Happy New Year! It’s been an absolute joy reuniting with friends and teachers back at Brooklyn Schoolhouse after a long Winter Break. Kids have been updating each other on trips they took, gifts they got, and people they saw. They’ve also been exploring new changes to the classroom together. Some areas in the classroom have moved, some have new materials, and some are completely new altogether.
One of the new areas at school is the Message Center. Here, kids can explore writing, reading, and drawing messages. This week, we used the Message Center to learn pre-literacy skills like tracing and coloring in to create a “Jack-O-Lantern face”. Friends felt so proud when they finished their drawings. Some kids even added details, like teeth and eyebrows, to the face they made.
The acorns, seed pods, and pinecones families collected were added to the corn sensory table. Throughout the week, acorns were cracking and kids were fascinated by their insides. They started having more questions about the insides of other things they saw in the table. Teachers helped open a Sycamore Ball which revealed a fluffy and almost feathery inside.
At Meeting, we’ve started preparing for a long awaited change to classroom: opening up the loft! Friends helped each other come up with rules to use the loft safely. Ideas like, eyes facing forward, slow feet, and keep space between friends. We also brainstormed some materials and toys to put up in the loft, things like decorations, stuffies, “Love Every” boxes, and toy animals.
We’re excited to open the loft soon and see what fun we can get up to in there!
