September 9-13, 2019
We had a very busy second week in Room 8. Whether we were bonding with our peers, meeting our new Art teacher, or working on our hand-eye coordination during P.E., we did not have a minute to spare. Starting Monday morning, the classroom was set up with a variety of new activities. Each task is set out to focus on a different area of development. While the purpose of many of these activities will overlap, we like to give each child the opportunity to see the importance of developing and strengthening each skill at each task. For example, the children had the chance to visit a few different centers throughout the week including name sign-in, Zingo!, coloring-in shapes, pattern tiles, and rubber-band boards. First, when the children arrive, they learned that the first part of our morning routine is signing or writing their name upon arrival. The purpose of this activity is to help establish a morning routine, as well as, enhance our fine motor skills. We are not as focused on the product of the name, but instead, the commitment to following the expectations of the morning. This creates routine, which is extremely beneficial to child development. It allows the child to understand the process of order, enhances the ability to follow directions, while also helping the child to feel safe and establish important habits. In addition, signing-in each morning allows each child to recognize their name with ease and over time, strengthen their fine motor skills. This week we also set out two activities with a main focus of strengthening our fine motor skills. One of the tasks was rubber band boards, which are small square wood boards with lines of small nails covering the surface. The children used any of the hundreds of rubber bands sitting on the table to cover the wooden boards. Some stretched the larger bands across the whole board, while others made various shapes with the smaller rubber bands. This is such a great activity for the children in that it not only helps with shape recognition, but it also allows the children to strengthen the muscles they will use in all fine motor tasks. The process of stretching out the rubber band to place it on the nails takes power, and the ability to manipulate the rubber band into a shape takes even more strength. We were impressed by each child’s ability to complete this task. They took pride in their designs and creations. Another activity that was set out this week was at the Art Center. The children were given the choice between two tasks that both focused on strengthening their fine motor grip. They could either draw their own shapes and color them in or color in premade shapes. The purpose of this activity was to learn to “pinch” the small piece of crayon and use patience to fill the entire shape with one color. The children took a special liking to this task and almost every child visited this station! Chloe chose to draw her own shapes by tracing the shape stencils, while Wyatt colored in four shapes so carefully that he was able to keep the crayon inside the lines. While this task helps reinforce their ability to follow directions, it truly focuses on strengthening our fine motor skills, which is an essential ability for the rest of our lives. Room 8’s favorite activity set out each morning this week was the game of Zingo! The children flocked to this game each morning and waited for more friends to arrive so that they could get started with a full game immediately. Zingo! touches on a huge variety of important skills that help each child further develop. The children learn the importance of following directions, team work, communication and patience. After learning to play the game, the children understood that if they did not play by the rules, then, the game would not work. For instance, if someone was the “Zinger” and had a card, the children quickly learned that this would not be a fair match. The skill of following directions builds over a long period of time through child development. At age 4 and 5, children can follow multi-step directions. In addition, the game of Zingo! greatly improves self-confidence. It forces each child to practice their communication skills. Whether they are acting as the “Zinger” or playing with a card, each child must interact with their peers for the game to function. As the games progressed through the week, each game became louder! By the end of the week, we would hear Isabella and Jacob shouting “CAT!” or “I have a GHOST!” The children do not even realize they are improving their ability to communicate each time they play the game. We will continue to play many more board games throughout the year. Each will help strengthen our communication skills. On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to visit the Atelier (Studio) and meet our new art teacher, Joanne. Each Wednesday, one small group from our class will spend an hour with Joanne. We will alternate the group each week so that each child will go every other week. She introduced a few activities during our first session including painting, beading, looking at various items in a light projector, and drawing a landscape. Joanne will provide an incredible experience for the children filled with wonder and invention. As the atelierista, Joanne will provide an inviting space with new materials for the children to master all kinds of artistic techniques. We can’t wait to visit again next week and see the new materials we will be able to research. This newsletter is provided to give you a small glimpse of the “what” and “why” of the work we do in Room 8. We love getting to know each of your children and can’t wait to see them develop into little young ladies and gentlemen! We want to wish you all a Shabbat Shalom and wonderful weekend. We will see you on Monday for another full week of new experiences here in Room 8. Shabbat Shalom, Mari and Aaliyah REMINDERS:
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Pre-K Room 8Mari Greifer Archives
March 2020
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