“You’re not coming to my birthday party!” In the world of three year olds, this is the ultimate threat. In my time in the classroom, I heard children throw this phrase around almost daily. It was prompted by a broken block structure, an unwillingness to share, a disagreement over what to play, or a myriad of other seemingly-trivial issues. The hurt child was making a point the way he or she knew how: “I am angry with you!” Amazingly, the argument almost never lasted more than

After months and months of puffy coats, clunky boots, and mitten battles, it seems as if spring is finally showing its lovely face. Take one look at any park in town on a sunny day and you’ll find blissful children shedding their layers as they rediscover their favorite outdoor games. This season also brings the reemergence of scraped knees, bumped heads, and the periodic wails of fallen children as they test their own limits on playground equipment. Equally prevalent are th

On Easter my 15 month old daughter toddled into the kitchen to find an Easter basket waiting for her. Nestled inside the small wicker basket were the usual suspects: a few plastic eggs filled with small toys, a board book, and a cuddly brown bunny. I had chosen each item especially for her and knew she’d be thrilled to see each new trinket. And she was… for the first five minutes. My daughter spent the majority of Easter morning methodically exploring the paper grass that l

“So what do you do all day...play?” As an early childhood teacher, I’ve heard this question hundreds of times.  I smile knowingly as I respond because, to be honest, I understand. Glance over at a group of children at play and how could you think otherwise? These children are chatting and laughing, completely engrossed in their materials, and having a blast. How could this be considered anything except pure fun? To understand what’s really happening here, we have to look a bi

With the addition of a brand new set of unit blocks for each studio, I thought it was important to write a little something about play block, and why it is so important for young children. Caroline Pratt, the inventor of the unit block, observed and wrote extensively about block play and its importance for the young child. She often wrote about how experiences with blocks help to develop higher level thought. Though they look like nothing more than some cut and sanded piec