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  Sparkles of Imagination This month, our theme was “All Around the World.” The children explored different countries, and Italy quickly became one of their favourites—especially because of its unique shape, beautiful landmarks, and delicious food! To bring Italy into our classroom, I created our own “pizzas” using a red-painted circle as the dough and a variety of toppings such as mushrooms, cheese, pepperoni, and broccoli cut outs. The children enjoyed this hands-on invitation during circle time and later at the sensory table. During play, I spotted a delightful moment with Child G. He carefully slid his “pizza” under the covering board. When asked why, he smiled brightly and replied, “I put it in the oven!” I laughed and sent him a nod to recognize and appreciate his great imagination.  Another wonderful spark of creativity appeared in our outdoor area. A group of children gathered around a large toy car. Instead of riding it, they tried to  “fix” it! They opened the...
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  How Many “Mini Pumpkins” Tall Are You?  October is one of the most exciting months of the year—pumpkins, spiders, candies, and Halloween fun! Pumpkins, especially, are often woven into our curriculum and lesson plans across different learning areas. One day, I used mini pumpkin pictures to create a height-measuring scale, and the little friends were instantly engaged. We talked about how many “mini pumpkins” tall each of them was and compared their heights with one another. After circle time, I left the “mini pumpkin scale” on the wall. During playtime, some children began “measuring” themselves again. However, since the pumpkins were only taped to the wall, they kept falling off. After fixing them several times, I decided to take them down. That’s when Child W said, “But I didn’t get my turn.” I replied, “We may find another time to do it again.” However, his words lingered in my mind. I felt sad and guilty to cut off their interest. Then, I  wondered how I could resp...
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"Agnes, look, doggies!" one of the kids said excitedly. "Oh, they are in training to be guide dogs!" Our centre is on the second floor of a church. Every Friday, there’s a guide dog training program downstairs in the gym. Naturally, our little friends are curious about the dogs and often wonder what they’re doing. I try to explain it in a simple way: "They're having a class with their teachers, just like you during circle time. They’re training to become guide dogs so they can help people who cannot see." After hearing this explanation a few times, the children began tiptoeing quietly past the dogs, whispering, "Look, guide dogs! Because they wear special vests!" They tried to hide their excitement because they knew the dogs were "in class." Even though they stopped asking questions, I felt their curiosity still lingered—so I decided to respond in a new way. I found several short video clips about service dogs—police dogs, guide do...
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               We are a team Most of the time, an ece usually works with other teachers or even support workers in the same classroom since the capacity of one classroom could be 16 or 24 group kids of aged 3 to 5. In this setting, teamwork is essential to ensure children’s safety, maintain the program flow smoothly and stick to the daily routine. Clear communication is surely the key to success.  Here are some of the moments that really feel like “ we are a team!” Snack/lunch time In Particular, I like to empathize with healthy nutrition. So, In the mornings, I usually have the kids choose yogurt, fruit or cheese, to keep their energy level up but not spike their sugar level. Also, the yogurt is perishable and the fruit won’t be as fresh as they are although all of the kids require to have ice packs in their lunch bag. I always explain the reasons behind these choices  to the teachers and kidsI work with. This clear communication keeps ...
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Trust and bonding                                   Here is the story……. In the washroom, Child D was sitting on the toilet, trying to finish her business. Suddenly, she said to me, “ Agnes, I pushed a friend in the gym.” I wasn’t surprised she did because she has been very emotional recently. Then, I asked “why? What happened?” in a very gentle tone.  Child D responded, “ I pushed Child H because I am grumpy and angry.” “No worries. It is okay to be upset and frustrated. But we don’t push or hit our friends when we feel upset or angry. How about this, next time, when you feel upset or frustrated, you come to me or other teachers and ask for a hug.”  Okay!’ nodded Child D.  I was deeply touched by Child D sharing her true feelings with me. I also admired her bravery to admit what she had done despite that she ...
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Recently, I was listening to a lecture called "Building Personal Resilience: Managing Anxiety and Mental Health" by Dr. Luana Marques, a Harvard Medical School professor, author, and clinical psychologist. One point that really stood out to me was about the importance of brainstorming multiple possible solutions . It struck me because I often find myself locked into just one workable answer after identifying a problem. That’s because when I’m caught up in the busyness of the day, constantly on the floor working with children, I have to handle the situation quickly and move on.  However, this lecture really made me reflect: is it really fair to offer my little friends just one path forward? Take Child W, for example. He's two and a half and currently going through potty training. Considering his age, he’s doing great—he can hold it for about an hour, goes on the regular washroom breaks with the group and occationaly asks to go to the washroom. But accidents still happen,...
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  Take a breath, handle it and then move on!  Working with little ones as a professional could be exhausting and frustrating everyday. It could drain out your energy, patience, sometimes even compassion. You keep wondering if you are a good teacher or not, asking yourself why these little human beings just cannot listen and follow the given instructions after you have tried all the strategies.  Well, first of all, we have to remember that we are human beings,too. We have our own emotions and feelings. However, that we acknowledge how we feel doesn’t mean that we can lose our ration while handling the challenging behaviors. We should all keep it in mind that their behavior is part of their developmental process, not a reflection of our teaching ability or performance. Therefore, we should take this opportunity to model how we self-regulate our emotions to our little friends. Let’s take Child W as an example. He is 2 and half so surely he is at the stage of “ I want it so ...
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