Children's Center Preschool Serving the Los Feliz, Hollywood, Silverlake , Atwater communities
  • Weekly Happenings in the School

  • Aug22

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    Snack menu 8/23-27

    Posted in: Weekly Happenings in the School, Weekly Snack Menu

    We have a wonderful bounty of limes to squeeze this week and turn into individual lime pies. Cooking is an integral part of the program and the children have gotten quite good at mixing, measuring, and stirring. The pies will add a new skill, the egg beater. It has been part of the water play but now it is time to transfer the skill to cooking. Egg beaters present a good challenge to the brain, asking it to do something different with the right and left sides of the body. We know from brain research that activities such as these help the left and right hemispheres of the brain work more effectively together. In a play base manner, we weave many of these kinds of activities into our program.

    Snack Menu

    Monday morning

    Sweet 100’s, Nan with hummus, apple juice

    Monday afternoon

    Bananas, Oats and Honey bars, blueberry yogurt, cran-grape juice

    Tuesday Morning

    Carrots, Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins and cream cheese, grape juice.

    Tuesday Afternoon

    Nectarines, jack cheese cubes, Terra Chips, apple juice

    Wednesday Morning

    Peaches, cheddar cheese sandwiches, orange  juice

    Wednesday Afternoon

    Oranges, Vanilla yogurt with honey, Mulitgrain Cheerios, apple juice

    Thursday Morning

    Blueberries, bean and cheese burritos,  grape juice

    Thursday Afternoon

    Granny Smith apples, Whole Wheat Crackers, Cheddar Cheese, Apple Juice

    Friday Morning

    Breakfast Buffet for new and returning families who begin in September

  • Jul11

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    Welcoming new kids

    Posted in: From the Director, Weekly Happenings in the School

    Summer session has begun. We were excited to welcome several new families into the school. Moms, Dads, and children came in saying hi to familiar faces they knew from before and meeting new ones.  The block area took on new life as a group settled in with the trucks and blocks. The skeleton puzzle was a group effort and many tried it on for size. Rice pouring and water with food color were very popular.

    The teachers could be heard introducing children to each other over and over again, with words, with name songs, with adding names to pictures and drawings. This simple act is so important. We have found that when children don’t know the other person’s name, they treat them differently. I am reminded of my early days of teaching when a group of new kids and I was at the playdough table. One child kept grabbing tools from another without even looking over; the other kid was unhappy.  I said,”This boy’s name is Jamie.” The grabbing kid looked at the other boy and and said, ” I didn’t know that; here are your toys.”

    Helping children feel comfortable in a new setting is a multi-step process. We have parents stay the first morning and then determine how the separation plan will proceed the following days after we see how the child is faring. For many, it is a gradual phasing out of the parent over a few days, with parents increasingly removing themselves from the setting.But everyone is different, so  every plan is too. We look for  5 key factors in determining when a child is ready to say good bye.

    1. Has the child developed a bond with one of the teachers?
    2. Is the child able to ask for help from the teachers?
    3. Can the child tell us when s/he needs to use the potty and be able to use it with limited help?
    4. Is the child comfortable playing in the proximity to other children or with them?
    5. Does the child know where his or her cubby is?

    When it is time for the goodbye, we encourage parents and children to develop a goodbye routine. Some children already have one from being in daycare or with a sitter. It can be as simple as a hug and a kiss and the parent is gone. Or something a bit more elaborate. Some children like to start in the same place every day. The important thing is the child acknowledges the departure of the parent and knowingly lets go . We are right there by the child’s side.

    Over the next few months, we will be welcoming new children to the school. Already our new children have brought fresh ideas and friendships. The school feels a bit new again to our returning students and to us when seen through new eyes. It is an exciting time. We look forward to our months ahead!

  • Jun19

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    Dramatic Play- Life in Action

    Posted in: Child Development, Weekly Happenings in the School, emergent curriculum

    Our school has a large area set aside for a house area, dramatic play, and dress up. It is in use every day in many different ways. Dramatic play is central to children’s healthy development and learning during the preschool years.  In the house and dramatic play rea, children are able to set aside reality for a time and pretend to be someone or something different from themselves.  They make up situations and actions that go along with the various roles they choose.

    When our children engage in dramatic play, they deepen their understanding of the world and develop skills that will serve them throughout their lives. They recreate life experiences and try to cope with their life circumstances, fears, desires, and interests by acting out roles and situations. As they play though their feeling, ideas, and worries, they begin to develop a feeling of empowerment rather than a feeling of being at the mercy of the world around them.

    This was the case one day recently.  One of our children arrived at  the preschool and went right over to the suitcase. (We had learned earlier that her family was beginning to pack up for a move across town.)

