An Afternoon of Writing, Baking and Diwali

Reading and Writing on our classroom "porch"

There is no doubt about it - we have been so fortunate with the kindest weather this October. We have been playing outside, reading under the Willowwind Tree, going for walks, exploring the garden, and even reading and writing on our "Classroom Porch." As we prepare to say hello to November, we have a great deal to be thankful for in all of our 51 days of school.

Measuring the Gluten Free Oats

Last Friday sums up all of the reasons that I so adore working with your children at Willowwind. It was a crisp Autumn day at the end of week full of runny noses, achy heads and scratchy throats - we had made it to the end (most of us anyway). After a morning full of Spelling Tests and practicing the art of regrouping with triple digit subtraction, students enjoyed working alongside their Partner Families for Prairie Animal Pumpkin Designs (pictures to be posted later). Then as we rolled into the afternoon - all the sounds and smells came together to form a fabulous Friday afternoon. While Chef Gaby and Mr. Max (our Practicum Student) worked with small groups in the Project Room baking gluten free, dairy free Apple Crisp for our Halloween K-6 Costume Parade on Monday, the rest of the Racerunner Friends worked in the classroom. There was a lot of reading going on as some were working in Literature Circles on Chapters 1-4 of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, others read in partners Lilacs, Lilies and Ladybugs, and a few had time for Halloween Books in the Library. Meanwhile, I was working with individual students as they edited their Short Story Fantasies. Jared played his Halloween Music as we worked quietly and Erika popped open the Classroom Door, grabbed a clipboard and headed to the "the porch" to finish her Final Draft. Addy, Nolan, and Muriel followed suit - enjoying the warm sunshine and crisp afternoon air.

Diwali Celebrations with the Racerunner Family

We ended our day with Dr. Laroia visiting our classroom and working with Himani to tell us the story of Diwali. My favorite part of their presentation is explaining to the students that they are Himani's family because she spends so very much time with them each day. So it is only appropriate that she invite them to join in Diwali - The Festival of Lights - with her. Students made Diva Lamps, colored brightly patterned designs and enjoyed a small sweet treat and balloons all in recognition of Diwali. Thank-you Archana for a wonderful Diwali celebration with the Racerunner Family!

On Monday we will enjoy the K-2 Apple Crisp as we Parade for the Preschool Friends, read with our Buddies, decorate Sugar Skulls and guess our Prairie Animal Pumpkins. Thank-you to all of the families who contributed (or offered to contribute) supplies for our Apple Crisp. It was a wonderful opportunity for Chef Gaby to engage the children in a baking activity that contributes to our community celebrations.

Tomatoes, Pirates and Books

The Prairie Racerunners have been up to quite a bit throughout the month of October. Our recent community project includes building a rural, suburban and urban community mural that represents the space and central necessities in each area. Stop by the wall outside of our classroom to check out the Golden Retrievers walking in Central Park, the traffic jam heading to a  Hawkeye Football Game and many gravel roads surrounded by a corn field! The biggest question: What is Iowa City? Is it a small city, a rural community or a suburb? See below for other highlights from our month!

Tomato Sauce is reading for canning!

Tomato Taste Test is a success!

1. Making Tomato Sauce with Chef Gaby. We learned all about canning to preserve fresh ingredients to eat throughout the winter. We are anticipating a warm pasta snack in the winter, but we loved our taste test of toasted bread and yummy sauce!

2.Reading Buddies with the Marblewing Friends is an event that we look forward to each Wednesday afternoon. Not only do we practice our reading skills, but our book choosing and conversation skills as well.

Preschool Reading Buddies

 

Don't you wish you could eat lunch like this?

3. Indoor Lunch: As some of our fall days have grown cooler and a bit windy, we have enjoyed picnic style lunches in the G.D. space - perfect for catching up with our friends about the day and world events.
4. Hunting for micro-organisms to create mini habitats. The garden, compost bin and bios wale had the most ants, roly ploys and caterpillars!

Pause for dancing...

Digging for microorganisms in the WW garden

5. Dancing to our favorite Sing Along songs and others including Tonight, Tonight by Alvin and the Chipmunks.
6. Do you know that the Willowwind Play Structure transforms to a great ship during recess? There you may discover Sea Monsters, pirates, and tidal waves. The moments of creative play and friendship are most precious as these last few days of Autumn linger...

Play Structure or Giant Ship?

Live, Work, Sing

Here's the deal. I love to sing. In the car, while making coffee, to Buckley as he burrows in the crunchy leaves. I started in a duet at the young age of 4 years old while riding in the passenger seat of my Mom's car as we would make the drive from Storm Lake, Iowa to my cousins house in Cherokee. We would snap our fingers to Bad, Bad Leroy Brown or use my ever present hair brush to sing Patsy Cline's Crazy. Secretly I was hoping that Mom and I would be the next Mother/Daughter Country Duo - just like the Judds. Fast forward 25 or so years later and I still love to sing! However, now I get to sing with the most talented group of 1st and 2nd graders. We Opera Sing our Morning Number Count, we clap and sway to our Morning Exercise Song, we sing transitions, Find your table spot, find your table spot, find it now, and we sing our way through numerous Wiggle Songs. However, last week we found ourselves beating a few new beats.

