Flower Puzzles
During the month of April, the children at Firefly each worked on a paper collage that we call a “flower puzzle”. As a background to the puzzle, the kids painted beautiful landscapes (keeping the garden theme in mind). Then, they painted or colored the parts of a flower: the roots, stem, leaves, sepals, petals, stamen and pistil. The final step was to glue all the parts of the flower together. This project allowed the children to explore art, literacy, and science: they enjoyed watercolor painting with new metallic colors, they started using their new, botanical vocabulary, and they learned about the science of gardening, the life cycle of plants.

Insect Art
A garden has to have bugs! Talking about flowers, and the process of pollination, led to our illustrations of insects. We began these drawings in mid-April, relying on the beautifully illustrated book, “How to Draw Bugs” (by Ralph Masiello). The kids worked studiously at the art table, looking at step-by step instructions on how to draw realistic caterpillars, dragonflies, butterflies, spiders, and beetles. We made sure to count the number of legs, eyes, and segments of the body of each insect. The kids are proud of their work – you can see it on display in the entryway of the school.

Looking around the school, there are many emerging signs of Spring. You might notice the changing scenery in the dramatic play area (a.k.a. the “train room”). We have a transforming mural that centers around a large tree collage. The kids created this tree last fall. It has been with us through the seasons…now you will find blooming flowers around the base of the tree, and lush, green plants gracing the window. These were all created by the Firefly kids. We began adding floral artwork last week, after reading the story, “Root Children”, and recognizing that Spring is truly here.

“Root Children” is a delightful, mythical story about the cycles of the seasons, and the awakening of springtime after a long winter’s sleep. Teacher Carrianna brought in her much-loved copy of the book, and shared it with the classroom. The story describes the process of new life emerging from the earth in the warmth of spring. The “Root Children” are like the spiritual keepers of all kinds of flowers and insects that go underground during the winter. “Mother Earth” appears as a wise old woman, and sends the Root Children out in a procession to renew the Earth as Spring arrives.

Reading this story gave us many ideas about how to study Spring at school. We’ve been identifying flowers by type (daisy, buttercup, forget-me-not, and poppy are all flowers in the “Root Children” book). The kids have traced flower stencils, and practiced drawing insects. Using their mathmatical skills, the kids practiced counting  how many petals various flowers have, and how many legs insects have.

The flower dissection project has been a compelling one. The children have been practicing “dissection” on lilies and tulips, gently pulling apart the petals, looking for the stamen, the pistil, and the ovule. Looking at a simplified drawing (our “flower chart”), the kids are learning botanical vocabulary while viewing the strange beauty of petals and pollen through their magnifying glasses. Several children have enjoyed doing botanical art, and drawing the flowers as they observe them (before pulling them apart!). It is wonderful to feel a sense of awakening and new energy, out in the sunshine, and in the classroom!