Hello Families,
It was so good to be back together again. The children had lovely adventures from Spring to write about in their journals and share with each other. We have been noticing all of the wonders of Spring in our little fairy garden with the blooming of our sweet pea flowers, and birds chirping happily everywhere! We even had three Northern Flickers visit us during Monday Morning Circle! It was such a treat to see them as they are not a bird we often see on campus. We read a book about bird feet and how different feet help them eat or catch different food. We started a chart with Ms. Parent of “What I know about birds” and “What I want to learn about birds”. The children know a lot already but still have questions that we will begin to research and find the answers to. Some of their curious questions are, “How many types of birds are there in the world?”, “Do birds smile?” “What are the biggest and smallest eggs?” “Why are birds pretty?” Such great questions!!
We had our first Maker’s Day today and it was so much fun! I told a story about “The Three Little Ducks”. Maybe your child can retell it to you. Then, the children had to make a house for the ducks that wouldn’t blow down if some wind, or perhaps a wolf, came by. The children could choose to work with a partner or even in a trio or by themselves. They had to use their problem solving skills to figure out how to make their house from various recycled materials and how to work together with someone or how to use their time efficiently. Later, the children presented their projects. They introduced themselves, stated what materials they used, and stated what was the most challenging part, and what they might change if they did this project again. Then, the audience shared an appreciation for all of their peers’ hard work and creativity.
We have started a collaborative art project that we worked on all week and will continue to add to. It’s a beautiful Spring scene, and even has an underground world. Stop by some time to check it out!!
Next Monday is our turn to lead Morning Circle!! We’ll be reciting a Spring poem called, “In the Heart of a Seed”. You are welcome to stay and watch!
I’ve included a playdough recipe if you are interested in making some homemade playdough.
I hope you have a lovely weekend and get a chance to explore out in the rain.
Remember to bring rainboots and a raincoat and extra clothes!! Looks like we may have rain all week.
We’re collecting coins for our Creek Clean-up Fundraiser!! Bring in your spare change if you can!!
Thank you!!
Much Love,
๐ฉต Miss Anna
March 28, 2025
Playdough Recipe
4 cups Boiling Water
4 cups Flour
1 cup Salt
4 Tablespoons Cream of Tartar
8 Tablespoons Oil
Mix dry ingredients together. Add oil to boiling water. You may add food coloring or liquid watercolor to the water at this time. Make sure the water is boiling!! This is what โcooksโ the playdough. Adults will need to pour the boiling water and add to the dry ingredients. Mix well and then knead dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead well until cool enough for children to knead. Add more flour if the dough is too sticky. You can add essential oils for a scented dough. If you want to you can replace 2 cups of flour with cocoa powder for a chocolatey dough.
Have Fun!!
March 14, 2025
Hello Fabulous Families,
We had a fun week being scientists as we observed our rye grass growing in our Spring baskets. We dissected owl pellets which was so exciting! We wrote poems saying Goodbye to Winter and Hello to Spring!! We listened to Vivaldi’s Spring while we painted a flowering tree for the cover of our Spring Journals. We made art with our buddies which we are entering in the Creek Clean-Up art contest. A note about that went home yesterday with your child. They can absolutely enter an individual piece of art as well.
I hope you all have a lovely break!!
Happy Spring!!
๐ Miss Anna
March 8, 2025
Hello Fabulous Families,
We sure have been enjoying the sunshine and signs of Spring this week! We made our new March calendar and learned our moon poem for March. March is known by many Native American tribes as the Sap Moon for the Maple sap that is running at this time and then made into maple syrup. The full moon is next Thursday, March 13th.
We planted cat grass and started a science journal of our observations. We’ll be observing them all next week practicing being real scientists by observing and then drawing only what we actually see. We’re making predictions and hoping we’ll see some sprouts on Monday.
We had some little chickie visitors this week and the children were so gentle with them.
The 3:00ers performed three times in their skit with Miss Barnum’s class and they did so well! We reflected afterwards and the children shared how some of them were nervous or shy but they still had fun. It was great collaborating with an older class and we’re getting excited to write and perform some of our own skits.
We went on a hike with Miss Kristen’s class this week and looked for shapes in nature. We found a lot of circles and even concentric circles. We enjoyed a snack by the creek and wrote and drew about the shapes we saw.
Thank you to all of the families for helping with our jobs that help our classroom run smoothly!! We really appreciate it!! There will be more opportunities to help after Spring Break as we begin to redesign and plant our fairy garden. I’ll be planning a work day soon and will have a sign-up if you are interested.
Remember to Spring Ahead tomorrow for Daylight Savings!
With Much Gratitude,
๐ Miss Anna
March 1, 2025
Hello Dear Families,
We had such a fun and busy week as we continued our author/artist study of Leo Lionni. We did a two-day art project inspired by Leo Lionni where we used a variety of objects such as, bubble wrap, tulle, pinecones, and redwood branches to paint textures on our paper. The next day we cut out shapes and animals to collage onto our original art. It was a joy to watch the art process for each child and how their creativity flowed. I hope you get a chance to stop by in the morning or afternoon to check out their beautiful art in the classroom. We also finished up the week with writing about our favorite Leo Lionni book, our favorite part and then drew an illustration. The children worked hard on their writing and then read their work to one another.
We measured the children again on our class height chart! My, how they have grown!!
On Wednesday the children played rhyming games with me in the classroom and then also jump roped to rhymes with Ms. Parent.
We also had a fun day with our buddies on Friday. The children enjoyed playing parachute games and then the little buddies had a Free Choice Work Time with their big buddy.
The 3:00ers and I are really enjoying our novel, The Puppets of Spelhorst by Kate DiCamillo, another one of my favorite children’s authors. Her stories are coupled with a solemn message as well as playful moments riddled with rich language and imagery.
We are now officially in the third trimester!! I will be posting the parent jobs that you signed up for on Monday as a reminder.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend!!
Much Love and Gratitude,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
February 22, 2025
Hello Families,
Thank you for meeting with me this week to share about your amazing children!!
We’ve begun an author study of Leo Lionni-one of my favorite children’s book authors/illustrators. We’ve been discussing how Leo made the art in his stories and enjoying the rich vocabulary that his books are full of. We’ll continue reading more of his wonderful books next week .
We went on a hike on Thursday with Miss Kristen’s class. It had been awhile since we’d been out on the trail because of the rain so it was so nice to soak up the sun and get out and stretch our legs! We also practiced being still, observing and listening. It was amazing how many different bird songs we could hear when we stopped to listen. We also saw a beautiful goldfinch!
We soaked up the sun in our fairy garden this week and read a story about tea around the world, then made tea for the fairies. Children worked together to prune, sweep and rake to tidy up our garden. All of these small acts help children practice those essential life skills of cooperation and responsibility. As they take pride in their work and their environment, they are empowered and they further develop their social/emotional selves.
It’s still very muddy out in our yard and we will be playing in the mud daily! Please remember to help your child prepare for the day with a change of extra clothes.
Thank you!!
I hope you all enjoy the sunshine this weekend!
Much Love,
๐ Miss Anna
February 15, 2025
Hello Dear Families,
What a week!! We started off with leading Monday morning circle and reciting the poem titled, Snow Moon. Not a small feat for young children to stand up in front of the whole school and recite a poem-and on a Monday morning, no less.
On Wednesday we were still busy getting ready for the Farmer’s Market. The children made signs for the booths, continued making books and posters to sell, and also counted out the tokens that we would all get to shop with. Then, we had a parade with the Acorns since Wednesday marked the last day of The Lunar New Year festivities. The children enjoyed working the market with their big buddies but also had some disappointment about items selling out before they got a chance to shop. We problem-solved afterwards and the children came up with some great ideas that I will share with the teachers at our next meeting. I think it’s important for them to see how I really do value their thoughts and ideas and we can put our ideas into action when we work together.
