Play, Grow , and Glow

We enjoyed listening to the read aloud of The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. We were amazed by how much food the caterpillar ate.

After reading the story, we enjoyed using the felt board to retell the story to our families using pictures from the story to support our retelling.

Our families were so proud that we were able to retell the story in sequence.

Our favorite part of the story was when the caterpillar turned into a beautiful butterfly.

We utilized our creativity to respond to the Tuff Tray prompt “can you make a caterpillar?" We practiced using our pincer grasp to select pom poms to create caterpillars. Practicing our pincer grasp is an important pre- writing skill.

Providing your child with open-ended prompts gives the opportunity for your child to use their critical and creative thinking skills to demonstrate their own answer to the prompt.

At home, provide your child with building materials ( legos, wooden blocks, logs, etc…) and pose a question such as can you build a habitat for the_______ ( use a stuffed animal)?

After your child completes their build, provide time for your child to explain their design to you. If necessary, you can pose additional thinking questions such as tell me more about? Why did you select to place___ here? What other ways could we think of to build _____?

We enjoyed observing Forsythias. After completing our observation, we became artists and created our own interpretations of a forsythia bush. After we completed our design, we shared our masterpieces with one another. We love creating beautiful pieces to share with one another. We couldn’t wait to take home our forsythias to share with our family and friends.

We often associate the word creativity with art however, at the heart of creativity is finding solutions to problems.

To support your child in developing the skills needed to become a creative problem solver, consider the following:

1. Give your child a chance to build agency and independence by looking for challenging projects. Let your child select what materials to use, how to use them, and to determine when the project is completed.

2. Let your child take the lead- designate a space for your child to engage in the creative process. Make materials and supplies easily accessible.

3. Provide prompts and questions to inspire thinking- Use prompts such as I wonder what would happen if? I noticed this ( name it) and am wondering how this occurred or came to be. I wonder why?

4. Provide feedback related to your child's process and perspectives. Example, I observed that you keep working until you said that you were happy with how it turned out." Be mindful to provide feedback that focuses on the process and not the product.

5. Permit your child to take risks- creativity is about engaging with things in a variety of ways. Supporting risk taking helps your child build trust and respect.

6. Allow your child to take the lead- assist your child with working through the ideas they develop. Learn side by side.

Remember that active learning gives your child the foundation for abstract knowledge.

Have you downloaded the free Sparkler app yet? If not, please do so using the code MilfordFRC as we would like you to participate in the Butterfly Wings play card with us.

Instructions

1. Let’s go for a walk and create two big sidewalk chalk butterflies! Can you lie on your back on the sidewalk? I’ll use chalk to draw two sets of wings on either side of your body.

2. Now I’ll lie down and you can help me draw my butterfly wings.

3. Let’s decorate the butterfly wings in two different ways. What patterns can we create?

Words To Use

Butterfly - a moth-like insect

Wing - a part of the body of some animals used for flying

Pattern - something that repeats over and over

Life cycle- stages of growth

Simplify

Help Your child create a pattern on each butterfly.

Stretch

Make up a story with Your child about where the butterflies would go if they flew off the pavement and fluttered around

the park! Fly like a butterfly around the park!

Why

Creating different butterflies with different patterns helps your child begin to think flexibly.

The Milford Public Schools Parent University will host a Blast Off to Summer Reading event at the Milford Public Library at 5:30.

Grab your space gear, make moon rocks, and a galaxy in a jar at the intentional play table. Visit our SEL table to learn about the importance of developing a positive sense of self. Our literacy coaches will share great books and strategies for supporting summer reading at home. We will even have two special guest readers!

We hope that you will register to join us. We can't wait to adventure into the wonderful world of literacy with you!