"What's That Sound?", an audio game, was displayed at the Listening Center promoting auditory discernment, cooperation, and fine motor skills.  Various sounds ranging from frogs croaking and alarm clocks chiming to bees buzzing and running water challenged the children as they listened and then matched colored chips to the accompanying game board pictures.  Currently available is red, pink and purple folded construction paper for Valentine creations, as well as the game "Silly Expressions”.  The children are enjoying using a mirror to mimic the expression on a playing card, while their friends guess what emotion is being expressed!

The camping theme in the Dramatic Playroom elicited great anticipation as well as excitement!  With its realistic setting, the campground beckoned many prospective campers to experience the great outdoors, indoors!  The computer displayed a montage of animals such as rabbits, frogs, porcupines, skunks, squirrels, and deer as well as backdrops of streams, forests, and  mountains.  The slide show, created by Miss Chris, provided a heightened sense of realism.  A "campfire" situated adjacent to the computer welcomed many hungry campers to relax and feast on a hearty meal of fish, hamburgers, hotdogs, corn, or whatever their appetites dictated.  Fishing poles with magnetic "bait' provided a challenge to our campers as they incorporated some keen eye/hand coordination in order to secure the desired fish.  Puppets expanded the imaginary play as children befriended rabbits, beavers, frogs and porcupines.  One child was asked where they thought beavers lived and responded, very matter-of-factly, "in beaver homes".  Camping attire, binoculars, and cameras afforded the children an opportunity to dress-up, role-play, and engage in some lively conversations!  Tents complete with sleeping bags, pillows, lanterns, and canteens were of particular interest as the campers sought a brief respite from the outdoor elements after a long day of fishing and hiking.  Several children commented on their previous camping experiences in anticipation of future sojourns.  The Dramatic Playroom has returned to its previous theme of housekeeping, but will soon be transformed again into a hospital.

Busy and fun are the best words to describe the creativity room this month.  The easels were the big draw with a variety of textured brushes available to inspire terrific creations by the children.  The brushes included mop heads, sponge heads, and checkered strips.  The children used the brushes with white, yellow and aqua paint to create different patterns with every  dab and stroke.  Silver glitter paint was also available to paint light blue or white icicle shaped paper that now adorn our trees in the snack room and dramatic playroom.  Currently tooth-shaped paper is being "brushed" with 'toothpaste blue" paint using toothbrushes!  The children are also enjoying dipping a variety of heart-shaped cookie cutters in purple and pink paint and making prints on pink paper.  Up next:  red and white paint and multi-cultural crayons. 

Ice blue playdough was rolled, cut, sculpted and squeezed this month at the playdough table.  Currently the sweet smell of cherry kool-aid playdough is wafting through the creativity room.  One child commented "mmm, this smells like lollipops!"  How sweet it is playing with playdough!  Up next will be modeling clay. 

Buried treasures!  That's what was in the sensory table to begin the month.  There were gems and wooden numbers and letters along with ice cube trays for sorting, and tweezers to pick up the gems in the sand (a great fine motor activity).  The children really enjoyed hiding the treasures in the sand, finding them and putting each gem in a cube on the tray (one-to-one correspondence, a  math skill).  Currently there is "goop" in the table, made with cornstarch and water.  The fun and interesting thing about "goop" is that it looks like a solid, but when you pick it up it turns to liquid!  This provides many opportunities to ask the children "why" and "how" questions.  It really gets them thinking!  Currently the sensory table is filled with a variety of beads and string.     

The children have had a lot of fun playing some groups games during gross motor time, such as "Messy Back Yard", "Freeze Tag", "Scrambled Eggs", and "Stuck in the Mud".  They also loved