The rest of the week we were busy making Valentines for families and for our big buddies. Some children left their Valentines in their cubbies so look for those coming home next week. ๐ We also made some really fun art with the teasel (it’s an invasive plant that looks similar to thistle) we collected on a hike a few weeks ago. You may have heard we kind of have a thing for hedgehogs in our class and many children made little hedgies. They also made magical wands and other fun creations too. We had an epic marble painting day where children had a chance to create and learn about the physics of an object in motion. They had to problem-solve how to get their marble back into the middle of the box to roll through the paint and they noticed how the tracks changed if they rolled slowly or quickly.
Friday was a flurry of fun as we exchanged Valentines and had our Valentine’s Day Tea. Thank you to everyone who helped set up, clean up, and bring in delicious food to share. It really does take a village to make all of this magic happen for the children!!
Last but certainly not least, the 3:00ers hosted Village Friday in our classroom. Over the past two weeks, we have been researching snakes and learning fun facts. The 3:00ers wrote questions and answers and drew illustrations which they then presented to the whole school. The children worked in three different groups and had to decide who was going to illustrate and who was going to write what part. It was a lot of fun and hard work! As a group they have been self editing and peer editing and it is amazing to see their sentence writing skills grow. They did a super job presenting to the whole school!! They asked questions and called on children to answer and then added to their answers with additional information or other fun facts. Did you know that when snakes shed their skin their eyes turn a milky blue and they are temporarily blind? Did you know that some Screech owls bring small snakes into their nest to eat insects that would harm the owlets? We also learned about Garter snakes (not garden snakes, although you do find them in your garden). They live all over our country and we see them often in our yard at Village. They can spray a musk from their body (similar to skunks) to protect themselves from predators. Oh, and the San Francisco Garter snake (living primarily in San Mateo County) is on the Endangered Species list. It has a beautiful turquoise color and unfortunately has lost much of its habitat due to human development. We also ended with some snake jokes: What did the snake say to its love?Give me a hisss! ๐
No School on Monday!!
Conferences Next Week!! Early Release 1:15!!Thank you all for signing up for a conference. I look forward to talking with you about your amazing children!! It truly is an honor to be a part of their lives and I do really love being their teacher!
I hope you all have a lovely 3 day weekend!
Much Love,
๐ฉท Miss Anna
February 7, 2025
Hello Fabulous Families,
We started the week off celebrating our 100th day of school!! Woo hoo!! The children had a fun time counting their collections from home. Some children counted by ten’s, some children counted by one’s, and someone even counted by four’s!! We decided that counting by 10’s was the easiest and quickest way to count to 100.
We’re continuing to learn our monthly moon poems. February is known as the Snow Moon. We’ll be reciting our poem at Monday morning circle next week if you want to join us.
We’re also continuing our study of Lunar New Year. We read a book about how Vietnam celebrates Lunar New Year (Tet). We noticed what is the same and different from how the Chinese
celebrate this holiday. One difference is in their zodiac-instead of a rabbit, the Vietnamese zodiac has a cat. Abby was very pleased about this!
Speaking of Abby the tabby, we have all been really enjoying hearing about her adventures that the student of the day writes in her journal. The children have been sharing some wonderful
collections, pets and special treasures and the students have been practicing asking questions.
We’re starting to take a dive into researching snakes and the 3:00ers have started a list of questions and answers. We’ll be hosting Village Friday in our classroom next Friday and we’ll
be teaching the rest of the school some fun facts about snakes.
Valentine’s Day Tea on Friday, February 14th at noon. Please let me know if you are planning to attend.
Farmer’s Market with our buddies on Wednesday, February 12th at 12:30. No money is needed. We give every student 10 tokens to spend. We’ll have a special end of Lunar New Year Parade/Dragon Dance right before the market begins. You are welcome to join.
The children have been getting very excited and making all kinds of items to sell at the market. A group of students have even written a book together and made bookmarks /flyers promoting the book. We are all just bubbling with creative ideas and it has started to inspire other children to make books too.
Oh yeah, and it has rained so much that a pair of Mallard ducks thinks our puddle in the yard is a pond. ๐ฆ๐
Happy Weekend!!
Much Love,
๐ Miss Anna
January 31, 2025
Hello Families,
It’s been kind of a strange week for me being out sick for two days but the children sure had fun with Ms. Parent. In the beginning of the week the 1:00ers worked with base 10 blocks to compose and decompose teen numbers to strengthen their concept of place value. They began working with larger numbers too and have been counting by 10’s and 5’s. The 3:00ers have been working on finding numbers on the 100 board that are 10 more or 10 less. As a whole class we continued our work with measurement and learned how to use rulers to accurately measure in centimeters. We’ve been measuring all kinds of things around the classroom-stuffies, pencils,even our feet.
Happy Lunar New Year! ๐
The Lunar New Year began on Wednesday with the new moon and is celebrated for two weeks until the full moon on February 12th. It’s the year of the snake, the wood snake to be specific! We’re learning about how the holiday is celebrated, its origin and will continue to learn more about Asian cultures over the coming weeks.
Our Weekly Hike:
Our hike this week focused on animal tracks and scat identification. What’s scat? It’s poop. You sure can find out a lot about an animal from looking at its scat. They identified raccoon scat and learned that it ate some kind of red berries. They also saw dog prints and horseshoe prints. The children will be coming home next week with a journal from our field trip with track and scat identification. Maybe you’ll enjoy bringing it out on your family adventures.
Buddies Day:
We had a buddies’ day today and made items to “sell” at our Farmer’s Market which will be on Wednesday, February 12th at 12:30. The children all get tokens and can travel around to the different booths to buy items. This time our class along with our big buddies will be the vendors. The children will also be making something from the garden over the next week. We always love seeing our big buddies and creating with them!
100th Day of School!!!
Monday is our 100th day of school. I sent home a note attached to a ziploc bag with instructions. Please read, fill with 100 items (such as dried beans, Legos, rocks, acorns) and return on Monday!! Ask your child how they would like to count the items they collect. By 1’s, 5’s, 10’s. We’re also having a Pajama Day on Monday-and a birthday celebration for our stuffies-because, why not?? Abby is particularly excited. ๐บ
The rain is returning!!
It also looks to be cold so please help your child be prepared for chilly, muddy, wet play. Rain gear, boots, extra clothes, warm layers!!
โค๏ธ ๐ซ Valentine’s Day Tea:
I’ll have a sign-up sheet on the door on Monday for food to bring.
If you want to plan ahead, our class will be leading morning circle on Monday, February 10th. You are always welcome to join.
I wish you all a warm and cozy weekend.
Much Love,
โค๏ธMiss Anna
January 24, 2025
Hello Families,
We had such a fun week preparing for our field trip and learning more about habitats and animals that live right here in our local forests. We collaborated with the Acorn class on Wednesday and the children got into groups to learn about a forest animal. They read or discovered what different animals like to eat, how they protect themselves and what kind of habitat they live in. Then, they had to work with their group to act out the animal/habitat to the rest of the class. The children had some really creative ways of showing what they know! Then, later that day we had centers with Miss Jess and Ms. Parent. In Miss Jess’s center the children made habitats with recycled materials. Ms. Parent played an animal movement game outside and in my center we listened and sang The Habitat song and played a “Who lives where?” game.
