AFC PINE PM

Good morning! Today's focus is about creating a space in your home that can be used as a calm space for your child. This space is reserved for times when your child is feeling those big emotions and may need more support in order to regulate those feelings.  Create an environment that is both calming and comfortable. It is often suggested to find a corner of a room and fill it with pillows, blankets, and toys that a child can use to focus on while they are coping with their frustration, sadness, or any other big feeling.  In our space at school, we use the cube. It's a small define space in which the kids can crawl into and get comfortable- if they choose. The space you can create in your home is a place they can choose to go to. It is meant as an invitation, and not a punishment. Have your child help create the space in hopes to make it a place they choose to go to when feeling upset.  The video below gives two breathing examples you can practice w...

Hello & good morning! Today marks the official first day of remote learning. It is still quite crazy to me that this is how our class will be interacting over the next few weeks until we can return to school. Until then, I am excited to share the plans you can carry out in the comfort of your own home.  Below is a way in incorporate playdoh into just one of the many activities for this week!  Stop & Go song Playdoh Recipe Because playdoh is a big hit in our classroom I figured we could ease into this first day of remote learning with something preferred and that will last all week long. Making playdoh isn't necessary, but a fun way to hit a lot of different learning objectives like math, literacy, fine motor, and language. You can absolutely use playdoh you already have at home! Unfortunately, I don't have any children of my own and therefore don't have any. Fortunately, I like making it and playing with it!    Have a great Monday! Thank ...

Good afternoon! I hope you're having a fantastic Thursday so far. I wanted to share another celebration with you today in addition to what I am having for lunch in the video below. I hope you can all contribute to our class's shared Google Photo album so we can see what everyone is up to at home! It's been so fun seeing all the cool things kids have done with their families during this odd time of learning from home. Please keep sharing, it's great to see!  

Hey everyone! I almost forgot to give you an update on Goldie! Well, he's doing great and I wanted to make sure you all could see him swimming around in his bowl. He even says "hi!" at the very end of the video.Please sing along with me to one of our favorite songs as a tribute to our favorite fish friend. Have a great day! 

Hi everyone! I wanted to quickly say 'hi' to everyone and share a celebration I had today. I miss you guys so much and can't wait to see you again! Stay healthy & safe 😊

This whole week the kids have been so excited to push each other around in the laundry baskets, but today they really wanted to test their strength!  "Pushing kids around is too easy. I want it to be harder." "Yeah, it needs to be really heavy to make it hard!" "I am so strong and I want to show everyone." We looked around the room and noticed the logs sitting next to the bookshelf.  "We can use those! They are going to be so heavy." We started loading up the two logs we have in our classroom. "These will still be too easy. We need more." We headed to Magnolia to ask for some more logs. Now with 5 logs, they surely thought it would be too heavy to move. S, L, & M did their best to push the heavy basket across the carpet.  "This is not that easy." "Yeah it is really heavy with 5." "It was easier to push 4 than it was 5." "We have such st...

This afternoon the kids worked incredibly hard, we went into the collaboratory and had laundry basket races! It all started out when during our arrival routine. L & W were taking turns pushing one another across the carpet in the laundry basket. It gave us an idea... what if we raced with them in the collaboratory?!  The kids were so excited to be able to push one another as well as sit in the basket and relax while being pushed. It was a fun way to incorporate some purposeful heavy work into our day. While some of the kids were taking turns pushing the baskets, others were jotting down the times for how long each pair took to get down and back.  These kind of activities build on so many different skills for our kids. Not only did they have to take turns, they also needed to wait, and work together. These three skills, although seem simple, are so important in our daily play to build safe and fun friendships with one another. I would be surprised if ...

Another beautiful day to caper! The kids were so excited that we got to caper outside on the playscape and enjoy the warm sun accompanied by the cool breeze. There was a wide range of choices for the kids to make before finally settling down and eating snack before heading home. Have a great weekend!  B enjoyed his time playing in the soapy water and washing some of the most popular toys from our room. We have really been emphasizing how it important it is to not only take care of the materials we use every day, but also keeping things clean to stay healthy.  J & L tested out their bike riding skills by racing up and down the sidewalk. They played a lot of stop and go games and trying to avoid crashing into everyone else.  F paused his game of chase to make sure a friend who lost his hat from the wind got it back. He thoughtfully turned back around when he noticed A was no longer wearing his red cap to hand it back to him before runni...

As you all know yesterday was a fun muddy day at the forest. The kids clothes, faces, hands, shoes, and everything in between were covered in mud. Since a lot of the Pine kids borrowed boots from school it only made sense to take care of what we borrowed.  "The boots we wore are so muddy. I think we will have to clean them." "We will need soap!" "We need water too." "Don't forget the boots, we definitely have to clean them." Everyone grabbed a sponge and a pair of boots then got to work.  Every kid took pride in making sure the boots were clean, if not cleaner, than the way they found them.  "I don't have to clean like this at home." "Yeah my mom cleans things for me. She will probably wash my clothes that had mud on them." "I used to help my mom with laundry, but I don't anymore." "I have to pick up my toys sometimes." As the kids worked they talked...

Wow! What a return the Pine kids made to the forest today. The beautiful weather had everyone ready to run around and play within the trees. There was only one obstacle in our way... mud. Before heading out, everyone strapped their boots on and prepared themselves for what was waiting in the forest.  Please enjoy the carefree playing the kids experienced today within the forest. All of those clothes are going to need a good washing 😊

I am not sure if I have seen a group of kids so happy to go out and play in warmer weather! This small taste of spring weather has the kids extremely excited to get back outside and play. Today we were able to enjoy some time out on the playscape. The kids had a great time revisiting some of their favorite activities like the sandbox, the climbing wall, the slide, and the cave. Yay for warm weather!