Finally, we’ve had several days of sunshine and no wet weather! :) With enough warm sun pouring through the windows my seeds were ready to be planted. I saved up some applesauce containers, egg cartons, and coffee pods to use for my seed planting. In the above picture I planted some red sunflower seeds, and one if not two have already sprouted and this is just day 3!
Some forget-me-nots I planted in used coffee pods. I emptied out the coffee to use as fertilizer outside and then placed some potting soil int these tiny little cups. To stabilize them since they are not perfectly flat, I put them inside egg cartons I cut into thirds. My fingers are crossed they sprout soon!
This year I was able to plant some of the seeds my indoor grown marigolds left behind at the end of their life cycle last spring. Only one sprouted, but I planted more. :) It is doing really well for now.
Be sure to use your own recyclables when starting your flower or vegetable seeds. See what happens, do they work or not? :)
Walk, ride a bike or drive to The Marigold School of Early Learning!
I like to provide organic, gluten free and dairy free snacks that consist of fruits, vegetables, gluten-free whole grain crackers, nuts, seeds and nut butter along with water. The snacks I have planned are like mini meals because I want children to consume healthy foods for longer attention, steady and consistent energy and I want to expose them to foods they may not have tried at home before. I have had students who enjoy eating carrots at school and not at home just because it was served differently, but sometimes I have introduced a fruit or vegetable that a child has not tried yet and sure enough they realize it tastes great and want more!
When we simply don’t have the sugary, food colored simple carb options available children don’t think about them or want them. When children can be a part of making their snacks and serving themselves they learn how to eat healthily, how not to waste food and, how to read their body’s signals when they are full and satisfied. The energy output is much more even-paced and moods improve and stay uplifted throughout their time at school. This doesn’t mean that if children are exposed to all those sugary goodies once in a while that they will not want them, but not having them around can really curtail the desire for them. And don’t we all want children to grow up healthy, strong and capable? Let’s feed them organic healthy snacks without the sugar and food coloring. 
When focusing on children ages three to five the social/emotional aspect comes into play. Young children at first can emotionally only handle one other friend to engage with. Notice how I did not say “play with”. When a young child first begins the process of interacting with other children either their age, younger or older, there is an observational period in which the child will watch and listen while closing the proximity between them and the child they are focused on. If the child they are observing appears to not be a threat, the child will then start to play next to this child. Parallel play in one sense is a simple way for children to
The child’s journey of learning does not end there. The child will now move to associative play and start to play around and near other children including the first child they observed. An important fact to note for this stage of development is the child will be around and near other children and be engaged in play, however, there will be no common goal for the type of play this child is engaged in and for those in the area. This is the stage of development and the area of play where young children will converse, interact with the same materials, but not in an effort to form rules and common goals. This is a period of growth for a child to in a sense manipulate every engagement with both fellow children and the environment in a way to assimilate new knowledge and acquire skills to mature to the next level of development. Associative play paves the way for young minds to start the process of negotiation, compromise, common goals and the experience of delight when engaging with others which form an outcome of positive benefits. Now some sources may say this happens at ages four and five, yet it really does depend on the child. Many three-year-old children already are at this stage. And it is not a reflection of their intelligence, but rather a personality attribute and the type of family life the child is a part of. Remember a child’s experiences first emerge in the home with their families and whatever dynamics make up the family structure will affect each child in a vastly different way.
The last stage I will cover in this posting is cooperative play. This is an equally important stage in child development as all the other stages. However, cooperative play is a bit more advanced and usually will occur with children in the range of 4-5 years. Again there is a case by case aspect that really cannot be ignored. Children as young as three can and do often fit into this stage of play sooner if they come from a family with siblings and if they have been exposed to many more social engagements than a peer who has less social experiences. Personality also plays a role in whether a three-year-old child will reach this stage of play sooner. It is not an aspect of development which can or should be rushed, though. When a child reaches this stage assessing any given situation is a quicker process and the child has some definite goals, plans, and ideas. Working with more than one other child begins to be common and taking turns, sharing, negotiating, compromising and forming a plan to carry out together will happen regularly. Some children still have a difficult time if, in groups of three, four people in a group tend to be more acceptable with their framework of understanding, so it is okay to model how to play in a group of three or to encourage dialogue when children start to get frustrated with their ideas not being heard. In a Reggio Emilia inspired environment, it really is important to listen carefully to the dialogue before intervening because you really don’t want to undermine the complex socialization taking place with each child. Learning how to work together cooperatively is the basis of this form of play and this stage of development and without the opportunities to practice these evolving skills consistently those vital skills, we all need as adults will not fully develop. 
Heidi Scott is an experienced Teacher with both a Bachelor’s in Human Development with a Focus on Early Childhood Education and a Master’s In Teaching grades preschool – eighth grades.
Good afternoon! :)
Today’s discussion will be centered around aspects of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). There is a lot more to STEM than what I would like to discuss today, but you can find all sorts of stuff on other websites. For now, I would like to focus on how important STEM can be for young children and why it is wonderful to expose children to these content areas sooner rather than later.
