Crazy Fun Wednesday

We have a very busy day and a full house today. We made carameled apples today. The kids were not really excited about unwrapping plastic from a million caramels in the morning. Don't worry we washed hands first! I think it is good for developing hand-eye coordination and a necessary part of the fun of making carameled apples. The big kids helped dip the apples during nap time. And we all enjoyed a snack of apples slices and leftover caramel dip in the afternoon.

We were able to play outside for an hour, the sun was shining and it actually felt warm. We played with our "jump rope" game. It spins around and you jump over it, it has three different speeds and the kids really have fun. It makes a silly noise if you bump the bar instead of jumping over it.


We also played with our new train table. The daycare was awarded a grant to purchase some new equipment, I will be posting pictures as we start using the additions. Melanie joined us today, yippee! I had to take a picture of Elizabeth laughing as Melanie tickled her.

Turkey Tuesday

We finished our Thanksgiving turkeys today. They're super cute. The kids are excited to take them home. The weather was pretty nice today. We spent an hour at the park playing. The kids loved getting out in the sunshine again. It will be a busy day tomorrow- no school for the big kids so they will be here to energize everyone. We have some fun projects planned for tomorrow too.

Busy Monday

We worked on our Thanksgiving Clifford Curriculum, a turkey centerpiece for your tables and place cards today. The kids are enjoying thinking of things they are thankful for each day.

We played outside after lunch. The kids seem to focus on a toy each time we go outside. Their favorite today was the roller coaster. We also ran races across the yard and obstacle course races. Running seems to get some of the extra energy out!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving! Reminder: vacation on Thursday and Friday. Please let me know if you will not be at daycare on Wednesday.
Thank you and drive safe!
Francine

Energetic Thursday

Winter is coming! The wind is so cool and it is only going to get colder!
We started out our morning coloring and drawing, even the little guys joined in the fun.
We also had music class. They sang Thanksgiving songs and tried playing the guitar.

What's in the Sock Game & Piano Time

We played a new game at snack time this afternoon. All you need is a clean sock and miscellaneous small objects or toys. You put the small object in the bottom of the sock and the kids take turns feeling it, describing it, and then guess what it is. It is a simple game, doesn't cost anything and helps build a descriptive vocabulary and practice sharing.

Nicole also decided to share one of her birthday gifts with the kids- they loved walking on the piano keyboard and singing on the microphone.

Cold today but still good swing'ing weather

We put on our hats and mittens and enjoyed sometime outside on the swings today. The kids really like to be outside as much as possible. It takes us longer to get ready but we still go outside everyday if the weather is above 20 degrees. The kids keep asking when they can build a snowman, we need some snow for that.

Tree of Thanksgiving

We put "Our Tree of Thankfulness" together today. The kids came up with lots wonderful things to be thankful for.

Here is also a photo of our reading time. We try to read at least three books everyday before nap time. Holly has decided my lap is her designated spot and sits wonderfully through all the books most days. Mason has claimed the middle of the love seat & sofa arms as his spot and everyone else changes from day to day. They usually all sit really well during reading time. We read our book of the month everyday. This month we are reading "Fall is for Friends." We are also taking part in the scholastic reading program to read 100 books. We have read 60 books so far.

Nature Art Project

The kids had a great time making Thanksgiving wreaths with their nature collections. Even Preston & Hannah were excited to do it and did a great job! Only Nicole did not want to do it, she was having more fun playing with Holly. Oh well, at least she was having fun doing something!
It is really hard to believe it is time to do Thanksgiving projects already! We are going to decorate our play room with a "Thankfulness Tree" and I am putting together some fun Thanksgiving games and projects.

Mittens for Kittens

Mitten holders- I have purchased mitten holders for each child. Everyday during the winter, the nursery rhyme "Three little kittens they lost their mittens, and they began to cry, Oh mother dear, we sadly fear that we have lost our mittens." comes to mind. I am hoping mitten holders will minimize lost mittens and if everyone has them, then they're cool!

It is worth trying anyway!

Nature Walk

On Monday, we went for a nature walk to collect things for an art project. The kids found pine cones, pine needle, leaves, grass, milkweed seed pods, and of course dandelions. We enjoyed the park trails and relatively nice weather.

Music Today!

The kids loved having their music class today. They enjoyed singing new songs, playing cool shaped drums- triangle, circle, & square, learning about instruments and playing games.

Everyone did really well in class today, listened to instructions, waited their turn to play instruments and sat nicely for class.

Rainy Day Activities

So what do you do with 8 children when you can't go outside? We have been pulling some of our winter/rainy day activities out of the closet. Last night we played with our file folder games. Each file folder contains a different game and is laminated for easy educational play.

This morning we put in a kids exercise video. They really enjoyed grooving along with the video and claimed to be "tired" by the end.

Travel Tots Tuesday

Our Travel Tots Preschool Teacher came today. The kids learned about the Netherlands, played games, sang songs and made kites to take home. They played with "bugs"-cute plastic bugs that hopped when you squeezed the ball on the end.

On Thursday, our music teacher will be joining us again. Busy week, two teachers in one week! The weather has been fantastic as well. We are really enjoyed spending time outside in the morning and afternoon.

Cute story from snack time- We had apples and cheese slices. Preston picks up his cheese slice and puts it to his ear and starts saying "hello, hello, hello" like it is a cell phone. All of a sudden I have six kids with cheese to their ears talking on their cell phones. Creative but silly!