Schedule TourGross motor skills are foundational to learning. More and more studies show that gross motor activities are instrumental in learning academic skills such as reading and math. As preschoolers, children have a strong need to use their large muscles frequently throughout their day. (We all know what life with a cooped up preschooler can be like!) …
Creating and Caring
Last spring, Miss Diane’s class experienced many styles and processes of art and through it all came up with the idea that others might enjoy their masterpieces as much as they did. And so . . . …
An Attitude of Gratitude
The children in the Robins’ class took time to draw pictures and dictate their words of gratitude. Some of them were thankful for the simple pleasures in lives such as: Devin: “I’m thankful for going to the park.” Olivia: “I am thankful for when I was walking, I found a flower and I picked …
Rainbows Won’t Wait
“The work will wait while you show the child the rainbow, but the rainbow won’t wait while you do the work.” Patricia Clafford I think we’ve all stopped what we were doing and shared a moment with a child. It’s always a feel good moment, never any regrets. I often wonder though, how many rainbow moments we pass …
Barefootin’ in November
Just as the sand was filling the sandbox, the afternoon Robins class came out to help and investigate. Before any adult could say a thing . . . ALL the shoes were off! Not a single child asked . . . they all knew without a doubt the only way to truly experience a brand new sandbox was without …
“Thank you Mr. Mark!”
It all began in late September as a question to the children . . . would you like to have a sandbox at school? 100% YES! And then came the million dollar question. . . would you be willing to work on it? Most everyone agreed to trade work for a sandbox. And so it …
Balancing the Day Away
The balance scale . . . what is it for? …
What’s Cooking?
What do you do with a pot of boiled apples? You dust off the food mill . . . find a big bowl . . . and ask for volunteers . . . …
Apples, Leaves, Owls,Turkeys and Thankfulness
November . . . no green grass . . . no blue sky . . . no bare feet going by . . . no birds . . . no bees . . . no leaves on trees . . . November! The picture perfect days of autumn are quickly passing us by. Yet, we …
DRY ICE . . . isn’t just for spooky punches
Miss Diane and her inquisitive school-agers were determined to experiment with dry ice and discover if it had other uses besides frightening little children on Halloween. …
Seven Helpful Hints to Encourage Children to Talk About Their Day
Recently, a parent shared with me that her daughter rarely tells her anything that she learns at school. This is not an uncommon phenomenon. It happens daily with children preschool through college. As parents, we have invested a lot (blood, sweat, tears, life-lessons,love and money) to give our children the advantages they need to not just survive in this world, …
Bridging the Gap
The boys worked their entire play time building the roads and then adding houses and blocks for the cars to drive around. It started out as a simple idea …