The past few weeks in the Silver Room have been filled with joy, laughter, and thoughtful exploration. From learning new ways to sing “Hello,” to playing on the snowy roof, to discovering what our new wooden blocks have to offer, this winter has been a very exciting time for our Pumpkins! We wanted to give you all a little glimpse into what our days have looked like recently.
Open Time
A common theme during Open Time recently has been investigating new materials while still finding comfort in the old ones. A few weeks ago, we moved all of our Magna-tiles off the shelf, where they had been since the start of the school year. We put them all in one of our drawers which are easily accessible to the children and then filled the shelves with wooden blocks that we collected from around the school.
The children have loved figuring out different ways to use these new materials! They have been creating race tracks, building tall towers, and even arranging a playground for our animal toys to jump around on. Building with the blocks often requires a much steadier hand and more patience compared to the Magna-tiles and it has been amazing to see our Pumpkins rise to this challenge.
We have also been trying out new materials inside the sensory table. One day, we put our toy grass and flowers in the table and then filled it with water. The children loved scooping up the water in their teacups and then watering the flowers to help them grow. On a different day, we filled it wish soap, sponges, and paintbrushes. This led to the children bringing all of the animals into the table and giving them a bath!
As always, we have been reading so many books in the Silver Room! While we still love our Fall favorites like “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt,” the children have been quick to pick up on our new books in the classroom and ask to read them again and again. Some new arrivals to our bookshelf include “Jabari Jumps,” “When It Snows,” and “Trashy Town.” One book that has quickly become a class favorite is “Lionheart.”
There has also been a growing interest in our trains! Many days, the children will take up the entire rug with a large train project. They have been learning new ways to collaborate, compromise, and work together effectively on these projects.
Hello Meeting
Over the past few weeks, we have introduced a new routine for taking attendance during Hello Meeting! Each child has a rock with the first letter of their name on it, which they have decorated and made their own. When they come into the classroom, we encourage them to move their rock from the “home” basket to the “school” basket.
Then, during our Hello Meeting, we pick up each rock one-by-one from the “school” basket and we ask whose rock it is. The children can then come up and place their rock on our ten-frame board. After everyone’s rock is placed, we count how many friends came to school that day!
At first, many of the children only recognized their own rock, but now they are able to identify each other’s letters as well. They are also improving their counting skills and beginning to understand that the empty spots on the board correlate to the friends who are at home. It has been amazing to see how quickly their literacy and math skills are emerging through this new routine!
Snack
Snack time has also included some new routines lately! Now, instead of choosing a random seat, the children have been practicing finding the plate that has their picture next to it and sitting in that spot. This allows them to sit with different friends on different days which encourages their flexibility and strengthens their connections with everyone in the class.
We have also used snack time as an opportunity to teach the children some basic signs in American Sign Language. At first, we started with “more” and “please” and then gradually introduced the words “food” and “water” so they could sign “more food please” and “more water please.” The Pumpkins have been so interested in learning ASL that we made a visual board for them and have started teaching signs for the specific snacks we eat! So far, they have learned the signs for “crackers” and “fruit.”
Gross Motor Time
Gross motor time has been full of acting, climbing, and chasing in recent weeks! On the track, many of the children like to do dramatic play games such as being firefighters or doctors. Oftentimes, the children will set up the chairs on the track to make an impromptu doctor’s office. Then, one person acts as the doctor as their patients sit around and wait to get bandaids and ice packs. Sometimes they even pull up their sleeves to get a pretend shot – so brave!
In the gym, we have been practicing lots of rock climbing! Whenever the rock wall is open, they run right over and take turns climbing to the top.
There has also been a growing interest in basketball, and the kids will often practice throwing the balls into our miniature hoops.
As always, the Pumpkins love a good obstacle course and we have been configuring new ways to arrange the mats for them to climb, slide, and jump.
The blue foam blocks are a tried and true favorite for our class. They love using the blocks as part of their dramatic play. On this day, they arranged all of the blocks together to create a boat so they could sail away. We wished them farewell and good luck on their journey!
Some of the children have also begun using the blue blocks to hit the balls across the floor, similar to hockey or croquet!
Lastly, the recent snowy weather has brought immense joy to our Pumpkins! They love to make snowballs, climb over the mountains of snow, and explore the effects that the colorful chalk has on the white snow.
