Our 3 year olds were exploring emotions and they began to connect emotions to nature. Is Sun happy or sad to play with clouds? Do clouds cover the Sun in anger? What about rainbow - is that a happy sign? Are moon and sun friends? The wonder never ceases in their world, nor do their connections....a sample conversation is shared below.

Ab (smiling at the facilitator): The sun is happy ma'am.
F: Why is the sun happy?
T: Because the sun is behind a tree and it is happy.
An: No it is sad. Because the clouds come in front of him. They are all angry clouds.
F: Why are they angry?
H: Because they are dark. Rain is coming.
An: Yeah, the sun is angry because there are so many clouds in front of the sun and it is hiding.
<Everybody goes into a pensive mood>
F: Ok. Looks like we have interesting things to think and wonder about. How about we all go upstairs and wonder at the sun and other things that are up there? We can even wonder which emotion the sun and the clouds are having. Would you like that?
S, T, An, Aa, Ab, H: Yes ma'am. 
F: Ok. Let's put a sticky note here and write it down. This week let's find some time and go upstairs to look!

Emotions of the sun, sky, clouds:
The children were taken upstairs to watch the sky and wonder about the various emotions they might be feeling.
Aa: I can see the sky
K: I see the sun ma'am
Ab: Ma'am , I can see the clouds
F: Very nice! How do you think the sun is feeling?
Collectively: Happy
Av: Because he is out today and he is not sick
<Collectively spot clouds>
F: How do you think the clouds are feeling today?
H & K: Happy, good.
H (changing her mind in an instant): I don't know.
F: Where is the moon then?
H: No, it's too far we cannot see it.
Av: No, the moon and the stars will come only in the night
F: Why?
Av: Because I saw a book like that in the office yesterday
They all came around, sat in a circle to watch the sky.
H: I see sky and sun
S: Sun is sick ma'am
F: Why?
An (consoling S as he is getting upset): No see, the sun is feeling so happy. He is on us.
Av (adding some love and care): Because see he won't get sick today.

As children explore emotions through nature and make connections they generally tend to project how they feel, learn to express it, work with each other's emotions, respond to it and even present other perspectives for the same situation - building emotional range and flexibility. 

Children represented in visual form the feelings they felt during the sky watch. It is generally very illustrative to watch them represent their feelings through colours and motion. 

The emotions came pouring onto paper through strokes and colours and left indelible marks on their minds. We continue this discussion on emotions on another day, with another set of natural elements...wondering what they will pour next, connect next?



Contributed by Sruthy Krishna, Learning Facilitator at Sparkling Mindz Global Preschool.

 Today was another school day for the preschoolers as they walked in for another surprise - they were all going to make their own set of playdoh! After they were told what they were all about to do, the facilitator saw a bunch of curious and confused faces as all they saw were flour, bunch of bowls, food colouring and water. 

As usual they all sat around and started playing with whatever they saw: flour and salt. Once they poured water in, some realized the water was warm and giggled, some requested for more water to be poured in, some needed help with kneading, some wanted only a single food colour to be put in while the others asked for a mixture of colours, some were more curious with the term 'kneading' and repeated it a couple of times to get the hang of it and others found the term funny. A conversation takes place around the activity.

H: It's so slimy in my hands
An: It's so soft, I want to make a bed a sleep on it

​T, A1 and L kept quiet throughout, just absolutely immersed in the whole experience while A2 was experiencing discomfort on how it's making his hands 'dirty' and wanted to run and wash his hands, calling it 'disgusting'.

A3 took his colourful dough and banged it on the floor saying," My amma do this at home", and K was reminded of the time he made slime at home and told everybody of his fondest memory of making the slime with glue and water.

Not only are messy hands and clothes fun for children, in the process of growing and learning, they also love the entire experience they have while they do it where each of them experience things differently and the whole process of 'fun' is different for each of them. ​