Thursday Hike:
Winter time is such a great time to bird watch because of all of the bare trees. We watched birds and wrote and drew what we saw. We also have been measuring using non-standard units of measurement. The children found something to measure and then had to figure out what they were going to use to measure it. The children had some really creative ideas. Some children used their water bottle, their pinky, their feet and even someone measured a stick with their leg. After our hike we come back into the classroom to finish up our field notes and share our findings.
Spring Lake Environmental Discovery Center:
Thank you to our field trip drivers for driving and helping support us teachers!! It was such a beautiful day to be out and about learning about habitats. The children had a chance to hold a millipede and learn the difference between a centipede and millipede. We had a chance to touch a Leather Sea Star and a Bat Sea Star. Boy, do they feel different! We wished we had more time to explore the Center but it is open to the public. I included a picture in the newsletter of the Activities Calendar with hours and a QR code to scan.
Save the Date: February 14th-Valentine’s Day Tea!!
Families are invited to a tea party in our classroom on Friday, February 14th @ Noon
More details soon!
Conference Sign up Sheet out on Monday!!!
Conference Week is 2/18-2/21
Early release all week.
Boots:
Please label your child’s boots on the inside. I have some metallic sharpies if you need one. Many children have the same boots and we’ve had some problems lately figuring out who they belong to. Also, you may leave boots here if you wish. If you are taking them home daily, please be sure to bring them back-I know it hasn’t been raining but we need boots for our Thursday hikes as there is a lot of mud and water from the Vernal pools.
Thank you!!
I hope you all have a lovely weekend!!
Much Love,
๐ Miss Anna
January 17, 2025
Hello Dear Families,
We had another wonderful week together learning and growing, discovering and exploring! These chilly, and sometimes frosty mornings spark our conversations about the weather and the seasons and what we can do to keep warm. This beautifully leads into more questions about our environment such as, “How do animals keep warm in winter and what kind of homes or habitats do different animals have?” We’ll be learning more about habitats next week as we prepare for our field trip.
Field Trip Next Friday, January 24th:
We head to the Spring Lake Environmental Discovery Center for some exploration and discovery about “Habitats and Homes”. We leave at 9:00 and will be back to school around 1:00. Your
child will need:
Backpack
Lunch/water bottle
Closed-toed shoes
Warm jacket/sweatshirt
Our weekly hike with Miss Kristen’s class:
We had another lovely hike with Miss Kristen’s class. We saw a hawk in the same tree-we’re thinking it may be the same hawk from last week and that it may nest in that tree. We also saw a hot air balloon! We walked all the way to the creek and had our snack along the bank. This time we wrote and drew about what we heard or saw on our walk. The children explored in the creek and some children started making leaf boats. Then, we all found a special leaf and whispered a little wish to it and sent it floating down the water.
Student of the Day:
We will start Student of the Day on Tuesday. Your child will get to bring Abby the Tabby home for a night and write and illustrate a story in her journal to share with the class the next day. Your child will also get to bring in an item to share on that day. We talked about some ideas as a class so I hope they share with you some choices we discussed. I would like their share item to be something that is unique and special to them. Some ideas are: a collection of shells/rocks, a coin collection, an instrument that they play, a special stuffed animal or blanket from when they were a baby, a photo album, a special book, something from a loved one or ancestor. I brought in a tiny wooden trinket box that my grandmother gave me when I was 4 years old. Please help your child choose something special and unique to them. Some children asked about a Lego build. This is fine as long as it is keeping with our school values and is not a character and does not have weapons. Pets are welcome and students have even brought in their younger or older siblings as a share. If you are unsure, please check in with me. The main thing here is that I want children to be able to tell us about their share so it might be helpful to practice with them. We talked about how you need to tell people what it is, what you do with it, where it came from and why it is special.
Math:
We played a shape sort with different shaped found objects. We also started exploring 3-D shapes and learning about some of their attributes and then went on a shape hunt around the classroom.
Language Arts:
We read a book called Penguin Problems that was pretty silly but ended with a powerful message about gratitude. The children practice verbalizing their gratitude with our appreciation circles on Friday, times when we collaborate with other classes, and we have also started ending our day with two appreciations about someone at school. I choose two different children at the end of each day to share an appreciation for someone. These small acts really do make a big difference.The 1:00ers practiced their phonemic awareness with a sound sort. They had a whole bunch of fun objects to sort by their beginning sound. They also practiced sounding out words and figuring out the middle and end sounds as well. All of this gets them ready for reading, writing and spelling! The 3:00ers are learning question words and how to write a question. They learned about pen pals and wrote a question to their big buddy. We’re going to deliver the letter and then hope for a reply!We also read a book about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today and learned about why he was such an important part of the Civil Rights Movement in our country. I started our day by reading one of Dr. King’s quotes, “If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.”~MLK Jr.
No School on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr!!
Have a lovely weekend!!
With Much Love and Gratitude,
๐ Miss Anna
January 10, 2025
Hello Families,
Happy New Year!! I hope you all had a lovely winter break. I so enjoyed the slower paced mornings at home and spending time adventuring with my family. It’s great to be back together with the children in the classroom. They have had so many stories to share about their time away from school and they have really enjoyed getting back into their work and play with one another.
Hike with Miss Kristen’s Class:
On Thursday we went on a hike with Miss Kristen’s class on the trail behind the school. It was such a beautiful day to be out and about soaking up the sun and all the beauty our natural world has to offer. We spotted a hawk far away on top of a tree and found orange and brown mushrooms (no Amanitas, though). We enjoyed a snack under the shade of an oak tree and then wrote and drew something that we saw or wondered about. The children buddied up with a child from Miss Kristen’s class on the walk and then shared pencils with her class. It was a beautiful experience and we plan to make it a weekly adventure.
Field Trip Friday, January 24th:
Our next field trip is to the Spring Lake Environmental Center to learn about Habitat and Homes of our local wildlife. We’ll leave at 9:00 and be back around 1:00. The Acorn class will be joining us and we’ll be collaborating with their class before we go to learn more about habitats.
Makers’ Day:
We’ll be having a weekly Makers’ Day coming soon. I have a collection of materials but would love some more. Do you have anything to offer? Toilet paper rolls, plastic caps, bread ties, yogurt cups, cereal boxes etc. Please make sure containers are clean and dry before bringing them in.Thank you!I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
๐ Much Love,
Miss Anna
December 13, 2024
Hello Families,
Well, it certainly has been a strange week here with so many of our students out sick. We have been thinking of them and sending them well wishes during our Mindful Minutes and our morning circle time and sure hope everyone recovers over the weekend!
We made lanterns with our big buddies this week and the buddies made one for the children that were absent. They are so beautiful!
We led Monday morning circle and the children did so well! It’s not easy being some of the youngest children and standing up in front of the whole school to perform. We also hosted Village Friday today and recited our poem for Solstice and then sang Solstice songs with the whole school.
Language Arts: We’ve been reading different versions of The Gingerbread Man and discussing the similarities and differences of the variations. The children also made Gingerbread People art yesterday and they are so creative! Come on in and take a look at our Wintery classroom in the morning or after school.
We had a lovely field trip to the LBC today to see The Pasada Navideรฑa. It’s such a beautiful show with dancing and music from Mexico. We are so lucky to have the opportunity to celebrate the diversity of our world!
Winter Solstice Festival: The festival is next Thursday. Please be dressed and in the classroom at 6:10. Bring a mug for a special treat afterwards. :)I wish you all a restful weekend. Be well and we hope to all be together again on Monday!
