Encourage independent exploration of sound for babies and toddlers with a baby treasure basket of sound activities for babies.
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In my play based classroom there are 10 essential learning areas. I cannot do without them. The provocations and resources offered in these areas change throughout the year dependent on children's interests and the curriculum intent. The placement of these 10 areas within the classroom is thoughtf
Provocations can be overwhelming. Let's take a look at some simple ideas for literacy provocations found in a Reggio-Inspired Preschool.
Foil Transfer Art: This is a fun, colorful project that anyone can create. Experiment with different colors, designs, and patterns. The end product looks like you've tie-dyed your paper. It makes a beautiful framed gift, homemade card, or simple wall art. This proj…
My quest this year was to create a more organised environment in my classroom. A space that allowed for natural expression through various forms of play as well as a space that was organised and wa…
Do you know what you can always count on? Playdough. Kids a little cranky? Playdough. Rain cancelled your plans? Playdough. Friends pop over unexpectedly? Playdough. I tell you playdough activities will never let you down. We love playdough so much, I thought I would share with you some of our favourite playdough activities today. Some
As we approach Matariki, there are some wonderful Matariki crafts you can do with your children to celebrate.
Create a fun tactile painting experience for your kids by exploring Touch Painting. Your kids will enjoy exploring the sense of touch while creating art.
I often have children around to my house to “make mess”. It’s not that my house is easier to clean but I am more tolerant with the clean up process. I know lots of parents donR…
My quest this year was to create a more organised environment in my classroom. A space that allowed for natural expression through various forms of play as well as a space that was organised and wa…
Discover the magic of introducing loose parts to infants and toddlers with 3 simple steps. Foster creativity, exploration, and development.
Fijne motoriek peuters ontwikkeling voorbeelden
At the end of the year, once testing is over and kids have lost their minds are ready for summer, it's the perfect time to pull out the messy science experiments to review all the fun skills you've learned this year! One of my favorite activities to do with kiddos of ALL ages is to make OOBLECK! If you've never made oobleck, you are in for a treat. It can get a little messy, but it is the BEST sensory experience! Oobleck has properties of a solid and a liquid (great review of matter!) and it's easy to make (measuring skills review!) and actually easy to clean up- if it gets on the carpet, let it dry completely and then it can be vacuumed up easily, as it turns into a dry powder. To start the lesson, read the great book by Dr. Seuss, Bartholomew and the Oobleck. *affiliate link to the book on Amazon* Then, allow students to make the oobleck! (If you want to make it ahead of time yourself as one big batch, that is okay, too! Remember, it is two parts cornstarch to one part water. One year I accidentally flipped that conversion and OOPS- we did not have oobleck that day.) You can download this free directions page to help your students make oobleck on their own: As I mentioned above, oobleck has properties of a solid and a liquid: it will take the shape of its container like a liquid, but with force (like a hit, poke, or squeeze) it acts like a solid! It can be rolled into a ball, but it can also flow and drip like a liquid. Oobleck is a non-Newtonian fluid. And make sure to show them this awesome video of people walking, and even DANCING, on a pool of oobleck!! (HERE IS THE SAFESHARE LINK) Your kids will LOVE all the oobleck excitement! It's a great way to finish the year with a bang- and a splat! :) Have fun!
Loose parts are open-ended materials used for play. There are many options to use with infants and toddlers. Using loose parts has several benefits.
We have reflected for quite some time on trying to create a math program that encompasses a holistic approach to learning for young children. This year we have found what seems to be working well for us with this particular group of children. Given our schedule, the environment, and the children, this is our example of how math can be incorporated into the daily kindergarten program. "Mathematics instruction is most effective when it is part of a comprehensive approach that pays equal attention to all aspects of a child's development: social/emotional, physical, cognitive, and language. There must be opportunities for children to explore independently and times for direct teaching in small groups, in large groups, and one-on-one. In addition, children practice and use mathematical skills during daily routines and during the active learning that takes place in interest areas." (Mathematics: The Creative Curriculum Approach, pg. ix) Direct Instruction (small groups) Instruction is tailored to meet the needs of small groups of children. "Educators provide experiences in playing with mathematics itself by using a repertoire of strategies, including open and parallel tasks that provide differentiation to meet the needs of all students and ensure full participation." (Maximizing Student Mathematical Learning in the Early Years, Capacity Building Series, September 2011, Special Edition #22) Provocations: Exploring, investigating, and experimenting opportunities based on direct instruction content. This allows children to learn at their own level of understanding. "Honouring children's starting points enables educators to build on students' mathematical knowledge with an inquiry-based approach, developing purposeful and meaningful mathematical experiences in the classroom." (Maximizing Student Mathematical Learning in the Early Years, Capacity Building Series, September 2011, Special Edition #22) Reflection sharing of work (whole group) Talking about their thinking with peers. New learning and extensions are made through questions and comments posed by peers and educators. This allows for whole group sharing of knowledge and ideas. "After students have worked through solving a problem, educators facilitate consolidation time (either with individual students or with small groups or large groups) in order to allow students to talk about their thinking. As educators value a variety of strategies and solutions, they guide students to make connections between them, to recognize how the thinking relates to the key mathematical concept and to make further conjectures and generalizations." (Maximizing Student Mathematical Learning in the Early Years, Capacity Building Series, September 2011, Special Edition #22) "Teachers can post documentation of math learning as a way of encouraging children to reflect on past experiences and motivate them to plan and revise future ones." (McLennan, D. P. Making Math Meaningful for Young Children. Teaching Young Children, Vol 8, No 1, pg. 21) Math related books "Children's literature has been widely described as a tool to provide hands-on opportunities to apply math concepts and skills. Integrating mathematics and literacy creates an interweaving of curriculum rather than a compartmentalizing of academic subjects. Many children's books provide a natural, meaningful path for exploring and exchanging ideas about math concepts." (Cutler, K. M., Gilkerson, D., Parrott, S., and Bowne, M. T. Developing Math Games Based on Children's Literature. