Grinch Day: Rich Learning at a Party

Grinch Day was the last day before Christmas Holidays. We read the book, "The Grinch that Stole Christmas" by Dr. Suess to get into the spirit and learn all about Whoville, the Grinch, and his change of heart. We dressed up like little Whovillians with crazy hair, colourful outfits, and some Grinch clothing the children already had. We had several invitations for play and learning around the class and hallway in hopes that the children soon would be there. (Whoops! Wrong story!) We had some that I didn't get to snapping pics of like acetate Grinch pictures on the light table with loose parts.

Stick the heart on the Grinch... a classic.

 Grinch hand prints and open-ended art provocation with all things green.

 Grinch hats with the opportunity to decorate your own hat. Many students created designs that were not the typical Santa hat.

Whoville trees: After reading the story and checking out some google images on Whoville we took a particular interest in the trees that we thought were unique. 

Sensory Grinch foam 

Milk with colour mixing using our hypothesizing skills. Mmmm!

Grinch Kabobs... a pinterest classic.

Green Rice Krispies

The last day before the holidays is a day classes typically call a 'party'. We absolutely called it a party too, but the invitations for learning were hidden in party activities. We had some typical 'party activities', but also had rich learning opportunities with open-ended provocations. The excitement was controlled by all of the provocations set about beckoning them to come learn and play. We practiced skills like observing, hypothesizing, designing, problem-solving, negotiating, language skills, persistence, and fine motor skills all in a day where we called it a "party"!