Lakewood Avenue Children's School

Preschool Ages 1-5

Lakewood at Home

Lakewood for PreK: May 27

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Good morning! Can you believe it’s Wednesday? It looks like we are in for more rain again today. Here are three invitations for engaging preschoolers no matter the weather.

Science Invitation: Creating Rainbows

Over the past two months, we have posed several invitations around light and shadow and last week that shifted to include color and reflection. You can imagine our delight to see this wonderful science invitation from At Home with The Reggio Approach: Reggio Children Creating Rainbows. You will need a bowl, a small mirror, a pitcher of water and a light source such as a flashlight or sunbeam. What might this invitation inspire in your preschooler?

Art Invitation: Sculpting dough/clay

What has your child been interested in lately? How can they create that using clay/play dough? It will be easier to sculpt with clay, but play dough or salt dough also work. Maybe they can use the clay to create a rainbow? Or a person dancing? Or a flower?

Sculpting is a wonderful medium for creative expression as well as investigating how things are put together.

Large Motor Invitation: Rainbow yoga

How can your child use their body to create a rainbow? If they need help coming up with ideas, you can try this Rainbow Yoga video. It is slower than the Cosmic Kids videos, but explores lots of poses.

This invitation was selected to encourage movement and body awareness, creative expression, and a link to the science exploration.

Lakewood for Toddlers: May 26

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Welcome back! We hope you had a really wonderful long weekend. Here are several invitations for toddlers to explore today.

Language/Math Invitation: Counting toes

Today is all about toes! Busy Toes by C.W. Bowie is a lovely story that explores wonderful things your child might do with their toes. What toe-counting games does your toddler know? “This little piggie?”

What about this one?

Starting with the little toe-

Little Pea

Penny Lou

Lucy Whissie

Mary Hossie

And Great Gobby-gobby-gobby!

(The last is said while tickling the child.)

 

Sensory/Art Invitation: Painting with toes

A couple of weeks ago we suggested offering smooth, squishy finger paint to your toddler. Today we are wondering what they might do with their toes, some finger paint or washable tempera paint and a large piece of paper, cardboard, or shower curtain liner. Be prepared for this to be a full-body painting experience. The paint can also be slippery, so find an open area for this exploration.

Sensory Invitation: Washing toes/bubble bath

After painting with their toes, invite your child to help clean their toes with a bubble bath. How can they clean between their toes? How will they know when their toes are clean? With a couple of clean plastic cups they can also explore scooping and pouring water along with the self-help/self-care skill of washing.

Lakewood for PreK: May 26

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Welcome back! We hope you had a wonderful long weekend. It looks like more stormy weather is ahead for Durham this week, hopefully today will be partly-sunny. Here are three invitations for preschoolers.

Design/Fine Motor Invitation: Mirror design work

A mirror can become a reflective design surface, adding richness to children’s work with design materials. Today you might consider finding a small mirror that can be placed on a horizontal surface. Pair it with a variety of small materials in a variety of colors and textures and invite your child to create something. How will their design work be different on a reflective surface? What might they discover about reflections, light and shadow during this exploration?

Design work may involve symmetry, pattern creation, and other mathematical explorations as well as building fine motor control and skill.

Art Invitation: Watercolor paints and brushes

Watercolors are a simple and lovely medium for creative expression. Children can explore how colors blend and merge, how water travels across paper, and what happens when paper becomes saturated. You can offer a palette of watercolors, or a selection of liquid watercolors. Children may also want a small container of water for rinsing their brushes and a paper towel for blotting. 

Large Motor/Movement Invitation: dance/creative movement

Dance is a wonderful form of creative expression and builds motor skills such as coordination and balance along with spatial and body awareness. This invitation can be as simple as putting on some of your child’s favorite music, or you can look for an online class or tutorial video. We are still searching for a really good dance series, we will let you know if we find one!

Lakewood for Middlers: May 26

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Good morning! We hope you had fun over the long weekend. It looks like today will be warm and partly sunny. Sarah and Caitlyn have several invitations for middlers today.

Sensory/Design Invitation: Make your own light table

You will need:
A clear storage box
White tissue paper or wax paper
Clear tape
String lights

Line the inside of the lid of the storage box with the tissue or wax paper and tape it in place. Spread the string lights around the inside of the box. Close the box (the cord will stick out, but the box should close. It’s okay if it doesn’t.) Using transparent materials (magnatiles, transparent gems, etc) have your child create on the “light table”

Intent: This sensory activity allows for practice with sorting and designing. It allows for exploration of light and shadow, color, and transparency.

Fine Motor Invitation: Sticker letters.
Write your child’s name in big letters on a piece of paper. Have them put stickers over top of their name.

Added variation: write out numbers or other letters that they are familiar with for them to put stickers on as well.

Intent: This activity incorporates fine motor development by focusing on the process of peeling the stickers and sticking them on the paper which encourages your child to practice the pincer grip. This activity also promotes letter and number recognition for a cognitive aspect.

Art Invitation: Watercolor painting on paper towels.
Paint with watercolors on a paper towel. Watch all of the colors mix together to make a beautiful creation! Your child can use cake watercolors or liquid watercolors for this invitation.

Intent: This activity allows for a different way to explore art and creative expression. This activity also includes fine motor development by using the hand muscles to paint.

Outdoor/Nature/Gross Motor Invitation: Outdoor Gross Motor Scavenger Hunt

Can you find something…
To climb?
To jump over?
To walk across/balance on?
To play catch with?
To crawl under?
To use as a drum?
That is heavy? Light?
That is smooth? Rough?

Intent: We want to encourage the middlers to use all of their big body and fine motor muscles to enhance gross motor development.