Kindergarten River Otters: November 14-18, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families,

It was wonderful to see so many family members at the Thanksgiving Luncheon. We love having the opportunity to share community and our lovely space with our families.

This was a very busy week in our class, as students naturally engaged in a lot of physical activity and heavy work, keeping their bodies warm and senses engaged. Students raked and jumped into leaves, went on a hunt digging for buried treasure, climbed trees, modeled with mud and Georgia clay, and more. On Thursday, some students shoveled gravel into a wheelbarrow and helped spread it in an area of our classroom for our fire pit to sit on. Other students filled a bucket with water from the creek to keep near the fire. We also gathered firewood, kindling, and dry grass. On Friday, students learned how to make a fire with only items from nature and matches! They also learned about fire safety. Soon, we will have several kindergarten-sized stumps to use as seats, surrounding the fire pit.

We also spent some time enjoying our indoor classroom this week. We started Tuesday indoors with a twist on our morning circle. We did our circle sitting, and walked on four legs like horses instead of galloping on two legs!  The students enjoyed some time playing with the castle, kitchen, and blocks in our indoor classroom. We also enjoyed 12 Flores, an herbal tea from Mexico, all morning, and made necklaces with needles, thread, and beads. Wednesday is painting day. This week, Tippy spent time playing with her friend Blue. Yellow and Orange were her usual autumn playmates, but we will spend more time with Blue as we head into winter. This week we added lentils to our soup to give us a heartier snack before heading into the cooler temperatures. Throughout the winter we will often add legumes to our soup to help us stay full and warm.

We hope you all enjoy a restful break filled with love and warmth. Thank you for sharing your children with us, and for being part of our community.

Reminders: 

  • Monday, Nov. 21 - Friday, Nov. 25:  Thanksgiving Break (No School) 

  • Thursday and Friday, Dec. 8&9:  Winter Spiral

  • Thursday, Dec. 15th:  Last day of Fall semester (Half day, early dismissal)

  • Friday, Dec. 16th - Wednesday, Jan. 4:  Winter Break

  • Thursday, Jan. 5th:  Spring semester begins

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: November 7-11, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families.

Thank you for attending the lantern walk with us. It was exciting to see every student from our class there!  We hope you all enjoyed this beautiful, reverent festival.  Next, we look forward to the Thanksgiving Luncheon this week!

This week we began working with modeling beeswax. The class sat together and talked as each student made their own creation. Modeling beeswax is firm; it is warmed by the children's hands to be moldable. This process builds patience and perseverance in children. Once the beeswax is softened, it can be molded into any shape, using imagination and creativity. Molding the beeswax builds strength in the hands, which will help with form drawing and writing when the students reach the grades program. We will continue to model with beeswax throughout the year.

Next week we will finish our apple harvest morning circle. When we return from the weeklong break we will have a new circle! One verse that the children have really enjoyed is The Apple Tree. We repeat the entire verse twice. Your child can show you the movements of this verse. The movements concentrate on crossing the upper and lower midline, and the right and left midline. We also practice upright posture as we stand like tall trees.

Here stands the apple tree

With leaves of green

Here hang the apples

In between

When the wind blows

The apples will fall

Here is a basket

To gather them all

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Please dress your child in layers, and send rain gear (with insulated boots), hats, gloves, and a full change of clothes (including socks) every day. Wool socks are preferable for the coming cold weather.

  • This Thursday and Friday we will have our first Hot Cocoa days!  Please feel free to send your child with a spill-proof thermos of cocoa, or another warm drink of your choosing. We will also have herbal tea available. 

  • Students often like to have a warm beverage from home in the winter. Please do not send your child with sweet drinks like hot cocoa, unless it is a special designated hot cocoa day. Herbal tea and hot water with honey and lemon are great alternatives that allow the children to keep warm and also remain hydrated and energized for their day of play and learning.

  • Please join us this Friday, 11/18, from 11:00-12:00 for a family luncheon. Please bring a lunch for your family to enjoy together in our forest classroom. Please also bring a picnic blanket if you have one. You are welcome to take your child with you from the lunch; please see me to check your child out before leaving.

  • This Friday, 11/18, is a half day of school for all students. Dismissal is 12:15-12:30 pm.

