Returning from Spring Break, the children’s excitement at being reunited was palpable! They were happy to connect with each other again, and we educators noticed that many children grew physically in the short two weeks we were apart! We welcomed a new Root, Pi, who has been a fun, lighthearted and great example of a strong communicator in our group. As a group, we were amazed at how the forest transformed over the break – there were so many changes to notice, and getting to our classroom each day involved many stops to point out what was new. The children are identifying new plant names, and we are remembering that it is important to ask before touching a plant we aren’t familiar with. Not to mention they frequently took charge of our routines and learning opportunities themselves, showing their pride in understanding the purpose and guidelines of their program. In addition to the incredible plant life explosion, we have been happy to see old friends like banana slugs and worms return to the forest, and to hear the chorus of frogs and birds. It’s been a great start to April!
The first day back the children saw this beautiful cherry tree with its blossoms and wanted to hang out underneath it, have snack and enjoy the sun. In giving the children agency over where they play and learn they feel both heard and a sense of direct impact on their program.
They were so excited to find the first snail of the year! Everyone guessed where it had gone for the winter, whether it was a boy or a girl (fact: both) and what it was eating.
Gloriously dirty hands and fully sensory play when you’re in the sun, water and mud like Jaylynn!
Another new classroom was discovered by the children, this ‘Beaver Tunnel’ is a cotton wood tree with a large chuck out of it roots that the children can climb under and over. Here everyone is bonding over the excitement of their discovery and reconnecting with friends after the break.
Delilah takes a peek at the strange bug we found in the pond. What could it be?
Pi is our new forest friend, and Juniper is showing her the ropes on her first day. On our return from Spring Break the Roots chose to hold hands with one another when walking to our classrooms, this shows they also wanted to reconnect with their classmates!
Sharing curious finds with one another leads to great questions, suggestions and silliness, as when Trevor and Kieran found these fiddle heads and thought they looked like elephant trunks!
Getting up close and personal with the many strange creatures of the pond helps us understand the range of diversity of life that dwells in water.
Back in our slopeside classroom the children were antsy to expand the boundaries right away and find logs to climb and share a ride with all their friends! This took some communication skills as you might imagine to make sure everyone was scooting in the right direction and no one felt unsafe.
Jared shows us how he can skip across the water in his gum-boots and rain pants with out getting wet!
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