Kindergarten River Otters: August 10 - 13

Osiyo (hello), River Otter families.

Welcome to the 2022-23 school year!  It was a wonderful first week, and I am so thankful to have each of your children in my class and get to know them better. This week we focused on becoming comfortable with the rhythm of our day, and with each other. It was heartwarming to see all of the students playing cooperatively with each other from the start. I am excited for this school year and to learn with this amazing group of young people. Next week, we will begin our daily activities and shared snacks and continue learning our routine, morning circle, and our blessings.

Welcome to our new assistant in the River Otter class, Ki Melanie!  Melanie has experience teaching art to K-12 students, along with yoga and mindfulness to children of all ages as well as adults. She also has a child in one of the other kindergarten classes. Melanie has already been an incredible asset to our class, helping us start a tea garden in the forest and a new, improved classroom composting system. She has amazing ideas and a beautiful spirit, and we are so fortunate to have her with us.

Announcement and Reminders:

  • Please send a vegetable with your child each Monday. Every Monday we will chop vegetables for our Wednesday soup.

  • If you have not yet sent indoor shoes to keep at school, please send them this week if at all possible. Beginning this week, we will be starting Wednesdays indoors for watercolor painting.

  • Our school’s next work day is Saturday, 8/27. If you are able to attend, there will be tasks to finish preparing the forest and school for the rest of the school year. And of course, it counts toward your volunteer hours.

  • The Kindergarten parent night is Tuesday, 9/6. Look for more information to come in the next couple of weeks.

  • If you have old washcloths you would like to get rid of, we would love to have them for our class. We will be cutting and sewing them into “owie cloths” for our classroom.

Thank you for sharing your children with us, and for being part of our community.

Gvyalieliga (With appreciation),

Ki Holly

Kindergarten Turtles: May 9 - 13

Greetings Turtle Families!

We played in the creek this week and it was so much fun! We took pots, pans and a basket of shells to “Kindy Beach” and thoroughly enjoyed the sand, water, and especially the clay.  We admired bowls and other sculptures that were molded from clay and left to dry by other TGS students.  A few students dug for shells and found several live tiny clams and a snail shell.  Pretty rocks were unsurfaced and washed clean, castles were built and a “lake” was made on the beach by pooling water and blocking it on all sides with sand and clay.  It was a true team effort! 

The Turtles are becoming so skilled on the swing that they look like acrobats in the circus! Sometimes they push one another or ask for teacher pushes but most often they prefer to discover new ways to spin and glide through the air independently. Group games were popular this week as the whole class was seen running through the forest, climbing to the top of the slide to “sound the alarm” and then sliding back down one after the other in adventurous pursuit.

Friday held some extra fun. We started the day celebrating Miriella’s birthday.  We shared smiles and joy as Miriella’s mom and dad recalled sweet memories from her first five trips around the sun and wishes for her sixth year. Happy Birthday, Miriella! We were then able to watch the fourth grade’s play, The Theft of Thor’s Hammer, which was amazing! The kindergarten students were captivated watching the fourth graders sing, act and play the ukulele. It was an impressive production from start to finish - Bravo! 

Reminders/Announcements: 

  • Wednesday will be FIELD DAY! We will have water games and activities set up for the children in the forest and we will spend some time in the creek.  Please send your child prepared for water play :) 

  • Friday is the last day of school! 

Kindly,

Ki Amy  

Kindergarten River Otter: January 10 - 14

Osiyo, River Otter families,

Our class had so much fun working and playing in the forest this week!  We got to explore ice and watch it melt back into water. Students did a lot of chopping and sawing trees with sticks and even tried to get maple syrup from some of our trees. They built forts, and were birds and dragons. We also took a nature walk on Thursday, looked at the inside of the composter for observation, and took turns spinning our fresh compost. After visiting the farm, we played on a slide on a hill near the farm and took a closer look at the marsh from the boardwalk.

This week was our Golden Knights’ first week with Ki Ieva. The older students had a great time making knots, bows, and pom poms, taking a nature walk, and hearing a story.  During this time our younger students played together digging, building, and playing house. The students are all enjoying the opportunity to spend time with students they might not usually play with, and bond with their same age peers.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Please send a small blanket with your child for rest time. We are resting outdoors whenever possible (and the students are resting so well in the cooler weather!), and a blanket helps them stay warm and cozy on the cooler days.

