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Whole Child Development

It’s Turkey Time!

by Filed Under: Celebrate!, Create Leave a Comment

With Thanksgiving right around the bend, it might be a fun time for a little turkey craft at the kiddie table.  That’s right, I used the word craft.  Remember, there’s a Spectrum of Preschool Arts and Crafts.  There are times when a craft may better fill your objectives, but as I mentioned in last year’s Turkey Time Craft, you have to be sure your craft matches the abilities of your children, that you have the time and extra adult assistance that crafts require, and that you are willing to let go of the final product and let the children own it.

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It's Turkey Time!

by Filed Under: Celebrate!, Create Leave a Comment

With Thanksgiving right around the bend, it might be a fun time for a little turkey craft at the kiddie table.  That’s right, I used the word craft.  Remember, there’s a Spectrum of Preschool Arts and Crafts.  There are times when a craft may better fill your objectives, but as I mentioned in last year’s Turkey Time Craft, you have to be sure your craft matches the abilities of your children, that you have the time and extra adult assistance that crafts require, and that you are willing to let go of the final product and let the children own it.

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What Would Your Pet Monster Look Like?

by Filed Under: Celebrate!, Create Leave a Comment

Halloween may provide an ideal window, but there’s really not a bad time for Laura Numeroff’s book,  Ten Step Guide to Living with Your Monster.  From the same author who wrote the “If You Give a…” series, this whimsical spin on monsters explains how one should select and care for a new pet monster.  It’s hard to hang on to any fear of monsters as this story shows them playing the banjo, blowing bubbles, and drinking from the bathtub!

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Repost Reminder: The Spectrum of Preschool Arts and Crafts

by Filed Under: Child Development & DAP, Create 15 Comments

Little Artist ginam

There’s a fascinating article from Newsweek entitled, The Creativity Crisis.  It was actually published in the summer, but I just stumbled upon it recently.  It’s left me with all kinds of writing prompts swimming around in my head, but I thought I’d actually start with something I’ve already written.  Here’s a look at what the term “arts and crafts” means to me, originally published August 12, 2009.

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Magic Words for Guiding Behavior: “Let’s Pretend”

by Filed Under: Building Readers, Child Development & DAP, Create, Positive Guidance and Social Skills Leave a Comment

In Vivian Gussin Paley’s book, A Child’s Work: The Importance of Fantasy Play, she mentions the opportunity to use fantasy play as a tool for classroom management or child guidance.    I found this interesting, and it caused me to think about that premise, the ways I have used it in the past, and the ways I could use it to smooth out difficult situations.

As she states, “Conversations with children may arise out a ‘last straw’ annoyance, in other words, or from a sense of dramatic flow.  They can come from concerns over decorum or from respect for our imaginations.  Both approaches will manage a classroom, but one seems punitive and the other brings good social discourse, communal responsibility, and may have literary merit.” (pg. 74)

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Magic Words for Guiding Behavior: "Let's Pretend"

by Filed Under: Building Readers, Child Development & DAP, Create, Positive Guidance and Social Skills Leave a Comment

In Vivian Gussin Paley’s book, A Child’s Work: The Importance of Fantasy Play, she mentions the opportunity to use fantasy play as a tool for classroom management or child guidance.    I found this interesting, and it caused me to think about that premise, the ways I have used it in the past, and the ways I could use it to smooth out difficult situations.

As she states, “Conversations with children may arise out a ‘last straw’ annoyance, in other words, or from a sense of dramatic flow.  They can come from concerns over decorum or from respect for our imaginations.  Both approaches will manage a classroom, but one seems punitive and the other brings good social discourse, communal responsibility, and may have literary merit.” (pg. 74)

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Five Little Monkey Puppets

by Filed Under: Building Readers, Create, Learning through Play and Experience, Music and Movement 10 Comments

Here’s a little project you can work on this weekend, though I hope you have some other plans because this one is so easy, it shouldn’t take you long.  Build monkey finger puppets out of inexpensive felt from your local craft or fabric store, or from that overflowing box of felt scraps that parents and teachers of preschoolers often have tucked away.

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