Scott Andersen | Grove School

Learning in the Outdoor Grove

Scott Andersen | April 12, 2011 | Comment (1)

A class of PK students prepare the planter box for our spring plantings.

Now that the spring weather is settling in, I am reminded, and still amazed, at how much our students love to work (and play) in our outdoor grove.

We have a lot of activity going on in our grove. We are in the process of installing a sensory path and an edible garden and we also have many new plantings all around. One of our classes is monitoring rain fail, another is doing planting experiments with root plants, herbs and vegetables, and others are testing flowers.

The soaking beans begin to sprout.

Our greenhouse is full of sprouting flowers and veggies, our planter boxes have young plants in them, and our outdoor grove is undergoing a transformation into a sensory trail and an edible garden. It is wonderful to watch.

But what is more amazing is how our students are so engaged with all of it. They enjoy watching the progress of their plantings from seeds, to sprouts, to full-size plants.

Two-year old students put in the plants for one of the sensory garden elements in our outdoor grove.

Naturally, as shown in the first photo (above), the students love digging in the dirt. They also equally love learning about the life cycle of plants, what conditions makes them grow, or not, and how they can create the best conditions for growth.

Students work on turning over the compost in our bin.

The teachers then use the planting of the flowers and vegetables as a lesson to how we can take care of ourselves, each other and our surrounding environment.

I look forward to watching the work of our students as their flowers, herbs and vegetables grow and blossom. Of course, I also hope to eat some of it too!

Enjoy the photos below.

Keywords: Cary, Dr. Scott Andersen, early childhood education, garden, Grove School, outdoor grove, planting, spring

Fresh, Wholesome and Beautiful

Scott Andersen | March 28, 2011 | Comment

As you know, all of the food we serve for snacks is organic. The fruits, vegetables and products are all purchased at Whole Foods. I shop for the food each week to ensure freshness. While shopping the other day, I allowed my photographer’s eye to be caught be all the neatly displayed and colorful produce that is arrayed as you walk in the entrance of the Cary Whole Foods.

For my photographer friends, I apologize that the photos are really not photo quality. I took them all on my cell phone…gag. Nonetheless, I still find it visually interesting.

Enjoy the photos!

Keywords: Dr. Scott Andersen, nutrition, organic, produce, Whole Foods

How Do You Like to Draw?

Scott Andersen | March 11, 2011 | Comment

Two students draw upside, using the underside of a table.

HOW DO YOU LIKE TO DRAW?

That simple question turned into a fun activity for students in Ms Katie’s and Ms. Shonda’s Early Preschool class at our school. Students identified ways they liked to draw and took turns experiencing all the different methods. They then voted by placing their picture underneath their favorite way to draw. You can see by the chart (photo below) that they preferred drawing while upside down.

Enjoy the photos below.

Keywords: Cary, Dr. Scott Andersen, drawing, Grove School

A Special Night @ The Grove School of Cary

Scott Andersen | February 2, 2011 | Comment

A Grove dad works with his son during an activity at the school.

On Thursday, Feb. 17 we are hosting a special night of events at The Grove School of Cary. The first event is the “Man in My Life” activity for students of the school and a significant man in their lives, like a dad, a granddad, or someone else special. This special time starts at 5pm and ends at 6pm. The children will be doing a special activity with their invited guest.

The next activity on the same night is an OPEN HOUSE that will go from 6pm to 7pm. This time of the evening is for families who are looking for a preschool for either now or the summer or fall.

The OPEN HOUSE is for everyone. We will provide tours of our green and eco-friendly facility, provide curriculum demonstrations and have an opportunity to meet our world-class staff.

Please feel free to invite friends and families that you know.

As you know, NOW is the time to reserve your spots for summer and fall. Don’t delay!

Keywords: Cary, early childhood education, Grove School, man in my life, open house

Our Strands Classes

Scott Andersen | January 27, 2011 | Comment (1)

During the school day, students in each of our classes have the opportunity to participate in one of our five strands classes. The strands that we provide for them are music, art, drama, Healthy-Me (physical fitness) and Eco Friends (science-based). They rotate through the strands each week.

Each class participates in the strands for 30 minutes each day. Ms. Tanya is the strands teachers and she utilizes her creativity and imagination to integrate the strands one with another. For instance, while studying about the life cycle of a plant in their Eco-Friends strand class, they used theatrical play to reenact a seed sprouting. (See above left photo.)

