Making Choices: Where are you playing?

Every year is different at Inch By Inch. Every group of children arrives with their own experiences and interests. Every day, week, month and year is a changing process.

This year's group currently needs to touch and hold. 

They need things to be very concrete. 

Several months ago I made "name rocks" for each of them. The picture below shows our wooden tray of rocks. I flipped all the rocks over so the children's names would be protected. Some of the rocks have the first letter on the back for the children who needed a little extra help recognizing their names.

At first the rocks were simply available around the classroom. They could look at them. Carry them around. Find their friends' names. We have been amazed by how many of the children recognize their friends' names now. They will find somebody else's rock and deliver it to their friend. 

Two weeks ago we started putting the rocks around the "Gathering Rug" before storytime. They could find their rock and sit in the seat that we placed it in.  The purpose was to help with name recognition, but also to place certain children next to each other.  The results were great. The children also had something to hold in their hands, which kept their hands busy while they listened to the story.

The following week the rocks were an inspiration for a new process in the classroom. We have been noticing a lot of the children have been having difficulty engaging in play. They seemed to check out one area and then move to the next without actually touching or doing anything. Just wandering.

We decided to use the rocks as a way for the children to be more aware and thoughtful about their play choices within the classroom. 

Each area now has a matching sign and bowl. A different color and name for each area. The children are still free to play where the would like, but are asked to bring their rock with them and "sign in" to the new area. 

Small World Area

If we have noticed that a child is wandering, we may have a conversation like this...

Teacher: "______, where is your rock?"

Child: "Oh! Over there."

Teacher: "Would you like to move your rock?"

If yes, they would be asked to clean up a couple items and then move their rock.

If no, they would then return to their previous area. 

The children are very excited about their rocks. They are very excited about the new color coordinated circle signs and bowls that have appeared around the classroom. So far there has been a lot of success with this new approach. The ultimate goal is for the children to be aware of their actions and movement through the classroom.  The children really seem to be enjoying it and are excited. Some of the children seem to be staying in areas much longer. Other seem to be using the passport approach and they make sure they get to each area during playtime. 

They all seem to be PLAYING more. 

Our major areas:

Gathering Rug

Quiet Reading Area

Art Table

Small World

Imagination Station (our newly combined dress up and block area)

Sensory Table

Octagon Table (usually lego or trains)

Quiet Reading Area

Imagination Station

Let Them Wander

Most of our outdoor time lately has been spent climbing on our plow-made snow mountain. This always provides a great place to burn a lot of energy and use a lot of muscles in a short period of time. There are always great imaginative games going on. Mountain climbing, rescuing, capturing and other adventurous ideas that naturally take place up high on a mountain. 

A couple days this week we were outside a little longer and the children started to do a lot of sitting and looking bored. I suggested that anybody who was interested could take "a hike" down to the woods, as long as they could still see me. The group on Thursday was especially adventurous and I eventually had to tell them they had gone far enough. 

"Given a chance, a child will bring the confusion of the world to the woods, wash it in the creek, turn it over to see what lives on the unseen side of that confusion. Nature can frighten a child, too, and this fright serves a purpose. In nature, a child finds freedom, fantasy, and privacy: a place distant from the adult world, a separate peace."

 — Richard Louv, Last Child in the Woods

I love being able to zoom in from far away and get a better idea of interactions. 

Children need space away from adults to feel like they can have their own conversations. 

They feel grown up and trusted. 

Decades ago children were always outside in their neighborhoods exploring for at least half the day without adults. We have taken that away from children. Children are losing the opportunities to work things out with their peers without adults swooping in to "help" them solve their conflicts or give them the "right" words. 

Several times I saw one child turn and look back to make sure that I was still there. 

The world must seem so big out there with no adult. 

 For More of the Outdoor Play Party and these homemade Bird Feeders at 

Mud Mud Marvellous Mud.

A Balancing Act

The best part about having my own program is following the children's lead. That doesn't mean that I don't have a plan for each day. It means that sometimes the children's interests steer us in a different direction and that is okay. 

It was very clear by 8:30 a.m. that these little bodies needed to be MOVING today.

 Think quick! 

How do I keep them busy until outside time?  

Give them something to stand on and jump from.

As more children started to gather. I realized we needed more supplies.

I sent a couple children into other areas to gather my requested materials.

They had so much fun experimenting and moving.

Lots of moving. A little bit of risk assessment. Math. Science. Problem Solving. What a "productive" day!

I am hoping they will gather the materials on their own next time the have the wiggles. 

Creating Bears: The Process and The Product

I have realized over the last couple years how much it bothers me that so many things in Early Childhood have to be Right or Wrong. A school/teacher either has to follow one philosophy or another. If you are play-based than you are not allowed to sing the Alphabet Song. If you are a quality program than you would never allow children to play with food. These are just a couple examples of the never ending list of do's and don'ts of preschool.

Another example of this is the great debate between Process Art versus Products. I am a firm believer in children being allowed to express themselves freely through art with available open ended materials. I also agree that if children are always provided with a template or an example, that their creativity will most likely be stifled. 

 I have realized more and more that it doesn't have to be one or the other. There are many types of learning styles and personalities in every classroom. If a variety of methods are not used, than how will the needs of all the children be met?

