A Little Gratitude

The routine of a little gratitude practiced every day can create a tendency to see the positive aspects of living all along the way while growing up.  This attitude can be reinforced easily each day in the happy, positive atmosphere of the preschool classroom. Children chime in gleefully when asked to look around the room and spy things they enjoy doing and friends they enjoy playing with, not to mention that special teacher who makes them laugh.
A special section on the lesson plan called “What I’m Happy About Today” reminds both staff and children to relive, express and enjoy simple, joyful experiences each day. We get a surprising array of responses from preschoolers when we ask – from “the spaghetti we had for lunch” to the more predictable “seeing my dog when I get home from school”.
There is no need to wait until November and Thanksgiving to express gratitude. This version of the little game of I Spy With My Little Eye can make the child more conscious of all the good things to be happy about every day at home as well.
This positive approach is contagious and dovetails well with the later project of studying about the different community helpers and the follow up “What I Want to Be When I Grow Up”. It opens the floodgates to a variety of ideas. Nothing is too large to accomplish when the marvels of the world are at hand and they are optimistic. We relate to them that the preschool tasks today of learning letters and numbers lead to learning to read and then share books about the adventures within the various jobs they have chosen. Each classroom has a variety of books so they can learn, e.g., about how the tiniest ballerina or the big man on the caterpillar each helps to accomplish the work of the world and the adventures and challenges of the job.
For further information or to schedule a tour please call 661-259-3888. Village Country Day Preschool is located at 24279 Valley Street in Newhall.