  • Next week, 11/21-11/25, there is NO SCHOOL for Thanksgiving break.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly


Kindergarten River Otters: October 31- November 4, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families,

The students enjoyed a couple of wet days this week, giving them the opportunity to experiment with mud!  They found water pooled in various spots such as a wagon, tires, and other containers, and poured it all into a crater they had dug the week before. Using shovels, the students stirred the mud as they dug up more dirt, making a fun, squishy place in the forest. Once perfected, the mud was used for jumping in, cooking in the mud kitchen, and other projects. Fort building has continued to be a popular activity as well. We now have several forts in our forest classroom, each different from the others. One fort is even underground!

The story for these two weeks is The Magic Light. We tell this story each year around the lantern walk festival. The Magic Light follows a young girl who plays in the forest each day with a group of friends. One day, she sees a boy she has never seen before. She knows he is different because there is a light shining from him. Eventually, she becomes curious enough to ask him about this light- did he swallow a flashlight?  The boy shares with the girl that he has a light inside him. He tells her that she does too, and so does everyone in the world! He goes on to share that there is a special way to turn on the light and to make it bright enough for others to see.  Ask your child about the light and how to make it shine, and how they make their light shine at school and at home!

Announcements and Reminders

  • TONIGHT- lantern walk at 6:00pm

  • THIS WEEK- coat drive for One Warm Coat, through Friday

  • 11/14-11/18- Non Perishable food drive for Never Alone food pantry

  • 11/18- Thanksgiving luncheon and half day dismissal for all students

  • 11/21-11/25- NO SCHOOL- Thanksgiving break

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly


Kindergarten River Otters: October 25-29, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families,

Thank you to everyone who volunteered and attended the Kingdom of Halloween. You all helped make our wonderful autumn community festival a success!

This was a lovely autumn week in the forest, and students made many observations about the changing environment around them. They continued fort building, and painted with mud they mixed themselves, in different consistencies. On Tuesday, we went for a nature walk on our way to visit the farm. The students were very curious about the wetlands. We went on the boardwalk and noticed that the area has changed a lot!  The students noted that usually, we have to be very careful on the boardwalk because the water is deep and we can’t see to the bottom. Now, however, there is no water and they can see many plants, and tracks in the mud. This sparked many questions and ideas. 

Next week, we will be making our lanterns in class, for the lantern walk. These will stay at school and be handed out during the walk; they will go home with your children after the walk. The lantern walk is one of our favorite events; we hope you can all join us!  The lantern walk is also celebrated in Germany and France as Martinmas or Martinstag. The essence of this festival is to recognize the inner light we each carry. This inner light needs to be protected, as the light inside the lantern does, so it does not go out. We use this light to help each other in the darker months of the year. It is a reverent, contemplative walk. In understanding the importance of helping others, we also collect gently used coats of all sizes for One Warm Coat, an organization that provides coats for those who need them during the coming cold.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • 11/8: NO SCHOOL / election day / teacher in-service

  • 11/8: Kindergarten lantern walk at 6:00pm

  • 11/7-11/11: Coat drive for One Warm Coat

  • 11/14-11/18: Non Perishable food drive for Never Alone food pantry

  • 11/18: Thanksgiving luncheon (more info coming soon) and half day dismissal for all students

  • 11/21-11/25 NO SCHOOL for Thanksgiving Break

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly



Kindergarten River Otters: October 17-21, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families,

We all enjoyed the cooler temps in the forest this week. We engaged in several activities that kept us warm, learning, and having fun!  We raked leaves together into a large pile and the students happily played in the pile. When it spread out, we raked it again and played again all throughout the week. We began gathering sticks and wood of different sizes from the forest and sorting them by size, to use to build fires in the upcoming weeks. On a cleared a section of overgrowth, the students helped rake and gather the plants that were cut, and helped move them to another part of the forest. This area will allow us to more easily care for the birds and our little garden. We ran relays on games day. We also had the opportunity to make our own dye from goldenrod. The next day, we used the color we made to dye cotton napkins. Each napkin will have the students’ initials embroidered on them to be used at tea and snack.

Though it is often under-appreciated, the sense of warmth is an extremely important sense young children are developing. This sense is not yet fully developed until around third grade. In addition to feeling physically warm and comfortable, having warmth also helps develop the overall sense of wellbeing that allows children to feel safe and secure and able to learn both academic and social-emotional skills. 

Before around third grade, children are not able to discern whether they are warm enough. Though we want our children to learn to trust their bodies and to honor their decisions about their bodies, we can not yet rely on them to tell us whether they are warm enough at this age. They are just not developmentally able to know when their body is too cold. 

