Construction Crew

Today I was observing a group of boys working together really well to build a structure out of the large wooden blocks.  The four of them decided and agreed where each block should go.  Child 1: "No, over here is better because we want a ramp right?"  Child 2: "Oh yeah!" 

They were pretty smart about where a few of the longer, thinner blocks went, like using them to support the unstable tower.

When a couple younger friends came to check it out, they accidentally knocked a few blocks down, but instead of the boys getting mad, they were very kind about it. "Watch out please, we're trying to build a house."

Castell: "what kind of house is it?"

Child: "A tower house!"

I also noticed they saved space behind the house so they could use the now empty shelves as their beds, too funny.

This kind of play engages the children in teamwork skills, along with balancing objects, and sharing toys.

-Mr.Castell

Making Apple Crisp

          Today we made some apple crisp. First we washed our hands

    and then we used a special machine that peeled the apples. You

    push the apple onto a sharp fork and then spin the handle around

    and around until all the peel is off the apple.                                                  

         We cut the apple up in little pieces.

       "I'm cutting my apple into little pieces!"

         We then placed the apple pieces into our pan.

         We put all our ingredients into a bowl. First came a 1/2 cup 

    of flour and then 3/4 cup of brown sugar.

         We also added 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/4 cup of butter. Then

    we put it on top of the apples.

         This is what it looked like before it got baked. 

         Enjoying our yummy apple crisp!

    ~Mrs. Friesen~

New play food

Several children were playing with the new food, so I sat by them and observed their play.

"J'ai un couteau pour couper." (I have a knife for cutting.)

Mrs. R - "What are you making?"

Child - "Supper"

"Num, num, num."

"I'm making this for my mom."

"I'm putting honey."

The children played for a long time, taking turns with the food, cutting the food for each other and sharing items.

~ Mrs. Rodrigues

Fall Trees

         Lately we have noticed how the leaves on the trees have been

    changing colours, so we decided to make our own trees out of

    paper, fruit loops and toilet paper rolls and glue. Some of us liked

    eating the fruit loops instead of gluing them on our tree!

         "Look at all of my colours on my tree!"

         "First you put the glue on!"

         "One and two!"

         This is what our trees look like!

 

    ~Mrs. Friesen~

Puppy visit

We had a special visit from Adam and Rhys's puppy, Simon. When he arrived, we were very excited.  We all wanted to see him and pet him.  We sat in a circle so that it would be easier for us all to have a turn to visit with him.  We learned about what he ate, where he sleeps and what he likes to play with.  Simon explored the entire room and seemed to enjoy his visit.  We enjoyed learning about Simon.

Thank you for bringing Simon for a visit!

Fall is here!

Earlier this week the children went on a scavenger hunt for fallen autumn leaves around the playground. They found all kinds of different colours, textures and sizes.

Today we used those leaves for a special arts and crafts activity; leaf wreaths!

"Mrs. Davis this leaf looks like a rainbow"!

The masterpieces! 

                                                                 -Mrs. Davis 

Cotton swab painting

I put out some paint, paper, cotton swabs and invited the children over to the art table.  A few came over, picked up the swab and began painting.

                                         "I'm making a crocodile."

                                        "Mom uses these at home."

                                         "I'm making a kitty cat."

                                         "I'm making something so big, it's an arctic fox."

                                         "I'm making a kitty cat too."

                                         "C'est pour maman et papa."

 

This activity encouraged fine motor skills, colour recognition, focus and creativity. 

 

 

-Mrs. Rodrigues

Working together

         Building with blocks is a lot of fun, but building blocks with a

    friend is more fun!

         "Let's put a blue block in this spot!"

         "Look what I'm making!"

         "This red block goes right in here!"

         "I can do things you cannot do, you can do things I cannot do;

   together we can do great things."   Mother Teresa

   ~Mrs. Friesen~