Kindergarten
Self-Regulation & Well-Being
K: Self-Regulation & Well-Being
As children progress through the Kindergarten program, they:
1. communicate with others in a variety of ways, for a variety of purposes, and in a variety of contexts
2. demonstrate independence, self-regulation, and a willingness to take responsibility in learning and other endeavours
3. identify and use social skills in play and other contexts
4. demonstrate an ability to use problem-solving skills in a variety of contexts, including social contexts
6. demonstrate an awareness of their own health and well-being
7. participate actively and regularly in a variety of activities that require the application of movement concepts
8. develop movement skills and concepts as they use their growing bodies to move in a variety of ways and in a variety of contexts
22. communicate their thoughts and feelings, and their theories and ideas, through various art forms
Nature Journaling: I Notice..., I Wonder...?, It Reminds me of...
Nature Journaling is an incredible tool for helping students with self-regulation, as it encourages them to slow down and focus carefully on an object. Spending time in nature or with nature can also improve individual moods. Have your students use a emoji to describe how they are feeling at the beginning of a session and then again when they are finished. Make sure they mark these down on their journal.
At this age children will have a greater focus on the statement "I Notice..." & "It reminds me of...". Depending on the age and ability of the child, words, pictures and numbers will be used more than others to make their observations. For deeper conversations educators will engage in back and forth conversations with the children and can help scribe their thoughts and feelings to their journal pages. With permission Bethan Burton has allowed us to link to her website as she has written a blog post for Teaching nature journaling at all ages.
Here are some more of Bethan's ideas to get you started.
It is going to be MESSY at this age and there will be lots of play!
Engage the fives senses (whenever possible)
Make leaf prints ( paint the leaf and press the print into the journal)
Make leaf rubbings
Trace the items they are looking at
Make hand prints with mud
Add leaves into the journal using tape
Count the birds/squirrels/insects etc. - make a graph
Use chalk to follow an ants path on the ground and then have them transfer that into the journal
Here is a downloadable lesson from John (Jack) Muir Laws and Emilie Lygren book: How to Teach Nature Journaling. All resources shared with permission. "I Notice..., I Wonder...?, It Reminds me of..."
GIVING FEEDBACK here is a fantastic resource from Jack and Emilie
NOTE: You are encourage to spend time in the outdoors Nature Journaling. However, you can also bring nature inside, look out your wonder window, have a refrigerator Safari or even observe a house plant or pet.
Animal Dancing
Start by either collecting separate pictures of animals (you have drawn or you have found) or writing the names of animals on small pieces of paper. Place the pictures or names into a bowl or small bag.
Go outside (or near a window for inspiration) and play some music to dance to. Once you get a groove on, select an animal from the bowl.
At this point, you must start dancing like that animal. You can also make the noises that the animal might make in the wild.
Motion Walk
Go for a walk, get outside or look out the window. Employ as many of your senses as possible to complete this challenge.
What is moving around you? What is on the move in the natural world?
Besides seeing movement, how else can you tell something is moving? Example: there is a trail left behind a snail.
Using your body, try to repeat the movements you discovered. Are the movements easy or hard to do/represent? Why?
NOTE: This can be used with the Nature Journaling activity above!