Skip to main content

3 and 4 Year Old Classes – Holiday Time

The preschool 3 and 4 year old morning classes have been busy preparing for the holidays over the past few weeks.

Along with many other activities, each child has made a gift for their families. These gifts are now wrapped and ready to be sent home, and we are sure they will be well received! We also showed the children our Preschool Donation Box and spoke about the importance of giving to those who are less fortunate than us.

We have decorated a Christmas tree and created two very large snowman (which will be on display at the family potluck!) It was fun to stand back and watch the children strategize and work together as a team.

The preschoolers have also been practising the songs they will sing at the family potluck and for the Hugh Boyd Seniors. In the coming week they will be decorating a gingerbread cookie with their big buddy - this always makes for a fun day!

Inspirational Paintings



   








Making a very Large Snowman.

  













For the Chanukah holiday, the children made and played with dreidels (spinning tops used during Chanukah). Competitions quickly developed to see whose would spin the longest. Dreidels are challenging to spin and most definitely take some practise.

Making Dreidels

 



Playing with Dreidels









 


Kyle says to Masaki "“Whoa, you did it, you got it turning!”

 We also lit a Chanukah menorah during circle time, and spoke about the significance of eating fried foods during the eight days of Chanukah. We then enjoyed eating crisp and hot latkes straight out of the frying pan, served with a little sour cream and apple sauce :)

Making and Eating Latkes 

Sofie asks Yvette "When will those things be finished?"



Some comments over heard while the children were eating latkes:

“I don't like the white stuff.”
 “I love it, can I have another one?”
“It taste like a french fries a little bit.”
 “I don't like it but I tried it.”

At circle time we also spoke about the many holidays that occur around the world. Some we know and others we aren’t aware of, some we celebrate and some we don't. We spoke about families having different traditions and celebrations, and how wonderful it is that we are all similar yet not the same. We discussed how enjoyable it is to learn new and different things, and to take pleasure in sharing in the joy of others.


Wishing everyone all the very best this holiday season!

~Barbi

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

4 Year Old M/W/F Class – I Hear…I See…I Wonder…

We began one of our circle discussions with a question for the children, “What would you like to learn, wonder or hear about?” Here is what they said:    “Skateboarding, Soccer, Perches” (Connor) “Bikes” (Taylor) “Going outside to see if I left my toy” (Jun)  “The Sun” (Jack) “Rollerskating and Swimming” (Daniella)"Skating” (Noel) “Ball” (Sofie) “Scooter and Tricycle” (Masaki) “Shoes” (Ashlan) “When you put something under a pillow you can find it” (Tia) “Soccer” (Kyle) From my list I noticed quite a few of the children were interested in wheels, so at our next circle discussion we looked closely at a scooter and a pair of roller skates – as well as the wheels on a long board. The conversation brought up more questions and answers, which the children confidently discussed amongst themselves. One of the questions was “What makes this a scooter?” The conversation followed with “The scooter has a handle and a brake” and “I know how to ride a long board.” ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Social Responsibility: Down to the Core

Social responsibility- a term that has now become quite common in the field of education and has the potential to lose its meaning if we are not careful. As an early childhood educator, I have always placed great importance on the need to develop this way of thinking in young children. It is for this reason that we engage in activities that benefit others, such as volunteering at our local food bank, adopting an owl, or raising money for Variety Club. With the recent catastrophe in the Philippines, my mind was suddenly thrown into its own typhoon. I found myself asking questions around social responsibility and what it really means. What does it mean to me? What does it mean to my preschoolers? How far does it extend into the world around us? Can four year old children grasp these deep and complex concepts? What can they understand about their world? How can we teach them about being socially responsible to: ones self; ones family; ones community; ones province; ones country; ones worl...
6 comments
Read more

And We Begin

This week marks a new beginning for all of us. And, with all new beginnings, it provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the past and think about what is to come. I have been going to yoga a lot this past while and one of the things the instructors mention at the onset of each class is to create an intention for your practice.  I thought a lot about this concept and decided that it would be interesting and important to apply it to my teaching on a deeper level than in the past. So, as I move into the year, I am hoping to set intentions, which I believe are different than goals. For me personally, goals are more structured and outcome driven. Intentions imply more of a journey. Balancing intentions with flexibility and openness will be the challenge.  I also want to explore the idea of children setting their own intentions. Can this work? Will they understand? Can we help support this idea without creating comparisons or pressure? I am really not sure. And so we begin...
4 comments
Read more