Hello, salam, merhaba!
/We are continuing our dive into the languages of our school community (one word at a time). Today we noticed our greeting chalk sign with the words “hello,” “salam” (hello in Farsi), “merhaba” (hello in Turkish) written. Mary speaks both Farsi and Turkish. Tomorrow we are going to consult with Isabel and Caden about a “hello” greeting in Japanese (they both speak the language). Yesterday, R mentioned that her dad speaks Mandarin, so we may ask if they would like to add a Mandarin greeting. If any other families would like to share languages, we would love it.
The rest of our day was full of imaginative play. We started with some yoga under the cedar tree with Mary and then moved to play dough creations. Then out of the blue some friends found themselves in a treehouse castle with a couple angry dragons circling. Luckily, two baby triceratops arrived to help the friends in the treehouse and to consider why the dragons were angry. We found out the dragons were hungry. So we offered them some fish sticks and pizza, which helped improve their moods (temporarily).
Later, a baby triceratops asked me to snuggle (as I was the mama). She told me she was newly born and all red. She also communicated she, “loves to eat grass and take baths in a lake.” R heard she was hungry, baked cookies at the mud kitchen, and offered her three cookies. Apparently, they were delicious.
Meanwhile, P and R spotted something in the baby tree which really concerned them! R explained, “I saw a monster with yellow eyes under the chair!” Parker realized it was a “chimpanzee monster!” Chaos ensued until they found a happier home for the creature.
After an early snack (recommended by Z), friends magically became pirates. Mary and P decided to make a pirate flag. Soon the other pirates joined the project. Daniel Tiger (formerly R… “I’m Daniel Tiger until I grow up.”) jumped on the little teeter-totter with P and R to sail the oceans for treasure. It turned out their boat was a bit small so they upgraded to a huge, log ship to fit all.
Daniel later decided to create a pond in the ground. He and Mary problem-solved just how to keep the water from absorbing into the ground. The bowls from the mud kitchen helped dramatically. Soon all friends were engaged in creating ponds for our play animals.
We also found a doctor’s office under the play structure. I and Daniel were the doctors. They gave Mary and me checkups. Later, doctor Daniel helped patient I heal from “home sickness.” Daniel suggested drawing family pictures to help.
The level of group engagement, thoughtful problem-solving, and empathy is pretty incredible to experience with this crew of humans. :)
