Welcome back!!
Happy New Year!!
I missed everyone so much over our break and hoped our transition would not be too difficult. I am still ironing out some kinks in our days but for the most part it is full steam ahead.
We are talking about bread in January. Some of the concepts we will discuss are...
Bread around the world
Types of bread
Shapes of bread
B is for bread
Yeast makes bread rise
What is a recipe?
What is bread made of?
And so on...
Last week we read a book called bread around the world and each child told us their favorite kind of bread.
Madison-"Bread toast with jam"
Ryan-"like Maddie"
Amilia-"muffin"
Addison-"cupcake bread"
Cecilia-"pan dulce"
We sang Pat a cake and used the word bread instead.
We played in buckets of salt using measuring cups and spoons.
We made banana bread.
We learned that most bread is made from flour and that a recipe tells us how to make something to eat.
We sponge painted, recorded our voices singing classics- Addison and Amilia really liked this activity.
Our new little guy Dillon had fun dancing to Techno on our "Little DJ toy" while wearing a dolly in a backpack.
We all enjoyed beading on pipecleaners and making bracelets for our Moms.

Happy Holidays to all,
December is full of excitement talking about Santa, learning about Hanukkah, and trying to be so good cuz we know Santa is watching- I love this time of year. We have made Christmas Tree collages and we are working on a special secret gift for our families that will surely blow their socks off- as children's crafts often do. We will also be making menorahs and latkes that Kali isn't sure if she eats because she is not Jewish. I told her that they are delicious and taste a bit like a french fry AND she doesn't have to be Jewish. We are singing songs of the season and finding Miley Cyrus, Cheetah girl, and Chipmunk carols to download. Boy- I love to hear the Chipmunks again and again. I've strung bells on the hobby horses and they run around like they are on a sleigh ride jingling. The children also love all of the Christmas and Hanukkah books that are on the shelf.
The big news is that we found a house to grow the business and we are starting to move in like next week! You will officially drop the kids off there starting after the new year.
We also have a new friend named Dillon that will be coming on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings. He is on lovable little dude.
Cecilia, Maddie, and I went to a thrift store in Mill valley yesterday. We called it a "Treasure Store". It wasn't open yet so we decided to go on a walk till it opened. We got out of the car and to our side was a huge flight of stairs through a tunnel of a very tall bamboo forest. In the middle of our climb up we came across a meditation site with a big Buddha and offerings. It was magical, peaceful, and beautiful on a cold day. We learned a little about Asia and Buddha as well as counted all of the steps we climbed- 150!! We also had a great time in the toy basement of the treasure store. We found books on tape- yes tape- I still have a tape player and tapes. we found Mary Poppins and The little Mermaid. Unfortunately we got home and they didn't work. Bummer.

November fun!

November fun!

We have been busy talking about Native Americans.
We have...
Listened to Native American drumming and made our own drums.
Read books about the Suix Indians and what life was like for them long ago.
read about the real Pocahantas.
We talked about how there were no grocery stores and so Native Americans had to live off the land. They had to hunt animals and use the whole animal for clothing, shelter, food, tools, and even decoration.
We painted with feathers.
We talked about the native Americans not having an alphabet. they used symbols to record their stories. We talked about the things that we love and Christian cut out symbols of thiose things. We glued them on our drums to tell about ourselves.
we made up Native American names by thinking of something we are good at or love to do and thinking of our favorite animal.
Maddie is painting dolphin
Kali is Crafty Kitten
Ryan is blue rider for his love of riding cows
Cec is talking dancer
We painted wooden beads
I have been watching Ryan and really getting to know him. He is a puzzle master!! Maybe that should have been his NA mane! He really enjoys doing complex puzzles and does them well. He is also a skilled drawer and has his own ideas at art time. He often does not want to do the project we are doing but goes and draws his own picture. He did like to do the drums though.
We made apple muffins
We have been spending time talking about good manners.
I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. I am thankful for all of you and all that you give to me!

This month is Native American History month! We will be hearing a story about the people of Europe finding the Native Americans and what life might have been like then, their homes, food, and clothing. We will talk about Native culture and creating some of the things they might have had like drums, medicine bags, and beads. We will listen to Native American drumming and dance with shawls. We will learn that today, Native Americans look a lot like we do. We will also be learning about symbols and using them to tell about ourselves.
This month we will also be talking about manners, being thankful, and making pumpkin bread.
Please bring in(if you have it)...
Empty oatmeal containers
scratch paper