There is just as much value in crafting as there is in process art. Both provide a chance for creativity, expression and learning, when they are approached with specific children's needs in mind.

Every single thing that a teacher provides in the classroom should be done with intention. 

My basic rules for creating projects in the classroom:

Children should always have choices on the outcome of their craft or project

An adult should NEVER adjust or finish a child's project for any reason.

All the finished products should look unique in their own way.

Here is an example from this week on how a project might be presented in our classroom:

At circle time I showed the children all the pieces that would be available during this project. I showed them different ways that they could put them together to create a bear. 

I did not have a finished product glued together. 

The supplies were later available at the table for the children to create their bears.

Almost all the pieces available were circles, but the black pieces were bunch of different sizes and also included some heart shapes too. 

I sat at the table and spoke with the children and showed them a real teddy bear. On the teddy bear I pointed out the bear's "muzzle" and how it had a nose and mouth on its muzzle. Many of the children wanted to include that, but some chose not to. 

Many of the children have been struggling with getting things to stick with glue sticks, so this was a good chance to practice.  In order to encourage the children to be thoughtful about their bears and to make a plan, I asked them to put their bears together first and then I would give them the glue stick once we talked about it. (Glue sticks are always available for free gluing, which some children really enjoy and seem to NEED to do) 

Again, it is all about a balance at our preschool.

 Everybody had a very different idea about how they wanted their bears to look. 

The bear below was a wonderful example of how adults need to be VERY careful before making assumptions about children's work. When I saw the bear below I wondered if the child had decided to add arms and legs instead of ears (which would have been completely fine in our classroom). The child (almost three) told me that the two circles on the sides were cheeks. :)  Sadly, I know many classrooms would have told the child that they took too many ears or simply removed them for the child without even asking. 

The final products all had their own unique flair that truly reflected the personalities of their creators.

The children were very proud of their projects! 

I am looking forward to seeing if this inspires anybody to create more things with paper, shapes and glue at the table during their own time. 

A couple years ago we did a similar art project, but the children were a bit older and the activity was much more open ended. I am hoping in a another year I will be seeing similar projects from my current group of children. 

Dining Inspiration

Meal time has always been a work in progress at Inch By Inch. It is a very important part of our day. We have two snacks together and lunch. We have tried different styles of serving and presentation. Currently our children use ceramic plates, glass cups and glass pitchers. Most of the time the children serve their own water, but teachers serve the food. We have tried passing food around the table family style, but have struggled with making it work. 

Lunch at Inch By Inch

When I attended Play Iceland recently I was able to see two different types of meal presentation. Both were lovely and inspired me to keep experimenting. It has encouraged me to look more closely at other ways to allow the children more independence during meal time. 

Lunch at Leikskólinn Stekkjarás

Both of our tours took place mostly in the morning. We were able to see the set up at the first playschool, but didn't actually see the lunch in progress. I loved the place settings at Stekkjaras, especially the food carts and serving dishes.  We were told that in most of the classrooms, the children serve themselves. 

In Iceland the playschools have a high focus on healthy eating and the slow food movement. 

The playschool has a chef who makes the food from scratch daily including the bread.

I loved the plates, they would be great for soup or as a regular plate. 

Lunch at Leikskólinn Aðalþing

Adalthing has over a 100 students, who all share this unique dining room. This dining room is in the center of the school and can seat 29 children. Only 26 children are allowed to be in the dining room at any given time. This means that the child entering the dining room always has a choice about where they sit. During a certain period of time, children are allowed to leave their classroom to walk down and have their lunch. There is a buffet (on the far right wall) where children can serve their own food and then take a seat where they please. When the children are finished they clear their settings and walk back to their rooms. There are usually three teachers in the room who supervise the safety of the children and occasionally explain new offerings on the buffet. 

Children are able to make choices about what they eat and how many helpings they need. Staff have found the children are more engaged and relaxed at the table.

I simply fell in love with the idea of all these different tables and seating options. I know several children in my group who would gain more socially from sitting with smaller groups, without teachers at the table. My plan is to slowly eliminate one of my bigger tables and include several different height and size tables.

Suzanne from Interaction Imagination was with me during my visit and has included more details in her post here

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As I was brainstorming about this post, I decided to also include photos from a couple other smaller settings that have inspired me with their meal times. 

Lunch at Today's Play

Tammy at Today's Play values family style meals.  The first photo is a typical lunch time at her small Home Child Care. She always has the most beautiful centerpieces and provides real plates and utensils. 

The bottom photo is an example of one of her buffet style meals. This is a "Pasta Salad Bar" where the children can select and serve themselves the items they want in their Pasta Salad. She has also done a Yogurt Bar, where children can select from granola, fruit and other healthy toppings. 

I would love to include more centerpieces. 

I also love her divided Corelle plates. 

Breakfast Bar at Exploration Child Care

Careese has found a great breakfast system for her In-Home Child Care. Every morning she has a selection of items prepared and displayed on her counter. At drop-off time parents help the child select their breakfast and then follow them to the table before they say good-bye. This allows the caregiver more time to help prepare bottles for the infants and speak with parents. It has created a much smoother transition in her program. 

What a great morning ritual for the children and their parents!