A little bit of clarification

Counting apples in preschool.

One thing I’ve been having a hard time with is the workload.  I don’t want to succumb to the pressure and say, “I can’t do it.”  That’s not me.  I will do it.  I will get it done.  But it won’t be easy.  If it were, everyone would do it.  In confiding with a colleague, she suggested I speak to my advisor about my concerns.  Which is exactly what I did the next day.  I sat down for an hour and expressed my concerns and asked the questions that have been on my mind.  Will I get job opportunities in the middle of the school year?  What if I didn’t pass the APT test?  How can I juggle all of these outside “to do’s” and still focus on what I feel is so important, the kids?  She replied with, “Lauren, honestly I’d be worried if you weren’t running in here with all of these questions and concerns at this point in the semester.”  The point is I completed the APT test and until I get my score report, there is no point in worrying about it.  I have the EdTPA to delve into next and I need to organize my thoughts and actions in order to conquer it.  And lastly, I keep telling myself…it’ll be over before I know it.

This week in preschool…we finished our unit on apples. We used the apple counters to match the numeral to the number of apples 1-6. We used the fruit pie sorting game to sort different color fruit and used tweezers or tongs to pick up the small fruit pieces to work on fine motor skills. The children have been singing several apples songs. At the art center, we made apple prints. We cut the apple in half to see the star. The children used red, yellow and green paint to make apple prints.

On Friday, we made applesauce. The children used the apple/peeler/corer to peel an apple. The children had a great time looking at the long peels that came off of the apples. Then they helped to cut the apple into pieces and put them in a bowl. We added cinnamon and sugar and water. After cooking the mixture in the microwave, the children mashed the apples with a potato masher. When it cooled, we ate the applesauce for snack. Yum!

Lastly, we had lots of fun at the Wildcat Run on Wednesday. We had buddies from a 4th and 5^th grade classroom to help the preschool participate in the run.  It was a beautiful day filled with good exercise and music to pump us up!

Lauren Muellner will receive her master’s degree in early childhood education with an endorsement in special education in December. She is student teaching in a self-contained special education preschool classroom in Oak Park and is a part-time nanny. Born and raised in Chicago, Lauren likes culture and adventure. She received her bachelor’s degree in theatre from Columbia College Chicago. She plans to integrate music and theatre into her curriculum and teaching.