Kindergarten Turtles: September 8-12, 2025

Sep 12

Greetings, Turtle Families,

Over the past two weeks, we have enjoyed the story of “Stone Soup”. In the tale, a weary traveler arrives in a village, only to find all the doors closed to him. The villagers tell him they have nothing to spare. The traveler announces that he has everything he needs and begins to make stone soup, with only a fire, a pot, water, and a stone. Curious, the villagers watch as he begins to prepare his soup, reminiscing about the wonderful stone soups he has tasted—with carrots, onions, potatoes… One by one, the villagers begin to find vegetables in their cupboards; Someone brings a carrot, another offers potatoes, and soon the pot is full of hearty vegetables. Together, they cook warm, delicious soup. That evening, the villagers and the traveler gather to share the meal, enjoy conversation, laughter, and a wonderful evening. They all think the stone was magic. As the traveler leaves the next day, he tells some children that the real magic wasn’t in the stone—it was in the people of the village..

We brought this story to life in the classroom! The children participated in a play, taking turns chopping vegetables and acting out the scenes. The next day, we enjoyed our very own stone soup full of our chopped vegetables. They also watched a puppet show of the story. There is intention in the way stories are presented. For the first week, the children listen to the story without any props or pictures, allowing them to create their own mental images and immerse themselves in the narrative. They then experience the story through a puppet show, which helps support the story they have imagined. The children act out the story as a play, making it more tangible and drawing further connections. Finally, they see the story in picture form and practice retelling it using those images. Every second week, we will wrap up our storytelling experience with the children’s story cards, which the students will bring home. During this activity, each student will color and cut out their cards, helping to strengthen their fine motor skills. Then, one-on-one with a teacher, they will retell the story, using their cards. By arranging the pictures to tell a story, they are practicing important pre-reading comprehension skills and laying the foundation for reading and writing development.

Every day, there are interesting creatures observed in our classroom. This week brought more autumn webworms, a southern flannel moth caterpillar, a white marked tussock moth caterpillar, many daddy long-leg spiders, and lots of webs containing a variety of spiders. The children are so observant and careful with the creatures around us. It is wonderful to see their curiosity and love of nature. Thank you for being a part of our community and sharing your children with us.

Announcements and Reminders:

Rest mats will be sent home on Thursday. Please wash them and return them after the break.

Parent/teacher Conferences are October 9 and 10th. Please sign up here: Turtles