Every Day is Earth Day in the Kindergarten program with the children always aware of their impact on the planet we call home and their kindheartedness towards the natural world. I wasn’t surprised when the snow melted and the children began to notice the garbage on the ground and in the forest we love so much. I can’t count the …
The WHY, HOW, & WHAT of Gardening with Children
WHY: Gardening with children can be a fun and educational activity that provides numerous benefits. Here are some reasons why gardening with children is important: Educational benefits: Gardening provides children with a hands-on learning experience about the natural world. Children can learn about plant growth and development, the role of pollinators, and the importance of soil health. Encourages healthy eating habits: …
Witnessing the role of the environment come to life right before my eyes.
In the world of Early Childhood Education, we hear this phrase: The environment is the third teacher. How many of us interpret this tends to reflect how we design our environments for children or the materials we offer. This statement asks educators to think deeply about the spaces we create for children and families and how they can be adapted …
Creating an Indoor Bean Garden
The kinders have been rediscovering the wonders of gardening even as the earth rests for the winter. While exploring outside together, BW, HV and CL found some white little “things” near the end of the skating rink, under some brush. “I found Something!” called BW. When April ventured closer to see what they had discovered, she wondered aloud what they …
Giving and Taking in our Many Relationships With The World Around Us : A Lesson in Reciprocity’
The kinders were really excited about the fire and storytelling that was planned as part of our Walk for Wenjack. We noticed though, that we had gotten a little low on kindling for starting the fire and wondered about getting some from the forest (just enough) to help us with this problem. The children shared their ideas about what they …
Where Seven Ripe Strawberries Can Lead Us!
The Kinders have experienced their first harvest of the season! We were delighted to discover just a few ripe strawberries in our very hot and very humid patch but, as you’ll see, this isn’t really about the strawberries but, rather, where the discovery of exactly seven ripe strawberries combined with emergent learning can lead our program to go and grow …
Reciprocity and Connection as a Natural Guide for Learning
The children have been delighting in their reciprocal relationship with winter birds. The children sing in the forest; the birds sing back to us, the children offer nourishment to the birds in the form of sunflower seeds; they, in turn, nourish the curiosity of the children and their desire to be closer to the birds by gracing us with their …
What have the children taught me about democracy?
I was inspired to share a recent experience that I had while observing children engaged in playful learning experiences in our kindergarten program. I am always amazed at the lessons we can learn about ourselves when we are co-learning with children. I am always amazed at the lessons about life and the world we hope to create when we listen …
Learning Alongside the Preschool Children and Educators. What am I thinking about now?
I have been privileged enough to spend the week of November 30-December 4, 2020 in the preschool program. I spent the days working, learning, and noticing alongside Angie, Lisa, and Sam. I noticed how the educators have a passion for connecting children with their space. We had conversations about creating engaging, magical moments for all of the children while they …
Navigating a Pandemic: How to Reopen A Child Care after a 6-month closure?
As a licensed child care centre, we were impacted greatly by the COVID-19 pandemic. We officially shut down operations on March 17, 2020, and we remained closed until September 8, 2020. After being closed and disconnected from our team for almost 6 months we wondered…what conditions need to be created for our team to safely come back together and reopen …