    As she started to pick out the clothes she would put in the suitcase for a move, two of her friends joined her. Over the next half hour, there was lots of discussion-What would need to go and what would need to stay.  Would they need to take food? What should the babies travel in? Step by step, the food, dishes, and baby things were packed up and added to the luggage.

    The car was packed,  the trip across town began, and all of the belongings were carried to the new home ( the reading and drawing area ).

    Once they arrived, the unpacking began. One friend put the food and dishes on shelves and while another prepared a meal . The babies were fed and cared for.

    As the child played through this move, she began to feel a sense of control  over her new situation and began to talk about how she was looking forward to having a room of her own. In the next few days, the girls played moving several times, each time adding something new to the play and making more peace with the experience.

    Dramatic play has been helpful to our children this year in coping with illness of family members and doctor’s check ups,  with the deaths of relatives and pets, and with the disruption of divorce.  We will continue to add the props necessary to keep it relevant to our children’s lives so that they may problem solve aspects of their daily life through play.

  • May22

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    The Adventures of a Penguin

    Posted in: Fun with Preschoolers, Weekly Happenings in the School

    The school began in September with two animal gifts. One was a fabulous big penguin, a gift from Melissa’s mother-in-law; the other was a wonderful bouquet of balloons with a white bear attached. They both enchanted the children and have taken their place in the school’s collection of stuffed animals. They have provided endless hours of fun.

    But the penguin has led a more adventurous life. He was first  sighted in the classroom, reading a book about penguins, or, as one of the kids said, “reading about what his own kind is doing”. The next sighting was at the drawing table.

    Then it was in the housekeeping area eating none other than sushi. The kids decided to see how he liked pizza.

    He started receiving visitors; the children brought penguins from home to join him and them  at rest time. Now he was in big demand.

    Next thing we knew, he was stepping out of the classroom and was spotted trying out the slide, the swing, and checking out the radishes in the garden.

    Now the penguin is going on the road. Each weekend, one child will take home the penguin with a camera and a notepad tucked inside. Along with their families, they will photograph and chronicle his adventures and bring them back to the school to share with the children.

    Stay tuned for the continuing adventures of the Children’s Center Preschool Penguin.

  • Apr22

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    The Crystal Man Visits

    Posted in: Weekly Happenings in the School

    John Gibbon came through the door, loaded with crystals ranging from the very large to the small. The children were excited and ready to see him. For weeks now, we had been looking at rocks and crystals and the books about them.

    Before he came, we prepared for his visit; we met as a group.  Right away, the children had questions for him and we were impressed by the questions they had. “How do crystals grow?”; “How do they get their colors”; “How does the sand get on the inside of them?”

    Each child had a dark felt piece and they arranged the crystals on it.  As the crystals traveled from felt to felt, the children used the hand magnifiers to look at them closely. The largest ones elicited “Wows!”.  Geodes were very popular.

    They were very happy when John offered each of them a big and a little crystal to take home and he left us with some wonderful crystals to add to our collection. Thank you, John!

  • Apr19

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    Snack Schedule 4/19-23

    Posted in: Food and Cooking, Weekly Happenings in the School, Weekly Snack Menu

    Snack Schedule 4/19-23

    This week includes potatoes and sugar snap peas from our garden. The children will also make the  bean and cheese burritos with whole wheat tortillas that  they requested last  Friday.

    Monday Morning

    Bananas, bean and cheese burritos, apple juice

    Monday Afternoon

    Vanilla yogurt , oats and honey bars, grape  juice

    Tuesday Morning

    Sugar Snap Peas, cheddar cheese, wheat thins, apple juice

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  • Apr6

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    Caterpillars to Butterflies/ Mystery Plant Discovered

    Posted in: Weekly Happenings in the School, Weekly Snack Menu

    We returned to the school yesterday (after a week of spring break) just in time; some of the cocoons were laying open and a few butterflies were trying out their wings. Within hours, we had 12 butterflies hatched. Magical little white wings floating down to try a little sugar water. Today it was time to let them free to find flowers. It was lovely to see them go.

    We checked the garden after being gone and it clearly loves the combination of rain and sun. All of the peas are stronger and producing. Tomorrow we will dig up the potatoes and see how they did.

    The mystery plant has been identified. We had all been thinking it had come from something we had taken outside or eaten. We hadn’t thought of the bird feeders we made late last fall for the birds; the ones hanging right above our mystery plants filled with birdseed and Sunflower Seeds. When we came back, the plants  had grown so big, it was obvious. We were growing sunflowers- the kids are thrilled.

    This week we plant more radishes and some carrots. Early Girl tomatoes next week. Strawberries will go in around the vine pots. A new dwarf apricot was added to our trees. It was great to be back in our yard today enjoying  the warm weather and sampling peas.

