With this week being Election Week we are voting and we are giving space to grieve and wonder when others don’t vote the way we did. In the end, the vote stays and we get what we get and yes, we can be upset. Teachers are here to be supportive in honoring each child’s position while holding boundaries of how that distress is expressed. Our Coping Skill is conveniently about grounding ourselves. Read on to find out why this is so important and how you can practice it at home. We are welcoming November with beautiful brown things all over the classroom! Today we had some extra cozy play with our big nest chair and mouse house building.
Our Story Time book this week is Sometimes I Like to Curl Up in a Ball. This book doesn’t appear to be at our local library, but you’re welcome to borrow one of our copies from preschool if you’re interested. This book describes and illustrates movements like curling up into a ball, jumping hard, shouting as loud as possible (once lol), standing still as a tree…each of which is an opportunity for children to express themselves.
We also read The Flower Garden today looking for grass…there was none! The family in this book lives in the city and there was no grass in any of the pictures of their neighborhood. But they did plant a beautiful flower garden for their window!
G Week Activities
Here are some G things for the week you can look for in photos, conversations and backpacks!
Voting: every day this week children will get a chance to vote for something. This is an opportunity to express our preferences while standing strong in our choice regardless of outcome. “No matter if I am the only one who votes for it, I like it. I chose it. I stand by it.” Read more about today’s vote in our question section.
Face drawing: since we didn’t have markers available during F Week due to our costume wearing, we finished our journal work today by drawing faces. Using markers ensures that a child’s marks will actually show up (often when children are making eyes or noses, they intuitively press the writing utensil on to the paper. If it is a crayon it will simply not show up!
Turkeys: we will think of things we are grateful for and write them on feathers after we add them to a turkey project. These can be added to anytime! Just like our classroom turkey, there is always a way to fit another feather on. We also have our wooden turkey whose feathers get rearranged many times a day.
Green Grass cutting: children practice the skill of cutting and stopping in this week’s Alphabet Project. There are many skills needed with cutting and this project taps into them all!
Gary the Grassy G: Gary is getting green this week with more paper grass snips. Different than our Alphabet Project, the grass for Gary needs to be cut all the way into individual snips. The scissor skills are improving daily!
Sail Boat: we added the new rainbow scarf to our boat rug today as a sail that moved everytime someone rocked the boat.
Brown things: in honor of November, we have brown Tiny Things, brown kinetic sand with brown wooden tools, brown scoops and bowls in the Tub Table, new books about bears, goats, turkeys and leaves. We’ve got brown tubes at the Project Table and today some friends made binoculars.
Here are 3 questions to learn more about our day:
What did you like to stand on the most?
We took turns standing on the green pillow (aka Big Pickle) and a square of fake green grass. It was a very calming and grounding activity to take time to really feel the sensations.
Here’s how the vote ended up:
What did you eat for snack today?
In the morning we had GoGurt tubes, green grapes and princess Goldfish crackers from Millie. In the afternoon we had Gouda cheese, green apples and a 4 way Goldfish Taste Test (getting out our snack trays from last year) from Owen. Thank you, Millie and Owen!
The afternoon class had a couple of superhero friends from home join the table. Wouldn’t you know that Venom, known as a “bad guy” had a gentle and kind day at preschool? We set boundaries with him and accepted him as he was which translated into a very calm participation.
What did we find in the playhouse outside?
Toys! Lots of toys. It is obvious that they have been used before and they are not from anyone at our church or preschool so they must have been from a neighbor. We do have a Sharing Box on our property where folks drop off and pick up food and household supplies so maybe this was in that spirit. Regardless, it was VERY exciting.
Coping Skill of the Week
This week we are exploring “Feeling my feet” as an act of mindfulness and grounding. Taking a moment to simply notice our feet, what they are in contact with, if and how they want to move is beneficial. These actions bring us into the present moment and can increase a sense of safety.
This week’s Coping Skill activity you can do with your child:
What is your favorite thing to feel with your feet? Offer a variety of textures that can be stepped or rubbed on feet: big rocks, tiny rocks, grass, dirt, pillows, smooth floor, blankets, a pan of water. You can also offer a foot rub with lotion or during bath time with soap.
Pro tip: remember to do all of this for yourself too!
newcreationpreschool.com 