PeeWees: Olivia (week 2)

Due to various scheduling problems, our second week of Olivia was actually about 2 months after the first one.  And I will post all the intervening PeeWee sessions and field trips and eventually get caught up on things.  But for now, Olivia, week 2.

Arrival:  I set out the dollhouse and dolls again, like last time.  At first Bodie said he didn't want to play with the dollhouse, and started to wander off.  Immediately Jackson and Henry said they didn't want to, either, and they followed Bodie.  This was the first time I've seen something like this from the PeeWees.  They are growing and changing so much!  So I sat down and played dollhouse with Poppy, and after a few minutes the boys came around and started to be interested in the dolls and furniture.  Henry liked putting the drawers in and out of a desk.  Jackson was interested in setting up the bathroom fixtures - tub, sink, shower, toilet.  Bodie took dolls up and down the stairs, then sliding on the roof. 

Circle Time:  We sang our stand up song, did the ABC's, and I had everyone find their name's letters on the alphabet chart.  Then because they are getting so good at their letters, I had everyone find all the letters in their names, one at a time.  It was painful for Henry to allow other kids to find their own letters - he clearly knows them so well and is very fast at finding!  But given time, everyone spelled their name out pointing at letters.  

For counting to 20, we counted black & white stripes (since Olivia wears striped tights, and that color scheme is popular with our PeeWees.) 

Then we took off socks and did "This Little Piggy" several times - they struggled a little to always grab the right toe, but everyone thinks the chant and of course the "Wee wee wee!" part is fun.

Before we read Olivia again, I asked what, if anything, they remembered.  Someone remembered that she went to the beach.  Someone else remembered the mask she wore to scare her brother.  Not too bad.  Then we read the book.

Snack:  Pig snout biscuits with strawberries.  They were just homemade biscuits dyed pink , brushed with lemon glaze, and two blueberries stuck on.  Two loved them, two detested them.  Not my best outcome, I admit. 

Snack took a long time.  The ones eating the biscuits took a pretty long time, and I made everyone stay at the table until they were done.  I felt bad making them wait so I also offered cheese sticks to keep them busy, and showed them how to peel them into strings. 

Art:  On rainy days, Olivia's mom takes her to the art museum.  She just doesn't get a modern splatter piece by Jackson Pollock.  "I could do that in about five minutes," she says.  When she gets home, she gives it a try...on the living room wall.  So for art today, we did a mural.

First we started with markers.  I took pictures for awhile, then just sat back on the stairs and watched the creativity flow.  Poppy was making a very detailed map that led to each PeeWee's house.  Henry was drawing roads and mountains.  Jackson and Bodie were just having fun using many different colors. 

It seriously went on and on.  I had many other activities planned, but I wanted to let this collaboration continue until it naturally ended.  When they finally felt done, I asked if they wanted to add paint, or do something else. It was unanimous.

 The finished masterpiece:

Activity:  With not much time remaining, I brought out the paper bag masks they painted last time, and carefully helped put them on.  I said they looked sooo scary, and they took that as invitation to chase me.  We turned it into a mask parade, which Poppy pointed out rhymed with masquerade from King Bidgood (last week's book.) 

We did a final read of the book, our farewell song, and while we waited for pick-up, we did a little matching game, picking up picture cards and finding the match in the book.

When Hazel and Ginger came home from school, the mural was still drying, and the paint cups were still out.  They were so excited, they asked if they could paint on it, too.  Looks like mural painting is a hit with all ages.