PURE PLAY PICTURES

Below is a collection of natural play that our toddlers did during the months of January and February.

This older toddler learned how to stack this type of manipulative
to make a cool looking structure. Notice how he built a base for
his structure so it would not fall down.

These two girls are making houses. The one on the left placed a pot

on the top of her house. It could be for a metal roof-very economical!



This toddler noticed a huge mess was being made in this activity area.
He took the broom and dust pan and started to clean it up!



More fabulous houses!



This young toddler lined up blocks and spacing them out,
like the two rectangular blocks in front of him. He then used those blocks
to make the tower beside him.



This older toddler has a lion looking through the hole on the side

of the log, and put another animal inside the log.

The animals are talkingto each other.

He is builing using the rocks in our room. What strengh!

This young toddler is grouping the shapes of these beads.

He grouped all of the square beads first, and is now grouping

all of the cirular beads.

First, what a great smile!

Second, what a great structure!

Things are inside of each other and on top of one another.

Very detailed.

I love seeing toddlers working beside each other.

These two are mimicing each other's play. One will open a door on

the puzzle, then the other will open the same door.

Bringing The Outdoors In

In the month of January we brought the outdoors indoors! We did so many activities with the objects we collected on our property. The kids had so much fun exploring the items and discovering new ways to play with them.

STAMPING OUR NATURE ITEMS IN PLAY DOUGH

It was neat to see the impressions of our nature findings in the dough.

WE ARE FEELING THE NATURAL OBJECTS IN OUR ROOM

AND THE OBJECTS WE FOUND OUTSIDE.

WE TALKED ABOUT HOW THEY FELT, WHAT SOUNDS THEY MADE,

HOW HEAVY THEY FELT, AND THEIR DIFFERENT TEXTURES.

OUR NEXT PROJECT WAS TO MAKE FROST. WE USED PETROLEUM

JELLY, MADE DESIGNS IN IT WITH OUR FINGERS, AND THEN FROZE THE

JELLY. THE PROJECT DID NOT TURN OUT QUITE RIGHT, BUT THE CHILDREN

HAD FUN FEELING THE SMOOTH, GREASY AND COLD PETROLEUM JELLY.

ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING THINGS OUTSIDE ARE CLOUDS.

WE MADE OUR OWN CLOUDS USING BLUE PAPER AND

COTTON BALLS. WE READ BOOKS ABOUT CLOUDS

BEFORE WE DID THIS PROJECT. YOU WILL NOTICE SOME OF

THE KIDS WERE IN PAJAMAS, IT WAS PAJAMA DAY WHEN

WE DID THIS CRAFT.

WHAT IS IN THE BOX? THE CHILDREN WHO CHOSE TO DO THIS

ACTIVITY WERE ASKED TO GUESS WHAT OBJECT WAS IN THE BOX

BY JUST FEELING IT, NOT LOOKING AT IT.

IT WAS HARD TO NOT TAKE A PEEK!

THE CHILDREN WERE INVITED TO USE NATURAL OBJECTS TO

MAKE A STAMP PICTURE WITH.

THE TEXTURES OF THE LEAVES SHOWED UP THE BEST.

THE ROCK COUNT ACTIVITY WAS TO SEE IF THE YOUNGER

CHILDREN COULD DO ONE-TO-ONE CORRESPONDENCE AND IF THE

OLDER ONES COULD RECOGNIZE NUMBERS 1-5 AND QUANTITIES OF 1-5.