  • Don’t forget to check your child’s backpack each day to make sure they have a hat and mittens. Heavy coats are a must each day, as well as at least 2 layers of shirts and pants. Insulated boots such as snow boots are needed on days that are in the 30s or below. Students who are not wearing layers and do not have all of the needed cold weather gear have a much more difficult time playing, learning, interacting with others, eating, and feeling happy and comfortable.

Thank you so much for sharing your children with us, and for being part of our community.

Gvyvalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: October 11 - 15

Osiyo, River Otter Families.

What a beautiful week in the forest at The Garden School!  Students enjoyed the glorious weather and crunchy leaves. They spent a lot of time in the forest digging, exploring, and playing tag. Early this week the children made necklaces with Ki Kim, using lovely fabric scraps and wooden beads. The students in our class have generous, giving spirits and love making pictures and jewelry for their teachers, parents, and other loved ones. 

The past two weeks we have enjoyed stories about a favorite fall snack, apples!  Last week’s story was about the first apple tree, which longed to touch the stars. A star fairy takes a journey to bring the tree some stars, however when she returns the tree has beautiful, ripe apples that it loves and can not part with. The fairy decides to put a star inside each apple so that when a child cuts an apple (sideways, between the blossom and the stem) they will see the magic star inside. We cut an apple each day to see the magic star. 

This week’s story was about a tree that had three round, ripe, golden apples hanging on a branch over the orchard wall. The breeze sings a song as it blows through the tree about the special prize inside the apple. As three children walk by the tree, an apple falls at each of their feet. The first child eats the apple and throws away the core. The second child saves their apple in a drawer and it goes bad. The third child cuts the apple, sees the star inside, removes the seeds, and plants them in the orchard before eating the apple. The breeze sings that when seeds are planted, an apple’s job is well done. On Friday, we shared slices of Golden Delicious apples and watched a puppet show.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Conference week is here!  Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, Oct 20-22 are half days (12:30 dismissal) for all students (no need to pack a lunch on these days but please send a snack and water bottle)

  • Thank you for sending warm clothing!  This week will see a big cool down so we will definitely be needing pants and light jackets or sweatshirts this week.

  • You may send a small, light blanket in your child’s backpack for rest time, if they would like one.

  • It’s Scarecrow time!  Please send in items for the scarecrow or bring them with you if you are coming to help build it. We will be meeting in our outdoor classroom on Tuesday 10/19 at 2:00pm. It will be a lot of fun!  If your child does not usually attend school on Tuesday afternoons, you (and they) are welcomed to join us. The more, the merrier.

Thank you so much for sharing your children with us, and for being part of our community.

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindy Beavers: April 12 - 16

Greetings Beaver Families!

Another week of lovely weather made for more delightful school days.  The warmer mornings, lush greenery, and pretty wildflowers are just a few of the signs of spring that mark the change of season so beautifully.  We are observing more wildlife as well; from caterpillars to melodious bird songs to blue-tailed skinks and even a few fish in the creek - the forest is truly alive :) 

We spent Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon at the creek this week, which will be our plan moving forward through the end of the year.  The afternoons are the warmest and best time for splashing.  Please note, however, that the students only enter the creek to their ankles and therefore bathing suits are not required.  A sturdy, hard-soled pair of water shoes or other shoes that work well in water is all that is needed.  Also please note that although they are only dipping their feet, their bodies do sometimes (or all the time!) get wet as they fill and pour buckets and sit in the wet sand.  We do make a conscious effort to prevent the children from becoming completely drenched. :) 

Currently, at the creek, the children are digging for clay and examining the different colors of the clay they find.  Clay is collected into a large bucket and used to help strengthen the motes and other sand structures that they build.  Some students like to collect small snails and watch to see if they poke their heads out of their tiny shell homes.  Others enjoy collecting rocks, making mud balls, and creating art in the sand.  There is quite a bit of teamwork that happens at the creek as well.  Once the students settle in, they usually create a goal and assign tasks to get the job done.  A popular activity is creating a water slide with sand and keeping the walls on either side strong enough so that they do not collapse.  We will hear things like “More water - wait! Now more sand! Yesss!” 

