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!

busy hands

cleaning up a big spill
The children serve themselves milk and water at lunchtime.
It can be challenging, as an adult, to witness a big spill...
but it's all part of becoming independent!
{We use a lot of cloths around here!}

...3 thousand, 4 thousand, 5 thousand...
the big display
{a representation of the decimal system from 1 - 9,000)

sharpening pencils
{Hey! Isn't that the same kid from the big spill? - Yes, he's a busy guy!}
The new pencil sharpener is still the cat's meow...
from 6 inches to 1 inch in less than a 60 seconds.
{We've been having a lot of discussions
about sharpening pencils too short!}

playing a bell...
and listening until the beautiful sound is all gone.

matching color tablets
to things in the environment...
{"Look! The pink tower is pink! Our favorite color!"}

building words
with the movable alphabet
{It's important to remember that when a child builds a word,
she's not necessarily able to read it yet.}

Here's a photo of what my busy hands made this week...
a new hat!
Perfect for all these snowy days we're having around here.
If you're curious about the pattern I used,
I bought it here.
{Yes! I actually bought a pattern. I'm pretty sure it was worth it.}