The Preschool 1 children have been busy getting to know each other and making new friends. To help us learn more about each other we handed out a paper that ask what is your culture and traditions. To expand on this topic, we created our own people using different skin tone paper, googly eyes, different textures of string, glue and paper clothes. We selected what colour person we wanted and right away started to glue. We used our fine motor skills by using a pincer grasp to pick up the different materials. We discussed how many eyes we have one our face. Marcy started to count and placed the googly eyes on the table. She said, “I’m counting the eyes.” Scarlett placed her eyes on her paper and said, “my eyes go here.” As we continued to glue we discussed what colour our hair and what colour our eyes are. We noticed that some of us have the same colour eyes. Brynne noticed that Gurpreet has a different hair colour then hers. She said, “yours is black and mine is blond.” During this activity we practiced numeracy as we counted how many eyes and how many fingers we have. This helped reinforce basic math skills in a meaningful, hands-on way. We also used language and vocabulary to describe textures, colours, numbers and feelings. We discovered that even though we are different we have some similarities as well. As we continue to learn more about each other we will learn more about the different cultures and traditions we celebrate. “Everyone belongs and everyone’s background is valuable. This activity not only supported social-emotional learning by promoting respect, empathy and curiosity, but it also helped build a classroom community where children feel seen, heard and appreciated. We are building on our sense of belonging by learning more about each other.
