Caterpilars and Kinderstart - March Update

Our March was jam-packed and busy!!  We spent so much time outside enjoying the warmer weather.  We went on many walks around town and even made a few stops at the Rec Centre to climb and play games on the ``mountains``.  It won`t be too long before all the snow melts and we will be running in the grass!

During the last week of March, we enjoyed a fun Spring Break.  The boys were so excited to organize a game of ``street hockey``.  They all brought in their sticks from home and took turns playing the different positions!   We walked all the way to Ashland Park on one of the days and although the snow is melting, there was still a lot of snow we had to get trudge through to get to the swings and climbing structure - it was all worth the hard work!!  Another day, we went on a treasure hunt around town and enjoyed looking for a variety of things in nature.  One day, we even got to celebrate everyone`s birthday at once!!  We decorated the room with streamers and a balloons, made and decorated a cake, played birthday games and even had a dance party!

We`re looking forward to April and a beautiful Spring!      

Infants - March Blog

March has come and gone so fast!  It`s hard to believe it is over now.  This month we were able to enjoy lots of time outside in the beautiful spring weather.  The kids loved to go out and splash around in the puddles and there is so much more exploring to do now that all of the snow us melting!

The children are all such little monkeys - they absolutely love to climb on anything and everything!  We recently purchased a little climber and slide and we are so excited for it to arrive so the children can use it!

At the end of March, was Spring Break and it was such a fun week!  On Monday, we had a salon day where all children had their hair done and explored with velcro hair rollers.  We also pretended to paint our nails (using a paint brush and water!)  Tuesday was Doctor day and the children were invited to bring their favorite stuffed animal from home.  We pretended to be Doctors and help out little stuffed animals feel better!  On Wednesday, we had beach and camping day.  We set up a tent in our room and then got our bathing suits on and played in the water table - the children all loved splashing around and getting wet!  On Thursday, we all worked together to bake chocolate chip cookies (Mmmmmmm!!!), for our party on Friday.  During our party on Friday, we all got to try on some fun party hats and blowers.  We out on music and had a blast dancing!!

We are looking forward to April and all of the warm weather that will keep us outside exploring!  We will continue to work together to provide the children with fun learning opportunities, based on their interests.

Toddlebots - March Update

Well March has come and gone and it was a huge month for the Toddle Bots.

I joined the Toddle Bot group on March 4^th and shadowed Brittany for a week learning the routines and getting to know your children.  After the fastest week in history we said a sad good bye to Brittany and the month went on.

The Toddle Bots are so welcoming and we have quickly fallen into a routine mostly familiar to them.

The weather has warmed up significantly allowing us to spend lots of time out in the yard; I really enjoy being outdoors and have seen firsthand the benefits that large blocks of outdoor play can have on young children.  It allows them time to get deep into dramatic and physical play as well as absorbing vitamin D and access to fresh air.  My hope is to incorporate a lot of outdoor time as the weather warms up and we welcome summer.

We have added an informal circle time (children are free to come and go) to the Toddle Bot group, I realized early this month that the Toddle Bots LOVE to sing!! They also love to learn and practice actions to songs they know and are curious and excited to learn new songs!  At circle time I have introduced some props to help choose song both new and familiar to the Toddle Bots these include:

-A song box, where each Toddler can reach in and choose a song card, as we sing their song they get to put it back into the box.

-A song wheel where children can take turn spinning the arrow around to a song of their choice.

-A dice of pictures of familiar songs that can be shaken and rolled to choose a song.

-I have also been using finger puppets to tell stories and sing songs.

The Toddle Bots have been very open and receptive to Circle Time and often are all willing to clean up and come running when I begin singing our circle time gathering song.

We have spent time painting, gluing, and coloring this month so I can get use to each child’s abilities and begin planning activities to meet their needs.

We ended the month with a few spirit weeks and enjoyed dressing up and being silly.

I am really excited to be a part of the Toddle Bot group and can’t wait to see what next month has in store for us!

Happy Spring!

-Shawna

School-Age - February Update

The school age group has continued to prove to us just how resourceful and creative they are! We have seen them build and create amazing things with any materials we provide, from specialized art pencils to scraps of cardboard and fabric!

One thing we have observed this month is that a lot of the children are making things (pictures, cards, etc.) for others. Especially older children making things for their younger peers, which has helped build a sense of community throughout the program!

Kinders - February Update

Our kinders have been focusing a lot on kindness this month. We have read books about empathy and caring, talked about patience with younger children, and practiced pro-social skills like helping, listening, and taking turns through a variety of play experiences.

We have been doing lots of movement activities, freeze dance being the favorite! We have also done yoga and  dancing with scarves and ribbons! Any time they hear music, this group starts moving!

We look forward to visiting the forest throughout march and exploring the opportunities and new experiences that go with it! What and exciting time to be a Kinder!

Butterflies - February Update

February was a busy and exciting month for this group! They worked so hard at their weekly skating practices with Reba and Meagan and gained confidence each week. This really complimented their ongoing interest in hockey, too! Hockey has made it’s way into various types of play, from arena building to designing team logos and getting into character as their favorite players! We have used this interest to promote literacy skills by practicing writing names (and numbers) for their jerseys, and filling out “registration forms” to play.

Valentine’s Day was another highlight this month and the children were so excited to make cards with stamps and play with glittery valentine slime! We also read a few special Valentine’s books featuring Franklin, Dora, and other loveable cartoon characters!

Now that we are FINALLY coming out of the deep freeze, we have been enjoying more outdoor play again and the children have really been into using tools (plastic snow saws, snow molds, shovels) to work with the snow. Sometimes they work side by side just cutting or shaping the snow, and sometimes they work together to build walls and forts!

We have also tried doing yoga in the snow! Balancing was hard, but the children had so much fun trying and had big smiles the whole time!

Infant Room - Febraury Update

First of all, I would like to mention that we said goodbye to our little friend Nolan as he turned 2 and moved up to the Toddlebot Program - we will miss you Nolan!  And , we welcomed Brantley to the Infant Room and look forward to getting to know him and his family! 

February has been an extremely cold month and we have had very little time to play outside so we have kept busy with many different activities indoors.  One day we brought snow in and filled our water table, then gave the children construction vehicles and spoons and they had so much fun!  Another day we did an activity finding letters in Oatmeal, which was a great way to promote 'I Love to Read' month.  We also enjoyed reading stories, doing felt stories, and having puppets read our stories to us! 

Valentines day we had a little party and gave our friends their cards!  We made crafts for our wall! 

We are hoping March will bring us more outside time!