The treehouse seemed to be the center of play in the forest this week.  It was a base for playing tag, a place to relax and visit with friends, and the location of a myriad of other adventure games.  The momentum of students climbing up the ladder and going down the slide was a constant, gleeful motion.  There is something magical about a treehouse that inspires endless creativity and unparalleled imagination.  

We also spent two afternoons in the playground.  Until recently, the tire swing was the favorite place to be but it appears that the climbing dome has now replaced it.  The children are building their confidence in climbing skills as they make their way to the top and then drop down through the middle.  They were practicing taking turns dropping through so that everyone stayed safe and once they were tired of that, an imaginative game took shape underneath the dome.  

Our story this week was “Mashenka and the Bear” and we had a lot of fun with it! Mashenka wandered from the path as she was picking blueberries with her friends and became lost.  She found a small cottage and let herself in.  Soon, the bear who lived in the cottage returned home.  The bear wanted Mashenka to stay with him to keep him company.  She cried and begged to go home but he would not let her.  He took good care of her and she baked and cooked and cleaned but every day she missed her parents more.  Mashenka was a clever girl and formed a plan to escape.  She asked the bear if he would take pies to her family to let them know she is OK.  He took pity on her and obliged the request and Mashenka began baking right away.  She told the bear that she would need a much larger basket for all the pies she baked.  Once he left in search of a new basket, Mashenka set to work on her plan.  She fashioned a stick, ball, and curtain to look like herself and placed it on the roof of the cottage.  She then climbed into the large basket when the bear was not looking, placed the pies on top of herself and a cloth over top.  As the bear journeys toward town, he tries to sit down many times to rest and eat some pie.  How does this story unfold?  Ask your Beaver to tell you :)

On Friday, we painted with Ki Fatima in Privet Pocket, across from the forest.  Each painting is so lovely and whimsical and unique.  Watercolor allows the children to simply experience color and all of its enchanting possibilities.  There are no lines to stay within or a predetermined image to create, which allows their interaction with the paint and color to be natural, flowing, and full of creativity.  We are so thankful for Ki Fatima’s gentle and talented guidance in preparing this opportunity for the children each week.

During Golden Knights this week, we took nature walks to collect flowers and pretty greens that we then wove into a nature weaving wall or used to make leaf printings with hammers.  Each student arranged their leaves and flowers on a piece of cloth, covered the cloth with a paper towel, and then hammered the cloth until the dyes from the plants transferred and made a print on the cloth.  They were very responsible with the hammers and enjoyed the craft so much that we did it two days in a row! 

As always, thank you for sharing your children with us and entrusting us to their care.  We are excited for all of the fun the lies ahead in this last stretch of the school year!

Kindly,

Ki Amy and Ki Fatima 

Kindy River Otters: March 29 - April 2

The River Otter students were excited to enjoy so many areas of the campus this week. Due to weather conditions and our new afternoon schedule on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we were able to play not only at our base camp in the forest but also the area outside the garden, the forest area at the bottom of crab walk hill (behind the 3rd graders’ dome), the playground, and our indoor classroom. The students really enjoyed the change of scenery throughout the week and the opportunity to use different materials and play in different ways. They also enjoyed a variety of temperatures, both light and heavy rain, and many wonderful puddles. 

Extra time indoors allowed us to spend a larger amount of time coloring with block crayons, which students love. They made pictures to take home and to give to their friends, and a few students chose to do some finger knitting. There was a lot of great block building, imaginative play with peg dolls and the play kitchen stayed busy as well. 

The River Otters look forward to their Spanish class with Ki Maria on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. Our class time seems to fly by as the students are having so much fun with the songs and games, and many already know the two songs we have learned by heart. Students have been learning how to greet each other and ask and answer the question “how are you”, as well as ask and answer the question “what is your name”.  We are excited to return to our Sign Language lessons with Ki Emily and watercolor painting with Ki Fatima on Fridays after spring break.

