Hello one and all, welcome back to the best nature program of all! Double up on your layers, grab a warm cup of cocoa and your favorite treat to enjoy as you learn about an incredible day in the lives of your Knee High Naturalists.
I think we were all a little shocked to wake up and discover such cold temperatures, but after ten weeks being Knee High Naturalists, we aren’t afraid of a little cold! We took the fresh snow as an opportunity to get our last snow painting sessions of the season in, coloring the bench, trees and everything else we could see. We got to use our big snow shovels and toss the powdery, sparkly snow in the air—our makeshift confetti for a special day! We made a beautiful snow-bow with Ms. Jenn, loving all of the beautiful colors on our blank canvas. We sang our Good Morning Song one last time and decided that we wanted to sled for our last together! We used our mighty muscles and pushed our wagon over to the pavilion where we quickly got our snacks and waited for our celebratory picnic to start. We chose the sunniest, warmest spot to sit down and eat our special treats together! Some friends brought muffins, some brough special fruits, lots of friends brought meat sticks and cheese—we laughed as we joked around and ate together with ease.
Once we were done, some of us rushed to color while others enjoyed flipping through bird and insect guides, not yet ready to go back outside. We realized our favorite snow hill was gone, so we made our own slides out of big boulders! We had fun teaching each other the best way to get up, tracking the little mice that ran from rock to rock, enjoying our time together in a perfect little play spot. Before long it was time to take one last hike through the woods, becoming different animals like mice, giraffes and bears as we crept through the pine forest. Once we got to our sledding hill, we split ways as some of us ran to grab their sleds and others lounged easily in the spider web. We took turns sledding with friends, racing down the hill and laughing as we rolled through the snow. Snow cats, bats, spiders and mice scrambled over the web, sending sparkly snow down if puffs as they played. All too soon, our time together had come to end, we put away our sleds and headed around the bend. We got our backpacks on and played What Time is It Mr. Fox as we waited for our celebration ceremony to begin! It was so fun to see all of our families waiting and ready to celebrate us for such a special day, we wouldn’t have wanted to end class any other way.
Thank you all for an absolutely incredible season in the lives of your Knee High Naturalists! We watched friendships blossom and grow, vocabulary expand and morning greetings amongst students eagerly exchanged. We watched play become more imaginative and more all-group focused rather than little pockets of play. We watched fine motor skills develop through snow paint use, shoveling/digging, coloring and gall picking. We watched gross motor skills develop through lots of snow hill play, rock scrambling, tree climbing and navigating slick trails. Your children braved sub zero temperatures with ease as they partook in Winter Nature Olympics and know how to take advantage of a warm winter day by starfishing in the snow, with their faces to the sun. It’s been a joy and a pleasure to guide your naturalists through the natural world, helping foster their innate curiosity and wonder for everything under the sun! We will miss you all so much and hope to see you out on the trails or in the nature center soon!
