Refreshed and Ready!

Returning from winter’s break was truly a delight! It was so marvellous seeing all those adorable faces, eager for hugs and being outside. Breaks are important for all of us; I think sometimes we forget that children need them too. They work hard, really hard, each and every day. Playing and learning is hard work! And, our amazing Nature School parents…. they too need a break. They need a break from rushing to arrive at school on time, organizing outdoor gear, lunches and snacks, doing copious amounts of laundry and driving to and from all their children’s activities. We teachers need to re-charge our batteries and spend time with our own families, friends and hobbies outside of our work. So, a good break was had by all and now we are refreshed and ready to learn!

We laughed a lot this week– there were so many funny moments shared between children and our staff. The week was filled with new ideas on water, collaboration in boat making ( more on this in our classroom documentation), ingenuity in the block area, friendships, cooking and enjoying many walks on mild winter days.

The Owls are captivated by Tricia’s oral story telling.

Rolling the compost bin over to its new home. It was quite awkward and heavy so many children helped make a plan to move it.

Heidi finds this plank of wood and Claire asks her if she could use it to make a bridge. She comments that she is thinking about the other bridge they made in December.Damon and Nikolas decide to be part of this initiative.

Getting ready to pick kale from the garden.

Exploring floating with the Eagles and Owls:

Making Roasted Veggie Mash from our garden’s harvest.

We are ready to share a meal together. Meal time is an important part of our day at Nature School; a time to connect with others, discuss food and practice our self-help skills and manners.

Nell and Valarie are caring for their babies. Our instincts to wrap and cuddle our young is so prominent, even at a young age. Are they caring for their babies the way they were cared for? How gentle.

The new year brings our long awaited Documentation Binders. Children and families are encouraged to look through them to see their work. Here Claire and Olina carefully leaf through the pages. When they see themselves in pictures, does it bring back the memory of the day for them? What do they learn about that moment when they see it again? What do they think when they see their work?