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Showing posts from September, 2014

Eyes

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What shape are your eyes? This was a continuation on what dots can appear like. It also gave us the opportunity to revisit our faces and what body part we use to see the world.

Dots

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"What can a dot look like?" This is a question that is just starting to "take shape" in our minds and we will continue to explore this idea. This activity was inspired by the book "The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds. We used corks, q-tips and pencil erasers to stamp dots of different sizes. We asked the question "What can dots turn into?" We got answers like, "seeds, stars, the sun, the holes in our noses, eyes".   The next day we revisited the dots. We asked the children to draw circles around their dots using crayons and chalk. We extended this dot/circle concept by having the children use tp tubes to stamp circles onto paper. We also painted the tubes to use as a parent/child activity we had available at our open house.

Family part 2

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We used photographs of our family compositions to build on our ideas of shape and their importance. We also used our compositions as reference for observational drawings. We displayed the photos of their compositions next to their drawings on our family wall we prepared for our open house.

Family

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We have been talking about our families in the preschool. Who are the people in your family? Does everyone in your family live in the same house? Which members live in a different house? The children all agreed that Grandmothers and Grandfathers live in a different house. We had a great discussion about just what grandparents are. Ashby told us ,"My mommy has a mommy and she is her baby" We set up a provocation inviting the children to create one or more family members using loose materials. Compositions are a great way for children to make representations that they can easily manipulate and change. We took photographs or their compositions so that we might revisit them another time and provide opportunity for extension activities.

Yarn Lines

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As an extension activity to further explore lines we set out yarn, scissors, paper and glue. The children were encouraged to practice their cutting skills and were thoroughly engaged in this simple, creative and fun experience. The children's yarn line creations are hanging in the work room and look lovely against the blue wall.  Take the time to have a look.

Lines That Wiggle

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We read the book "Lines That Wiggle" by  Candace Whitman. We set up an invitation to explore lines on our light table. There were long lines and short, lines that were straight and lines that could bend. The children spelled their names, made houses and an airport with a runway. We gave them the opportunity to draw their creations when they were done.

Sun Pretzels

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In celebration of our five  senses  we made  pretzels!  The "recipe" told us what "ingredients" to use.   The children  were amazed to see the yeast  rise and everyone had a turn pouring and mixing. We asked the children which senses we were using for this activity. Our eyes for seeing,  noses for smelling,  hands for feeling the dough.  We used our ears for hearing the sounds we made as we patted and pounded the  dough.    Lastly we used our mouths to taste our delicious pretzels !

The letters in my name

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We set up a name writing station in our studio. The children in our class continue to have a have a great interest in letters and are very excited to learn to write their names. The station allows students to pick out the letters in their names using name cards as their guide. This activity is a fine motor activity and helps them recognize the letters in their name and all the letters in the alphabet. It also helps them understand the importance of putting the letters in their proper order. Some of the children have taken the activity further by showing an interest in how to spell things beyond their names. Two of our students wanted to know how to spell the word "birthday" because it has been a topic of discussion in our class. When a child is ready we have also provided them with the tools for practicing writing their names.