Pirates

Today ended our pirate play.  The room has been full of
activities to enhance our play.  Here’s a glimpse.
    
Dramatic play has been front and centre in the room.  So much
has happened in this area from steering the ship or rowing the boat,
using a compass, fighting off sea monsters and searching through
the treasure chest.
    
In the sensory table we played with the idea of walking the plank
but beware of the sharks down below.  And of course there was lots
of jewels and sparkly things.

At the art table we made our own pirate face and created a
pirate name.
 
In the sandbox we found the pirates hideout with gold nuggets.
 
Our new toy became a pirate ship to ride on.

  And we learned a new song to sing. 

Tomorrow I`ll show you some great pictures from our outdoor pirate
adventure at the shipwrecks.

Apple Pie Tarts

       
This morning the children were welcomed with an invitation
to make apple pie tarts.  I had made a few already so the room
smelled delicious.
           
It started with a simple photo recipe.  Take two slices
of apples and cut them into little pieces.
 
     Then fill your pre-made tart shell
      
   and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
 
Sprinkling with cinnamon sugar, rather than mixing the
apples, sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, meant less sugar in
the pie and less dirty dishes.
   
            Bake, cool and enjoy.

Educators Learn and Play

Sorry I haven’t posted in a few days but I have been busy, not just with work, but with co-planning and facilitating a conference for local educators in the early years.
    
It was a wonderful experience bringing many early childhood educators, and a few primary teachers, together for several hours to inspire and be inspired. 
Local Early Childhood Educators presented the topics Explore your Backyard, Social Media, Art, and Oral Storytelling.  We are privilege to have such talented peers in our community.
       
Another ECEr provide an opportunity to chat about ‘loose parts on the playground’.  He brought a large variety of props he built and uses to encourage outdoor exploration.
       
A variety of displays, including documentations, invitations and posters, were available around the school to provoke conversations.
       
Bringing this conference together, with my friend Jackie, was an honour to give back to our learning community.  To have the opportunity to bring us together in a field that is often difficult to do filled me with very positive energy.

Apple Boats for Snack

    
          Today we ate sailboats for snacks.

               But we had to build it first.

Sticking the mast (pretzels) into the hull was fairly easy.
      
But sticking the sail (cheese slice) onto the mast proved tricky for some. 

Some of the boats went sail-less.  Or the sail was eaten separately.
         
I was inspired by a post at Creative Kids Snacks

         to create this recipe today.

Happy Dot Day~ish

       
Today our school celebrated “The Dot”.  As the families entered the school they found the floor littered with dots.  Some children walked around the dots others skipped and hopped from one dot to another.  Many students and staff wore dots, spots and polka dots too.

Some of the activities they found in StrongStart were:
   
                        Dot stickers and chalk at the art table.

                                Twister on the carpet.

                     Bingo Dotters at the easel.
     
The Dot encourages an "I'll try" attitude and that is what we've been seeing at the art table for the pass two weeks leading up to today.
            
              I hope you made a mark today.

Art from the Sign In Table

The first week back to school is a very busy time and that includes taking a new picture of every child that comes in.  Usually I would take their picture, print it off in the afternoon and the next visit would put it on magnet so they could sign in. It's time consuming.

The first week of school so many families are coming in that it makes me extra busy to put them on magnet as new families are arriving.  So this year I decided to change it up.  I still took their picture on their first day but waited to give them their photo till the second week.
              
This is what awaited them at the sign in area.  A pre-painted canvas and triangle shaped sticky notes.
 
This art piece worked on several skills; colour identification, fine motor (peeling the stickees apart), and turn taking.  We also learned how to apply the stickees and problem solve when they wouldn’t stay stuck.
           
It was a non-threatening entrance to a new environment for some little ones.  Families could work together to help create the art piece.  And children could come back and add more if they wished.
                 
Now we have a colourful piece of art that we worked together to create and at the same time helping to make the beginning of the year a little more peaceful.