Archive for April, 2008
A letter from school:
Dear Parents,
Thursday evening, April 3rd, Norfeldt kindergarteners presented their annual “Walk With the Masters: A Night at the Museum” to their parents, grandparents and friends. Children shared their writing, reading, songs, and artistic interpretations of the work of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Vincent van Gogh, Georges (aka “Dot Dot”) Seurat, Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Ansel Adams, Andy Warhol, Mary Cassatt, Norman Rockwell, and Georgia O’Keefe.
Can you guess the artist? (clues from Mrs. G’s students):
- I paint sun flowers. My paint was thick. I like yellow. My best friend is Paul Gaugin. I was born in Holland. I moved to the yellow house.
- My style of painting is Pointillism. I painted by dot by dot.
- I do fresco paintings … I painted the Mona Lisa I was a mathematician.
- I painted ordinary every day life. I painted people doing hard work.
- I love to sculpt. I will not [want to] paint the Sistine Chapel. I did not like to paint but I had to paint.
- I like to paint Pop Art. I had twenty-five cats all named Sam. I had lots of wigs. I like to paint soup cans over and over and I had wacky hair. I was bald.
- I love ballerinas. I lived in France. I like dancers.
- I painted the Japanese Footbridge. I painted lily pads. I was an Impressionist.
- I painted the Girl with the Watering Can. I like to paint people having fun everyday. I am an Impressionist.
How did you do? How about another challenge? Why is Mona Lisa smiling? Here’s a sampling of ideas from Mrs. G’s, Mrs. D’s, Mrs. J’s, and Miss K’s students.
I think Mona Lisa is smiling because
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- she’s eating shrimp.
- of all the food on her plate.
- she went on vacation.
- she lost a tooth.
- she is having a baby.
- she is eating a Popsicle.
- she just ate some chocolate.
- she is going to a party to have so much fun.
- she is having a birthday party.
- she has a pizza delivery and it is pepperoni.
- she is getting ready for Hanukkah.
- she is getting ready to go to a pool.
- she is going on a field trip.
- she is going to the grocery store.
- her birthday is tomorrow.
- she is going skiing at Vermont.
- she’s getting her picture taken.
- she’s getting a puppy.
- she is getting into a car. She is going to New York to visit her cousin.
- she is getting a new castle. It will look like a palace.
- she’s getting a new dog The kind of dog she’s getting is a poodle The poodle is a black dog It has a very curly tail
- she is getting a new cat.
- she is going to New York City. She is going to see her cousins. Her cousins’ names are Isabelle and Danny.
- she is at the zoo.
- she is getting a new dress with sparkles and blue stripes.
- she is going to Florida.
- she is going to France and she is going to a museum.
- she is getting a new baby. She will get the baby 100 tutus.
- she has a new dog. Her name is Sibey.
- she got a new computer.
- she wanted to go to the beach.
- she got a new SmartBoard.
- she is going to be in a picture. And after, she is going to lunch with her friends.
- she is getting a new house. The new house is so beautiful I think she will faint.
What great ideas. I can’t say for sure why Mona Lisa is smiling, but I certainly know why we are!
Fondly,
(the principle)
Answers for page one clues:
1 Vincent Van Gogh 2 Georges Seurat 3 Leonardo da Vinci 4 Norman Rockwell
5 Michelangelo 6 Andy Warhol 7 Edouard Degas 8 Claude Monet
9 Pierre Auguste Renoir
He gets it. and Bestest Buds.
When asked our nightly, “What was your favorite thing about the day?” Kylor responded, “Talking on the phone with Boppie (my mother).” Their conversation lasted about ten minutes as he described in great detail about the book he is writing at school. He then went on to say something that was very understanding: “Now I get it. You can talk a lot on the phone, it took me all that time just to tell her one thing!” Perhaps he won’t complain about my next long winded phone call. Maybe.
