busy hands

tweezing terrifying spiders
from a box filled with black beans
{much easier to clean up than rice!}

lacing wallpaper pumpkins
{more durable than regular paper}

pumpkin number sequencing
{the idea for this came from My Montessori Journey}

opening bottles
{filled with imaginary potions}

using tongs to arrange orange puffs on a palette

rolling out sugar cookie dough
{get the recipe here}

cutting out a bat

and adding the final touches...

ta da!
the scary treats fresh from the oven
{We ate them all day long!}

our finished jack-o-lantern mosaic
{Featured today over at The Crafty Crow!}

Happy Halloween Eve!

a jack-o-lantern mosaic

Many of you lovely blogging friends gave me great ideas
of things to do with paint swatches.

SO,
today we used them to make a jack-o-lantern mosaic.



First, I drew an outline of a jack-o-lantern on a big piece of paper.
I set out paint swatches in shades of orange, green and black.
I cut and glued on a few, so the children would get the idea
of what colors went where.

In the beginning, it was a little tricky for some of the children
to visualize what in the world we were trying to make,
but as the jack-o-lantern filled in, they all caught on.

It was kind of like working on a big puzzle...
each child stopped by the mosaic throughout the day,
pausing to cut and glue on a piece or two (or twenty),
and then went along with his or her daily business.

It's not quite finished
{it will be waiting for the children tomorrow morning}
but I wanted to give you a peek at how beautiful it is.

I love the sense of community it's brought to the classroom, too.
The children so often make things for themselves or their families;
it's been extra special for them to make something for their classroom!

black light fun

It was pretty much like a Montessori
RAVE
in the cubby room this morning.

I covered up the windows and replaced the regular light bulbs
with black compact fluorescents.
{purchased at Home Depot after searching all over town}

What better way to start a Monday morning
than drawing with highlighters under a black light!

Our clothes were glowing, the paper was glowing,
and the fluorescent markers were nearly electric.

After everyone had a turn to draw,
we busted out the Putumayo World Music
and danced with silky neon scarves.

It was awesome.

I think fluorescent play dough would be REALLY fun under a black light.
{Next time!}

fabric lacing

The idea for this lacing activity came from Montessori Mama.


A small group of children laced squares
of upholstery fabric onto ribbons.
Some ribbons were threaded with needles, some with buttons.

The work was so satisfying,
I couldn't prep the fabric fast enough!
{I was cutting upholstery samples into small squares,
then cutting a slit in the middle.}

Here are some of the uses the children came up with for their creations:

cat toy
fishing line
necklace
snake

lunch...

...according to the Food Guide Pyramid.

The children have really enjoyed using the Food Guide Pyramid to sort the items in their lunchboxes during the morning work period.

The rug is just a regular working rug with the outline of the Food Guide Pyramid taped on with colored tape.

I just realized that we're using an outdated version of the pyramid!
Check out the new one here.

Oh well, the children haven't really been concerned about the number of servings...

They're more excited to find out if they have something in their lunch from each of the food groups...
and that applesauce comes from apples and apples are fruit...
and that dessert is O.K., it just goes last!

yeah, snack!

After hemming and hawing
{for the past several months}
I finally gave our snack area an upgrade.

Check out the before photos here.

after...

This morning, in addition to the snack, I set out 3 tubs...
{one for washing, one for rinsing, and one for drying}

The children have always been able
to help themselves to a snack during the work period
{the numeral cards tell them how much to take}

and now, they're able to wash their own dishes, too!
{How independent!}

Finally! A real purpose for the soap suds!
{This lesson was off the hook today, by the way.}

sweet and scary

The idea for these scary {and sweet} spiders
came from Jennifer at Ramblings of a Crazy Woman.
She is one busy, crafty lady!

Each child painted a section of an egg carton.
{We used brown, purple, and black paint.}

The children selected googly eyes
and glued them onto their spiders.

Then came the tricky part,
we had to WAIT for the paint to dry.

Whew! It was intense!
Have you ever watched paint dry?!!!

When the paint was almost dry,
I poked 8 holes in each spider with a corn cob skewer.
Then, the children counted-out 8 pipe cleaner legs
and pushed them through the tiny holes.

