Early Childhood Partners
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  • About
    • Brain Building In Progress
    • Strengthening Families
    • Contact Us
  • COVID-19 Resources
  • Programs and More
    • MONDAYS: "FIRST FRIENDS STORY TIME"
    • TUESDAYS: "STORY TIME YOGA" & "PROCESS ART"
    • WEDNESDAYS: "PRE-K HOORAY" & "WIND-DOWN WEDNESDAYS"
    • THURSDAYS: "LITTLE LEARNERS" & "WENDY'S STORY ART"
    • FRIDAYS: "STORIES&SONGS", "SCIENCE FRIDAYS", & "M IS FOR MUSEUM"
    • SEASIDE SATURDAYS
    • SPECIAL EVENTS
    • PARENT WORKSHOPS
    • Registration
  • Countdown To Kindergarten
    • CTK Calendar
  • Learning At Home
    • Supplies, Recipes, & Suggestions
    • Songs, Rhymes, & Bounces for LapBabies
    • Play! Play! Play!
    • Early Literacy
    • STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math)
    • Fine Motor Skills
    • Speech & Language Development
    • Social-Emotional Learning
    • Self-Help Skills
    • Antiracism
    • Local Events Calendars & Things To Do
    • Self Care For Parents/Caregivers
  • Developmental Screenings
  • Community Resources
    • Early Education & Child Care Resources For Families >
      • Early Education Programs
      • After School Programs
    • Public Libraries, Town Halls, & Community Centers
    • Playgrounds & Parks
    • Museums & Historical Societies
    • Housing, Legal, Financial, Fuel & Food
    • Health & Safety Resources
    • Resources For Programs/Providers
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FRIDAYS - WINTER 2021
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SCIENCE FRIDAYS WITH WENDY KENNY: 
Science Fridays is STEAM and STEM fun!  Parents/caregivers and children ages 2-6 will listen to
online read-aloud stories, and explore links to science, technology, engineering, art, and math activities!
This program is presented in collaboration with the Hamilton-Wenham Public Library!
A new SCIENCE FRIDAY lesson will be added here every FRIDAY!


WELCOME TO SCIENCE FRIDAYS!
What makes a good SCIENCE EXPLORER?
·       Curiosity: Wondering about the world, wanting to explore, willingness to try new things and take risks
·       Critical thinking: Employing objectivity, looking for and applying evidence
·       Creativity: Imagining possibilities, solutions, and forms of expression; thinking outside the box
·       Persistence: Focusing, sticking to it, learning from mistakes
·       Problem Solving: Identifying issues, viewing potential solutions from multiple perspectives
 
The activity I planned for today has us playing and working with our hands.  Sometimes when our hands are busy this frees up our mind to share.  Let's make some homemade play dough!
 
Ingredients for making the play dough…
·       1 cup all-purpose flour
·       1 cup water
·       2 teaspoons cream of tartar
·       1/3 cup salt
·       1 tablespoon vegetable oil
·       food coloring
 
Directions for making the play dough...
1.    Mix together all the ingredients in a 2-quart saucepan.
2.    Cook over low/medium heat, stirring. 
3.    Continue stirring until the mixture is thickened and begins to gather around the spoon.
4.    Remove the dough onto wax paper or a plate to cool.
5.    Adding food coloring to small parts of the dough could be interesting also.
6.  Cool completely before storing in a Ziplock bag or sealed container. 
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STORIES AND SONGS INTERACTIVE STORY TIME @10AM ON ZOOM WITH KATIE CASTELLUCCIO:  
Please join preschool teacher and musician Ms. Katie for a fun early literacy
​m
usic and movement story time for the whole family.  Learn about your child’s development while you
play, move, explore instruments, sing, read, and have fun together! 
​Please Register To Receive The ZOOM Link!

REGISTER HERE for the zoom link
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"M IS FOR MUSEUM" AND "POPPETS PLAYDATE":
Join us for a virtual version of our popular collaboration with the Wenham Musuem,
​M is for Museum  (2.9yrs +) and Poppets Playdates (18 mos. +)!  
A new video will be available here on the SECOND FRIDAY of every Month!


WELCOME TO "M IS FOR MUSEUM" AND "POPPETS PLAYDATE"!
THIS MONTH IS ALL ABOUT OWLS!

