Welcome to the Threes' Journey!

The first two weeks have flown by! The children are getting to know each other and the teachers. They are busy exploring the classroom and the outdoors. Some children are having their first experience away from home, while others have been in a daycare setting since they were 3 months old! We are all learning about each other and how we fit into this new community of children, parents, and teachers.

Many families asked how they could support at home what happens in school. Talk to your child about what happened during his/her day. The Daily Happenings posted outside our classroom may help start a discussion with the child who normally doesn't say much about his/her day. When your child asks a question, try not to give them the answer. Instead, help them develop their sense of wonder by discussing the question. What do they really want to know? I read that when a child asks a question, they already have an answer in mind! Help your child make sense of their world by letting them explain it to you! Let us know if anything at school really excites your child or is mentioned out of the ordinary.

We are finding that books are bringing the children together as a community. Everyone sits and listen as a story is being read. We will be bringing books in as a provocation to develop the children's sense of inquiry, promote a sense of community, build a relationship between home and school and just to enjoy! An example of how this works is shown through an experience that Naomi (J5) shared with us.

When Naomi picked up J5, she asked us if we had mentioned "something about dragons." She said that he had told her about "a dragon and shutting the door and a baby." We had, in fact, read the story The Seven Chinese Sisters by Kathy Tucker that morning,  Instead of reading the story straight through, we slowed down, modeling how to ask questions as well as allowing the children to discuss the pages.

We asked the children questions like, "Which sister do you think is the oldest? Why?" They decided the tallest sister was the oldest because she was the biggest. When the dragon came down the mountain, we asked the children: "What do you think the dragon will do?" One child said the dragon would "blow the house down!" Their answers gave us some insight as to how they make sense of their world, such as, how size relates to age, or how the children apply their understanidng of one story to a new story and are able to make predictions. It allowed the children to share ideas and is helping them learn to listen to one another.

Although J5 sat quietly during the story, it obviously left an impression on him. Whether it was slowing down to talk about the book or a fascination with dragons, J5 was able to retell the story in detail to his mom. She in turn shared this with us, creating a full cycle. How exciting!

Our Daily Happenings have been showing you the "big picture" of our day. We include pictures of the various explorations that unfold as the children build their relationships with the materials, each other and us.There will be days when the Daily Happenings reflect the significance of those "ordinary moments" as the children progress day by day. See your mailbox for "What is your Plan for the Day?", our first of many "ordinary moments."

It has been a wonderful two weeks learning and growing with you and your child. Let the Journey begin!

Check out our photo gallery and Ms. Jordan's gallery and site too!

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