Much Love,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
December 6, 2024
Hello Fantastic Families,
December is here and we are preparing for our Winter Solstice Festival. We’ve been singing songs with Miss Barnum’s class and Miss Kristen’s class as well as practicing our whole school songs. It really is a magical event that the children work hard on and becomes a huge part of our curriculum. Please let me know if your child will NOT be at the festival. It is Thursday, December 19 at 6:30 p.m. Students need to be dressed and in the classroom at 6:10.
Math: The 1:00ers have been composing and decomposing teen numbers and we have been learning about place value and what that “One in the front” represents in a teen number. 3:00ers learned a fun new math term this week: “Inverse Operation”. We have been making Fact Families and exploring the patterns of subtraction and addition.
We need Bay Leaves and evergreens!!! We need oranges and cinnamon sticks. Please let me know if you have any that you could donate. I need them by Tuesday. I am happy to purchase them but I heard from the students that some of you may have an orange tree.
Solstice Details: Our class is dressing in Winter night sky colors: Think Northern Lights: Dark Blue, purple, green, fuchsia. My hope is that your child can wear something that they already have. Your child can wear all of the same color (all blue, all purple, all green) or wear a colored top and black bottoms (skirt or pants).
Monday Morning Circle: We are leading the all school circle next Monday. Families are welcome to attend. We have a fun little skit planned that stemmed from our daily calendar routine.
Field Trip: Next Friday, December 13th: We’re going to the LBC for the Posada Navideรฑa. It’s a lovely show full of music and dancing honoring the Mexican holiday Posada Navideรฑa. Here’s a little snippet from the LBC: “Posada is a Spanish word for โinn,โ and los Posadas Navideรฑas recall the biblical story of the nativity. Much like the European tradition of going house-to-house to sing carols in the early darkened evenings, a local Posada Navideรฑa often begins with a nighttime street procession of locals representing pilgrims. Carrying lighted candles, they follow children dressed up as Mary and Joseph on their search for an inn as they journey to Bethlehem. Singing a special posada song, the pilgrims knock on doors along the way as neighbors emerge to purposely refuse shelter (in song) until the procession reaches a designated house, where the party has been arranged.”
Please remember to check the white board outside of the classroom for important information. I still have some Progress Reports that need to go home. Please stop by in the morning or after school to pick up.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
November 22, 2024
Hello families,
I hope you all are well and staying safe out there with our wild weather. We had a fun week with our field trip to the LBC for an amazing puppet show, “Leonardo! A Wonderful Story About a Terrible Monster”. After the show, we reflected on the characters and their feelings and related it back to the children’s own experiences. We also discussed the various styles of puppets used in the show and how other elements such as song and sound effects were used to tell the story. The next day, we had a Language Arts lesson during centers time reflecting again on the show/book. We talked about how having a good friend can help you overcome fears or just feel better when you’ve had a hard day. I asked the children to think about what makes a good friend. They had wonderful ideas such as, being kind, sharing, and standing up when someone has been hurtful. Then, they made their own puppets and the children performed short puppet shows with a partner. All of this supports their Social/Emotional Learning as well as developing their speaking and listening skills. We’re keeping the puppets in the classroom for a bit to use when we get back from break. We plan to make more puppets and continue to talk about kindness. Do you have any old socks to donate? Or bits of ribbon, yarn or buttons? We could use some for our puppet creations.
We also continued reading different versions of Stone Soup and comparing and contrasting the story variants. We had one more to read today, but we’ll just have to continue that when we return. The children had a great time washing and cutting vegetables for the soup and we even made butter. It was a great day to make soup and be cozy inside, yet still we got outside for a short but fun, rain adventure. The soup was delicious and nutritious!! Thank you to everyone who helped set up, bring bread and to all of you for bringing in the vegetables for the soup! It really does take a village to make all of these wonderful experiences happen. Thank you for being a part of our village!!
When we return from break, we’ll be getting ready for our Winter Solstice Festival by learning songs and poems centered around the Winter Solstice. The teachers have started brainstorming and I will have the details about what your children will be wearing very soon.
Progress Reports will be available on Monday, December 2. I will be hand delivering them so please stop in the classroom to pick up.
Thank you!
I hope you all have a lovely break and enjoy some quality time with friends and family, or maybe just some slower mornings where you don’t have to rush to school or work.
With Much Love and Gratitude,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna


November 15, 2024
Hello Families,
It was a short but fun week as we reflected on the beauty of our Dia de Los Muertos Festival, welcomed the rain and had an all school music practice to get ready for Winter Solstice!
The 3:00ers took a hike with Miss Barnum’s class to the creek behind our school and we also learned a new poem for November’s Beaver Moon. So excited to see the Super Moon with some
of you tonight!
Field Trip next Monday, November 18th to the LBC for a puppet show: Leonardo! A Wonderful Story about a Terrible Monster. Drop off your child’s labeled car seat/booster in the parking lot with Miss Maria. Drivers will get their list and emergency packet and return to the classroom to wait for me and the children. NO BACKPACKS!!!!!
RAIN GEAR!!!!! Thank you if you already have rain gear (rain coat and boots) for your child. If you don’t please do get that gear. We do have extras (mostly boots) but rely on these if someone forgets. If you need some help finding/purchasing gear, please let me know.
Extra Clothes!!! Please check your child’s backpack to be sure they have an extra set of clothes: pants, long sleeve, socks and underwear. They need extra clothes daily as they do tend to get wet during our rainy season. We play outside rain or shine!
Stone Soup: We read one version of Stone Soup today and will continue reading several more versions next week. We’ll be making Stone Soup on Thursday and you all are invited to join in our feast. Students will come home with a note of their vegetable to add to the pot on Tuesday. I would love to offer bread (gluten-free and regular) with our feast. Is there anyone who could help with this? Also, please let me know what adults are coming so I can plan for space. I have bowls for students but adults will need to bring a bowl or mug for soup.
Thank you!! I hope you all have a lovely and restful weekend!
With Much Love,
๐ Miss Anna
November 9, 2024
Hello Dear Families,
What a beautiful Dia de Los Muertos Festival! Thank you for getting your child here on time and for bringing in photos. It really is such a beautiful way to honor our ancestors and loved ones. The children shared stories and we grew a little closer as a class community. Thank you to Shasta (Kyden’t mama), and Malika (Kyden’s grandma) for making the beautiful flower headbands! Thank you to Karla (Kaya’s mama) for helping us set up our beautiful ofrenda! Thank you to Lauren (Jasper’s mama) for bringing in more marigolds! We are so grateful to all of you and to our beautiful community. On Wednesday, the whole school had the honor of attending a Dia de los Muertos presentation by Juan, who shared his Aztec culture and ceremony with us. He reminded us that this was just a small example of what his culture does to remember loved ones and that all cultures have a way of honoring the deceased. He encouraged us to learn about our own culture and embrace the beauty of our similarities and differences. What an amazing experience for our students to be a part of! Thank you to Rebecca and the PA for organizing this!
Full Moon Walk:
Next Friday, November 15th is a full moon and a supermoon (so it will appear larger as it is closer to the earth in its orbit). In Native American culture it is known as the Beaver Moon. We would like to invite you all to join us with Miss Kristen’s class for a walk out to our field to watch it rise. If you are interested, we’ll be meeting right outside the classroom at 5:00. Bring a mug and a blanket and dress in warm layers. Check out this link if you want to learn more about why it is called the Beaver Moon. https://www.almanac.com/full-moon-november
Field Trip Monday, November 18th to the LBC.
I’m looking for one more driver who could drive 4 children. Please let me know asap if you are available. Thank you!
Progress Reports:
Friday marked the end of the trimester. Progress reports will be out by 11/21 and can be picked up in the classroom.
