One of the things that we talk about in the Catbird classroom is how and why we are getting stronger and faster and able to do so many more things with our bodies. Conversations about how our bodies work and how we can take care of ourselves are woven into our days. We talk about “growing food,” in contrast to snacks and desserts (that taste delicious, but don’t make us grow). Sometimes, we think about the things we could do as babies, and how our muscles have gotten steadily stronger and more coordinated. During our Moments of Silence, we concentrate on our breathing and the differences between being tense and being relaxed. We consider the ways that we move through space - what works and what doesn’t, how we could jump so high and why we fell out of our chair. All of these conversations help to enhance friends’ sense of themselves as physical beings.
The Catbirds revel in what they can physically do and are constantly pushing and testing their limits. We spend a significant amount of time outdoors, running, jumping and climbing. The Catbirds love to go on big adventures, building endurance on walks that can span several miles. We encourage them to build upper body strength by carrying the big building blocks, pulling the wagon, toting supplies and swinging on the monkey bars. We bring balls and jump ropes out to the fields, and play games and set up obstacle courses. Friends have expressed an interest in yoga, and we are lucky enough to have a couple of parents who teach yoga, who will help us get started.
Friends are also in the process of developing their fine motor skills. Each day, the Catbirds have the opportunity to write and draw and paint. You may notice that the Catbirds hold their pencils and paintbrushes in a bunch of different ways. This does not reflect a lack of knowledge, but rather a developing strength and coordination in their hands. We utilize a variety of materials, like clay, flubber, sand, and water beads, that, in addition to being wonderful sensory activities, also serve to strengthen muscles in the Catbirds’ hands and arms. On any given day, you may find the Catbirds engaged in any number of fine motor activities; like assembling puzzles, beading, cutting, gluing, using tweezers or chopsticks or building with materials of different sizes. Counting with fingers, sign language and shadow puppets all encourage friends to move and hold their hands in evermore complex ways. In this, as in all of the other domains, we appreciate where each friend is in her/his development, we provide activities that both meet and exceed their current capabilities. We help them build the skills they have, and we encourage them to do a little bit more.
We hope that these descriptions have been helpful in understanding a bit more about what goes on in the Catbird room, as well as the ways that we approach and understand your child's growth and development. Tomorrow, we will have a chance to talk with you about the ways that these apply to your child, what you notice at home, and the ways that we can strengthen the bridge between home and school. We look forward to seeing you!
Today:
Morning Assembly: A couple of songs from the Music Man. One of them was "Shipoopi," which caused great laughter amongst the Early Childhood crowd.
We got to ask the cast questions afterword (like, "What does 'Shipoopi' mean?")
On the way back, we followed our noses, and took a tour through the kitchen.
Spotted birds on the feeders.
Put on our spacesuits, loaded ourselves on a rocket ship, put on our seat belts and took off in a rocket ship.
Landed on another planet.
Went in search of signs of aliens.
Built a fort outside.
Morning Meeting.
Talked about the 4 books that we had, and how we would choose. We discussed voting (many friends have apparently gone to vote with their parents!).
Then, we used our face chips to vote on the book we wanted to read.
More on making decisions with friends this age next week....
Choice Time.
Our name project.
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