STORIES
Our Poppets friends will read “Owl Babies” by Martin Waddell. In this story, three baby owls awake one night to find their mother gone, and they can’t help but wonder where she is. What is she doing? When will she be back? When the mother owl returns, the owl babies joyously flap their wings and dance and bounce. Beautiful illustrations capture the story of little ones who miss their mother and are overjoyed at her return.
Our M is for Museum friends will read “Owl Moon” by Jane Yolen. In this classic, award-winning story, a little girl and her father go owling on a late winter night. They keep quiet, as they listen for owls and hope to find one during a beautiful moonlit night.
  • Owl Babies by Martin Waddell >>
  • Owl Moon by Jane Yolen >>

​ACTIVITY:  Make A Snowy Owl
Supplies Needed
  • Black, blue or purple construction paper for a night sky (or, color a white piece of paper to be the night sky);
  • Black construction paper (or black crayons or markers) for the owl’s feet, beak, and pupils;
  • Brown construction paper (or brown crayons or markers) to make a branch for the owl to sit on;
  • Yellow construction paper (or crayons or markers) to make the owl’s yellow eyes;
  • Something white for the owl’s body.  You could use white paint, cut paper, cotton balls, or anything else you have on hand that is white.  (If you are starting with a while piece of paper, you could also just draw an outline for the owl body and leave it un-colored in.)
  • Glue stick (or glue, tape, or a stapler).
Directions 
  • Start with the background for the night sky, either with construction paper or coloring.
  • Then, add a branch for the owl to sit on.  Cut one out of brown paper and glue it on, or draw a brown branch. If you are using cut paper, you can make it all crinkly or a little wrinkled to add some texture to your branch!
  • Next, make the owl’s body.  If you are painting, you could use a shower poof, cotton balls, or a sponge as a paintbrush to make an interesting texture for the feathers.  You could also cut out pieces of white paper in ovals and circles to glue on for feathers.
  • Then, make the owl’s yellow eyes but cutting out yellow circles and gluing them on.  (Or, color two yellow circles.)
  • Last, cut out black feet, a black triangle for a beak, and two small black circles for pupils.  (Or, color these things with black crayons or markers.
  • Looking for more to do?  Add two tiny white circles to the eyes as little glints of reflected light.  Or, add a moon or stars to the sky.

ACTIVITY:  See Real Owls
You and a grown-up can drive to Plum Island in Newburyport, Mass. to look for snowy owls.  Snowy owls are one of the largest owls in North America.  They have many white feathers on their body, but also some feathers that are brown, black and grey.  They have yellow eyes.  Snowy owls have many small, fine feathers on their face, beak, feet, and legs to help keep them warm.  Snowy owls are predators.  This means they eat other animals (like small rodents and small birds) for their food.  They like to live in open, grassy areas like tundras and marshlands.
Our friends at the Massachusetts Audubon Society are experts in knowing about snowy owls!  On their website, you can learn more about snowy owls and the work that they do to keep snowy owls happy and safe:
  • Mass. Audubon Snowy Owl Project >> 
  • Learn more about viewing wild Snowy Owls safely >>

​ACTIVITY: Live Web Cam – Owl Nest
You can also see a real snowy owl nest in the wild!  This snowy owl family lives in Alaska.  In this time of year in the Alaska, the sun never goes down so the owls are easy to see all of the time.  You can watch the grown-up owls come and go with food for the babies, just like in the book Owl Babies.  For Grown-Ups – Warning!  While the owls in this nest spend a lot of time sleeping, they also eat a fair number of lemmings.  This may be interesting or it could be worrisome for some younger viewers.  You may also see other wild animals, like arctic fox.
  • View the Explore.org Artcic Snowy Owl Nesting Cam >>

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Early Childhood Partners programs are funded by the Massachusetts Coordinated Family & Community Engagement (CFCE) grant awarded to Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) serving Hamilton, Wenham, Manchester, and Essex.  All educational and non-academic programs, activities and employment opportunities at Hamilton-Wenham RSD are offered without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, homelessness, age and/or, disability, and any other class or characteristic
​protected by law.

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Early Childhood Partners

You are your child's first and most important teacher.  We are here to support you in that journey. 

Contact

E. Paige Menchini, MSW, LICSW
Early Childhood Partners
​Program Coordinator
978-468-5489
​e.menchini@hwschools.net