Aren't they spook-tabulous?
I love the way the indentations on the bottom of the
egg carton make the spiders look like they're smiling. :)

FYI: I did this as an afternoon project with a group of five 3-4 year olds.

two variations...

of two favorite lessons:

The children arrived at school and discovered
that their snipping paper
{strips of colored copy paper - some with lines, some without}
had been replaced by paint color swatches!
{donated to the school by an interior decorating mama}

Their sponge squeezing bowls
{two ceramic cereal bowls}
had been replaced by abalone shells!

The children were pleased to discover that
paint swatch strips are really fun to cut.
{The paper is nice and thick, and it makes a satisfying sound as it's cut.}
Right now the children are just cutting snips to cut snips.
{I plan on adding the option of glue and paper later on,
so they can use the snips for mosaics.}

The children quickly realized that the abalone shells are a little wobbly,
so they have been extra careful with their sponge squeezing.
{The nooks and crannies of the shells and their beautiful iridescence
have made up for any spills the children have had to wipe up!}

apple slicing

Food lessons are sort of the pinnacle of the practical life curriculum in our classroom. A lesson like apple slicing requires coordination and control, organization, sequencing, problem solving, and social grace.

Only a few children in the class are capable of a lesson like apple slicing. You might think that this would disappoint the other children, but instead, it inspires them to practice the lessons that come before apple slicing. They eagerly pour, scrub, and spoon, knowing that their work is preparing them for some really fabulous food lessons! :)

What you'll need:

• 1 medium-sized bowl (for washing apples and cleaning up)
• 1 small bowl (for waste)
• scrub brush
  
• cutting board
• knife (we use pumpkin carvers)
• water pitcher
• serving plate
  
• toothpicks
• cinnamon
• drying cloth
• apples!
  

First, the child fills the pitcher with water and pours it into the bowl. (Prior to this, he's washed his hands, put on an apron, and set up his workspace.) He uses the brush to scrub the apple and the cloth to dry it off.

Saw! Saw! Saw!
Although it is only a pumpkin carver,it is still fairly sharp. The child in these photos has been shown how to handle a knife with great care. If only you could see the concentration on his face!

Next, the child removes the core. This goes into the small waste bowl, which he'll empty when he cleans up.

After arranging the slices on a plate, he sprinkles them with cinnamon. Yum!

He skewers them with toothpicks - this makes serving the slices a snap!

The apple slices are set aside in a safe location while the child cleans up. Not only does he wash and dry everything, he restocks the tray with a clean serving dish and drying cloth, so the lesson will be ready for the next child.

Ta da!!!
He radiates pride as he offers his classmates the fruits of his labor.

"Would you care for an apple slice?"

spooky spooning

Using a slotted spoon to sift Halloween spiders
out of a bowl of rice is delightfully spooky.

{AND a little messy, but that's what crumbers and brooms are for!}

What you'll need:

2 bowls
slotted spoon
ricespiders

The spiders are those plastic spider rings, with the ring part cut off.
I plan on swapping the white rice for some colored rice soon.

{I think orange spiders with black rice would look especially eerie!}

and suddenly it all made sense

The child in this photo has been practicing letter sounds and symbols at school for over 2 years.

He's blended, rhymed, segmented, traced, matched...

I spent the last year searching for new ways to keep him interested and excited about language.

{Sometimes I get fired-up about something - like reading, and I have to remind myself, "Follow the child, Anne, follow the child!"}

Believe me, I was following this child!
He would drop everything to play a language game!
He would invite me to play language games!
{The kid loves to rhyme so much, he was named "The Rhyme-Master" at the end of the school year potluck.}

The pieces were all there, but they hadn't quite fit together yet...

Until today!!!!!!!!!!!!
He was like a word-building maniac!
{He told me he was going for the Guinness Book of World Records.}

The way he worked - with joy, pride, and purpose,
gave me goosebumps.

I just wanted to share this feeling, and to say,
{I'm sure you already know this!}
it is SO important to have patience with children...
you never know when or where they'll reveal their gifts!

ski day #1 & #2

hike, hike, hike

excited dog, excited husband
{I'm excited, too.}

Weeeeeeeeee...

...eeeeeeeeeeeee!!!


Rosie
{the abominable snow-dog}

LOVE!