Butterfly Classroom ages 3-6

Teachers: Miss Tracey and Miss Melissa

In this child-directed program, Miss Tracey and Miss Melissa observe and guide the children through the classroom and inspire the children to choose challenging works for their individual needs. The teachers encourage all children to choose a math, language, metal inset and cultural work daily. All works are fun, stimulating and changed out monthly to keep the classroom fresh and exciting. Children work on weekly projects related to counting and the “sound of the week.”

The following are several areas of concentration in the Butterfly Classroom.

Hand-Eye Coordination

Stringing beads, pouring, sweeping, gluing, cutting, play dough, spooning, puzzles, using a pencil, metal insets, tracing.

Gross Motor Coordination

Yoga, movement games, rolling rugs, unpacking and packing up snack and lunch, outside play: running, swinging, climbing, sliding, kicking and throwing balls, taking off and hanging up jackets, hopping on one foot, copying rhythms, skipping, sitting appropriately in a chair.

Grace and Courtesy

Morning greeting song, saying please and thank you, taking turns, listening to each other, resolving conflicts, through conversation, participating in group discussions.

Language

Singing songs, reading stories, circle time, sound of the week, phonetics, sequencing cards, matching activities, blending sounds.

Sense of Order

Keeping workspace organized, keeping work on table or on a mat, returning materials to shelves.

Independence

Carrying belongings to and from school daily, changing shoes and slippers, taking off and hanging up jackets, opening and closing lunchboxes, cleaning up messes, washing and drying table after eating, washing and drying face and hands after eating, choosing challenging works in the classroom.

Cultural and Science Studies

Identifying and naming locations on maps, identifying flags of different countries, identifying and naming animals and plants, understanding different customs of various cultures, learning about living and non-living things, learning about life-cycles.

Math

Identifying quantity and symbols, matching quantity with number, sequencing, writing numbers, skip counting, addition, subtraction, telling time, shapes, identifying ones, tens, hundreds and thousands, learning the calendar and understanding the concepts of time: days, weeks, months, years.