coming full circle

About 6 weeks ago, we planted a flower garden in our classroom.  The seeds came from a store, but they originally came from flowers that were in the ground.  We watered our seedlings, kept them in the sun's rays through our classroom windows and rejoiced as the seedlings sprouted through the soil and began to grow.

Today, some of the Shamayim children helped plant our flowers back into the soil.  We chose a nice sunny spot outside of our classroom so that we can keep an eye on them for the next few weeks.

Some children opted out of participating in the digging, but still took part by encouraging us as we worked.

Backpack Masters!

Throughout the year the Tel Aviv class has grown to become more independent with hanging up and retrieving their backpacks in the morning. Yesterday I challenged them to see if every backpack could be removed from the fence with no teacher help at all. They amazed me! Not only did they get every backpack and sweatshirt but children helped each other get the backpacks down they their peers couldn't reach. Other children just helped each other out simply to be friendly. Elias got Micah Gladstone's backpack. Micah got Zachs and Zach got Elias', so sweet! It is amazing to see home much they have grown in confidence, strength and height throughout this year. Way to go Tel Aviv!

photography 101

Ilan, Josh, Victoria, Bennett and Rose did some camera practice this morning!  Take a look at some of their shots...not bad, huh?!

problem solving 101

The water fountain in the downstairs hallway was a little too tall for some of the children.  We used tippy toes or a boost from a teacher but it just wasn't quite the same as being able to do it all by ourselves. 

 

Today, we found two rectangular stools in front of the water fountain.  We were excited to see them but  we worried that they might be wobbly because they were two separate pieces.  The Shamayim children brought the two separate stools into our classroom and wrapped tape around and around until they were securely linked.  

We carried the new BIG stool back to the water fountain and tried it out...it worked!! 

Introducing Open Snack!

During circle today we gave a tour of “Open Snack” we explained that the snack area can fit four children and you can go there when you are hungry and when there is space. The idea of open snack allows children to determine when they are hungry and how to manage time between snack and play. It also is an opportunity to foster independence. Children can choose the foods they want to eat and refuse foods they are uninterested in without having to consult an adult. We talk about portion control and making sure there is enough snack for everyone in the class to have some. Today we had cheese sticks, plums and pretzels! The class did a great job of only taking one cheese stick and plum apiece and many were independent both with serving themselves and with opening the cheese sticks all by themselves: not an easy task!  Also having snack as a small group is a nice opportunity for children to make connections with classmates and have child-driven conversations. Open snack is a new idea for many of the Tel Aviv classmates and we are looking forward to continuing to use it throughout our year together!

The Tel Aviv Class Begins to Conquer Glass

The students in the Tel Aviv class have been hard at work creating glass mezuzot for Taste of the Town. Our class finds mezuzot fascinating and love finding them around the temple. It only made sense for us to work on some new ones to donate to the auction. Cutting glass is quite the multi-step process. Fist each child has to put on gloves and goggles then they score, or cut, the glass and then they use the pliers to spit the piece of glass in two. Once they have cut and collected all the pieces they want to use it is time to assemble and glue. 

I thought that this process might be too challenging for most of our kids to stay focused throughout the entire task, but boy was I wrong. This class LOVES working with glass. They are excited to watch me work with it and to create their own designs. All of the children are comfortable using the pliers to split the glass independently and Dylan and Max are completely comfortable scoring the glass all on their own!! Dylan continually told me that he could do it himself.  


It was hard to let go and realize that even though glass is a sophisticated medium that Dylan does have an understanding of the materials and he can cut class on his own. It is so neat to watch and they are so proud of each and every piece they cut. Way to go Tel Aviv class! I am proud of each of them and excited that they are working on beautiful pieces of art that they are proud of as well!

Marbles, Marbles, Everywhere!

This week the Haifas got to make a fun art project: marble painting! A box was brought in, and the marbles were taken out of the closet. The children got to choose what colors and how many marbles they wanted to use. As you can see here with Alana, the children picked up the box and swirled the marbles through the paint until a beautiful painting was created. After the paintings were finished being created, the children took responsibility for their creations, and brought the marbles into the bathroom and cleaned them independently. Our classroom is now decorated with our marble paintings!