Children are exposed to math and science early in their lives just as they are to art and literacy. The difference is that most traditional programs and some progressive, focus too heavily on the arts and literacy and really don’t put as much time into the sciences and math contents. With STEM, we educators are able to learn and understand more about how important these content areas are for both girls and boys. The focus narrows down a bit to really hone in on girls and minority groups, which haven’t done as well with these areas of study in the past.
When the sciences, technology, engineering, and math are not integrated into early learning environments and curriculum, the children miss out on vital key ingredients to their learning and future interests and abilities. Waiting till children are well into middle school and high school is too late for most children. Science is a curiosity from the start, so why ignore it? Just like with art and literacy, young minds crave knowledge and it just so happens most of the sciences are very sensory and tactile oriented. The world children are the most curious about is filled with unending science! So making sure STEM is covered in the early years is also key to children developing strong foundations for future interests and learning. When a child’s foundation for all learning is built strong in the early years, the later years are so much more rewarding because the children don’t have to struggle as much with these traditionally more male dominated areas.
Young girls and minority groups should have equal opportunities to learn science, technology, engineering, and math. These opportunities should appeal to them as much as it does to the dominant male gender in these fields. That means as educators and parents it is our job to encourage all children to explore, question and construct. Children are naturally young scientists and that usually is stunted when they enter schools that focus heavily on the other core content areas. If we are addressing the needs of the whole child and every child, then it is vital that we do not stifle the natural scientist in each child. We need to nurture those ideas and constructions so as the children grow and learn more they will be far more competent in the STEM areas and be able to compete and work with other nations as adults.
Check out your local Early Learning Department and any related sources for more information on STEM. Classes are also available to take so you can be up to date and ready to implement these age-old content areas but in a new and better way. 
I was a child that really struggled with math through my formal school years. I really had to work hard later in my life due to not having a strong science and math foundation from my early years. So other young children do not suffer the same fate, it is extremely important that we change our way of looking at the STEM content areas. Our futures rely on the sciences and math areas, so why not create curriculum, that invites, inspires and allows children to utilize their creative art and literacy skills in conjunction with the areas of STEM? The more positive and creative ways we can introduce a variety of subject matter to young minds the more fascinated they will become. The more fascinated they are, the more they will question, work together, discover and construct. 
Please share how you have implemented STEM into your early learning schools. And how has STEM changed parental, perspective on these core content areas?
Thank you for stopping by 
Coming from both progressive and traditional educational environments I have been fortunate enough to witness and experience many different ways in which parents have helped in the classroom through the years. The ways in which parents have participated in the schools and classrooms I’ve taught in have ranged from being responsible for one center or activity table to having parents sign up to be a classroom helper and jump in wherever assistance was needed. One of the things I’ve always stressed it that parents should only engage in activities in which they feel comfortable. The reason for this is so the experience is enjoyable and rewarding for both the parent and their child. I prefer that parents be able to choose the areas of interest they wish to help out with and I love inviting them to share a special talent they have, such as music, plants, art etc. 
In Reggio inspired early learning classrooms parent involvement can grow over time. As the parent participates more and more in different aspects of the learning day, he/ she becomes more confident in their abilities to not only support but to impart knowledge and learn from the children around them. In this way, the parent not only continues to influence the children in positive ways, but they too are learning new things from being around a diverse group of children. The more comfortable parents become participating and assisting the more confident they become in how their children are learning too.
Sometimes it can be difficult to step back and allow your child to be themselves in a different environment. Parents are used to seeing how their children are with them, yet sometimes they can be a bit surprised at their child’s new found confidence and behaviors while at preschool. Please don’t be alarmed, your child is simply expressing their new found independence and engaging in several new social/ emotional opportunities. And each child is being influenced by another child and the whole group, so they are in essence trying on many different hats as they continue to grow into who they will be someday.
Taking into account the Reggio aspect, parents may have opportunities to take up documentation and transfer this skill to their homes. Valuing what your child learns in preschool is great, but learning never stops for children, so if you like learning different ways to document your child’s learning then being able to volunteer in a Regio inspired preschool is a double plus for you, the parents! :)
I also love the fact that with a Regio Emilia inspired classroom there can be different culminating events after children have worked hard on their own creations throughout the school year. Taking the time to schedule family events highlighting the wonderful and rich work your children construct is a great way for your child to show you what he/ she has accomplished. It is also a great way to meet other parents, plan play-dates, and yes talk to the teacher about pairing up with other parents to contribute either a special skill or talent to the school for the children. Working together and becoming a close-knit community happens when we respect the children and value what they are doing each day they play at school! Each time parents help out they are communicating how much they treasure and respect their child’s abilities. Parents also get a wonderful insight as to how their children interact with others and the types of personalities he/ she is drawn to while making friends.
Of course, in any early learning environment, parents should be invited to come and join the class. Your talent is one that all of the children can learn from and appreciate. And don’t worry if you don’t have a “special talent” to share, just being there to assist, observe and document the learning journey your child has taken is important and meaningful.
