Emergent Curriculum. Listening to friends as they talk and work and play. Providing materials that support their visions and interests and conversations. This is what led us to setting out brand new chalk, cardboard and rags. “Create!” was the prompt. “Write!” was the message. And so they did. Vigorously. With such passion that all four fire alarms went off after detecting the dust in the air. Yikes. Who knew. We rushed the children outside as Tami took care of the piercing alerts! So we continued our chalk exploration outside…..where it will remain in days to come. Yikes.
And so our week begins! Melinda brought in a handful of magazines. At one table, Lisa worked with friends to name the people and objects they saw on the pages. At another table, Mel asked “Who uses this? Boys, girls, or both?” Friends cut out images and objects and filled baskets with their observations.
In another part of our classroom, friends gathered to play “Buckaroo”. Practicing and talking about gentle touches, friends tried to pack as many items on the donkey as possible before he bucked them off.
Back outside, we said goodbye to Halloween by composting our pumpkin. Friends took turns driving a shovel into the pumpkin to break it down.
The Blue Bus came and began a new session!
Have a great start to your week.
Wee Sprouts: Carrots and broccoli. Breakfast: Whole wheat toast with PB and bananas. Lunch: Whole wheat pasta with marinara, peas and apple slices. Snack: Cheese and crackers.
Might I suggest that the “boys versus girls” exercise be followed up by some discussion with the kids? I think it is important to remember the power of media in creating stifling gender norms, especially when trying to sell a product. Without further discussion, we risk reinforcing (negative and often harmful) gender stereotypes to our children.