January 12, 2018

During the week we sang:

  • Where is Thumpkin?
  • Mr. Muffin
  • Mr. Sun
  • Where is blue? 
  • There are seven days in a week
  • ABC
  • Good Morning Song
  • Head and Shoulders........
  • Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and many more!

We also have read a variety of books.  The children are enjoying listening to the book Hooray for Hats.  A book about friendship and it also demonstrates how to make a friend feel better when they are not feeling well. We had two birthday celebrations this week, Rheya and Harry.  As their chronological age increases by one year, they are also developmentally growing.  Cognitive, physical, social/emotional, and particularly their language development is changing.  They are adding more words to their sentences and expressing their thoughts more clearly as well.  

We have been learning the color white, so today the teacher placed a variety of items with different colors inside a box.  The children were to select only something white.  As they search for an item that was white, the teacher observes how they explored and focused on the different items inside the box.   Since we started the color chart, we have noticed their interests in colors, exploring the color in a sensory bag, searching, and then placing the color item in the Ziploc bag.  The children seem to look forward that this activity.

 

Edith and Rheya engaged with the kitchen utensils, cooking pans, vegetables, and fruits props.   An empty container of milk was added to the food props.  The children appeared to enjoy having an actual container in their refrigerator.  They each took turns pouring and serving food to each other. 

Creativity and imagination take form as toddlers continue developing. The level of cognitive and language development begins to take shape.  As Harry continues exploring and manipulating unit blocks, he has moved forward to creating a horizontal row using triangles, and aligning them.  He is developing more muscle control by stacking and combining blocks.   Harry also counted each triangle by pointing to one triangle at a time.  The last triangle he is pointing with his finger is the fifth triangle.  Harry is demonstrating a valuable skill, he is counting in sequence, using one-to-one correspondence, and understanding that each triangle represents a number.  Fantastic!!

Snow Theme Shaving Cream Exploration:

Shaving cream is great for sensory exploration and provides endless opportunities for children to play and discover.  Sensory play promotes many experiences:

  • Sensory play encourages children to manipulate and mold materials, building up their fine motor skills and coordination. 
  • Sensory play uses all 5 senses, but the sense of touch is often the most frequent.  Toddlers process information through their senses; therefore, they learn as they explore.
  • Is unstructured, open-ended, not product oriented.  It is the purest sense of exploratory learning
  • Encourages imagination and creative play
  • Develop social skills: turn taking and sharing
  • Language development- experimenting with language and descriptive words

Harry was reluctant to touch the shaving cream with his hands.  We provided options for him to explore, paintbrushes with thin and thick bristles. Providing choices allows children to explore their options and feel at ease with the activity. 

Some of the children looked and observed the pictures of their families.  We counted together how many members are in their family trees, some have 3, 5, or 7 members and some have pets.  We always see big smiles when they look at their family pictures.  A family is a foundation where children start to grow and develop and continue as they enter school.  

Circle Time:

Gym:

Highlights of the week:

Rheya's Birthday:

We did some Splatter Painting:

Harry and Ellie needed help moving the box from side by side and Harlow helped both children!  Cooperative play is essential in early childhood.  It promotes sharing and working together. 

Harry's Birthday!

The children enjoyed listening to Rheya's father, Daniel, read to them.  They appeared to be very comfortable!!

We had a special visitor during the week, Rheya’s grandmother, Carol.  She engaged with us during circle time and interacted with the children during play.  We all enjoy her visit and hope she returns soon. 

Painting with Q-tips.  Each child maneuvered the Q-tip differently, creating distinctive thin strokes. Some children created lines, dots, focus on one side of the paper, or created circles. 

Color and shape recognition game is a fun and interactive activity for our toddlers.  The children used the laminated circles or the bear counters to place them on the corresponding color.  Edith recognized the color blue and placed the blue bear on the circle.  Ellis found the laminated black circle that corresponded with the black circle on the board.  

We created a wintery art piece.  We used glue, pine cones, small pine tree branches and some silver glitter.

January 5, 2018

Happy New Year!  

I welcome all parents and children back to school.

As the children enter the classroom for the first time after being away from school, I observed how they have changed.   During this period they grow and develop an understanding and use of words rapidly.  Most children said two or three recognizable words and as their language builds, they will progress to a conversation of two or three sentences.  Each child develops at different rates.  It isn't necessary to be alarmed if your child has not reached certain milestones that other children the same age have.  Development is a journey.

