Before we make our way to the forest we group together and sing French songs and poems (generally related to letter sounds and letter blends) and work on some French vocabulary as it relates to weather, outdoor objects, and where we would like to play outside. We also continue to work on bigger than, smaller than, as well as ordering things and people from bigger to smaller as we go.
The past two days we have been noticing the changes in the forest as autumn continues its beautiful transformation of our play areas. There are so many leaves on the ground, the colours are beginning to fade, and we notice the smell of the leaves as they begin to decay and become a source of food for plants.
We found a new area to play in the forest with so many fallen trees. The children were intrigued by the large holes left in the ground. As we wondered what could have made such holes, we finally realized that it was the rootball of the fallen trees that had pulled so hard and left holes. We examined the elaborate roots that were used to bring water and nutrients to the tree. We also discussed what might have caused the trees to fall. The children said lightening, strong winds, tornados, age, or it just rotted.
As the children climbed across the fallen trees, they talked about the stability of the branches and whether or not they were stable enough to support them. As we continued walking, we noticed a tiny evergreen. Relating it back to the larger trees we played on, we talked about whether its rootball would be big or small. Then we talked about how stable it is compared to the big, tall trees. We decided that its rootball was small and that it was not as stable as the older, bigger trees.
The milkweed plants are still a fun area to stop and explore. The pods have become quite dry, which allows the seeds to become exposed and fly away to new areas. We discussed how autumn brings about more seeds being spread about the forest through air and transportation on animals. Next thing we noticed were two different types of "hitchhikers" all over our clothing. Our milkweed seeds were nice and fluffy and our new discoveries were quite picky and really stuck to our clothing. They were so hard to pick off! We were transporting and dispersing seeds too!
In reality, these are only some of the great learning activities that are going on during our forest play!
Thank you for continuing to send clothing that suits our weather. It has been cold in the morning, but nice and warm during the day. Layers allow the children to be comfortable throughout the whole day.
We will be scheduling parent-teacher interviews in the next couple of days. A note will be sent home with a day and time. If this time does not fit your schedule, please feel free to send us an email. Merci !
Have a wonderful evening!
(Please note that we do our best to edit our blogs. Thank you for ignoring our mistakes and just enjoying the information and pictures provided just as they are!)