Brrrr....

 The icy cold temperatures prompted this invitation to build.  Mixed materials were presented to push children's thinking to new heights...sometimes literally!  There was no expectation or provocation, just an open ended invitation to come and create.

MT you created structure after structure each one unique and varied.  I could tell you were experimenting with how the different blocks worked together.  You placed cubes and cylinders, pyramids, and...chocolate candy???  

"This one looks like chocolate candy!" MT

AS you were intent on building a tall tower.  You built your blocks straight up every single time.  You used all sorts of shapes and squealed with delight each and every time it fell!

AD you were so focused on your little structure.  You created a beautiful landscape that started small and sprawled across the table.  With each unique block your structure became more and more elaborate.  I could see the concentration on your face as you tried SO hard to balance blocks atop this...well...this chocolate candy!  MT, you weren't the only one who thought that!  You tried first one block, and then another, and another, and another all with no success.

"This one is too pointy." AD

I can see your brain working like a structural engineer trying to pair beauty in form with functional structure.  Your buildings are amazing!

ESE you had one goal in mind, to build a tower tall enough to reach the mirror.  You started the same way each time, with two large cylinders.  After that foundation you chose blocks randomly, some large, some small, some vertical, some horizontal.  Up, up and up and then...

C

R

A

S

H

With each new attempt your structure changed just a bit, trying to figure out the magic combination of materials to reach your goal.  Though you were never quite successful in touching the blocks to the mirror, I would call your time spent at the light table a huge success!

Icy cold days keep us indoors, but they don't keep us from getting to use our big muscles!

These shared indoor spaces allow us the opportunity to split into small groups for more focused learning in the classroom.  Our classroom work will continue to evolve over the week, but check out what we got to do in the gym!

Finding Joy in the Little Things

 Overprepare, that's our motto (or at least one of them!) We dressed for cold and mud, for slushy snow and muddy puddles. 

When we arrived in the forest we didn't find much mud and hardly any snow. To top it off, the weather was perfect! 

What do you do when you dress for mud and snow and there is no mud of snow? You find what you can and make the most of it. 

You find the joy in the little things. 

You find a small pile of snow, and you go sledding!

The joy was palpable, the excitement in something new was overflowing. 

You laugh with your friends. 

You wait your turn and teach others how to slide.

You ask others to join in your joy.

When you find a snowball "as big as your house," you try to move it. 

You try to roll it down the hill. 

You break it into smaller snowballs and chase your teacher!

(ESE - what an arm!!)

You find ice and make your own muddy puddles. 

You splash and squish. 

You giggle and laugh. 

You find the joy in the little things.

Today was a day filled with joy, laughter, togetherness, and sunshine. 

This ice is SO STRONG, it's holding everything all together. - MS

What did you find?

Leaf!

What color is your leaf?

BROWN, Green...

Have a warm and wonderful weekend, go out and find the joy!

discovery

 "Ms L LOOK!  There are flowers!" RM

"Looook!  Loook!  It's so amazing!  You have to look!" AD

"Ms L come check this out!" CG

Our investigations of our branches that began several weeks ago have taken a turn for the exciting!

The tiny, fuzzy, soft things on the branches have started to "bloom"

"They are blooming!"

Bloom? Tell me more?

"They are turning into big, big flowers!"

Our friends were so excited by their discovery!

We talked about what our guesses were earlier.  What did we think might happen to these branches?

Caterpillars

Leaves

Branches

Flowers

"They ARE flowers!" 

As the exploration continued friends began noticing all of the different "fuzzy parts" on the branch.

Some were small

Some were medium

Some were big

Some are closed up tight 

Some are opening up

And then I heard...

"Ms Lisa, we need bumblebees!"   CG

Hmmm...tell me more.

And you told me all about how bees help the flowers grow!

We were so excited by our discoveries that we opened up our small world to create still life paintings.

In the midst of cold, cold January days new life is peeking its way in around us.  We are so excited to see what may come next!

Our little cafe

 

This morning our restaurant was open for breakfast, and it was cooking up some magic!

ESE you stood at my table with a clipboard and pen all ready to serve me!

"What do you want to eat Ms L?" ESE

"I would like pancakes with strawberries and bananas and a cup of coffee." Ms L

"HW what do you want?" ESE"

"I want pancakes and milk, please." HW

Your friend AS was sitting at the table next to me and you went to take his order as well.
"AS, what do you want?" ESE

"Donuts and vanilla milk." AS

As any great waiter knows, you want to make sure you understand the customers wants so you pointed to your menu and said

"This is donuts." ESE

"Yes!" AS

With our orders taken what would you do next?

