We are happy to announce that Jenna Heffernan will be joining us as a third teacher every day moving forward. She has filled in as a sub on occasion, so you may have met her once or twice, and your children are definitely familiar with her caring, playful presence. Fun fact about Jenna: she was a student here in the 80's! Former PWCNS director, Jane Nolan, is Jenna's mother. Byl will still make appearances as needed to fill in for one of us. We feel very fortunate to have such a strong support system at school.
Jenna at school this week.
Jenna at school in the 80's with teachers, Anita and Sue
Some children have brought home papers with tracks of paint criss-crossing the page. This is the result of a physical knowledge art project called marble painting. As opposed to representational art (self-portraits, for example), physical knowledge art supports children’s understanding of their impact on objects, as well as the objects’ physical properties.
To start, marbles are placed in cups of paint. A child writes their name on a paper and flips it over into a box. Spoons are used to drop a marble onto the paper, and the child lifts the box and tips it to move the marble. They have to grapple with the sticky paint, adjust to the marble’s faster movement as the paint is shed from it, and they get to see the track the marble makes on the paper.
It’s a great way for teachers to gauge and support sequencing and motor planning skills. The steps involved are many, and the coordination of movement is challenging.
We’re voting on a new playhouse setup! It’s a slightly complicated process, since this decision affects both the AM and JK groups. We surveyed both groups for ideas, then narrowed them down to things that are different from the ice cream shop play we’ve been doing (taco shop, hot dog shop, etc), as well as being within our capabilities to create. We’re down to 6 options: light tables with pictures to trace, a castle, a flower shop, a salon, We made a voting chart with space for children to attach their own photo next to their top choice. We will finalize the vote at the end of this week so we can begin construction next week!
