St. Mary's Day 5

      My fifth visit to St. Mary's was a bit different from my previous visits. The week's theme was Easter, and we were assigned the younger group of children. Instead of playing and interacting with the older children, today I was able to read, play and make crafts with the Pre-K group of children. The children were very well behaved and were eager to learn about my book I had brought in for them. I believe the children understood the story line and enjoyed every bit of it, and at the book's conclusion we had the kids make paper bunnies complete with cotton tails thanks to my group member, Brittany's efforts. I really enjoyed spending time with the younger children, it was interesting seeing the variety of development in the room, despite the age difference being no more than a year! Some students developed a good vocabulary and were able to do things on their own, while others needed some assistance and encouragement to finish their paper-bag bunny.

     Once we brought the children in the gym, they were really excited for our games, which turned out to be a success. The kids were able to understand directions despite their young age. The kids even showed how good they were at dribbling during one of the games. Maybe the kids from St. Mary's are more prone to basketball and dribbling because of the community and the availability of courts; they had some great skill for such youngsters.

     The two children my class and I observed, Todd and Sally were able to demonstrate a good understanding of dribbling a basketball and kicking a soccer ball. Some common mistakes seen were sometimes dribbling with two hands, and kicking the soccer ball without following through to maintain stability. The kids at St. Mary's continue to surprise me with their knowledge and skill. The children remind me of how the developmental steps we all once took to get our bodies where they are today and how important it was to make good habits early in life.

Lab 5 Write Up