This week we did an Artist Study on Wassily Kandinsky.
 
We experimented with new materials this week, as a part of learning about Kandinsky’s art. The kids made their own version of Kandinsky's "Squares with Concentric Circles", using oil pastels. On another day they used Conte (somewhat like a cross between crayon and charcoal) to experiment making different types of lines. 
 
Kandinsky also liked to use shapes in his artwork, so that was a great opportunity to continue our learning of shapes. Using a transparency on top of an original drawing, the kids glued on various foam shapes and lines. Some experimented with overlapping as well.
 
Throughout the week we have been learning how Kandinsky could ‘hear’ colours (Synesthesia) and how music can make us feel a certain way and colours can also make us feel a particular way. The kids practiced painting the colours and forms that the music made them feel, as opposed to painted something they had preplanned in their minds. We listened to Mozart, Jazz and Electronic. Just letting yourself paint what the music is dictating is not an easy task when you are so used to creating something you have already thought about. I think they did great for their first time ever doing something like this. I can see the difference in some of the paintings as they change from various types of music. It was very interesting to watch them as they painted. As much as it is an experience for the children, I think it is an amazing experience for the adult watching them! It is almost as if you can see what is going through their minds as they listen to each type of music.
 
Our letters this week were T and I. The kids used stickers to form a letter T. We also played a letter game where each person was on the hunt of particular letters that were placed on the floors throughout the house. To make their task more interesting they had to do different actions as they ran back to me, to tell me the name of the letter they brought back.

Happy Valentine’s Day! And Family Day! I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend with their loved ones.
 
We had a bunch of Valentines fun this week. We also had a Blooming Butterflies graduate join us on Friday. The kids love when ‘big kids’ visit us! Our Valentine’s Day was full of Heart cookie eating (the cookies had been made and decorated during the week), making a Valentine’s collage, sharing Valentine surprises and talking about who we love and how we show our love.
 
Earlier in the week we made marbled saving cream hearts, cut out heart love bugs, and threaded and hung our decorated hearts from last week to make garland. The kids also went on a couple of heart scavenger hunts. They are getting really good at letting everyone have a chance to find things before they take them all and offer up their help when someone needs it. After these heart hunts, they did multiple activities including; heart size sorting, heart letter matching, heart patterns and number and number representation heart matching.
 
Our letters this week were E and H. It worked out perfectly that H ended up being on our letters as ‘heart’ was our first word to make it onto the learning board.

We started out our week learning about the tradition that is Groundhog Day. We talked about what gophers are, how they hibernate, and what it symbolically means if the gopher does/does not see its shadow. Balzac Billy predicts early spring!
 
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and so we have decided to start decorating. The kids have been working hard at stenciling and cutting out hearts to decorate for our garland. The kids have been working in their journals too; writing LOVE, drawing/tracing hearts and colouring.
 
We started up our second round of letter learning this week. We started with L and F as they are similar in written structure. The kids seem to be better able to translate what they see on the board to their letter building pieces now. 
 
Show and Tell began this week. We had three very excited little ones ready to share their Show and Tell! We can’t wait to see what the others bring next week!
 
We went on multiple trips to the dinosaur park. One time, on our way back from the dinosaur park we stopped by one of the little libraries that we frequent. The owner of that little library wrapped up the books like little surprises and offered little heart chocolates as well. The kids were so excited! Of course, I put their chocolates in my pocket and pretended to be the chocolate thief all the way back. We ran most of the way, with me cackling like an evil villain and them giggling as they chased me. Oh, the memories we make!
 
The also did some tree climbing and ate giant snow cookies this week!