Last week we introduced a simple calendar during group time. On it we record days that we have school with green dots and days that we don’t with red dots. Each school day we cross out the days that have happened and draw in our next green dot day plus any red dot days that come before it. Temporal concepts are elusive to kids this young and although we don’t expect them to fully grasp how the calendar works, we do want to help kids anticipate what is happening in their lives. The simple pattern of red and green dots provides a visual to aid them in this.
Kids are interested in the calendar and are enjoying the new routine of talking about the days we come to school and the days we don’t and watching us make those red and green dots. Since teachers are the ones making the dots on the class calendar, we have provided blank calendars during playtime for kids to fill in however they wish. As they fill in their calendars, there is a lot of talk about what each child’s marks mean. Some choose to do red and green dots as we do as a group while others experiment with other colors or types of marks. This gives children more opportunities to express their understanding of the calendar and practice using writing tools in a way that is meaningful to them.
The week before Thanksgiving break, we will record all of the red dots onto our classroom calendar to help children understand that we will not see each other for a lot of days. If you would like to have your own calendar at home, here is a link to a blank calendar you could print. Or you can make your own!