Personal Reflection

learning through play

Hi everyone! It’s been way too long since my last blog post, and I have made it a goal to blog at least once a month in 2023 (not including the summer months – haha!). Seeing as this is the last day in January, I figured I’d better get on it! Today, I’d like to […]

November 22, 2020 COVID / health / Indigenous Ways of Knowing / Medicine Wheel / Personal Reflection / wellbeing

be healthy and well

I have heard the phrase “hope you are healthy and well” or “may you be healthy and well” a lot in the past few months. Once I got to thinking a little more about this particular phrase, it makes a lot of sense to me. In these unprecedented times of COVID, many people are focusing […]

October 29, 2020 COVID / critical thinking / First Year of Teaching! / Personal Reflection

the year of ‘new’

This school year is shaping up to be full of ‘new’ things: new surprises, new learning, new challenges, new adventures! I am grateful for all of the ‘newness:’ it is helping me grow as a teacher and keeps things from feeling stagnant. Although being in my fifth year of teaching may not seem like very […]

October 24, 2020 art / ECE / finger paint / Messy Play / Personal Reflection / Play / Pre-K / sensory play

making messes joyfully

A student’s request of “Can I paint?” this morning sparked this beautiful play experience, as we brought out finger paint for the first time. Several students were interested in trying out this new medium, and tried out various different techniques (fingerprints, handprints, swiping to make lines and doodles) on their paper. However, after a few […]

February 25, 2020 Personal Reflection / Play / Pre-K

planting myself

I have recently been trying to ‘plant myself’ during free play time in my classroom; rather than flitting to various areas of the classroom as children play, I sit down at one spot and try to stay there for the duration of free play time. I have noticed a few things when I employ this […]

September 13, 2019 early childhood / early childhood educator / ECE / Elementary Teacher / free play / Personal Reflection / Play / play based learning / play time / Pre-K / prek teacher / prekindergarten / Teacher / the power of play

planting myself

Hard to believe another school year is already underway! We are in full swing and I’m looking forward to another year of learning alongside the little souls that I’m blessed to have in my classroom everyday. This will be a quick post; I just wanted to celebrate the fact that I found photo evidence of […]

June 7, 2019 Early Childhood Education / ECE / Elementary Teacher / environmental education / Nature / Nature-Based Learning / Outdoor Education / outdoor learning space / Personal Reflection / Pre-K / prek teacher / prekindergarten / resources / Teacher / the great outdoors

one with nature

Nature has been on my mind a lot lately. The reasons for this are three-fold: Two months ago, I got a new dog. Russ has been such an awesome addition to my life, as he has gotten me out and walking two times a day. Before I had him, it was much easier to make […]

September 25, 2018 Early Childhood Education / Learning Through Play / Messy Play / Personal Reflection / Pre-K / Pre-Kindergarten

accepting “mess”

The Pre-K program and its students have taught me so much about life, both as a teacher and just as a person in general. 🙂 As I reflected on my day while looking through pictures taken during play time, I realized that one of the best skills I’ve acquired as a Pre-K teacher is the […]