This week’s story was the story of Ostara (the goddess of spring) and the hare. This story takes place when the world was young, during a year when Ostara accidentally overslept by three months!  When she heard the children and fairies singing her praises she woke and knew what she had to do. She made her way to the surface from her sleeping spot deep in the earth, and she began to dance her lovely, graceful dance. Everywhere her feet or hands touched, beautiful flowers bloomed. The children, animals, and fairies joined Ostara in dancing to bring spring to the land, and everyone was filled with joy. Then one of the children found something. It was a bird who was injured and whose wings had frozen over the too long and cold winter. Ostara wrapped the bird in her cloak and breathed warmth, love, and peace over the bird. The animals, children, and fairies joined her in breathing life into the injured bird. When Ostara unwrapped her cloak, the bird had turned into a snow-white hare!  The hare took a minute to stretch and try out its legs, then began to run around faster than it ever dreamed of running. The hare could even do blinkies, where it would jump, turn, and kick in the air at the same time. It was so much fun the hare did them over and over, running joyfully while the children, fairies, and other animals watched with glee. Suddenly the hare stopped and everyone else stopped too, for they could feel the hare’s mood change and become very sad and tearful. Ostara stooped down to the hare and asked him with gentle compassion what was wrong. The hare thanked Ostara for saving him and turning him into a rabbit and assured her that he loved running fast and doing blinkies. He also shared that he missed flying, staying up in the sky where he was safe from predators and now he was afraid. The children,  fairies, and other animals understood that he missed being a bird and begged the goddess Ostara to change him back. But Ostara answered that if she changed him back into a bird he would just be the frozen and injured bird again and that she would not be able to save him. She did have an idea, however, and told the hare that she could make the moon his home, where he would be safe and could have all of the greens and carrots he could eat. The hare was thankful but said he would miss the children, fairies, and other animals who found him and cared for him.  He asked Ostara that he be able to show them his gratitude. Ostara offered to allow the hare to return once a year when she awoke to dance and usher in spring.  He would be her companion for the day and play with the children, fairies, and animals. To show his gratitude, he would now be able to lay the most beautiful, colorful eggs anyone had ever seen and hide them as a thank you game for the children, fairies, and animals. The hare was overjoyed and gratefully agreed to the goddess’s idea. From then on, the hare joins Ostara every year when she returns to dance and bring spring to the earth, and hides his beautiful colored eggs to be found. Although Ostara still likes to sleep in, the hare now makes sure she doesn’t sleep for too long again.

Golden Knights

This week the Golden Knights continued working on their circle, and are making a lot of progress on remembering the words and movements for the newer song. They also heard the tale of Rumplestiltskin for the second and final week. For the first days of the week, the students worked on individual projects, however on Wednesday and Thursday we worked on (and have nearly completed) a special project that included stringing different sized wooden and glass beads for a beautiful auction piece we will all put together as a class. This was a great fine motor and focus/attention activity for our older students, as well as a great early math lesson. It was interesting to see the different patterns students chose to make, and that some students consciously chose to not make a pattern. We will finish this project and start a new one after the break.

Thank you for sharing your children with us and for being part of our community. We hope you have a fun and restful spring break and look forward to seeing everyone on campus again next week.

Warm regards,

Ki Holly and Ki Fatima

Kindy River Otters: March 22 - 26

The River Otter class enjoyed a fantastic week in the forest, having the opportunity to experience spring’s variety of weather. Forest play included the building of many different fairy houses and fairy villages. The students are using their creativity and fine motor skills with the different resources available to build these beautiful small structures. The mud kitchen continued to be a popular activity, with the water from the creek now being used to make different consistencies of mud. Students also continue to dig and build bridges in the area behind the mud kitchen, and to practice balancing (and drumming) on logs in the forest. On Thursday, the students found an injured dragonfly near the mud kitchen and were very careful to only observe the insect. They also cared for it by digging a small hole nearby and filling it with water to drink, placing a soft bed of leaves nearby, and trying to catch mosquitoes for it to eat. 

