Outside!
I love when the weather changes and it allows us to spend more time outside. Kids love to play outside! And teachers love outdoor time too. It’s a relaxing, stress reducing, tension relieving part of the day and the time in which development and learning takes place.
Physical development is evident outdoors as children learn about their bodies in space, practice important physical skills, and exercise and strengthen muscles. Children also learn social skills – cooperation , turn taking, being on a team. And kids learn about the world around them: they observe changes in plants and the differences in the seasons;they watch living things such as worms and crickets, they learn about the earth by collecting rocks and leaves.
The outdoor environment is an extension of the classroom. We plan for this part of the day just as we do for other parts of the daily routine.
The environment includes equipment that helps encourage learning. For example, the stumps help children develop their motor skills and judgment about what they can safely do; trikes and other riding toys still develop balance and coordination; the dirt digging area is great for creating cities and harbors and for exploring the properties of the dry and wet sand and dirt.
So happy our program has the flexibility to spend as much time as we want outside.