The Farm Report
  • Turtle visitor

    Turtle visitor

    Yep, it’s reptile week.






  • Toad houses

    Toad houses

    Yes, it’s December, but these kids will be ready for the toads, come spring.



  • The Underground

    The Underground
    112811_02

    112811_03

    112811_04

    Social studies with preschoolers is tough. Their concept of a world beyond their view is limited at best. You can tell them about other cultures, but they really learn best through experiencing. Short of whisking them off to foreign lands, it’s been a whole lot of thinking outside the box to plan this particular part of the curriculum.

    This week we’re talking about the United Kingdom. Which, seriously, does anyone truly understand the United Kingdom? (This snippet Susie found seems to shed some light on it.) Anyway, I thought we’d zoom in on London and talk about the Underground and all the places it can take you.

    I retro-fitted my Playmobil train and station to resemble the Underground. I created a map of destinations, all of which we had discussed in class, and told the children to think about where their passengers were headed that day. The loading and unloading the passengers had the additional aspect of refining fine-motor skills.

    They loved this work, and it was in use most of the week. I smiled each time I heard a small voice call out, “Mind the gap!”

    Really—I have no idea how anyone becomes a preschool teacher without training as a designer.

     


  • While we’re on that spa thing…

    While we’re on that spa thing…
    112711_02

    First pedicures for Neko and Mary Beth. They were DELIGHTED.


  • Spa bliss and the Dark Side

    Spa bliss and the Dark Side
    112611_02

    112611_03

    The kids got haircuts today.

    Ellery crawled into our bed sometime in the middle of the night. At around 6:00am I awoke to someone excitedly whispering in my ear, “We’re getting haircuts today!”

    This girl was born for the spa. She’s been excited about this day for a week. I think haircut day trumped both Thanksgiving celebrations. When we arrived, she settled into the chair like she owned the place, and never stopped smiling.

    In between haircuts and the Muppets (YAY!) with Chris, we killed a little time at the Lego store. On our way through the mall we ran into the Dark Side. A certain six-year-old was impressed.

    As for the movie, I got a bit teary-eyed as they sang the opening sequence, my own children the same age as when I first dicovered the Muppets. That’s all kinds of full-circle awesome.

    (Unlike this post, which is all kinds of scattered and disjointed.)