Color Mixing

Puppets!

We recently started exploring puppets together at playschool.  One of the mamas told me about seeing Aladdin in marionettes at the library this summer.  I realized the puppet master was an acquaintance of mine from a few years back, and this inspired me to get in touch with him- Don Harms of The Harms Marionettes.  He paid us a visit a few weeks ago and we made him muffins.  He invited us to watch him rehearse for a show and also shared some plans/diagrams for making a couple of different puppets.  Today we made rod puppets with a soda can, a paper clip, aluminum foil, two rubber bands, a couple of strips of yarn or fabric, and a metal rod.  

Ta-dum!

The making of the puppets, of which I managed to capture no photos, was just the beginning.  The kids played with them for a good half hour straight.

There was lots of dancing involved- crazy, spinning, whirling dervish-like dancing.

Dance-til-you-drop dancing...

There were some detailed, imaginative games going on that involved volcanoes.

One child drew all of the puppets on the chalkboard. 

I love that the drawing is evidence of the child's understanding of how each component fits together- the hook/tie bar at the top, the opened paper clip, the ball of aluminum foil,...

The kids were engaged in every aspect of this project. 

Troubleshooting...

There are so many ideas and projects that I prepare for that are quickly discarded by the kids.  Maybe the time of day isn't quite right; there is a strong need to run or to play with friends; maybe the materials are not appealing in a way that they can really get into it.  If you're looking to base projects around children's interests then you can't get too attached to seeing them finished.  It's up to them!  It is just so rewarding in the moments when it all comes together.

I Love Teacher Tom

I draw so much inspiration from Teacher Tom.  The project below is straight from his blog.  Our storytelling rituals where the kids tells stories and I transcribe them onto paper (and then sometimes we use them as a source for writing practice) come from him.  I was especially thankful for his recent post about this article published in Scientific American.  Please take a minute to read about the critical role of play-based learning in early childhood.

Snapshots

Snapshots from this week and last...

Making Oobleck

Nature Walk