    Daily Snack Schedule 4/5-9

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  • Mar25

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    Eggs, colors, and flowers

    Posted in: Food and Cooking, Weekly Happenings in the School

    Today was filled with color, from the egg designing and dyeing to the new purple sweet peas that started to bloom and smell so sweet. The eggs began with simple designs and colors until the yellow tipped over and ran down the blue edge of the table. “GREEN”, someone noticed.”Can we do that again?” We turned to our containers of egg dyeing colors to find what we could mix to make new colors. Right away the yellow and blue were mixed together- a wonderful emerald green was produced. Red with blue became our purple. An egg was forgotten in the cup for a awhile; when it came out, it was so dark red. “How did that happen?” More experimenting. Eggs were put back in for more color. Some starting turning brown so the children became  more selective as they picked their colors.

    Our favorite Easter book that had eggs of many colors was The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes by DuBois Heywood.

    Once we ran out of eggs, we moved on to eye droppers and paper towels. We finally stopped for a snack of gorgeous hard boiled eggs. Outside, we found the sweet peas had opened to a beautiful deep purple. On either side of the sweet peas were snow peas and sugar snaps which suddenly had peas. We noticed that their color was just the same as the leaves. We wondered why they are camouflaged; we had talked about camouflage with the green caterpillars. We sampled  both peas and peas were requested for snack after our vacation. Spring is a delicious time of year.

  • Mar23

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    Caterpillars in the garden and snack menu

    Posted in: Food and Cooking, Weekly Happenings in the School, Weekly Snack Menu

    We have been checking the plants in our garden every day for growth and change; today we discovered holes in our broccoli leaves. “What is doing that?” With hand magnifiers, the children looked for the reason why. They found seven green caterpillars busily eating.

    While the plant was not so happy, this was great news for us. The kids had wanted to get some caterpillars. So, carefully, we removed the whole plant,  potted it and moved the plant and the caterpillars into their new netted home.

    Everyone was surprised when we came in the next day. “What happened to the plant?” The caterpillars had eaten most of the big leaves down to the spine. Also, just like in the story, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, our caterpillars weren’t little anymore.

    We sat and watched as they climbed three feet to the top of the cylinder and attached themselves to the plastic top. It was a long climb and the children cheered them on. And there they have stayed. We predicted that they are making their cocoons but we aren’t sure. Tomorrow we will check again to see what happens.

    The other amazing thing that happened was that, this afternoon there were flowers on the paper white narcissus that weren’t even buds this morning. Spring here is everywhere and we are on the look out for more signs. Will algae grow in our clear bottle of water? Will the avocado seeds sprout? Will the flower on the lemon tree turn into a lemon? The slow days in our winter garden are certainly over.

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  • Mar16

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    Garden journal and snack menu

    Posted in: Food and Cooking, From the Director, Weekly Happenings in the School, Weekly Snack Menu

    Spring  came in a rush to the preschool today. The weather was so lovely and warm with the great white clouds that had us reading It Looked Like Spilt Milk. It was a day to be with the garden, to see how all the plants are doing. Our tree is just starting to leaf out and the birds were busy flying from branch to branch. With the rain,  we had been inside and the plants had seemed to be languishing. But the garden was full of energy right from the moment we saw it this morning. The brussels sprouts plants now covered all of the dirt and were filling out. The radishes continue to provide us with great snack food in shapes that make the children laugh. The lettuce is tender and such a pretty shade of green. Our first surprise came when I started to lift up the sweet peas, sugar snaps, and snow peas and found that they had grown from little sprouts to three foot plants that I could weave around their trellises. We wondered what the potatoes are doing under the ground where we can’t see them. None of us have grown potatoes before but we are hopeful as the potato vines are healthy and green.

    There is also the mystery plant in one big pot. We have been growing cabbage with little success but we then noticed stalks, growing bigger every day,  reaching for the sky. Lots of ideas from the children about what they are- beans, pumpkins, watermelons. We read Jack and the Bean Stalk just in case. Our suspicions are that a few pinto beans from the sensory table found their way outside, but we do have lots of birds so time will tell.

    For the first time in many weeks, we watered everything in the yard and then played in the puddles that formed after the plants could no longer drink any more of the water we gave them. It was so great to be barefoot and enjoying the water. We filled the water tables with their plastic tubes, funnels, bottles, and turkey baster.

    At 6 o’clock, I said goodbye to the garden that was still soaking up sunlight now that the days were even longer. I came inside to ready the paper white narcissus for the children to plant them tomorrow. The children will enjoy watching the bulbs sprout and grow, then they will  take home a bit of spring of their own. It was a great way to begin spring at the school!

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