A Fall Family Project

 I know that it is not Halloween, or even Fall right now, but I wanted to show off the amazing little pumpkin family project we did last year with our TK class.  I got the idea from my son's 2nd grade teacher, but he had to read the book, write a book report, and then make his "Character Pumpkin."  It was such a fun family project for us, I thought the TK families would enjoy the project too. 

We asked each family to choose a book, read it, and pick a character from it to make their pumpkin into.  We had such a great response.  We had children who wanted to complete the whole pumpkin on their own, and others that made it a family project.  They came out great!!

 

I think my favorite one was the mummy mini pumpkin!!  It was so simple, but the cutest little guy I had ever seen. 



I think this little batty guy was fun too!!

 

I'm trying to remember what book this little lady came from, but I can't remember.  Maybe a Pinkalicious book??

 

 

This is a view of all our great pumpkins!! 

 

 

I love themed projects and Halloween/Fall is a great time to do them with our families.  We also do our Star of the Week themed family project for each student.  Each student gets a large piece of poster board and they can decorate it anyway they'd like.  We have had some students just use crayons and stickers, and others who went all out with photos, writing, and magazine cut-outs of their favorite things.  It is a lot of fun looking at them and giving the students a chance to explain them to their classmates.  I can't wait until next school year and more family project!!

Great Deals!!!

I was out with my son today doing some errands when we decided to stop by a new Dollar General store in our area.  It was much bigger than the one we have closer to our house.  I was excited to see that they had some educational things there... all for a $1!!!! 

 

This photo is of all the loot together...

 

 

 

I was excited to get these cute number banners.  Not sure where any of it will go in my classroom just yet, but I was thinking in a math center on the wall or back of a cabinet?? 

 

 

They also had these "award" frames, I think that's what they were called.  You can put artwork, special homework or photos of the kids in them.   Again, hopefully I have a spot for them on the wall somewhere.  If not, I will use them at home with my own kids, for a $1 I couldn't pass them up.

 

I think my favorite one is this "I Spy" Spinner.  I work with 4 & 5 yr old TK students and this is a great beginning of the year game we can play.  I think that eventually, when they are comfortable playing it alone, I will put it in a center to be used whenever they want.

 

 

I love getting good deals.  Creating a whole new classroom isn't always easy on a teachers budget.  I have a lot of things from the daycare, but some of it is to young for this group.  I am excited to be setting off on this journey, I think it is going to be a great year.  Now, off to make some TPT copies for my Beginning of the Year Centers :)

A New Doll House

I am so excited!!!  I have been wanting to make a cardboard dollhouse for the peg dolls I have been making and I finally did it!!  I found one on Pinterest that I thought I could get done without to much time and effort, and I did it!!!  I went to Dollar General to pick up a few other things, but when I saw the tri-fold display poster board (you know, the kind you use for the science fair) I decided to bring it home and try it out.  It, of course, wasn't the exact measurements that every other tri-fold in a "real" store has, but I just fudged the measurements and did the best I could.  I think it came out great.  My board was 35.5" high, which I thought was way to tall for my peg dolls, so I cut the board in half and continued that way.

I am looking forward to decorating the walls, roof, adding windows, and making some furniture.  I think the kids will get a kick out of it next year.  I am interested in seeing how long it will take 12 4 and 5 year olds to destroy it. 

If you are interested in the tutorial that I used you can go to Jeannie Guzis Photography to get all the info.  She did a really great job detailing the directions and made it so easy to follow and even change up when I needed to change my measurements.  I LOVE Pinterest!!!

I will keep you posted as it comes together!!!

My Journey into TK Begins

(beginning of rock garden in our Outdoor Classroom)

 

 

(rock garden & beginning of container garden space in the background)

The end of the school year was bittersweet.  It is hard letting go of the wonders that these little ones have become in the 10 months that we have had them.  Yet, summer is here and we have been busy her at our house. 

Our first big trip this year was to Cooperstown Dreams Park, in Cooperstown, NY.  Wow, what a trip.  The boys loved it and they did a great job.  While I was gone, I found out that our school had enough interest in our TK program that they would be adding another TK.  Yeah, I was offered the job and I accepted.  How excited I am to be thinking of creating an amazing world of learning for these new little ones coming up.

I have scoured blog land, Pinterest, and the Internet looking for classroom design ideas, curriculum ideas, and how to incorporate the wonders of the outdoor classroom into our daily schedule.  You see, I am committed to sharing the outdoors with my kids as much as possible.  Last year we incorporated the outdoor classroom as much as we could and the kiddos absolutely loved it!!  They learned so much and you could see how they became so comfortable in the outdoor space.  I hope we can continue to bring more to the space. 

Until then... I will start separating my books into themes, gathering my science materials to create an unbelievable science area, figure out how to incorporate a writing space that will be enticing to 4 & 5 yr olds, and a housekeeping area that has both function and flare.  I can't get into my new space until August, but I will definitely be busy dreaming up ideas and when I get there... photos will follow.

The Unexpected

Here we are at the end of the school year.  We are reviewing everything we have been learning... alphabet, phonics, numbers, number words, adding, counting, planting, growing... but we could have never have planned a better lesson than the unplanned one that a parent presented us with recently.  She brought in 3 day old ducklings and said, "Here, would you like them for the day??" No warning, no time to think about food, water, what would I do with them.  I just looked at her and said, "You BET!!!"

