All of a sudden we are well in to our routines, friendships are forming, and the days are flying by! The trees are shedding their leaves, the snow geese have arrived, and the garden is being put to bed for the winter. We have hosted visits from local Early Childhood Educators, neighbouring school district teachers, and our big buddies from Quilchena and Thompson Elementary schools. Our month closed rapidly with many events, including a parent meeting, preparing for the Craft sale, harvesting vegetables before the frosts, and of course, pumpkins! Enjoy these somewhat random photos and captions!
Oliver and Yutaka work together to create a slide for cones to roll down. They excitedly roll and grab and roll again, moving so quickly that the cones barely touch the ground before they are scooped up again.(Heidi)
Frazer decides that he would like to move a hay bale. He tries to slide it across the gravel and determines that he will need help. He recruits Darel and Kye to help, though they lose interest quickly. As Frazer calls for more help he leans into the bale. As he does this the bale begins to lift off the ground and suddenly flips over. “Oh never mind, I can do it myself,” Frazer calls out as he figures out how to flip the bale again.(Heidi)
Ryan appears very focused as he lifts a large outdoor block high over his head.(Heidi)
Atlas and Rhys work with Emily to make a pipe cleaner spider. Rhys carries the spider around with him as he plays with other equipment.(Heidi)
William and Oliver run into each other while rolling tubes along the ground. It doesn’t take long for the accidental collision to become a fun game of exerting force against an opposing force.(Heidi)
Clark began using this bench by placing the tube on it and launching it across the surface by pushing it with his hands. After perfecting his roll, so that it fell off the opposite end, Clark tried something different; He placed the tube on one end of the bench and lifted one end of the bench, allowing the tube to roll down just using the force of gravity.(Heidi)
“Winnie, help me help me. Lilja summons Winnie to help her move the wagon. they try different strategies, including pushing, pulling and chanting, ‘heave ho!” (Heidi)
“Look, it’s a volcano. It is exploding,” Clark announces as he places a stick into a pile of gravel he has gathered together.(Heidi)
Misuzu’s expression is so warming and inviting- getting down to the child’s level is so helpful for building connections. (Emily)
Tricia exposes shapes and letters with Janina in the soil. This sensory activity is calming and supports learning in many areas. (Emily)
Barry asks Laren and Daniela if either of them have ever been on a ferry. Asking children questions about their own lives helps us to gain insight into their experiences and ideas. (Emily)
Aaran is learning how to avoid getting blackberry thorns in his jacket- an important skills here at Terra Nova! (Emily)
Investigating and counting the thorns. these Owls are paying a lot of attention to their surroundings. (Emily)
A group effort to cover the garlic beds with hay for the winter. Farm chores are fun!
Austin uses the bench to hoist himself up onto the porch. Oliver put it there after planning just how he was going to get up on that deck. Oliver turned the bench upside down so he could haul it over, then flipped it over again, and alas, a step stool! (Emily)
Rhys works at balancing the wheelbarrow, not an easy tasks on the narrow pathway.(Emily)
Theo reads the sign, pointing it to other Eagles. The No Dogs Allowed signs, posted throughout the park, seem to be very captivating for children. Is it that there are not many signs or is that it is about dogs? (Emily)
Eagles work together to spread the hay. Thanks Sharing Farm! (Emily)
Ohnyou eats a cucumber with baba ganoush. I love the fact that almost everyone tries a least one bite of the food offered here at school. How brave and daring!(Emily)
Applying powder paint to moistened paper creates a different effect.
Cordelia tackles a tricky puzzle while also enjoying the dress-up clothes!
Kye assists Dion with putting on a pinny before going to the playground.
Erina chooses each bead with care, eventually using every bead from the box.
Theo, Dion, Yi Teng and Anderson scrub carrots just harvested from the garden.
Reya is excited to be counting out five felt pumpkins that relate to a song we learned together at circle.
Heidi makes a serious face during a discussion of facial features and expressions as we decide how to carve this pumpkin together.
Justine and Audrey methodically save all the pumpkin seeds that we will roast to eat.
Mia places these decorative owls in size order – she is learning about mathematical principles such as seriation and proportion.
Yi Teng and Kye discuss ways to divide and organize the Halloween gems on the light table.
Winnie organizes the blocks in this puzzle by one attribute – shape. Other possible attributes include colour and height.
Dressing up for a dance party!
Emma, Cordelia and Cleo enjoy dressing up and dancing together.
The Owls class tries to find all 21 of the orange pinecones they painted with their buddies.
Darel gets a wheelbarrow ride, thanks to Justine’s strong muscles!
The field south of our gathering circle has been plowed in preparation for next year’s butterfly garden, but the snow geese don’t seem to mind.
Atlas and Elizabeth laugh after hiding behind ‘Cabbage Bench’ which is a favourite game for many Owls.
Heidi’s small group helps with planting daffodil bulbs outside the Cottage.
Kate’s small group pauses to watch the combine plough over the grass.
Thank you to Winnie’s family for scrubbing all our tarps during their helping afternoon!
Quinn proudly stands atop a tree stump. Taking turns to climb up has required a lot of negotiation and difficult turn taking, but this is what Kate’s small group has been working on together!
Ryan C. just hanging out on a beautiful autumn morning, and now, on to winter…..