This week we continued sanding, working on smoothing one of the long, beautiful sticks donated by a school parent. These sticks will become beautifully decorated wall hangings and other class projects. We also wrapped sticks from the forest with colorful wool. The students showed great patience and motor control when wrapping them and they brought beautiful color to some gray days.  We also had the opportunity to color on Thursday afternoon when the weather gave us some indoor time, and students enjoyed experimenting with color through their watercolor painting lesson with Ki Fatima on Friday.

The River Otters were very excited to begin Spanish class with Ki Maria this week, on Tuesday and Thursday. We began learning a song that teaches us greetings in Spanish, you may start hearing your child sing it around the house (it is a very catchy tune). The students loved learning through songs and games, and even a puppet show, with Ki Maria. On Friday, the class enjoyed ASL class with Ki Emily and continued learning about weather and feelings through fun and exciting songs and games.

This week’s story was a tale from the North American Indigenous Tsimshian people titled “The Meeting of the Wild Animals”. In this tale, the Tsimshian are great hunters who hunt year-round and catch so many animals, the animals fear for their survival. Grizzly Bear invites the other large animals to his house to suggest they ask Him Who Made Us to make winters very cold so the hunters will stay in their houses and not pursue the animals into their dens and hunt them. The large animals agree, and Wolf suggests asking the small animals and insects to join them to increase their strength The large and small animals gather on opposite sides of a wide prairie and Grizzly Bear announces his proposal. The large animals fully support Bear’s idea, and they ask the small animals what they think on the matter. After they are silent for a while, Porcupine speaks up and reminds the large animals that while they have thick fur to protect them in the most severe cold, the small animals and insects have no fur to keep them warm and would not be able to find food if it was that cold, and asks that they do not ask for more cold. Grizzly Bear says that they do not need to pay attention to what Porcupine says and the large animals agree to ask for the severest cold on earth, anyway.  Porcupine again speaks up and reminds the animals that if it becomes as cold as they are asking, the roots of the wild berries will freeze and the plants will wither and die, and the hungry large animals will not have food in the spring or summer and will starve. The small animals eat the bark or gum of the trees, and would still be able to survive. After speaking, Porcupine bites off his thumb to show how bold he is, and this is why porcupines have only four fingers and no thumb.  The large animals are speechless and Porcupine’s wisdom and agree with him and make him their wise man, the first among the small animals. Together the animals agree to six months of winter and six months of summer. In his wisdom, Porcupine also says that in winter there will be ice and snow, in spring there will be showers and the plants will become green, in summer the weather will be warmer and the fish will swim upstream, and in fall the leaves will drop, it will rain, and the rivers and brooks will overflow. Then all of the animals will go into their dens and hide for six months. This is why animals large and small take to their dens in winter. Only Porcupine does not hide, but visits his neighbors. He also went to the animals who had slighted him at the meeting and stuck them with the quills of his tail, and that is why animals remain afraid of Porcupine to this day.

Golden Knights

This week the Golden Knights heard a new story, an adapted version of Rumplestiltskin. On Thursday we used clay to sculpt our favorite parts of the story, and when we discussed the stories we have heard so far most students said every story has been their favorite. On Monday, students continued working on different projects with Ki Fatima, and on Tuesday and Wednesday, we had a special activity called Singing Flowers, which the first-grade class did earlier in the month. Ask your child how this surprising and beautiful activity works. Each student also brought home a sheet with the flowers to color and cut out at home if they wish.

Reminders

  • Toys and other items from home should not be brought to school. While they are a lot of fun and we know students like to share things with their friends, these items can become lost or broken and are a distraction from our work and forest play.

  • Please send your child with waterproof boots on rainy days or when it has rained in the last few days. Our puddles stick around in the forest after a rain, and children need waterproof boots to splash in puddles, and rain pants or rain suits to jump in very big puddles, so they do not become wet and cold.

  • Friday 4/2 is 12:30 dismissal for all students, and they will not need a lunch. The following week is spring break- enjoy!

Thank you for sharing your children with us and for being part of our community.

Warm regards,

Ki Holly and Ki Fatima

Kindy Beavers: January 11 - 15

Greetings Beaver families!

We are very happy to be together again after our long break! A lot of wonderful and new things took place over the course of our week. 

We are excited to welcome two new students to our class. It's always a joy to see how quickly the children feel at home in the forest and a part of the class.  

