March arrived with an abundance of fresh snow, much to the delight of the Buffalo group. Whenever weather conditions allowed, we spent time outdoors exploring and engaging with the snow, building and shaping structures, adding to previously created snowmen, and using our imaginations to transform the snow into playful creations such as “ice cream” in our outdoor shop. On colder days, we remained active indoors by introducing new gym activities such as Fruit Salad and yoga freeze dance, helping to keep our bodies moving and promote overall wellness.

We began the month by exploring colors and shapes. In celebration of Holi, we engaged in a variety of vibrant activities including pom-pom splatter painting, creating rangoli-inspired art, and sharing discussions about our favorite colors. The children also explored color mixing through hands-on paint experiments and created their own sensory bottles,  exploring hands-on science and creativity! They began by making sensory bottles with oil, water, glitter, and pompoms, eagerly measuring, pouring, and observing how materials interacted. We explored and made our own playdough, learning about the ingredients and experimenting with mixing and kneading. Throughout both activities, children showed curiosity, creativity, and cooperation, discovering the joy of learning through play.

Building continues to be a strong interest among the children. Materials such as magnet tiles and LEGO remain popular, so we expanded on this interest by introducing a variety of loose parts. Items such as popsicle sticks were used for both three-dimensional structures and two-dimensional art, including bridge building. Children also used materials like magnet tiles as tracing tools to recreate their structures through drawing. This led to meaningful discussions about shapes—how to identify them, differentiate between them, and practice drawing them independently.

We were fortunate to have a special visit from Grandmother Tree, who shared her knowledge of Indigenous teachings and the natural world in a fun and engaging way. The children greatly enjoyed her visit, and we look forward to hopefully welcoming her back during our Forest School program this summer to continue fostering a connection to nature. We then explored a natural sensory box of dried flowers, leaves, and feathers. This activity encouraged creativity, sensory exploration, and fine motor development and tied into some of the conversations we had around nature.

Mid-month, we embraced the festive spirit of St. Patrick’s Day with a themed spirit week, dressing in green and rainbows. The children participated in creating shamrocks and pots of gold to decorate the centre, and engaged in simple science activities to “discover” gold coins. We also enjoyed themed snacks, learned about the order of the rainbow, and ended the week with a cozy pajama day.

March was Nutrition Month, and we incorporated a variety of food-related learning experiences. We actively participated in preparing snacks and soups through hands-on baking and cooking activities. Additional experiences included creating grocery lists, designing their ideal lunch plates, exploring food preparation skills such as slicing and proper storage, sorting fruits by color, and engaging in imaginative play through activities like a donut shop. The children explored role play by running the “Donut Shop,” using pretend money, menus, and donut boxes. This activity supported social skills, communication, and early math learning. They also fed a “dog” box using colorful fruit cutouts. This fun activity helped develop hand-eye coordination, color recognition, and imaginative play. We concluded this focus with a successful hot dog lunch fundraiser.