Stone Soup Feast:
Our class will be reading many different versions of Stone Soup over the next few weeks and we will make our own Stone Soup and celebrate gratitude and giving with a feast for students and families on Thursday, November 21th at 12pm. Please let me know if you are able to join us and/or if you are able to help out with set up or clean up.
Reminder:
No school on Monday in honor of Veteran’s Day!I hope you all have a lovely and restful weekend!!
Much Love,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
November 1, 2024
Hello Fabulous Families,
Wow! What an exciting week! The weather is changing, we’ve started a new month, and we are getting ready for our Dia de Los Muertos Festival next Friday! The Sprouts (Kindergarten Acorns)
joined us this week to practice our poem that we will be performing on Friday. It’s been fun having some old friends join us in our classroom. We’ve really been enjoying listening to
the stories as children share about their loved ones. Talking about grandparents and great parents has led us to talking about family trees.
****Please bring in a framed photo next week if your child has not already done so. Be sure to share a story about your loved one so that your child may share with us.
Language Arts:
We have met all of our consonant letter friends and have now moved on to the vowels. Let me know if you are missing any letter friends so your child can have the complete set.
We started formal handwriting this week!! We decided to name our groups: There are the Peregrine Falcons, the Golden Eagles, and the Owls.
Dia de Los Muertos Festival:
The festival begins at 5:30. Please drop your child off at 5:00 in the classroom. This allows time to finish getting ready (wings and headbands), settle in a bit, and take a group photo. Bring a mug for a special treat after the festival. Please be sure to eat before the event. There is no food at this event. After the festival, please bring back the headbands and butterfly wings to the classroom.
Volunteers/Help:
Is anyone interested in helping out next week? We would love some help deadheading.
Also, our CD/tape player broke this week. Before I purchase a new one, does anyone have one they don’t use anymore? I would like it to have a CD player and cassette option. Or, does anyone
want to see if they can fix it?
Thank you for all of your support!! I hope you all have a restful weekend!
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
October 25, 2024
Hello Fabulous Families,
We had a very exciting week with our field trip to the LBC to see the Sewam American Indian Dancers. The show was so amazing and we learned a lot about Native American culture and storytelling.
It really ties in so perfectly with our curriculum as we move into learning about and celebrating Dia de Los Muertos. We are learning about the importance of the marigolds and monarch
butterflies and how this dates back to Aztec times. We’re learning some new Spanish words like calavera (skull) and calacas(skeletons) and pan de muerto (bread of the dead). We will be
sharing our stories of loved ones as students bring in their framed photos and they add them to our ofrenda. Thank you, Karla (Kaya’s mama) for helping us create our ofrenda. It is soooo
beautiful!!
Dia de Los Muertos Festival clothing:
Please let me know if you need a black shirt. I have 3 available.
Music with Miss Rachel:
We’ve started singing with Miss Rachel on Thursdays to begin practicing a song for Winter Solstice. We even got to practice with our buddies playing guitar!
Buddies day:
We had such a fun time wearing our pajamas with our buddies. We read a book about popcorn, made popcorn and made some important signs for our campus. Just a friendly reminder that we do have a no cell phone policy on campus. We appreciate your support in adhering to this policy. We also sang Happy Birthday to Abby!!!
Reminder:
We do not celebrate Halloween at Village so please do not send your in a costume on Thursday. Also, please remember our no sugar policy and do not send candy the next day. I know a lot of students will go trick-or-treating and we will read some Halloween books but we keep the other parts of this holiday for families. Thank you!
I hope you all have a lovely weekend! We are still looking for students to bring in fall leaves for our leaf prints.
Hasta Lunes! See you Monday!!
๐ฉต Miss Anna
October 18, 2024
Hello Fabulous Families,
We had such a fun week learning new Letter Friends and reviewing old Letter Friends. If your child is missing a letter friend, please email me or let me know in the morning or after school. Then, we can get those letter friends home for more practice.
The 3:00ers had a fun time prepping herb recipes for the Farmer’s Market and we all enjoyed tasting the yummy drinks and foods available. Such a wonderful way to build community and learn about herbs! Thank you Miss Jess for organizing and facilitating this event!!
Field Trip Next WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23!!
We are going to the LBC to see the Seewam American Indian Dancers. Please arrive on time or early if possible. The show starts at 9:30 so we will leave at 9:00. Please make sure your child’s car seat/booster is labeled with their name. Does your child have a turquoise Creek Clean up shirt from last year? If so, please have them wear it. If not, wear a turquoise or light blue shirt. Make sure your child eats a hearty breakfast. We will have a snack after the show at the LBC. Please have your child’s lunch and full water bottle in their backpack.Have you signed the field trip sign up on the white board? Thank you if you have already signed. If not, please do so asap!
Communication:
Please check the white board daily for important information. We also made a field trip poster with dictation that you may enjoy reading with your child. It’s right outside our door.
Math:
We are continuing to work with shape identification and manipulation. The children have made some amazing pictures with wooden shapes and now some paper shapes that are on display in the classroom. They dictated a story about their picture/design and they are so creative. Stop by to check them out if you have a chance. The 3:00ers are starting to work on composing and decomposing numbers and learning about place value. We worked with place value mats and manipulatives today and then did a gallery walk to check one another’s work.
Dia de Los Muertos:
Our festival for Dia de Los Muertos is coming up on November 8th. Our class is going to wear all black so start looking for black pants and a black long sleeve shirt. If you need help with this, please let me know. I would also like to know if there is anyone who would be willing to help make silk flower headbands for any child who wants to wear one. If you are interested in helping with this, please let me know. If you can’t help make the headbands but you want to donate headbands or silk flowers, please let me know. We are going to start setting up our classroom Ofrenda soon. I will be asking the students to bring in a photo (in a picture frame) of a loved one (human or pet) who has passed so that we may honor them as we learn about this beautiful holiday.
Pajama Day next Friday, October 25!!!!
We are having a pajama day with our buddies next Friday. Students can wear their pajamas all day and bring one stuffed animal. The stuffed animal must fit in their backpack. I haven’t told the children about this yet but just wanted to give you a heads up. I’ll be telling them on Monday.
Fall Leaves:
If you find some beautiful fall leaves on your adventures this weekend, please bring them in. We would love to do a leaf painting project.
Thank you for all the ways you are a part of this community. I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Maybe I’ll see you at our Farm to Table Dinner on Saturday!
๐ Miss Anna
October 11, 2024
Hello Families,
It was a short week but still loaded with fun and learning. We are diving into the apple curriculum and learning so much about apples, like the parts of the apple, how they grow and of course, how they taste. Today, we tasted some different varieties and made a graph of our favorite one. We also learned that it takes a lot of water to grow an apple tree in the beginning of its life. We did a fun math exercise to figure this out. We’ve been doing various mental math exercises at circle time where the children have to think about a math concept or math problem and then they justify how they got their answer. It’s a fun way to imbed math into our day and to show how we can think about math in different ways.
Next Monday it is our class’s turn to lead All School Morning Circle and families are welcome to join. We are reciting a poem about apples. Your child came home with a copy of the poem today. Maybe they would like to practice with you over the weekend.
Thank you to Hazel’s mom, Nicole, for coming in to teach us a little bit about the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. She read a lovely book to the children called All the World and then brought apple slices and honey to share as this is the Jewsih tradition to bring a sweet new year. The honey is symbolic because it comes from bees which make the sweet honey but also have a sting. Just as in life, we see how there are often two sides-the joy and the pain, the light and the dark-all a part of our world and lives.
