Fall Walk to Tilly's

Today the 1-2s took a walk to Tilly's Market to talk to Rick Ciccarelli and find out about seasonal changes in an outdoor market.  What we noticed first were the pumpkins.  Lots of pumpkins!   Rick told us how he calls local farms in early September to start placing orders for pumpkins.  The most popular kind, he told us, are the classic orange carving pumpkins.  But he also orders some more unusual kinds of all sizes, colors and textures.  There is one particular kind that Rick tries to order few of and those would be the "Cinderella Pumpkins".  These flat, smooth pumpkins have a lovely reddish-orange color, but tend to rot more quickly than other types, making them less than ideal for lasting through the fall season.  

Rick also told us that Tilly's is a market that has been in Natick for 75 years!  His grandparents, Tilly and Salvy, started it as a small farm stand.  But it has grown into a larger business that has been handed down to Rick and now his son is running the store.  The Bacon Street Farm, as it is now called, certainly has strong roots in our community and strives to support local farmers and suppliers.

After learning about Tilly's, we had some time to explore what there is to see outdoors at Tilly's in the fall.  We saw a Haunted House (but we didn't go in).  We saw even more pumpkins! Chicken pumpkins in a henhouse, pumpkin people (even one in a portapotty that everyone seemed to love), carved pumpkins and painted pumpkins.  We had a lot of fun looking at all the pumpkins.  As a final surprise, Rick sent us back to school with a snack of pretzel rods and apples!  He also let us choose a pumpkin for each classroom.  1-2M picked out a white cotton candy pumpkin and 1-2A chose an orange koma koma with deep grooves.  We thanked Rick and headed back to Lilja to write about our experience.

Fall Walk to Tilly's

First Town Forest Walk

Today we took our first nature walk in Natick's own Hundred Acre Wood. We really lucked out with a gorgeous day in terms of weather. It was warm and sunny in the forest. At our meeting in the field, Pat Conaway talked to us about today's mission: to clean up along the stream and sort the refuse into separate bags for trash ad recycling. He brought along lots of tools to help us in our task: grabbers, rakes, clear bags for recycling, opaque colored bags for garbage. We also have gloves to protect our hands!

Along the way, Pat showed us a wild blueberry bush, but reminded us to never eat any berries we find in nature unless we have an adult who really knows which berries to avoid as many berries we encounter are poisonous. At the stream, Mrs. A. finds a spotted salamander making a home in a tire that was dumped in the stream. Before gently handling the salamander so we could see it, Mrs. A. made sure her gloves were wet as amphibians have very sensitive skin that needs to stay moist. Our chaperones help take the tire out of its habitat. We saw another salamander on the forest floor, but we remember to just look with our eyes so that we don't frighten it or damage its skin with our dry, warm hands.  Later on, some kids spied a frog in a pool of water in the stream that had not dried out. Unfortunately, it hopped away before Mrs. M. could get a picture.  It has been quite a day for spotting wildlife - there was even a glimpse of a snake!

We also spot a skunk cabbage sprout along the stream and find out how it got its name. It is stinky! And we found a cluster of berries that we don't recognize. Any ideas? We'll have to check our field guides back in the classroom. At the end of the walk, we take a look at all the litter that we found on our walk today. Pat thanks us for our help and reminds us how important it is to become stewards of the Town Forest and other outdoor spaces that we love.

October 2013 Town Forest Walk

September 18, 2013

Why do we draw?

Today, a dear friend James Armstrong came to visit the 1-2s.  While professionally James is an architect, his naturalist hobbies have brought wonderful skills, learning, and exhibits to the students of 1-2 A&M. As part of our ocean study, James brought in two tanks of tide pool creatures and seaweed specimens for the students to observe and draw.  Before letting them loose with paper and pencils, James took the time to show the kids the way to really see something - the way you do when you draw it.  He taught us there are three reasons to draw: to help ourselves understand something, to explain something to others, and because we just can't help it!  

Live specimens of hermit crabs, mussels, barnacles, seaweed, periwinkles, green crabs, tiny shrimp, oysters, and moon jellies were on hand for our students to study, sketch and record observations about. At other stations, magnifying glasses and viewing boxes were used by children to look at some of the critters and plants up close as we drew.  And, we had many biofacts (on loan from the New England Aquarium) for kids to take a closer look at with microscopes: baleen from whales, a chambered nautilus shell, a seahorse, a sea sponge, a sea star, coral, a sea urchin set, a chiton shell, a limpet shell, and even a sperm whale tooth.  We thought we might even get to see a hermit crab move into a bigger shell, but it was too shy.  

Please enjoy the slideshow below of our science naturalist adventure!

James Armstrong's Visit

September 11, 2013

Dear Families,

We’re off to a wonderful start in the 1-2s!  While we are still learning some names, we have had lots of great experiences to launch us into the new school year!  We have completed self-portraits for our doors, explored math materials, and started to explore the ocean.

On this website you will find general information about our schedule as well as homework policies and ways to contact us.  We hope this will be useful and we recommend referring to it throughout the year.  Be sure to check our webpage for updated information, class logs, and pictures.  We encourage you to check in and see what your children are learning at school.

As our program overlaps frequently, our classes have the opportunity to work together on many projects and areas of curriculum affording them the chance to make many more friends.  We have already started a scientific study of the ocean that the kids are really enjoying. 

We are looking forward to working together with you toward a year of growth and learning!

Sincerely,

Beth Altchek & Kristen McEnaney  

Native American Structure Projects

We were so impressed with the model Native American structure projects that the students made! There was quite a variety of structure types including igloos, pueblos, teepees, chickees, wetus, long houses and even an earth lodge. It was clear that kids went to great lengths to use whatever natural materials they could to give their projects a very authentic look. They will be on display this Friday at our Strawberry Thanksgiving celebration.

Structure Homework Projects

Town Forest Structures!

Today we went to the Town Forest for our long anticipated structure building. Our groups were very enthusiastic, as were our group leaders, and six great structures were built. Some groups used the skeletons of existing structures to build their own while others just pulled some materials to add to their new creations. Lots of downed twigs and branches were used for structure and support with pine needles woven into gaps for insulation. Enjoy the photos of our final Town Forest adventure!

Town Forest Structures