Adorable "Welcome to our class" bulletin boards

What cute bulletin boards to welcome the children to our classroom. This is a great way to display the children's names and make them feel at home. 

Preschool Birthday Bullletin Boards

The Willow Room will make the children feel special and welcome with these great, colorful birthday bulletin boards. 

What will your child grow up to become?

When I see the children in our preschool, I often wonder what will they "do" when they grow up?  Will they have a passion for something that leads them into a specific direction?  What kind of learner will they be? 

I think all too often we look at children in one way and expect them to all learn the same way.  There has been so much research to show us this is not true, but it is hard for us to adjust to different styles of learning.  I enjoyed watching the Olympics this summer and I also enjoy watching "So you think you can dance"; but one of the parts of those shows I appreciate is when they talk about the backgrounds and how these amazing athletes and dancers were not always the "best students" or the "easy student" or "the regurgitate the answers you read in a book student".  Often they were the students who could not sit still, or needed to move to stay focused.  They were the students who had to try things hands on to see how it worked, not just read about it.  They probably were sometimes the students who frustrated parents, teachers, classmates too, they didn't seem to listen, or were always touching stuff. 

I found their stories compelling and enlightening too.  I feel it is the role of a parent and teacher to help a child find what it is they are meant to do. This is my wish for each of the preschoolers who come through our school.  That we can not only help them learn to be successful students, but we can ignite a passion in them for true learning; and that someday they will find something in life that excites them enough that they want to put all of their energy and focus into it. 

School begins Sept 4th, 2012

This is always an exciting time of year.  Anticipation on the part of teachers, parents and children.  Preparations by the teachers to get the rooms in shape and to start planning all the fun learning activities for the children.  I love this time of year.  Here is to a great year at Trinity Preschool!

Preschool Teacher "Wordle"

Trash to Treasures- Creative fun for kids

Kids are so creative and it is important to nurture that creativity so they don't lose it.  Save your "trash", things like bottle caps, laundry lids, empty water bottles, or pop bottles,  empty paper towel tubes, empty toilet paper tubes, packaging from boxes, boxes, cereal boxes, old markers, lonely socks, old t-shirts, pieces of cardboard, old fabric, ribbon,magazines,  scraps of paper, newspaper, newspaper inserts, egg cartons, styrofoam containers, and anything else that seems safe and fun.  Clean them thoroughly and put them all in a box for creative play; see what your child can do with them.  If your child has not ever been given the opportunity to think creatively, he/she may need help to get them started.  Here are a few ideas....I am sure you can think of many more.

1. Small toy cars can be added to go through the tubes, stack items to make ramps or different angles, how can they make it go faster or slower.  Have races.  Try small balls instead, try various kinds of balls to see how each works.
2. Add glue and let him/her create a sculpture with all the cardboard tubes, cereal boxes.  Give him/her tape instead of glue; how does that change the process? Cut up newspaper and glue onto the cardboard.
3. Add paint and let him/her paint on cereal boxes ( the inside of the box works great).  Paint on old fabric.  Use a toothpick to scratch a design on the styrofoam trays and paint over it.  Press paper on to top and you will have a print of the design.
4. You can cut the old cereal boxes into shapes to trace too.
5. You can put a dried out marker into a bottle of glue and it will color the glue for you.  Glue pictures are great fun- just puddles of glue on foil or wax paper, allow to dry (for days if a lot of glue is used) and peel off. Otherwise use the glue for your collage creations.  Back to school sales have glue really cheap.
6. Make collages with old fabric scraps, ribbons snips, words out of magazines or newspapers.
7. Make one inch snips up the end of a toilet paper tube and fold the pieces back, makes a cool design when used with paint.
8. Dip the bottom of plastic bottles in paint and press onto paper.
9.  Dip the lids of various size bottles into paint and make a circle picture.
10. Glue bottle caps onto cardboard in designs- either draw an outline and glue them inside or free from it.
11. Make floating boats out of egg cartons or use the egg cartons to hold treasures- go on a walk and have your child collect something for each spot in the carton.
12. Make a puppet out of an old sock.
13. Laundry caps are great for scooping sand, dirt, playing in water, planting seeds.
14. Put some beans in a plastic bin and add many of the above items for fun, creative play.

 That should get you started.  If you just put a big pile of the items out, your child will think of great ways to have fun with it all and they are using their brains to think, and plan out their actions.  This activity is great for brain development and best of all it doesn't cost you anything.  Take pictures of their creations so they can see what they made and know you value their creation.

Shadow pictures

Make a shadow picture. Take a piece of colored construction paper and put a solid object on it that has a cool shape. Leave it there in the bright sunlight and at the end of the day take the object off. The color will have faded on the rest of the paper, leaving a "shadow" of the object. Show your child their shadow and talk about what makes shadows happen. Play some fun shadow games today.

Hot summer days + water = so much fun!

Children love water play and you don't need any fancy equipment to provide it for them. Especially on these hot days, find a shady spot and set out one of the clear storage tubs with a little water in it (always supervise children near water- drowning can happen in as little as an inch of water). Add some laundry caps, funnels, empty plastic bottles (you can poke holes in some to add another elem

ent too). If you are adventurous make some little boats. We made them at school with egg cartons, some clay to hold a straw with a fun foam sail. Bring out the bathtub toys, add some rocks and let them have fun. A watering can, the hose on to a trickle, can extend the play. Water can keep children occupied and engaged for a long time. Change it up and add sand to the tub with just a little water another day. Add dirt for mud play.

Fall Orientation Packets in the Mail

If you did not get your fall packet at camp, then it is now in the mail and you should have it by the weekend.  Take time to read over the information and fill out the forms before you come for Orientation on September 4 and 5.  We are looking forward to a great year at Trinity Preschool, enjoy the rest of your summer break.