Exploring, Learning and Growing Together

5 days ago

5 min read

Dear parents!

We are very happy to share with you some of the wonderful things we have been doing over the past two weeks in our Infant and Toddler class. We have had such a lovely and exciting time together, filled with learning, exploring, playing, and making new discoveries. Our little learners have enjoyed participating in different activities, developing new skills, spending time with their friends, and growing in confidence each day.

We hope you enjoy seeing and reading about the special moments and learning experiences we have shared together.

Large Group

During our Large Group Time, we are helping the children develop independence and responsibility by practicing how to clean up after themselves. The children are encouraged to clean up their fruit waste, toys, and learning materials and return everything to its proper place. After cleanup, we practice sitting on our pillows and getting our bodies ready to learn. We sing “Baa Baa Black Sheep” together to help the children calm down and prepare for Large Group Time. We then begin our group time with our Good Morning Song. We call each child by name, wave our hands, and say “Good morning!” to one another. The children enjoy being greeted individually and are excited to participate. We also give the children a chance to choose their favorite songs. This time, they chose “Wash Your Hands” and “Baby Shark.” We sang and moved together, and the children were very happy, excited, and engaged. To finish our Large Group Time, we read “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” The children enjoyed looking at the colorful pictures and listening to the story together. Through these daily routines, the children are developing listening and understanding, communication, independence, social skills, and confidence while enjoying learning together.

Library

During our Library Session, we create a calm and enjoyable environment where children can explore and develop their love for books. We place a variety of books in the middle of our circle and invite the children to come one by one to choose their favorite book. Before they begin reading, we show the children how to hold a book carefully and how to turn the pages gently, one page at a time. After choosing their books, the children return to their pillows, sit comfortably, and begin exploring their books independently. The children are very happy and excited to choose their own books. They enjoy looking at the pictures, turning the pages one at a time, and exploring the stories in their own way. At the end of the session, we work together to clean up and return all the books to their places. Then, we come back together as a group and enjoy reading one book together.

Gymnastic

During gymnastic class, we did a walking and balancing activity. First, we gathered the children together and placed the balancing wood in front of them. We explained how to walk on the balance beam and demonstrated the activity for the children. The children then had a chance to try. During the first attempt, some children were able to walk with both feet on the balance beam, while others started by placing one foot on the beam and keeping the other foot on the floor for support. We gave the children another opportunity to try. During their second attempt, many children became more confident and were able to place both feet on the beam and walk along it with better balance. With each turn, they improved their coordination, balance, and confidence. The children were very excited and happy to have another chance to practice. They enjoyed the activity and showed great progress as they continued walking and balancing independently.

Music and Movement

During our music class, we explored different musical instruments. First, we placed the instruments in the middle of our circle. We called each child by name, one at a time, and gave them the opportunity to choose their favorite instrument. After everyone had chosen an instrument, we played music and encouraged the children to explore and play along. The children were very happy and excited as they experimented with the different sounds and rhythms. They enjoyed listening to the music, making sounds with their instruments, and moving along to the beat.

Literacy and Language

During our literacy and language activity, we focused on developing the children’s fine motor skills using laminated papers and clothespins. First, we placed all the materials in the middle of our circle. We explained the activity to the children and demonstrated how to open and close the clothespins and how to attach them to the laminated paper. The children then had a chance to try the activity independently. They were very interested and participated well. They practiced opening and closing the clothespins and placing them around the laminated paper, which helped strengthen their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. After putting all the clothespins on the paper, the children removed them and repeated the activity again.

Art

During our art session, we prepared different colored markers and different colored papers for the children. First, the children sat on the chairs, and we sang songs together until everyone was calm and ready to participate. The children also had a chance to choose their favorite songs, and they enjoyed singing “Baby Shark” and “Baa Baa Black Sheep.” After that, we gave each child a chance to choose their favorite color of paper and markers. Once they made their choices, they started drawing freely. The children were very excited and showed great focus and concentration while creating their drawings. They enjoyed exploring the different colors and expressing their creativity through art.

Science

During our science session, we explored different sensory feelings and textures. We introduced the children to a variety of textures, including bumpy, smooth, grainy, soft, and hard surfaces. The children used their hands to touch, feel, and explore each texture. Some children were able to identify and say what they felt, such as “soft.” Most of the children explored the textures with their hands and showed their responses through their facial expressions and body language. As we explored, we talked about the different textures and introduced vocabulary such as soft, hard, smooth, bumpy, and grainy. It was a fun and engaging experience that encouraged the children to use their senses, explore, and develop their descriptive vocabulary.

Math

During our math session, we did a color-sorting activity outdoors. We prepared balls in different colors and baskets that matched the colors of the balls. First, we sang a color song together. We then showed the children the different colored balls and asked them what colors they could see. The children responded by naming the colors they recognized. Next, we showed how to sort the balls by matching each ball to the basket with the same color. The children then had a chance to try the activity themselves. They sorted the balls well and showed good understanding of color matching. The children also supported and helped each other during the activity by telling their friends where to put the balls. They were excited to participate and enjoyed learning about colors through sorting and matching.

Next Week’s Large group Book: At the Park

Our schedule for next week:

Monday – Library

Tuesday – Gymnastics

Wednesday – Literacy

Thursday – Science

Friday – Math

Our Work Time Specials:

Tuesday- Music and movement

Wednesdays- Art

Thursday- Ethiopian Center

Reminders:

Every Wednesday is our Art Day, so please send your child with art appropriate clothing.
Every Monday is our Library Day, so we will be sending a book that your child picked from our library, which will be returned after a week on library day.

Have a nice weekend!