For programs who shut down over the summer or for those who run a summer camp program, it’s somewhat bittersweet to return to school in the fall. For me, it is always sad to see summer come to a close, but there is also something exciting about a new school year starting. Here are some things that I look forward to as a new
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I was inspired by the textured clothespin idea from Teach Preschool, so we used some other materials to make some textured clothespins of our own! Using these around the preschool classroom is a fun sensory experience and wonderful for fine motor skill development. You could use almost any type of collage materials that you can find (buttons, googly eyes, pom poms, beads, foam shapes) and
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I saw these adorable snowman treats on The Amazing Mess blog – so I made a bunch for myself and bagged them up as small gifts. But then I thought – this was so easy and fun … the kids would LOVE this! And even though making these are fun (and tasty) – there were other ways to extend this activity so that the children learn
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We have been exploring “scents of the season” these past couple of weeks in preschool. As we get ready for Christmas, I saw these cute pinecone trees on The Wool Acorn blog, and I thought this would be wonderful for the children to make. But I wanted to incorporate a holiday scent for the children to explore … so we made sure our pinecones were
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August through October is apple picking season here in Connecticut! Our family visited one of our local pick-your-own farms for some Macintosh and Gala apples which are in season right now. We’ll definitely be back later this fall for the Cortlands, Golden Delicious and others. Many local preschools schedule a field trip to an orchard, which helps the children learn about where apples come from
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We have some awesome college students who are lead the planning of our summer camp one year! Their enthusiasm and creativity are evident in all they do … and we just had to share it here! These are ideas from our “Sailing the seas” theme, which lent itself to great projects and experiences like building tin foil boats, making sandcastles and seashell picture frames. The week
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Caring for a small pet, such as a fish or reptile, can provide young children with the opportunity to learn more about animals firsthand. As preschool teachers, we know that young children are engaged and learn best by DOING. We can certainly teach about animals through books and pictures … but how much MORE will they learn when they can actually interact with one.
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I may be going out on a limb here, but I imagine almost EVERYONE has a favorite Dr. Seuss story that they remember growing up. My personal favorite Dr. Seuss book is … “Green Eggs and Ham” … hands down! I could recite it by heart! For my children, it’s “The Cat in the Hat“. We are coming up on March 3rd and NEA’S
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If you are lucky enough to live somewhere with winter weather – you can bring the outdoor in for a little snow day fun! Painting with (and ON) snow is a fun way to let children explore concepts of color mixing and the scientific properties of snow. First, we scooped up a small bucket of clean snow and brought it inside (if you scoop
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At this time of year, children get excited about all the holidays coming up. It is important to take some time before and during Thanksgiving to talk to young children about their blessings … what they have to be thankful for. Many children can easily talk about all the things they would like to have or “want” … but how about talking about how grateful they
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