We had such a wonderful day with them.  During the month of February we had 12 chicks in our room for 2 weeks, and this was a great way to compare the differences and similarities between the two birds.  We talked about their weight, the food they ate, how much they ate, we got to hold them and pet them and cuddle with them.  They fell asleep in the kids hands and it was the cutest thing to see.  The ducklings beaks are rounded, so when they peck at you it has no real feeling,  and even though the chicks didn't really hurt when they pecked at us, it was a little bit more of a prick then the ducklings.  The kids were able to make so many connections that they wouldn't have been able to do without this hands on experience.  The kids really loved it and I am proud to say that I am the kind of teacher that allowed them to have that experience!!  I didn't think twice about it, because sometimes the best learning comes in the unexpected!!!

The Outdoor Classroom and the Academic Parent

We are very lucky to have our school adjacent to a local nature preserve with a small path that follows along a local lake.  We have taken on a small area as an outdoor classroom for our TK students and try to get out there at least once a week. 

 

Although I know how important the outdoor space and our outdoor learning is, some of the parents in our school do not see the importance of their children using our outdoor space for learning.  I try to give parents examples of what we do out there, just take the weaving photo above... we set that up for the children to practice their weaving skills within a larger area.  Using more natural materials they are able to problem solve and use critical thinking skills to decide what to put in the weaving area, how do they weave a stick into the yarn compared to a leaf... how many will fit? how much surface will one leaf take up compared to another?   These are just some of the pieces of the puzzle that makes up the learning journey of the early childhood student. 

We have been visiting our outdoor classroom since early September, while out there the students found an old tree that had fallen.  They used it for many adventures, pretending it was a boat, a tight rope, a mountain, a bear den... just to name a few.  Also, on this fallen tree was a log that had fallen the opposite way and was sitting like a see-saw against the fallen tree.  All Fall and Winter the kids played on that log, trying to get it to move like a see-saw, but it was sitting on the fallen tree in an unbalanced way.  On the first day of Spring we went out to our outdoor classroom and the kids were over there playing when my co-teacher and I heard lots of hooping and hollering coming from that part of the outdoor classroom, the kids actually got that log to move like a see-saw by placing more kids on one side than the other.  Do they know the mechanics that made it work?? Not the specifics, but after much talking, working together, critical thinking, problem solving and most importantly, taking a big risk on having lots of kids on one side of a wobbly log just to move the child on the other end a little... Well let me tell you... it was AMAZING!!!  They were soooo proud of themselves!!  We tried to bring that joy to the parents, but can you believe we actually had parents who could not see the benefits of the learning experience that their child just had, well, believe it!! 

In early childhood learning the child learns through PLAY and playing in nature only enhances that adventure and helps to make meaning that a preschooler can understand and relate to.  So, I have been trying to convey this information to our families.  I need to make these parents see the benefits of our outdoor classroom compared to having a preschooler fixated on reading and math through sit down work, flashcards, and that darn "My Baby Can Read" program!!!  My summer will be spent coming up with an outdoor curriculum that these parents can relate to, that can be assessed so they can "SEE" what their child is learning, but I know that the things they can't see are the important things, and as I long as I know they are getting those unseen experiences, I know I am giving these children an adventure I know they wouldn't get otherwise.

Any ideas how to go about this?? I welcome the comments and advice!!!!

A Day in the Life...

(A Rainbow Symmetry Project)

What does a day in our TK look like??  Well, I'll tell you...

Our students arrive to school between 8 & 8:30am... during that time we have open centers for them to play at.  Usually at least one center centers around our theme and a standard we are trying to teach that week.  For example... I will put 6 to 8 white boards out on the table with letters, words, or numbers that the kids can use to write individually, use in stories to accompany pictures they may draw or just copy and read to a friend.

8:30 starts our day... after clean up we may start with our Circle, where we learn about the calendar, numbers, letters, counting, the weather, and any theme related link we have. We may also go to a Special like Music, Art, Gym or Science.

9:00 - 10:30am: we have open center time.  This is when our students get to participate in both child centered areas and teacher directed areas.   Myself or my co-teacher will usually have one group learning or practicing a skill in a small group setting while the other teacher moves around the room monitoring, facilitating, and/or re-directing children throughout the other areas.  This is when a TK room really shines... there is a cacophony of noise as students really dig deep into their particular centers and learn the nuances of socially acceptable behavior, problem solving, language, communication, fine motor, gross motor and so much more!!

10:30 - 11:15am: Outdoor Play... this can include a trip to our Outdoor Classroom or to the playground, it all depends on our mood, weather, and theme.

11:30: LUNCH!!  We stop at the big kids bathroom to potty and wash hands (getting ready for that next step to Kindergarten!!)

12:15 - 1:15: Rest Time

1:15 - 2:15: Wake Up, pack up, we then do a whole group activity... this could include Letter/Number Bingo, Math Games, Writing Games or another Special.

2:15: SNACK!!!

2:45: Pack Up and Carpool

That is our day in a nut shell... when I write it out it feels like such a short time for any "formal" teaching, but then I think about all the little teachable moments we have during the day.  In TK that is where the learning really happens.  When I see a friend help another get up after a fall, or tell a friend that they should sit quietly during the Mystery Reader because it is polite... those are the little things I love seeing.  Yes, I know I am doing my job when we see our students recognizing numbers, sounding out letters or trying to write phonetically... but I like to look at the bigger picture, who will these little wonders become?? Where will the life lessons they learned in TK take them and how will it effect who they are later in life??  If I can answer that I am a great role model, give all of myself, am empathetic, and shower them with love to build self-esteem and self-confidence... I know I am doing my job and with their parents I can make a great impact on them, both academically and emotionally.