Thank you for joining me for conferences this week. I really enjoyed talking with you about your child’s growth and development. Thank you all for your continued commitment to your child’s education, our school and our values and the kindness that is extended to our staff and community each day.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
With Much Love and Gratitude,
๐ Miss Anna
October 5, 2024
Hello Families,
I hope you are all enjoying the fall break even though our weather has us stuck in summer. Although it’s been a bit toasty this week, we had a lovely time visiting the apple orchard
for our field trip with the Acorn class. What an amazing experience! We had a tour from the farmer and got to see how they make their delicious apple cider. The children loved seeing
all the bins of apples, watching the workers clean them, and seeing how the cider gets bottled. Of course, picking and eating the apples out in the orchard was such a treat! Thank you
to all of our parent drivers/chaperones!! We couldn’t have done it without you!
When we returned to the classroom we tasted some of that delicious apple cider. Yum!! The next day, we made applesauce with the apples from the orchard. The children washed, peeled, and
cut the apples, then cooked them down into some delicious applesauce. We even put the peels back in because that’s where a lot of the nutrients are. Of course, we saved some so we could
eat “apple snakes”. We also measured some apple peels using a yardstick and other items around the classroom like books, paper and blocks. Then, at the end of
the day we invited our big buddies over to share the treat we made.
We’re learning a new apple poem with some more complex vocabulary. We’ll continue more apple exploration next week with apple tasting and learning more about the parts of an apple and
apple tree.
Conferences Next Week!! Early release at 1:15 all week!! Please let us know if there are changes to your child’s aftercare schedule.
Next Field Trip October 23: We’ll be going to the LBC for a show: The Seewam Indian Dancers. I’ll send out the email for drivers separately.
I’m looking forward to meeting with you all next week to talk about your amazing children.
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
September 27, 2024
Hello Families,
Well, Fall is here and we are loving celebrating the season by noticing the changes we see in our garden and out in the world. If you and your family notice any colorful fallen leaves we would love to have some to explore in our classroom. We have made a nature stump where your child can place their findings and we’ll discuss at circle time and explore throughout the day. If anyone has a large collection of acorns we would love some for counting.
Buddies:
We had such a great time riding the bus with our big buddies and exploring the library together. I just love seeing the bond between little and big buddies grow. It was fun to see what books some children chose to bring back to the classroom and they’ve been enjoying checking out one another’s choices.
Art/Music:
Yesterday, we did a lovely art project as a whole class. We listened to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons (Autumn, of course) and drew a Fall tree with oil pastels. These are going to be the covers of our journals which we will be starting next week. Journaling will happen once a week and will be a time when children can write and draw on their own. I will give the children a different writing prompt each week and then they will have some quiet time to express themselves. Then, they will read their journal to teachers and maybe to one another.
Language Arts:
We read a funny book, “How Many Squirrels are in the World?” and also learned some fun facts about squirrels. Did you know that squirrels are only one inch long when they’re born? We also read a book called “I Like Me” and wrote a page for our book with the sentence starter, “I am special because…”. These children had some wonderful things to share about what makes them unique. We also learned some new Fall poems. Maybe your child can recite one to you.
Garden:
Some of our seeds that we planted have sprouted and soon we’ll need to put up the string for the peas to climb. We planted a few more Sugar Snap Peas today. Does anyone have any Morning Glory seeds to donate?
Raingear:
Now is the time to start getting ready for the rainy season. We will play in the rain and mud, and go on rain walks. Your child needs a raincoat and rainboots. Rain pants are a great way to keep dry during recess but are not necessary. Please let me know if you need help finding gear. There are some extra boots in the office. Also, check out Sweet Pea Children’s Consignment in Cotati. I have been shopping there since my kids were babies and they have great quality items at great prices. You could even call first to see what sizes she has. If anyone else has some leads on raingear, feel free to share with us.
Field Trip:
We’re going apple picking next Tuesday, October 1st!!! We have our driver list and we’re all set…and super excited! Be sure that your child has a water bottle, lunch box, and extra set
of clothes that fits into their backpack. Over the weekend might be a great time to practice packing and unpacking their belongings as this is an essential skill for children at school.
It really helps build that life skill of Organization! On the day of the field trip please label your child’s car seat/booster and drop it off in the parking lot with Miss Maria. Do not send
your child with money. They will get a small bag of apples to bring home and I will be purchasing apples for the classroom.
Please wear a turquoise or blue t-shirt if you have one. Maybe you have a VCS Creek Clean Up shirt or another shirt that is turquoise or blue. This will help us find our group among the
apple trees. Let me know this weekend if you need a shirt. I may have one you can borrow.
Kale chip recipe:
https://www.thespruceeats.com/simple-kale-chips-dehydrator-method-1327574
Well, that’s all for now. Thank you for fulfilling our wish list, for helping with our ongoing jobs, and for raising such amazing humans.
Much Love,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
September 19, 2024
Hello Families,
This week the 3:00ers taught the 1:00ers the “Make a 10” game. It’s a fun math game that you could play anywhere with your child. One person holds up a number with their fingers and the other person has to add and make 10 with their fingers. Maybe your child can teach you? We also explored patterns a bit more with our pattern blocks and the children are learning that patterns come in so many forms: colors, shapes, numbers-and of course, we name those patterns with letters.
Language Arts:
We read a book called “What Does it Mean to be Kind?” and we had a lovely conversation about kindness. Your children really understand and show kindness each day and it is such a joy to be a part of that. We also read a beautifully poetic book called, “And if the Moon Could Talk” in honor of the full moon. I know it was a bit cloudy on the actual full moon but hopefully, you got a chance to see it at some point in its bright, round glow. Speaking of our friend, the moon, we have started our moon poems with the book, “When the Moon is Full”. Each month we will learn a different moon poem. Do you know what September’s moon is called? Ask your child. Maybe they can even recite the poem for you. They are truly amazing because we only just learned it on Tuesday, and today they really had it down. We talked about the Autumnal Equinox. It’s on Sunday so we’ll be celebrating the turning of the season when we return on Monday.
We’re also working on a new book for the classroom that is going to feature each student. We’ll be focusing on what makes each of them special or unique and they’ll be writing and illustrating.
Music:
We had another fun music class with Mr. Mike. We got to play lots of different percussion instruments and of course, our hands and bodies can be percussion instruments, too!
3:00ers:
We have been doing a little bit of an author study and reading different books by Arnold Lobel, such as, Frog and Toad, Owl at Home and Mouse Soup. These books are so much fun, lead to great discussions, and we’ve been finding our sight words in them too.
We made kale chips and they were delicious!! Thank you to Greyson’s family for donating the kale!
Field Trip:
Thank you if you already signed up. The library field trip doesn’t require chaperones but I need you to sign to acknowledge that you know your child will be off campus.
Apple picking field trip sign up will go out on Wednesday. I will send out the email to potential drivers by Monday.
Thank you all for all that you do whether it is watering the garden, bringing flowers, washing the towels, or giving me a friendly hello. I am blessed to be a part of this magical Village!
Much Love and gratitude,
๐ Miss Anna
September 13, 2024
Hello Fantastic Families,
It has been such an exciting week! We continued working on our Color Poem books and finished them yesterday! This was a three week project! The children worked so hard on this book whether they were tracing, writing color words, or writing a whole sentence. They took pride in their art work and let their creativity shine! Yesterday, we invited the big buddies to our classroom and the children recited the color poem on “stage”. Then, they read to their big buddy. What a special experience for both buddies! Our class expressed to me how last buddy time they didn’t get enough time to play at recess with their buddies. So we practiced one of those important life skills, FLEXIBILITY, and had recess first with our buddies, and then lunch. It was such a joy to see your children running, climbing, and playing with their big buddies. We ended with an appreciation circle. Both big and little buddies have the kindest words to say about one another. We really do have a special thing happening here at Village!!
