Teacher, We Need More Red!

PAINTING TAKES A NEW TURN
We've seen a few paintings on the blog, with hundreds more to follow. When the children discover the new or unexpected, I hope to share these moments with you. We had a number of monochromatic paintings today, the most common color being an eye-searing bright red. "What's the point?" one may ask. Well, there are several, the first of which is the painter was inspired to do so. Secondly, the initial strokes often mimic the letters of their names, rudimentary faces, or other figures painted and elaborated upon until it is completely covered. Third, the painting is merely a base of something else. In this case, drawing with the point of the brush handle.

Click on the painting for an enlargement.

That's right! We have writing! This is a huge topic that I am not going to cover in one post. Rather, we will revisit examples throughout the school year as more and more of them emerge.(Emergent curriculum is the science of watching for naturally occuring signs of readiness and providing well-timed guidance to assist in their development of these important skills)


In Lola's drawing, we see several visual motifs universal to all children, of all countries and cultures as noted by Rhoda Kellogg, our school's founder. These elemental marks (-,|,+,o) will soon combine into readily identified letters of the alphabet and eventual words. Note that her arrangement of the marks follow a set of horizontal paths, demonstrating a key component of print awareness.

Note Jabari's print awareness by his similar orientation. He has chosen to represent text with a set of carefully placed zig-zagging horizontal lines. Let's face it, grown ups - since using the computer for most of our written communication, his writing is not too different from much of ours.




TODAY'S ACTIVITY
Sonya helped the rest of the class complete their paper bag "Puppet Pals." The details important to individual students make them all so uniquely special. I cannot wait to see how they are personified in the puppet stage in the days to come.

Another set of "Puppet Pals" by Sebastian, Nate, Mollie, Christopher and Dorri, respectively.

TODAY'S STORY
Louie, by Ezra Jack Keats. We're on a bit of an Ezra jack Keats roll this week. His insight on how children think and act borders on the profound. He was one of the first children's book authors to feature "multicultural" diversity on every page and his stories always remains true to the pure essence of childhood. In this story, Louie is an exceedingly shy child. None of the other children have ever heard him speak. That changed the day of the puppet show when Louie spoke to a puppet and became enthralled with it. The children who put on the show had a present for him that day. At the end of a long green string was "Gussie" the puppet. Our learners enjoy Keats' rich illustrations and the familial warmth of his characters. They also love seeing "Willie" the dachshund, who does frequent cameos in his numerous books. Thus, we will read Whistle For Willie tomorrow.

ZACH AND CLIFF
No, they aren't a TV action hero team (although the kids may bring it out of 'em soon) They are actually volunteers from Stuart Hall High School. Community Service is a valued part of the curriculum at Stuart Hall, and we are one of the beneficiaries. Zach and Cliff will work with our class under our supervision to help provide the rich, warm and attentive care for the children. On their first visit today, they passed "trial by fire" with flying colors, surviving snack time, our puppet-making session, reading a story to the group, and a very bubbly, very lively outside playtime. Please join us in welcoming them to the Phoebe Hearst family.