West Richmond Preschool

Here at the preschool we emphasis the importance of process and creativity,  whether  that be learning how to hang up a coat and bag or taking a snack out of a bag. It’s a stepping stone to a child’s confidence to independence. Learning the self help skills at an early age allows children to take on new challenges with confidence.        We put out materials for the children to create snow people, the children made their own creation with the help of big buddies     We did a science experiment with milk, food coloring and dish soap. The children were curious how the colors blended as they added the dish soap. Many of the children needed to repeat the experiment as they wanted to understand what caused the colors to mix or maybe they just enjoyed watching the pattern the colors made.         Inspiration Art is exactly that and the children got busy to create with the picture they...

After receiving a couple of postcards and letters from our friends, we were excited to start writing back to the other preschools. A few of our friends went straight to work, each drawing a picture that represents our school.     At circle, we talked about how we are going to send the mail over to our new friends. Some suggested email, while others disagreed because we cannot send real paper by email. We started asking about the mail that arrives to our houses. One child said, “It needs to be in an envelope and a name on it” while another said, “We need stamps”. We started talking how we need to get envelopes, add our friends’ addresses, and buy stamps with real money. So, we got our envelopes, addresses, and stamps so that we could mail our letters.   We have learned so much through our postcard exchange. As we wait for a few more postcards and letters to arrive, we have been exploring different countries and how people and animals live. We see t...

Growing up, many of us experienced the joy of opening up letters, especially ones addressed to us. It provides a certain sense of importance and excitement when we receive letters and notes from family and friends.   Our class joined a preschool postcard exchange project to learn about other preschools around the world. Within our assigned group, we were able to learn about schools from small towns to big cities in North America (Ontario, New York, Connecticut, Oklahoma, and Illinois), Western Australia (Munster), England (West Yorkshire), and Singapore. It was a fun, informative, and   amazing experience learning through postcards and letters from around the world. Most importantly, we were able to learn that no matter the differences in culture, we are all the same. For example, we learned that the students in West Yorkshire wear uniforms to their school, which is located in an old castle. While we may have our differences we all love playing outdoors, making ar...

The children in both our three-year-old and four-year-old classes had fun exploring colours and “absorption” with 3 simple ingredients: salt, glue and food colouring. The children dribbled squiggles, dots, lines, spirals and made smudges of glue. Next they pinched the kosher salt between their fingers and sprinkled the salt all over the glue and shook the excess off. Now, the colour! This part of the process is really thrilling. The children dipped fine brushes into food colouring and gently touch the salt. It’s amazing to see how far the watercolours spread as they’re absorbed by the grains of salt. Little by little the children transformed their white, salt drawings into vibrant, colourful designs.   These works of art are not long-lasting as the salt will crumble and comes away from the glue, even when dry, but while it’s not a “forever” project, it’s definitely a keeper of an idea for fun and creative learning.       Barbi ...

During the month of November, we have been learning about different types of transportation in our classroom.   On Tuesday, November 28 we were excited to welcome Annemarie Byers, an experienced educational paramedic to meet with our class and explain how ambulances work to serve our community!   The children were greeted and asked questions about their understanding of how several different types of emergency vehicles assist us…..police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances...of course!!!   We were all reminded how to reach paramedic personnel in an emergency situation by calling the number “9-1-1”.   The students were also able to view and try various types of support equipment such as splints and a working stethoscope, which they thoroughly enjoyed.   How and why we use these items was also explained in a “child-friendly” way!   After Annemarie finished her presentation she gave the children an opportunity to ask any questions they had.   However...