With all the changes in the weather, our playground has seen a lot of changes. Having nice sunny Spring weather one day, then turning into a winter storm the next. The children in preschool 1 have noticed these changes as they play in the sand box or ride their bikes through the bike paths. The preschoolers continue to get excited as they march outside in their muddy buddies and begin getting to work in all the mud, ensuring every inch is covered in mud.
Many of the preschoolers have been making food with the pots and pans in the sand box. Finley made some, "chocolate chicken nuggets," and, "pasta pancakes," for dinner, before he snacked on some cupcakes he made. Finley worked hard to make this meal as he used his fine motor skills to squash the sand and roll it out. Then he used his gross motor skills to lift the heavy pans full of sand and flip them over. I hope his dinner tasted good!
Walter and Ellis did a science experiment with some mud and snow. Ellis filled up the wheel barrel with some mud, then began placing some snow in it. She explained that she was making a cake, but quickly noticed that the snow was turning brown. Walter came over to watch what was happening and helped Ellis add in some more snow. Christine told Walter and Ellis to add some snow in a spot where there was muddy water, they did and then lifted the snow to see that there was no more water underneath. Walter and Ellis learned that the snow had soaked up all the water.
Brayson and Axel enjoyed sitting at the top of the bench with hockey sticks. They kept lifting the hockey sticks and putting them back down. They were seen chatting away as they did this, and when asked what they were doing they excitedly explained that they were fishing. I wonder how many fish they caught?
The preschoolers have been learning through their play, taking the things in their environment and using them as their learning tools. In our muddy playground the preschoolers have been able to enhance many of their skills as they learn the science of how snow reacts to water and mud, gain math skills as they count their scoops and measure how much sand they have. They use their imaginative play and creativity as they go fishing or bake cakes, and develop fine motor and gross motor skills as they ride their bikes, play hockey or dig in the sand for treasures.
I wonder what else the preschoolers can create in our playground? Will they learn some new science as Summer comes and the bugs and animals return? As they are digging in the sand and mulch will they find some interesting bugs and want to learn about them?
