C5 Childrens School

Balance beam exploration with some toddlers!

Balance beams provide a unique sensory experience that enhances proprioception, the body’s ability to sense its own position and movement. As children walk on the balance beam, they develop their sense of balance, coordination, and spatial awareness. They also learn to control their movements and make adjustments to maintain their balance, which requires concentration and focus.

In addition to physical benefits, walking on a balance beam can also improve a child’s confidence and self-esteem. As they master the skill, they feel a sense of accomplishment and pride. This positive reinforcement can motivate them to try other challenging activities and take risks in their learning.

Creative expression provides opportunities for young children to try out new ideas, develop their imaginations and problem-solving skills and see what happens as a result of their experimentation. It helps them work out what it is that they love doing best and it teaches them that their abilities and their contributions are highly valued.

“Play is the highest expression of human development in childhood for it alone is the free expression of what is in a child’s soul.”
-Friedrich Froebel

Negotiating, discussing, and planning-all part of a typical play here

The ability to negotiate is a valuable and necessary life skill. Negotiation involves empathy and compromise and children who learn to negotiate acquire and learn the importance of these abilities.

“Do not tell them how to do it. Show them how to do it and do not say a word. If you tell them, they will watch your lips move. If you show them, they will want to do it themselves.”
-Maria Montessori

“I made a kite!”

Loose parts play, where children can manipulate various objects and materials, develops creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills in preschoolers.

“What a child can do today with assistance, she will be able to do by herself tomorrow.”
-Lev S. Vygotsky

By offering dominoes to our play areas and using them as manipulatives and loose parts, we expose our early learners to a wealth of STEM learning opportunities such as building, counting, matching and even dramatic play. We have geometry unfolding before our eyes as this child uses symmetry, visualization, spatial reasoning and geometric modeling to solve problems such as balance and continuity.

“Every time we teach a child something, we keep him from inventing it himself. On the other hand, that which we allow him to discover for himself will remain with him visible for the rest of his life.”
-Jean Piaget

The children had an opportunity to freely explore green lentils. We provided some lentils in a bowl; the children curiously explored them by touching, squeezing, and pressing them with their hands. Some children helped adding water to the lentils, this gave a whole new sensory experience to explore! The children enjoyed grabbing the lentils in the water. When we introduced a colander with water for the children to rinse the green beans, their interest intensified as they used their hands to further explore their sensory experience!

“Learning and teaching should not stand on opposite banks and just watch the river flow by; instead, they should embark together on a journey down the water. Through an active, reciprocal exchange, teaching can strengthen learning and how to learn.” - Loris Malaguzzi, founder and director of the Reggio Emilia preschools.

So much fun at the Spring Thing Festival Potluck! Thank you to all the families who joined and brought in Spring Items to help make it successful! 🌸🍓🍇🍌🌷🌼