Hands-on Literacy

Kids LOVE to play house! As we observed the kids' natural play and interests, a hands-on literacy theme emerged through art projects, oral storytelling, block building, dramatic play, classic fairy tales, cultural and global learning, songwriting, yoga storytelling and more! ​

This is a hands-on 'project approach' where we take a topic that the children are naturally intrigued with and allow this interest to expand by offering projects that include pre-literacy elements that wake up the potential of future avid readers.

​Hands-on language arts experiences provide a deeper meaning to words and bring a presence of aliveness to literacy. Research shows that when children are engaged in activities that include many senses it activates multiple areas of the brain and they are more likely to integrate and retain information. 

We are very inspired by the work of Howard Gardner and his Multiple Intelligences Theory. These 9 types of intelligences are doorways into learning. Check out Gardner's diagram below and how it reflects in our projects this month, which lay the foundation of higher order thinking and create a living literacy that touches the children holistically - emotionally, cognitively, and kinesthetically.

House Explorations

Can you make a picture of your house?
What does your house look like?
What shapes are in your house?
What colors are your house?
What materials are your house made of?

Learning to write our names is a springboard for literacy learning!

Tape-resist houses

Integrating Math

Weaving in projects that engage logical-mathematical learning with tools and manipulatives (like geoboards, blocks, 3 dimensional shapes) helps to develop mathematical skills and visual-spatial awareness. 

​Geoboard houses

Making cube and pyramid houses with play-dough and popsicle sticks...

... or thinking outside the box and making a new unique design!

Lincoln Log houses

Sand castle houses - sand  is a wonderful sensory medium to build and create with!

Big block houses

Cardboard boxes, blankets, and scarfs make a fun house fort!

Oral Storytelling

We didn't use a book for the classic fairy tale of the Three Little Pigs this time - instead we enjoyed listening to the story with words alone. This engages the imagination and helps to build the auditory processing system.

After hearing the story the kids created the different houses from the story with play dough, rocks, straw, and sticks with pig puppets. 

Art Inspired Storytelling

We made fairy houses and then played "Pass the Story" an interactive group storytelling game in which one person starts a story and then passes the story to the next person in the circle to continue it.

(Check out the young reader in the book nook below!)

“Stories are the single most powerful tool in a leader’s toolkit.”

Howard Gardner

Dramatic Play Inspired by Children's Literature

Roxaboxen is a classic and true story of some very imaginative children who create whole worlds out of what they find around  them - mostly rocks and boxes.

The ACG kids created their own world too with rocks and boxes! They created toy stores, ice cream shops, a doctor's office, and a neighborhood of homes.

Welcome to Main St in Box Town with chocolate ice cream for sale, a pet store, and grandma's house!

Houses Around the World

We read some great books about different kinds of houses around the world and then made model houses out of similar materials:

Mud 'adobe' houses in Mexico!

Thatched roofs in Brazil!

Garden houses in Indonesia!

Apartment buildings in Hong Kong!

As the kids created buildings and apartments, then cities followed... we talked about different characters that might live there and made up stories about big city life!

We created our own cardboard city!`The older kids loved using the hot glue gun to create a whole skyline out of painted recycled cardboard shapes.

Musical Literacy

Our storytelling continued through telling stories about our homes and families with songwriting and a thumb piano. The kids had so much fun with this!

Yoga and Bilingual Storytelling

Once upon a time in the jungle - a yoga storytelling adventure - in English and Spanish!

Free Play

Such a sweet gentle scene of children playing house, preparing tea and food, and serving each other in one of our house play areas:

Science Fridays!

This month we did lots of experiments, one of our favorites was an actual volcano eruption in the sandbox!

Harvesting and Tasting in the Garden

Broccoli is bountiful right now!

Red chard!
​"I like it!"

Lemon balm is a favorite herb with the kids.

It's asparagus season! We had some first time tasters :)

Mr. Ben's Fabulous Banana Birthday Muffins!

Wet ingredients:

• 1 cup mashed ripe banana (about 2-3 bananas)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or coconut milk)
• 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
• ¼ cup creamy natural almond butter (or sub cashew butter or peanut butter)
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dry ingredients:

• 1 cup fine blanched almond flour (or hazelnut flour)
• ¼ cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a mini muffin tin with 9 muffin with coconut oil cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, mix together mashed banana, almond milk, flaxseed meal, almond butter, coconut oil and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well combined. Scoop batter evenly into the muffin pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

​We love making tacos and guacamole! Using tongs and cooking tools is a wonderful way to develop the pincer grasp - a very important milestone for learning to write.

See you next time!