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***Update: Our opening has been filled. Thank you to all who recommended Rose Rock School to their friends!***

Here’s your chance, Norman! Rose Rock is saying good-bye to one of our dear children as her family embarks on a trip to Germany, and so we have an opening in the Gnomes class for a kindergartner between ages 3 1/2 and 6 years.

And for a taste of what we have to offer, here is a glimpse of our recent days:

We have been welcomed by autumn’s cool mornings as we began kindergarten craft and eating morning snack indoors within the last two weeks. Mama Shanah and Mama Acacia’s kindergartners have formed play dough, drawn with beeswax crayons, listened and participated in a watercolor story and just today made wool felted dragon eggs in light of our coming Michaelmas festival.

The winds are blowing about the playground and bringing  changes to the trees, flowers and animals around the yard in which the children have been delighted during our 1 1/2 hour long outdoor playtime and late summer circle. They have been climbing trees and then piling rocks and logs in attempt to climb bigger trees. They have been digging in the sandboxes and digging in the dirt… well, everywhere. They have been chasing friends, pulling wagons, tying ropes, throwing balls and collecting nature items. All of it good-for-you hard play and thoroughly tiring.

Hard play makes for large appetites, especially for tasty dishes made by Mama Alicia like our Autumn Shepherd’s Pie Hash from today’s menu. We tell stories throughout the day at Rose Rock, but our formal story time has been welcomed back whole-heartedly by the children as we begin with annual favorites such as To Walpe and Snowflake and the Dragon.   At nap time, there have been rooms full of sleepy children relaxing onto their mats with hair brushing, gentle massages and Mama Abbie reading a story and singing lullabies.

Our late summer days wouldn’t be complete without one more chance to snack and play outside after nap time. The children continue play from earlier or invent new games with a few siblings that join us after their time in elementary school. At the end of each day, there is much to share and chat about as we greet eager moms and dads ready to reunite with their joyful children.

We welcome you to begin the application process by emailing Shanah Ahmadi at roserockschool@gmail.com.  You may find tuition information here and learn more about our kindergarten curriculum here.  You can see our spring menu here, which will be shifting into our full autumn menu in the next couple weeks.

 

 

 

Sponsor links to come…

Full of chewy goodness and a touch of sweetness, these oat bars from cook Sarah Warmker are a delicious and wholesome way to start your morning right. She lends us some thoughts on oats, from Nourishing Traditions:

“Folklore values oats as contributing to strength, endurance, beauty, and perceptiveness. Although first discovered growing wild in barley fields in Russia, northern Africa and the Near East, oats thrive in colder climates of Scotland, Ireland and England. They were planted in Massachusetts in the 1600’s and served as porridge for the growing nation. Oats are rich in B vitamins and in calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. They contain more oil than most grains. Oats are low in gluten but contain more phytates than almost any other grain. Thus, it is very important to soak oats before preparation.”

Another wonderful benefit of these oat bars- coconut oil.  Among it’s many health benefits,  coconut oil strengthens the immune system because it contains antimicrobial lipids, lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid which have antifungal, antibacterial and antiviral properties.  Try adding coconut oil to a wide variety of foods such as porridge, curries, smoothies or simply as a butter/oil replacement in most recipes.

Without further ado, her recipe:

 

Oat Bars

1 3/4 cups steel cut oats
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk buttermilk
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup coconut oil, virgin unrefined
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup diced cranberries (or other dried fruit)

 

 
Directions:

Grind 1 1/4 cup of the steel cut oats until they are finer – even better if they are more flour like. Mix the ground oats with the remaining 1/2 cup oats, the flour, and the buttermilk. Allow to soak for approximately 24 hours.
Mix in the remaining ingredients – a stand mixer works well.
Spread the dough onto the bottom of an ungreased 13 X 9-inch pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until light golden brown.
Cool on wire rack. Cut into bars. Store tightly covered. Serve with butter if desired.

 

 

 

On Saturday, September 27th, over 60 Rose Rock children, parents, and other family members came together to celebrate Michaelmas.  In the spirit of the archangel Michael, we engaged our personal strength and endurance.

We filled our newly donated sandboxes with sand. The children got down and dirty riding in wheelbarrows, and shoveling in the sand right along with parents.

The garden that lies central to our newly paved driveway was weeded and prettied with some pansies.

We joined hands for circle and a light-hearted play about Knight Michael and the Dragon.

Available to test our bravery and dexterity were some classic field games of log-pulling races, burlap sack races, and tug-o-war (or as Mama Shanah coined it for the day, Tug-o-love). Even the adults got in on the fun with their own best of three match!

