The Outdoor Classroom: Part One

We are fortunate that our classroom has a back door that opens out to a paved alley. On one side is our classroom wall and windows, and on the other is a cinder block retaining wall, just tall enough for me to peek over. Beyond the wall is a grassy rise with spruce trees growing on it, and just behind the trees is the fence that borders the cemetery.

It sounds like a bleak setting for outdoor play, but with the creative thinking and openness to diverse play materials that are inherent to children at play, it has become one of our most used centres.

Some of the items at the children's disposal are:
slices of log
river rocks of various sizes
a small water table (but a bin filled with water would work just as well)
lots of buckets
paintbrushes
construction trucks
baskets and beanbags
soccer balls
sidewalk chalk
magnetic fishing poles
fish and insects with magnets glued on to them
hula hoops

Most of the items were gathered here and there, and the cost has been minimal to set this centre up.

Every day during our open-choice centre time, one of the teaching team members supervises outside while the other stays inside. It has created a beautiful balance for the many kinds of learners in our room. Many of the children want to be using large muscles throughout the day, so having the option to get outside to kick a ball, run races, climb the hill, balance on logs, bend to push a truck, or lift up stones prevents many of the behaviours one might expect from a child who would otherwise have the wiggles. There is a flow between the outdoors and indoors, and many children float between the two.

Some of the children organize games like creating a caterpillar by attaching themselves together with hula hoops. Another group draws symbols on the wall and has a contest of who can hit each target with a bean bag. Another trio surrounds the water table and giggles as they catch fish. The children use chalk to create hopscotch games, to trace log shapes on the pavement, and to practise letters and numbers in meaningful ways (e.g. one child wrote "$300" beside the beanbag game to indicate the price of playing!).

The children who prefer to be alone blow bubbles, draw and print on the cinderblock wall, collect pine cones, or balance rocks.

There is something for everyone in the outdoor classroom. There are so many opportunities for so many skills to be built. The children think they're just playing and having fun. We adults know, of course, that we are growing whole, healthy children by giving them the tools to:
*engage in rich multisensory experiences
*shout and be boisterous
*be physically active
*collaborate and create games
*take challenges and risks
*develop strength, balance, and physical coordination
*explore natural objects, and adapt them to their own purposes

We are amazed ever day to see the creative play, deep conversation, and physical competence we observe when outside with the children. We often just watch, and record what's happening by taking notes, videos, or photographs. The children's capacity for using open-ended materials in new ways knows no bounds.

Recently, I observed that some of the children were using our inside blocks to build catapults, teeter totters, and something that resembled a jet ski. Because these blocks are not built to hold the weight of a child, some of them were getting damaged 

I sat with them and shared my observation with them (that they were wanting to build bigger "real" things that they could sit or stand on). I asked if they thought we could use some big log pieces and some sturdy planks in our outdoor centre. Their eyes went wide as they nodded, and immediately broke into excited discussion of what they might do with these materials.

I'll be setting my husband to work with the chainsaw this weekend, and raiding our old drive shed for some wide barn board planks! I can't wait to see what the children create.

The Third Teacher and Fine Motor Development

They come in with smiles, loud greetings, eyes bright and taking in all there is to see in their new classroom. Some cling to their parents, others can hardly wait to be set loose on all the beautiful materials they see before them. They leave their shoes and lunchbags in strange places, and forget to tidy up the messes they make. They cry at quiet time, because they are tired and they miss their mommies. They sometimes pinch or slap when they don't yet have the words to say, "No", "Stop", or "I don't like that!". They snuggle in to the adults that now care for them, so willing to trust us with our gentle voices and complete engagement in their play.

The first week of school is massive in its transition, for children and teachers, out of the relaxed zone of summer holidays. We are getting to know one another, and we take copious notes on the interactions we see. D brought S a baby doll when he noticed she felt sad. R invited A to play a game he made up with the school buses, called "Crash Fall Down". B pinched K because he knocked down her tower.

We gently redirect and remind, guide them through conflicts with a firm but gentle voice, and teach them how to care for the materials in our classroom. We pay attention to the energy in the room and find ways to calm things down or ramp things up (although the latter is rarely needed at this time of year).

Our classroom is the Third Teacher. We spent the summer cleaning, sorting, purging, and carefully presenting the materials we've collected and purchased to offer invitations to the children. We intentionally create many opportunities for the children to develop their fine motor control before we ever put a pencil in their hands. 