One reliable way to know if a child is physically warm enough is to feel their hands. If their hands are cold to the touch, the child needs to add another layer. Children often resist wearing coats, hats, mittens, and other outerwear for many reasons, however, their safety and development rely on us to keep them warm. 

If you are interested in learning more about the sense of warmth and its impact in early childhood and beyond, please let us know and we would be happy to share some articles with you!

Announcements and Reminders:

  • We will wear hats and gloves, typically if the wind chill is below 45 (since there isn’t much sun in the forest). Please send these each day.

  • Please send a warm blanket with your child for rest time if they are full day.

  • If you grab some extra gloves or hats on a great sale, we can use them!  We keep a bin on ‘lending clothes’ for those days someone forgets theirs.

  • Kingdom of Halloween will be on Saturday, 10/29, from 4:30-8:30. If you are able, please sign up for a volunteer spot if you have not already.

  • Tuesday, 11/1 will be a late start, as we know many students will benefit from sleeping in a bit after Halloween. Drop off will be from 9:40-9:55.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

 

Kindergarten River Otters: October 10-14, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families,

Thank you all for attending conferences last week!  It was wonderful to meet with each of you and discuss the school year so far. I am excited to watch your children continue to develop and grow as the year progresses.  

This week we finished our story about the first apple tree. Instead of a puppet show, on Thursday and Friday we cut apples in half from the side to see the magical star inside. We also enjoyed eating our delicious apples!  We visited the farm on Tuesday, petting the animals and harvesting lettuce. We also introduced a wonderful new activity in our class- jump rope!  One end of the rope is tied to a tree and the other end can be turned by a teacher or student, while another student jumps. The students have enjoyed this new activity and seeing how quickly they figure out how to jump, or do multiple jumps! We raked leaves into a big pile to jump and play in them happily. We also discovered a salamander and a luna moth caterpillar.

Our seasonal circle is all about farming and apples!  This circle is held in the manner of a story that follows a farmer on her day as she greets the earth and rides her horse to her apple orchard. The farmer picks baskets of apples and places them on her cart, which her horse pulls back to the farm. After caring for the apples and her horse, the farmer gives thanks to the earth before going to bed. A favorite song from this circle is called The Farmer:

The farmer arose at the break of day

She got on her horse and she galloped away

Galloped away, galloped away,

She got on her horse and she galloped away.


Oh come my friends,

Oh come said she 

Our green apple trees

For to see

In the warm brown earth they have grown so big

Now all our apples it’s time to pick.


The farmer arose at the break of day

She got on her horse and she galloped away

Galloped away, galloped away,

She got on her horse and she galloped away.


Our Kingdom of Halloween festival will be held  Saturday, October 29th. This is an incredible, magical community event (bring your friends!). Our class is responsible for helping children make beautiful wands from sticks harvested by our fifth grade class!  Please be on the lookout for a message from our class rep about this and sign up for a volunteer spot.  Your attendance and volunteering capacity at their festival is beyond valuable and necessary for its success.  Thank you! Additionally, students are invited to come in costume.  Remember, be creative and, please, no masks or marketed characters please!

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Parent Coffee immediately following carpool, 10/18

  • Georgia GOAL Zoom 7:00, 10/18

  • Parent Handwork 1:00 - 3:00, 10/21

  • There is a community work day this Saturday, 10/22.

  • On October 25th and 26th, directly after drop off, we will be making our lanterns for the Lantern Walk.  If you are able to join us on either day we would love to have your help.

  • Kingdom of Halloween, 10/29

  • Late Start—9:40 - 9:55am carpool, 11/1

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly



Kindergarten River Otters: October 3-7, 2022

Osiyo, River Otter families

Fall is in the air and our forest classroom looks magical with the leaf-covered ground and light streaming through the thinning trees. It was the perfect week to add to our tea garden and plant some winter crops. On Tuesday, we planted chamomile, peppermint, and lemon balm in our tea garden. We also planted kale and cabbage collards, which are great fall and winter crops and will be delicious in our soup. Our painting this week reflected the new season as well. Tippy, our paintbrush, played with two friends at the same time, for the first time, as we painted with both red and yellow. On Friday, we visited the garden and were able to bring home a delightful vegetable grown by the grades students and Mr. Matan. We also took turns using our hatchet to cut some tall bamboo the 5th graders brought us. We used the pieces we cut in our fort building.

