Mat Man is a component of the Handwriting Without Tears curriculum for Pre-K. He helps children develop body awareness, spatial awareness, drawing skills, socialization, and number awareness. Every year my littles are crazy about Mat Man. This year is no exception . . . The cry at circle every day this week has been "Mat man, mat man, mat man!" Good thing I like him so much!!!
We had ice on the playground this morning - a very big deal if you are four years old and happen to live in sunny south Florida! The littles were gleeful as they explored the chilly substance that most of them have only seen as an ice cube in a drink! When we went back indoors, I pulled out some aluminum foil and finger paint and let them ice skate with their fingers. A few of them got a lesson in color mixing but for the most part it was just a fun process art experience.
Snowmen are actually almost relevant here in south Florida this week. It's only in the 30's here this morning! The littles made these last week. I cut a piece of wood into blocks and sanded them smooth. The hats are newborn baby socks that I found at the dollar store. I went looking for some of Leslie's old baby socks and actually found them but for some insane reason was unable to part with them! I think it just seemed unreal that she was ever that small!
Had a great reunion with the littles today. A new little joined our class and she seemed to transition to her new surroundings very easily! On today's agenda? Playing with penguins in the water tubs. Making snowmen out of blocks (I'll post the pics tomorrow). Looking at new photographs in our class book "Our Day". (And I couldn't resist posting a pic of this sweet little guy who is crazy about numbers and the alphabet. The easel was outside today and he worked on putting the numbers in order. Usually, you can find him writing the entire alphabet on the fence in chalk!)