Music:
Music is now drumming with Mr. Mike on Wednesdays. He is a music teacher at Art and Soul, and oh my, was he a lot of fun! He taught the children about counting beats and what that big word crescendo means. They tapped out beats on the floor with their hands and with drum sticks. We do a lot of tapping out patterns and beats in the classroom too, so it came very naturally to them.
Field Trips:
Thank you to everyone who has filled out the google form about car seats/boosters and to those of you who are able to drive/chaperone. I do need everyone to fill out that top portion of the form as it helps me determine how many cars we need, and who can fit in what car. So, if you haven’t filled it out, please do asap. We still have some gaps in our driver list. Please get all of your driver info to Carolyn in the office so I can start planning for the field trips. I appreciate your support with this.
Library with Big Buddies:
We’ll be going to the Northwest Regional Library (over by Coddingtown) on September 24th with our big buddies. We’ll all take the #6 city bus at 9:42. We walk down to the bus stop at 9:30 and then we’ll get to the library around 10:00 and be back on campus around 11:30. Our big buddies will show us around the library and read some books to us. The big buddies have been taking the bus to the library for a while now and are pros! The children can check out one book of their choice on my library card that will stay in the classroom. What a fun way to get to know each other’s interests!
Letter Friends:
This week we met Timothy Tiger, Dee Dee Deer and Koyo Kangaroo. Please let me know if you are missing any. Many of the children are excited about meeting the letter friends, doing sound boxes and making sound books. It was actually something that several children said they appreciated today at our appreciation circle. The 3:00ers are having fun writing their sentences and really thinking about those tall, small, and fall letters. We introduced that to the 1:00ers today at circle time.
Math Fun:
We read a really fun book called “Zero” that was all about zero feeling left out and not “counting”. It tied into our continual learning about feelings and reinforced how important zero is as a number. The children did a pattern worksheet today where they had to figure out what comes next in the pattern. Patterns are so fun and maybe you can find some out in the world this weekend. We’ll be exploring more with patterns next week, too. The 3:00ers played a “Make a 10” game with a partner and are going to teach the 1:00ers next week. It’s a fun way to learn about adding and I bet they’ll be teaching you soon.
Yoga:
We had another lovely yoga class today after recess. Maybe your child can show you dragon pose? It’s kinda tricky but they are getting it! They all have their favorite poses and are really embracing the stretching and the mindfulness of the practice.
Extra Clothes:
Please check your child’s backpack to be sure they have an extra set of seasonal clothes including socks and underwear.
Parent/Teacher Conferences:
October 8- October 11
Early Release at 1:15 all week. Conferences will be 20 minutes starting at 1:30 each day until 5:00.
Sign up will be available next week on the white board.
Kale Donation:
Would anyone have an abundance of kale or be willing to donate some? We were talking about making kale chips (you know, we were playing with that “K” sound) and I would love to try to do this next week, if possible.
Thank you again to whoever fulfilled our Amazon class wishlist!
I hope you all have a lovely and restful weekend.
I am grateful for you all and your amazing children!!!
Much Love,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
September 7, 2024
Hello Families,
I wanted to share with you that we did whole class yoga again yesterday and I will likely try to make that a regular Friday thing. We began with some mindful breaths, did a sun salutation, and then practiced our belly breaths with the help from some little animal friends. The children lay down on their back and place a small stuffed animal on their belly and then gently rock their stuffie as they belly breathe in and out. Then we ended with 3 students giving us their choice of pose and we all tried it. It’s a beautiful thing to see these children moving their bodies, practicing their breathing and calming their minds.
Donations/Help:
I’m realizing I could use some more small stuffed animals (not puppets). No characters please. Also, the children mildly wipe down the yoga mats after using them but I would love a family volunteer to help with that. Ideally, once a week would be great but I will take whatever you can give at this point. Maybe two people want to share this job? It would be wiping them down with mild soap, wiping with clean water and then hanging on our railing to dry. Please let me know if you are interested.
I have a few more classroom items I am looking for so I am going to make an Amazon Wish List. Look for that soon!
Aftercare:
Let me know if there are any changes to your child’s schedule. We have moved the schedule inside to free up room on the white board so you don’t need to add it there. Only add to the white board if there is a change or a one time need.
Thank you for all you do!!!
๐ Miss Anna
September 6, 2024
Hello Families,
Thank you so much for joining me this week for our parent meeting. I loved connecting with you! No worries if you couldn’t make it. Hopefully, your child gave you the Zoo Phonics information packet. Please let me know if you have any questions about that or need a copy. The children are diving right into sound boxes and sound books so some of you should see those books coming home. Please encourage them to read the book to you again. Have you found a place to hang up those Letter Friends? More will be coming home next week! Our class is so excited about finding more words that begin with our letter friend sounds. Our cluster page was full so I encouraged them to make more lists at home if they are inspired. 3:00ers: The 3:00ers have been writing sentences from our cluster pages. They have been practicing what 3 three things a sentence needs. Maybe they can tell you? We also joined Miss Barnum’s class for some song and dance this afternoon. Always a jolly good time over there!
Feelings:
We read a book called “I’m Happy-Sad Today” that extended our conversation about how you can feel more than one feeling at once. We shared about our own experiences and how to manage mixed-up emotions.
Math:
We worked with some 10 frames (1:00ers) and some 15 frames (3:00ers) and Abby helped introduce us to that amazing math tool-the Abacus! We also started using the cubes and rods to explore measurement.
Independent Study:
If your child is going to be out of school please let the office know so that you can fill out an Independent Study form and I can gather materials to send home. This helps ensure that our school gets the funding for those absent days.
Field Trips:
Please fill out the google form to let me know what kind of car seat/booster your child will use for transportation to our field trips. This helps me know how many cars we need. Thank you to those of you who have already done this. Our first field trip is less than a month away but we can only get there if we have enough drivers. If you can drive make sure you give all of your info to Carolyn: Current Driver’s License, Current Insurance $100-$300,000, Fingerprinting (you need our VCS form).
Thank you for your support! I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Hasta Lunes.
๐ Miss Anna
September 1, 2024
Hello families,
I forgot to mention two things in the newsletter. Last Monday we had our first music class with Miss Rachel. The children practiced their belly breathing and learned about whole notes with a fun game. They enjoyed taking their knowledge of whole notes back to the classroom and outside by finding whole notes everywhere!
School Pictures are Thursday, September 5th!
๐ Miss Anna
Hello Fabulous Families,
We had another fun and busy week! The children are really getting into our routine and starting to develop new friendships. We started making our Color Poem book. I won’t give all the fun away…it’s quite a long multi-week project but eventually they will have a beautiful book full of their creativity to share with you. Maybe they can recite the poem for you? It starts with, “Red is an Apple.” We also made some beautiful art to hang in our window to represent your beautiful rays of sunshine! We made a favorite color graph and read a beautiful bilingual book that Miss Maria brought in. It is called “A Maleta Full of Treasures.” We classified healthy foods and drew our favorite healthy meal. We planted marigolds, made fairy houses, and fairy food in our fairy garden. Of course, the fairies were delighted and they showered us with jewels the next day. We also met our big buddies and played Duck, Duck, Goose with them, read stories with them and even had lunch with them! We ended our week with all-class yoga (I turned our classroom into a yoga studio today) and celebrated Adam’s birthday. Whew!! Just recapping that is exhausting, yet so exciting! Our classroom is really starting to come alive!