During our first circle time, the children appeared excited to sing and articulate their names.  We sang some of our favorites songs, Mr. Sun, ABC, Head and Shoulders, Mr. Muffin Man, and many more!  The teacher read a new book,  Not Quite Black and White by  Jonathan Ying and the illustrator, Victoria Ying. 

 

 

Playing with Baby!
Children replay events they have seen or experienced in their environment.  As they gain information and make sense of the information, they will project the knowledge they have acquired through play.  Providing sufficient materials to extend their learning will enhance their imagination and creativity.

 

Spanish:

 

Circle Time:

We are using a box to put small items and asking children what they think it's inside the box. When the items are revealed, we begin to count. Counting is not only articulating numbers but understanding the concept of numbers. Utilizing moveable objects such as counters, blocks and small toys, makes number activities fun and easy to learn. Learning to count with understanding is a crucial number skill, but other skills, such as perceiving subgroups, need to be developed alongside counting to provide a firm foundation for number sense. This week we used eight Lego blocks and two fuzzy worms. We are now showing the number in a written form. It will help them to associate the numeral with the number of items.  As we counted the Lego Blocks, all the children began to articulate the colors.  The teacher's focus was the counting, not color recognition.  The children independently made that decision.  They will gradually form a mental image as we teach and demonstrate numbers and colors.  

Blocks:

Remy used one double unit block, and she arranged on top, one large triangle, two small triangles, and one small triangle standing in an upright position.  She also stacked 3 1/2 pillar blocks on the left.  Remy explored, manipulated, and created a unique structure using the unit blocks.
Teacher: "What are you building?"
Remy: "Family!"
She lifted the small triangle standing in an upright position and said, "Dad” and pointed to the two small triangles and expressed, "Mom!"  Remy did not express more information but continued building and rebuilding structures.  Unit Blocks are timeless play materials that allow children to use their imagination and creativity.   
Constructive play focuses the minds of young children as they engage with the materials in the classroom. Young children have a natural desire to find out things for themselves, and children acquire knowledge through active play.  Remy has developed and moved from functional play, where she used materials in simple, repetitive, and exploratory ways, to constructive play, with purposeful activities that result in creations.

Art:

Shake it Up! Splatter Painting!

Painting is a way for children to explore colors.   With Splatter Painting, we can experiment with different color combinations and make it a great color mixing activity.   We used paper, small rocks, and different colors.   We placed everything in a box, and Rheya squeezed drops of the selected colors.  She moved the box up and down and side by side.  She seemed to enjoy listening to the sound of the rocks crashing from side to side.   As the paint splattered on the paper, the stones simultaneously formed simple, thick or thin lines.   The process of a painting activity stimulates children minds as they use their hands and body movements.

Manipulatives:

Painting:

 

The children explored glue, blue and white tempera paint.  They used their hands and different paintbrushes to spread the color on the cardstock.  They used their hands and paintbrushes to explore. They noticed that as they mixed the blue and white a lighter shade of blue appeared.  The teacher provided popsicle sticks and allowed the children to explore with them.  They created lines in their painting with the popsicle and then placed in different areas of the painting.   Beautiful work of art!! A variety of tactile experiences fosters children ability to understand how various materials work.  It stimulates their cognitive, language, physical, and social/emotional development.   

 

Rheya enjoys a reading session with her father as he reads a book of her choice before he departs.  Arranging a routine and creating some familiarity helps prepare the child for a smooth transition from home to school.

Magna-tiles are versatile learning manipulatives that are designed to develop and strengthen motor skills including pincer grip, which is so crucial to fine motor development control.  The children will build and rebuild different structures.   Children can combine shapes together and form other shapes, and patterns.  They foster imaginative play and creativity.  The unique pieces engage children in in-depth investigations.

Teacher: "Ellie what are you building?"

Ellie: "A choo choo train!"

December 8, 2017

During the week we sang and read a variety of books!  We purchase a Christmas, and the children are creating and painting decorations for the tree and classroom.

