At this time of the year, the children at our little yellow school make a holiday present for their parents. This year we decided to try something a little different that also incorporated some learning. The parents at our school were all wondering about the contents of the bag with many waiting until Christmas morning to open it. I promised I would write about the making of the present after Christmas so as not to spoil the surprise. So, what's in the bag?
We started with a few basic ingredients ~ flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and a trusty recipe. Measuring spoons and cups were set out for the children.
Each child measured their own ingredients and placed them in a bowl.
They then mixed all of their ingredients together.
The teachers placed the mixture into individual bags along with a copy of the recipe.
Can you guess what we made?
It is a pancake mix! At home, the children can help add the wet ingredients. The children had so much fun making this mix. We hope that our students and their families enjoy this very tasty treat!
The holidays are always an enjoyable time at our little yellow school.
This year the holidays began with the celebration of Hanukkah. Each classroom had their own menorah.
We learned some Hanukkah songs and played spin the dreidel with Mrs. L., our Music teacher.
E.'s mom (he is the little boy in the middle of the picture above) brought in potato latkes for the whole school. They were delicious!
Each classroom also had their own Christmas tree which the children decorated.
Here are pictures of the decorated trees.
The highlight of the holiday season is the visit from Santa! Mrs. P. is in communication with Santa and he always makes sure he pays a visit to the children at our school. We are thrilled to have him as we know how busy he is at this time of the year.
Wishing you a very happy holiday and a 2013 filled with good things!
Children really do say some of the funniest things and the children at our school are no exception. The things they say are so genuine and reflect how they interpret the world around them. Often, it is difficult for the teachers to keep a straight face.
Here are snippets of conversations with children at our little yellow school that kept us laughing on the inside.
Spiderman
In the full day classroom, we have a 3 1/2 year old who is quite possibly Spiderman's biggest fan. Can you see the Spiderman watch that he is wearing?
One day, I was doing the Sandpaper Letters with L. On that particular day I was wearing a necklace that I don't usually wear. L. kept staring at my necklace and couldn't seem to focus on the Sandpaper Letters.
Here is what he said:
L.: Mrs. P. I really like your necklace.
Mrs. P.: Thank you.
L.: It looks just like Spiderman's web!
Although I never looked at my necklace in quite that way, coming from L., this is truly the highest compliment I could receive.
Another Planet
On Halloween, we had a party at school. Everyone wore a costume, including the teachers. One of the teachers in the half-day classroom, Miss N., wore a sari with a little jewel in the middle of her eyebrows. 3 1/2 year old E. was very curious about Miss N.'s 'costume'.
Miss N. took out the map of the continents and explained to E. that she was born in another country, India. It is a country in the continent of Asia and is very far away from North America. In India, many women wear saris. E. seemed very satisfied with this explanation.
When E. and her mom arrived at school the next day, E.'s mom told them what E. had said about Miss N.
"Mom, did you know that Miss N. is from another planet! It is very far away."
Brothers
Four year old E. and her friend were having a discussion about their families. They were talking about how many brothers and sisters they had and how old they were. E. recently became a big sister for the second time. E. then asked me about my siblings.
E.: Do you have any sisters?
Mrs. P.: No, I don't.
E.: Do you have any brothers?
Mrs. P.: Yes. I have one.
E.: How old is he?
Mrs. P.: He is 41.
E. pauses for a moment to take this in and then responds.
E.: 41! That's a grown-up! That's not a brother!
E. later told me that my brother should be around 4, not 41.
Last week we held our annual Food Drive for our local food bank. As always, our school community has been very generous with their donations. Our goal was to collect enough food to go around the line we sit on during our circle time. On our last day, we were able to go around our circle line two times!
Here are a few pictures of the children with some of the food we collected.