As the season changes, we will make a few small changes to our class routine. The rhythm of the days and week, however, will remain the same. We will have herbal tea with optional honey on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays. The students enjoyed the tea we have already shared. They each have a reusable wheatgrass cup with their name on it, and they serve themselves the tea from a decanter and honey from a jar with a honey stir stick. We will also no longer play in the creek, though we will return later in the school year when mornings are reliably warmer and the nights aren’t so cold. Instead, Tuesdays will be the day we visit the farm and garden. We will have the opportunity to help with chores, visit the animals, and occasionally pick vegetables. We will also occasionally visit the farm on a Friday.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Picture day is this week!  We will have our class photo on Wednesday, 10/12 around 10:00 am. If your child does not usually attend on Wednesday, you are welcome to bring them to the school at this time to join us for the group photo. Please let me know if you plan to attend so we can look for you!  Individual photos for 5-day and 3-day students will also be on Wednesday. Individual photos for 2 day students will be on Thursday, 10/13.

  • Conferences are also this week!  Thank you all for signing up, I am looking forward to meeting with each of you to discuss your wonderful children. All students will be dismissed at 12:15-12:30 on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (10/12-12/14).

  • Thank you for sending layers for your children!  There has been a big temperature difference during the day. Pants, long sleeves, coats, and even hats and gloves are helpful in the morning.

  • Please send in clean Oui yogurt (small glass) containers as you are able.  You may wish to ask a friend if they have some too. We will be using them as the Lantern Walk approaches.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly


Kindergarten River Otters: September 19-23

Osiyo, River Otter families.

The last week of summer in the forest was filled with building and creating. We now have two stick forts in the forest, constructed by different groups of students. The forts are sturdy and growing daily. We also build blanket forts that come down and are rebuilt each day. Two students made a fairy house on Thursday, and other students made sand castles and items out of clay at the creek. The outdoors is nature’s STEM lab! This week was also sewing week in our creative work rotation. Students used different fabrics, stuffing, and needles and thread to make a variety of items. Students sewed balls, bats, jewelry, pillows, and more.  

We celebrated the Day of Courage throughout the week with a story and crafts. We discussed that bravery is not when you are not afraid, but when you do the right thing even if you feel nervous. We talked about helping others and standing up for them as ways to be brave in our daily lives. Our story this week was one of my favorites, about a dragon living in a mountain cave in Norway. On his way back from picking berries, he meets a child who asks the dragon to help him light a fire in his family’s stove so they can have the heat they need to keep warm and cook. The dragon is invited to stay and they make pancakes and eat the berries together, and tell stories. The dragon later returns to give the family the treasure stored in his cave, since dragons can not use treasure and it would ease the family’s troubles. The dragon and family are friends and still share pancakes and stories together every so often.  We also dyed yarn using goldenrod, and made shooting stars. We will have an additional special craft when we return from break.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • School will resume on Tuesday, October 4th.

  • Please send insect repellant, a light jacket, and long pants with your child each day.

  • Picture day is coming up October 12th and 13th. Look for more information on this to come soon.

  • Fall conferences will be on October 12th, 13th and 14th. These will be early dismissal days for all students (12:15-12:30). If you have not signed up yet, you can sign up for a conference time here.

  • Kingdom of Halloween is October 29th.  Save the date for this magical festival!

Thank you for sharing your children with us, and for being part of our community. Have a wonderful fall break!

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters September 12-16

Osiyo, River Otter families.

We are happily living into the rhythm of our days in kindergarten. At this point, students have developed a feel for our flow of the day and week and need fewer verbal cues to know what happens next. I am very proud of how quickly they are learning. At this age, we understand the concept of time and days of the week are still challenging for the students to understand. Young children much more easily identify with the rhythm of activities they can rely on happening on certain days or at certain times. If it helps at home, you may like to refer to the days the way we do at school. Monday is veggie chopping day, Tuesday is farm day, Wednesday is soup and painting day, Thursday is oatmeal and games day, and Friday is puppet show day.

This Friday is the Day of Courage festival at our school. This festival recognizes the shortening of days and inner strength and courage we all will need to make it through the darker, colder months ahead. This day is celebrated by some Western Europeans as Michaelmas, and by  people across the northern hemisphere as the Autumnal Equinox. There are a variety of special days across cultures during this time of year that celebrate inner courage and reflection. At The Garden School, the Day of Courage is largely a celebration for older students in the grades program. In kindergarten, however, we also honor this festival in our own way and we will have a couple of special projects to bring home. We have been listening to a story about a village frightened by a big dragon who suddenly appeared. In the end, thanks to the bravery of a couple of the village members (including a young child), the villagers discovered that the dragon was not scary at all. He was lonely and wanted friends to play with. The villagers took him in and they all cared for each other from then on. We will have another story this week with a similar message.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • Conferences are coming up on October 12th, 13th, and 14th. You can sign up for a time 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 freely and in confidence.

