Adventures in Exploring the Teivah

 After trying our own abilities at designing floating structures,

the children in Gan Bet used the knowledge of Noach's teivah-building instructions

in their own building challenges...

We used our fine-motor skills to grasp items of food, animals,

 people and garbage and placed them in their assigned spots on a three-tiered teivah.

Then we experimented with designing our own teivot incorporating the aspects of material, construct, and design which Noach had to follow....

See how we used wood just like Noach...

...incorporated three levels into our building...

...and made sure to add a window just like Noach!

Of course, everybody had their own variation despite the boundaries of the building...

Then we applied the ideas of teamwork and planning 

which Noach may have used when building the teivah with his family...

 

 

 

 The experience was such an amazing way for us to appreciate 

how we can all arrive at such varied conclusions, 

even with the same instructions!

Building In Ganon Bet

Building Bridges Into The Future In Ganon Bet

Building for the Chicks!

Our eggs have hatched and we have 6 adorable baby chicks! The children were so excited to watch them hatch. We have learned to take care of them. Everyday we feed them and make sure that they have plenty of water. The chicks have grown quickly and are no longer in the incubator. They have a new home and we can play with them.

The children spent several days planning and building a house for them. The house has several rooms with labels. They put the chicks in the house and are very excited to watch them explore all of the rooms!

Purim is Coming!

Gan Aleph is ready for Purim! Ahava and Chanani help to roll up their friends' completed megillot. Sammy stays in the Purim spirit by wearing a costume as he builds in the block center. And Jordy and Vicky show us true simcha dancing!

Ganon Aleph Learns About the Job of an Architect

To deepen our understanding about the building of the Mishkan Tali's mommy, Susan Berman, came in to talk about her job as an architect. She showed the children some blueprints, and described many things that an architect has to think about when she draws the plans for a building, such as: who will be using the building; how many people it can accommodate; safety considerations; sunlight hours; weather conditions; and special designs. She told the children that in New Jersey, all the houses are have triangular shaped roofs, so that the heavy snow won't sit on top. In California, however, many homes have flat roofs. In the photo above, she uses a yellow pepper to demonstrate the floor plans on the different floors in the house!

Bringing Relevance to the Parasha in Ganon Aleph

In this week's Parashat Teruma, the children learned about all the special objects that B'nai Yisrael built for the Mishkan. We took a walk to the Beit Midrash to see some of these same objects which every shul has, among them: the Aron Kodesh, the parochet, the menorah, the shulchan, and the ner tamid. Some of the children even drew up their own plans for different structures, like the Mishkan, and attempted to build them in our block corner.

The Power of Play

Abundant research affirms again and again the powerful impact of play in every area of child development: cognitive, motor, emotional, social, and language. At its best, play is child directed and open ended, giving the child limitless opportunities to manipulate and learn about the world around him/her.

Children playing with simple building materials learn to negotiate for pieces, collaborate, observe each other's work for new ideas, and learn first hand about balance, symmetry, and spatial relationships. Children like Rebecca, who pretend to read, actually learn important concepts about print and the pleasure that books can bring. Card games can teach children to take turns, sharpen focus, and build math skills.

Of course, along with growth come some bumps and challenges. A good teacher uses conflict between children to guide them toward independent problem solving, empathy, fairness, and assertiveness.

Tapping into our own sense of play can help in making sure that our children take full advantage of this special time in their lives. What did you like to play as a child? Do you remember how it made you feel? I'd love to hear your responses.

Fun and Run in the Snow

What a fun time we had in the snow. Everybody put on their snow clothes and we went to the giant hill outside. The children built a snowman and tried to build an igloo but decided it was more fun to climb the giant hill! Everyone waited their turn and went sledding. At the end of our snow adventure we returned to the class and had a special treat-- hot cocoa! It was yummy and it warmed our tummies!

House Design and Construction

The children began the task of designing and building houses or animal habitats. Before beginning construction, the children worked with a partner to draw blueprints. When the design was complete they laid out the materials to test their ideas. When they were satisfied with the overall construction and look of their building, they glued the pieces together. They are proudly displayed in our classroom.