Happy Halloween!

      Today was a very special and exciting day! We had our Halloween parade! Thank you to everyone who was able to make it, we had a lot of parents and grandparents that joined us! Here are some pics: 

Zoo Mobile

On Wednesday, October 30th the Zoo Mobile from the San Francisco zoo came to visit our school. They brought animals that may be found in a city such as a: tiger salamander, turtle, gopher snake, and ferret. We were able to touch all the animals except the tiger salamander. Having the animals visit supports the following skills: Taking turns, Impulse Control,Shared Use of Space, and Curiosity and Initiative.

Lemos Pumpkin Patch

       On October 22, 2013, we took our field trip to Lemos Farm Pumpkin Patch. The children were very excited and had a wide variety of experiences throughout the morning, including, riding ponies, taking a hay ride, choosing pumpkins, riding the school bus, riding on the “choo choo train” and much more! After an eventful field trip, we asked the children to draw pictures of their favorite parts of the trip. We also asked them what they saw and did, and they had a lot to say.

This activity supports fine motor development (drawing), memory and knowledge, and language development.

Ariana: “Rainbow Dash goes on the horsey and the train. My daddy came too.”

Kaden: “I went on the horsey first and then the choo choo train.”

Mia: “I loved riding the horsey. The choo choo train was fun!”

Painting with Nature

        Taking advantage of this beautiful Indian summer, the children were able to explore our outside area for many natural materials that they thought would be useful to make a paintbrush. Each child collected their materials in a basket, which included twigs, leaves, prickly plants, weeds, and flowers. No living plants were hurt during this process. The goal was to give the children opportunity to discover the different textures, designs, as well as the process of being able to start a project from beginning to end. After a couple days of accumulating the desired materials, the children were able to create their paintbrush by putting an elastic rubber band around the materials and twig. Once the paintbrush was made, the painting began!

        

The children noticed that each paintbrush had a different type of plant attached to the twig, which created different patterns and textures on the paper. It was also discovered that one paintbrush was very prickly and hard and another was soft and smooth.

                                            

This activity allows children to explore their creativity and imagination freely. It also promotes self- expression with paint, hand eye coordination, fine motor development, experimenting and exploring with a new paint tool, and color recognition.

Stickers

Many children have been interested in stickers! We have been using all types of stickers in our pictures ranging from small to large, foam or paper, and Halloween themed or letters. Some children have been using the stickers as a starting point for their pictures, whereas others have been using them to make a collage. Students have even been expanding their ideas by creating their own stickers to wear or put on their paper!

Stickers practice a variety of skills! They are a great way to practice fine motor skills, as well as attention to task. The teachers put out a variety of sizes and textures to challenge the class to work on their problem solving skills and observe the creative processes the children come up with to complete their ideas. This is also a fun way for children to practice letter recognition.