Colonnade Children's Center

Preschoolers participated in a creative art activity where they designed and built rocket ships using paper towel rolls, glue, tissue paper, and tin foil. The children explored different materials and textures as they wrapped, glued, and decorated their rockets with colorful tissue paper and shiny foil. They used their imaginations to plan and create unique designs while discussing space, rockets, and where their creations might travel.

Throughout the activity, the children demonstrated fine-motor skills by squeezing glue bottles, tearing tissue paper, folding foil, and attaching materials to their rockets. They problem-solved as they decided how to balance materials and make pieces stick together. The children also engaged in conversations with peers and teachers, sharing ideas, describing their creations, and collaborating during the process.

-Physical Development & Health
Fine-motor development through cutting, gluing, tearing, and assembling materials
Hand-eye coordination while constructing the rockets
-Communication, Language & Literacy
Participating in conversations about their work
Using descriptive language to explain ideas and creations
-Social & Emotional Development
Working alongside peers
Sharing materials and ideas
Building confidence through completing a project
-Science & Technology
Exploring concepts related to space, movement, and design
Investigating how different materials can be used in construction

Toddler Two explored a sensory art activity using frozen watercolor blocks to create marks and designs on paper. The child grasped the frozen blocks with both hands and moved them across the paper, observing how the melting colors left trails and patterns behind. The toddler showed curiosity by experimenting with different movements, colors, and pressure while actively engaging in the creative process. The child demonstrated hand-eye coordination, fine-motor control, and problem-solving skills as they discovered how the ice changed while painting.

-Approaches to Learning
Showing curiosity and initiative
Experimenting with materials and discovering new ways to use them
-Physical Development & Health
Fine-motor development through grasping and manipulating the frozen blocks
Hand-eye coordination during painting movements
-Cognitive Development
Understanding cause and effect as the ice melted and colors appeared on the paper
Exploring properties of materials such as cold temperature and changing texture
-Communication, Language, & Literacy
Using words, gestures, or sounds to describe the colors, sensations, and actions during the activity

The toddlers remained engaged throughout the activity and demonstrated excitement while exploring the frozen paint blocks.

During tummy time, the infant explored painting with their hands while lying on their stomach and reaching toward the paint-covered paper. The child used open-handed movements to pat, smear, and press the paint across the surface, showing curiosity and engagement with the sensory experience. The infant demonstrated growing strength and coordination by lifting their head, pushing up on their arms, and extending their hands toward the materials. The child visually tracked the colors and textures while actively exploring cause and effect through movement and touch.
Physical Development & Health: Moving parts of the body,
Moving the whole body
Fine-motor development: through hand exploration and grasping
Creative Arts: Exploring art materials, Expressing through sensory art experiences
Approaches to Learning: Curiosity and initiative, Active exploration using the senses

Our classrooms, from infants to preschoolers, participated in an exciting hands-on learning experience as they observed caterpillars grow and transform into butterflies. Through daily observation, children explored the life cycle of butterflies while developing curiosity, wonder, and a deeper connection to nature. Teachers encouraged children to ask questions, make predictions, and share their observations as the caterpillars changed over time.

This experience supported learning across several developmental areas, including science and technology, observation skills, communication, and approaches to learning. Infants explored through sensory experiences and visual discovery, while toddlers and preschoolers engaged in conversations, drawings, storytelling, and documenting the stages of growth. This meaningful project encouraged children to think critically, build vocabulary, practice patience, and develop an understanding of living things and their environments.

During Teacher Appreciation Week, we celebrated our incredible teachers with a fun and relaxing Tropical Island themed celebration to show our gratitude for all the love, care, and dedication they give each day. Our school was filled with tropical decorations, bright flowers, leis, and island-inspired treats that created a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Throughout the week, teachers were recognized with thoughtful gifts, special meals, and heartfelt messages from students and staff to remind them how valued and appreciated they are.

This celebration was a small way to thank them for the positive impact they make in our school community and for the countless ways they support and inspire others.

For artsy Thursday in the toddler room we brought the art experience outside. A toddler engages in outdoor painting using a brush and poster board paper. The child dips the paintbrush into paint and makes strokes across the paper, experimenting with different movements such as dabbing, sweeping, and swirling. The toddler focuses on the marks being created, sometimes reloading the brush with paint and continuing to apply it to new areas of the paper. The outdoor setting allows for freedom of movement, and the child uses their whole arm to make larger motions while painting.
Creative Representation: The child expresses ideas and feelings through painting, exploring color and mark-making.
Approaches to Learning : The toddler shows initiative, engagement, and persistence while experimenting with different painting techniques.
Physical Development : The child strengthens fine-motor skills through grasping the brush and develops gross-motor control through broad arm movements.

For work together Wednesday toddler one and toddler two work together to connect and arrange hula hoops. The older toddler begins linking the hoops, while the younger toddler joins in by picking up a hoop and attempting to attach it. Both children take turns holding, positioning, and joining the hoops, adjusting their movements when the hoops come apart. They communicate through gestures, simple words, and shared attention, showing excitement as the hoops connect successfully.

Approaches to Learning: Children show initiative, persistence, and problem-solving as they figure out how to connect the hoops.
Social and Emotional Development : The toddlers engage in cooperative play, begin to share materials, and build relationships through joint activity.
Communication, Language, and Literacy : They use gestures, sounds, and emerging language to express ideas and interact with one another.
Physical Development : Children develop gross- and fine-motor skills while lifting, aligning, and connecting the hoops.
Cognitive Development : They explore spatial relationships, understanding how objects fit together and connect.

In the Infant room for work together Wednesday an infant is exploring sensory and motor experiences by grasping and placing soft balls onto a piece of contact paper secured at their level. The sticky surface provides immediate feedback, encouraging the infant to repeat actions such as reaching, pressing, and releasing. The infant uses hand-eye coordination to guide the ball toward the surface and experiments with how objects stick.
Physical Development : The infant strengthens fine-motor skills through grasping and releasing the balls, and develops hand-eye coordination.
Approaches to Learning: The infant shows curiosity and initiative by exploring how the balls stick to the surface.
Cognitive Development : The infant begins to understand cause-and-effect relationships of “ When I press the ball, it stays”).
Creative Representation : The child may arrange or move balls in different ways, exploring simple spatial patterns.

For Tasty Tuesday, Preschool explored exotic fruits from different parts of the world such as: dragon fruit, starfruit, and longan. The children are using Approaches to Learning as they show curiosity about unfamiliar foods with appearance, smell, and texture. Also, the children learn through Science and Technology as they observe the physical properties of the fruits such as: color, shape, texture, smell, and what is inside vs outside.

Last week, Colonnade celebrated NAEYC Week of the the Young Child. For Music Monday, Preschool made musical instruments by putting beans inside the plastic eggs as a shaker. In this activity, children explore sounds by shaking the eggs at different speeds and strengths. They are also promoting Approaches to Learning as they engage in problem-solving by figuring out how to keep the egg closed. Lastly, they are using Math Skills by counting the beans as they fill the eggs.