Share what you’ve been able to do in your child’s class! Share with us the talent you demonstrated and what the outcomes were from your experiences! :)
Hi! :)
If any of you follow current research as I do, then we all are aware of the fact that small class sizes benefit children the most. I love having a small preschool because my class sizes will remain small through the years. The benefits of having fewer students means, each child will get individual attention when they need it and the children will also get to know one another better. More learning can happen if the environment is designed for fewer children as well. 
I would like to discuss a little about the benefits of one on one attention during the early years. Many parents out there staying home and raising either one or two young children are encouraged to join the discussion, because I’m sure you have found many positives having time to give one on one attention. For me, I had one student last year and I really valued the opportunity because it is not often that a teacher has only one student. unless tutoring. What one on one attention meant to me as a teacher was that I could truly tailor the curriculum to this student’s needs. I got to know my student much quicker and I was able to catch on to any current interests this student was thinking of. For children who do not have much experience prior to preschool interacting with other children, a one on one can be ideal for the child as well as the parents. A small, quiet learning environment was far less intimidating than a large and noisy one. And my student benefited in all learning areas as the curriculum emerged with not only the student’s interests but as the student grew through the school year.
As much as I value the time I spent teaching only one child, I designed my preschool for eight young and eager to learn children. Mixed-ages is my favorite way to teach because children learn so much more from each other. When children have multiple opportunities to interact with both younger and older students, the benefits have no limits. I’ve taught mixed-age preschool before and really loved how younger students glommed onto older ones and learned how to write and read quicker, became more confident in outdoor activities and generally were more alert, interested and eager to learn! I’m not saying that children in the same age classes aren’t similar in their desire to learn, it’s just a bit different. And until you experience it yourself, you’ll just have to trust me. Mixed-age classes really are the best way to go!
Small class sizes have a number of positive benefits for young children, and one I’d like to focus on is the time it takes to cultivate first friendships. First friendships happen in preschool, especially if the children have had no other opportunities to build prior friendships. Preschool gives children the time they need to make friends and the time they have to cultivate these friendships increases with smaller class sizes. Just think of the zillion interruptions that happen in large classes when children are right at pivotal points of discovery. Interruptions still happen quite a lot in small learning environments too, yet the children have more opportunities to go back to what they were focussed on and to continue the process of learning they embarked upon with fewer interruptions in total.
When children are enrolled in smaller early learning schools they are able to form deeper friendships during these early years and these friendships can last a life time. And even if the friendships dissipate through the years due to other factors, the children still have more time engaging in life experiences they need in order to function in larger groups as they grow older and enter elementary , middle, highschool and beyond. Any time young children are encouraged to interact with others and are placed in supportive learning environments he/ she will be better prepared for our very social world as they grow older. And older children benefit greatly with helping younger classmates learn. Older children become mentors and take on being role models for the younger children. These positive benefits have no limits as well!
I’d like to return to the topic of individual attention for a moment. One thing that really stands out for me as a teacher is that having one student last year really pushed me to grow as a teacher once again. My role took on the form of not only teacher, mentor, support, but as a peer. I took the time to really reflect on my behavior around my student because I did not want to over influence her with my adult perceptions. I wanted her to learn and I wanted to learn from her. She had a special skill that I really admired. My student came from a family that used American Sign Language, so she was able to teach me some words even though she was a hearing person. Her comfort level with signing was natural because she had been communicating in this way her whole life. I also saw how proud she was to have this knowledge and be able to teach me, her teacher. 
The most ideal situations are ones in which children interact with a group of peers. However, sometimes our youngest members of society need some firm first steps prior to their introduction to larger group settings. And that is perfectly fine! My student from last year needed time to adjust to this new thing called, school. She needed time to feel free to explore, question, construct and gain new knowledge without being intimidated or stifled. If you too have experienced having only one student for a time, you may be able to relate. Once children experience this firm first step, they are able to move onto larger groups with much more confidence and are very successful. There is nothing wrong in being sensitive to your child’s needs and recognizing the importance of taking your time figuring out what best works for your child. Just because friends or family put their children into large groups doesn’t necessarily mean that your child should follow the exact same path. And it doesn’t mean anything is wrong developmentally or cognitively with your child. It just means that you value and respect your child as an individual and you know what works best for him/ her. Preschool is the first school experience your child will most likely experience, so keeping in tune with what type of environment they need as their first step is just as important as any other aspect of learning.
A good reminder to all of us is that throughout our lifetime we all will be either learning or working in both large and small environments. The size of the groups we interact with constantly change. So don’t worry if your child starts out in super small class sizes. They will experience larger groups throughout their lives as you and I have. The most important thing to remember and keep close is that social/ emotional development happens the moment young children start interacting with their small universe. You, their family, friends, strangers, are all a part of how each child develops and preschool is a vital part of this important growing and learning journey. Stand up for your child and value who they are. You’ll know where their first steps should be when you are in tune with their needs as only a parent can be.
The Marigold School of Early Learning 