Today was very cold and everyone had winter jackets and hats. I came up with a basket to put accessories in that the children could reach themselves (and we keep it by the "shoe spot" in the open closet). They were pleased to have a place besides the floor to keep hats and mittens. We also recently put some magnetic hooks on our garage door so they could hang up their own coats! Why didn't we think of that years ago! We found the hooks at www.emovendo.net, and were pleased with them. They are easily moved if we need to, but they can definitely hold a kid's jacket (and they come in varying strengths, if you want to hold something heavier).
So, the children soon got to work. Norah immediately spotted a new puzzle (a butterfly) and chose that as her first work. But while she was washing her hands, Lucy got it from the shelf so Norah watched Lucy finish it, and then had a turn. Norah was so interested in it (it was a bit challenging, being a kind of foam rubber and not wood) that she immediately did it again. Way to go! She moved on eventually to the bean bowl (which had a new ladle and a container to fill) and she was set for a while. Playdough rounded out her day, as it has for the last few days of preschool. There were a couple cookie cutters and a rolling pin, and she was focused and quiet for a good half hour. In between somewhere she looked through a book we had read last week called Action Alphabet, and she practiced acting out the actions that were described.
Gene made a beeline for his work binder once school began. We started putting them together on Friday, sorting and hole-punching all the work the children have created and putting them in the binder so they can be organized. All artwork and drawing (and later math and language papers) go on top of the dining room table so I can put a name on them (though later that can be done by the children) and they stay there to dry if need be. They are then put in the work box (just a big red box with a lid) until Friday. On Fridays we will sort through the work box at the end of preschool, and everyone can choose their best work to keep in their binders.
Gene had not finished putting in all his work on Friday, so on his own initiative he got the hole puncher and finished (Lucy wanted to watch). Then he took out the newest work I had shown him, writing on a chalkboard. He wrote a few letters (tracing the sandpaper letters with his fingers if he forgot how to make them), before wiping the chalkboard down with a wet cloth and putting it away. He did a Winnie the Pooh puzzle, the butterfly puzzle, and then worked on spooning beans. The first time he had done that in a long time. He also drew a few pictures with a pencil, and then I showed him how to use a ruler to make parallel and horizontal lines, and he colored in the squares that resulted with markers. He read a few books as well before preschool was over for the day.
Lucy had a puzzle day- she did the butterfly puzzle, a duckling floor puzzle (thanks Reenie!), and a small ABC wooden puzzle. She got a new letter drawn in her sound book (now she has r, a and m) and also spent a good deal of time using playdough. We took a picture of her creation, though, because it was quite unique:
She cut out a bunch of stars, made a hole in the center of each with the end of the rolling pin, and then gave them each two "eggs".To go home, everyone could reach their own coats, mittens and hats, and Lucy even tried to help Norah button her coat. We really should put that coat on the floor and let the childen practice on it. It seems a little more appealing than the button frame, and maybe it would entice them to the frame...
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