Skip to main content

Cooperative Play in our Threes Class

The power of play comes in many forms. Lately there's been much cooperative play happening in our Threes Class. Seemingly overnight, many of the children have transitioned from individual play to group play.

We can suddenly see how far they have come in regard to sharing, taking turns, using their words and expressing themselves creatively. The children are learning to reason and strategize, and to predict outcomes. All of that intellectual learning is facilitated through play.

 Kyler and Marcus diligently line up the long wooden ramps.

Marcus discovers that by lifting up one end, the ball begins to roll.

 Sophie and Georgia play with Mr. Potatoe Head together, discussing what body parts Mr. Potatoe Head needs.

While looking at the “life cycle” of frogs along with Georgia,
Sophie says “This one is the father, this one the mother, no, no...
 this one is the mother, this one the sister and this one the baby sister.”

Ella and Claire together, retelling the story of The Hungry Caterpillar.

 Our three year old preschoolers are now able to line up and wait their turn with
 little fear of someone cutting in front of them. They are comforted
 knowing their turn is coming.


 Sophia and Samuel start by playing side by side....


After a short while Sophia takes notice of how Samuel is stacking the tubes....

They start working together cooperatively, stacking tubes, realizing they can't stack a thinner tube on top of a wider one. “Where did it go?” Sophia asks Samuel. “It's gone down,” Samuel responds.

 When the tubes fall over, Samuel says with a smile
“Oh no! We have to build it up again.”
And that they did, many times over!

Through play, learning is different for every child. Every child is learning at their own pace, in their own style and guided by their own interests.

 Zoe is very patiently putting the felt shapes in place,
 not stopping until all the pieces are on the felt board.

 She is very comical calling a star a spider, while holding her hands
 to her face and pretending to be scared!

Our preschool is full of compassion. Kobe comforts Charlotte while they listen to a story.
 
  Clair says to Charlotte, “I love Pepa Pig so much. You'll love Pepa Pig too.”

Ella spent a long time rolling little balls of playdough.

 “I made birthday cookies,” she said.

Each ball in turn was taken off the plate, counted and then properly squashed.

 “They have to be flat cookies.”

Jack and Sophie are busy making cupcakes and a “birthday” cake which they generously share with their teacher and peers.



 Sophie excitedly says “We can have a big party with this big cake.”

The children on a whole are much more at ease in the classroom, and are revealing their individual personalities. It's such a pleasure to spend time with them and witness their growth and learning.

The motivation to learn is powered by play. Cause and effect happens continually through play, and each time children experience a new cause and effect situation, a new lesson is learned.

~Barbi


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Mosaic Garden Stones

Today our children had an amazing opportunity to work with Glen Anderson, a local artist specializing in mosaics. You can see his work at http://www.mosaicplanet.net . I met Glen last year at Urban Weavers Studio in Strathcona. I asked him many, many questions about mosaics, all of which he patiently answered with expertise. I was gearing up for an art project in our preschool class so I really wanted to get any pointers I could from him. The plan was to have our students make mosaic tiles to place along our fence at the garden plot at Terra Nova Farm. They worked out very well, thanks to Glen's great advice and it was a beautiful moment when child and parent hung the stones at the farm on our last day of school. It was a moment of great pride for all of us. The garden that they cared for with their own hands- tended to its needs in sunshine and in rain. They will always remain part of that space, that land and their stone will remind them of this connection. Even though they turne...

3 Year Old Class - Westham Island Herb Farm Field Trip

Our threes class recently visited the Pumpkin Patch at Westham Island Herb Farm in Delta. After a relatively short and scenic drive through Ladner en-route to the farm, we crossed a small, one-lane bridge that remarkably has been in place since 1911.    Westham Island Bridge We arrived at the farm in the early morning, before the school buses appeared. It was a very peaceful time of the day, and the morning mist floating over the fields only enhanced the feeling. Westham Island Herb Farm is a community oriented farm that promotes buying fruits and vegetables from local sources. This farm is part of the Ellis family farm and they have been in this location since 1916! Upon arrival at the farm, we were greeted by a beautiful display of pumpkins in all shapes and sizes. Prior to the tour of the farm, we visited the general store, which showcased a large variety of homemade jellies and honey selections such as wild flower, raspberry, pumpkin and ...

A Day at the Farm... with a twist

We were all looking forward to heading to the farm. We had not been in two whole weeks so we were all experiencing farm deprivation disorder! We craved outdoor time, running on the paths, and checking out our favourite spots. We had no particular agenda- nothing to plant, nothing to weed, nothing to harvest and literally nothing to do! Perfect!!  Actually, we did have one special thing happening there but I will get to that in a moment. The children could not get off the bus fast enough, bounding down the tall stairs. Jackets on, zipped up, hats and mitts on, ready to face the chill of December. The children tossed their knapsacks onto the picnic table with abandon, and began to run around the courtyard area, obediently staying on the paths  ( finally, four months later they have learnt to stay out of the garden beds). They shouted, they chased and fell down! Once our initial burst of energy was out (only slightly), we walked over to the compost to see what the worms w...