Ah…our annual smashing pumpkins event….
The carnage…we had a “smashing” good time!!!
Month: November 2015
Stone Soup!
Room 1 has been busy slicing, dicing & cooking our Stone Soup. After reading the book Stone Soup by Ann McGovern we worked together to make our very own pot of soup. Each child brought a veggie or ingredient from home; which we cleaned and cut – onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, garlic, potato and lots of other yummy ingredients!
After letting our soup boil we enjoyed a yummy feast of soup, fresh fruit, bread rolls and sparkling apple cider. It was Delicious!!
We are so thankful for all of our amazing Mommys that came and helped us!
Miss Sarah prayed with us and thanked Jesus for this yummy food and for all of God’s blessings.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Soup From A Stone. Fancy That!!
Stone Soup Days at PCS
Stone Soup has been a tradition at Pasadena Christian Preschool since the very beginning. It’s based on a folktale that’s about sharing and coming together as a community: “Bring what you got. Put it in the pot. Every bit counts, from the largest to the least. Together we can celebrate a Stone Soup Feast!”
Peeling carrots.
Cutting potatoes and carrots
Our ingredients are ready to go in the pot. Even the Stone!
Eat it up!!!!
Underwood Family Farm
The children in Room 2 had a wonderful time learning at the farm. We listened to a presentation about fruits and vegetables. Did you know that kiwis grow on a vine? We also got to go on a tractor ride to the fields to pick vegetables!
.
tractor ride.
tractor ride.
picking candy cane beets.
we got to pick carrots, cilantro, beets, and lettuce.
The farmer showed them how to pick carrots, candy cane beets, cilantro, and lettuce…all the yummy makings of a salad! We put some aside to make next week to have with our Stone Soup.
Farm Animal Show and Feeding
Our volunteers didn’t know they would have Basil and Cilantro crawling on them. These were the farm rats!
A big thank you to all the parents that volunteered. We couldn’t have done it without you!!!
Harvest Cooking Activities
Learning Through Cooking
Children learn math skills such as counting, measuring, and following directions. They also explore simple concepts about quantity, conversations about color, texture, shape, and sizes. Cooking also involves reading and communicating. We use picture recipe boards so the children can see the recipe in print. During fall we have cooked with apples, pumpkin and corn.
A Musical Visit
The preschoolers enjoyed a visit from PCS orchestral students. The 5th grade students played a selection of songs and then demonstrated each instrument by explaining the various parts of each instrument and playing a few individual notes. The preschoolers were eager to say which instrument they liked best. One little friend danced through the whole show…a musician in the making!
The Underwood Family Farm
Today, Room 1 had an awesome day at The Underwood Family Farm! Our day began with haystack climbing!
After a quick snack, we learned a little bit about how fruits and vegetables grow.
We loaded up the tractor and headed to the fields!
Farmer Kate showed us how to pick Clantro, Bok Choy, and Swiss Chard.
After lunch, we headed to The Animal Show. We got an up close and personal look at Cilantro and Basal (the farm rats), Fern (a giant rabbit), Jonah (the goat), Halo (the chicken), and Bingo (the black labrador retriever).
After the show, we feed some goats, pigs, bulls, emus, and donkeys.
We ended our day with some good ol’ fashion playtime! We explored tunnels, pretended to drive a stationary tractor and combine, used the giant tractor slide, and climbed in a wooden train.
Thank you to all of the Room 1 parents who joined us, drove, and helped us keep our little ones safe and engaged! We love and appreciate you!
Food For Thought
Trying to create preschool-friendly lunches can be a challenge at times. Add in trying to make those same lunches healthy, appealing, variety-rich, sugar-reduced, and chemical-free, the challenge gets even bigger!
Sometimes sandwiches end up being the go-to lunch. However, with lunch meats quickly spiraling down the list of ‘healthy’ options (new research links lunch meats to possible colon cancer, high blood pressure, etc.), occasionally shaking things up with sandwich-free lunches may be something to add to the repertoire.
Check out The Kitchn for some tantalizing choices!
Resting our bodies and minds…(Room 4)
Our mornings at preschool are BUSY! We play, sing, dance, read, climb, dig, jump, talk, socialize, and SO much more! Nap time provides much-needed rest for our bodies and minds.
According to Kids Health (click for full article), “Crucial physical and mental development occurs in early childhood, and naps provide much-needed downtime for growth and rejuvenation.”
Also, “well-rested kids are quicker to settle down at night than overtired ones. Overtired kids are often “wired” and restless, unable to self-soothe at bedtime, and more likely to wake through the night.”
We love nap time at preschool…but we are always ready for the kiddos to wake and playtime to begin all over again!
Calmer, Happier Parenting Workshop – Nov 17, 2015
Noel Janis Norton, a learning and behavior expert and author of Calmer, Happier, Parenting will be presenting a workshop in Pasadena next week! For anyone interested, the workshop will be held on Tuesday, November 17th from 7- 9 pm at Pasadena City College.
Pasadena Christian Preschool 