Watching the events of Dwight-Englewood School during the last weeks of school, it’s evident that D-E celebrates their children and that their developmental and educational needs come first, especially during trying times. In our preschool 4 classroom, we know that children need to play and feel joy as part of a community in order to engage and to learn. We also know that children learn by imitation and that mirroring is a huge part of learning. When we plan celebrations and build anticipation for them, the children mirror our smiles, and their smiles help us share and encourage their excitement.
Last week, all of us in preschool 4 enjoyed each of the Red, Blue and Yellow color days when we all wore the same color shirts and learned about creatures and foods related to those colors. On pajama day, we brought our “stuffies” to Zoom school. We shared fun facts about animals and sports and then tested our memory with visual trivia games. We shared silly experiences like Crazy Hat Day, Crazy Hair Day, and Mismatch Day. On Opposite Day and Backwards Day, the children out-did each other in their creativity. Smiles and laughter have done much to maintain the sense of community within our classroom on Zoom.
Playing is part of childhood and an important component of how children learn. We care enough to try to make it fun, and the effort pays very big dividends. We hope to foster good memories about this year and encourage excitement about their next school adventure. In our preschool 4 classroom we want to ensure that all the children think happy thoughts when they remember their out-of-the-ordinary preschool 4 learning experiences on Zoom.
