The Three Little Pigs and The Baby Chick Eggs

Dear Parents,

We began our week reading two Three Little Pigs books. The children commented that the words were exactly alike; the illustrations however, were different. Someone noted that the wolf looked more like a real wolf in the second book. We asked if the pigs in the story were like real pigs. The children said in one book, the pigs had on clothes and were standing up on two feet making food. We noticed the wolf also was standing up on two feet cooking the second little pig at the stove. The children knew that real pigs and wolves would not behave this way. 

In preparation for our FaceTime with three real pigs we wrote a list of questions: Do real pigs ever stand on two feet? What do pigs look like when they are babies? Do pigs like being hot or cold? Do pigs really like mud? 

The next day we FaceTimed with my little brother Rique, who introduced us to his pigs Porky, Wilbur, and Bentley. They are six, five, and nine years old, and can live 30 to 35 years. Someone asked, “Do they love, love, love to be fed?” The answer was yes! Pigs will eat bark off trees, rocks, worms, grass, potato chips, bugs, mushrooms, and they eat all day long. We learned that they molt twice a year, and need sunscreen during that time so they don’t get sunburned. Pigs like to be cold and yes, they love to play in mud! Pigs cannot look up to the sky, but they can go up stairs. We also wanted to know if they can stand on two feet, like the pigs in our stories. No, they cannot.

On Wednesday, Farmer Eric came to drop (gently) our baby chick eggs. He placed twelve eggs into our incubator and explained to us the difference between instinct - something an animal already knows, and imprint - something we teach them.  He told us to turn the eggs three times a day. Some children wondered if the eggs would hatch that same day. They did not.

On Thursday we played in the big room. Children tricycled, climbed on the jungle gym, prepared elaborate meals in the kitchen, and built ships, buildings, cities, and ramps in the block area. 

Everyone got measured for the second time this year on our Mr. Bones height chart. Almost everyone has grown an inch or more.

On Friday, we read another version of the three little pigs called The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig. The three little wolves' houses were very different from the three little pigs'. 

Have a calm weekend,

Therese

Baby Bunnies and the White Rabbit

Dear Parents,

We began our week with baby Guinea pigs, bunnies, chicks, ducks, goats, and lambs. They were all six to eight weeks old, except the chicks and ducks, who were one week old. The animals came from Pennsylvania, the same farm that will bring our chicken eggs in a couple of weeks. Needless to say, the class was thrilled to pet the animals. The baby goats and sheep were a little nervous and bleated loudly for a bit. A couple of children were nervous of them too. The bunnies, chicks, and ducks got the most pats. When we were finished, we washed our hands thoroughly, and read books about farm animals.

Our trip to Puppetworks to see Alice in Wonderland was fun. Someone said after the show that the White Rabbit was funny, someone else said the Queen was not very nice, and two children said they did not like the Cheshire Cat. Another person said he loved the Cheshire Cat. 

The children told us they tumbled and balanced in tumbling class. While half the class was tumbling with Casey, in the classroom we made Valentine cards. We used red and white, pink and gold, and lots of glue and glitter. 

Thursday we began our day playing with gloop and adding the finishing touches to our Valentines. We talked in circle about the ways we show love to our friends and mamas and dadas. Someone said, “Give them a hug” while others thought “Getting them a cup of water” or “Going to the playground” were ways to show we care. We were busy painting with red and white paints at our easel. A few people noticed a new color emerge when the paints mixed together - pink! 

Friday we began our day reading Somebody Loves You Mr. Hatch. We talked about how Mr. Hatch was sad, then happy, then sad again, and finally happy by the end of the story. We took turns sharing about a time we felt happy or sad or mad, like Sophie in another story we like to read. We sorted out our Valentines, and kicked balls in the big room. Some friends were walking around holding hands or riding bikes together. Others were building pirate ships out of blocks, or cooking in the kitchen area together. You could really feel the love.

Have a love-ly week off!

Therese and Nicole