Letter Friends: We’ll be meeting our letter friends next Wednesday! Yay! More about that in a note home and at the parent meeting.
PARENT MEETING: NEXT TUESDAY, SEPT. 3 AT 5:30-POTLUCK-MEETING AT 6 PM- Hope to see you there! If you can’t make it, please stop in some time to take a look at what we’ve been up to and I’ll send home any handouts.
Happy 3 Day weekend everyone!
With Much Love and gratitude,
โค๏ธ Miss Anna
Hello Fabulous Families,
We did it! We made it through a full week of school! I know it isn’t easy transitioning from summer to school. So, bravo to us all!! We had a fun week continuing our discussion of how we are alike and how we are different. We looked closer at our eye color and made an eye color graph, then read the graph. The children drew their self-portraits. Come by next week to see them on the wall! We got out into the garden to deadhead plants and pull up that pesky crabgrass. I am hoping to come over the weekend to do a bit more work in the garden but if anyone has extra time (I know that’s not easy to come by) I would love some help weeding and getting the garden ready for some fall planting. We also had our first yoga class today during centers. I turned the aftercare room into a yoga studio and we had a lovely practice together. We started with some deep breaths and warmed ourselves up with a sun salutation. Then, we had some animal friends helping us with our poses. Miss Maria brought us a wonderful book from the library called, “Skin Again” that talked about how our skin is just a covering and to get to know who someone is you have to, “come inside and open your heart way wide.” We talked about how who we are comes from our personality, our family and our culture. We’ll explore that more and coming soon will be something I will need your help with. I would love to do a short survey with families to find out about one another’s culture. We’ve been talking about ancestors and I think this would be a great way to share with each other. More details on this soon!
Next week: We have three exciting things starting next week that will be ongoing. On Mondays at 11:30 we will have Music and Movement with Miss Rachel. Yay! On Thursday we are going to meet our big buddies for the first time this year. We’re so excited!The 3:00ers will be starting an afternoon rotation with Miss Barnum, Miss Jess and myself. I’ll be teaching yoga, Miss Barnum will be doing music/dancing, and Miss Jess will be teaching the children about herbs in the garden. I’m really excited about this collaboration!
Parent Meeting: I’ll be having our class parent meeting on 9/3 at 5:30. Please let me know if you can come. We’ll do a light potluck from 5:30-6 and meet until about 7. My son, Zachary (8th grade) and my daughter, Isabella (5th grade) will be offering free child care in the aftercare room. Please do RSVP if you need childcare so they can be prepared.
Class Contact List: I am going to start a class list of contact info that will be shared for non-school things like play dates and birthday parties. Please send me a reply letting me know if you would like to be on the list and if you want to share just email, just phone number or both.
Thank you so much for all that you do to raise these bright rays of sunshine!
๐ Miss Anna
August 20, 2024
Hello Village families,
Just a quick note about pick-up time. Please connect in some way with either me or Miss Maria so we know that your child has gone home. It’s such a busy time, as you know, and we appreciate your support with this. Also, please let me know, either in an email or verbally in the morning, if your child is being picked up by someone else or being walked out to the parking lot by a sibling.
Thank you!
๐ Miss Anna
Hello Families,
It sure has been an amazing week! We’ve been having fun getting to know each other, establishing routines and protocols, talking about feelings and how they change, practicing problem solving when we have a conflict with a friend, and noticing our similarities and differences. We read a book called “The Color of Us” that celebrates diversity in a really fun way. We painted our hands to match our skin-tone and came up with some new beautiful names for our shades of brown. We’ve been practicing our sign language and Spanish at circle through poems, songs and calendar. Next week will begin full days for our First graders, who we call 3:00ers at Village since they stay until 3:15. And, you guessed it, we call the Kindergarteners, 1:00ers.
At snack and lunch time I’ve been checking in with each child to be sure they start eating their protein first. We’ve been talking about how protein helps you have energy for the day and helps your brain grow. We’ll be moving into more lessons about nutrition and healthy eating in the upcoming weeks. Thank you again for your support in packing healthy lunches.
Every Friday we end our day with an appreciation circle. Today, we tried to say an appreciation with just one word. These children have so much joy and love in their hearts. Some of their appreciations were: the earth, their friends, the school.
Birthday Celebrations:
We will celebrate birthdays in the classroom with a special birthday story that begins with some help from you. If your child has a birthday during the school year please bring in one photo from each year of their life starting with birth (or at least before they turned one). These can be brought in on the day before the celebration or the day of. Typically, these birthday story celebrations happen at either 9:00ish or 11:00ish. When your child’s birthday is approaching, I will reach out to families to see what time works for you if you are interested in joining. If you wish to bring in a special snack for that day I would like it to keep it to fruit or vegetables only, as we do have some allergies and dietary restrictions. Some ideas could be: fruit kebobs, kale chips, apple slices with cinnamon, various cut up/shredded vegetables that we could make into salad people (see me if you are curious about this one). Maybe you all have some other fun ideas?
Field Trips:
We will be going on several field trips this year and will need parent drivers. Send me an email if you are interested in driving and I can give you details about that. I am still confirming all field trip dates but will get those to you soon! Our first Luther Burbank Center for the Arts field trip is the Sewam Indian Dance Company on October 23 at 9:30.
Thank you so much for signing up for parent jobs and for helping fill our wish list. We almost have the parent job list full. You can catch me after school or send me an email if you have questions about what you’ve signed up for.
And most importantly, thank you for sharing your amazing children with us. I hope you all have a lovely weekend!
๐ Miss Anna
August 14, 2024
Hello wonderful families!
It was so great to see you all and your children today. What a great start to a fantastic year! The Spiral Dance is always so beautiful and I feel grateful to be a part of this amazing community. We had such a lovely circle this morning in our classroom learning our names with a song, meeting our class kitty, Abby the Tabby, and talking about nicknames. During centers I took the children on a school tour, they played with playdough, and drew a picture about a fun time they had this summer. Thank you all for packing beautiful lunches! I know sharing the cubbies might be a bit confusing for the children right now so please help remind them to take out their lunch and water bottle after hanging up their backpacks and to look for their name on either the top or bottom cubby.
Thank you again for all of your support!
See you in the morning for another fabulous day!
๐ Miss Anna
August 13, 2024
Hello Fabulous Families,
It was so good to see many of you on Monday for Parent Orientation, and I look forward to seeing you all and your children tomorrow. The mornings are busy with prepping for the day so please send
me an email if you have any questions and we can arrange a time to chat after school. I’m available most days after 3:15 except Wednesdays.
See you soon!
It’s going to be a great year!
๐ Miss Anna
Miss Anna earned her BA in English/Professional Writing, with a concentration in Environmental Science from Kutztown University in Pennsylvania. She has a Multiple Subject CA Teaching Credential from the North Coast School of Education. Before teaching at Village, she taught preschool for eight years. While teaching preschool at the Santa Rosa Junior College Childrenโs Center, she was also the Parent Program Coordinator where she organized workshops about child development, nutrition, play, and positive parenting. While raising her two young children, Miss Anna ran a small licensed family child care in her home for 10 years where she also provided workshops on attachment parenting and child development. Miss Anna worked as the teacher aide for two years in the K/1 class at Village and is excited to begin her first year as the lead teacher.
Miss Anna lives in Santa Rosa with her husband, Bryan, and their children, Zachary and Isabella. She loves gardening, hiking, yoga, and spending time with her family-including their four cats.

Hello! Here’s our classroom wish list if you are interested in checking it out. Thank you!!