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Environment and Design

What is a “co-created” classroom?

  If you’ve heard the term “co-created” and been curious about what it means, let’s dive in! When I began to explore a more student-centered classroom, I knew part of that meant letting my students help me design the space. …

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Daily Schedule

A TK Daily Schedule for Full and Half Day Programs

“Can you talk more about your TK daily schedule?” I get this question a lot! Whether I’m posting about workshop time, morning meeting, or play, people are always interested how we structure our day. I have needed a lot of …

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Fall

3 Play-Based Activities for Fall in TK and Kindergarten

In our TK classroom, we love to celebrate the Fall season! There are so many fun, play-based activities that students can enjoy all season long. Here are 3 of our favorites!   Still Life Painting and Modeling Fall is the …

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Beginning of Year

All About Me: An Identity Study in Kindergarten and TK

As kindergarten and TK teachers gear up for a new year, one of the most meaningful ways to begin the year is with an All About Me unit. This unit allows teachers to not only get to know the children …

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Phonics Phonological Awareness

The Power of Phonological Awareness in Kindergarten

Phonological awareness is a vital piece of literacy development in young children. It occurs along a continuum on which skills develop in stages. This progression begins with skills like word and sentence awareness, then moves into more specific parts of …

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Recent Posts

  • What is a “co-created” classroom?
  • A TK Daily Schedule for Full and Half Day Programs
  • 3 Play-Based Activities for Fall in TK and Kindergarten
  • All About Me: An Identity Study in Kindergarten and TK
  • The Power of Phonological Awareness in Kindergarten

researchandplay

Holly | Early Childhood Educator
Because we use documentation panels, I don’t hav Because we use documentation panels, I don’t have to do much! We pick one project from each month and showcase it on the walls around the room once we finish. The only things I add for open house:

• Posters in the kitchen, blocks, and loft explaining how we learn through play (but these are totally optional as our families have heard us talk about this often!)

• Small signs on our shelves explaining how we use the materials (again, optional as these are pretty self explanatory)

Families enjoy the space as is, and I don’t have to stress about turning over our room for a one-hour event!

#reggioinspired #earlychildhoodeducator #playbasedlearning #teachergram
Year 15 and I’ve learned some things ✨ #teach Year 15 and I’ve learned some things ✨

#teachergram #teacherlife
Handwriting Without Tears is a wonderful program…BUT it matters how you use it!

In TK, there is such a wide range of fine motor skills and exposure to writing. We also see a range of letter knowledge and task attention. All of this matters when you want to expose children to letter formation.

Some of the best advice I’ve been given on HWT: The “without tears” part of the program means they are writing (in the traditional sense) very little!

Big body movements:
The wood pieces are so much more than letter formation tools. They help us with spatial awareness, position, coordination, bilateral movement, patterning, and modeling. We create pictures with them, dance with them, and move them around. Mat Man is a friend that we create with them, but most of the time we use them in a very open-ended way.

Writing without writing:
A mentor also reminded me that a child’s first writing tool is their finger. So we use that to trace objects, make pictures in sand, hold things to strengthen grip, dig, pinch, roll. A hand can do so much more than just hold a pencil. In fact, my students are only given a pencil once a week (they’re always available to them) and I do not correct or change their grip.

Playful exposure to letters:
When we are making pictures with wood pieces or drawing on chalkboards and just so happen to position lines in a way that make a letter, some children notice! But we are not hyper focused on forming letters just yet. I break down letters and we play with the parts. Letters are just a series of lines and curves, so when we talk about those parts, we begin to notice patterns in letters. Curiosity supports letter learning at this stage.

This program can be used in many different ways and, when used intentionally, can be a great building block for children as they grow into writers.
#handwritingwithouttears
Toys are not bad, they have such an important role Toys are not bad, they have such an important role in a play-based classroom!

If you’re wanting to incorporate more play, here’s my advice on toys:

- Make sure you have toys that are mostly open-ended. A set of blocks can be a structure or ingredients for  birthday cake!

- If you have toys that are more specific, like play food, give kids the freedom to use in other places besides the kitchen.

- Fine motor toys are great, but don’t forget about gross motor play. Balance stones and scarves teach skills, too!

A piece of advice for teachers (that I had to take myself): Release some control. The way you see a toy being used may not be the way some children want to use it. Be open to creativity!

#playbasededucation #playbased #earlychildhoodeducator #reggioinspired #transitionalkindergarten
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