Rectangles are so similar to squares, they are easy to confuse! They boys and girls were rectangle detectives today as we found items around the room that were in the shape of a rectangle. We prepared ourselves by reading a book about rectangles and discussing the similarities and differences between rectangles and squares. Can’t get much past these boys and girls!
Building a snowball takes good fine motor control. Today, the children had the opportunity to build their very own snowball! Crumpling up paper, painting glue onto it, then pulling apart cotton balls to apply to the paper, are all excellent fine motor practice. The children had a ball making their own special balls!
At Creative Tots, the weather took a turn for the….tasty?! The Arctic blast hasn’t stopped us from cookin’ up some yummy, seasonal snacks! In Ms. Lori’s group, the boys and girls made and edible glacier. Using Jell-O, wafers and Cool Whip, the children built the layers of their glacier while learning what a glacier is. In Ms. Leslie’s group, the children made snowman biscuits. We build the snowman by connecting three biscuits using toothpicks, drizzling on some honey to be sure that our “snow” (powdered sugar) stays put. Next, we put on the finishing touches using raisins and pretzel sticks. Miss Katelyn, our special helper and Ms. Manda’s daughter, taught the children about kayaks while making a celery kayak. Using cream cheese, the children put raisins to represent the seat and pretzel sticks to represent the paddle(s). In Ms. Courtney’s group, the boys and girls made snowflake sandwiches. Folding and cutting tortillas was extra special! Building a sandwich is easy, yummy and healthy! The children enjoyed making (and snacking!) on our storm of food!
On our Arctic travels today, we discovered lots of new things! In Ms, Lori’s group, the boys and girls learned about how polar bears stay warm. With a little Crisco, plastic Ziploc bags and ice cold water, the children got to feel how important blubber is for Arctic animals. In Ms. Courtney’s group, the children got in touch with their snowman building skills while rolling out some Playdoh to make the letters V, W and X. The similarities in the “big lines” used to create all three letters helped the children remember how these particular letters are formed. In Ms. Leslie’s group, the boys and girls created number twelve letter constellations. Poking tiny holes into the paper made our “stars”. The children were excited to turn the lights off and see their very own constellations. We discussed what a constellation is, and the children got to see a very neat video on the Northern Lights!
Studying Greenland this month means learning about different animals in the cold, Arctic habitat. Today, Ms. Krista, and a few of her zoo friends, came to see us! We learned about how turtles hibernate beneath the ground during the winter. We also got to see and touch a chinchilla! Chinchillas live on the top of cold, snowy mountains, and use their incredibly soft, warm fur to keep them cozy from the cold. We wish these cute little guys could stay with us all month long!
Practicing our letter formation is fun, but practicing them in Cool Whip is even better! Today, in Ms. Lori’s small group, the boys and girls practiced writing the letters V, X and W in a small tray of Cool Whip. Working from left to right, top to bottom, the children enjoyed this memorable experience!
Some like their vegetables steamed, some like them raw. How about covered in paint?! Today, the children practiced the letter V by tracing it with vegetable stamps. While practicing the /v/ sound, we also came up with words that begin with the letter V: vegetable, violin, vet, very, and everyone’s favorite…vvvrooooooommm!
In part two of our snowman building, our snowmen received a blast of arctic snow, along with a face, scarf and buttons! It was time to get ooey and gooey again with shaving cream and glue as we applied snow to our dry paper mache. Everyone dug in as we put our finishing touches on our snowmen masterpieces!
The Greenland flag is a little misleading…there is no green! Today, Ms. Lori taught the children that the white part of the flag represents the ice in Greenland, and the red represents the ocean. What a tricky little flag!
Scrimshaw is the art of carving pictures into whale teeth. Using sharp objects, sailors would spend hours carving scenes into the hard teeth. Today, the children used a bar of soap to represent a whale tooth. Each child carved a “W” for whale into a bar of soap. Tapping on our own teeth gave us an idea of how difficult it must be to carve into real whale teeth!
Creative Tots has specialized in the private education of both toddlers and preschool age children for over 15 years. We began in the heart of Madeira and now also have a new Mason location. We are specifically designed to focus on early childhood development for children ages 18 months to 5 years.
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