  • Please continue to send insect repellant and apply it to your child before drop off. We are still seeing mosquitoes and fire ants.

  • Please send a light jacket, and long pants, with your child each day. They can wear them or keep them in their backpack. The mornings are starting to become cool and it is reliably cooler in the forest than at home or at the picnic tables where they are dropped off.

  • This Friday, 9/23, is a half day. All students will be dismissed 12:15-12:30. Students will not need a lunch on this day.

  • Next week, 9/26-9/30, is fall break (we follow Cobb County Public School’s calendar for breaks). The following Monday, 10/3, is a teacher inservice day. There is no school on these days. 

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: September 6 - 9

Osiyo, River Otter families.

THANK YOU to all of the families who attended Caregiver Night last week. It was wonderful to see so many of you all together in person, and we missed those who were unable to attend. 

This past week was filled with building in the forest. Several students used stumps, sticks, wood pieces, and items from our mud kitchen to build monster trucks and jeeps. This is a great example of “loose parts play”. Loose parts are items that do not have a specific use and can be used in a variety of ways thereby encouraging creative and imaginative play. Some loose parts we have in our outdoor classroom include the stumps, sticks, and other wood pieces, tires, string, blankets, clothes pins, buckets, and other items from nature or previously owned kitchen items. The students built, drove, and fixed their vehicles over the course of a couple of days. Students also built forts with string, blankets, clothes pins, and other items. Pine cones were their puppy and kitty pets in their blanket houses.  Having open-ended items like these at home will help keep those creative play ideas bubbling along happily!

One parent night request was for more songs, and specifically our morning circle song we sing in Spanish. This is a popular tune by the childrens artist Rafi, and recordings can easily be found if you do not already know the tune. We sing the song first in English, and then in Spanish, using the same simple gestures. Your children know the gestures and can demonstrate them for you if you sing the song with them.

The More We Get Together

The more we get together,

Together, together,

The more we get together,

The happier we’ll be.

Cuz my friends are your friends

And your friends are my friends.

The more we get together,

The happier we’ll be.

Los más que nos reunimos, 

Reunimos, reunimos,

Los más que nos reunimos,

Seremos feliz.

Mis amigos son tus amigos

Y tus amigos son mis amigos.

Los más que nos reunimos,

Seremos feliz.

Announcements and Reminders

  • There is an upcoming community work day this Saturday, 9/17 from 9:00-12:00.

  • Next Friday, 9/23 is a HALF DAY for students. Everyone will be dismissed 12:15-12:30.

  • Fall Break is September 26th through 30th, and there Monday, October 3rd is teacher inservice. There will be NO SCHOOL on these days.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: August 29- September 2

Osiyo, River Otter families.

It was a beautiful, sunny week at The Garden School. We took advantage of the warm, dry weather and played in the creek twice last week on Tuesday and Friday. The students learn so much through the opportunity to play in the creek. They observe plants and animals along the shore and in the water. Students experiment with water and sand as they mix, build, and create. They also test different objects to see whether they float, as well as observe the movement of the creek. Sand and water are both rich sensory materials, allowing children to build pathways in their brains, make connections, and use their bodies and physical senses in a variety of ways that are necessary and not accessible indoors. We are thankful for our time at the creek!  We will continue to visit when possible, up until the days are cooler. Then, we will begin exploring and working at the farm.

This week, students had the opportunity to explore our sewing basket. This basket includes items such as different types of fabric and thread, needles, scissors, wool roving, filling, buttons, and beads. They are free to explore the items in the basket in a calm and relaxed way on our forest platform. They use their creativity, imaginations, observations, and preferences to make their own crafts. This helps children maintain their magical wonder and imagination, free from adult expectations of what things should be used for and how their crafts should look. While we will have some formed, structured crafts at times, this is the primary way students interact with handwork in class. We help the students thread needles, tie knots, and perform other fine motor tasks or offer suggestions when they ask for assistance. It has been a pleasure to watch them excitedly sift through the materials as they make bracelets, stuffed pillows, fabric hearts, and other creations.