Diggory and his Mom came bursting into the classroom on Wednesday morning anxious to share one of their favorite songs. As it turns out Diggory and his Mom were not the only Racerunner Friends singing Alvin and Chipmunk's version of Tonight, Tonight. As soon as we found the tune on YouTube I had 13 little bodies gathered around the computer wiggling their tails, waving their arms and giggling from depths of their bellies. It was a departure from our usual routine and it made for the most cheerful morning of working together.

Then on Thursday, late in the morning, as students were working away on their communities there was a brand new lull in the classroom. Students were singing their community song "LIVE, WORK, PLAY" as they eagerly designed gravel roads through rural corn fields, manicured lawns among suburban driveways  and a plethora of dogs walking in the city's Central Park.

Finally, we kicked off our Friday sing along with nothing less than Eye of the Tiger which was, as Caroline described, "a huge 1980's hit!" Head bopping, air guitar and drum rolling were in full force as we wrapped up our brand new song as introduced by Caroline's partner family. Each Sing Along, every other Friday, will host a different partner family as they introduce a song of their choice.

Check out our latest edition of Prairie Research photos to see how well our Partner Families worked to create root systems.

Keep on singing families!

We Love Being Racerunners

What do we love about our classroom community?

Warm fall days are great for  soccer games at recess!

• We get to play on the playground. – Diggory
• We learn math. – Muriel
• We love P.E. and Art. – Luca
• We make up stories. - Himani
• We like to hear Daily News. – Melissa
• We learn about science. – Erika
• We learn spelling. – Sumner
• We love the Treasure Box – Jared
• We play chase! – Nolan
• We have Group Discussion. – Muriel
• We learn music. – Addy
• We go on field trips. – Caroline
• We all have important jobs like Attendance Helper. - Emma
• We love math. - Max

Autumn Everlasting - Roasted Sweet Pepper Salsa and Kale Chips

Our general feelings about Roasted Sweet Pepper Salsa and Kale Chips.
Notice - an empty plate. 

October is one of those months that is intoxicating to the soul. Like me, October is remembering the warm, sunny days of summer with the last few recess games of soccer, open toed shoes and early evening walks with Buckley. Slowly October has me digging into the back of my closet for my cozy scarves and anticipating my next trip to a local coffee shop where I will depart from my beloved chai for some sort of hot drink with a pumpkin theme. What is the best part of October? Is it the smell of roasting squash, burning leaves and pumpkin bars in the oven? Or is it the beauty of the red and gold leaves blowing in the Autumn breeze? For me October is bitter sweet as I soak up the last few visits to the Farmer's Market where I gather Cockscomb, Hearty Mums, and the most beautiful squash and tomatoes.

However, Chef Gaby has created a space in our classroom where we can continue to savor the smells and tastes of Autumn. Our trip to Echollective Farm allowed for two remarkable days of preparing healthy food that was both crunchy and delicious. To quote Sumner as he tossed the Kale Leaves with sea salt, black pepper and lime "Mmmm, it smells SOO good." Together we created an early Autumn snack of Kale Chips and Roasted Red Pepper Salsa. Jared has been asking me each and everyday to post the recipes, so please find those below.

Experiencing the aftertaste of Kale Chips

We had mixed reactions to the Kale Chips. First and foremost we have to celebrate that each and every friend tried the Kale Chips as Chef Gaby counted down: "One, Two, Three...TASTE!" The loud crunch echoed throughout our classroom with collective "Mmmmmm" and then from a few corners of the room we could hear "ewwwww" as we discovered the aftertaste of Kale. It was 50/50. Some students loved Kale Chips. Others were not fans.

Roasted Sweet Peppers before we peeled them. Hot!

The Roasted Sweet Pepper Salsa however got our taste buds going in a whole new direction! After roasting the peppers, peeling them and watching as Chef Gaby carefully mixed the ingredients using an Immersion Blender, we were all surprised at how the taste of the salsa matched the smell in our classroom - and we were in love with its sweet taste mixed with a salty tortilla chip. As Jared noted, Sweet Pepper Salsa is most delicious on the very first day. After it has been refrigerated it loses its zing that we fell in love with.

As the Autumn progresses Chef Gaby has grand plans for us to make a tomato sauce to enjoy in the cold winter months. In addition, we are anticipating a Racerunner-Made Apple Pie with apples from Wilson's and the Farmer's Market. It is the perfect friend to our new favorite book Enemy Pie. 

Chef Gaby explains the dehydrator which we will use for Kale Chips

Thank-you to Chef Gaby for leading us in a local food experience that is forever written on our hearts (and taste buds) long after the Autumn Days have said their last farewells and we are bundling up for an Iowa Winter full of sledding, winter coats and hot chocolate.

"Why is it important to make own chips?"

The Prairie Racerunners said..

• Fresher product
• Less sodium in our bodies
• Less sugar in our bodies
• Local Vegetable which means less gas to get to Iowa
• They are NOT FRIED

Kale Chips

1. Kale Leaves (we love Dinosaur Kale the best!)
2. Lime
3. ½ Cup Olive Oil
4. 1 tsp. sea salt
5. 1 tsp. black pepper
6. toss with hands
7. Dehydrate for 24 hours 

Roasted Sweet Pepper Salsa - Chef Gaby reminds us that salsa IS NOT just about tomatoes!

1. Roasted red peppers (remove skins and seeds)
2. Leek
3. Tomatoes
4. Olive Oil
5. Blend Together with Immersion Blender

Then…

1. Salt
2. Pepper
3. Lime
4. Fresh oregano
5. Cilantro
6. Mix together. 

Serve with tortilla chips, snappy peas and carrots. Yum!