The Boat
Today I spent more time watching the boys and the ongoing fascination they have with building a boat. Their steps are very intentional and they discuss ( sometimes with disagreement ) what the boat needs or what should be placed where.
“Wait boys. STOP! We do not have a propeller. We do not have the part that makes us go. ”
” Lets put that piece right there.It’s the engine. ”
Do you see some patterns in the design above ? 
” We need the wavelength part. The one that tells us how far we go. ”
” Do you have room for me ?
Other things I heard :
” Stop getting the mushy stuff. It won’t work.” ( Some of our blocks are soft. )
” Let’s have dinner on the boat. What do you want?” as he passes a block and they pretend to eat.
I am quite intrigued by what is going on with the boat. Will another project stem from this play? I asked the boys what we could do with the boat process tomorrow ? I asked them how they decided what would go where ? I wondered if they took paper and made a design if it would help ? Does your boat have a name? The boat Holly went on had a name- Ecstasy. The boat I was planning to go on had a name – Triumph.
Child -” Well, our boat has guns.”
Child – ” And it catches fish.”
Child- ” Then… maybe you can name it the gun fish catching boat.” 🙂
These are subtle provocations. Not all provocations start with materials laid out in a specific way . Sometimes provocations are conversations.
I can’t wait to see what they do with their boat tomorrow.
( If you need me to list what pre-kindergarten skills are being practiced here I can but you know the drill by now. )