-Alison and Sauci

I can do it myself!

It is a joy to behold when the children in your classroom can do so may things independently!  At this point in the year they can all can take care of their personal belongings and then some!  The Tel Aviv children get dressed all by themselves and put their things where they belong...On their hook, in their lunchbox,  in their backpack and in their mailbox!

The gift of independence!  Encouraging independence is simply helping to  set your child up for success!    

 

 

I can do it!

One of our goals in preschool is to support and teach the children to become self sufficient and take care of themselves (and their belongings). On Friday, after playing in the community room, we gathered to begin putting our socks and shoes back on. Rather than the usual "can you help me?"...I looked around and saw all of the children succesfully putting their shoes and socks on themselves! They worked hard and were so proud of their accomplishment - so was I!!!

Look what I can do!

Kids Taking Pictures!

Today Eli asked if he could take the camera outside to take some pictures. He took some beautiful shots...Especially the ones of himself!

Kids Taking Photos

Following a Recipe for a Yummy Snack

With a step-by-step recipe illustrated with large photographs of ingredients to guide them, the Sunshine children prepared their own early morning snack. First you take 3 scoops of vanilla yogurt, add some raisins and cheerios, if you like them. Mix together and enjoy. It was amazing to see just how precise, competent and confident the children were in putting their snack together. Do we have any budding gourmet chefs among them?

We can do it!

Getting dressed for snow play is an exercise in determination. Putting on boots is one of the most challenging parts. Some children choose to sit in a chair to make use of gravity and others like the stability of the floor. Each day, with much pushing, pulling, and sometimes a helping hand from a classmate, these kids manage to get dressed independently and efficiently. Way to go kids!

IsraElla to the rescue

The Unicorns welcomed a new friend to our room. Her name is Israella and she is a kid-sized doll who came from Israel to America.

The first thing Israella noticed about her new home in Needham was how cold the winters are here. IsraElla didn't know anything about dressing for snowy weather, however her Unicorn friends were very helpful and eager to teach IsraElla how to get dressed for winter in New England. We all talked about what do you need to put on first and what's next, in order to stay nice in warm in Boston’s winter months.

Thank you so much Unicorns for your help and thank you IsraElla for coming to visit us!

IsraElla left to visit with our friends next door and she will be back to visit us when we go to "pretend Israel". I am sure she can help us learn about things to do in Israel, just as she learned new things while she visited with us.

Did you know we can pour?

Did you know your child can pour his own juice and water? What you likely think of as something you have to do for your child, he can already do on his own. Pouring takes concentration and hand-eye coordination skill, and all of the children in the Unicorn class have mastered this task. Each day for snack they pour their own water. Try it at home! No child sized pitcher? No problem! Just use a liquid measuring cup. It is the perfect size for little hands.

Morning time circle

Avery and Lily help set up our circle time mats. Thank you Avery and Lily. In case you are wondering, here's Wally Worm, who helps us greet each other during morning circle. I wonder if he is a boy or a girl? You may want to ask your children what they think.

Flip and Zip

With the cooler weather comes jackets. On their first day of school the Sunshine children were already working on learning to put on and zip their jackets. Mary Ann laid the jackets on the ground and showed the boys how to stand at the hood. Then flip! Over their hands and on, just like that.  We'll continue to practice this magic trick in the coming months.

Learning school routines

The first weeks of the school year are focused around learning the new routines of the classroom. As the children and teachers develop new relationships, classroom routines begin to form based on the needs of the specific group of children. The Unicorns worked on washing their hands before snack. "Don't forget to roll up your sleeves!" Eli reminded us. "My mom sometimes forgets that." He pushed his sleeves up (short as the already were) and pumped soap into his hands, rubbed them together and washed away, completely independently. Over the course of the year the children will be encouraged to do an increasing number of tasks on their own, building self confidence and life skills.