Cutest bird craft ever...

Last week's books:

Great math reading!

The end was our favorite part.

We made some tropical birds of our own!
The students selected pom-poms & feathers to make a little chick in an egg carton "shell".
We scrunched cut down paper bags and filled them with paper "grass & mud" for the nest.

Team 5 is almost done with all the letters and numbers!  For the next three weeks, we will switch our theme to Mexico.  We will learn about our neighboring country to the south.  I like to treat it as a trip abroad; focusing on climate, clothing, language, food, music, & art.  Dramatic play will become a Mexican restaurant and I have pictures of Mayan temples & adobe houses in prominent view to encourage our block builders to try something different.  

*******

Birds lay eggs...

Here are some photos from our bird unit:  

Puffy Egg Paintings

The students had lots of fun with our puffy paint.  We made it from 1 part Elmer's glue and 2 part shaving cream.  We added a drop or two of food coloring then mixed with a spoon.  They worked with red, yellow, and blue to mix colors if they wanted.  Then they used their fingers or a craft stick to paint eggs of different sizes.  Our first step... just playing with & exploring plain shaving cream!

And the final product:The students chose to make one large egg, two medium size eggs, or three small eggs.  They later selected nest materials and the word egg written in several choices of fonts.  We talked while making these about how nests keep the eggs warm and safe from rolling & breaking.

Three little birds dressed up for our Spring Concert!

Spring Things...

Hi everyone,

The spring concert starts at 6:00 on Thursday 4/25.  The students should be here about 10 minutes prior it will help you to find seats.  Team 5 will stay in the room with and we'll all go in together and sit together.  Team 3 students should sit with their families and come join us on stage.  I'll make it clear to you when it is time for your child to come up to perform.  But here is how it generally works- there is an all school (so prek too!) performance right at the beginning, then the chorus, the primary (with pre-k) comes after that. They finish up with the May pole dance and it is usually over between 7 & 7:30.  The concert is optional for pre-k so feel free to stay, leave after you child performs, just come to watch or not at all. Do whatever works for your family.  

It is warming up a bit so we'll be playing outside more often  Please be sure to continue to have your wear appropriate shoes for playing at school.  Feel free, as always to leave a pair of sneakers here.  Once warm weather comes athletic sandals, like the example below, are great for gross motor play time.  Please no flip flops or dress sandals.

I hope you all had a nice vacation or stay-cation.  Both groups are settling back in nicely.  They seem happy to be working and playing with their friends again. 

Thanks!

    Carrie Dix

Our Trip to the Sugar House

Forget about crocuses and kites,
spring in the mountains of Vermont means maple syrup, skiing and mud!

Team 5 visited Brown's Sugar House in East Dover, just down the road from our school.
We had two kind parent volunteers, Alicia and Howard.
 Trips can't happen without helpers and we thank them very much.   

Tasting sap

The arch

Jeff shows us the evaporator

Checking the temperature

Rick shows us a Sugar Maple

Gently tapping the tree

Sap drip, drip, drips from the spout.

The lid keeps dirt and water out.

Back to the sugar house.

The collecting tank

This vaccuum system pumps the sap in to the tank.

Some sugar houses use tubing to collect the sap.
Our host's believe buckets make for better tasting syrup.

Rick is this student's father and show us the boiling sap.

At first the bubbles are big,

but as the sap boils down to syrup the bubbles get smaller.

Archer (my son) came along!  He loves the book "Sugaring" By Jesse Hass.

Jeff uses the dipper to test and see if the syrup is ready

Comparing the grades of syrup

The syrup is pumped through many filters to remove "sugar sand".

Draining out the syrup that is ready.

Syrup...

Is...

Delicious!

At the end of the season, they have to restock the wood shed.
It takes a lot of wood to boil all that sap!

Thanks to Jeff, Rick and Chris for hosting us at Brown's Sugar House.
We had a great time and learned a lot!

*****Thanks also to Colby Dix for taking these terrific photos.*****

Transitioning to Pre-k...

Dear families of our future Pre-K students,

It is Pre-k registration time at the Dover School once again!  I look forward to seeing many family members tomorrow.  We are expecting a large incoming class this year.  To help us prepare for success, we'd love to have all child documentation & paper work in by Friday, April 12th if possible.  This will help us know who is committed to attending in the fall. 

I wanted to provide you with some resources for transitioning your child to the exciting, new adventure that is the Dover Pre-K program!  I'm giving a variety of links below, as every child's level of  group experience is different.  It is normal for any big change to cause some stress or anxiety so I thought it might be helpful have a range of information to peruse. 

"How to Prepare Your Child for Preschool" -Parents Magazine 

"Pointers from Parents: Preparing for Preschool" -Parent & Child Magazine

" A Great Start to School" -Parent & Child Magazine

"Nine Great Starting Preschool Books" -About.com
Also, I really like "Hello, Goodbye Window". Our classroom looks out on to the parking lot so the children love to wave goodbye to their family members. It is a great distraction and segue in to the rest of our day.  Don't get distracted & forget to wave.  Really,  it makes them very sad.  :-(

"Easing Preschool Separation Anxiety" -Babble.com

         *Even children who have already experience in child care can have separation anxiety in a

          new situation.  We are happy to arrange extra visits if you feel this might be an issue.

"LeapFrog: Let's Go To School" 
This is a a fun, song filled, thirty minute video that covers the average preschool day and addresses various concerns children might have.  It is available to stream on Netflix.

Having now almost completed a full two year cycle with our three and four year old program, I have to say, the student outcomes have met or surpassed our expectations on all developmental levels.  The growth is amazing to witness and be a part of.  I look forward to getting to know the children and you, especially the new parents joining our school community.  I hope to see everyone at the Teddy Bear Tea on Thursday, May 9th.  It is always a great party!

All the Best,

      Carrie Dix

Recycled Wheels!

Some students chose to make a vehicle. This project took persistence and planning. They decided what to make, then chose suitable materials. They painted first then glued parts together as needed. The students were encouraged to use photos and books to help them focus on the details of their chosen form of transportation. The work will be on display in the library until the end of next week. Take a closer look at the details.