The highlights of the week:

Music encourages movements, which is important for young children motor skills.  Picking up an instrument can also help your child break out of their social shell too.  As a class and team, we work together to create a beat that can correlate with the songs that we were singing.  We sang a Spanish song, Feliz Navidad (Merry Christmas).  It was interactive as we played different instruments and sang together. 

 

Counting different items has become one of our favorite things to do during circle time.  We select a variety of topics: feathers, fuzz balls, counters (bears), Lego Blocks, or how many children are in school today, are some examples. Teaching children to count involves more than helping them learn the numbers one to ten. It consists of helping children understand the meaning of numbers. At this age, it’s great to count together with a child. You might count the steps as you walk up to them or the buses as they go by; this helps children begin to move towards matching one thing at a time with the number as they say it.

We have been exploring the color red.  Different color items were placed in a box.   The children selected items that were red. 

Ellis smiled and expressed the words,  "Red, red!"

We placed all the red items in a small Ziploc bag and taped it on our Color Chart.  We visited the chart together and talked about the colors we have displayed.  

We are now exploring the color pink! We also have been discussing and observing the different things in our environment that has the circle shape.  I demonstrated a round plate, an item we use every day. Young children are eager to learn and are engaging in many activities that promote simple and gradual learning experiences. 

 

December 5, 2017, Happy Birthday, Harlow!!

Spanish Specialist:

We went for a neighborhood walk and saw people, dogs, cars, trucks, Christmas trees, and words.  Harry raised his voice as he articulated and recognized the letter "A!"  We saw and bought a perfect tree for Buckle My Shoe!

As we walked the different streets in our neighborhood, we enter a park and the children observed the birds!  The teacher talked about the leaves, trees, and our New York pigeons.  They saw them on the ground and suddenly the children averted their eyes upward.  The birds flew!  Some children articulated the word, birds, birds.

We are starting with our Holiday decorations!

Children interact with different materials, and some gravitate towards specific manipulatives. The Duplo blocks on the table, Luca observed and interacted with them.  He pressed one Lego onto another and continued building by stacking different colors and shapes.  Experimenting and investigating each piece Luca selects and rotates to design, helps him visualize his creation.  He appeared focused and determined as he lifts his structure to place it on top of another.  Luca realized that it was not stable enough when it tilted sideways.  This experience allows him to maneuver the Legos until he finds the right fit.  The fine motor and cognitive development are integrated into this activity.

The children seemed eager and excited to see the lights turned on.   We intended to put them on the Christmas tree; however, half of the lights were not turning on.  We will find another set of lights and decorate the tree on Friday.

  • We brought in some hats for the dramatic play center.  The children seemed to enjoy wearing and exploring the different hats.  Some of the children were wearing them for a length of time as they engaged in various activities.  
  • Luca interacted with the puzzles but also likes to align his manipulatives.
  • Harlow appeared to enjoy the sensory bag placed on the light table.  It contained shredded paper and hair gel.  It promotes  the illusion of snow.  The thickness and reflection give it a shimmery appearance.
  • The children enjoyed the special reader we had in the morning, Ben.  As Ben enters the classroom with Remy to drop her off, he takes a little time and reads a story.  Some of the children gathered to listen or selected a book from the bookshelf and sat beside him.  Thank you, Ben.
  • We were able to find another set of lights to decorate the tree.  The children helped carry the lights.   They appeared excited and eager to see the tree lit with the red, blue, and green lights.  Adela volunteered to take a picture of the class in front of the tree.  It required litttle patients for our little ones to gather in front of the tree, before taking the pictures.  
  • The children appeared to enjoy the process of making wreaths: Paper plates, tissue paper (green and red), glitter, and glue.  They also painted dreidels.
  • As we paint and allow the decorations to dry, the children will gradaully hang them on the tree.

Thursday, December 7, 2017

 We are continuing the path of a child's identity and family.  Some documentation that we already have about family is, Meet our Community of Different Cultures and Languages that Unite us as one booklet, the panel of "Names," and we are in the process of completing our "Family Tree" wall.   Each person that lives in the household creates a piece of the family puzzle.  Therefore, it branches to the child's self-identity.   Family books help us learn and understand how each family gathers together and do things as a family. We will learn the similarities and differences how family do things.  We will continue following how the growth and development of a child, connect to family. 

