Week 5 Update - Ms. Drea’s Explorers
Hello Explorer Families!
Can you believe we're halfway through? This week I finally settled into my classes and it's an important point to share as your little ones might be feeling similarly.
We cannot take for granted how much time spent with a person is required, however young or old, to catch even a glimpse of their inner, emerging self. I'm so lucky to be working with each and every one of your children at the Farm School. They teach me every day and I suspect they enjoy their time here. Children learn through play, and we are so fortunate to do it in this natural playscape.
Before I continue with the Story of the Day-- house cleaning!
Please join us on Saturday October 30 for our Annual Fall Festival. Tickets will be available soon and we'd all love you to be there!
This coming week and/or next we'll be making scarecrows. Bring us your junk clothes if you'd like and we'll stuff them with hay!
We had some parents join us this weekend as you'll see in the photos. If you'd like to observe or participate in our Farm School days, please contact Tammy Kattner our Farm School Director-- tammy@hamiltonpoolfarms.com. She can arrange a class date that works for everybody and walk you through the volunteer form.
And finally, as promised-- a mid semester Class Agreements Refresher for you to review with your little ones. Our Explorer class agreements are a distilled, age appropriate version of those used in the older classrooms. If you plan for your children to grow with Farm School, now's a formidable time to make them familiar. Please let me know if you have questions or concerns.
My number one job is to keep our children safe. They can help me! Here's how:
1. They can be safe with their hands and feet and with other's hands and feet
This includes animals and living beings ( trees and insects count)
This includes NOT grabbing, biting, scratching, hitting, throwing
This includes staying with the group and waiting to cross the road as a group
2. They can speak kindly to others and respond to me when I call for them
This includes kind "stops" and "no thank yous"
This includes respecting other people's bodies (see agreement 1), wishes and their things
This includes "You can't say you can't play" or in other words, inclusive play
Respect is a big word for a small human. Here's a definition that's easy to
understand:
We understand what someone is saying, we care about what they need to feel
safe and like they belong and we show them we care by how we treat them.
3. They can try to feel and find their emotions and make peace (with my help)
This includes taking breathes and taking the time they need
This includes speaking directly and kindly to their peers (they can ask me for the words)
This includes modeling pro-social behavior with their younger peers
Alright, now that we've checked all our boxes, let's talk about our days!
I promised a parent I'd describe Blind Samurai, our morning (and sometimes afternoon) game. One child is picked to be Blind Samurai.They are blindfolded and given a pool noodle "sword". The other children move around them in a circle. When they are tapped they are out-- or at least they forfeit their chance to become Blind Samurai next round. The last one standing untapped is the next Blind Samurai. Our son loves to play this game at home with us and you might try it with your own. It's fun, it improves sensory skills and helps your child feel included and in control.
Friday and Saturday our farm chores were simple. Water our not-yet-emerging sunflower house and, on Saturday, feed the chickens. Our lesson? Be in our bodies at the Creek. Why? I've mentioned Proprioception and Motor Skills before. There are so many other reasons... Imagination, Curiosity, Problem Solving, Conflict Resolution... This doesn't even include all the knowledge and "STREAM" that can happen along the way. it all happens in a dry creek bed where rocks are waiting to be stacked and rolled--yes, they can roll the rocks down the hill!-- and branches are waiting to become balance beams, trampolines, limbo poles, fishing rods, hunting rifles, fort and teepee beams, walking sticks and even precursory whittling sticks "look we made an ant tunnel!"
Picture the look on a small child's face when you tell them the dry creek they're hopping around in can and will flood with enough rain. When you tell them their stacked rocks look like a pretty strong tower. When you say "look before you toss" instead of "No, No, No don't throw those rocks!"
We are helping them to think for themselves by allowing them to do so. Sometimes, it's challenging. Sometimes-- often in nature-- it's that easy. Always it's exhausting, but then I don't need to tell you about that.
Next week, hopefully, we'll be planting milkweed and talking about the importance of native plants.
Thank you all and enjoy your week!