When a kite flies
Someone is there holding the string
When a kite flies
The kite finds a way to use its wings
When a kite flies
The tails keeps it pointed toward the sky
I fly like a kite flies
‘Cause I have the very same things
We have certainly been enjoying our wonderful Spring Days and recently sent invitations to our families to create a kite together or purchase one and spend a windy afternoon together. Spending time together and developing memories is an important ingredient of a resilient child. When a Kite Flies is a wonderful example of what we want a resilient child to say to himself.
Research shows that three internal protective factors are critical for building resilience in young children:
- Secure Attachment to early caregivers means that later children will see other adults such as teachers and authority figures as sources of hope and guidance.
- A sense of Initiative leads to a child intrinsically motivated to learn.
- The ability to Self-control the experience and expression of emotion leads to more friendships.
I fly like a kite flies
It’s all inside of me!
If you have visited our Montessori Classroom in the last few weeks you will be immediately caught up in “Carnegie Fever”. Our class has been invited, along with several other Children Inc. Centers to perform at the Carnegie Art Center in Covington and display our art work. To say we are excited is quite an understatement!
We are bringing a wonderful book to life The Magical Garden of Claude Monet by Laurence Anholt. We have read several books about Monet and his paintings and his garden and tried several of his painting techniques. With each new experience the children would comment about Monet and his painting and especially his garden. One precocious boy in our class asked “ Do you think he made the gardens because he did not have enough room inside for all the paintings of things that he like to paint that are found outside?”
Today we had our first dress rehearsal with our costumes that the children designed and helped create. My co-teacher and I watched as the children bumped into each other while attempting to dance and costumes collided. Initially it appeared to be a disaster! It was then I remembered the same child who was dancing and spinning would not join us at all for group time in September. A little girl who only wanted to play with one classmate volunteered to be our newest little girl’s partner in the dance. I thought about Claude Monet and his gardens that still bloom today long after his death. He knew that all those flowers just needed “Room to Grow” just like my students. Masterpieces that they are!
As we work with children on a day-to-day basis we must remember to help them develop into the wonderful people we know they can be. By giving a child a healthy environment and working to develop positive social and emotional skills children have an amazing capacity to learn and be successful. Remember to provide support and guidance and you will see that children can amaze you.
Written by Preschool Teacher Extraordinaire Sharon Boh
March is full of birthdays in our classrooms and that is definitely something to “Celebrate!” In our classroom we discussed this in our group time and one of our student’s said “Why do we only celebrate on special days, I wish we could celebrate everyday!”
So for the month of March that is what we are going to do!
We listened to Mr. David’s song “Celebrate!” and started a chart of things to celebrate. Serenity learned how to tie her shoes, something to celebrate! Will completed a 25 piece puzzle, celebrate! We are careful to celebrate effort because research shows this will help children develop persistence and build self-esteem.
I decided to take our celebrations a step further and found a list of fun ways to celebrate every day of the month. March 1st finds us celebrating National Pig Day and March 2nd Dr. Seuss’s Birthday with Green Eggs and Ham. We are all very excited about each new day because we know we will be able to Celebrate!
