Utopia Preschool

This week we are learning about about Edna Lewis, the Grande Dame of Southern Cooking! To do this we are talking about our favorite food and recipes. We are drawing pictures of our favorite food, making it out of clay and Playdough, and pretend play in the Dramatic Play Area.  At Group Time week, we asked the children "What is your favorite food for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, or Snack?  Fiona: My favorite food for breakfast is crepes with chocolate and lemon curd.  Mikey: I like seaweed for snack. Beatrix: My favorite drink is lemonade! Lorelai: My favorite food for snack is cheese, then broccoli for dinner, pancakes for breakfast, and lemonade and apple juice for a drink.  Kate: I like a croissant for a snack.  Ynez: My favorite lunch is pasta.  Jude: Seaweed and crackers for snack!  Colette: I like to eat granola. That's for a snack. Pamela: My favorite is cheese for lunch. I have cheese in my lunch today. Bryce: Bacon and grits for breakfast!  F...

The Bike Area offers a gross motor strengthening activity where the children are learning to control their body, sense of balance, and understand direction. They also work on social skills like taking turns, asking for help, communicating with peers, and safety. Many of the children have varying abilities on the tricycles. They often return everyday to practice, strengthening their muscles and learning to control the bike! 

We love when families come to visit! We get to learn something new, hear stories, and show them around our classroom space. Thank you to all the parents who've volunteered their time with us.  Charlie's dad, Ryan, read us the story "Ava Twist, Scientist." He also sang us a silly song about animals at the zoo Chloe's mom, Jillian, read us two new books by Mo Willems,  "Should I Share my Ice Cream?" and "There is a Bird on Your Head!" Colette's mom, Dilva, taught us about her job as a hairstylist!  She also show us how to add a sparkly hair extension to a doll head, called Fairy Hair. Colette's dad, David, read us two stories, "The Mitten" and "The Bike Lesson"  Luna's mom (Jeanette) read us a story about the moon, which is where Luna got her name!  Donovan's mom, Melissa, came to see us on Donovan's birthday!  If you'd like to come into our classroom for an activity, or to help out with classroom tasks...

Finally, we have a real sandbox! The children helped us unload lots bags of sand to fill it up, then we were able to play! We came up with some rules to make sure that our time in the sandbox was fun and safe:  1) Only four kids at time  2) Keep sand inside the sandbox 3) Keep sand off our friends bodies and heads  4) Empty your shoes and put away your sand tools before leaving 

To celebrate Valentine's Day this year, the children have been making heart decorations for the classroom! We also asked the children how they show love to those around them.  Lorelai: You can give them a hug. Rylie: Helping others. Being kind. Mateo: Giving a high five! Chloe: Draw a picture Raegan: You can hug them! Colette: Play with them Ynez: Give a kiss Donovan: You can hug them. And you can play with them/ Kara: Give a kiss and a hug Fiona: Give them a present! Something they like. Kate: Tell them! Franco: Play with them. Kattaleya: Give them kisses Cian: I love Daddy. Rian: I love Mama! Emily: Sit next to them. 

We are learning all about people and moments in Black History that have changed our world for the better. This week was about Madam CJ Walker, a businesswoman and inventor who sought a cure for hair loss, specifically for Black Women. To learn about hair, we talked about ways we all take care of our own hair, and observed how all of our hair is different! The children used string, pipe cleaners, crayons, and markers to choose their own unique texture and color of their hair.  We also created a Hair Salon outside for the children to take care of one another's hair, and how to communicate with one another. Through these explorations, the children are learning about self identity and celebrating what makes us different. They are also working on a skills like writing, fine motor development, social emotional awareness and community building.     Jude, Donovan, and Mateo take care of Rian's hair at the barbershop Avree and Fiona get highlights at the Salon Pamela asks for "4 ...

Donovan: Down to his house! Fiona: Jupiter. Cause the moon comes out and the sun is shining through the moon. Chloe: It lives in the water. Cause I watch The Hungry Caterpillar and I see the sun go down and close it's eyes. Arden: To the zoo! She sees a giraffe. Cian: Get dark. And we can sleep.  Rylie: Maybe Jupiter? Cause that's his home. Rian: In the sand. Cause in the beach, there sand.  Ismael: In the ocean? Cause I've seen it in shells. Charlie: I don't know. I only know where the stars go in the day. It's too bright in the morning so we can't see them. Jude: Down. It's sleeping! [It goes down to] places to explore. Like in the woods. Kattaleya: It goes down because we have to sleep.  Pamela: Down here in the ground. So it can sleep, then we can see.  Lorelai: In the water. It goes somewhere else to wake up, then it goes up again to wake up someone else.  Emily: I think it goes behind the houses, down low. Because I seen it in the window. It goes down ...

With all the rain we received this month, the weather was all the children were talking about! We decided to take the children on a Rain Walk to look at the weather up close. Before the walk, we talked about special clothes and tools we use when it rains, like umbrellas, raincoats, hoods, boots, and windshield wipers. Then we went on our way! On our walk, we asked the children to pay attention to their senses: What did they See, Hear, Smell, and Feel? Afterwards, the children drew pictures of their observations. We also collected rainfall in cups to measure how much rain was falling each day. This activity supports the children's understanding of nature, our local environment, language development, fine motor skills, and numbers.  Avree, Mikey and Kattaleya jump in a puddle during the walk     Our Rainboots. We're the different and the same!  Teacher Mary collecting hail during the storm  Colin, Franco, and Donovan observing plants covered in raindrops  Mak...