Rainy Tuesday Fun

Cardinal Happenings on Tuesday, March 12 

The Cardinals thoroughly enjoyed joining the Lower School students for morning assembly in the Mueller Auditorium today. Our children were so proud to be part of the larger community as they took their seats on the cushy chairs and settled in to watch the performance of the Kindergarten play.  Many of our children have friends in our Kindergarten classes and seeing their older school friends working together on the stage to tell a 'story' was quite exciting. The children noticed how the stage had been transformed through design and props created by the Kindergarten class.  Fourth grade friends participated in the assembly as well and we all loved listening to a duet written by Bach and performed by students on the piano and flute! This was a wonderful opportunity to connect with our larger community and to continue to build the important relationships within our school. We saw lots of our friends who have come to be 'readers' from 2nd grade and of course our children with siblings were thrilled to give a hug and see one another!

When we returned to our classroom, we reflected on the assembly and this led to a wonderful discussion about how the stage had changed since our last visit with April when we looked at the set of Once Upon A Mattress.  We engaged in a really interesting discussion about sets and how they can help to tell a story. We set up hypothetical situations and tried to think of what we would want to put on a stage to help tell a particular story. For example, if we wanted to tell a story about someone who loved to bake we would not have our set in a music studio (as today's play had) but that we would perhaps use tables, cooking utensils, ovens etc. to create the feeling of a bakery shop. The children were very interested in the whole notion of performances and a few children asked if we could put on a play too!  Time will tell...

In the classroom we had several choices open for our extended Choice Time today. Exploring shapes
has really taken off with our children. The children are involved in several learning centers that support this interest and goal. We continued to look at photographs of shapes in the Tana Hoban book Circles, Triangles and Squares and the children have become more observant of shapes all around us at all time. The children have been inspired to interpret the shapes they have seen in the photographs and are using collage materials to express their interpretations. They have used twigs, Popsicle sticks, small pebbles and toothpicks to design and create their shape art. The children gain so much from open ended math and art experiences and this activity facilitates that growth beautifully.

The flow and movement of our room continued smoothly with a shared story on the rug leading us to lunch. We read Cornelius by Leo Lionni, a fable that illustrates how we can learn from one another. This led to the Cardinals making personal connections in sharing things that they have learned from their friends at school or their siblings and friends at home. Smiles appeared on the faces of the children as they heard their names in scenarios shared during this time.

OTHER PHOTOS FROM THE DAY