Money and Math

 1:Children were learning about Canadian Currency .

 2:They were counting how much they had and sharing their thoughts to with each other.

 3:I added paper money with the coins.

 4:They were planning what they would buy with their money.

 5:Some of them were already familiar with the terms - Dime-Tooney-Looney.

6:One child said he wants to be a Banker.

I wanted to provide something interesting for the children's math activity.We had been focusing on using shapes puzzles, colour sorting , and shapes with various objects from September until now. When I set up my little classroom corner with Canadian currency, I was joy-filled to observed the children enthusiastically interacting with each other and with the money.They decided to move the money to the dramatic play area where we had a grocery store and cash box.They were selling the veggie and coffee -and taking turns to use the cash box.

Baby Bath

1: Helping each other and taking turns.

 2: Mashaallah, it was amazing to observe the way children were waiting to take turns.

 3:R said, "Oh no, I have to hold the baby then you will pour water."
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 4: M said, "Baby need to shampoo his hair-I can rub his hair."

5:F said,  "I have an ice cream."

Today we had a beautiful sunny day. Vancouver's temperature was almost 14 degree.  Children started to use their summer jackets and our heating was off at last. Yesterday when we were outside the children were very interested in the water while I was using the hose to water our outdoor garden.  I thought it will be fun for them if I will fill my indoor sensory table with water and sponges. Children love to play with water!  One of the child brought the doll from the dramatic play area, following him another girl added another doll and they both decided to help the dolls have a bath. I was do delighted to observe their team work, the way they were taking turns and helping each other. I added some liquid soap and more sponges, so that everyone can have something to be engaged with.

Farm Animals

 1:F called me and wanted to show me what he had done.

 2:H told me, "Look sister Fatima, I put all  the cows together".

 3:He was collecting and sorting the different animals.

 4:I was asking him how the hens got on the roof. He answered because they can fly, Mashaallah.

5:Finally he categorized all the farm animals in a different group.

My reflection:
 We introduced the children to farm animals and wild animals, and shared stories, songs, and activities about animal.  After that we set up the farm animal in one corner of our classroom. I was observing F after his art activity he joined to the farm animal corner. He was sitting there and sorting the animals carefully, he removed all the wild animals into one basket, then he dropped all the farm animals on the floor. Each time he was picking up one animal, he was wondering where to put. When he was putting the animal he was telling the name and size of the animal, big cow, small cow, etc. F took lots of time to sort and placed the animal onto different category. The teachers did not interrupt while he was playing. We wanted to observe what was his idea and how he wanted to place the animal. It was amazing the way he sorted and set all the farm animals into different group- which is an important skill for a young child to master.

Let Them Explore

1: J was naming all the dolls--She was calling them her preschool friends names.

 2:Big doll is the teacher and small one is J.

 3:J gently held the teacher doll-Carefully  helped other dolls to sit and announced, "It's group time -sit down kriss cross apple sauce"

 4:She started to sing, "open shut them------Give a little clap--".

5: Another girl 'm' decided to join with J and she said, "This is princess-she is your new student".


Reflection: Dolls with the doll house is a very popular activity for our preschool children. I love to set up  the table with soft and bright color mats, so that it will be appealing for the children. Also I provide space for at least five to six children for their activity. When I was planning this activity- I  was curious, what will be their ideas-will they play princess game or Mummy, sister? When J came to the preschool, she was so excited to observe all the dolls and doll  house on the table. After washing her hands, she sat there and picked all the dolls from the bamboo tray, to my surprise, she said,  "This is teacher", Holding the big doll and the others she was telling her friend's name. Two girls together were taking their role as a teacher and student -Both of them were telling stories, singing songs and sometimes guiding as well. It was amazing to observe how engaged, playful and expressive they were when they have the opportunity to explore with the warm environment. 

block play

 E is observing carefully that the bear is sitting on the rectangle block.

 E likes to add the bear on the block .

 When he have finished he decided to put the triangle wooden block .

He carefully placed the triangle besides the bear.

My reflection 

 E always  likes to observe other children activity  before he will join to his own activity at the preschool .Yesterday when he came to the school ,at first  he was focusing on his art .When he finished his texture collage then, he was very curious about block construction .M was building something with the various shapes block .Mashaallah we are so lucky to have a such a nice block unit in our preschool .E  was observing him carefully ,when M moved to the dramatic play area , E joined to the block area.He sat down in front of the block unit and then he started to build something with the block.At the beginning he decided to add the half circle shape wooden block and then gradually he was adding various shapes and sizes wooden block for his construction .It was amazing for us to watch his perseverance-every time the tower was broken he started to build it again .He added a bear on the block and said bear .He was looking at the bear for few second and he put triangle wooden block beside the bear.Another thing was so surprising for me to observe that E knows that after triangle shape he will not be able to put another block on the triangle .He was engaged with this activity for longer time and we did not distract him for our transition.We waited until he finished his activity . 

Who Created this Beautiful World?

In our sensory table we provided various colored, shaped sea fish, sea shell, rock and sea weed to give the concept of what do we see in the Ocean. Children always love to play with the water -we wanted to see them having more fun and learning about science, math and religion with their peers. Some of them were feeling the temparture of the water-some were very dramatic when they found a great big whale with a gray shark in the water table.