The children also enjoyed creating dragon bread, playing on our new swings, and simply playing in the dirt!

Our celebration came to an end as we shared a delicious and abundant potluck dinner. It was a day full of blessings and all the qualities of a true knight!

Layering on warm hats, jackets and pants in the mornings, we have all noticed the coming of Autumn.  It finds some of us longing for fires in the fire place and the sweet smell of  dying leaves at our feet.  Perhaps, it finds some of us soaking up these last days of 80 (and some 90) degree temperatures before the chill sets in and the days grow shorter.

Either way, I imagine Autumn is calling most of us back out doors. Back out of the cool comfort of air conditioning, with the promise that the sweltering heat has past. It beckons us into projects and preparations and the such at just the time when we, here at Rose Rock, are celebrating Michaelmas.

At Michaelmas, we welcome the arrival of autumn and acknowledge the human qualities that correspond with the season. Courage, honor, and perseverance begin to live more strongly within us this time of year,  and we begin to go inward and engage in meaningful work–planting a fall garden, starting new projects, thinking about what we want to achieve as the year enters its second half.

The festival is called “Michaelmas” because it celebrates an individual who finely demonstrates these qualities of the season; he is brave and uses his strength for works of great merit.

 

In school, we spent last week preparing for our Michaelmas festival that occurred on Saturday. Together we created dragon tails at kindergarten craft time, shared a lovely circle with all the children, and told a beautiful story called Snowflake and the Dragon.

Our dragon tails were a very simple project that could be completed with materials that are likely already on hand.
You will need: cloth (preferably fall colors and dragnon-like), beans, safety pins, ribbon (for decorating the tail), ribbon or yarn (sturdy, for slinging the tail), scissors (preferably pinking shears, so the cloth does not unravel)

1. Cut approx. 6″ X 6″ square

2. Place small pile of beans in center

3. Attach safety pin to “slinging” ribbon/yarn

4. Place slinging ribbon yarn in center of cloth

5. Gather cloth around ribbon

6. Securely tie another ribbon to close bean sack. You want the safety pin to be horizontal to the opening, so that it anchors the ribbon/yarn and it will not pull out when the child slings it.

7. Add other ribbons that will flutter as tail sails through the air

8. All done and ready to play. Sling heartily in an open field, careful for trees and windows!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here is our lovely Michaelmas circle, which we will continue for the next couple weeks.

Song: Up in the Green Orchard

Up in the green orchard, there is a green tree.

The finest of apples you ever did see.

The apples are ripe and ready to fall,

and here is a basket to gather them all.

Tra-la-la-la, tra-la-la-la, tra-la-la-la, la-la-la-la-la.

Verse

Now let’s hitch up our apples,

Tie them with care.

And ride home to mother

in the fresh autumn air.

Song

(repeated three times, the second quickly and the third slowly)

Galloping, galloping, here we go!

Home to mother, don’t be slow!

Verse

Now let’s gather our apples

And take them inside.

We’ll wash them all over,

and set them to dry.

Later, I’ll have you over

to eat apple pie!

We are tired from our journey and we’re satisfied

to lie down for a rest and close our dear eyes.

Song: Close Thine Eyes

Close thine eyes and rest secure,

Thy soul is safe, thy body sure.

He that guards me, he that keeps,

Never slumbers, never sleeps.

Verse

Outside our apple tree, while we were asleep,

was ensnared by a dragon for his to keep.

Song

Outside our window, the wind does blow.

It blows through the trees as Michael rides

Along with his sword.

Below he spies a dragon fierce.

With fiery eyes and fangs that can pierce,

He rides on down.

Michael lifts his sword up on high.

He looks bravely in the dragons eyes.

Laying his sword upon his head,

He could have slayed the dragon-

but- he tamed instead.

Verse

Our dragon is tamed, let us join in a ring

And gather our voices to triumphantly sing.

Song: Michael’s Helper

I am Michael’s helper.

Like his light, shining bright,

I come to you!

Here at the beginning of school, a small group of the Rose Rock children have been greeted with construction. As we continue to work towards our goal of bringing all 25 children under one roof as a full early childhood center, staff and families alike have had to be patient with the schedules of the city and construction companies. Rose Rock parents here at the White House have been wonderfully patient and flexible driving on dirt and grass in lieu of a driveway. The children here, too, have awaited the new fence and the moment they get to explore the whole of our spacious back yard.

The end feels close, however, as the new driveway is being poured and the fence is finished. There are several pieces that are yet to converge in order to conclude the process of becoming a center, but the latest developments are indeed a big step towards it. In the meantime, construction trucks make for exciting window watching and our smaller play yard grass makes for the perfect place to begin with our late summer circle.