The photos included here show students working in each of the five strands. Please click on the photos to see them larger and to read a description.

Keywords: art, Cary, early childhood education, Eco Friends, evidence of learning, Fine Arts, Healthy Me, music, strands

Art Appreciation Class

Scott Andersen | January 20, 2011 | Comment (1)

Today I stopped into Ms. Sue’s Art Appreciation class, one of our after school enrichment classes, and a snapped a few photos of a preschool class engaged in crayon and paint art. I thought I would share a few of the photos here with you.

Keywords: art appreciation, Cary, Grove School, ms. sue

There’s a Fungus Among Us

Scott Andersen | December 27, 2010 | Comment

The "clean" tomato soup

Students in Ms. Sue’s Pre-K class conducted a science experiment recently. They used cotton swabs to go around their room to collect germs. Then they placed the soiled swabs into a plate of tomato soup to “infect” the soup with the collected germs.

After five days, a mold developed in the soup. As scientists do, they recorded their observations by drawing what they saw in the moldy soup.

The photos below show the process of learning for the students. They swabbed, they infected, they waited and then they observed.

Keywords: Cary, Dr. Scott Andersen, Grove School, mold, ms. sue, pre-K, science

A Carnival of Music

Scott Andersen | December 24, 2010 | Comment

Ms. Tanya's class marches in a musical parade at the "Carnival"

I had the pleasure of observing Ms. Tanya’s music class this week. While I was in there, she was teaching a group of Early Preschool students music. They are in the middle of their Carnival unit. So during the class, they marched in a parade, played a game of ball toss, and “rode” on a merry-go-round.

We are so fortunate to have such a strong strands program for our students. In addition to music, Ms. Tanya also teaches them art, fine arts, dramatic play, eco-friends (a science curriculum) and healthy fit (health and physical fitness). Our students attend these strands everyday as part of the school day.

Enjoy the video below.

Keywords: Carnival, Cary, Dr. Scott Andersen, early childhood education, Grove School, Ms. Tanya, strands

30 Seconds in Pre-K

Scott Andersen | December 23, 2010 | Comment (1)

Reading Center

I tried a little experiment today. I visited a Pre-K classroom with my cellphone camera and took 30 seconds to capture what was going on in the classroom. You can see the photos below. I was quite pleased to see all the different learning activities going on at the same time.

There was vibrant activity in each of the classroom’s learning centers. Another of the observations that I could not adequately capture in 30 seconds with my camera was the independent nature of the children’s work. The teacher was fully engaged with the students, but the students were clearly leading their learning. It was amazing to watch, even for 30 seconds.

During this time, I observed students reading along with a book in the reading center, students creating a police station in the block center, students working in the computer center, one making lego creations, a student dressing up in dramatic play, one student self-selecting a new center and another completing a writing project in the writing center. The photos below represent this.

And all of it was done in 30 seconds.

I enjoyed it so much, I think I will make it a routine to do so in all of the classes here. I think it will be insightful for the students, teachers and families of our school.

Keywords: Cary, Dr. Scott Andersen, Grove School, learning centers, pre-K, thirty seconds

The Dark Side of the Moon

Scott Andersen | December 21, 2010 | Comment

The Moon @ Eclipse (Doug Murray - Reuters)

Last night was a rare happening – full lunar eclipse. It was actually the second one of the year, but the first one, in June, was only a partial eclipse. You can see more photos here.

I have always been fascinated by the “heavens.” I can remember watching Carl Sagan’s PBS series COSMOS as a teenager and just having my mind blown away.

Matters of science can be one of the ways we engage students in learning throughout their lives. Some love it and others don’t.

A lunar eclipse (Scott Andersen)

However, if you have a child who loves it, then I recommend you feed their love with lots of rich content and science-related opportunities. So studying about the dark side of the moon can be quite illuminating…and inspiring…and it might just be the vehicle to an enriching academic and professional career.

We definitely need amazing scientists!

Please allow me to recommend the Cosmos series, which you are able to purchase (I just found that out).

The eclipse is shown over time. (Luis Acosta / AFP - Getty Images)

The eclipse was visible this morning for about five and a half hours beginning around 12:30am for North America.

I hope you caught a glimpse. If not and you want to share a video with your children, I found this one from the Today Show to be sufficient.

OK, I have to share one more video to honor the title of this blog entry. This video has NOTHING to do with this morning’s eclipse other than the title of the album from which it is taken is where I got the title for this blog entry. Enjoy!