Forgive me, you'll probably be hearing about Jeanine Fitzgerald on and off for the rest of the year! There were just so many little nuggets of wisdom from her training that I want to share. In addition to components of happiness, temperament, and DISC, she also talked about character education. Now, to me, "character education" sounds a bit antiquated as a term, like it belongs in an early 20th century schoolhouse. But with Fitzgerald's definition, it actually goes along well with other non-cognitive or "soft" skills, such as resilience, persistence, and self-regulation, which are so important to foster in the early education.
Aspects of character are defined by Fitzgerald as qualities that are able to multiply and increase the more they are given away. Examples include respect, trust, humor, and gratitude. The best news for parents, teachers, and other caregivers is the emphasis here on what is "given away." If we want children to respect others, then we can start by respecting them. If we want them to be grateful for the many gifts in their lives, then we can first express gratitude for all that they offer us. Obviously negative qualities can be spread in this manner, too, but I think there's real power in recognizing that even though children's moods and responses can be unpredictable and stressful at times, we can always choose an approach to them that stems from positive character qualities. As Magda Gerber once wrote, "What we teach is ourselves." There are two sides to every interaction and every relationship, and being positive and intentional about our half of the equation is the greatest way we can influence the other half.
Thanks for reading!
Megan
Kitchen Update
This week Kaitlyn made a potato and cauliflower curry that was especially well-received by the older classrooms. The younger children really loved egg and spinach bites as well as edamame noodles with pesto sauce and zucchini. A snack highlight was small, sweet clementines, which gave some of our children the opportunity to practice peeling them.
Classroom Updates
Infant I by Megan
We had a great week which included some relief from the heat, lots of time outside in the grass, dirt, and water, and even a whole-class excursion out back while the rest of the school was sleeping. Two things stood out to me after my time away: first was how quickly our little children change, which will never cease to amaze me, and second was how much warmth and joy there is between all of the children and all of the teachers in our classroom. Our older children show so much empathy in the form of concern for others when they are upset, attempts to cheer them up, invitations to play together, and spontaneous hugs and kisses, especially for younger friends. And Stef and Dana have worked so hard to build trust and emotional security with the children, which is now evident in the relationships they have formed with them. This is the critical foundation for a successful infant classroom and healthy social-emotional development, and to come back and see our room with new eyes has been really gratifying to me.
Infant II by Amanda and Hannah
Since the children have been very interested in water play, we decide to make an ocean in our sensory table. Each day we added a new material to the table: sand, blue water, rubber ocean animals, and sea shells. This prompted many discussions abut what we see when we go to the beach, and we also read many books about the ocean to extend the theme. A second focus for the week was counting. Each day outside we collected several of the same item and counted them as we placed them in the big blue bucket. Then we dumped them out and started over multiple times. A few afternoons this week we also enjoyed picnic-style snack seated on the ground, which helped several children stay focused during mealtime.
Toddlers by Carly
This week our main focus has been on toilet training with the major of our children in underwear. We are so proud of their consistent efforts and we are really starting to see progress. We would like to help the remaining children transition to underwear so please let us know if you have any questions. This week Carly brought an older group for a big walk to the Post Office. We worked on holding hands with peers, looking both ways when crossing the street, and noticing our surroundings when walking. We had several conversations prompted by the flowers and trees we saw on our walk. A big area of interest this week has been utilizing the sand table in the morning with special interest in using various sized funnels. Finger painting and painting with brushes was very fun outside in the beautiful weather. We would like to conclude by welcoming MM to our room; we are so glad you've joined us!
Preschool I by Shannon E.-F.
What a successful week! Out of all of the sensory experiences that the children requested last week—paint, water, playdough, oobleck, and more—playdough stood out as the activity that engaged the children the most. We created this week’s curriculum specifically to address scaffolding playing with playdough to incorporate more elements of dramatic play, using more advanced tools, introducing specific vocabulary, and washing the toys as part of clean up. We introduced more complex play slowly throughout the week, leading up to incorporating the playdough into the toy kitchen area with using oven mitts, baking sheets, and the oven to “bake” cakes.
This week the PS2 crew worked on bolstering their daily routines, which included a renewed appreciation and excitement for circle time. They mixed paint in small glass jars to make many unique colors and used it to paint rainbow blocks. During walks to the Woof Trail, Sarah was very impressed with the children's ability to listen and follow directions. Their interest in cooking and recipes continued to blossom, supported by a new cook book from the library. One day they used a juice press (and strong muscles!) to squeeze lemons into lemonade with cranberry ice cubes. The end result was quite tart but the children insisted they enjoyed it. They have requested a curry cook book next. Sarah will be out this coming week so Shannon E.-F. will be filling in.
PreK by Jen
Certainly a highlight of this past week was getting ourselves back to the ECHO museum. I was able to take a large group with Maddie on Thursday and a smaller group of PreK/PS2 on Friday. Both trips were fun and fascinating. The maker station on the ground floor is based on the clips from Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. Most of the children were only vaguely or not at all familiar with Mr. Rogers. If you’ve been reading the blog recently, you know how we here at MVS feel about this man and the incredibly work he did for children. If you are a family that allows television watching at home, I highly encourage you to fit in some Mr. Rogers. The pace is slow, the language is appropriate and well thought out, and themes are always linked to being kind and gentle. Filmed back when our attention spans were a little less overloaded, it might seem difficult to slow down with Mr. R. But, just like trying a new food a few times before deciding we don’t like it, give him a few tries before allowing your child the option of a less well prepared program. I think you’ll be glad you did.
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