Category Archives: Uncategorized

…I have found no exact duplicate. In this inexhaustible storehouse of crystal treasures, what a delight is in store for all future lovers of snowflakes and of the beautiful in nature. W. A. Bentley – “Snowflake” Bentley “It’s too early. I never eat December snowflakes. I always wait until January.” – Lucy Van Pelt “They […]

“If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.” Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder It’s a little past one in the afternoon. I call […]

This post follows a thread (pun intended) that upon reflection, had its beginning in the fall when one morning, we added the card game Into the Forest to the classroom offerings. It’s a simple card game. Each card has an illustration of a plant or animal. If the card represents an animal, it has a […]

Since the first days of school, the children have been interested in currency.  Having a currency to buy goods (sticks, stones, etc.) was important as they established different stores in the nature mall.  We were most delighted when they began using leaves as currency because there was such an abundance of leaves, and that provided […]

We have been noticing the changes occurring in nature and in our towns and homes as fall slips away and winter approaches. We pondered what we do to get ready for winter cold. “We wear coats!” “And mittens.” “We dress warm!” We discussed how our forest friends also prepare for winter, and we read books […]

The natural materials of our outdoor location offer an abundance of “loose parts” that friends can use, move, put together, and change to become whatever their play or imagination requires. Some of these loose parts are BIG. Friends have built big with logs and planks. The logs are not uniform. They are large, heavy, and […]

We are reaching the end of the Expedition Friends read aloud book, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.  One of the characters in the book is a dragon who cannot fly.   In the story, the dragon begins his life as a painting, and comes to life when its eyes are painted. I […]

“To the uneducated, an A is just three sticks.” – A. A. Milne I found this quote a few weeks ago while I was looking for something that might describe some of the magical stick play we were observing in the woods. While it wasn’t what I was looking for, it did get me thinking. […]

A few weeks ago, the weather promised to be delightfully warm. We took advantage of our freedom and flexibility and traveled to R.B Winter State Park to experience the waters of Rapid Run and Halfway Lake. We began and ended our day with a song by Matthew John Dorman called simply, The Water Song. Here […]

There are some very easy ways to weave in numeracy skills into whatever the children are interested in as they play and explore.  As a teacher, my challenge is to pay attention and look for those opportunities. An important foundation for math learning is developing a strong number sense.  As concrete learners this is most […]