Drawing, painting, rolling and cutting playdough snakes, moving beads on a wire caterpillar, filling small bottles with dried beans then screwing on the top, spinning their homemade tops, building cars, lining up blocks, and hammering nails all lead to improved control of the small muscles in their hands. 

Printing will come, but not just yet. 

We have much playing to do first. 

Field Trip: The Bonnechere Caves!

The Bonnechere Caves provide inspiration for budding geologists, paleontologists, and artists alike! The natural curves and contours carved by water over ten thousand years offer much to the reflective soul. The invitation to brush one's hand across the fluting and scalloping patterns of water over rock is irresistible. 

Layers and layers of sea mud, sand, and long-deceased marine creatures create the layers of limestone, and only the power of water and time could reveal such beauty: a cephalopod shell forever encased in its sea bed, stalactites formed patiently by the eternal drip-drip-drip that is a cave's nature, and a passage curving ahead to unknown mysteries.

My Kindergarten students were completely awed by the experience of walking so far under the earth. When I suggested that a deer or a person might be walking over our heads at that very moment, their eyes grew wide with wonder.

As a teacher, I highly recommend the Bonnechere Caves as a field-trip destination, either in the Spring or the Fall. There are so many inquiries waiting to spring up from this experience! 

Fossils and Seashells

Like things that fly and all things medieval, fossils have the power to capture children's imaginations in an instant. The beauty of a long extinct life-form transformed into rock is a mystery that most children are eager to investigate. 

Combine the wonder of fossils with a walk through a real, naturally-made limestone cave and you have a recipe for inquiry that might last for weeks. Alas, we only have a week of school left, so we're delving into fossils without getting too deep (no pun intended!)

In preparation for our upcoming class trip to the amazing Bonnechere Caves, we've been learning about geology and fossils. The Caves are our local geological wonder. 500 million year-old fossils embedded in the mud and sand layers of an ancient sea have created a limestone bed on which much of our present-day farmland sits. 

About 10 000 year ago when the last of the Ice Age's glaciers were receding, the run-off eroded the cracks that naturally occurred in this ancient limestone. As limestone is a relatively soft rock, the crack widened over time, eventually forming a beautiful series of subterranean caverns.

Now a popular tourist destination, the Caves staff offer guided tours throughout the summer and fall.

I wanted to give my class some background in hopes that they would have lots of questions by the time we take our tour at the Caves next week. Having been a tour guide at the Caves in my late teens and early twenties, I gave them the short version using chart paper to draw ancient sea creatures! 

We watched this Bill Nye video about fossils, and in it we saw some children making fossils using shells, plasticine, and plaster of Paris. When the questions arose: could we do that?, all I could do was what I always try  to say: I said, YES!

I found a carton of plaster that I'd seen sitting in the supply cupboard for years. It didn't take much to organize small groups to knead their plasticine, squish a shell into it to create an imprint, then carefully pour or spoon some plaster of Paris into their mold. 

Within an hour they were ready to pop out, and now they're curing on the sunny windowsill till Monday. 

It was quick, it was messy, it was hands-on, and it was fun! The children were very excited to see their "fossils", and I know they'll have lots to think about as we embark on our subterranean adventure next week!

We Build Castles in Kindergarten!

The children worked with Miss Sue to plan and design their castles. They generated ideas of what tools and materials we'd need, and what parts of the castle we could include in our designs. It was exciting to hear their use of specialized vocabulary (moat, catapult, battlements, drawbridge, gatehouse, etc.), and to pick up on their excitement about this project. 

I noticed that many of the girls were not as excited and engaged in our plans. I addressed this during a large-group circle time by bringing up other kinds of castles, namely fairy castles! Suddenly, I noticed the girls sitting up a little straighter and tuning in more carefully! I used a cone-shaped Culligan cup to show them how to create a turret if they chose to add towers to their castles, using purple paper. Then the questions started flowing! "Can we decorate our castles? Can we use glitter? Can we draw flowers on them?" 

Of course, I said yes!

We spent two afternoons with the children drawing their cut-lines with permanent marker on cardboard boxes, and us cutting with serrated knives. We followed the children's directions unless there was an obvious problem (e.g. if the door would cut right up through the top). 

I involved the children in the mixing of paint colours. They were so engaged with this project that I barely had to supervise their use of the paint. We covered the tables in plastic and they worked for two days on painting their castles. We discussed painting a secondary coat to create a stone pattern, but they were so eager to play that they didn't want to.