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Song:

Shadows go round,, shadows go round, shadows go round with me.

Skip and dance in the sunshine, all the way round with me.

Verse:

A little child went walking one lovely summer day,

She saw a little rabbit who quickly hopped away.

She saw a shining river winding in and out,

and little fishes in it, swimming all about.

She saw a bridge above the water, and when she stopped to rest,

She saw a dear old woman, tending her pigeons’ nest.

Pigeon game and  traditional German song:

My pigeon house I open wide and set my pigeons free

They fly around on every side, up to the highest tree.

Then they come back in evening and close their eyes and sing:

Croo- croo, croo- croo. Croo- croo, croo- croo. Croo- croo , croo- croo. Croo- croo.

(music by Candy Verney)

Verse:

As she watched the birdies above the tree tops fly,

She saw the clouds a-sailing across the sunny sky.

She saw the insects playing and flowers that summer brings,

She said, “I’ll go tell Mama, I’ve seen so many things!”

And so she lay on the ground soft and warm,

And sang to her mother to bring her home.

Traditional English Lullaby:

Golden slumbers kiss your eyes,

Smiles await you when you rise.

Sleep, pretty baby, do not cry

and I will sing a lullaby.

Care you know not, therefore sleep,

While I o’er you watch do keep.

Sleep, pretty baby, do not cry,

and I will sing a lullaby.

Song:
The farmer, the farmer, the farmer is sowing his seed
in the field he is sowing his seed

Verse:

Dig a little hole
Plant a little seed
Pour a little water
Pull a little weed
Chase a little bug
Hey ho, there he goes
Give a little sunshine
Grow a little rose

Verse:

A caterpillar climbed up
A tall, tall tree
Crawled under a leaf
and fell asleep.

All winter long, he slept in his cocoon bed
Till lady spring came along and said:
Wake up! Wake up sleepyhead!
Rise out of your dreaming bed.

The caterpillar awoke
That sunshiny day
And lo, he was a butterfly
and he flew away.

High in the sky, the butterfly could see
something lying in the grass
as still as still could be.

(One child goes into the middle of the circle and curls up like a hare.)

Song:

Here’s a little hare
He’s fast asleep
Fast asleep…

Little hare, oh are you ill?
That you lie so quiet and still?

Hop little hare, hop little hare!
Hop, hop, hop, hop, hop everywhere. (The child hops and chooses a different “hare” by lightly tapping them on the feet).

Song:

Piper, piper, play your happy music
Singing, singing, we will follow on.
Dancing through the daytime
Singing until May-time
Sing-song, spring-song,
The winter’s past and gone!

Rose Rock School is truly grateful for the support of the businesses and individuals who sponsor the Ringa Singa Art Auction! We couldn’t have done it without you.

Ringa Singa 2014 Sponsors

Green Grove Salon
Hope Springs Therapy
MotoChef
Studio Zen
The Earth Natural Foods
TheraFUNction
YogaLife
Republic Bank & Trust
Norman Arts Council.

And a special thanks to Brent Swift Design Build for hosting the event!

Song: The North Wind Doth Blow, Traditional British Nursery Rhyme

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will poor robin do then?
Poor thing.

He’ll sit in a barn,
And keep himself warm,
And hide his head under his wing,
Poor thing.

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the swallow do then?
Poor thing.

Oh, did you not know?
She’s gone long ago
To a country much warmer than ours.

The North wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the door mouse do then?
Poor thing.

Rolled up in a ball,
In her nest snug and small.
She’ll sleep till the winter is past.

The North wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the children do then?
Poor things.

When story is done,
They’ll jump, skip, and run
and play till they make themselves warm.

Verse:
The winter is dark
But each little spark
Guides the way to Christmas day.

Song, “Kind Old Man St. Nicholas”
Traditional German

Kind old man St. Nicholas dear,
Come to my house this year,
Here’s some straw and here’s some hay,
To feed your little donkey grey,
Kind old man St. Nicholas dear,
Come to my house this year!
Pray, leave something in my shoes
For I’ve been good the whole year through
Kind old man St. Nicholas dear
Come to my house this year!

Verse:
For St. Nicholas to come,
We must not be awake
So let us lie in our beds
Till the morning sun breaks.

Song: One Star Shone, M.T. Schunemann, from the book “Naturally You Can Sing”

I looked up carefully into the deep night sky
A thousand stars were twinkling from on high
But one star shone so very very bright
Up on the dark Earth waiting
Waiting for its light

The angels filled the sky with light
And sing to the Child who is born upon this night
And one star shone so very very bright.
Upon the people waiting, waiting for its light.