Learning in the Spirit of Wonder and Joy!

Month: April 2020

Hello from Anita!

Anita is a regular visitor to StrongStart and she is very much still available to you should you want to speak with her.  I highly recommend getting on her email list to receive her “Resource Newsletter”, she has some really fun ideas!  Here is what she has sent so you can connect with her:

 

Anita Olson works for Family Services of Greater Vancouver as Burnaby’s Early Childhood Community Consultant (ECCC). She has been working with families and young children for well over a decade and as a parent herself recognizes the challenges, complexity and delight parenting brings. Understanding the foundational importance of infant and early childhood development, Anita shares information, strategies and practical tools with parents as they begin and continue their parental journey. Focusing on the parent/caregiver and child relationship, Anita’s work with families aims to create and preserve loving connection and curiosity.

If you are looking for parenting support: email your questions or join the daily Resource Newsletter  aolson@fsgv.ca

set up a virtual meeting!

phone/text Anita at 604-723-9548

 

Hych’ka Anita!

Bees!

Have you ever stood under a chery blossom tree and just listened?  Sometimes, I hear cars.  Sometimes, I hear people chatting.  But if I listen very carefully, sometimes I hear the tree buzzing!  Bees love flowers too!

Bees are everywhere these days, and so, so busy!  Sometimes, they even come into the house!  This one was on my window sill the other day.

At first, I thought it was a fly…

But, no!  It was a mason bee that had lost his way.

So, I brought him back outside to a mason bee house so he could get back to work.

To watch a video of him and his friends working at their home, click here

Do you remember this moment last year?  Well, the mason bees are back at the Stride Ave. Community Garden!  Come by for a visit and get a glimpse of the action!   (If you are wondering if mason bees sting, understand that only the girls do and only if they are trapped or squeezed.  In other words, very, very rarely!)

A rhyme to sing to them while you’re there:

Here is a Bee House

Here is a bee house, but where are the bees?

Hiding away where nobody sees.

If I watch and wait and wait some more,

they’ll come out, 1,2,3,4!

 

Hych’ka,

Ms. Jenny

 

 

 

 

Birds, birds, birds!

It’s a beautiful day!  When you look at the trees outside, do you see any crows?  They are everywhere and miss everyone coming to school too!  They watch us play outside and when we go in, it’s their turn to swoop down and search for any snacks we may have left behind.  Inside our StrongStart room, there are two blackbirds that sit up in the branch behind me at circle time.  To these two crows we say this rhyme:

Two little blackbirds

Sitting in a tree

One named Jessica

One named Lee

Fly away, Jessica

Fly away, Lee

Come back, Jessica

Come back, Lee

What other birds do you see outside?  These are some that I’ve seen lately.

Sparrow

Stellar’s Jay (do you Marble the Rabbit in this photo?)

Chickadee

and 2 Flickers

Some birds, like Eagle and Hummingbird, I usually hear before I see!

Learn more about BC birds and listen to their calls here:

https://learning.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/pathways/listening-for-birds/

Take a closer look at birds and everything around you with a pair of binoculars!

It only takes a few minutes to make a pair together with a few things from around the house.

You will need a paper tube, scissors, and tape (or a stapler, or a glue gun).  String is optional and shouldn’t be so long that it can fit over a child’s head!

Together with your adult, cut tube to desired length:

Tie knots to the ends of a short piece of string (this will keep it from slipping out):

Wrap tubes together with tape, attaching string as you go:

Happy birding!  Tell me your stories of the things you see!

hych’ka!

Ms. Jenny

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome! We’re glad you’re here!

Hello StrongStart families!

I hope this letter finds you healthy and happy as you spend time together at home. I am at home too and I miss seeing you all at StrongStart. I am happy you have found this letter because that means you will know where to find me in the weeks to come! On this blog, I will be sharing stories, songs, activities, and resources for you and your family to enjoy together, just like at StrongStart. I will also go on adventures outside, and I hope you will too. It will be very important to listen to your adult and give others lots of space! Be safe! Be healthy! We can get through this together!

Take care everyone,

Ms. Jenny

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