Another P. E. Short Video

Get into the groove with Peter and the Monday P.E. group. Let's play ball!

Afternoon Activities

Want to be a fly on the wall? Here's your chance. Just click the play button and imagine.

Measuring Melted Snow

"Doing science" involves noticing, asking questions, forming hypothesis, testing it, and drawing conclusions. Getting the right answer is important, but "doing science" is not always about getting the right answer. It is always about problem solving and communicating thoughts and feelings. It is also about nurturing one's natural curiosity, and making one want to engage in the process over and over again.

P.E. Class with Peter H.

It starts with aerobic exercises: executing locomotive patterns, e.e., skipping, hopping, sliding, jogging, and running. The percussive music encourages the heart to pump more fuel into muscles and inspires body parts to work together to perform complex gross motor tasks. It involves being mindful of one's personal space and the general space. Stretching, listening, and pacing are important to having fun and being safe while expending energy and building up muscles and stamina. P. E. classes with Peter is always sweat-generating and fun!

Cooperation and respect for rules are key to an Orange or Green room child's successful experience of P. E. class with twenty other lively children and one highly experienced P. E. teacher. Cooperative games are at the heart of our school's P.E. program, and the children are at the center of the activities they do in P.E. Peter often sings with the children to help them come together as one big class. He gives clear instructions and maintains a calm, even tone through almost anything that could possibly happen at the gym when the class is in session. He uses his whistle to send messages to the children, and they respond instantly. He constantly makes adjustments for individual children as well as for the group as he observes what works well and what does not. Children always find themselves completely spent and utterly satisfied at the end of the class.

Here is a snapshot of one of the fun things the children do at P. E. class. Enjoy!

Stone Soup

The Story:

The greedy banker lost all the money the townspeople had deposited with his bank and the townspeople drove him out of their town. From then on, the townspeople did not trust anyone and kept to their own homes. The community crumbled. Two teachers in another state decided to heed the call of the new president of the country to do volunteer work in communities. One day, they walked into the town. As soon as the townspeople saw them, they quickly locked their doors and shut their windows. The teachers noticed their unfriendliness and unhappiness. "It is time we make stone soup," the teachers said. Out of curiosity, one person stepped out of her home to see what they were making. Then she brought to them her big cooking pot. That drew more people out of their homes. Soon, everyone brought out ingredients to add to the stone soup. The day ended with a community feast, with stomachs and hearts filled with the rewards of cooperating, caring, and living in community with others.

The Storytelling and Story Acting Experience:

The children listened to the story and simultaneously acted it out. They played the role of townspeople while the classroom teachers played the part of narrator and community volunteers. Everyone engaged in improvisation. Each child was given a bag containing some pretend food and a sheet of cloth. One child had a big pot in addition to the food items and fabric. The children listened attentively and responded spontaneously as the story progressed. It was a smooth process. Everyone was totally immersed in the story. One child voluntarily performed a musical number for entertainment during the part of the story when the townspeople had a feast. We all had fun.

Making and Eating Stone Soup:

Everyone brought in ingredients for making stone soup. There were lots of carrots, some potatoes, two plum tomatoes, one red pepper, one turnip, green peas from a bag and a can, a bag of corn kernels, some onions, a can of red kidney beans, a bag of green beans, elbow macaroni, chicken stock, some herbs, and of course, three large stones. During morning meeting, we decided that the children who have P.E. classes on Fridays go to P.E. class and the remaining ten children do the preparation work for making the soup. 

The ten children worked together to assemble the workspace: rolled up the red rug, moved the black benches out of the way, lifted the two rectangular tables and connected them together to make one long work table, and carried all the chairs to one side of the room. Their positive energy and communal spirit were the most important factors in transforming the classroom into a large, sunny kitchen. They washed, dried, peeled, and cut up the vegetables we collected for the soup. They worked side by side, totally focused on the task, and chatted with one another as they worked. They waited patiently for their turns and helped each other. Three children sustained minor injuries (a small cut) while peeling carrots. Other than that, everything else went on smoothly.

When the five children returned from P.E. class, they cleaned up the rest of the classroom while the ten children finished chopping the last batch of vegetables and cleaned up the workspace. Then in pairs, they put the ingredients into the big pot. The pot of soup simmered while children played outside. When they returned to the classroom, the soup was almost ready. The aroma filled the hallway. "Did the stones melt?" The classroom was back to how it usually looks, except for the tables. The two rectangular tables were placed together to make one long lunch table. Halfway through lunch, soup was served. Most children liked the soup. All of them tried it. A few children had seconds. We brought the remaining soup to the faculty lounge. Later, one teacher came and thanked us for the soup.

We could not have made stone soup without the generosity and cooperation from our families. Thank you very much for sharing some of the vegetables you had at home.

Doing Art with Katy

The pictures speak clearly of the pleasure and richness art classes with Katy offer children. Most children easily stop their morning activities in the classroom a few minutes before 9:00 a.m. and begin preparing themselves for their time with Katy, gleefully wondering what will be in store for them in a few minutes. A few children still grapple with the transition from the classroom to the art room early Wednesday mornings. Yet that has become so much a part of our classroom's texture and rhythm, so that peers support each other by demonstrating calm and purpose. They move as a group down the hallway, pass the science room, and into the art room. They search for their name cards to find their seats. Materials sit quietly and attractively on the tables as the children settle down and resist the invitation to touch them. Katy greets the children and tells them about the adventure they are about to embark. After questions are asked and comments made, the exploration begins. While the process of making art is largely an individual undertaking, working alongside others - communicating ideas and responses, observing each other's process, inspiring perseverance, greatness, and gladness in themselves and in others - adds significantly to children's growth and development as creators and viewers of art.

At the Writing and Drawing Table

At the writing and drawing table, children watch and learn from each other. It is a place where they acquire, practice, and master many skills in all areas of their being. It is also a place of calm creativity. It is where children can be alone and still remain connected with the rest of the community. They can take their time to look around the room while they draw, cut, and color. It is also where children can contain themselves within their space at the table and focus their energy on the paper and tools right in front of them, shut out the rest of the world, reconnect with oneself, and reclaim peace within. Children strengthen their bond with the community as they establish a firmer sense of themselves. Here is a video clip that offers a glimpse of what this area means to children in our classroom.

Let's Pretend...

In the morning, as soon as children see materials on the tables or spot their friends, immediately they begin their plunge into the world of dramatic play. They play "pretend" almost anywhere they are in the classroom, alone or with one or more playmates. Dramatic play offers them an appropriate and engaging vehicle through which they can acquire, practice, and master skills they need to handle situations they face in their daily lives. It also presents them a safe arena within which they can play out and sort through their own thoughts, feelings, and needs. Mother and baby bunnies hop around the classroom in search of food and hiding places. Pirates plan attacks and escape capture. Environmentalists construct safe havens for insects and reptiles, and harness energy from natural forces. Wizards and scientists concoct potions, while entrepreneurs manufacture beverage. Jedi-inspired warriors track down enemies. Large families consisting of parents, teenage children, and babies go about their daily activities and gather to have dinner or take vacations. The players communicate, negotiate, imagine, improvise, move, think, feel, and practice compromising, cooperating and collaborating with others. The shared experiences help to start new friendships and add bulk and texture to established ones. Here is a video clip that hardly reflects all the colors and sparkles of pretend play we observe everyday. It does offer a peek into the world children create for themselves as they explore and relish childhood.