This Is Why They Try New Foods

Each year each class room has their very own raised garden out by the PIL Hen House and Chicken Coop. The teachers and the children decide together what they want to plant in their garden. Then they go to their little special place and prepare the garden. They weed it, rake all the weeds up and dispose of them, and flatten the soil out. Then they decide where each item will be planted, if planting several different items. They all help with the project from start to finish. After things are planted, the garden is watered. While the garden is growing, the children and teachers will weed when needed, water every day, unless it rains, and monitor the growth. For the most part everything grows pretty well. The children take pride in their garden and love to show them off. I've been told in the past from several children that the food taste better when they plant it and take care of it. This also teaches responsibility. This is also a great bonding experience and a great social-emotional activity. Best of all, the children are learning the whole time. Then, finally, they get to eat their hard work. 

I will blog again to show the progress of the Panthers Garden. 

You Can't Say You Can't Play

I've just started reading a very interesting book, You Can't Say You Can't Play  written by a kindergarten teacher, Vivian Gussin Paley. The book was assigned to me to read for a class I'm taking this summer, Social and Emotional Competence in the Preschool Classroom. 

The book is focused around a kindergarten classroom that has a very common problem in classrooms all over the world, students excluding other students from joining in their play. When the problem in this teachers class escalates to the point that there are children in tears daily, Mrs. Paley implements a new classroom rule, you cannot say the words, "You can't play" in her classroom.

The book follows the aftermath of implementing such a rule, the thoughts of the teacher throughout the remainder of the school year, and the outcomes she experienced in her classroom. I won't spoil it for anyone interested in reading it, but it was a great read!!

Partners In Blogging: KWL Charts

Partners In Blogging: KWL Charts: This week in the Dolphin class, we are learning about creepy crawlers. To introduce the children to this topic, we started our group time wi...

KWL Charts

This week in the Dolphin class, we are learning about creepy crawlers. To introduce the children to this topic, we started our group time with a K-W-L chart.  A KWL chart is a form of graph about "what we know?" "What we want to know?" And "what we learned?"  about a specific subject. The KWL chart has three columns for recording your answers. Ms. Kelly and I think aloud to encourage the children to come up with their own questions. Once the children get involved in the discussion, we then record their questions. Sometimes it is helpful to draw pictures next to the words to make the chart more child friendly, so the information recorded can be easily understood. This strategy will also help with English as a second language learners as well as children with processing delays. 

Once we have all questions recorded our class will then go outside and explore, having a hands on learning experience to find all the answers to our questions. After the information is gathered we will record our findings in the column "what we learned?" The KWL chart is an effective teaching strategy for preschoolers.

KWL Chart 

Recording thier findings "centipede in his home."

Hands on learning experiences will help the children to retain and remember this new information better.

Recording information 

"Bumble bee" "Ms. Gen running from it." "Bees live in hives."

Notice the moth on the wall

"Worms in the grass"

" bugs eat plants."

"Roly poly's are fun!"

"Log with eggs"

I hope you enjoyed our learning experience, we sure did!!!!!!

Annual Mother's Day Tea

Friday May 8th we held our annual Mother's Day Tea for the mothers of the children in the Polar Bears and Starfish classrooms. An invitation is sent to all the moms. I think we need to add...be sure to bring tissues...on the invitations. The children sing a few songs, a book is read, and refreshments are served. 

With our annual Thanksgiving programs we alternate the books "The Giving Tree" and "Stone Soup." But with our tea we always read "Love You Forever." If you haven't had the chance to read this book, you need to. It never gets old. Last year we did a "play" of the book while being read. This year we read the book and then a video was shown of the mothers with their child. 

Tissues were defenately needed once again. There is a special gift for each child and mom to take home. This year they have soil and sunflower seeds to plant in the cup with a mini pinwheel to add. 

As if that isn't enough excitement, we write a number on the bottom of three plates for door prizes. They are usually different from year to year with the exception the book. That is always one of the door prizes.