There was a lot of activity in the forest this week. Forts were built, worms were unearthed, underground fairy homes were dug, stones were crushed into crystals- they also discovered those same stones make great chalk for drawing. Peculiar animal tracks were spotted when we looked down at the sand by the creek. The children came to a consensus that they must be panda footprints, as there's a bamboo forest just across the water. 

This week the children listened to a story native to China called, "The Bamboo Maiden". It's about an elderly man who, upon playing his bamboo flute, saw it turn into a lovely maiden who would become his daughter. She was a very kind, gentle, and loving daughter. News of her character spread throughout their kingdom and thus many youths came to seek her hand in marriage. She told her father that she will not marry unless the youth could find a silver pin four inches long, a branch from a Cassia tree on the moon, and a golden key from the yellow sea. Each youth set out on a journey to find these special treasures, but to no avail. Only the fifth youth was able to attain them. Unlike the youths who sought the treasures she had requested, the treasures seemed to seek the fifth youth due to his generosity and acts of kindness.

On Friday, We got to celebrate Nina's half birthday. In the afternoon, we took a nature walk through the forest and visited parts of the forest that are less traveled. Later, the children joined Ki Emily for their first ASL class. They enjoyed it very much. The children also had their first week of Spanish with Ki Maria and had fun singing together in Spanish. 

After much anticipation, the Golden Knights class has finally commenced. The rising first graders have been looking forward to this class for a very long time. We started our class with a special Golden Knights circle.  We recited verses and lit a candle in the center of our circle. The children each worked on their handwork project as they listened to a Grimms fairytale, which is traditionally told in the Waldorf schools to six-year olds.

Our Golden Knights closing verse: 

Our work is done, our day is past

We'll go our separate ways

And I will hold so tight and fast

What i have learned today

I've given with my heart and mind

The effort my work needs

And I will strive in me to find

Good thoughts, good words, good deeds

Overall, it was a smooth transition back to school. We missed a few friends this week and look forward to having them back with us soon. May you and your families all stay well. 

Warm Regards,

Ki Fatima and Ki Amy

Mountaingarten: Nov. 5th - 14th

This past week was a lot of fun and very wet. The children participated in making cards for the soldiers, feeding the animals, cutting up vegetables, making their own little rolls of bread, felt necklaces and water painting and adding a touch of glitter. The children continue to enjoy their time with Ki Nina where they are able to relax with yoga prior to having rest time.  

Throughout the week we are able to play in the forest with meadowgarten and take nature walks where the children hunt for turtles in the pond. Some children enjoyed splashing in the puddles, and would make sure that they were covered from head to toe in mud.

The children were told the story of a red robin whose broken wing prohibited him from flying South for the winter. The bird continued to go to different types of trees, and each tree turned him down. When the Red Robin came to an Evergreen tree, the Evergreen tree let the bird in and kept him safe and warm for the winter. On Thursday the children were able to reenact the story that had been told to them, with the help of Ki Fatima as the narrator. 

On Thursday the children enjoyed a warm chamomile tea with their snack.

A new poem has been introduced to the children that they will continue to work on throughout the next couple of weeks:

Have you seen the wind?

Neither  you nor I.

But when the leaves are trembling. 

The wind is passing by. 

Have you seen the wind?

Neither I not you.

But when the tree bark bows its head. 

The wind is passing through. 

For show and tell the students brought in a pamphlet of snakes, an invention, a student brought a snack he had made, and a dinosaur tooth. 

Reminders:

All students must have a rain suit or a rain jacket and rain pants. If the student is not prepared for the rainy outdoor weather the parents will be called for them to bring in a coat or to pick the child up.

Please ensure that your child has an extra pair of clothing. It is preferred that there are 2 extra pair of clothes because some children are muddy prior to school starting. If they do not have an extra pair of clothing, and are muddy/wet parents will be called to come bring them extra clothes or to be picked up. 

Children should have at lease two pairs of shoes. Each child should have a pair of rain boots. 

Kindergarten: September 3-7

Dear Mountain & Meadow parents,

We had our first assembly of the year this past Friday and it was a true joy to see what the children have been working on thus far. We were very proud of Mountain and Meadow who did so well all throughout! 

