3-Day: Farewell, Chickies!
This week in 3-Day, we experienced the miracle of life, watching 8 of our baby chicks hatch!!! One of them hatched Monday morning, right as your children were walking in the door! We hope you enjoyed the video! It was one of the most emotional and amazing experiences that I’ve had here at Bowen. The day just got better and better, as two more chicks hatched while we were playing in our classroom! We took care of our baby chicks all week by keeping them warm and giving them food and water. On Friday, before we said goodbye, we all got to give our chicks a gentle one finger touch. The Backes family has kindly offered to take our chicks to a beautiful farm in Vermont, where they will be able to roam free as they live life on the farm. They promised to send us pictures, so, stay tuned!
On Monday, we learned all about the cow. We learned that a cow has an udder and that this is where milk comes from. We also learned about all the tasty treats that are produced from cow’s milk. The cow’s job is very important on the farm. Part of our sensory experience on Monday was churning butter. We explained to the children that there is a lot of work to do on the farm and, if they wanted to have butter, they needed to work for it. So, throughout the day, each of the children took turns shaking and shaking mason jars filled with heavy cream and marbles. Their hard work paid off and we all tried real homemade butter on crackers as part of our snack. The other part of our snack was a milk taste test. We encouraged the children to try tiny sips of regular, strawberry and chocolate milk. I’m sure you heard all about it and, our apologies, I think we have some strawberry and chocolate milk lovers!
On Monday, we also spent some time with Melissa from Puddlestompers. She had much to teach us about frogs and toads. Children hopped about the big room, catching flies and learning about all kinds of frogs!
We worked on counting chicken eggs this week, building 1-1 correspondence skills, which develops early counting skills. Children used pinchers on Monday and Wednesday to put a specific number of eggs into each hen’s nest.
I really enjoyed meeting with all of you on Wednesday. I was looking forward to the day because I truly felt that I had lots and lots of positive information to share with you. Please know that our year is far from over and I encourage you to come to me with any questions or concerns you have about your child’s development. Caroline and Nina reported a terrific day with your children on Wednesday. They made baby chicks with paint, glue and feathers. We completed the egg part of our project on Friday.
On Friday, we focused on all the growing that happens on the farm. We planted some wheatgrass seeds and we learned about all the fruits and vegetables grown on the farm each season. We also dumped, scooped and poured corn kernels in our barn silos at the discovery table.
All in all, in was a wonderful week, a great unit and we think your children had a ton of fun at the farm! Next week, we will explore the creatures that live in the ocean and have a visit from the New England Aquarium to explore tide pools.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Karen and Caroline
