Motion of Light

We have been incorporating the flashlights within the classroom these past two weeks. The children have been very interested in moving the light and observing how it looks when shone on different surfaces. They have been shining it onto the floor, the wall, the ceiling, and clothing and into mirrors.

During a lesson where the children were observing their shadows, many of the children brought over flashlights. They would aim their lights onto the wall, onto their shadows and then back towards the projector where the light was coming from. They were testing out how the light looked when shone on these different surfaces.

Then we placed a mirror underneath a table where the children would crawl on top of it. As they would crawl underneath the table, the children would bring the flashlights with them and shine the light into the mirror.  A few children would lie on their backs looking upwards shining their flashlight to the bottom of the table. This has showed us that the children’s thinking by how they associate the light to be aiming upwards while lying down. We would like to place foil or mirrors to the bottom of a table so the children will be able to lie down and look up at themselves with the flashlight.

Many of the children have also been walking around with the flashlights and shining them onto the ceiling. They follow the light with their eyes and have been spinning their bodies to make the light move. One child held two flashlights up to the ceiling and was observing how they made light on two different spots on the ceiling.

These are a few of the explorations we have been doing that are focused on the motion of light. These explorations will become more in depth as the weeks go on.

Light

     At the beginning of the term we introduced the children to multiple types of light sources.  We brought flashlights into the classroom, let them explore with tap lights, introduced the children to our light table, and brought in the projector.
     We noticed that the children were very excited about the flashlights and how they could move and manipulate the light source.  They would take the flashlights and move them about the classroom, shining them on various items and surfaces.  Since there seemed to be an interest in how the light moved, we wanted to bring in a stationary light source for the children to see how they would react.

     The children seemed very interested to see where the light was coming from.  We set the projector on a shelf and projected light onto the wall across from it.  Many of the children were attracted to the light, where it was coming from, and would put their fingers up to it.  They followed the light to the wall and noticed there were shadows.  The children noticed their shadows, but not all of them were quite sure where the shadow was coming from.  They also noticed shadows of other children and adults in the area.  A few of the children also began to interact with the shadows.  We are excited to see where the idea of shadows leads us.

September Newsletter

Dear Families,

            Welcome to a new school year!  We are very excited to get to know all of our new families and can’t wait to let the children explore in the classroom.  We look forward to a busy school year.

            We wanted to start off by inviting our families to bring in a family picture.  These will be displayed in the classroom and will give the children an opportunity to see their family when they are at school.  Sometimes it gives the children comfort knowing they can look at their families while they are at school.

            We will have two early childhood student teachers in our classroom this term.  They are students at U of M who are towards the end of their teaching program.  Maya will be with us on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Sherrell will be with us on Thursdays and Fridays.  You will see them around the classroom and they will be working collaboratively with Charlene and I on explorations and learning groups with the children. 

            One of the important aspects about our program is the documenting that we do.  We take photographs, video clips, and write down notes about what the children are saying and doing.  This helps us to find out what the children are thinking so we can help scaffold them to the next level of thinking and learning.  You will see documentation around the classroom and notice webs of thinking, which children are in which learning groups, and documentation regarding specific things happening around the classroom. Please feel free to take a minute at drop off or pick up to check these out.  We would also love if you wanted to write down on our communication board interesting things you may have seen at home related to what we are talking about at school, or something you think we could expand on at school.  We would love for our families to be as much a part of this process as possible.

            Please know that we have some severe allergies in our classroom this semester.  For this reason, we ask that parents refrain from bringing in food from home other than what is in your child’s lunch.  Any breakfast from home or snack a child had in the car should be finished before entering the classroom.  We know you will join us in maintaining the safety of our children, which is our first priority. 

            We know that starting your child at school for the first time can be stressful and exciting at the same time.  One of the strategies we usually talk to parents about is maintaining consistency.  After signing your child in for the day, hang up coats, and put lunches away, we would invite you in to get your child acclimated to the classroom.  You are welcome to spend some time playing with them in the classroom.  When you are ready to leave, we will make sure to continue extending that play with your child.  We recommend letting your child know you are going to leave, telling them you will be back in a little while, and then leaving.  If a parent seems anxious at drop off time, their child will sense that and feed off of it.  You are welcome to call the front desk and they will transfer you down to the classroom so we can give up an update on your child.  We want parents to feel secure having their child with us at school, so if there is ever anything else we can do to help, please let us know. 

            Some parents have asked us about donations to the classroom.  At the beginning of the school year, we would be interested in non-toxic house plants.  Some examples of these are: African Violets, Bamboo, Begonia, Jade, Spider Plant, or a Boston Fern.  As we get to know the children and their interests, we will let you know if there are any types of recycled materials we might be interested in incorporating into the classroom.

            We will also start to update our classroom blog in the next few weeks.  We will post documentation from the classroom. It will be another neat way for families to keep track of what is happening, and something you can share with your family and friends.

            This school year should be exciting and we are very excited to get to know the children and all of our families.  If you ever have any questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to ask.  Thank you in advance for all of your support this school year!

Catie Stone and Charlene Rodegher