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Whole Child Development

Ice Sculptures

by Filed Under: Get Outside, Learning through Play and Experience 9 Comments

Ice is a fun, inexpensive, and fascinating material to explore in your sensory table!  I like to add color to the water before filling my ice molds, to add interest, and so that the colors begin to mix as the ice melts.  Then I fill a variety of containers – ice-cube trays, of course, but also empty plastic food containers (Cool Whip, sour cream, yogurt, etc.), plastic cups, popsicle molds, muffin tins – anything to create an interesting shape.  You can place these in your freezer, if you have the room, or if you’re lucky enough to have absolutely frigid temperatures as we did here, just place them outside overnight.

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Soup from a Stone?

by Filed Under: Building Readers, Learning through Play and Experience, Positive Guidance and Social Skills, Snack Time Leave a Comment

The story of Stone Soup is a popular old fable that has been retold countless ways.  (If you need to brush up on the tale, you can find books at the library or online, and can even find online versions here and here.)  You can help your children be a part of this timeless story as you do some story acting and then share some soup together!

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Preschool Christmas Party – The Spirit of Giving

by Filed Under: Celebrate!, Learning through Play and Experience, Positive Guidance and Social Skills, Snack Time 4 Comments

With Thanksgiving just now appearing in our rearview mirrors, it’s time to start  planning for Christmas!  Most everyone needs a Christmas party idea.  Whether you call it a  “Christmas Party” or “Winter Celebration” or what have you, most preschools have some kind of celebration at the end of the year.  Now whether  you teach at a public or private school may have a lot to do with how you  celebrate this time of year.  Regardless of those classifications, I’ve found that a service party fits the bill.  And surprisingly, I don’t think the children have ever been disappointed by the fact that this party is more about others than about them.  Quite honestly, I think they take great pride in being able to help others.  In addition to fostering pro-social skills, it makes them feel important, bigger, and more powerful.  Those are things all preschoolers crave (though I think I know a few adults who crave them too)!

Here’s how it’s worked for me in the past.  Read through it and make adjustments for your group based on their ages and ability levels, your center’s policies and procedures, and the needs of people in your local area.  It has worked particularly well to have parents attend and help their little kiddos through this series of simple service activities.  I start out with a story for everyone, then I explain the tables with projects, and from there, we basically have a “free-choice” time, where the parents and children just choose which project they would like to work on next.

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Thanksgiving Turkey Craft Times Two

by Filed Under: Celebrate!, Create, Learning through Play and Experience 4 Comments

Now, before you get all worked up over the word “craft”, let me reiterate what I said in this post.  Crafts are not inherently evil.  They’ve just gotten a bad rap because too many people have misused and abused them as a substitution for creative art experiences.  Open-ended creative art activities should be the mainstay of a preschooler’s experiences, but occasional craft projects can be beneficial as well.  There are simply a few things to consider before choosing a craft project for your children. 

1) Is it developmentally appropriate?  Meaning, you need to consider their developmental levels, their motor skills, interests, and attention spans, and decide if the project matches those needs.  Think through the craft project and consider how much of the project the children can do on their own without undue frustration.  If you have to do all the work, it really isn’t their project! 

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The Story of Milk – Making Butter with Preschoolers

by Filed Under: Learning through Play and Experience, Snack Time 12 Comments

While exploring a food theme, I really like to teach the children about where food comes from.  Milk and dairy products are a great group to explore this way.  I start out by asking the children if they have milk at their homes.  They usually all reply in the affirmative.  Then I ask where milk comes from.  MOST kids know milk comes from a cow, though they’re a bit hazy on the details, and every now and then you’ll find a little one who hasn’t even come to the cow-milk connection yet.  Once we establish that milk comes from cows, I ask if the children have any cows at home.  Most children don’t.  So then I ask how they got the milk they have in their refrigerators?  They came from the store!  Well, does the store have any cows?  None that they’ve seen!  So how does it get there?  It’s a long journey! Then, I explain that I want to tell them the story of milk!

I like to tell the story using pictures (I’ve linked some samples for you) and telling about my grandfather who was a dairy farmer.  I tell them a little about him, then show a picture of cows grazing.  I tell them that when cows eat grass, some of that food goes to giving the cow energy and making it healthy, and part goes to making milk in the cow.  Next, I show a picture of udders (closer here).  This is a point of confusion, and not just for children.  Have you ever seen the animated movie “Barnyard”?  ALL of the cows, including male characters, have udders.  It drives me crazy!  But I digress.  Be clear that the udders are where the milk is stored in the momma cow.  You may have someone claim that the udders are used for going to the bathroom.  Simply dispel that as false, and focus on the milk! 

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