Ava absolutely adored Miss Amy and all of her classmates (Lillian F. , Lillian J., Eli, Tucker, Brandon, Elliot, and Jeremy). School was Mondays and Wednesdays from 9-12. Rebecca, Lillian J.'s mom usually dropped the girls off and I would pick them up. Everyone had their own hooks to hang up their backpacks and jackets, and a communal shoe bucket. Miss Amy always had a Welcome Room with activities planned right when the children got to school. Then it was Circle Time, Center Time, Snack Time, Story Time and Big Muscle Time.
There was a different theme each month. These were the themes and highlights:
September-Safari
October-Treehouse Club. I went along with the kids to go apple picking. There was also a wonderful Halloween celebration.
November-Harvest/Nutrition. The children learned how to make vegetable soup. There was a "Thanksgiving feast".
December-Christmas and people we care about. Ava wrote a letter to the grandparents.
January-I forget the theme
February-Our Community. There was a Valentine's Day Party and they learned about policemen, firemen, and mailmen.
March-Dinosaurs. Ava made a cool fossil necklace.
April-Rhymes and Rhythms. Focused on nursery rhymes. They visited the Bronx Zoo at the end of the month.
May-Bugs and Insects. They watched the crysallis turn into cocoons, then into butterflies. They had a field trip to Fort Tryon Park to release the butterflies.
June-More bugs and a Book Buddy Celebration.
Ava would always come home singing some song to herself that she had learned. One of my favorite songs was "Cobbler, cobbler mend my shoe". They would play the Cobbler game during dismissal time by sitting in a line, waiting for Miss Amy (aka the Cobbler) to pass out their shoes. Ava's favorite song was "Tootie Ta" and I always asked her to sing that silly song for me.
Ava got to do hide something in the Mystery Bag twice, which is basically a show and tell. The first time Ava brought a talking/singing Elmo and told everyone she was scared of it when she was a baby. The second time she brought a princess dress.
There were two parent/teacher conferences. Each time Miss Amy said Ava was up to speed cognitively, but sometimes she was a little timid with physical activities compared with the other children.
So basically that was Book Buddies in a nutshell. It was just a perfect year and Ava loved it all. At the end of the year Book Buddy Celebration, the children sang a few songs for the parents and presented Miss Amy with gifts. Thank goodness for the other moms and Miss Amy for taking lots of pictures throughout the year. Each child was given a photo album and one of Ava's favorite past times is flipping through it. Book Buddies was wonderful, so take that $20,000 a year private preschool!
Apple picking/pumpkin patch day (sad little pumpkin patch, isn't it?)
Ava came home with all sorts of goodies after the Christmas party. Arden's head is mysteriously missing.
Ava has a Body Book and a Bug Book she still loves flipping through.
This was my favorite project she brought home. I was impressed when she told me about a caterpillar making a chrysalis, and then turning into a butterfly. I don't think I've ever used the word chrysalis in my life until she schooled me on it.
Book Buddy Celebration. This song was about important people in the community. Ava was a baker. Who is more important than that?
