Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Welcome Jossie!

Sam and Lou Lou were happy to welcome another Rainey Room Friend to KW today!  Jossie joined our ranks today and got right to work.   As Lou Lou was walking with  her from Rainey to KW, she filled her in,  "It's kind of like the classroom, but it's not the classroom.  It's KW."  Jossie started her afternoon by being a table setter with Sam.  She also worked with clay, built in construction, and joined the children working on their top-secret Mother's Day surprises.  Jossie will join us again tomorrow!  

Gift Making Central!

We made gifts throughout the classroom today.   At one table, we worked with clay to make candle holders for retiring Board members and Gini.   Gift -giving is part of our culture at St. John's, and we thought we would ask the children why we make so many gifts.  Here are some of their responses:
     Lou Lou - Because we love them (the people we are gifting).
     Hugh - Because it's just a nice school.
    Jossie - Because we care about people.
    Tommy - We're generous with everyone.
    Sam - They're (the people we make gifts for) special.
    Elena - Because we love them.
    Dagny - (When I make a gift)  I feel like I'm being nice.  I'm excited to see people with the surprise (of a gift).
In another area of the room, children began gifts for their mother's.   We won't go into detail here, as  Tegan told us there should be "no spoilers"  in the blog!  As the children worked, they made thoughtful choices and included symmetry and patterns in their creations.  Children also worked on gift tags and decorated boxes for some of the gifts.  Without ruining the surprise, here's some things children said about these gifts:
    Maisie - I like it (the gift) because mine's very simple.
    Cate - I like it because I'm going to give it away.
    Elena - I can't wait because she's going to be surprised.
In each case, children understood that the preparation of a gift is way to show that we care about important people in our lives and in the life of our school.  The happy buzz in the classroom today served as an indication that these relationships are significant to the children.   

Construction Challenge

On Tuesdays, we generally offer a Construction Challenge and today was no exception.  Today's challenge: using only small blocks, make a space roomy enough for a  standing up person.  Once again, it took patience and persistence and once again, the children succeeded!  Elena was kind enough to step into the structure as a test!