You See a Recycling Sort, BUT....

 You see a recycling sort, but there is SO much more happening in this activity! During the months of March and April we focus on learning about taking care of our planet...Green is Our Scene! Today the preschool children discussed recycle sorting during their circle time. Classification and sorting are key academic skills that children will continue to develop throughout their journey in school. Preschool 2 teachers implemented an activity that embodied these skills and more! Using the trash trucks, children needed to haul the "garbage" from one side of the table to the other. On the other side of the table, they used tweezers to sort the materials into the correct bowls. The use of tweezers develops their fine motor skills and promotes cognitive development in the areas of spatial awareness, concentration, and using their brain and hands simultaneously. They don't know it, but the children are also laying the groundwork for positive social interactions. They are taking turns, sharing materials, collaborating, and developing language. All of these skills contribute directly to being able to communicate successfully with their peers! This is the kind of learning that keeps us coming back for more! 

Creative Expression on Arbor Day

 Happy Arbor Day! What would we do without our trees?? Children are busy learning and appreciating the trees today! It's fun to recognize different characteristics in our trees and using new language to describe what we see! Trees come in all shapes and sizes. For this activity children were give brown and green paint and tasked with creating a tree how ever they wanted to! Wide and skinny trees, trees with a lot leaves, and trees with a lot of branches - they are all important to us! 

Circle Time for Infants!

These infants have been busy lately! While an infant's basic needs are our top priority, we value the focused time that we get to learn and develop new skills with them. As the babies grow, our circle time sessions are becoming more and more exciting. The children are strengthening their muscles and preparing their bodies for the motion of crawling. Here they are also developing small motor skills by shaking rattles, twisting and pushing parts of toys, and experiencing the cause and effect relationship between their actions and the toys. Other circle time activities that the babies enjoy include looking at themselves in mirrors, feeling new textures, and listening to their teachers read stories to them! It is such a treat to witness their growth and development at this young age. 

Mixing It Up!

Today we celebrate the Week of The Young Child with Tasty Tuesday! 

Our Toddler Two classroom has been busy mixing it up in the classroom!  They used their fine motor skills to use the spoon for mixing and stirring. Then, they added some yummy toppings to create a fun and pancake bread! It was a great way to practice our fine motor skills all while making something delicious!

 

Superhero Dress Up Day!

One of the most popular school-wide events is our Superhero Dress Up Day! Dress up days are so fun and a great way to bring the school together. The children voted for Superhero Day in our school election. For President's Day we discussed what a President is, how do we get a President, and how important our voices are. To make this concept applicable to their lives, we held an election! We set up a voting booth in our lobby and throughout the day parents, teachers, and students, cast the vote on Superhero Dress Up Day or Rainbow Dress Up Day for the month of March. This was a simple way to promote engagement with our activities calendar, help to solidify the concept of voting, and it gave children something to look forward to! 

 

The children had so much fun planting seeds and digging in the dirt! In a world where connecting with nature is becoming increasingly more difficult, we strive to nurture their curiosity and wonder.  As they dig their hands into the dirt, they are connecting, not only to our Earth, but to their sense as well. Children will continue to learn empathy and compassion as they care for their sprouting plants. While it was too early in the season to provide children with blooming plants, children are still able to learn about the changing seasons and cycles of growth and decay. Simply digging, feeling the sun and the breeze, and smelling the scents of spring brought a sense of calm and focused attention to the children.

  

Kindness Tree Celebration!

Congratulations to our Pre K class for completing their Kindness Tree. Upon completion, the class gets to choose how to celebrate and this time they chose a picnic party! Kindness Trees can be implemented at home or at school! Check out the Conscious Discipline website for more tips! 

"Use the Kindness Tree to recognize and celebrate acts of kindness in your School Family or home. Each time a kind act occurs, simply attach a heart to the Kindness Tree to represent the kindnesses occurring in your classroom or home."

I Can Build!

 Pre K 2 has been talking a lot about building and creating this month! This week they focused on building. Topics of discussion included tools used for building, building with boxes, and features of boxes. They also built things like their names and sentences. They used their new knowledge of building and applied to art and nature, as well. They built letters out of sticks and some even created their names, too! Applying new knowledge across many different domains is a skill that children will continue to strengthen throughout their learning journey. We are so proud to witness them getting off to a good start here at AoCS!

 Students built an obstacle course and used problem solving skill to make changes as needed. 

Children expressed their creativity by using art materials. Diving deeper into the topic of building and creating, they were asked to make something with the supplies they were given. Children created spinners, airplanes, kites, and more! 

 Friends building sentences together! 

 Practicing building my name! 

Helping Our Community Feel Loved

 Every gesture - no matter how small - has the ability to make a world of difference! Our school created valentines for a local nursing home to share a smile! We hope that we played a small part in making this Valentine's Day memorable for them and filling their hearts with happiness. 

A Gateway to Learning

Curiosity and exploration characterizes this stage of childhood development. While it may seem that our babies are simply playing with cups, they are actively engaged in developing their problem solving abilities. We equip each classroom with materials that allow the children to manipulate, tinker, and change the outcomes in various situations. Their own ideas take them down a path of discovery, and as teachers, we get to be along for the ride. We support them as they begin to gain their own understanding of how things work and love getting to nurture their inquisitive minds! 

 

"The blue cup doesn't quite fit."

 

"...but wait... what if I try it like this?" 

Straw Painting

 Our Pre-K One classroom used a straw to create masterpieces of art today.  Some used the straw like a paintbrush and others dipped the end in paint and then blew through the straw to create their art. 

Check out our little artists!