For a few days now, these handmade castles have been the most popular play things in our room. 

The children are so proud of their creations and take such care to make sure they're put away carefully.  It's got me thinking about other play things we can create! 

The Flow of Our Day, Part One: Morning

I often hear other educators and administrators ask about our "daily schedule". I start out by explaining that we prefer to think of our day's events as a "rhythm" of the day, or as "the flow of the day". The rigidity of a schedule just doesn't fit the natural flow of a small child's day.

When the children come into the classroom, we have "transition" time. This is a block of time that varies in length depending on the day, where the children are encouraged to make a gentle transition from home to school. Some of the children begin their day at daycare, and perhaps ate breakfast two hours before getting to school. During this quiet play time, the children are encouraged to go to the washroom, eat a healthy snack, and play quietly at a centre of their choosing. 

When we started this new routine, we were amazed at how calmly the day began. Instead of tired, hungry little ones sitting at the carpet waiting for the other students to gather, we saw smiling faces. The whining that often started as soon as the children came in was no longer an issue. We use this time to circulate and greet each child warmly, check home bags and collect milk money, and do a check in with the children and each other. We take note of anyone who seems more tired than usual, or is feeling lonely for home. We have time to cuddle up in the big comfy chair for a story with any little ones who are needing some extra time to settle into the day. We also have time to listen to all those stories the children carry to school with them!

After 15-30 minutes (again, depending on the day), the children are cued to tidy up and gather together on the big carpet. We begin our day with a prayer, add a sticker to the ten-frame where we count the days in the month, check in with the Star of the Day, sing a song or do a finger play, and then a very important aspect of our day takes place: Turn and Talk.

As I mentioned above, children this age are always bursting with stories to share! I plan ahead to share something interesting or exciting with the children (such as seeing an animal on the way to work, or going to the beach on the weekend, or what we did when the power went out, etc.). Before I share, I ask the children a provocative questions, such as "Last night there was a thunderstorm! What do you know/feel about thunder and lightning?" I then ask the children to "turn and talk", knee-to-knee with a partner.

The children know that they must use their blossoming listening skills, because once they've had a chance to share with each other, they will report back to the class about what their partner said! In a very short time of incorporating daily Turn and Talk into our rhythm, I've seen a lot of growth in the children's ability to focus, interact in conversation, and express ideas verbally. 

Once our circle time winds to a close, we usually go off into small groups to focus on specific skills. 

For example, this morning the EA in my room took one group off to brainstorm their ideas about how we could begin building castles. They reviewed terms, drew a labelled picture together, talked about safety when using cutting tools and glue guns, and got very excited about their plans! 

I worked with another small group, reviewing a story we read yesterday about a castle under siege. We also reviewed terms (siege, battlement, drawbridge, and catapult), and read a new passage about a young boy becoming a page, then a squire, then a knight. I followed up by dubbing each of the students as they knelt before me! They loved it!

The third group worked independently at the creation station and played with the wooden castle. We rotated three times adjusting the length of each session according to the children's interest and attention. 

The groupings are always fluid, reflecting the interests, developmental stages, and needs of each student. 

Please tune in again tomorrow when I'll give you a peek into what our afternoons are like!

Our Afternoon: The Flow Continues

I have my ideas of how our flow will work next year. I hope to book two gym periods so that I can divide the JKs and SKs according to their energy levels. Every child will get gym every day, but sometimes they'll go in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon. 

Especially in the early part of the year, I find that many of the JKs need a rest right after lunch. The plan is to take the JKs to the gym in the morning when their energy levels are high, to give them a body break and to allow for some deeper focus groups with the SKs. The SKs will go in the afternoon when the JKs need some quiet time. 

As it stands, our afternoons look like this:

Right after lunch recess, the children come in and go to French. I spend my prep preparing blogposts, sending notes home, exchanging story books, and updating notes on the iPad. I pick the children up and we head to the gym (or outside) for some movement! 

When we return to our classroom it is Free Choice Play Time. I often do one-on-one assessments at this time to add to the information I gathered in the morning, and to inform planning for the coming day(s) and week(s). During this play time, the children can have a snack at any time they wish. We give them a heads-up when there are 10 minutes left till tidy-up so they can make sure they make time to have a snack. 

We tidy up, gather at the carpet to hand out homebags, then send them out to recess. From there, they catch their buses and head home.

The goal is that each child leaves our room feeling that they were cherished, that they are safe here, and that they look forward to coming back to continue their investigations and social development the next day!