 

 

December 1, 2017

Some of the songs we sang:

  • ABC (Favorite Song)
  • Mr. Sun (Favorite Song)
  • Five Little Speckled Frogs
  • Two Little Black Birds
  • Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes
  • Do you Know the Muffin Man
  • Oh McDonald Had a Farm
  • Where is Blue...(Favorite Song)
  • Blow up a Balloon
  • Open shut them......
  • If you are Happy and you Know it...
  • Johnny Works with One Hammer
  • Blue Bird

Some of the books that were read:

  • The Family Book
  • Olivia
  • Hooray For Hat!
  • Daddy, Papa, and Me
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar's Christmas 123
  • Jingle Paws
  • Five Green and Speckled Frogs
  • Martha doesn't share!
  • Mommy, Mama, and Me
  • Subway (One of their Favorite Books)
  • Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

Next week we are planning a trip to the store to purchase a tree; therefore, today the children painted some decorations for the Holidays. 

Sensory:

Oobleck: Oobleck incorporates both science and sensory exploration; is a substance that's somewhere between a liquid and a solid. It pours like a liquid but acts like a solid when you squeeze it. The children looked curious and explored the properties slowly by dropping their hands into the oobleck, feeling and squeezing its texture.   Some children explored and others observed.  It is always important to go according to each child's pace and provide ample time for them to observe.  

 

The children are learning to recognize and articulate different colors.  This week we explored the color red.   Visual cues are excellent tools for young toddlers to learn and absorb information.   The color red was introduced in a Ziploc bag.  The children took turns touching, looking and squeezing the bag.  We have been counting the number of items in containers, bears and feathers are some examples.    Children are learning to count, recognize numbers, and count in one-to-one correspondence (counting in sequence).  We have also been counting in Spanish!

Circletime:

Spanish:

Art:

Painting with sponge-like brushes, pine branches, and their hands.

 

 

Manipulative Toys:

Music with Evan:

Feeding the Fish: Caring for a small pet, such as a fish, can provide young children with the opportunity to learn more about animals.  As preschool teachers, we know that young children are engaged and learn best by doing. We can certainly teach about animals through books and pictures; however, they can learn more when they can actually interact with one. They can learn about caring for animals and the responsibility that goes with it.

 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, REMY!

Rheya gave Remy a gift the children made for her.  They used white, purple, and blue colors.  Small drops of each color were poured onto the canvas and covered with a plastic bag.  The children tap and pat until the paint spread, revealing a beutiful work of art. 

Thursday, November 30, 2017

We are continuing celebrating the child.  Their identity and the different attributes that separate them from one another are an essential part of who they are.   How does family contribute to a child identity?  What is each child’s concept what family represents? How can we expand and help our learners learn about the foundation of a family? Now we are bridging how a family is connected to the child’s growth and development.  

A family tree shows the different relationship of members of a family or other genealogical group.  It can branch out to include many relatives. We are currently making family trees with each child.  The teachers are painting their arm brown and hand green, representing a tree.  Then we are going to cut out the family pictures into circles shapes.  We are focusing on only the faces of each member and placing them on each correspondent tree. We have been reading different books about families; for example:

  • The Family Book
  • Daddy, Papa, and Me
  • Mommy, Mama, and Me

The children frequently visit the family wall, and they do not only focus on their picture but all the images.  They can identify their peers as they glance each picture.  As we begin our family tree, the children will be able to determine how people are in their family as they count the different faces. We will count and write the number of family member for each child. 

We will also see, listen, and learn how each family does things together through different events from the various Family Books we will receive. Music can be another avenue to explore.  What kind of music do all the families listen to?  

 

Thursday, November 23, 2017

As we continue our theme of the year, child identity, today some of the children made a Family Tree,  using their hand and the lower portion of their arm (representing the trunk).   The tree starts off with one person, the child, and then branches out to members of their family.  It will show the different people involved in making them who they are.

November 22, 2017

During the week we read a variety of books and songs.  

The children also explored painting on a different easel.  The benefits of working on an easel are: 

  • Fine motor: Moving the painting tool from the paint container to the easel surface requires focus and control.  
  • Large motor: Because of the angle of the arm, using the easel works the shoulder and entire arm. The bigger the surface, the more exercise this area of the body gets.
  • Cognitive skills: There is a lot to figure out while using an easel, such as how the paint will get on the paper, how the different colors will mix, and how to handle the drips that occur.

