March 2013

            Welcome to March!  It is hard to believe that half of the winter semester is already behind us!  We have been so busy in the classroom and have a busy rest of the semester ahead of us.

            The children have been working in their learning groups over the course of the semester.  We have found a group for each child in our classroom of an idea or concept they are interested in.  We have our learning group chart at the front of the room and will put up documentation from each group showing the kinds of things the children have been working on.  Our interns are also working on a newsletter to share with families describing their groups.  I will make sure to email this to our families when it is complete.

            We have been working a lot with the properties and manipulating clay, we have been using weaving and weaving materials, we have been exploring instruments and sound, and we have been exploring animals and how our bodies can move to mix and manipulate tools.

            As you might have noticed, we have rearranged the room.  Above our stage, we have taken down the cabinet doors and would like to create a space to represent the different cultures/heritages/families.  If you bring in an item representing your family, we will make sure to display it for the children to see.  We thought this might be another way to represent the children in our room.

            As always, if you have any questions or comments, please let us know.  Have a great month!

Exploring the piano

              The children have been showing an interest in music this school year.  After our exploration of the auto harp, I decided to introduce the children to the piano that we have at the front of the building.  I decided to explore the piano with them because they seemed interested in the idea of a new instrument based on some of the new instruments we brought into the classroom previously.  I chose a piano because it is a common instrument and it is possible that some of the children have seen one in the past.  I wanted to see how they would explore.

                The children seemed very excited to explore with the piano and immediately figured out that the keys made noise.  They were very gentle and used their fingers to press lightly with the keys.  I introduced the term “keys” and they immediately began to use that term when talking about the piano and what they were doing.

                There was not a lot of verbal language coming from the children as they explored.  They seemed interested in the different notes but did not seem to make the connection about the ascending or descending pitch as they moved down the piano.  Most of the children seemed interested in the ability to make sound by pressing on a key.  I would like to explore this instrument again with the children to see how they will react to continued exposures.

Weaving

     We have been exploring many aspects of weaving. Some of the children have showed an interest in threading different materials such as wooden beads, tree cookies and tiles. We have used shoe laces, wooden rods and yarn to thread with. Ms. Rodegher brought in a standing loom into the classroom .The students used ribbons to thread through the holes one side and back through the other. The multiple skills involved in weaving will further be investigated in the upcoming week along with various materials to weave with.

February 2013

     It is hard to believe another month has come and gone!  It has been very exciting to see the children come back into the classroom and get excited about the interesting things we are exploring.  Our interns, Ms. Stine, Ms. Kerby, and Ms. Gingell are exploring various aspects of habitats with the children.  We are doing this through sand, paint, collaging, noises and music, and interactions with materials around the classroom.  We have also been exploring with clay and weaving, giving the children an opportunity to explore and use various strategies to interact with the materials.  We will update the progress of these investigations through photos and written documentation which we will post on our classroom blog.  The teachers are beginning to think about which children are interested in specific aspects of our investigations so we can form our learning groups.  When we do this, we will update our board at the front of the classroom.

     As you know, the weather in Michigan is very unpredictable!  It is important to make sure the children are prepared for the weather if we get the opportunity to go outside at school.  If snowpants, boots, and mittens are brought to school, we will make sure they are put on your child before we go outside.  Please remember to label each item from home with your child’s name.  This makes things much easier when trying to remember which apparel belongs to which child.

      We also wanted to remind you that the week of Feb. 25^th through March 1^st is our spring break.  There is no school this week.  We return to school the following week.

     As always, if you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to ask!  Have a wonderful month.

Catie Stone and Charlene Rodegher

Using the Autoharp

     Music has been a huge part of our classroom this school year.  The children are always singing and using the musical instruments in the basket in the classroom.  I thought it would be interesting to introduce the children to some instruments they might not normally see.  Our program has Autoharps available so I brought one into the classroom.
     I modeled for the children how to strum on the autoharp using the picks instead of their fingers.  The children caught on very quickly and very quickly decided they enjoyed the sound the autoharp made.  They were using words like "strum", "harp", "pick", and discussing the sound.  One of the children noticed that by pressing one of the buttons the sound changed on the harp.  Many of the children were interested in the vibrations of the strings as the pick went across them.  They were continuously putting their hands on the autoharp to feel the strings vibrate.
     I plan on using this with the children on more occasions to see how their ideas build and comfort level with the music strengthens.

Exploring Clay

     As a group, our classrooms decided to explore with clay this year.  We are interested to see how each different age group reacts and manipulates clay and what types of strategies the children use as they get older.
     In our classroom, we chose to start exploring with red clay.  The children at first were not that interested in clay, but after a few times of being exposed to it and exploring with it, they began to gain confidence and got excited about working with the clay.  Many of the children were exploring how it feels.  The children love to use play dough in the classroom, but clay feels different and leaves a residue as they work with it, so it took a few tries before they became more comfortable.
     Right away we noticed the children describing how the clay feels and beginning to use their hands to manipulate it.  One of the first things we noticed was how the children began pinching pieces off of a big chunk of clay.  Some of the children started to line the little pieces up and others attempted to roll the clay between their hands.  It was very interesting to watch the interest grow as their comfort level grew.

January 2013 Newsletter

Welcome to January!  We are excited to see our returning children and welcome those new children starting with us this term.  There are some new changes to the classroom this term.  Charlene Rodegher will be co-teaching with Mrs. Stone now because of Mrs. Paris’ retirement.  Charlene is a graduate of the Early Childhood program at U of M-Dearborn and has worked as a staff member and teacher substitute in our classroom.  She will be with us through the end of the Spring term.

 We also have four Early Childhood interns this term.  They will be leading investigations with the children and eventually take over many of the responsibilities of the classroom.  Allyssa will be with us all day on Mondays and Wednesdays, Nancy will be with us on Thursdays, Brandy will be with us on Wednesdays, and Lauren will be with us in the mornings Monday-Thursday.  They all seem very excited to be a part of the classroom and look forward to meeting the children.

In the winter months, even in snow, we will be going outside to explore if the wind chill is above 20 degrees.  We might not be outside for very long, but it is good for the children to explore outdoors when the weather permits.  Please bring shoes or boots that can withstand walking through snow.  You are also welcome to bring snowpants, hats, mittens, and any other outdoor gear appropriate for the playground.  It is important to make sure items are labeled with your child’s name.  It would be helpful if hats and mittens are placed in the sleeve of your child’s coat so we don’t have to search through each backpack.

On Monday, January 21^st, the center will be closed in observance of Martin Luther King Day.  No school.

We are very excited for a new semester.  We have a neat group of children and can’t wait to see where their interests are when the term begins.  As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please ask!