Memories and Milestones Academy

This morning Nancy and I made the short drive to New Prague where we were scheduled to do two shows at Memories and Milestones Academy, a school for preschool through early school-aged children.
The building is on the eastern outskirts of New Prague in a new facility.

Like most schools, the front door was locked for security purposes, but Alyssa, the Assistant Director, quickly recognized us and let us in. My overalls usually give me away. She gave us a warm welcome, and we chatted for several minutes as she showed us the performance space and told us about herself.

After the children went to play outside, we had about half an hour to set up, but we noticed some curious eyes watching us from the playground.

There were 33 children in the first group ranging from age 2 to 4, and I know that age can be a tough audience, but these children were sweet and attentive. I had a fun time of it.

The second group consisted of about a dozen children of the ages 5-7, and since this group was quite a bit more sophisticated, I used a dvd that contained a few more pictures that we could discuss. Programs for both groups contained my story, If I Were a Farmer: Nancy's Adventure.

Since the group was small, they could stay seated as I brought the can of oats around for them to feel.

Most of them took their time and felt the oats several times.

I truly enjoy doing shows for little children, and although they can be a tough audience, 

they are also most generous and kind. We had fun doing the shows, and I hope they had fun too.

Judging from how these young children handle being an audience and how they respond to material, I think the staff at Memories and Milestones should feel really good about what they do at the school every day.

Nancy and I thank the teachers and all staff members at Memories and Milestones Academy for having us into their classrooms. We especially thank Chantel Dacas, Director, for inviting us to the school and Alyssa, Assistant Director, who greeted us, made us feel welcome, and helped us set up.

Photographs by Nancy A. Fredrickson

All Seasons Preschool & Inver Glen Senior Care

All Seasons Preschool and Inver Glen Senior Living are in the same building, and as one senior told me, "The children come to visit us every day." Other seniors around her nodded and smiled.

Many seniors arrived early at the large community room and visited with Nancy and me as we set up. Senior comments about the "children coming" were always accompanied with a smile of anticipation.

Teacher Amy Lemieux said that the key to daily visits is to have he Preschool and seniors in the same building. Otherwise, winter offers a special challenge of dressing up with coats and boots and headgear. Since the kids are in the same building, they just walk over to visit the seniors. "It's like a field trip for them," Amy said.

The seniors were all seated when the children, who are 3-5 years old, arrived and I could hear some greetings being exchanged. One child made the rounds of shaking hands with a number of his senior friends.

Performing for this mixed group was a joy for me. The children and the seniors were very responsive to everything in my show. Maybe visiting the seniors every day makes the kids more eager to hear stories. In any case, children came up with some of the best questions ever, and not just for their age-group but for almost any-age group.

Of course, I showed them how to teach a newborn calf how to drink out of a pail.

About ten minutes later, after the show, one child remembered that I had said we had to take the cow and calf back to the barn. She asked, "Why do you need to take the calf to the barn." Other questions included, "Why do people live on farms." These questions may sound basic, but understanding the answers are crucial to understanding anything about the food we eat. The audience listened intently to my answers.

Nancy and I had the distinct privilege to meet and chat with Kenneth Fritz, who has written three books and will soon see his fourth book published with Outskirts Press, Inc., Denver, Colorado. After the show Ken, his wife, and his friend stayed to chat with us for several minutes. Ken was a farmer, a soldier, an electrician, and a writer.

Ken holds a couple of my books and I hold three of his.

Nancy and I really enjoyed our visit to All Seasons Preschool and Inver Glen Senior Living, and we wish to thank Amy Lemieux of All Seasons and Sue Hastings, activities director at Inver Glen, for arranging our visit.

Photographs by Nancy A. Fredrickson

Trinity Preschool

On October 31, Nancy and I were in for a couple of real treats at Trinity Preschool at Watertown. First, we approached the town from the south, a route which took us through beautiful farm country in Carver County, and we always enjoy looking at the fields and forests.
Second, we were scheduled to perform last in a program that preschoolers were putting on for their parents, and we had the opportunity to see these lucky students perform. Their program was fun for everyone.

When we arrived, we were greeted at the door by Mrs. Bowyer, a friendly, energetic teacher who clearly enjoys working hard to teach students. As we set up, we watched Mrs. Essen rehearse with the children.
Nancy and I were amazed at their high performance level.
At the beginning of the program, each student was featured as he or she rode a home made horse onto the performance area and an announcer introduced the student and horse, urging the eager audience to applaud.

Then they sang songs as directed by Mrs. Essen, a teacher whose high energy and excitement makes the experience both successful and fun for the students.

Next, the students formed a circle with their parents to perform a square dance and the chicken dance.

Children and parents had their chicken dances down perfectly!

After the dancing, everyone moved to the tables and turned their attention to the stage, where I was set up to entertain the audience with  a brief talk about farm heritage, which included a performance of my story If I Were a Farmer: Nancy's Adventure. 

Performing stories for an audience of parents with their preschool children is a special delight for me because the parents understand the nostalgia in my stories and the kids are always delighted to hear about Nancy's Adventures on a dairy farm.

They learned how to teach a calf how to drink out of a pail and about other chores on the farm.

They took turns feeling the oats in the coffee can.

And then I got to do something I love to do–Autograph books for children.

Thanks to Mrs. Bowyer for arranging my visit to Trinity Preschool, and thanks to her and Mrs. Essen for  showing Nancy and me their classroom and all the neat things they teach the students at Trinity.

Nancy and I were really impressed with the school, the students, and the degree of parental involvement.

We thank those parents who stopped to chat with us and comment on my show. Feedback from audiences means a lot to me.

Nancy and I had fun watching the students in their performances, and as always, we had fun meeting people and performing our show. 

Photographs by Nancy A. Fredrickson

  

Berean Education Center

April 2010 was the first time we had visited Berean Education Center to do a show, and I was happy to return to the school on Tuesday to do two shows: If I Were a Farmer: Nancy's Adventure for ages 4-5 and A Farm Country Christmas Eve for grades 1-4.
The groups were small in number but enthusiastic. In the three pictures below the four and five year old students listen attentively and then eagerly participate when i show them how to teach a calf to drink out of a pail.

Children in that same group wait for their turn at sticking a hand into the can of oats in the pictures below.

The children in the second group ranged from first to fourth grade and they listened carefully to my explanation of why Santa visits farm kids during chore time on Christmas Eve in the picture below.

Then they responded quickly to the quiz questions in the two pictures below.

Nancy and I wish to thank Kristi Ollila for inviting us to Berean and arranging our visit. 

We especially thank Mrs. Hartley and Mrs. Otto for their warm welcome and for sharing their class time with us. Thanks to Pam who greeted us and showed us where to set up. We hope to return again soon.

Photographs by Nancy A. Fredrickson