Butterfly Pavilion

Hey there -
Here are some shots from this week's field trip to the Butterfly Pavilion - we had a great trip and loved seeing all the bugs, spiders and other invertebrates! Enjoy the pictures!

Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

Lacing

Hey there -
I just wanted to let you all know about a great pre-writing activity you can do with your kids. It's great for fine-motor skills, super easy and really fun! Just cut the front or back side of a cereal box and punch holes around the edge. Then have the kids lace yarn through the holes. I put tape on the ends of the yarn so that it was easier for the kids to grab and pull the yarn. Then I tied a knot at the end. Then at the very end we colored the box inside the lacing. The kids really enjoyed this and were very focused on their lacing - pretty cute! Now you can put all those empty cereal boxes to good use!

Enjoy the pic -
Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

Earth Week!

Hey everyone -
This week we celebrated Earth Week in honor of Earth Day on Friday, April 22nd. This is one of my favorite topics, especially with my nature background.

Some highlights:
*Nature hike - saw prairie dogs, spider webs, rabbits, squirrel, animal poop (scat), worms, bird nest, and much more!
*Arts and crafts - made worm tunnels out of brown paint and yarn, planet earth (see picture), painting with mud (see picture) and muffin tin flower prints
*Books - "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss (of course!) and "Leo's Tree"
*Lots of games and other activities

Enjoy the pictures -
Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

The Royal Family

Hey everyone -
This week we focused on the Royal family - kings, queens, princes, princesses, knights, castles, dragons... Our letter was "K" for king and kingdom. We had so much fun! Today we specifically based all of our games and activities around the classic story, "The Princess and the Pea". The kids especially liked a game in which I would secretly put 1-4 green pom-poms (peas) under a blanket. When they came in and laid down on the blanket, they had to guess how many I placed under it. If they guessed the right number then it proved they were a real prince or princess :)

We also played a game outside called "What Time is it Mr. Dragon?". I was the dragon and was at one end of the yard with my back to the kids. They were at the other end of the yard. They would ask me, "What time is it Mr. Dragon?" and I would reply with a time, such as 1 o'clock or 6 o'clock... Whatever the time was, that was how many steps they could take trying to get closer to me. But if I answered, "Its midnight!", then I would turn around and chase them back to the start line. They loved it! And they all got a turn being a dragon. So fun!

Anyway, we had a blast and are looking forward to next week. Our theme will be "Earth Week" in honor of Earth Day on April 22nd. It truly is one of my favorite holidays - I'm really looking forward to all the fun activities and discoveries we'll make next week. (Side note, but as we were outside playing today, a Swainson's Hawk flew right over our house and called as he was flying! All the kids got a great look at the beautiful bird - so incredible!).

Have a great evening - thanks for reading!

Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

New Kids!

Hey everyone -
It's been a great couple of weeks here at Monarch Kids. Not only have we been having a blast doing crafts, games, field trips, playing outside...we've also had 1 new boy start this week and then 2 more start next week! So if you are interested in enrolling in Monarch Kids, now is the time! Space is limited and spots are going fast!

Feel free to email me at kendall@monarchkids.org or call me at 303-524-2003.

Thanks and have a great weekend!

Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

Littleton Historical Museum

Hey everyone -
Check out the pictures from our great field trip to the Littleton Historical Museum. The kids and I had a blast!!!!

We saw so many farm animals - In fact, there were 11 baby lambs and one that was a day old! We saw the following animals: sheep, cows, horses, mules, chickens, turkeys, geese, ducks, turtles... The kids also enjoyed exploring the blacksmith shop, farmhouse, barns and one-room schoolhouse.

We had a great time - I highly recommend this field trip to anyone. Its free and a great place for kids to explore and learn about nature!

Take care -
Kendall

"On the Farm"

Hey everyone -
This week's theme is "On the Farm" - there is so much to do with this theme! Check out the pictures. One is our Pretty Pink Piggie snack - a bagel covered in strawberry cream cheese, chocolate chip eyes, banana slice for a snout, licorice for a smile and strawberry slices for ears. Yummy! The next picture is a horseshoe craft the kids did - we simply cut a horseshoe out of a cereal box and then covered it with foil. We were going to actually play a game of horseshoes but ran out of time :( The final picture is a pig and several tails. We played a version of "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" but pinned tails on a pig instead. I can't take credit for the beautifully drawn pig - that would be my husband!

Anyway, the kids have had a blast this week and are really looking forward to the field trip to the Littleton Historical Museum coming up on Thursday. I'll be sure to send pictures and update you all about that as well.

Take care -
Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool

Eggs

Hey everyone -
This week we had lots of fun doing all kinds of activities, games and crafts about eggs. This time of year, animals are starting to lay their eggs - we had fun learning which animals actually lay eggs. We also read one of my favorite books, "Verdi" by Janell Cannon. Its about a python that is bright yellow when its born and sees that the older pythons are "boring" and green. He doesn't want to be that way and tries to find any way possible to stay yellow. It fit in nicely with our theme since its about snakes and they lay eggs (although, not all snakes lay eggs - just fyi). The kids loved it and wanted me to read it again right away!

Next week our theme will be "On the Farm" and we're going on another field trip. This time we'll be heading to the Littleton Historical Museum to visit the farm animals.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Kendall Stark
Monarch Kids Preschool