Announcements and Reminders:

  • HAPPY BIRTHDAY SILAS!  Silas turned 5 on August 31st, and we celebrated his birthday at school on Friday.

  • We are SO EXCITED to see everyone TONIGHT at the caregiver night, from 6:00-7:00pm.

  • If you have any questions, you are always welcome to email me with those questions or to set up a time to speak before or after school.

  • Saturday, 9/17 is our next community work day. Earn volunteer hours while you help with school needs on the grounds and with other projects.

  • Friday, 9/23 is a HALF DAY. 12:15-12:30 dismissal for all students, and they do not need a lunch.

  • September 26-30 is fall break, there is NO SCHOOL that week.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: August 22-26

Osiyo, River Otter families.

The River Otter class is enjoying the forest and beautiful grounds of our school. We were able to visit the farm twice this week. We picked kudzu and fed it to the donkeys, a treat we all enjoyed!  On Tuesday we visited the creek, playing in the sand and shallow water. The students have been doing a lot of digging in our forest classroom. We have a hole almost deep enough for each of the students to lie in, and an “off-road mountain”. The dirt dug from the hole has also served as many creations in the mud kitchen. The class has been engaging in practical work each day. This week, we worked on folding towels and washcloths, sweeping the platform, and filling the bird feeder. The children also take turns helping their teacher set up for painting, or passing out silverware and bowls for our shared snack.

The class is learning our songs and verse in our morning circle of the year. We will change our circle songs and verses approximately every six weeks, though as students master skills and are ready for more, we may add a song or verse earlier. As the year progresses and the students grow and develop, our morning circle will become longer and have more involved and complex words, rhythms, and movements. To begin the school year, most of our movements are slow and simple. They primarily focus on crossing the midlines up and down, and left and right. This is an important skill to prepare for reading and math in the future. It also helps develop the proprioceptive sense, the sense of one’s body in space. In this first circle, our songs and verse include words in English, Spanish, Cherokee, and American Sign Language (ASL).

Announcements and Reminders

  • HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NICHOLAS! Nicholas turned 4 on August 14th, and we celebrated his special day at school on Thursday.

  • Please send rain gear (boots and rain suit or rain jacket and pants) every day. Georgia weather is unpredictable, and we do stay outside when it is raining.

  • Next Monday, 9/5, is Labor Day. There is NO SCHOOL on this day.

  • Caregiver Night for kindergarten is next Tuesday, 9/6 at 6:00 pm. An email with additional important information is coming this week. All grownups involved in the care of the students in the class are welcome to attend.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

Kindergarten River Otters: August 15-19

Osiyo, River Otter families.

What a wonderful, busy first full week of school we had! On Monday, students chopped vegetables. On Tuesday, we played in the creek for the first time this year. On Wednesday, we took our special paintbrush friend, Tippy, on an adventure with the color yellow, and we also ate the delicious soup we made. On Thursday, we enjoyed oatmeal for our snack and learned a fun circle game called Lubin Loo (ask your child if they remember how to play). Friday was our puppet show from the story we heard the first two weeks, called Anything New. This is a therapeutic story (adapted for our class) to help children feel safe and comfortable in a new setting such as school. Friday is also classroom cleanup day, and we got to use our washboard to clean our towels and reusable napkins.

In addition to our daily activities, we will have weekly activities that rotate approximately every three weeks. This week students had the opportunity to begin learning finger knitting. They also enjoyed using yarn to make magic wands (wrapped sticks), fishing poles, and a variety of other projects. We heard a little thunder on Friday, so we spent the last hour and a half playing in our indoor classroom, which is a special treat the students really enjoyed. Since we were feeling cozy, we also shared some mint tea with honey. All of the students tried the tea and most had seconds and even thirds! Once the weather is a little cooler, we will enjoy tea every Monday, Tuesday, and Friday during our snack.

Announcements and Reminders

  • THANK YOU for keeping your children home when they are sick!  We are working to teach the students to use the inside of their elbows to cover their coughs and sneezes. It would be greatly appreciated if you can help reinforce this at home.

  • Please send indoor shoes if you have not already.

  • This Saturday, 8/27, is a community work day

  • Tuesday, September 6th is our parent night. This night is for grownups only, and we will be participating in an activity and discussing an aspect of the Waldorf kindergarten curriculum.

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

Gvyalieliga,

Ki Holly

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