Welcome to D Week where we learn that dots do a lot! We’ll sit on dots and next to dots, we’ll do fine motor sticker dot work, we’ll make noise with dot painting all while exploring the opportunities for Containment: getting small and cozy, using blankets, getting held, safely hiding. You can read more about this Coping Skill below as well as some ideas to try at home.
We started to make our cardboard Dotty the Dot D. My dream came true: the children have begun to play with the cardboard letters! Abe the Apple A, Bobby the Bubble B and Claudia the Cloud C are free in the classroom. Dotty the Dot D will get her eyeballs and name tag on Thursday. (We’ll make one each week…they feel very 1970s Sesame Street to 51 year old me). Also, Bobby the Bubble B did lose an eyeball this afternoon but had friends reattach it with tape. Phew!
Our Story Time book this week is Dad’s First Day. This sweet (and a little silly) book is from our local library and I will return it after this week. We’ll also be singing about a little dog who is cozy in the Shelter window and reading our favorite dog books…they can sure curl up small too!
We’ve got new music playing during Play Time and we’re learning a new poem about some cozy animals (including us!):
We played hard and learned so much today.
Here are 3 questions to learn more about Tuesday:
What things turned orange this week?
It is October so we have new orange things: all the Tiny Things are orange, there are orange pumpkins in the Cloud Dough, the play dough is orange and the books have a lot of orange pumpkins and leaves.
P.S. The paper for our alphabet project was orange and many orange dots were also used.
What did you eat for snack today and what color dot did you sit at?
In the morning we had a Birthday Celebration snack from our Golden Letter friend, Drew. He brought Doritos, Donuts and Dunkaroos. What a party! In the afternoon we had a Birthday Celebration snack from Zander. He brought Doritos, Dinosaur fruit snacks and Donuts. Another great party! Thank you, friends! During our Snack Time, we sat at our new color dots. These are not assigned spots, so if children didn’t get the color or location they wanted today, they can the next time!
What blanket do you like to use at preschool?
Children have access to a wide variety of blankets at preschool: knitted and crocheted afghans, cotton quilts, synthetic fuzzy blankets and thin sheets. We have hooks and clips for making forts and also allow children to have a blanket whenever they want one (at snack time, Circle Time, while playing, outside, etc). During Story Time we got as small and cozy as Oliver’s dad did when he hid behind the couch:
Swing plan, FYI:
We are keeping track of who wants a turn to swing, who needs a turn to swing and who has had a turn to swing using picture rosters. Our orange pumpkin swing will be up for the next weeks, so more turns will be had!
Coping Skill of the Week: Containment
This week we are exploring “Containment.” We already have practice with sitting or laying on our dot spots at Circle Time, making our bodies small to hide in our cubbies and curling up in blankets. This week we will be naming these behaviors and noticing how and when our bodies want it. When children come and lean in to a caregiver’s body, it may be meeting this need. When they request a blanket to make a fort or a cozy den, it may be meeting this need. Read on for some ideas to use at home as well as understanding how your child uses this Coping Skill at preschool.
This week’s Coping Skill questions you can ask your child:
Do you ever like a teacher to hold you or do you like to sit by a teacher? We will absolutely hold children when they request it. As you can see in many photos, the teacher’s hands will be by their sides so that the child has 100% autonomy in ending the interaction. We will also honor a child’s request to sit by a teacher (when there isn’t room because both sides are occupied, we might invite a child to go to another teacher, make a plan for next time or to squeeze them in behind…I call this the Mama Hen pose lol).
Is there a cozy spot at home? You can offer a corner in a room, a place under a table or even a box. When given a designated space to “hide” or contain themselves, you may notice your child gravitating there. This could very well be them intuitively knowing they need containment to regulate their nervous system.
newcreationpreschool.com 