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Dear Great Start to Quality Providers,
This is your monthly touchpoint with the Great Start to Quality Consultants! The focus will be a shared topic that will provide support to each of you in your daily work with young children and families. Enjoy!
Angie and Beth
Quality Improvement Consultants - Eastern Region
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Sensory Play
Many times when children are infants we make intentional efforts to provide them with opportunities to explore their environment through their senses. It is known that they are gaining an understanding of who they are and the world around them. As they move into toddler-hood and preschool, freely offering sensory exploration can become challenging, but is still vitally important. Highscope has referred to sensory play as "food for the brain."
When children have the opportunity to engage in sensory play they are developing and enhancing several skills. They acquire social skills as they practice sharing and maintaining space between them and their schoolmates. Language develops as they share ideas, pretend play and ask questions. Children are problem solving as they manipulate the materials in different ways, acquiring math skills as they make determinations on how much they can move from one container to another or exploring science as they come up with theories and ideas of what may happen next. In the sensory area children have the chance to creatively explore various materials and use their imagination freely.
So why is it not offered more regularly?
- Mobile infants and toddlers may mouth or eat the materials.
- It is too messy
- Children aren't utilizing the space.
Although PQA references sand and water, any type of material can be utilized in a sensory exploration area. So begin by thinking about your group. What materials would appeal to various senses and would be safe and appropriate for the group?
- Noodles, Rice, Jello, Pumpkin guts or other edible items
- Bright Feathers, Foam noodles, Yarn, Bubble wrap, Etc.
- Hay, Dirt, Sand, Water, Pine Needles or other natural items
What type of container would make it easiest to observe and for the children to explore?
Many facilities have a sand or water table, but maybe it makes more sense for your classroom to use smaller bins or trays with materials that only one or two children will explore at a time.
If you are providing the opportunity and children are not being drawn to the area what may be lacking?
- Tools for scooping and dumping
- Tools for digging and putting items in/through
- Varying sizes, shapes and types of tools
- Meaningful interactions from caregivers that peak a child's interest
With some planning and intention the sensory area can easily become the highlight of the day.
Even as adults the opportunity to manipulate materials helps us better retain an understanding. We remember 10% of what we see, 30-40% of what we see and hear and 90% of what we see, hear and DO!
"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children play IS serious learning"- Mr. Rogers
Resource HighScope Extensions
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Interested in learning more about
Great Start to Quality?
Take advantage of quarterly webinars hosted by Great Start to Quality! The webinars will keep you informed about Michigan's tiered quality rating and improvement system.
Catch up on past webinars by clicking the link below: Did you miss a webinar? You can view recorded webinars anytime at:
If you haven't already, please sign up for the
Great Start to Quality
listserv at
http://GreatStartToQuality.org/
. Click the "Sign Up" link at the bottom of the home page to get updates and answers to frequently asked questions.
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Need help with the Great Start to Quality STARS system?
Please contact the Resource Center's support team.
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Toll Free support is available:
1-877-614-7328
- Our Quality Improvement Specialists are available to help you!
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The PQA,
Program Quality Assessment
is the assessment tool identified by the GreatStart to Quality program to be used when assessing a program/provider. Thestandards listed in the PQA identify high quality program practices for all children.
Infant Toddler PQA:
I. Learning Environment
D. Materials for sensory exploration are plentiful and accessible to infants and toddlers.
Row 1. More than half of the materials for children to see, touch, mouth hear, smell, explore, and play with are made of wood, metal, stone, fiber, paper and natural materials.
Examples:
- Tin cans/lids, cooking utensils, spice bottles, metal measuring cups, small pans, shells, rocks, wooden spoons, blocks, spools, bottle, brush, keys, fabrics, yarn, pumice, rubber, balls, mirrors, newspaper, wax paper, foil.
-Recycled materials, such as cardoboard tubes, boxes.
-Messy materials such as paint, playdoh, clay, "goop," glue, sand and water
Preschool PQA:
F. Classroom materials are varied, manipulative, open-ended, and authentic and appeal to multiple senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste).
Row 1. Most of the available materials in all interest areas are open-ended (e.g., blocks, sand, water, corks, dolls, scarves, toy vehicles, paint, shells).
Family Child Care PQA:
II. Learning Environment
F. Family child care materials are varied, manipulative, open-ended, authentic, and appeal to multiple senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste)
Row 1. Most of the materials in all play areas are open ended (open-ended materials include blocks, books, sand, water, corks, dolls, scarves, toy vehicles, paints, shells)
Click the link below to learn more about the PQA:
Tackling Program Quality
***Check your PQA booklets for all Level 5 Indicators***
***Contact your local Lending Library to check out a PQA booklet***
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Early Childhood Standards of Quality
This is a publication which explains the purpose, history and application of the the Early Childhood Standards of Quality endorsed by the Michigan Department of Education. Standards were developed to guide infant/toddler, preschool and pre-kindergarten programs across the state to ensure all Michigan children come to Kindergarten with similar early education experiences.
Each standard is followed by a description of what children typically can be expected to demonstrate. Also listed are some examples of experiences and strategies that facilitate children's development with respect to each standard.
The Early Childhood Standards of Quality connect the high quality experiences that we provide to children with many of the curriculum and assessments that we use. Listed below are the connections between plan-do-review and the Standards of Quality.
Infant and Toddler Early Childhood Standards of Quality:
Strand C: Exploration
Goal 4: Infants and toddlers experience environments where they develop a growing sense of social relationships, the natural environment, and the physical world.
b. Familiarity with a variety of materials (e.g., sand, water, ice, bubbles, blocks, paper).
Prekindergarten Early Childhood Standards of Quality:
Learning Environment
3. Program Standard: The curriculum is designed to include experiences related to children's social, emotional, intellectual, language, creative, and physical development.
f. Assures that children have experiences to enhance their physical development, including small and large muscle development, as well as body awareness, self-regulation, self-efficacy and sensory development.
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Pin of the Month....
Find this idea on Pinterest
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Looking for Training?
Trainings are being added often so for more detailed information and to register, go to:
- click the third yellow box named "Professional Development"
- follow the directions to register.
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Have you visited your Lending Library lately?
The Eastern Resource Center's Lending Library is a FREE educational resource available to parents and early childhood professionals.
We
offer
themed bins and CARES bags full of learning materials to enhance y
our classroom or childcare environment for children birth to age 5. Stop by your local Lending Library to check out something new today!
Not sure where your local Lending Library is located?
- Click on "Great Start to Quality Resource Centers".
- Click "Eastern Resource Center" on the map to find the Lending
Library near you!
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Teacher Resource
(Actual bin image in Lending Library Catalog. Table not included with bin materials)
Water Play PreK This bin contains several toys to enhance children's play at the sensory table.
Contact our team if you would like to try out the materials and we will feature your feedback on our Facebook page.
~Click the following link to view our entire Lending Library catalog: Lending Library Catalog
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How to contact your Consultant:
Beth Eschenburg
Cell: 810-334-4223
Angie Pearcy
Cell: 989-280-0979
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Funding from the Office of Great Start within the Michigan Department of Education supports the implementation of Great Start To Quality
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