Kailyn - The Dancer!

On this day, the girls were excited to try out one of their holiday gifts - Kinect. It keeps the family active on dreary indoor days... This is Kailyn trying it for the first time. They love to dance, and this one just makes you smile.

Kailyn - The Dancer! from Crissy Caceres on Vimeo.

Pattern Block Designs

Kailyn has been exploring the new magnetic pattern blocks, and has been making different animals. On this day, she began with the grey diamonds, and built around them. "I make a bird," Kailyn said, "with his feathers spread down."

"Kailyn, what shapes are you using to make your bird?" her teacher asked.
"I'm making feather shapes. Its like a feather or a diamond," Kailyn explained.
 Kailyn's artistic talents were stretched in a new direction with this new medium, and she used her strong representational skills to create new forms out of the shapes.

Puzzle Master

Kailyn works with focus and determination on puzzles. Recognizing her persistence with the simple puzzles we had out in the classroom, the teachers brought in some more intricate puzzles. Kailyn immediately set to work on the Madeline puzzle, slowly working it. The first day, she worked with a group of children and a teacher to complete it. The next day she got it out on her own and worked the entire puzzle, staying focused for more than 20 minutes as she put it together.
Working puzzles develops problem-solving, fine motor control and hand-eye coordination as Kailyn manipulates the pieces to find the fit. Even more remarkable, however, is Kailyn's perstisence in this difficult task!

I Want to Write My Name

Kailyn has been working hard to master writing her name. Some of the letters she has memorized and today she got as far as the "L" with verbal help. For the "Y" and "N", she asked to see the letters and, with a quick glance, was able to produce them on her artwork.
Kailyn is demonstrating a great deal of focus and determination in learning to write her letters, and takes great pride in her accomplishments.

A Savannah Christmas

Kailyn and Katie have recently been enjoying each other's friendship, and today they found each other in the sand box, exploring the new animals.
"Let's go Christmas caroling!" Katie declared, holding up one elephant.
Kailyn held the giraffe, "Yess!" she said.
They began to sing, Kailyn following Katie's lead, "Deck the halls with bows of holly, fa-la-la-la-laa, la-la-la-la."
Through their play together, both Kailyn and Katie are deepening their play skills, and sustaining play scripts for longer and developing friendship.