Celebrating Win's Birthday!

Getting to Know Win!

When the birthday committee interviewed Win we learned a bit more about her. We already knew that Win had an older brother Maxon, in Tucker Room, but on this day, we also learned that Win's favorite color was pink and that her favorite animal was a "piggie!" 

The Birthday Committee Gets to Work!

Win really enjoyed the paper folding provocation at the light table, which made folded paper the perfect choice for her birthday gift. The plan was to fold paper and then collage it in a wooden frame. The birthday committee got the serious business out of the way first, choosing the frame.
Fay: The little one ‘cause the last time (commenting on why she wants the small grey frame instead of the larger black one).
​Ellie: We’re going to fill this up. Her going to love it.
Emma reached out to touch the frame: It smooth.
Isabelle touched the center of the frame: The whole square.

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When folding the paper, the members of the birthday committee  took inspiration from the vase of flowers alongside the paper that was to be folded. 
Fay: It (the paper) has pink, so we could put it on.
Ellie: This look like the same color (picking up a piece of pink scrapbook paper with the same pattern as the first one she had folded). Is very, very, very color-y.
Fay: They are pink so we can give them to win. It’s a little soft right here (touching the rose petals).
Ellie: This looks like a hershey kisses (describing the rose flowers). It looks like a plant.  It has water and these (pointing to the leaves). It is shiny.

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Fay: I need to wrap a corner and put this one here and fold and fold. I make another one (laying the tissue paper flat over the scrapbook paper). I make a boat. I bent both the sides. I made them because I love boats. 
Ellie narrated her process as she folded scrapbook paper and then tucked tissue paper inside the fold, "I pushed it down and rolled it."  
​Fay took a piece of tissue paper and crumpled it. Then she stuck the tissue paper inside of the folded scrapbook paper and commented,  "I made a pretend gift for Win. I need glue to make it stick." Fay had been on Ellie's birthday committee in October and had also made "pretend gifts" by wrapping mosaic tiles in cellophane. 

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"I need another one,"  ​Fay stated as she grabbed a piece of tissue paper and glued it to a piece of striped pink scrapbook paper.  Fay continued to share her process aloud as she worked, "​Folding paper for Win’s birthday. A gift. It’s just a picture for Win. I need. I need scissors to make this one bigger."  Then she retrieved scissors from the materials shelf, and set about trying to match the size of the tissue paper exactly to the scrapbook paper square, layering the tissue over the scrapbook paper with glue and then trimming the edge to try to make the tissue paper the same size.  Fay continued to work on here "pretend gifts" for Win: "I needs to be like the other one.  I just one pink. Light pink tissue. This one works a little bit."

At the end of the first day of birthday committee work, we had two very distinct types of folding: individual pieces of scrapbook paper and "pretend gifts" which were pieces of tissue paper crumpled and then folded inside of scrapbook paper. 

Collaging "Pretend Gifts" for Win

Isabelle and Emma joined the birthday committee on the second day. 
Karen: Yesterday, Ellie and Fay made these “pretend presents” by folding paper for Win’s birthday gift. Today, we’re going to collage their “pretend presents” onto this frame.
Emma picked up a piece of folded paper and asked, “Fay do this?” Next,  she 
picked up a glue brush and carefully chose a spot on the frame to apply the glue and pressed the paper into it the glue. 
Emma: This one is going to stick properly. Stick. Really good job, that was a really good job. 
Isabelle: Just one in the middle. I need to get some glue. 
Emma dragged her glue brush on the edge of the jar: I get the extra glue off.
Isabelle: I’m going to get some more (glue). 
Emma: Just a little bit (of glue).
Isabelle: Where this one go? This go right here. This one go right here. This last one there. 
Emma: Paper.
Isabelle: That sticks in there.
Emma:  There some more space here (pointing to an empty corner of the frame).
Emma stroked the glue brush on the edge of the frame: I just smooth this out. This glue. This is a big one. Here. This is a tiny one. It has a spot right here!
Isabelle picked up some yet to be folded pieces of scrapbook paper: I fold it. I do all of these. 
Emma: This are all of it!

Win's Birthday Celebration

Win's mom Rory, dad John  and big brother Maxon joined us in Blake Hall for her Birthday Celebration, which began with a reading of Sleeping  Beauty. After her Brown Room friends sang their birthday song for Win, she walked around the birthday candle 3 times to signify her 3 turns around the sun, accompanied by Maxon. We concluded Win's celebration with a tasty homemade peanut butter and chocolate treat. 

Win's Birthday Gift: Folded paper and "pretend presents."