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2003, pg. 1) For more math related books visit: Math Read Alouds: Connecting Math and Literacy By Tracy Pickard and Cheryl Emrich Inquiries and Projects Math connections can often be found in many inquiries and projects that are of interest to students. Finding these links allows for authentic and purposeful learning of mathematical concepts. Routines and natural occurrences "Educators can play an integral role by making meaningful connections between the mathematical strands, the real world and other disciplines and most importantly, between the intuitive informal mathematics that students have learned through their own experiences and the mathematics they are learning in school" (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2003, p. 14). Other examples: -Placing of lunch bags (one per table) for lunch -Counting the water bottles on our two shelves so there are not more on one shelf than the other and create falls -Noting the number of people at certain exploration areas -Sorting materials during clean-up time -Noting who is tall and short to figuring out who stands or kneels for reflection sharing so that all can see the work shared Math in play Finding math related content in children's play can support learning greatly by introducing appropriate math language and concepts purposefully. "Knowledgeable educators recognize that although young children may have a beginning understanding of mathematical concepts they often lack the language to communicate their ideas. By modelling and fostering math talk throughout the day and across various subject areas, educators can provide the math language that allows students to articulate their ideas." (Maximizing Student Mathematical Learning in the Early Years, Capacity Building Series, September 2011, Special Edition #22) Games Benefits of games in the classroom: Playing games encourages strategic mathematical thinking as students find different strategies for solving problems and deepen their understanding of numbers. When play repeatedly, games support students' development and computational fluency. Games present opportunities for practice, often without the need for teachers to provide the problems. Games have the potential to allow students to develop familiarity with number system and engage in building a deeper understanding of operations. http://www.nctm.org/publications/teaching-children-mathematics/blog/why-play-math-games_/ More information on games: Developing Math Games Based on Children's Literature Playing with Dice Learning Mathematics Through Games: Series 1. Why Games? Learning Mathematics Through Games: Series 2. Types of Games Playing with Dice Why Play Math Games? (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) It all adds up: Learning early math through play and games
Handwriting has never been easy to teach to kindergartners, but it is in the Common Core Standards that they learn how to print letters correctly. Each year I have tried through the traditional ways of working on fine motor skills the first half and then formal handwriting sheets the second half of the year. It never worked so this year I tried something new... An inquiry about lines! I asked the kids what kind of lines they knew of. At first they drew straight lines, but then started to expand the types of lines they made! We read some books and watched some videos on YouTube that showed us different lines and also gave them names. I put out provocations for them to explore lines in many different ways and see what they noticed and what connections they made. I put out invitations for them to use lines to make letters, shapes, designs, pictures and numbers: They explored! They are doing activities to build strong finger muscles to help with handwriting and explore lines at the same time! Our clay is quite hard and they have to work it to soften it up. Plus, manipulating the pipe cleaners helps work those fine motor skills! Through this simple inquiry, the kids are much more aware of the different types of lines and how to make them. They are recognizing them in letters, shapes, numbers and pictures. So far, I am seeing an improvement compared to previous years in their names as they try to form the letters the correct way. More are pulling down vertical lines rather than pulling up when making letters but for some this is a hard habit to break! We will keep working on it in developmentally appropriate ways and we will see as the year goes on if this knowledge of lines will help them with the common core standard of writing letters correctly! Here are some other things the kids have been doing in our room during this inquiry! Dots! We celebrated International Dot Day and celebrated creativity! Ken Robinson said that creativity is as important as literacy and I cannot stress enough how true that is! Employers want creative and critical thinkers so these skills need to be emphasized! Here are some pictures of some invitations to be creative and our final display of creativity! In Literacy, we have been focusing on letters and letter sounds. They have been using their names and the names of their friends to help them to recognize letters and their sounds. The invitations at the beginning of the year focused mostly on exploring letters and names. Working lavender into this play-dough also made this a great sensory experience as they used it to explore letters and try to spell their name and friends names. They have been working on the concepts of print as they learn letters and sounds through letter books. They have been practicing starting in the right place, pointing to the words and going in the right direction when they read. When they partner read, one is the reader, the other is the helper so they have to listen and watch closely, then they switch roles. In math we have been exploring numbers counting objects and matching them to the number. We also have been exploring measurement. In math we are also exploring shapes and their properties. In science, they have been working on looking closer, wondering and documenting what they notice. I set out invitations for them to explore and practice these skills. It has been a very full first month! It is amazing how far the kids have come! Stay tuned to find out what the kids are creating for our math area!
Materials needed: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 1 tbsp cooking oil, 1 tbsp cream of tartare, 1 cup boiling water, animal toys with different feet. Step 1: Making the dough. Combine flour, salt, cooking oil, cream of tartare in a large bowl. Add in the cup of boiling water and slowly mix it. It is really important to make sure the water is boiling. I tried with just hot water and the play dough had a completely different consistency. Once it cools a bit, have an adult clump the mixture together until it is cool enough for kids to handle. Knead until desired consistency is reached. Feel free to add some sand to give it a cool texture when it's finished. Have each kid grab a handful of dough and flatten it out. We used small cups to get the round shape, but any shape will do. Next have your kids choose an animal toy to walk across the mixture. Once you're finished with the foot prints, set outside to dry and harden. A good thing about this play dough recipe is how long it takes to dry up, great if you have kids who forget to put the lid back on. However, it'll take longer than 24 to completely dry. Voila you have a homemade fossil!
