Thank you to Ryan, Nat’s dad and Eric, Sylvia’s dad who were our forest helpers this week. Thank you to Sarah, Naia’s mom and Anastasiya, Silvia’s mom who were our lunch helpers!

Head:

Exploring our forest at different scales continues to be a deep interest. We brought the hand lenses (magnifying glasses) this week. The children loved observing bark, insects, and the underside of a mushroom closely! Hamlin gently taught them how to lower their eye close to the lens to see better. The children’s mental maps have grown more complex too—We crossed a bridge, walked near the lake, and the children were quick to spot our play site from a new angle! 

Heart:

The children continued to form strong bonds with each other, and we observed so much courage and resilience being practiced this week! Naia built a house under the beloved White Oak (complete with a roof!) and invited friends to a party. There were so many different aspects of learning and various stages of development coming together in this multiple-age group! (structure building, planning skills, social-emotional competencies)

When one child fell and needed a band-aid, a few of her friends sat near her, asked if she was ok, held her hand to look at her “boo boo”. They patted her back until she felt ready to play again. Having the time and space to practice empathy and just sit together without being rushed is so wonderful.

Hands:

There has been a lot of skill building on the fallen tree. One day Amora was climbing it. She was nervous and very cautious, but after a while she was heard saying, “I’m not scared!” to herself and climbing confidently! We saw a striking progression with Henry too, from wanting help one day, to being coached on how to climb down, to mastering the skill fully two days later!

Holism:

On Friday, we went on a mini hike through an area of forest we hadn’t explored together as a group. We observed a female box turtle that we think may have been readying herself for hibernation. The children formed a circle around her, and were so kind and peaceful. They used quiet feet and gave her space while they marveled at her.