Gradually the children are learning to recognize and identify the colors in a fun and interactive way.  Today we are exploring the color yellow.  To celebrate the color, some of the children were wearing a yellow blouse, socks or both!  Before the teacher displays a Ziploc bag with the items of the selected color, she asks the children during circle time to choose an item that's yellow. 

The children are going to be taking turns feeding the fish!

Some of the highlights of the week:

  • The children made green Play dough
  • Painting at the wooden easel
  • Painting on Foil Paper
  • Painting with Q-tips-The children painted in pairs with Q-tips on a square canvas.  Some of the benefits of children working in pairs are:

    • Give learners more speaking time

    • Allows them to incorporate their techniques and ideas as they begin to use their words

    • Gives them a sense of achievement when reaching a team goal

    • Allows us as teachers to monitor, move around the class and listen to the language they are producing and observe as they work together.  Each pair demonstrated their different techniques when maneuvering the Q-tip, shared and respected their space.

The Spanish Specialist comes every Tuesday, and she manages to mesmerize the children with her songs and activities.  The children seem to enjoy listening and participating singing the songs in Spanish and listening to a short story about a turkey.  Today several of our students were articulating many words in Spanish as they sang.  It was great to see how they are adapting and absorbing another language.

 

 

November 17, 2017

 

Throughout the week, we read several books, listened and sang to a variety of songs.  One of the favorite books this week was Subway.  Children can relate to real life experiences as they hear about the book and the teacher discusses the different trains we have in the city. 

As the children listened to music, they clap, stomp and sway their body.  They are learning about the rhythm and words of the music, as they heard.  They smiled and laughed as they all danced!

Ice Painting:

Ice painting is a combination of science and sensory exploration.   We poured some tempera paint in an ice cube tray and allowed it to freeze overnight.  We took a rectangle piece of corrugated cardboard and removed the ice cube paint for the children to explore.  As the teacher observed their interaction with the material, they appeared to be in awe.  They seemed curious as they investigated a piece of ice paint.  Some tried to crush the ice cube with the paintbrush, and there were others that touched and squeezed gently.   Some children explored it for an extended period, where others, for a short time. 

The children painted in pairs with Q-tips on a square canvas.  Some of the benefits of children working in pairs are:   

  • Give learners more speaking time
  • Allows them to incorporate their techniques and ideas as they begin to use their words
  • Gives them a sense of achievement when reaching a team goal
  • Allows us as teachers to monitor, move around the class and listen to the language they are producing and observe as they work together. 

Each pair demonstrated their different techniques when maneuvering the Q-tip, and they shared and respected their space.

The children also interacted with model magic and used pipe cleaners and feathers to adorn it.  Mario seemed to create a face using pipe cleaners to represent the eyes and feathers the hair.  

Harlow stacked 6 square blocks at the block center, and when she stacked her last one, she said, "Wow."

We are also learning and exploring different colors.  Janet and I have incorporated our ideas and decided to create a Color Chart.  Every two weeks I will put a color in a sensory bag and place it on the light table.  The light reflecting the color promotes curiosity and an invitation to explore.    They will use their fingers and hands to pat, press, tap, push, press, and create lines with their fingertips, as they explore the color.  After exploring the color, I will put different color items in a box and ask each child during circle time to select an item with the color that we have been exploring.   Then as the correct color is selected, the children will put it in a Ziplock bag.  Then I will tape the bag on the color chart. We will gradually learn and explore different colors!

Highlights of the week:

Painting:

  • Clean Painting:  The materials needed are different color paints and a plastic bag.   The children will pat, press, and touch the paint without getting paint on their hands and creating a spectacular work of art!
  • Painting with sponge-like paintbrushes.

 

 

 

Spanish:

Manipulative:

 

 

Circle Time:

 

 

Art:

Gym:

 

Sensory:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday, November 16, 2017

 

As the children navigate the centers to explore and interact with the materials, they develop interests.   Children as we have discussed in the previous documentation, they each have similarities and differences in how they perceive the world around them.    They interests may develop through constant interaction or experiences they have had with the materials.   It is essential to allow children to engage with different hand-on materials as they grow in all of the domains: physical, social, emotional, language, and cognitive.   As we continue to observe and understand the whole child, we learn about their choices and curiosities as they encounter hands-on activities.