Our Purim Celebration requires that each creative play space is turned into an immersive Purim experience.  Teachers grouped together to create a plan for each space.  In the week leading up to Purim, they spent any free time they had transforming their chosen space.  Children and teachers were encourage to come to school dressed up to celebrate Purim

Mrs. Georgia and Ms. Michaela led a hamantaschen making station for each child to make their own hamantaschen.  Children were able to cut out their dough, and their filling, and fold up their hamantaschen. 

The Atelier had castle building with foam blocks and shaving cream as well as loose parts.  Children were able to explore grogger sensory bins with rice and beans and empty bottles.  There were castle decorating invitations set up with paper, water color, card board, stickers, and tempura sticks. 

The Big Muscle room had an obstacle course that children could complete on or off their pool noodle horses.  There was castle building on the platform with horses and knights.  Children could draw masks while talking about Queen Esther.  There was a clown game where kiddos could throw the ball and get it on the clown's face as the nose!  So many fun activities to choose from!

The Early Childhood Library boasted a bead sensory table, a grogger exploration with different groggers for children to explore, and Purim themed puzzles.  There were dress up clothes and accessories from dresses, capes, and tutus, to masks, crowns, and beads complete with a photo booth!  Children followed their curiosity about the Purim story and used different felt characters to act it out. 

The Light Studio had bead exploration, castle building, digital landscapes of castles with flashlight play, and a wind tunnel.  Children experimented with scarves in the wind tunnel and learned about cause and effect through their inquiry.  

Giving Tree held its Reggio-inspired Literacy event on Sunday, March 3rd.  This event was made possible by the Literacy Matters grant, given to Giving Tree from the United Way of Central Indiana.

Each classroom picked an author and chose books from that author to create their reggio inspired acitivites.  Teachers planned accordingly and created open-ended, reggio inspired literacy activites.  There were books from Eric Carle, Kevin Henkes, Jan Brett, Mark Teague, Lois Ehlert, Alice Schertle, and Antoinette Portis.  Several activites included loose parts exploration and sensory play! 

Children toddlers through pre-k enjoyed manipulating materials and organically exploring literacy activities with their families.  

The purpose behind our Reggio Literacy event was to raise literacy awareness while demonstrating how literacy can be incorporated into fun, open-ended activities.  We wanted to showcase children's curiousity and creative expression through reggio inspired invitations.  Literacy is more than sitting down and reading a book, it is all encompassing.  Many developmental areas can be addressed through literacy exploration including fine and gross motor skills, receptive and expressive communication, math and science skills, social-emotional development, sensory integration, and dramatic play skills.  

Giving Tree students received blue bags with 3-4 carefully chosen books to add to the home libraries!