ECEC Raffle Basket - Scrapbooking

Our classroom is working on a Scrapbooking Basket for the ECEC raffle which will be held on Wednesday, November 14, 2012.  We are looking for some donations to add to the basket.  This will be a great way to get families ready to scrapbook some wonderful memories for the holidays. 

Somethings that we could include are:

• Stickers
• Markers
• Glue
• An Album
• Paper Trimmers
• Journaling Tools
• Paper - Decorative, plain, different colors
• Zots
• Tape
• Ribbon
• Photo Corner Covers
• Stamps
• Ink

We will have a donation box that we can add to and then we will create a basket that will help get someone started or add to their collection.  If you have any questions, please ask.  We appreciate any contribution.  Thank you so much!  :)

Exploring Light

Our light exploration began with exploring with flash lights and mirrors.  The children first used the flash light by waving the flash light around the room.

"Look an apple." After observing how the light moves the children sat down and shined the light on the floor. They noticed how the light made different shapes.

  

They then picked up the mirrors and shined the light off the surface. They notice how the light reflected off the surface of the mirror. 

Next the children selected different objects from the classroom and shined the light on them. They discovered how the light made the objects appearance change. They noticed how the light made the objects bigger and smaller. To extend the children's investigation we are going explore how light affects the size of objects. 

For our second exploration we used the projector and different size blocks. The children placed each block on the projector and observed the different sizes. 

The children compare the sizes between the original object and the shadow the children by holding up the block  next to the shadow.

  

 

 To better understand the concept of measuring we traced the shadow and then compared its size to the block.

By moving the projector back and forth the children were able to determine the cause of the shadows change. They noticed the shadow was smaller when the projector was closer to the wall. When the projector was moved father away they noticed the shadow was bigger.

Our next investigation we will be using the shadow screen to watch how the light affects our shadows appearance.

Beginning a New School Year

                                        

The children have begun the school year off very busy.  A lot of what has seemed to interest them is painting, building, and light.  They have also been exploring different textures of materials.

The children have been exploring different brush strokes and investigating different size brushes.  They have also noticed color mixing.  We will be developing a better understanding of these concepts as the semester continues. 

While using a wide variety of building materials, the children have explored different concepts.  They have discussed sizes, structures, balance, and habitats.  Their ideas are narrowing down, but continue to be rich and enthusiastic.

 Light has been an interest lately as we investigate light tables, flashlights, and projectors.  The children have showed understanding in the idea of shadows and reflections.  We will continue these investigations and adding to the children's ideas.

We have introduced different textured materials to the children too. They have used these in a variety of ways.  We explored different mixtures - Moon Dough, Clay - Making impressions, Silly Putty, etc.

As the semester continues, we will introduce new concepts that will provoke the children in these interest areas.  We are anxious to see how these ideas develop in our classroom.