Build a Butterfly Snack

We made butterflies for snacks today.

There were also raisins and cheerios to make designs on the butterflies.

An interesting conversation started when I asked 

"What do you think eats butterflies?"

The look on some of the children's faces was like what would eat pretty butterflies??

 We looked it up on Google and learned that ants, wasps, snakes, birds, toads, rats, lizards and most surprisingly - monkeys.

Bike to the Park 2012

Our third year participating in our communities Bike to the Park event 

during Bike to Work Week.

What an awesome turnout this year.

Families with children under 5 were invited

to meet at a local park.

 They arrived on all kinds of bikes and ride ons.

And had a chance to decorate them.

Then the ride began.

 

 

 Riding through the park, under the bridge and all the way to the playground.

Where we enjoyed snack, washed our bikes, songs and a story plus

  playing in the water park.

Thanks to all the families that joined all the StrongStart centres 

on this windy and wet day.

Snail Trails

On the weekend I had coffee with a friend that is in her last practicum

for becoming a teacher.

Lots of discussion about what is happening in our classrooms and sharing ideas back and forth.

I told her about our Snail Garden

 and that I was trying to think of a craft that we could do 

that involved snails.

From that came Snail Trails.

 I cut pieces of sponge and glued that into shells that I found at a dollar store.

We dipped them into white glue that glided the snail

across the paper.

I moved our Snail Garden close to the art table

so we could watch how they moved.

And we noticed the shiny slime trails they have left on the screen

that covers their garden.

We handled the snails more to see how they feel.

Did they leave a sticky trail on our hands?

Then went back to our art work and added coloured sand sprinkled 

with gold glitter.

Then shook the paper to remove any excess.

Some of the children added to their art work by drawing

and making stories.

 Each snail has it's own trail.

Are they having a race?

"This is a tree (on the left) and this is me (on the right)",

she said.

"The snail is coming to me."

A couple of little girls really enjoyed playing with the snails.

I look over and see all the snails gathered on their garden couch.

Then I saw this wonderful picture.

Beautiful!

I love collaborating and I find it through blogging, peers and the parents

that participate in my program.

Thanks Sharon for brainstorming this idea with me.

Fairy Village

We went for a walk in the woods today.

We went in the woods to create a fairy village.

Then we made fairies to play in the village.

The fairies explored the village.

We let our imaginations lead the way today.

Then we cleared it all away.

This post is Linked to the Fairy Garden contest at
http://themagiconions.blogspot.ca/2012/04/fairy-garden-contest-2012.html

Pete the Cat's Belly Button

Well our Pete the Cat, who has been going on many adventures with the families all year,

had an adventure himself 

last weekend,

He had minor plastic surgery.

This story started when we got Eric Litwin's new book,

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons.

It's a wonderful book, which I mentioned in a previous post.

I have heard parents use Pete's philosophy with their children

when they are upset about losing something.

"Would Pete cry?"

And amazingly their child calms and moves on.

Or a parent told me a story of overhearing her daughter searching for something

at home in her room.

When she couldn't find it she said, "things come and things go".

Wow, what power a few words can have.

Back at school, 

I found this yellow shirt that fits Pete and used velcro

to attach the buttons to the shirt.

So as we read the story the buttons can be removed.

Well when we got to the part in the story where we see Pete's belly button,

the children commented that our Pete didn't have a 

belly button.

After a little brainstorming, it was decided that someone would sew a button

on Pete.

Van and his mom Karen volunteered to be the doctors.

Van searched through our button box till he found a button.

After a full recovery, Pete was back at school showing off

his brand new belly button.

Ready to share his story with our big buddy class,

the grade 3s.