Down on the Farm!

The children have been very interested in animals, specifically the farm animals.  These seem to be the animals the children recognize the most.  To build on this interest we have been introducing different materials and provocations to help the children learn about life on the farm.  We started first with pictures of farms and eventually moved on to videos.  We brought out fake grass to use for the fields, as well as barns, tractors, farm animals, and hay.  The children like to imitate the sounds the animals make, and seem to be very drawn to the way the animals move.  The two animals which stood out the most were the cows and the horses.

Building on this interest of horses, we brought in a pretend horse stable for the children to explore.  We have been looking at pictures of the insides of barns, to see what the animals need to live comfortably.  Our ultimate goal is to begin building a barn of our own, so the children can use this prop during their play.  We have been introducing different vocabulary words which can help the children describe the barn.  We are also investigating with different materials to use to build the barn. 

The children have just started exploring with the horses this week.  They were surprised by all of the different colored horses, and were really focused when examining the new animals.  The children began identifying the horses by color, and are able to identify their favorite ones to play with.  We will continue our exploration with horses, and work on different ways to represent them (we'll start first with drawing, and then move on to our favorite paint).  We are eager to see where these explorations take us, and hopefully in the spring we can plan a trip to an actual farm! 

Fall Explorations

With the change in season, and the tree on our playground, we have been exploring different fall materials.  We first started out by bringing in small gourds, and later on a pumpkin.  When we opened the pumpkin, the children were reluctant to touch the insides at first.  They noticed there were seeds inside the pumpkin, and they wondered if there were seeds inside of the gourds too.  We cut open a few of the gourds and found there were seeds inside as well.  The children were able to compare the different types of seeds.  We used both the pumpkin and gourds in art projects as well.  The children noticed the different textures of the gourds, so we made prints in the play dough.  We also attempted to create the gourds using the play dough as well.  We mixed colors to paint pictures of the gourds, and we drew on the surface of the pumpkin.

Aside from the gourds and pumpkins, we noticed the changing leaves.  We brought in some leaves of various colors to look at on the light table.  Up close, the children could really examine the veins and textures of the leaves.  After going on a leaf hunt on the playground, the children were able to compare the different types they found.  We noticed our playground has a lot of maple trees.  We also noticed there were many yellow leaves, but not as many red and brown.  As usual, the leaves found their way into our art projects as well (these kids can never do enough painting)!  We used the leaves to make prints on the paper, we also painted on the leaves as well. 

The changes in the appear of our playground, as well as the changes in weather have been topics of conversation lately.  We have read some informational books about fall, as well as some fun ones too!  The children really loved the books "Fall Leaves Fall" and "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves".  We have read these often in the past month.  Fall is such an exciting time of year, as the children are able to easily observe the changes around them.  While the cold is coming, we have been enjoying our time outside, admiring the beautiful colors of this season.

Art Explorations

When children are given the opportunity to explore with a material multiple times, in a variety of ways, they become more confident in using that material, and will often try different ways to use the material in question.  We often use art materials for repeated explorations, working to find the medium the children most enjoy using.  Repeated exposure gives children a chance to find the material which is best suited for their thinking.  Many artists feel more confident in using one medium, so we want children to be able to figure what they work best with.  

Since the beginning of the school year we have been taking our afternoons to do mini studies of different art mediums.  We can focus on one material more intently, rather than exploring too many too quickly.   We started with just crayons, paper, chalk, chalk boards in the atelier (our art studio) as these are materials the children may be familiar with.  We wait to introduce more to the atelier, until the children become more aware of how to use the materials appropriately, to represent their ideas.  Throughout the week, the children have five times (if not more) to use the same material, and experiment with the uses.  Children are encouraged to explore openly and share their ideas.  So far, we have explored collaging, paint, markers, scissors, and clay.  

While they are not quite confident in using the paint, and still have many skills to learn, this has been their favorite material.  We have used it with thin brushes, thick brushes, sponges, as well as our hands.  For children this age, painting is often a very sensory experience.  We like to touch the paint and occasionally taste it too!  We have been using paint in a different way almost every day.  Check out some of our fun explorations!

Worms

With the warmer weather and change in season, the children have been very interested in the garden and insects on our playground.  We have been searching for worms whenever we go outside.  After talking with the other classroom teachers, we found the children in room four also had a shared interest in insects, specifically worms.  We have collaborated with room four in the past, so we thought it would be fun to meet up again!

Bug hunting on the playground

Exploring worms in the dirt

During our first few interactions, the children were able to get up close and personal with some earthworms.  We began generating a list of questions we had about worms.  Do they have eyes?  What colors can the worms be? How do worms move?  The children had many questions that we wanted to figure out how to answer.  We noticed the children were very focused on the body parts of the worms.  There is not much to an earthworm, so how do they eat or even move?  The children are familiar with two and four legged animals, but did not know much about the worms. 

using different tools to observe

watching the worms moves

remembering to be gentle when picking up the worms

After observing and sketching the worms.  We thought it would be helpful to introduce the body parts of the worms, and provide names for the children.  We watched a few videos of worms eating and moving.  So the children understood the worms has a mouth.  They also noticed the worms liked to be close to each other (in a ball) and would move to be together.  We looked at the diagram and the names of the different body parts.  The children sketched their own worms, and we found the drawing lines and including circles for segments. 

diagram of the worm

Very focused on the lines/segments of the worm

Pointing out the head and the tail on the worm

The line with the circles is a collaborative drawing.  The first child drew the line, the second child added the circles for segments.

