Summer Break

It is hard to believe that summer is winding down. Our program will be closed August 31st-September 7th, so we can prep our classrooms for the new school year. We are looking forward to welcoming new friends on September 8th.

Summer has flown by! We had a blast sharing it with you!

Sensory Exploration

One thing we love at the GPPSS Child Development and Preschool Program is Sensory Exploration!! Our Preschool classroom even coined the phrase "Messy Mondays" last school year inviting parents to participate in creating sensory materials and joining in to play!

Sensory exploration sets the stage for open ended, hands on learning. The children create their own experience- deciding how to manipulate the materials, testing out their own theories and exploring concepts of math, science, problem solving, and cooperation. While observing sensory explorations, teachers often hear very descriptive vocabulary words and creative ideas!

Whether it is sifting sand, filling cups of water, sorting colored rice, or drawing in shaving cream, the children's senses are engaged and brain connections are growing stronger and stronger!

We love our Messy Mondays.... and our Messy "Every-Days"!

Garden Update

Our garden project has taught us so much this summer! Together, the children have learned what it takes to care for plants, where food comes from, and how to work as a team! They shared the responsibilities of weeding, watering and reaping the harvest. Seeing their excitement as tomatoes turned from green to red was such a great moment!

The children enjoyed tasting various vegetables at snack time, and even made Kale Chips one afternoon. An abundance of zucchini allowed us to explore all of its' properties- through observation, cutting open, and even using zucchini as an art manipulative. Zucchini paintings were a hit in our Toddler Two and Preschool Prep classrooms.

We are looking forward to exploring what will come next for our garden project. We've definitely been enriched by the beautiful space, and the authentic experiences in nature. Thank you to the staff members who work on our Garden Committee, and also to the many families who donated items for the project. It was truly a team effort!

Bubbles!

This morning, Mr. Ron the Bubble Man visited our school to dazzle us with a bubble show! The children were so excited to see giant bubbles, bubbles inside of bubbles, and bubbles filled with fog! Our Pre-K teacher, Ms. Stephanie, assisted Mr. Ron in making a friendship bubble, and also a bubble teddy bear. We learned about what makes bubbles pop and how they change shape.

We are collecting empty Gatorade type bottles, so we can make our own foam blowers just like Mr. Ron! If you have any empty bottles, please turn them in to your child's teacher! Thank you!!

Music and Movement

Ella Fitzgerald once said, "The only thing better than singing is more singing". We are about to be doing a lot more singing over at the GPPSS Child Development and Preschool Program!

Back in May, our program was awarded a grant from the Grosse Pointe Foundation for Public Education for the creation of Music and Movement Resource Kits. We have completed the process of ordering materials and assembling the kits! Each of the four kits consists of a classroom set of instruments, various dancing scarves, a puppet, and a large group material- such as a canopy or octa-band. Two of the kits contain instruments that are safe for infants and toddlers. In addition, we were able to create a lending library with books related to music, instruments and music concepts. These books will be available for teachers to check out and use in their classrooms as well. 

This week, our staff went through a training session to test out the new materials, share ideas and review information about the importance of music in the earliest years. Our teachers are now ready and equipped to begin using the Resource Kits in their classrooms. 

We are grateful that the Grosse Pointe Foundation for Public Education made this vision a reality for us. We are excited that everyone in our program, birth through age five, will be able to participate in music experiences!

A group of teachers test out the XL Stretchy Band

Practicing with an octa-band for large group movement

Nutty Science

Things got a little nutty around here last week when we were visited by Professor K- the Nutty Scientist!! Professor K visited our Preschool and Pre-K classrooms to show us just how awesome science can be!

Air molecules were the topic of our exploration. The children saw demonstrations of how air molecules can cause objects to float, fly and move! They predicted what they thought might happen, how they thought it might happen, and even got to participate in a few of the experiments. We even learned about a cool scientist named Bernoulli, who inspired one of Professor K's inventions. 

We hope to continue our excitement for science and try some experiments of our own!

Firefighter Exploration

Recently, our Preschool Prep class has been very interested in fire trucks and fire fighters. The children were curious to know things like:

• Why is the siren on a fire truck so loud?
• Can both boys and girls be fire fighters?
• Where is the hose on the fire truck?
• Do you have to wear a seat belt on the fire truck?

Their exploration led to many activities and stories. The children were guided by their teacher, Ms. Stephanie K, who also arranged for a visit from the Grosse Pointe Woods Fire Department. All classrooms and ages were invited to participate. The children had the opportunity to ask questions, see and try on fire fighter gear, and explore the fire truck. 

What an awesome experience! Thank you GPW for supporting safety, learning and community involvement. Thank you for working hard each and every day to help keep us safe!