Nothing Wrong with an Extended Valentine's Day!

Three and a half consecutive snow days postponed our Valentine's Day celebration. It all worked out though, because it just meant more time for the spirit of love, giving, and not to mention, heart-themed fun!

Building with Unifix Cubes

Creative building with the "Unifix Cubes" was a favorite activity this month. I'm not sure if it was the color that drew them all in, but boy did they flock!

Sewed Hearts

The older children in the class sewed (with a needle and yarn) the outline of a heart and one student even made a heart-shaped pillow for her grandparents! The younger children got to study the older children's movements and learned from watching. Soon they will have the readiness to sew with such precision too!

Painted Hearts

Painting is always fun! And these hearts decorated our school lobby so beautifully!

Made Heart-Shaped Handprints and Footprints

With a little help from a very helpful student leader!

The children are growing up so fast. I like to make handprints a couple times a year so the children can look back and see proof of how much they've grown. It seemed the perfect time to make this documentation and we tried to make our handprints and footprints look like hearts, to describe the time of year. The children loved the sensation of a paintbrush on their fingers and toes. Many chuckled, describing it as ticklish. 

 

Made Flower Arrangements to Decorate our Tables

The class as a whole has come a long way with their body control in the classroom. The children have demonstrated readiness in having a glass vase full of water on the tables with them at meal and work times. This is great progress because it is absolutely lovely to have fresh flowers surrounding us during our day. Of course Valentine's Day was a perfect time to start this tradition. As you can see in the pictures, the children help prepare the vases and flower stems for an arrangement (and sometimes one solitary flower) that he or she can place on a table. I just love this! And I hope it inspires some flower power at home too!

Exchanged Valentine's

We allowed for each child, one at a time, to distribute their Valentine's to their friends. This provided opportunity for pure gratitude. The children really got to soak up the feeling of giving as their friends showed their appreciation for the gift they just received. It was great to see some creativity in the Valentine's and I loved that some children signed their names themselves. Valentine's are not that expensive (especially homemade ones) but they sure do create a lot of joy!

And Noshed Together on a Heart-Themed Snack and Lunch

Thanks to the Parents of iMontessori School we had a gloriously designed Valentine's lunch and snack times. There was thoughtfulness and creativity abound and the offerings were healthy yet fun! I like to call the spread "Heart-Shaped and Heart-Healthy". It was also great to gather as a whole school to celebrate! 

Thank you Parents for making our Valentine's Day 2014 a very special one!