Term 2 Week4 - Wednesday Session

As of this week Wednesday mornings were opened up to families currently enrolled in Open Sessions as an additional session, without the assistance of the staff. It was great to see a number of families take up this opportunity today. With 7 weeks of term left, at a cost of $10/child, we ask any other families interested in attending Wednesday sessions to arrange payment for the remainder of the term as soon as possible. The 3-hr session runs from 9.30 am and we remind parents of the need to be self-sufficient in all ways and mindful of the Open Session Protocol (refer to the pin-up board in the classroom).

One of the "rules" in our classroom is that a child who chose a job can invite another to join, however should the child wish to do the job independently the second child must respect their wishes. The second child however may observe if they do so in a non-threatening way (for instance sitting on their hands which indicates they will not touch). Today Carmelina conducted a planetary lesson for her girls, Annmarie and Rebecca, which involved a discussion about the different planets (represented by various sized balls) and some writing exercises. The lesson drew the interest of some of the other children who were invited to participate. Pictured below (clockwise) are Carmelina, Madeline (2 yrs), Annmarie (7 yrs), Rebecca (3 yrs), Isabella (4 yrs), Timothy (4 yrs) and Erin (4 yrs). With the freedom to choose a job a child also has the freedom to walk away when they so desire, and are not forced to remain for a full lesson/demonstration if they do not wish. Although interested for a time, Erin and Madeline watched for a while and then both chose to go and draw.
Another group activity today, which was child instigated, was the collecting of rubbish. Under the supervision of one of our parents, Ros, the children (pictured above, in addition to Michael 2 1/2 yrs) donned gloves and garbage bags and searched the grounds for rubbish. They ran together in groups and were very excited, with Madeline (2) and Kai (21 months) following behind holding the hands of another parent. Oh, to be young again! And what a great example they have given us all both in terms of their co-operation with one another and their participation in meaningful work!