We have been waiting for you.

We have been waiting for you. 

 "Waiting" conveys expectancy.  Each August, we anticipate greeting the children as they enter the classroom to begin our journey together as a community.

As we wait, we prepare and plan. We want the classroom environment to feel welcoming.  Does the space provide flexibility and an aestheticism? Will the children have the resources to express their ideas and collaborate? 

We reflect on the rhythm of our day and week. We anticipate the needs of a five year old. What do we know to be true for children and where in our day do we need to be more intentional. What works in our schedule and what triggers fatigue?

As we wait for the children to join us, we deliberate the careful balance between collaborating and time to reflect as an individual. How do we preserve time for introspection as we co-construct meaning?

As we anticipate the arrival of the children, we prioritize the intentions of the classroom. 

How we spend our days is how we spend our life.

Annie Dillard. 

We turn our thoughts toward the  children who will soon be Kindergartners.  During our first month, we spend time trying to get to know the children and observe their interactions with each other and the environment. How do they adapt to the rhythm of our day? What parts of the day and work come easily and what is challenging?


Stand aside for awhile and leave room for learning, observe carefully what children do and then if you have understand well perhaps teaching will be different than before.

                                Loris Malaguzzi

Each day we wait for our Kindergartners to arrive. We are getting to know them as individuals and as a group of learners. 

We are learning that some of the children like cats and others prefer dogs. Many like to weave stories with their classmates and others go directly to the studio.  A few of the children want hard math problems. Two friends are content to play at the light table each morning. All of the children dislike long circles but love recess and lunch.

We are learning more each day about this year's Kindergartners and they in turn will learn  more as to who they are and how best they learn in the midst of a community. 

" I have been waiting FOREVER to get my feet wet in Rabbit River."