C'mon in!

For an assignment in the course I'm currently taking, we are creating  digital stories about the centres in our classrooms. I thought that maybe the parents in our class would be interested in seeing where all the action happens! It's hard for many parents to volunteer in the class, so for those who can't, here's a bit of a tour!

Art Studio

In the art studio, we have lots of storage for loose parts and artistic tools.  On top of the shelving we have an area to document the learning happening in the studio. At this centre, children focus on the artistic process and on honouring thier creativity. They work on fine motor and self-regulation skills.
Behind the shelf (not shown) is the water table, where sensory play happens. A lot of mathematical thinking happens here, as well as oral language and social skills.

 Writing Workshop

This is a popular centre where children draw, create, and write. They love making books using pictures from magazines especially. At this centre, they not only practice writing skills, but also sorting by using the crayon organizer in the centre of the table.

 Science Centre

While our inquiries are distributed throughout the room, this is where we store scientific tools like magnifying glasses and clipboards. We also have baskets of natural loose parts, such as seashells, rocks, and bug specimens for the children to explore, sort, and create with. Today we have a tray containing the roots and bulbs from our tulip exploration.

 Quiet Corner

On this side of the quiet corner, we have our reading couch and our listening centre (not shown-temporarily out of order) as well as the computer. The children have created a sign-up list for the computer to keep it from getting crowded and to help them wait their turns.

On the other end of the quiet corner, we have a book display, puzzles, sewing baskets, and our cricket cage. The children use this area to interact with books, to engage in the scientific process, and to work on fine motor and sequencing skills.

 Rocking Chair

This is where we hold morning meetings and teach our mini-lessons to the whole class. We have a sharing basket for children to submit items they want to share with the whole class after play time. At this centre, they learn the self-regulation required to sit politely for short periods of time and they learn how to be good listeners and public speakers. The rocking chair is also used at play time to play teacher, so it is used for dramatic play as well. Here, we also dance and sing together.

 Construction Carpet

Here we have shelves and baskets filled with building materials such as blocks, lego,  and found materials, as well as props such as cars and dinosaurs. Children learn all sorts of skills here, such as spatial skills, gross motor, co-operation, dramatic play, and even basic physics. We've talked a lot about gravity, balance, and force.

 Cubbies

While not a traditional learning centre, a lot of learning happens here! The children learn to keep track of their belongings, to dress themselves, to respect the space of others and to co-operate with each other.

 Dramatic Play

This centre chages fairly frequently. It's been a fire house, a doctors' office, a  restaurant, and a house. Right now the children have created "Letterland", where they can role play their favourite characters.

 Math Centre

We store lots of loose parts here, such as buttons, stones, jewels, and sticks. The children use these for building, sorting, patterning, counting, and creating art. The most popular toy here are the snap cubes, which the children use to create spinning toys. Lots of mathematical thinking happens here, as does oral language and social skills.

Thanks for visiting our room! If you'd like to see it in person, drop Krista or Katy a line and we'll set up a visit for you.