We would like to continue looking at the different body parts of the worms, and answering the questions we continue to come up with.  The older children have been very helpful with the younger children, and have been teaching them about the earthworms.  We continue to research and read books separate, and come together to share ideas.

Mixed Media Art

This semester we have been experimenting with different types of art materials.  The children seem most drawn to the paint, so that is what we have worked with often.  We have used different types of brushes and paints to gain a deeper understanding of painting techniques.  Often these experiences last one or two sessions.  To encourage revisiting and reflecting, we started a new art piece this past week.  Rather than completing the piece in one sitting, we have been adding different materials each session.  The children are able to explore different paint types, different techniques, and different textures.  We are not only using paint, but also adding in different types of collage materials. 

For our first layer, we used tempera paint.  The children decided on the colors we would use for the base of our project.  We mixed together different shades of blues and purples to paint with.  For the children, this experience seemed to be about covering the whole paper.  They covered majority of the paper, but left one corner open.

For our next layer, we used gold and silver watercolor paint.  We decided to use this paint to see how it would interact with the colors we already used.  The children were excited to help mix up the watercolor paint, and kept wanting to add more to make the color darker.  When we began painting, they focused on covering the areas not yet covered.  The color was very light, and not noticeable while painting.  When the colors dried, we noticed a shimmer to the painting.

The third layer consisted of collage materials.  We started first with tissue paper that was light colored, so it would not affect the colors.  We wanted to look more at the texture, and how the tissue paper affected the texture of the project, rather than adding new colors.  The children noticed they could see the paint colors under the tissue.  They also noticed the glue they used affected the paint, even though it was already dry.




















We will be adding another layer this week.  The plan is to incorporate materials which will add more textures to the piece.  We're thinking about gems and tiles for our next layer.  We will continue to add more to the piece until the children feel it is complete.  Revisiting and reflecting on their work is so important.  It helps children to become more intentional and thoughtful about their work. 

Regie Rainbow

During January and February we introduced the Regie Rainbow program to the children in our classroom.  This program, which is supported by the National Kidney Foundation, promotes healthy eating and life style habits (here is the link for more information https://www.nkfm.org/regies-rainbow-adventure).  Each week Regie visits a new island, starting with the Island of Red.  He samples fruits and vegetables of each color, and practices some different exercises.  Each week the children had the chance to sample their own fruit and vegetable from that color group.  We had mixed reviews about some of the food, but the children really looked forward to testing the foods each week.

Here's a list of the foods we sampled

Week 1 (Island of Red) : cherry tomatoes and red peppers
Week 2 (Island of Orange): acorn squash and sweet potatoes
Week 3 (Island of Yellow): star fruit and spaghetti squash 
Week 4 (Island of Green): kiwi and edamame 
Week 5 (Island of Blue): cauliflower and black berries
Week 6 (Island of Purple): grapes and cabbage

Along with small tastes of the foods listed above, we also sampled many others and well!  We tried plums, purple cauliflower, red kale, broccoli, pineapple, butternut squash, cantaloupe, and red pears just to name a few.  While the children enjoyed sampling new foods, they were also learning many skills.  The children were able to practice using knives (child safe of course) to cut up their own foods.  We practiced math concepts when we made recipes like apple sauce.  The children also furthered their vocabulary by using new words to describe the different foods.  We look forward to exploring more with cooking and other types of foods!

Check out some of our favorite food moments below!

sampling some pineapple!  Yum!

We noticed the seeds inside of the butternut squash.  The children wanted to touch and smell them.

We love the broccoli!  Little Trees the kids called it.

Sniffing the kale, before sampling.  We used all of our senses!

Cutting pieces of cantaloupe, we found out the skin does not taste too great :) 

Choo Choo Trains!

This semester we have been focusing on exploring trains.  The children have shown a strong interest in all vehicles, but trains seem to bring the most excitement!  We started out the year by exploring ramps and movement, which later led to the interest in creating tracks.  The children were interested in exploring which path the trains or cars would move down a ramp. 

We found ways to create twists and turns, as well as other obstacles (including gates and tunnels).  This led to us creating our own track on a large piece of cardboard.  We began by laying down a tape outline, and adding more including the cross pieces of the track. We looked at pictures of different types of tracks for inspiration.

We used different mediums to create our tracks.  The children incorporated the wooden train tracks into their every day play.  We later brought in wooden slats to make paths.  We also created a track using paint and stamps (as if we were stamping out pieces of the pathway).  The children figured out ways to create turns in their tracks.  We also looked at bridges, and how we could add these to our pathways.

Over the past few weeks we have started investigating train sounds and how to create them.  The children seem to think the sounds are made using a whistle, but have also noticed that many trains have bells.  We are looking at what the different sounds mean.  We have also been investigating different types of train cars.  The children can identify the engines, box cars, and cabooses.  We have also discussed tanker cars and flat bed cars.  The children are curious to know what types of objects these cars carry.  It seemed the children believed that trains only carried people (as most of their train experience involves them riding on a train).  We are learning that trains are used to transport all types of objects, and not just people.