Happy February! A new month is always an exciting time in our class. Themes shift, decorations change, and we add more exciting knowledge to our ever-budding brains! The children love to notice new things in our classroom each month, and begin to associate symbols with the current time of year. In January, our room was filled with all different types of snowflakes, and now, even though some of the snowflakes remain, hearts are beginning to pop up all over! We are looking forward to the exciting things February will bring, like sharing some Valentine's Day traditions together, and celebrating the importance of Black History Month. 

This week we spent a lot of time with our big buddies in third grade! On Tuesday, we took a "field trip" upstairs to the middle school hallway and met with our friends in Mrs. Hoffman's class. The third graders got together with the Nursery 2 children and enjoyed reading some books while getting to know each other. On Friday, for HCA community time, third grade came down to our classrooms to say hello once again! Together the students made some crafts, giving each child the opportunity to work one on one with their buddy. It is such a special thing getting to know some of the older kids in the school. The third graders were very enthusiastic to spend time together, and although a few of our kids were a little hesitant at first, every single one of them became comfortable and worked so nicely with their big buddy. There were lots of hugs and high fives when it was time for everyone to go back to class. We can't wait to do it again!

It was another fun week of working hard and playing harder. The skills we learn and strengthen during work periods are so important, and getting to play together in the classroom is equally important. While playing, we are improving our cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being. Through play, children learn about themselves and the world around them. They also learn skills they need for work, relationships, and building confidence. As the year progresses we are seeing a lot of the children building adorable friendships; engaging together during playtime as opposed to playing parallel. We have so much fun playing together! 

REMINDERS:

• The HCA Parents Association is organizing a Family Fun Night on Saturday, February 11, 5-8 p.m. It is free to all HCA families. There will be games in the MPR for the littles, sports contests in the gym for both students and parents, and a potluck dinner in the cafeteria. Click here to sign up!

• Looking ahead: there is no school on Friday, February 17, and Monday, February 20, due to a faculty inservice and Presidents’ Day. 

Have a great weekend!