The kindergarten children and their Morah had been quite worried about our classroom pet, Roger Michael, a pretty little garter snake. Roger (affectionately nicknamed “Snakey”) had not eaten for several weeks. Several of the children and their parents had done some research and discovered that this does sometimes happen. Nonetheless, we were concerned for our beloved pet! On a cold Monday morning, one of our classmates was studying Snakey and noticed that he had shed his skin, and the skin was under his rock! We were so delighted, as this was the second time since September that he had shed his skin. Carefully, we lifted the rock and the children were able to see firsthand how Snakey had “caught” his skin on the underside of the rock, and slithered out of it! And, once relieved of his old skin, Snakey’s appetite was back to normal…and then some!
We removed his skin and the children couldn’t wait to compare it to the skin he shed in October! Would the skin be the same length? Would it be longer or shorter? We discussed this together, and all the children agreed that the skin he just shed
would be longer than that he shed in October since he appeared to have grown. Indeed, they were right…it was longer by about ½ inch. Next, we decided to predict when Snakey might shed again. First, the children figured out how many months had passed from October (his first shed) to January…3 months! Next, they counted 3 months past January, and they are predicting that he will shed again in April! We will keep you posted!
During shared reading, we enjoyed the book, The Pajama Party. The children loved the story and then made some props so that they could retell the story on their own using their props. During journal time, we wrote about our own pajamas! As the long winter season slowly passes, we stress the importance of rest and renewal. Just as the natural world rests during the winter, it is important for us to rest in order for us to replenish our energy and be our best selves. We continue to meditate and practice breathing before we daven so that we can all feel a sense of peace and calm. 
The snow has given us a chance to appreciate the outdoors in fun and creative days. After a light snowfall one morning, we took a walk to the river and made sketches of the river after the fallen snow. Back inside the classroom, the children spoke about their sketches as they shared them with their classmates and me. Another snowy morning, the children found their own fun…some sledding, while others built a “snow bird house”!
The countdown to 100 days of school is drawing near. Each day the children add another sticker to a ten frame, a tally mark on our monthly book, and a stick in our place value cups. These visuals help the children understand the passing of time, numeration, and number patterns. As the children have gained confidence working with numbers, we use subtraction stories to figure out the differences, and addition stories to find the sums!
At the end of each day, we reflect back on our day, and share with our class a memory that was special. I record their responses, and number the passing days. In doing so, we are creating a most unique and exceptional number line. Lastly, I have begun to read a chapter from the book, Stuart Little each day before we go home. The children anxiously anticipate this part of the day! Not only do we love the story, but also we are building our vocabulary and developing a love of reading together!
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