Notes

Even with the onset of November, the fall continues to be beautiful, perfect weather for playing outside and for observing the changes of nature that are occurring every day. On our walks to the playground we have been noticing the lovely fall colors all around us, and the children have learned to identify oak, maple, sassafras, gingko, beech, tulip, sweet gum and locust leaves. As November progresses and the trees continue to shed their leaves, we will focus on the difference between deciduous and evergreen trees, and we will identify, again with the real branches, some of the kinds of evergreen trees and bushes such as the hemlock, holly, balsam and pine. We will also compare those evergreen branches to the ones taken from the many deciduous trees in our area, and on circle we will sort the branches on a mat.

Another sign of seasonal changes is the completion of our bulb planting. Every student had the opportunity to plant a bulb or two, including the tiny crocus bulb, the purple-skinned hyacinth bulb, the large and jagged daffodil bulb and the smooth tulip bulb with its thin brown skin. Our prepared flowers beds have been covered with pine straw which will hopefully keep the bulbs safe from snow, rain, ice, cold temperatures, and of course, the hungry squirrels.

The children are still doing lots of pumpkin scrubbing in Practical Life. We will be making bead bracelets in fall colors. Water exercises include funneling which we began last month and ladling. We will also be tweezing dried flint corn (Indian corn) and placing the kernels in the creative art bins. Clementine peeling, a real favorite, is also coming in. The children really love this work as he or she, clad in an orange apron, peel and section each piece of fruit. They then fill an orange serving dish with the clementine sections and pass them to their classmates. It is an exercise in grace and courtesy as well as all of our food prep activities. In Sensorial we will bring in the Geometric Cabinet, a large and beautiful piece of equipment housing six trays each containing different sizes of a particular shape including circles, triangles, rectangles, squares and polygons. The cabinet also includes three sets of cards per tray to size and to match.

Our Peace curriculum continues in November. As mentioned last month, Peace in its simplest form is being kind and caring towards others, sharing, and enjoying family and friends alike. Stones are being put into the Peace Bowl, and the children are really getting the idea that each stone represents an act of kindness. We have now begun to talk about our feelings. Each of us has a “Love Light” inside which shines when we are feeling happy, when we are busy and when we are being kind and helpful to our friends or teachers. Sometimes our lights dim a bit if we were sad, tired or angry. At times like this, we explain, it helps to take a few deep breaths and to sit quietly and perhaps talk to a teacher, parent or caregiver. Again we use concrete materials to explain the lesson, and we play a flashlight game where the children tell us how they are feeling, if their lights are shining or dim, and the reasons for those feelings. Often we hear that their lights are shining brightly because they love their mom or dad, their siblings or their friends. Another reason for feeling good may be that they have visited a special place or a grandparent or that they have a new toy. They sometimes also share their sad or angry feelings that usually relate to a problem with a sibling or friend, feeling tired or hungry, or just missing a family member or caregiver. There is sometimes some child-like drama and emotion during these interactions, but gradually the children become more comfortable with sharing how they feel.

Of course Thanksgiving takes place in November which marks the beginning of the holiday season. Some specific activities related to this include table setting, flower arranging, basting and the continuation of napkin folding. We will also have special Language and Math exercises on the shelves including matching and/or counting horns of plenty, feathers, and turkeys. On circle we will be talking about the fall harvest and showing the various foods that are part of the harvest each autumn. In fact, we will be having our Thanksgiving feasts for the children on Monday and Tuesday, November 25 and 26. We are going to ask for contributions to our feasts of foods that are particular to the harvest which can include corn, beans, potatoes, turkey, and several kinds of fruits and muffins. More information on this will follow. In preparation for our school feasts we will be creating placemats, harvest crowns, paper and glitter turkeys and horns of plenty at the art table along with other seasonal and Thanksgiving projects. We will also be discussing the reasons we have to be thankful. These are for the most part simple things. such as a new toy, a baby brother or sister, playing on the playground with a special friend, a favorite place to visit, or even simpler, the fruit smoothie in the lunchbox. All classes will gather together for our feasts on the 25th and 26th, and both groups have always enjoyed interacting with each other as we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday here at school. It is the highlight of our fall semester!

“Be present in all things and

thankful for all things.”

Maya Angelou