We spotted a new frog last week, made a beeswax candle, gathered our favorite leaves in the forest, made necklaces out of yarn and leaves, and made our hands red and pink from squishing poke wood berries! 

We ran, jumped, splashed and played. It was a good week. We really missed Ki Warren and are happy he's back with us! 

Meadow parents who sign up for snack, please bring in snacking vegetables (any vegetable you can dip in hummus) instead of fruits from now on, this will provide for the children’s second snack, while mountain garden will provide the fruit snack. We’ve noticed there’s been a lot of left over fruit and we can use the vegetables for MWF second snack and our soup on Thursdays. As a reference, the children usually eat roughly 10 lbs of fresh veggies a week. Thank you. 

One last request, please put the children’s change of clothes in a labeled bag! 

Thank you all and may we have a wonderful week ahead of us! 

Mountain & Meadow

Kindergarten: Aug 27 - 31

Happy September! 

This past week was especially exciting because we got to splash and play in the creek every day! We spotted raccoon and deer tracks in the sand and little fish in the water. The children gathered stones in a wagon and piled them into the channel where water would flow, without any suggestion from us! This was followed by taking turns wheeling each other around in the wagon. We found wild strawberries in the garden, an ant colony living inside a tree, and seashells by the creek. We made sand angels, a forest salad, and placed our painted stones down the forest path.

Our days are feeling more attune to the "breathe in, breathe out" rhythm that we hope to achieve. We are still working around all the transitions, however. It often feels rushed, especially coming in for lunch, so we are trying to see how we can make things run smoother still. 

It's been really wonderful getting to know and understand each child and seeing how they view and respond to the world around them. We am learning a lot from them.

The children look out for each other and ask one another "are you okay?" or "why is he/she crying?" There is a natural tendency towards empathy and wanting to help the other.

If you tried to send an email to mountain@ or meadow@ in the past week and it didn't go through, please know it is because our emails was changed. The emails were supposed to be redirected to the new email address but since that wasn't working we are keeping the original email, so hopefully we will be able to receive your messages now.

Also, now that we've got the garden beds cleaned up, we would love to start gardening with the children! If you know where we may acquire free garden soil, please let us know! 

As always, your energy and commitment to the children, school, and our community is very much appreciated. I am learning everything starts at home, and I can see that each child is so loved and cared for and I sincerely hope we can extend that love and care when they come to school each day. 

With Gratitude,

The Kindergarten Teachers

Meadowgarten: Aug 20 - 24

Good Monday Families!! 

We had a wonderful week last week settling into our rhythm and exploring the wonders of our campus. We have started having our forest play with the other kindergarten class and will continue to combine our energies during this time and snack time as well. We saw lots of creatures this past week including; caterpillars, butterflies, skinks, tadpoles, turtles, fun bugs, skiddish chipmunks, and our wonderful garden animals. We are looking forward to this next week as we begin to make bread and crafts, explore the creek, and learn wonderful things along the way. 

Thank you to all of the parents who came out to the workday this past weekend! We accomplished a lot and it was wonderful to see the community working together to better our space. If you did not make it, no worries, there will be other days and many more ways to contribute! This coming week we will be in the creek so please remember to pack extra clothes and shoes that can get wet!

We have a new floor in our classroom! We are excited to see how that helps cool the space, as well as how that changes the nature of our play. 

Thanks for all of your wonderful energy! Enjoy your week! 

- Meadowgarten Class 

Mountaingarten: Aug 20 - 24

Hello Mountain families!

Another good week is behind us and we are looking forward to the next! 

We celebrated dear Maya's 4th birthday, picked elderberries in the garden, went for a walk down the art walk trail and gathered our favorite stones that we would later paint, chopped vegetables for our soup, crafted a God's Eye, made a wildflower bouquet for our classroom, touched strange caterpillars, and enjoyed the early morning breezes. We are excited Autumn is near. 

We're looking forward to start our seasonal garden now that the weeds have been pulled. Thank you to everyone who came to help during the community work day! And thank you for the fruit! And everyone who has helped in setting up and putting away our classroom. Your help is appreciated. 

Sincerely,

Ki Fatima & Ki Aja

Mountaingarten: August 13 - 17

Hello Mountain Garden families!

This past week we enjoyed making sourdough bread for the first time, one of our children officially eats crusts now! We also started making our classroom folders so the children have a place to put their crafts and arts works. We made water color paintings using a single primary color.  We will build up using a different primary color each week and later we will begin to layer them and watch the magic happen.

We all begin the morning in song and circle and the children have already learned most of the songs and movements. We also almost perfected our walking circle. We have an appointed line leader for each day so each child may experience being a leader. We played in mud puddles, fed the animals, built fairy houses, and enjoyed each others good company. 

At lunch on Friday, the children were saying among each other "my mom is the best pizza maker in the world!" Until one of the children stood up and said "all our moms make the best pizza!" And they all came to this agreement. That little exchange describes our class very well. We're constantly taken back by the kindness and consideration these children possess and when there's something we need to talk about or work on, they respond so quickly. 

Overall I feel constantly inspired by our children. We're hoping to bring more activities and looking forward to learning more together. 

Peace and Light,

Ki Fatima & Ki Aja

Meadowgarten: August 13 - 17

It really was a wonderful week, and I am sorry to have missed most of it! 

Thank you for all of the well wishes and get well gifts! It only furthered my love of this place and appreciation for all those present. 

This week our meadow family got to explore the woods, making a fairy house village, forts, and lots of pies (from sand, dirt, mud, and everything in-between). We also got to explore the campus some more and become more familiar with all of our spaces, including the dome. We will still plan to be outside most of the time, but it is nice to have that space for when it rains and when a respite from the sun is needed. 

This week we will be in the creek so please, as always, remember to pack a change of clothes and a bathing suit if that feels like an appropriate option. Even when we don't splash in the creek, there is a chance of getting muddy and wet in puddles and more, so the clothes are important. 

There are a lot of mosquitoes around. We carry an all natural bug spray with us but if you have a preferred brand please spray them before school and send it with them. Please pack a "wet bag" or plastic bag with your child for dirty or wet clothes they change out of. Please also remember a change of shoes or rain boots as part of their spare clothing. 

We are excited to have the first full week behind us and to continue on with a wonderful rhythm and lots of adventure to come!! 

Ki Warren

Kindergarten: First Week of School

Hello Kindergarten Families! 

We are off to a great start of the year! We are so excited to have two kindergarten classrooms this year and the classes are already learning the rhythm to their days. 

We are also noticing where we can make some changes so our day can run smoother. We'd like for parents to please drop off your child's belongings under the sign outside where you will see the classroom teachers' names. Please let your child carry his/her water bottle down to the playground.. Also, if your child comes to school wearing his/her water shoes, please pack an extra pair of shoes that they may wear at the end of the day when they're heading to the playground, as their other shoes are likely to still be wet. Or if your child comes with different shoes make sure they also have another pair of shoes that can get wet. We will have a basket outside on the playground where they can stick their water shoes in (we can keep them at the school if you'd like).  

Sign-ups for snack for the kindergarten can be found in the Monday Messenger or in the Current Families section of the website.  Thank you, in advance, for your help!

~Ki Fatima and Ki Warren

Kindergarten May 7 - 11

Here are some pictures from our fun week!

Kindergarten April 30 - May 4

It's finally warm and we love playing in the creek! 

Kindergarten April 23 - 27

Here are some pictures from our rainy week!

Kindergarten April 16 - 20

This week was all about our three ducklings! We are enjoying them so much. 

Ki Azar read us some great stories this week in storytime.

In our Nature Moment, we went with Ki Sonya on a walk to explore the edge of the wetlands.

On Tuesday we celebrated Aura's fourth trip around the sun with her family and some funfetti cupcakes. We knew by this time in the school year that she would receive gifts of a stone, a button, a shell, and a feather to commemorate her four years.

On Friday, we walked along the new art ribbon trail to see art by our students and students at three art studios displayed throughout the pine forest. We climbed on top of the newly painted (well, it was fully dry) storm drain. If you have never seen a raccoon ride a bicycle, walk down the steep hill behind the retention pond to see this one! We ate our lunch at the picnic tables in the sunshine.