summer fun

FUN ACTIVITIES THE SUMMER CAMPERS ARE DOING !!!

The children made racing lanes out of carboard blocks.  They even used a block to put behind one foot for a starting block.

"On your mark, get ready, set go"

Using blocks, PVC pipes, cardboard tubes, sample fabric pieces.  The boys constructed a road for their cars.

Finished road. Now take our picture please. :)

Using bells and ribbon streamers the girls were moving to the beat of the music playing on the radio.

 We placed ping pong balls in paint and then blew through the straws to move the them across the paper.

At times two balls collided into each other.

Some of us even got more paint on our hands then on the ping pong balls.

The finished product.

Must say a very creative piece of art work,

She drew a picture of her friends and even wrote their names on the chalk board.

Very proud young lady.

First Week of Summer Camp: Gardening

We first made flowers out of colored Popsicle sticks.

 



The kids are observing some bugs crawling in the grass.

They are making a big ant hill. They used a big stick to make a hole in the ground,
then piled some dirt on top.

We planted some Gerber daisies. The kids learned how deep
to make the hole and how to fill in the spaces around the plant
before watering the flowers.

Drawing a flower still life.

Spray Paint!

Paining with bugs!

Button collages. This boy is making a sign for the garden
with his buttons.

Playing in the large pipe that was donated to us while were
collecting loose parts. Eventually the kids will decide
where to place the pipe in the playground and help
install it. Can't wait!!

Cincinnati Nature Center Field Trip

Summer Campers first field trip to the Cincinnati Nature Center.

We all had a great time climbing, splashing in the creek and looking for tadpoles, frogs and turtles.

We even saw chipmunks, squirrels and a variety of birds.

 

Getting ready to eat our delious lunches

 

Climbing the big spider web made out of rope.

 

 

Looking for tadpoles and trying to scoop them up in our hands.

 

 

 Crossing the creek on a log.

 

 

Climbing on the fort made out of stumbs and branches.

 

 

We even had a frog jump on one of the children's back while she was climbing on the fort.

 

The children got alot of good ideas on what they wanted to build on our playground while we were there.  Some wrote their ideas down and others drew pictures of what they wanted to build.

 

April Learning

 

April Learning

Our Topics:

Plants and Environment, Inventions and Workshop

 

 

 

Here a classmate is planting her sunflower seed! We spoke about what plants need to live and grow. We had a soil table to experiment with in the classroom.

Mad Science came in and presented "Water Works". We experimented with water. We tested objects to see if they sink, float, absorb, or not absorb. The class also explored hydrophobic sand (you can find on amazon). This sand let us dip our fingers into water without getting wet.

Here we are using our listening ears to find out what tests we will be running.

The children are conducting their experiments!

Exploring what materials will absorb, or not absorb water.

We discussed how and why boats are so special. The children explored sail boats to see what would happen if they filled up with water.

When we finished experimenting we thought it would be a good idea to water the flowers.

Flowers need water to survive, and they absorb the water. Both preschool and pre-k enjoyed watering the flowers.

Here we are talking about hydrophobic sand (magic sand).

The sand floats!

We learned about the Wright brothers, and their invention the airplane. Each person invented their own airplane and we all flew them in the big room!

Here two students are enjoying a grid game where we used screws to cover up different tools. Each player rolls a dye to see how many screws they need.

A student is using snap blocks in three dimensional shapes to create larger shapes. Most of the time we invented robots out of the snap blocks.

Here a student is being creative making abstract art on the chalkboard. We also learned about the chalkboard, and held and wrote on slate.

When inventing you might need tools. Our class learned and practiced using a wrench, screwdriver, and hammer.

Students enjoyed taking apart and putting back together the chair.

Here a student is designing on the snap block board.

Our class loves puzzles. They are great for working on problem solving skills, and refining fine motor.

Here another student is completing the puzzle.

Here students are working hard in the workshop.

Some of our students are checking the growth of their sunflowers.

 

Some students are working on puzzles together. Preschool and pre-k love to help each other learn and explore.

These two are working hard on removing the nails out of the board.

 

 

Our praying mantis eggs hatched!!! Finally after a month and a half wait. We talked about what they need to survive, and how they will grow. We looked closely at the new nymphs with a magnifying glass!

 

Here is an up close look at our new classroom addition.

Everyone wanted to talk about what praying mantis eat, and watch them move around.

Finally we enjoyed a day in the mud!

Even Ms. Elizabeth and Ms. Miranda couldn't resist. Everyone was so happy to enjoy the outdoors.

Our Standards Covered:
Domain: Social and Emotional
Strand: Self
Topic: Awareness and Expression of Emotion
Indicator: Communicate a range of emotions in socially accepted ways
Domain: Social and Emotional
Strand: Self-Regulation
Topic: Sense of Competence
Indicator: Show confidence in own abilities and accomplish routine and familiar tasks independently
Domain: Social and Emotional
Strand: Relationships
Topic: Peer Relationships
Indicator: Interact with peers in more complex pretend play including planning, coordination of roles and cooperation
Demonstrate socially competent behavior with peers
Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Strand: Initiative
Topic: Initiative and Curiosity
Indicator: Seek new and varied experiences and challenges
Demonstrate self0direction while participating in a range of activities and routines.
 Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Topic: Planning, Action and Reflection
Indicator: Develop, initiate and carry out simple plans to obtain a goal
Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Strand: Engagement and Persistence
Topic: Attention
Indicator: Focus on an activity with deliberate concentration despite distractions
Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Strand: Engagement and Persistence
Topic: Persistence
Indicator: Carry out tasks, activities, projects or experiences from beginning to end
Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Strand: Creativity
Topic: Innovation and Invention
Indicator: Use imagination and creativity to interact with objects and materials
Use creative and flexible thinking to solve problems
Engage in inventive social play
Domain: Approaches toward Learning
Strand: Creativity
Topic: Expression of Ideas and Feelings through the Arts
Indicator: Express interest in and show appreciation for the creative work of others.
Domain: Physical Well-Being and Motor Development
Strand: Motor Development
Topic: Large Muscle, Balance and Coordination
Indicator: Demonstrate spatial awareness in physical activity or movement
Domain: Physical Well-Being and Motor Development
Strand: Motor Development
Topic: Small Muscle
Indicator: Use classroom and household tools independently with eye-hand coordination
Domain: Cognition and General Knowledge
Strand: Cognitive Skills
Topic: Reasoning and Problem-Solving
Indicator: Demonstrate ability to solve everyday problems based upon past experience
Solve problems by planning and carrying out a sequence of actions
Sub-Domain: Science
Strand: Science Inquiry and Application
Topic: Inquiry
Indicator: All
Sub-Domain: Science
Strand: Life Science
Topic: Explorations of Living Things
Indicator: All
Sub-domain: Math
Strand: Number Sense
Topic: Number Sense and Counting
Indicator: All
Strand: Algebra
Topic: Patterning
Indicator: All
Strand: Measurement and Data
Indicator: All
Strand: Geometry
Topic: Analyze, Compare, and Create Shapes
Indicator: All
Domain: Language and Literacy Development
Strand: Listening and Speaking
Topic Receptive Language and Comprehension
Indicator: All
Domain: Language and Literacy Development
Strand: Listening and Speaking
Topic: Expressive Language
Indicator: All
Domain: Language and Literacy Development
Strand: Reading
All topics and indicators covered

We really enjoyed these units and learned so much!