December 9, 2012

December is a fun and busy month. Advent is here and we are preparing for Christmas. We are painting gifts, making ornaments for the birds and planting bulbs. We keep our binoculars nearby to spot wildlife that is abundant on the property. This week the hawk perched on an oak  tree while we played in the leaf pile nearby.

Making birdseed ornaments to decorate the outdoor evergreen.

Painting our Christmas gifts

Lunch outdoors in pavilion

"There's the hawk!"

"I see the hawk!"

"I made a bird perch."

November 2012 Wrap-Up

KWILD had a fun and thankful November. Here is what the children had to say...

"I am thankful for flowers and holidays." LP"
 I am thankful for family and friends."  PS
"I am thankful for God and sticks." DF
"I am thankful for this beautiful day outside." AS
"I am thankful for bringing trees alive." KJ
"I am thankful for my good imagination." RM
"I am thankful for KWILD and my teachers." PP
"I am thankful for family." RD
"I am thankful for God." CR
"I am thankful for family and God." PL

Dying fabric for pack leader flags.

October Wrap-Up!

We had a fun October filled with sun, color, discovery and play. Here is a peek at us in action!

"Free-play, in natural settings is good for a child's mental and physical health." Richard Louv

Enjoying Autumn Oct 23, 2012

"Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn." -Elizabeth Lawrence

October 19, 2012

The following quote was taken from the NAEYC (The National Association for the Education of Young Children).  Cultivating Outdoor Classrooms by Eric Nelson.

How did you play as a child? Where did you play? What did you learn by playing? Probably (depending how old you are) you got to play outdoors, investigating a complex and often unpredictable world of nature, and negotiating relationships with friends. As many adults will remember, but many children today have never discovered, the richest learning environments are outdoors.

Children are active learners – acquiring physical knowledge, social-emotional knowledge and co-constructive cognitive knowledge not only by sitting and listening, but especially by doing….and there’s more to do outdoors – more space, more sensory materials, more unpredictability, and more open-ended tasks in which the outcome hasn't been predetermined by adult planners.

KWILD offers each child the opportunity to Wonder, Investigate, Learn and Discover. 

October 14, 2012

This is my Father's world.

The birds their carols raise,

The morning light,

The flowers white,

Declare their makers praise.

This is my Father's world.

He shines in all that's fair

In the rustling grass

I hear Him pass

He speaks to me everywhere.