Our little restaurant has grown and grown.  We now have our very own kitchen for the cooks to work in!

ESE you went to our cooks and told them exactly what your customers wanted!

Our amazing cooks worked their magic and before long our orders were ready!

"Here is your milk." ESE'

I can see by the big smile on your customer's face that he loves his drink.

I love the way to used our materials and your creative brains to find something white to create your milk!

AS, your donut was next, and it was perfect!

My coffee was the next to appear.  As I was talking with my breakfast companion he reached over and put something on my coffee.

"I put milk in your coffee!!!!!!" HW'

HW you made me laugh!  

With some unspoken signal the roles began to change.

AS you donned an apron and a chefs hat and began to work in the kitchen too!

With the change of roles it was apparent that we were starting anew with our orders!

"Ms L what would you like to eat today?"

"I would like a fruit salad." Ms

"What fruits do you want?" ESE

"I would like blackberries, and strawberries and bananas."

Just as with the milk you thought about the REAL food I had ordered and gave me something that told me exactly which food I had.
"Here's your blackberry." ESE     "And here's your bananas." ESE

"Do you want anything else?" ESE

"Hmmmm...how about a bowl of oatmeal?" Ms L

Tiny little bales of straw became my oatmeal!  I love it so much!!

Our little breakfast cafe was a place that filled my teacher heart with joy this morning.  I saw friends serving one another with kindness and patience.  I saw students serving teachers with love and smiles.  I saw creativity and thoughtfulness in the presentation of the foods.

I saw life imitated in play.

Sharing

Serving

Patience

Love

all in our little cafe!

It was a great morning.

Make it Monday

 Your teachers are always thinking and looking for ways to enhance your learning.  This weekend a friend and former architecture student was getting rid of his models and I knew JUST what I was going to do with them!

Well..actually, that isn't entirely true.  I wondered what YOU would do with them!

The sweeping lines, the smooth wood, the architectural elements all made for a sensory feast.  The tones of nature made for a calm visual effect and led our friends down a path that was so much more than I anticipated.

"It's a family circle." GC

You created a story about family and homes.  I could see elements of your family, and elements of fantasy and wonder.

As you continued to create another friend joined and things changed.

MT you began placing shapes very specifically and intentionally.  You told me this invitation reminded you of "sculptures"

As soon as you said that my mind was reminded of a place that I have gone before that is FILLED with sculptures.

You continued to create tiny, amazing works of art.

"It's the Statue of Liberty." MT

Oh wow!  That is a GIANT sculpture!  It has a special name because it is so big.  It's called a monument.

"It has 'statue' in it." MT

As friends came and went our amazing sculpture garden evolved.

AD you and CW worked together to create.

"That's me building a sculpture!" AD

   

Tomorrow our friends will have a chance to create even more with these amazing architectural inspirations.  We can't wait to see what they imagine!
 

How do you catch a color?

 How can you catch a color when a color keeps getting caught?!

The fabric was fuzzy, it was bright, it was new.

Was it part of the Grinch? Does he want it back?

Entering the Collaboratory so many eyes and bodies were drawn to the wind tunnel. The wind tunnel is nothing new, but today the green, fuzzy fabric was eye catching. 

What do you do when the color doesn't work the way you want to?

RM sent the fabric through first, it went fast and flew out like a bird! 

The joy was palpable. 

DO IT AGAIN!
WHOA!

Look at the Grinch fly!

RM quickly ran to retrieve her treasured fabric to put it through the tunnel again. 

She ran around to catch it, but it never came. The fuzz got caught. 

It was "unreachable." 

Or was it?

I wonder how we could get that out?

Can you reach it?

No, I'm too short. - RM

Do you see someone who could reach it, someone who is taller than you?

CF - he's waaaaaaaay bigger than me. - RM

CF jumped at the chance to be a helper. He tipped the tunnel, gently and slowly. 

Viola! One fuzzy green strip of fabric save from the treacherous wind tunnel. 

Let's do it again!

As RM moved on, others quickly moved in to take her place. One thing that never changed was the love for the fuzzy green strip of fabric. 

It flew through the tunnel. 

It got stuck in the tunnel. 
It dropped from the end of the tunnel.

Repeat. 

What a wonderful way to catch and chase a color. 

In other news 

If you are looking for chatting points this weekend, just ask your student how their day of sensory play went. 

Which of their five senses were they able to explore?

Have a restful weekend!

Wishing you well.