Madi’s answer: “Everything.” The one? “Going to Bridget’s house.” They are bestest buds! They posed at the art show:
Do you remember your bestest bud from Kindergarten?
Museum Night
Madi just loved touring us through the Kindergarten Museum last night. We all dressed up and off we went. She proudly showed us all her work, with pride and happiness exuding from her!
Here is her rendition of Georgia O’Keefe’s “Poppy”:
and Renoir’s “Girl with the Watering Can”:
and Vincent Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers:
and when some students were asked to sing their song about Michelangelo, they spontaniously got down on the floor, looked at the art work on the ceiling, and started singing. Humor is always good, even in art class! 
They also showed their renditions of Ansel Adams, Andy Warhol, Norman Rockwell, Degas, Seurat, da Vinci, Calder, Monet and Cassett. They shared many facts about all these artists as we toured. It was an amazing night!
“Everything”
What was your favorite part of the day?
Madi: “E – v – ry – th – ing.” “Everything.” The one? “Going to school again today.”
The kindergartners have been learning much about art and famous artists. Tonight their families were “taken on a tour of the museum” and explained and answered different things about each artist. It was truly amazing. Madi did a great job. At this point my little girl knows more about all this than I. I’ll post some pictures of the budding artist and some of her work tomorrow.
Kylor fell asleep before I got to his room.
Update on our Bella
Oh, our Isabella. She is doing just wonderfully. Like she’s been here forever. A two year ride on that roller-coaster, many a days not knowing when and if things would ever happen, sure ended up in us hitting the Jackpot! Hard, hard days they were. Wouldn’t change a one now. Would do it all over again in a heart beat if I had to. But you never really know that in your heart until it happens.
What wonderful days we’ve spent together in the last 4.5 months she’s been home. She is the ONE. Wow. She is so very fond of her brother and he of her. It is a very special bond that they share already, it was instant. It will be nice to watch it grow. Isabella and Madeline enjoy each other too, when Kylor isn’t hogging Her Sweetness.
Isabella came home a bit cross eyed. Turns out she’s farsighted (can’t see close up). She now is sporting the smallest glasses available. And, oh yeah, they’re pink. She walks and talks and still dances. She loves shoes and hats, picks out her own each day and when she finds socks, she is tickled and excited. She always makes me smile. Glasses and socks have slurred “shsh” to them. It’s so dang cute that we all say it that way now… “glashshesh” and “shocksh”. She is daring and brave. She is so very tiny. She holds my heart.
Can you imagine learning a new language so fast? Her Sweetness is smart. She catches on to things that you aren’t even trying to teach her. She likes music. She loves to talk on the phone and can’t be fooled by toy phones either. Don’t be trying to cheat her, she’ll let you know about it right quick! When she first took the phone she had the whole head tilt and everything! She has stolen many hearts.
Good night kiddies
Today’s favorite things about their day:
Kylor = “Making good decisions.”
Madi = “E – v – er – y – th – ing. Get it? Everything.” But what was the ONE thing? “Making my frog (a school craft).”
Starting again
So, I haven’t been around much in blogerville. It’s because I can’t seem to organize a cute and profound enough post about how wonderful my kids are. One that would convey all their beauty and the miracle that they are and what my heart feels for them and the blessings that they are.
That being said, I’ll just start where I am today. After all, I haven’t gotten to putting any of their baby books together either. The task is too large and overwhelming.
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Night time Rituals:
We do all the obvious, then, as I snuggle each of them in their beds, before I sing ”our songs”, comes the question, “What was your favorite part of the day?” The answers vary from funny to charming to OMG I’m going to cry because it was so beautiful. Kylor’s answers vary from logical to beautiful. Madi’s answers, until recently, were always, “Mama (said in the sweetest of smiling voices a child could have)”.
Last nights, “What was your favorite part of the day?” replies:
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Kylor: “Well, playing legos tonight with Madi actually.”
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Madi: “Playing legos with Kylor tonight.”
I love my kids.
