graders to be fully independent with their clothing and belongings before the end of the school year. Some things many students are working on include putting on and zipping rain gear, putting on gloves, taking items off without turning them inside out (if an item is inside out, reaching their hand into the sleeve or leg, grabbing the end and pulling it out so that is right side out again), getting their blankets out and putting them away, and packing and closing their backpacks. Especially this time of year, a full sized backpack really helps the students be successful with having what they need and caring for their belongings. We will be excited for them to show us what they have practiced over the break!

Reminders & Announcements :

* Please make sure to swap out your child’s change of clothes in their backpacks into winter clothes- thick socks, long sleeves, pants. 

* This week (December 12-15) is our MUST Ministries toy drive. If you are interested in participating, please bring a new, unwrapped toy this week. We will collect them during pick up and drop off. 

* This Thursday, 12/15, is the last day of the semester and a HALF DAY for all students (12:30 dismissal). There is also an assembly put on by the Grades classes at 12:00. Kindergarten parents are welcome and encouraged to attend.  It is a great opportunity to get a look into our Grades program, as the students in each grade present song and verses demonstrating material they are working on at school.

* December 16-January 4 is semester break. January 5th is the first day of the spring semester!

As always, thank you for all that you do and for sharing your precious children with us. 🌹

Peace & Blessings,

Ki Fatima