We loved talking about our pets this past week. We are really practicing raising our hands and taking turns talking during circle time. We have used a version of a “talking stick”… the talking beaver puppet. These children have such rich lives with their pets, and we wish that we could meet each of them. Did you know that Lydia has a chicken named Beyonce? Matthew’s mom brought a sweet dog for us to love, and we learned about how to ask to pet a dog and how to approach a new dog safely. We are warming up to the vet center, but some of our friends just want to play kitchen again. This week we’ll talk about reptiles for a few days and then shift into snow, winter, and hibernation.
We are having a snake visitor in the class tomorrow morning. Malene’s mom will tell us all about their therapy snake. The kids will be able to touch the snake if they want to, but I’m also going to line up a row of chairs behind the circle if they are feeling cautious. It think that Calliope will be spending the day with us, but she will be safely in her locked habitat.
Thanks to all the families who joined us for our Parent’s Night Out on Friday. If you didn’t join us this time we’ll do another one in February. On Friday night we had 23 children and six teachers. We did creative snowman activities, wore our pajamas, ate lots of popcorn, read Snowman stories , and watching the short movie The Snowman.
There is a conference sheet in the hall if you haven’t signed up yet. They aren’t mandatory, but I love talking to you about your children.
In closing I just want to say that we don’t celebrate Christmas at school… just because not all of our children are Christian. We also think that it is a way to hold space for ALL of our families. The holidays can be hard on children with late nights, disrupted routines, travel, and just a lot of new stimulations and expectations. That being said, there might be Winter, Snow, Evergreens, sparkly lights, and Jan Brett books. We want to keep to the rhythm of our Honey Bee days.
