Spring!

Spring is a season that I always look forward to because everything comes to life. This past month I have been incorporating lots of activities and experiences that deal with this phenomenon. We have been going on nature walks (when it is not raining...), listening for frogs or toads croaking, and many parents have involved their children in planting in the garden or just a flowerpot! During the social we have had a root-vue farm where we planted seeds and watched the roots grow through a clear panel, and had fantastic hands on experiences with live earthworms in the sensory table. Some like to touch them, and others do not, but they all are very curious and love to watch them "inch" their way around the dirt. We also had pretend birds in a nest in the social room that chirped or tweeted when you held them. I have been bringing pictures of the many beautiful horses that live across the street from our center, including lots of mares and foals! I also have been keeping the children updated through pictures and videos of the progress and development of the birds that I have living on a wreath on the front door of my own home. I started by showing them pictures of the nest and the six eggs, then once they hatched I showed videos of them begging for food with their mouths open wide. Now they are completely feathered and flying, and the children love to see what they have been up to! This has been a great opportunity to talk about mommies and babies, which is a topic that the parents love, and they can find examples of as they go throughout their day. This is such a great time of year for this kind of hands on learning, and so many opportunities for teachable moments.
Jamie