WPNS News

Dear Oak,

I love being with all of you on Wilder Fridays at Cache Creek. We hadn’t been on an adventure walk since the snakes woke up from their winter nap. Lynne led us on one today because she knows how not to surprise and scare the snakes in case we met one. We didn’t.

We explored poop. The goose toilet had a lot of goose poop. On the way, one person stopped and pointed to some poop. It was pebbly with bits of plants in it. Later, someone else noticed some very furry poop.

Lynne told us it was coyote poop. They lick themselves and there’s always a lot of fur in their poop. I wondered if some of the fur was from what the coyote ate. Two people looked for a stick as we walked towards the parking lot. They found one and wanted to go back to poke around in the poop.

There was so much fur in the poop that it was hard to break the poop apart even. We were hoping to find bones in the poop.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Mulberry,

Eight of us like spicy food. Two did not. Eight of us like sour food. Two did not. Some of us can do some things others would like to do but cannot yet. We’re alike, and we’re different. You are the only you.

Today, one of us climbed the tree. Soon, another person followed to the top of the triangle but not quite to the tree. Another person tried, and another person tried.

Today, one of us had a long stick. Long sticks need a lot of space. Sticks are fun to figure out how to carry around while we play, the longer the stick, the trickier the fun. So of course, another person wanted to try out this stick carrying thing, and they grabbed the stick.

We climb trees. We carry sticks. We eat spicy food. We eat sour food. We get ideas from each other about things we’d like to try and even ideas about what we don’t want to try. You are the only you.

I do not like it when someone tries to take something from me. The person with the stick didn’t either. Still, we care for ourselves and each other. I wasn’t there when the stick was grabbed. Here’s what I would have said, “They are using that stick, I bet we could find another stick for you.” I wonder what you would do.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Oak,

I was invited to make something yummy in the sandbox. Then they changed their mind and invited me to the kitchen. I went to get a crate to sit on, and by the time I got back two others were cooking in the kitchen too. Later one more joined.

You all took care of yourselves, each other, of me, and our things. The first person didn’t want to cook with the others, so she made me juice all on her own. The other two worked out whether to cook together or each make their own thing too. They each made their own. They figured out how to share tools, take turns getting water, and to make room for everyone.

The last person to join helped get the water from the pump for cooking and cleaning. I pumped. They held the canister. When it was full, they took the water to the cooks. Both cooks wanted the water, and they figured out one first and then the next.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Mulberry,

We read a book authored and illustrated by 5 and 6 year-olds. So cool. I wonder if you’ve written a book. Anyway, in the book, they asked what you liked to eat. Some people said crackers and one person said goldfish and another said all the yummy things.

Then they asked what you liked to play. Two people said chase, and two people said run-away, and one person said that they liked to play in the mud and sand.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Mulberry,

We had jumping morning news without any jumping, at first. Then you jumped on one foot to the gate. I tried. I jumped on one foot but then stopped. I thought better of it. I wasn’t wearing jumping shoes.

You jumped on one foot across the pit on Mud Mountain. You jumped from Book Nook and Shop and said it didn’t work. Then someone else came along. I asked if they had balanced on the beam at the next to top level or the one below. They answered, next to the top and that they could jump from there too.

They jumped. I noticed the loose board on the lower level and worried if you brushed against it as you jumped that it could pop up and boom you. You were not worried, but the other jumper worked to show you just how it wasn’t attached and could do the very thing.

You seemed disappointed at the removal of that lower board. You jumped. I wonder how it felt to you to be able to jump on one foot and to jump from so high.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Oak,

The slime was very slimy. It stuck on the wooden table. It got on the animals, and the animals got stuck in it. Bits of the slime found its way out of the red bin onto the ground where it picked up dirt and mulberry flowers.

The slime stuck to palms and fingers, shirtsleeves, and the bottoms of shoes. I wonder if you got slimed today?

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Mulberry,

Maegan shared a memory of when she was in preschool. This is a special memory to carry for so long. She remembers going on a treasure hunt at her school for a leprechaun’s pot of gold. According to Maegan, the leprechaun only shows up once a year on March 17, St. Patrick’s Day.

The leprechaun must have known Maegan would be at Rainbow School. They’d hidden a pot of gold and left clues. Maegan read the clue, and off you went to find a bike, a tree, a red car, a big chair. At each, there was another clue.

The last clue was something green and sour that you like to eat. Right away, you solved the clue and dashed to a patch between the Pine Forest and the Music Garden. There it was, a gleaming pot of gold.

I feel like sour grass, leprechauns, and the color green are all parts of this St. Patrick’s Day. I wonder what you noticed about this day or if you have memories too.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Oak,

Big brother didn’t want you to catch his little sister. You asked her if you could chase her. She said yes. Her brother still didn’t want you to catch her. You answered that you would only chase her.

There was discussion about you running faster than her which would mean that you would probably catch her. Someone suggested that you run slower. You argued that when you slowed down you stopped and demonstrated this.

They demonstrated running slowly in place to illustrate how it might be done.

Love,
Teacher Michelle

Dear Oak,

Glorious. Just glorious. The sun was shining. The birds twittered, chirped, cheeped. I wonder if you heard other bird sounds. One person asked if we could go on an adventure walk. They surveyed all the other children. They got six yes votes and three no votes.

Then, I heard about the rattlesnakes not only being awake but out and about eating. Of course, they must be hungry. They’ve been dormant for five months. Since we are in their homes, I wanted to let them eat without having to worry about us. They are afraid we might hurt them.

So we stayed at our home base. Once they have been out and about eating their fill, the rattlesnakes will retreat a little though we could still surprise one. We’ll all have to agree to rattlesnake rules before going on an adventure walk:

• Keep one adult in front of you
• Keep one adult behind you
• Walk where you can see your feet and not where the grass or plants hide your feet.
• If you see or hear a snake, stop and stay where you are until the snake crawls away.

Love,

Teacher Michelle

Dear Mulberry,

You were swinging on the tire swing. First, it was one. Then, it was two. Then, it was four people on the swing. You had to figure out how to fit all the knees. Four pairs of knees are eight. You swung high. You spoke of riding horses.

I wondered if it was a flying unicorn like the one from Rainbow Rocket News. Someone asked to spin. You were spinning and flying. I caught sight of a face going pale, looking unhappy. I stopped the spin, slowed the swing, checked in on everyone’s heads and tummies.

We talked about how some people don’t like spinning and some people do. Some noises bother people that don’t bother others. I don’t like the sounds of fans or spinning.

Someone said they were scared of the dark, and I said that I used to keep my closet light on with the door open a little bit. They said that if you kept the light on for a really long time it would go out.

Love,
Teacher Michelle