Blog Archives

Montessori-Inspired: Flower Arranging

10/20/2016

As I've shared in previous posts we have been transforming our school, Little Builders Preschool & Foundation School (a ministry of YWAM San Diego/Baja) into more Montessori-Inspired classrooms. Now none of us have any formal Montessori training but in doing research and my very limited experience in visiting classrooms we have begun looking at our toys through these "Montessori-colored lenses". I previously shared about an amazon.com purchase, The Color Bears, and how we transformed it from an ordinary toy to a fun activity simply by changing the set up. It still functions the same but is now much more inviting to the children and gets played with a lot more.

One of the main activities in a traditional Montessori classroom in the practical life area is flower arranging. Now many people think that this is a very antiquated skill to have but here on our YWAM, Youth With A Mission, campus we put flower arrangements all around all the time. Each week we host teams that come down to build homes for families in need. As part of our call to Hospitality we welcome these guests with beautiful flowers, snacks and smiles. So for us, we are just training our future hospitality team but they think it's just a game.

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Fall Themed Children's Cartoon Guide

10/17/2016

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Don't you hate it when you are teaching on a specific topic and are looking for a video to go along with the theme but can't find one? Well, I'm going to help you out and give you a list of fall themed videos from popular kid's shows all in one place. We love using videos in our classrooms in our preschool, Little Builders Preschool and Foundation School (a ministry of YWAM San Diego/Baja).

One of the ways I incorporate technology in my preschool classroom is by showing fun videos at the end of the day. Now, these videos serve multiple purposes. They can be educational for the kids putting the topic we are studying into a "real" world application. They are also an opportunity for all of our students and classes to come together at the end of the day. We also use this time to clean up the classrooms and pickups are easy with all the kids ready to go in one spot.

I've had a hard time in the past finding videos to match our themes, though. It is really annoying because I don't like to watch shows in class unless they serve a purpose. So when I couldn't find a list anywhere online I thought I'd go ahead and do the research for you. Hope this helps you as much as it has helped us.

Without further ado, here is a list of popular children's cartoon episodes that are fall-themed, covering things like Back to School, Apples, Fall Leaves, Pumpkins, Fall Festival, Halloween, Trick or Treating, Bats, Thanksgiving, etc.

Over 45 Fall Themed Children's Show Episode Guide to use in your classroom or at your home. Head over to sherilbrasher.info/school-resources for this episode guide and more school resources.

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Author

I am on an amazing adventure traveling the world with Jesus. After 7 years of teaching preschool in Alabama, God called me to the mission field in Mexico full time. I led short-term missions trips for 6 years and the Lord opened the door for me to mix both of my passions, missions and teaching. I am now the director of Little Builders Preschool and we will soon be opening a full International K-12 school. The current students are missionary kids but will be open to the local community in the future.

Join me on my adventure and learn what I learn.

As a full-time missionary, I do not receive a traditional pay check. I rely on the generous support of friends, family & people like you. As any teacher does, much of what we use in our school is purchased by me out of my own personal funds. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to our ministry and help our students reach their potential in education.