Thursday, November 7, 2013

You Don’t Have to Build It for Them to Play

Yesterday I posted about beginning our outer space play using small
toys and that our next step is to build a rocket ship dramatic play. 
I’ve been waiting for a large fridge box to use to make the rocket but
it hasn’t arrived yet. 
This morning some of the children arrived saying they were excited
to play in the rocket ship.  Their caregiver had warned them that it
might not be ready yet, which was true. 
The children hovered around the area where the rocket will be, our
slide will be the frame of the rocket and we’ll wrap the cardboard
box around it.
              nov 7 014
I found a large piece of fabric and draped it over the slide.  Immediately they dove inside, up the slide and in from behind.  I thought, why wait to bring out the pieces that we’ve been collecting? 
nov 7 012  nov 7 020
So I carried out a large box full of loose parts that may be used on our rocket.  The boys began to explore the materials.
nov 7 013 nov 7 015
They began to create different scenarios.
nov 7 029 nov 7 032 nov 7 030 
Working together to figure out how to make the props work in their play.
nov 7 021 nov 7 022
Figuring out how to work with disruptions.  A much younger child became interested in the hose.  The boys stopped their play and watched her.  Her mother encouraged her to move around to climb the slide.  Play began again.
nov 7 018 nov 7 019
       Cooperative.  Imaginative.  Role playing.  Learning.
    nov 7 033
Today I learned that I don’t need to have everything set up for the children to play.  They reminded me, again, that much more learning can happen with loose parts then with a finished product.  We’ll still build a rocket ship but the children have had time to play with the parts and may have a better understanding of how they might use those parts in the construction of our rocket ship.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Blast Off!

We’ve finished our planning for outer space and now it is time to play.
             nov 5 070
We’ve started small and slow with two 'small world' play areas. 
    This is the first one they see as they walk in the room.

           nov 1 011
The second one is in the far corner of the room that will eventually
                   turn into outer space. 

         nov 1 012                                                                                   nov 5 102
I was very lucky to find these space shuttles, astronauts and lunar
         mobiles at a thrift store just last week.

nov 5 001 nov 5 014
                      nov 5 017
Starting slow allows the children to explore the rockets and add to
the ideas of what our big cardboard rocket should look like when
                            we build it.

     nov 5 021
What parts does it have?  Fuselage, windows, wings and …..
stay tune, we will begin building our play rocket very soon.

Did you notice, in the pictures, that only boys are playing with these toys.  There were a few girls but I didn’t capture good pictures of them.  I plan on asking the girls their thoughts, feelings and ideas of what we could add to this play.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Art Area Makeover

Last June I was introduced to a new resource book.
             Capture
Cathy Weisman Topal and Lella Gandini’s book is about encouraging creativity through discovery, collecting, sorting and experimenting with recyclable stuff.  Our families participated by collecting items from nature, around their home and their recycling bins.  They brought in empty clear plastic salad containers for the display bins.
             beautiful stuff bag tag
This past September I attached the above note to lunch size paper bags to encourage more families to contribute to our art shelves.
           sept 19 030
Next I rearranged the shelves and added a second table to the art area. 
sept 19 031 sept 19 032
              sept 19 033
The main table is for exploration, using any materials off the three shelves.  I discovered that it took a lot of encouraging from me before the families started accessing the shelves. 
sept 5 048 sept 5 057
The main table has containers that house scissors, glue sticks, markers, hole punches, and pencil crayons.
      sept 5 066 sept 23 033
This table is busy everyday.  Now that materials are easily accessible the children are constantly exploring, manipulating and creating.  Especially the scissors, snipping and cutting is a favourite.
             sept 24 016 sept 26 019
This new table is inspiring the children and adults to use materials with no set outcome.  Seeing objects in new ways, for new purposes.
            oct 18 016 sept 10 039
Sorting, attaching (tape and glue guns are available on one of the shelves) and readjusting.
                     sept 26 027
                 sept 10 047
The families are past their shyness with using the materials off all the shelves and daily I’m impressed with the art and structures that are being created.
  sept 19 029  oct 1, 2013 004
There is a second table in the art area that I set up with a daily art or craft activity.  Interestingly it is not as busy.  I'm considering removing it.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Fairy Pumpkin Homes

   nov 1 018
Hallowe’en is over and we had a bunch of little pumpkins left over. 
   PicMonkey Collage
We decided to make them into fairy homes and take them to Fairy Lane.
nov 4 012 nov 4 029
As the children painted their pumpkins they thought about a message or
name to write on a sign post to place by their fairy home.

        nov 4 089 nov 4 087 
When we arrived at fairy lane we looked for our old doors and new ones
that other friends have left. Can you spot the one on the stump?

nov 4 036  nov 4 040
We picked our pumpkin and sign and started to look for a place to set them.
         PicMonkey Collage3
It took a few children time to find the perfect spot for their pumpkin.

If you go for a walk in Fairy Lane, look for the new homes and see if any
                       fairies have moved in.
                nov 4 084
nov 4 047 nov 4 048                                                  nov 4 054
nov 4 066 nov 4 071
nov 4 081 nov 4 093
                                             nov 4 078

This sign sums up the feeling we all enjoyed in the woods today.
nov 4 057