We started today with white batting in the Touch and Feel pool.  Touching it to your face....so soft!  Looking through it.....trying to make it into shapes......even trying to toss it like a snowball!  It doesn't go very far.....but, what a fun way to kick off the morning! 

We sang Happy Birthday to Henry who turns FIVE years old today!  The kids had lots of questions for him.....mainly about cake and presents.  These kiddos definitely know the birthday routine. 

Right after that we started our two-part science experiment.  We were trying to make predictions about what would happen if we put something in the freezer.  We looked at a regular banana and talked about how it looks and feels.  We cut it up into pieces and looked at it again.  We cut up another banana just like the first one and walked it down to the freezer. The kids guessed that it would melt....turn red like our noses do outside.....it would be cold.....and that it would get hard.  Some pretty intelligent predictions!!

The freezer banana needed some time to "work" so we bundled up and went outside to play.  It wasn't nearly as cold today as yesterday, and since three classes of Weekday friends joined us, it was way more tolerable!!  Here's what I've learned from getting dressed for outside winter play:  it takes WAY longer to put tiny fingers in a glove or mitten, than it takes for them to get out of it!  Someone really should invent a better.....easier.....way!!  Just an observation!!

Our book today was Winter Is Here by Kimberly Weinberger.  This is a story about all the things we wear (boots, coats, hats, etc.) and all the things that we can do (sledding, ice skating, snow ball fights, building a snowman, etc.) in Winter.  There was some really great discussion about other things to do in the snow that weren't in the book.  I love it when the children expand on real literature to connect to their personal experiences!!

We sorted activities that we do in the winter and activities we do in the summer.  Everyone can identify the four seasons now and has a basic idea of some things that happen in each one.  It's an abstract concept, but they have picked it up with no problems! 

Back to the science experiment....back down the hall to get the banana out of the freezer!  You would have thought we were going to get a new puppy!  The kids were so excited!!  We gave each child a piece of the regular banana and a piece of the frozen banana to compare.  They looked at it, touched it, and then.....of course....they ATE IT!!  What a sweet, cold treat!  If you haven't ever tried frozen bananas.....I highly recommend it!!  One banana divided nine ways only gets each child a tiny taste, but they LOVED it!

I can't believe the week is almost over.....time really does fly when you are having fun!!