Christmas loose parts and decorating of the classroom was an experience for the toddler’s senses as well as their sense belonging. As the toddlers did some exploring and played with a variety of different seasonal objects, their focus went directly to the different decorations that the educators had laid out for them on the tuff tables and floor. This Sensory play activity involved them using four of their senses. A few examples included using the sense of touch to manipulate all the objects with their hands, their sense of smell as they brought the fresh garland up to their noses, the sense of sight as they visually took in and processed what they were seeing, and their sense of hearing, as they used their hands to grasp, hold and crinkle the ribbons with their hands. As well as shake the ornament bells. Theo especially liked the sound that the ornament bells made and said, “I shaking my bell!” Jacob held an ornament in his hands and looked at it curiously, he then dropped it onto the carpet and watched as it rolled away from him. The educator rolled it back in his direction, and with a big smile he reached over and grasped it once again. Emerson was busy decorating the miniature Christmas tree and with great concentration, using his eye hand coordination and fine motor skills, hung an ornament off of the tree’s branch. “I did it!” he said looking very proud of himself.
Brady found an angel ornament and when asked where he wanted to place it he responded by saying, “up here!” and proceeded to stand on his tiptoes, placing the angel ornament on the very top of the tree. Aubrey, Quinn and Aster preferred to collect their ornaments and place them inside baskets, as they walked around the room with them. Activities such as these Sensory play experiences help toddlers with developing their fine and gross motor skills and encourages sharing concepts and problem-solving ability. This activity is also a type of open-ended play, where the objects can be implemented into their play in a variety of ways. This means that the toddler is free to explore and create without a set outcome or any expectation. Once we were done exploring with the Christmas loose parts it was time to help the educators decorate the classroom! Over the past month we have also ventured off on snowy neighborhood walks to look at all the decorations. We spotted some reindeer, different coloured ribbons, lots of snowmen and Santa too! As always, the educators led us in some songs, but this time they were Christmas songs. These songs included Jingle bells and Frosty the snowman. The educators explained that walking and singing happily, usually during the holiday season is called Caroling.
