Upcoming Dates and Announcements:
Click the link to find out what’s happening at WCDS https://here.wcdsedu.com/events/
- Tuesday, November 25 – Alumni Kickball, Thanksgiving Lunch, and Early Dismissal at 12:30 (No Aftercare)
- Wednesday – Friday, November 26th-28th – No School
- SAVE THE DATE: Thursday- December 11 @ 5:30- EC Winter Family Night
- Reminder, as the weather changes, there is no bad weather, just bad clothing choices!
Hello SK Families!
Despite a day off this week, we certainly filled our days with all the magical fall things!
On Monday, we concluded our journey through landmarks by reading the book, “Wonders of the World.” It carried us across the globe, one landmark at a time, inviting us to shine a light on hidden images to reveal natural and human-made marvels up close. Each page held a new surprise, from winding walls to lost ancient cities!
Inspired by these discoveries, the children added their final touches to their own landmark creations, thoughtfully selecting colors to help each one stand out. We can’t wait to bring these wonders to life and share the stories behind them!
On Wednesday, we read the wonderfully silly story Fall Mixed Up. The children giggled their way through each page, delighted to point out the mix-ups, pumpkins growing in trees, squirrels flying south, and all the little fall oddities that were just not quite right. Their joy in noticing what should be happening in autumn made the story come alive.
After, the children moved into a collection of fall provocations. Some explored leaf screen printing, rolling autumn paints across trays to create swirling fall scenes, and then pressing their paper down to lift a beautiful, final print full of texture!
Others used pipettes and liquid watercolors, reds, oranges, golds, purples, and greens to match the tones of our real leaves. They watched with wonder as the leaves soaked in the colors, shifting and blending right before their eyes.
Others created stunning fall foliage drawings, carefully cutting and hole-punching real leaves to add layers of natural beauty to their artwork. Each provocation offered a new way to explore the colors, textures, and magic of the season!
In Math, we explored ten frames with a special focus on numbers 1–20. The children dove into a variety of hands-on materials, loose parts, play-dough, and popsicle sticks, to work on number formations. This open-ended exploration was a huge hit! As they worked, the children naturally practiced number recognition, rote counting, and subitizing.
In Phonics, the children have continued their work on letter recognition, blending, and segmenting syllables. We’ve also been leaning into those playful rhymes, sharing silly nonsense words and inviting the children to find the real word that rhymes. Their excitement in spotting patterns in sound has been incredible to watch. Many have begun to confidently isolate individual sounds and even substitute new ones, showing their growth as young, budding readers.
On Thursday, we read the story Sweep, a gentle tale about Ed, who wakes up in a bad mood, one so big that it begins to sweep through his whole day. We noticed together how moods can grow and spread, and how Ed’s feelings eventually reached everyone in his town. It was a powerful way to explore how our own emotions can ripple out and affect those around us.
To honor the movers and shakers in our room, we set up a joyful exploration inspired by Ed’s sweeping feelings. With fans, feathers, tissue paper, scarves, and ping pong balls, the children experimented with the magnitude of how moods, just like these floating objects, can travel across an entire space. The room was filled with squeals of delight and bursts of giggles as objects soared through the air and the children worked together to keep them up and moving.
It was a beautiful reminder that while moods can sweep us up, we also have the power to notice, shift, and choose the beauty and positives in our day. Each child discovered that they, too, can decide which way their mood blows.
As we head into the holiday season, we can’t help but feel grateful for these children and the magical moments of learning and growth!
We hope you get swept up in something magical this weekend with these unbe”leafable” kiddos!
Miss Arden & Miss Hanna
LANDMARK PAINTING:
LEAF PROVOCATIONS:
SK GETS SWEPT UP:
MATH:
PHONICS:
DAILY DISCOVERY & EXPLORATIONS:
