What makes you, you?

Today we explored the question:

What makes you you?

This might seem like a big question for our young friends but it is one that they love to answer! In our classroom, identity is not something given to children, but something they build, layer by later, through relationships, play, storytelling, and creativity.

One of our favorite provocations to set up for the children is placing mirrors at their eye-level with loose parts. Today we used yarn, ribbon, buttons, beads, wooden mosaic pieces, and twist ties. Children were invited to create their own faces, not to necessarily match their faces but to reflect what they see and feel.

Some children made funny faces, some made faces with mouths that changed from happy to sad, some children even added ears and cheeks, legs and toes!

The point isn't accuracy, it's authenticity!

See our beautiful creations below:

"I have blonde hair, my face feels smiley."

"I like the gold beads, they are pretty."

"My mommy and my sister have green eyes, I have brown eyes like my daddy."

These two friends worked together to match their hair color.

EPA said, "my hair is really dark, it's like the night time."

SB said, "my hair is yellow."

"I made straight hair, just like mine."

"This is me happy."

"I am so happy! I have cheeks and ears and my eyebrows are at the top. I have a big smile on my face."

"I made a design around my face."

"My face has a smile."

"Look at my legs and toes."

Sometimes it's just funt o look at yourself in the mirror and make silly faces!

"I have lots of hair so I used all of the ribbon."

"I made eyes, a nose, and a mouth!"

One of the most meaningful ways to support children in their journey of self-discovery is through photographs, using pictures to explore and express identity. We continued to invite the children to play on our light table with transparent pictures of themselves and loose parts. They are loving it!

Other happenings!

We have noticed a lot of interest in rainbows during these first few weeks of school. We started a conversation with children today about what they know about rainbows and what we might want to learn about rainbows! We will update you on the progress as delve into this topic!

We continued our work in the small world.

Small group work happened outside, too!

The children were given the opportunity to explore nature with magnifying glasses and clipboards to document their findings. They also had the chance to play with ramps while playing on the hillside!

Be Happy, Be Kind

Sois Heureux, Sois Gentil