Fireworks

During our outdoor play time one of the children built an interesting structure.  When I asked what it was she replied “A fire” The other children had been playing a follow-the-leader/obstacle course game and asked her if they could use her ‘fire’ to set off their ‘fireworks’.  She agreed so they built an extension to channel the fire to the fireworks station.

The obstacle course was redesigned — over the balance beam, across the walkway, jump on and off the log, and complete a circle on the stepping stones.  One by one they tried the course while the spectators watched from the log seats.

After each successfully completed course the imaginary fireworks were triggered and the audience applauded.  They adapted the course for the age and skill level of the participant.  The baby didn’t have to complete the whole course without touching the gravel area as the others had to.  If the course was too easy for some they had to complete more laps in order to trigger the fireworks.  Bonus fireworks were awarded for doing spins or fancy tricks along the way.

This is the power of free play.  An independent building project evolved into gross motor activity that enhanced social skills and creativity for the whole group.  It was better than anything I could have planned.

Away They Go!

After watching and caring for them for a few days we decided it was time to release the frogs.  We knew they were just temporary guests and we couldn't keep them in captivity.  Besides the 'aroma' from the habitat was getting stronger.

So we decided to take a hike to the park by the river -- everyone agreed that was a good place for frogs.  Once there we found a grassy spot to sit and gathered in a circle.

One by one the frogs were removed from their temporary home and released.

They didn't flee as quickly as we thought they would.  Some of them stayed to visit a bit longer as if to say a proper good bye.

There was a brief moment of panic when the baby 'swatted' one of the frogs.  I thought we might have to do frog CPR but it was OK.  The last frog hopped off toward the safety of the bushes and we headed back to our home too.

Loose Parts

Our outdoor play space contains a wide variety of loose parts.  Some items have been donated by parents, some are found items, and others are leftover pieces from various projects.  Whatever they were before it's always interesting to see what the children can do with them.

Sometimes the children work independently, other times the whole group is involved.  Often there is an intricate story behind their creations.

This was a shed on the side of the roadway:

These were part of and elaborate zoo:

And here they are going on a camping trip. Most of the group is waiting in the car but some are hooking up the trailer.

which is on the other side of the yard....

Our Garden

I  like gardens but I don't consider myself to be a great gardener.  I throw things together and see what happens.  For me it is all about trial and error and having fun not right or wrong and that's what I teach the children.

We started our first gardening adventure in 2007 with a 2 foot by 6 foot raised bed and planted corn, sunflowers, zucchini, peas and cucumbers.  The following year we added two more raised beds and tried some other plants too.

This spring, as part of a complete overhaul of the yard the planter boxes were removed and now we've got a 12 x 12 garden.  The best part is that we can actually go right in and be with the plants.

We've got corn, zucchini, mint, spinach, wheat (we grind this up to flour and bake with it), tomatoes, orange peppers, swiss chard, sorrel, kale, peas and cucumbers.

There are pots with sunflowers, beans and strawberries around the yard as well.

So far we've only eaten a few peas and some zucchini flowers but soon we expect some more to be ready.
Watering the garden and hunting for bugs and picking weeds are the children's favorite activities.

Say Please

We had a new child join our group for the summer.  I wasn't sure how the children would respond since they are a very close knit group.  In the last three years the only 'new' children I've enrolled have been younger siblings of those already in my care.  How would they react to an outsider?

I didn't need to be concerned.  They were ecstatic.  The only problems we had were a result of bickering over who got to play with the new child.  It was interesting to watch how they worked out some variations on their favorite activities because there was new input.  Then, something bigger happened.

We were out in the yard and the children were engrossed in a hide and seek game -- more like an Easter egg hunt using rocks.  It was the new child's turn to search and he soon discovered that others in the group had been enlisted to be hiding spots and conceal rocks in their hands behind their backs -- all he had to do was ask if they had one.  When he asked one of the younger children they responded "Yes, what do you say?"  And the struggle began.

One by one the others formed a semi circle and tried to explain the use of manners.  They began role playing with each other saying "You have something I want, may I have it please?" "Yes you may, here it is (pretending to pass imaginary object)" "Thank-you".

Eventually they realized it wasn't that he didn't know what to say but that he was being stubborn.  They began a story telling session and used a stick from the ground as a talking stick -- only the person holding the stick could talk.  I had used this technique with them in the past when interrupting was an issue at circle time but I had never seen them use it on their own.

They made up stories about children in various situations where they didn't get something they wanted because they didn't do what was require.  Some of the stories were very imaginative.  Everyone got a turn to tell a story and even when a story didn't really make sense no one complained or corrected the storyteller.

I could tell the new child was beginning to get frustrated but would it be right to make them stop?  They were not trying to be mean and what kind of example would it set if we gave in to his "Give me" demands.  Suddenly he declared "Maybe in five minutes I'll say please!" and that was it.  The whole group jumped up and started to cheer and applaud.  "He said please! He said please!"

He looked somewhat stunned by their response to his unintentional 'manners'.  They handed him the rock and the hide and seek game continued.  After all, "Say please" was all they had requested.

Frogs

One Monday one of the children brought four frogs to daycare and enlightened us with stories of how and where she captured them over the weekend.  Apparently there were originally five frogs but one is 'missing'.  I put a plastic cover over the open top of the container to ensure there would be no more escapees while they were in our care.

There was some concern that although they had an adequate environment, they did not have any food.  That evening my 15 year-old son collected several flies and fed them to the frogs.  After the 'granddad' frog ate seven of the eight flies we separated him out of the container so the smaller ones would have a chance -- could have been a lesson in 'survival of the fittest'.

The next day, as the children arrived they checked on our guests and were intrigued by the tale of the frog feeding adventures.  They wanted to see the frogs eat.  When we went outdoors we brought the frogs with us and my son demonstrated how he captured flies and transferred them to the frog container.  The children were thrilled when the frogs snapped up the offerings.

For the remainder of our outdoor time the children scampered around the yard chasing flies.  Not surprisingly most flies do not sit still when a group of children descend on them.  Eventually the children learned to sneak up on the flies and mastered some fly catching techniques.  By lunchtime we had fed the frogs more than 15 flies.

When I announced it was time for our lunch the children seemed surprised.  "How long have we been out here?" they asked.  When I told them it had been a little over two hours they were amazed.  "It didn't feel that long".

The Quest

One day all the children aged 3-12 were digging holes in the pea gravel to see how deep they could make them.  As they were digging many of them were also collecting rocks that they found interesting or unique. Two of the girls decided to use the hole they had made to create an “underground church” and recruited the others to collect the supplies they would need.  They began by using sticks to reinforce the edges of the hole.

Suddenly, one of the girls realized that she had misplaced her “pretty rock” and the whole group stopped construction and began searching for it.  As she provided details about the size, shape and color of the prized rock the other continued to scour the 350 square foot area of pea gravel without any thought to the chances of finding the correct one.  Their optimism was amazing and their efforts paid off when they located the “smooth rock that looked like a broken sea shell”.

They now returned to complete construction of the church.  They assigned roles including “architect”, “designer”, and “supplier”.  They put a sturdy roof on the hole and added steps, decorations, and fancy stonework until an hour later they completed their project.

As they admired their work and asked me to take a group photo I heard “Hey, where’s my rock?"....