In the heart of a seed buried deep, so deep
A dear little plant lay fast asleep
“Wake,” said the Sun, “and creep towards the light!”
“Wake,” said the voice of the raindrops bright.
The little seed heard and arose to see what a
Wonderful outside world might be!
Dear Sunflower Garden Families,
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! Wishing all our mothers a wonderful day of rest, joy, exploration, time with family, time alone, whatever you need! Gratitude for you and all you do!
Thank you to all who contributed to the Teacher Appreciation Luncheon on Thursday. What a delicious feast and show of appreciation. Our teachers loved it! Thanks, PTO!
A copy of the version of The Frog King is included below to give you a sense of the language and storytelling your child is “bathed in” in our program. Enjoy. This is for your awareness only. No need to ask lots of questions. This week we acted out the story. The children love to do this with the stories I’ve told and have even come to request it. Today I began the telling of “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” that involves the children with green silk draped across all their laps in a circle as part of the story scene.
Polly, the polythemus moth (giant silk moth) is still sleeping in her cocoon. Meanwhile, the children are in a state of spring burst. This time of year truly takes a lot of “holding” by the teachers, so please strive to keep a simple and regular rhythm at home. At times like these, the best surprise is no surprise.
This week we enjoyed celebrating Ms. Tuly’s birthday on Friday! We hope she felt the love!
Packing up time is coming… In the next 2 weeks, please plan to send in an extra paper bag or reusable bag with your child’s name on it, so we can bag up everything belonging to you in your child’s basket as well as the pillowcase used in the classroom. Extended Day families, please make a point of coming on your child’s last day of Ext. Day to take home blankets and pillows that belong to you from your child’s cot.
Ms. Tuly will be out! Next week, Ms. Tuly, who has also served as our school’s movement teacher, will be attending the Pentathlon with our 5th grade students. This 4-day event in Wisconsin brings together 5th grade students from area schools in competition for Beauty, Truth, and Strength in five athletic events. It is a beautiful event you will experience with your 5th grade child at our school! Miss Ausra will grace our room T-F of next week assisting in place of Ms. Tuly.
Volunteer Needed…I need 1-2 parent volunteers to help cut (round edges) of our coloring and watercolor paper. I would like to leave a good stack ready for the teacher who takes this class next year. Let me know if you can take home a stack! Thanks to Claudia who took some home already!
Kind regards,
Donna Brooks
The Frog-King, or Iron Henry
Marionette Telling Adaptations by Donna Brooks
Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Faithful Henry so sad when his master did part.
Three iron rings were wrapped round his heart.
Wicked enchantment to live such a fate.
For the prince’s deliverance, Henry did wait.
In olden times when wishing still helped one, there lived a king whose daughters were all beautiful, but the youngest was so beautiful that the sun itself, which has seen so much, was astonished whenever it shone in her face. Close by the King’s castle lay a great dark forest, and under an old lime-tree in the forest was a well, and when the day was very warm, the King’s child went out into the forest and sat down by the side of a cool fountain; and when she was bored she took a golden ball, and threw it up on high and caught it; and this ball was her favorite plaything.
Now it so happened that on one occasion the princess’s golden ball did not fall into the little hand which she was holding up for it, but bounced on to the ground beyond, and rolled straight into the water. The King’s daughter followed it with her eyes, but it vanished, and the well was deep, so deep that the bottom could not be seen. At this she began to cry, and cried louder and louder, and could not be comforted. And as she thus lamented, someone said to her;
“What ails you, King’s daughter? You weep so that even a stone would show pity.”
She looked round to the side from whence the voice came, and saw a frog stretching forth its big, ugly head from the water.
“Ah, old water-splasher, is it you?” said she. “I am weeping for my golden ball which has fallen into the well.”
“Be quiet, and do not weep,” answered the frog, “I can help you, but what will you give me if I bring your plaything up again?”
“Whatever you will have, dear frog,” said she. “My clothes, my pearls and jewels, and even the golden crown which I am wearing.”
The frog answered: “I do not care for your clothes, your pearls and jewels, nor for your golden crown, but if you will love me and let me be your companion and play-fellow, and sit by you at your little table, and eat off your little golden plate, and drink out of your little cup, and sleep in your little bed ~ if you will promise me this I will go down below, and bring you your golden ball up again.”
“Oh, yes,” said she, “I promise you all you wish, if you will but bring me my ball back again.”
But she thought: “How the silly frog does talk! A frog is no companion to any human being!”
But the frog when he had received this promise, put his head into the water and sank down, and in a short while came swimming up again with the ball. The King’s daughter was delighted to see her pretty plaything once more. She picked it up, and ran away with it.
“Wait, wait,” said the frog. “Take me with you. I can not hop as fast as you run.”
But this was to no avail. She did not listen to him, but ran home and soon forgot the poor frog, who was forced to go back into his well again.
The next day when she had seated herself at table with the King and was eating from her little golden plate, something came creeping splash, splish, splash, up to the castle door. It knocked at the door and cried:
“Princess, youngest princess, open the door for me.”
She ran to see who was outside, but when she opened the door, there sat the frog in front of it. Then she slammed the door closed in great haste, sat down to dinner again, and was quite frightened. The King saw plainly that her heart was beating violently, and said:
“My child, what are you so afraid of? Is there perchance a giant outside who wants to carry you away?”
“Ah, no,” replied she, “it is no giant, but a disgusting frog.”
“What does the frog want with you?”
“Ah, dear father, yesterday as I was in the forest sitting by the well, playing, my golden ball fell into the well. And because I cried so, the frog brought it out again for me, and because he so insisted, I promised him he should be my companion, but I never thought he would be able to come out of his water! And now he is outside there, and wants to come in to me.”
In the meantime, the frog knocked a second time and cried:
“Princess, youngest princess! Open the door for me!
Do you not know what you said to me by the cool well waters under the tree?
Princess, youngest princess! Open the door for me!”
Then said the King: “That which you have promised must you perform. Go and let him in. He who helped you when you were in trouble ought not afterwards to be despised by you.””
She went and opened the door, and the frog hopped in and followed her to her chair. There he sat and cried: “Lift me up beside you.” Once the frog was on the chair he wanted to be on the table, and when he was on the table he said:
“Now push your little golden plate nearer to me that we may eat together.”
She did this, but it was easy to see that she did not do it willingly. The frog enjoyed what he ate, but almost every mouthful she took choked her. At length he said:
“I have eaten and am satisfied. Now I am tired, carry me into your little room and make your little silken bed ready, and we will both lie down and go to sleep.”
The King’s daughter began to cry, for she was afraid of the cold frog which she did not like to touch, and which was now to sleep in her pretty, clean little bed. But she remembered her father’s words and thought better of it.
So she took hold of the frog with two fingers, carried him to her room, and put him in a corner. But when she was in bed he crept to her and said:
“I am tired, I want to sleep as well as you, lift me up or I will tell your father.”
At this she was terribly angry, and took him up and threw him with all her might against the wall.
“Now, will you be quiet, odious frog,” said she. But when he fell down he was no frog but a king’s son with kind and beautiful eyes. He by her father’s will was now her dear companion and husband.
The prince told her how he had been bewitched by a wicked witch and forced to live as a frog in a well, and how no one could have delivered him from the well but she herself, and that tomorrow they would go together into his kingdom.
Then they went to sleep, and next morning when the sun awoke them, a carriage came and took them into his kingdom.
In a carriage shiny and gold
Eight white horses all in a row.
Faithful Henry crack, clang and clee
Now so happy his master is free!