X thought little fishy was so hungry, so she gave it some sea weed--MashaAllah. S was carefully collecting all the rocks from the water and counting--1,2,3----.We have been sharing stories about sea shell, fish, etc--We asked them who created this beautiful world for us? They answered, "ALLAH" .Why did ALLAH created fish for us? Most of them were sharing their thoughtful ideas, some said-because we will eat them. Some said to play with them. So E said,  "To make gold fish crackers."

Our goal was to encourage them to engage with social play -they were making space for their peers when another child wanted to join with them, teaching them problem solving skills, negotiation-learn about the creation of ALLAH and increase their communication skills.

Using Pipettes

Pipettes (droppers) are tools children learn to use in preschool .  We use pipettes to build fine motor skills (which are needed for cutting and writing skills), hand-eye coordination and cognitive development.  By learning to use pipettes, children gain the ability to follow several sequential steps needed to complete the task successfully.    

Exploring Colour Mixing

Our emergent topic of blue+yellow= green started when a group of children made a great learning discovery at the art table.  We had put out pastels and paper, with the intention of building fine motor skills, discovery and creative expression.  A wonderful learning experience emerged when 'Saa' discovered that a yellow pastel-  coloured over the blue pastel- turns to the colour green.  She had this amazing expression of wonder on her face, like a light-bulb just turn on in her brain. She looked at me- She didn't speak, but her facial expression seemed to say, "I just discovered something really cool with the art material".  We had a lovely group discussion about colours and colour mixing.  The other children at the table quickly joined in the discovery, attempting to recreate the same colour mixing on their own paper.   

These are the provocations that we introduced over the next few classes, based on the interest of the group.

A story about colour mixing, friendship, being yourself and inclusion.

The book was out of the library, so I made up a prop story using pompoms.  I squished together a blue and yellow piece of play dough to demonstrate the part of the story where they turn green.  During group time, the children were sitting so still throughout the story- silent, with big eyes watching- even the wiggly-young-boys were silent and still.

Some of the children were interested in cars and had been driving over 'mountains' and through 'valleys' in the block area. Bringing something of interest into the art area encouraged the few art-reluctant children (boys) to investigate the activity. 'A' eagerly drove the cars through the paint and all around the paper, smiling from ear-to-ear. 

Alhamdulillah, Allah gave us a perfect natural material to use in the classroom.  Snow made a great material to explore colour mixing and also expand knowledge about temperature, melting, sold/liquid, Allah's creation, weather...

We started out in the water table with a simple colour mixing science experiment, then later added more water and tools to extend the exploration. 

Play dough is always a big hit with the children.  A wonderful sensory exploration that is perfect for building fine motor skills and creativity.  It works phenomenally for a hands-on experience in colour mixing. 

 By the end of class-all the play dough was a nice green colour.

Of course, we had to bring the science of colour mixing with us when we went outside.  Most of the children spent the whole outdoor time turning the snow into colouful designs.   This time- yellow snow was safe to touch!

Math and Manipulatives:  Do they weight the same?  Lets count how many.   Lets  make a pattern or sequence with the blocks.  There are many easy ways to expand the interest of the group into different curriculum areas.  

More colour mixing-squishy bags.

It is always a joy to experience learning with the children- and I thank Allah for every second I get to spend with the children- engaged in meaningful learning experiences together.  One of our goals for the children is to discover ideas and knowledge themselves, instead of the teachers 'telling' them.  Yes, we often 'set up' the environment for these discoveries to happen (and often the children discover additional things we were not 'planning' for)- but when the children figure things out for themselves, the learning will 'stick' with them- it becomes meaningful to them...Their new brain connections are set for life, insha'allah.

Play = Learning

My Bird is Very Hungry

Sensory Exploration

1: My bird need a house- I am making a house ----.2: I make a ducky cake -
3: Oh no -its so messy - I need to clean --sister Fatima
4: I make a chicken cake too

5:My bird is too hungry --

Teacher's comment- We set our sensory table with birds food and some plastic birds-Children were excited to interact with the grains. Each of them have their unique style and use creativity to play with the material.  It was interesting to hear when one child said that she made a duck cake - she was stirring the grains with the metal spoon - patting it and placed all the grain inside the bamboo basket.  Other children wanted to follow her idea-- they all were making duck cakes, chicken cake and bird cake as well.  They were sharing the cake with each other and pretending they were eating the real cake.  Next, insha'allah, we will feed the real birds outside...

Early Learning Framework:


Exploration and Creativity- Develop a sense of wonder for natural environments:  The children's interest in bugs was used to expand their understanding of materials and creatures found in nature.  Building and expanding on their interest in bugs, we have been exploring different types of birds, birds diets and Allah's many wonders found in the natural environment.

Language and Literacies- Develop diverse language abilities and the capacity to communicate with others in many ways: The children had many opportunities for one-to-one and group language interaction, both with a teacher and other children.  The teacher introduced new vocabulary during these interactions and used the props to role model language and creative expression.



Social Responsibility and Diversity- Learn to appreciate diversity:  Children were able to recognize uniqueness in each other's ideas and find value in them.  Different types of birds and seeds were explored, drawing attention to Allah's diverse and wonderful creation.