Working Together and Helping Each Other: Week 2

This was our second week of working together and helping each other. The preschoolers are really starting to settle into the routine and we are having a lot of fun. Here is a recap of our daily activities. These activities are just one portion of our day. Most of the morning is spent making free choices around the classroom. These activities are to encourage the new group to become a community and to get to know the classroom. We have also been spending a lot of time outside enjoying the gorgeous fall weather. 

Monday: We played the Cooperation Island Game, which turned more into the Cooperation Boat Game (Islands seemed a little abstract for two year olds). They had so much fun dancing while the music was playing. When the music stopped they were a little hesitant to share a "boat" with friends, especially since some of them are newer friends. With a little inviting (and hugging) from each other, they found ways to make it work. A few friends decided that they were not quite comfortable to participate yet, but they seem to sit a little closer to the group each time. :)

Tuesday: We broke into two groups at the "circle" and "rectangle" tables. There was lots of materials available for loose parts exploration. These were newer materials and they were mostly exploring them by themselves. Maybe next time they will be interested in more collaboration. For now they at least practiced sharing materials and work space. The table time was also filled with a lot of rich language and conversations. 

Wednesday: We divided into three small groups. Each group had a different type of building blocks and a different teacher. The groups rotated through the three areas and were able to experiment and add to what the other groups had been working on. 

Thursday: We split into two groups to work together to make playdough. We all took turns adding the ingredients and mixing and stirring. After that they spent quite awhile at the table working with the new dough and talking with their friends. 

Friday: We sat together on the rug and sorted out all the counters by color! I was really surprised that everybody there that day new exactly what to do! After they were sorted by color we scrambled them back up and sorted out the pet counters from the bug counters, which was a little more tricky. One group took the pets to the table to build homes with the foam blocks. The other group stayed on the rug with the bug counters and the tree blocks. In their small groups they built homes and sorted out the bugs and pets by families (species). 

What a great week! I can't wait to see how everybody continues to fall into the rhythm this week. I am definitely seeing friendships budding and confidence growing! 

Special of the Day: Lego Building

We have several different "Specials of the Day" that we rotate through (writing, math, art, movement, music, and messy hands). I recently added "Lego Building" to the rotation. This group is very into building with Lego (even before the movie). I know how much learning takes place through Lego Building, so I decided to give it more focus once in awhile, to really expand their planning skills. 

Our "Special" always takes place directly after circle time and is one of the few times a day where I choose the activity and we all focus on the same activity at the same time.  

When they left circle time they were given a three step direction.

1) Choose 4 wheels from the Lego Table

2) Make sure they are attached to the pieces that allow them to spin.

3) Bring them back to the big table

Back at the table they found yellow Lego bricks and basic accessories. Now their job was to build a car. They really enjoyed the focus and all being together working on a similar (not identical) task. Their cars were all very unique and there was a lot of conversation about types of cars, how it moved and other details they wanted to share. We had everything from jet ski cars, to turtle cars and even a flying car with wings. 

Mexico!!

For the month of March we are focusing on Mexico and the Spanish language. 

During last week's drama day the theme agreed upon was travel and airplanes. The purpose of drama day is for the group to make a plan together. The teacher is not usually involved once the plan has been made. The preschoolers usually stay engaged with their game/scenario for about 45-60 minutes. 

The pilot hard at work.
(By the way, I was told this airplane is so big that it has a kitchen)

Drawing a map of the route.

Packing bags.

Did you know there are treasure collecting cowboys in Mexico?

Eating lunch during the flight.

Studying the map.

We also received three postcards from a new friend named José last week. He told us that he was traveling to our preschool from Mexico to teach us some Spanish. 

He gave us a few hints about himself. He said that he was shy and sometimes curls up into a ball....  

In his postcards he taught us to say "Hola, adios and amigos," which means hello, goodbye and friends.

Our postcards

When he arrived on Friday, some of us were very surprised to find out that José was actually an armadillo!

We all introduced ourselves with some Spanish. José is very shy and will only whisper in the teachers ears. He taught us to say "Me llamo (insert name)," which is another way to introduce yourself in Spanish. 

We also learned to ask "How are you?" or "Como estas?"

José told the children he was very tired from his long journey and one child suggested that he needed a bed.

José sleeping off his jet lag.

Over the next few weeks we will be exploring Mexican culture. We will be learning Spanish words for food, colors, clothes and general conversion words. Towards the end of the month we will "travel" to Mexico to return José to his home.

Just Playing: Messy Hands

We may be "just playing", but....

What are the children doing here?

What do you see?

What learning is taking place?

What skills are being practiced/developed?

This post is part of the "Just Playing?" Blog Hop!

Thank you for remembering that young children do not "just play." Young children play. 

 They develop through play. 

They learn through play. 

They experiment through play. 

They grow through play. 

 A child's work is play.

 Play is important!

Please take a moment to reflect upon the photos and questions above. I would love for you to share your observations in a comment. I'd also like to invite you to "hop" on over to all of the other bloggers who are sharing photos of children learning through play this week:

If you are looking for more of our “Just Playing?” posts and resources from around the globe, please visit our Pinterest Board.

Are you a blogger? Would you like to join the JUST PLAYING? blog hop community?

You can join the hop via our Facebook Group: Just Playing?

or please contact Amy from Child Central Station for more information.

Special of the Day: Messy Hand Day

We have been doing our Daily Specials for a couple months now and the preschoolers continue to enjoy them all.  Today I let the birthday boy decide which kind of day we should have. He chose messy hand day with clay. Some of the other kids suggested play dough instead and so I offered to take out both. The divide between the two tables was too extreme not to document, but both were full of social interaction and imaginative conversations.  Both groups stayed engaged at their tables for about 45 minutes.

At the play dough table the children were involved in a chain of play scenarios. At first they used heart cookie cutters of  multiple sizes to create their families. Slowly they starting creating families out of other things (balls and snakes).  Lots of dialogue and squishing, molding and rolling. 

Words were exchanged.

At the other table, we found the clay had dried out a bit. I gave the interested kids the bowl full of clay and added water. I told them they would have to get it wet to soften it up.  

They started out with exploration of the slippery clay.

 

Then it turned into a full body experience. At which point I had to take a deep breath and focus on all the things they were learning, especially the friendship that seems to be forming.  The dialogue was so creative and rich that it was fairly easy to take a step back and not think about the clean up process.

Leaving a slippery trail. Slippery trail. Leaving a slippery trail.

Adding more water.

To read more about some other Daily Specials: 

Special of the Day: Drawing Lessons

Drama Day: The Magic Kingdom