Bananas for Learning

Wheels, Wheels, Wheels! At the end of our pet study, I gave the students three options of what topic we would explore next. The options were: balls, buildings, or wheels. The response was overwhelmingly wheels! One of the things that I love about our Teaching Strategies Gold Curriculum is that it takes simple items that are part of our lives and turns them into multi-week investigations that encourage our children to think deeper and more critically about things that they see and experience everyday (there is even a box study!).  We transformed our classroom to include centers that helped us explore wheels; different kinds of wheels, how wheels work and move, and how wheels are used in our everyday lives. Mr. Red built us an awesome convertible that we had in our dramatic play center. They were able to use tools to work with bolts, wires (bungees), and lights. In preschool we enjoy using as realistic items as possible, so students had access to paintbrushes and sponges to do body w...

  Puppies and Kittens and Birds...Oh My! The Bananas loved the pet unit in February! We talked about what makes a good pet (although many of them really wanted tigers and giraffes to live at their houses), characteristics of pets, how they communicate, and how we can best take care of our pets.  We had some special visitors, including a dog trainer who showed us the appropriate way to approach a dog and what a dog's body language is telling us.  Our dramatic play center was transformed into the Frankie Lemmon Animal Hospital where the children had the ability to take care of a wide variety of pets. They looked at X-Rays, used veterinarian materials such as scrubs, stethoscopes, and cones, and had the opportunity to go to the pet shop to purchase collars + leashes, pet treats, and other essential supplies. This was a favorite center the entire month!  We also added some more opportunities to our writing center. Students were given the opportunity to pick a pet, trace ...