Run in a Circle and Fall on the Floor

What better to do on a rainy day than bake? The Turtles started off making banana bread - using their measuring and stirring skills to create one of our favorite treats. Then, once again many of our friends morphed into kittens and puppies, so we crawled down the hallway to serenade Debbie and Tricia with our animal version of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." The Turtles really enjoy the make believe and the crawling is great for building core strength.

We also did some yoga - today with tiny bugs in our hands - to help us stretch and limber up.

The Turtles listened to some classical music with their eyes closed and practiced using their "minds eye," - the pictures they create behind their eyelids. Then, we talked about the images that the music helped create.

We had a demonstration of a new art medium - drawing chalk on dark paper. The Turtles had fun with the new feel and look of their drawing.

A new Alphabet Bingo game was also part of Choice Time, and the kids got to work on their phonetic awareness while matching pictures and letters.

We spent some time in the John Barnes room (since it was too rainy to go outside). We played one of our all-time favorite games - "Run in a Circle and Fall on the Floor.*" For those of you interested in playing along at home, the game goes something like this:

1. Everyone runs wildly in a circle (we recommend encouraging them to go in the same direction).

2. The teacher says, "DROP!"

3. Everyone falls giggling to the floor.

4. The teacher gives some instruction, like: "When I say a word that starts with B, everybody run,"  or "When I name an animal with fur, everybody run!"

5. She then lists a whole bunch of words, until she finally says the cue.

6. Begin again at #1.

*Requires some open, unbreakable space and a tolerance for noise. Good for a rainy day.

Just a reminder - 

the Visiting Nurses Association will be here next Friday (March 4) to conduct screenings of children's hearing, sight and speech/ language. Many families choose to do this screening, which is convenient and fairy inexpensive (vision and hearing screenings are each $10.00 and the speech/language screening is $15.00)  We have offered this service for many years and have found that their screening results have been very reliablYou should have received the screening forms. They are due to the office Tuesday March 1.  Let us know if you need a copy.

A Singing and Dancing Day

Our morning started with dancing and drawing, as the Turtles gathered to dive in to their day. Every day, the Turtles are glad to see one another and connect through games and activities that they have honed all year long. Super heroes grab their capes, stories are told and families formed and reformed. The Turtles are confident in their relationships and truly own every piece of their space.

We reached into our imaginary pockets today and pulled out giant eggs. This has become a part of our yoga practice, as we hold and juggle and spin and stretch with different "objects" in our hands. When we were through, our eggs hatched and we had baby dinosaurs, kittens and puppies who joined us for Morning Meeting. 

Maggie brought in a toy pet from home and shared it with us on the Storyteller's Stool. Then, we had a story about music, and we talked about all the different ways that people make sounds and rhythms, as we made some ourselves. Before we knew it, it was time for music with Allison.

In the John Barnes room, we clapped and sang and danced, while Allison played her guitar. We sang the "I Spy" song, which is a song, and a riddle and a rhyme. Afterwords, we went out to the cemetery to visit the "puddle tree." We found some unsuspecting kids from the lower school, and jumped out to "scare" them, several times. Next came hug races, that culminate in large wads of Turtles and lots of laughing.

Back inside, we had a few more songs, and then Choice Time. Today, friends enjoyed duets on the keyboard and lots of puzzles. Mysteriously, many of the Turtles actually turned into cats and dogs and there was a great deal of barking and meowing - some in tune to a few favorite songs.

Drums and Drawing

This morning found the Turtles very busy in their room. Many are mastering the magical cutting skill that renders a folded piece of paper into a heart (that we started to learn for Valentines day). Others worked on puzzles or played Villains and Superheroes (ours wear shiny capes and gloves). 

Still others were families with pets, watching a "dog and cat show" on our imaginary clubhouse TV. At Morning Meeting, we did several of our favorite songs - including 5 Little Monkeys, where the Turtles gleefully and repeatedly fall out of the bed.

Next, we had another Still Life demonstration, again drawing our borrowed violin. This time, the Turtles gave Carol instructions about what to draw and what was missing, and then helped her use the magic eraser to get rid of the extra scribbly lines. 

Then, the Turtles were in for another surprise. Noah brought in a large bag made of beautiful kente cloth. Inside, was a big African drum, that Noah had brought in to share with the class.

Noah demonstrated the sound for us and then answered questions from his friends. At Choice Time, the Turtles got to use that and several other drums in a lively drum circle. Others played the keyboard or worked on their Still Life Violin drawings. Still other friends helped take care of Slider, Luna and Nellie.

There was also time outside for some much needed running around, before we headed in for story time. Before we knew it, it was time to sing good-bye to our half-day friends.