{"id":12933,"date":"2016-04-22T00:01:53","date_gmt":"2016-04-22T04:01:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/?p=12933"},"modified":"2016-04-13T15:55:50","modified_gmt":"2016-04-13T19:55:50","slug":"preschool-tinker-labs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/2016\/04\/preschool-tinker-labs\/","title":{"rendered":"Preschool Tinker Labs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A year or so ago I stumbled across the book called “Tinkerlab: \u00a0A Hands-On Guide for Little Inventors” by Rachelle Doorly. \u00a0The book contains hands-on activities that encourage children to explore art, science, and more. \u00a0This book was so inspiring and was really the driving force behind a series of programs we now do at the library for children ages 3-5. These programs, by far, have been and remain to be, some of our most well attended programs. \u00a0The feedback we get from parents is fantastic.<\/p>\n

What do these programs consist of?\u00a0 We schedule one program each month of our programming sessions. \u00a0They are meant to be a time where children come to play, explore, tinker, and create. \u00a0The programs run for one hour and children ages 3-5 and their parent\/caregiver are invited to explore stations that all revolve around the same theme. \u00a0 We encourage children to investigate, explore, and participate in whatever way they want. \u00a0Sometimes a child will stay at one station for the whole hour, and we are fine with that. \u00a0While we do set out some directions\/suggestions at each station, every activity is designed to be explored independently as well.<\/p>\n

Some of our most popular themes have been: \u00a0It’s Dark in Here: \u00a0<\/strong>We\u00a0played in the\u00a0dark\u00a0with homemade light tables, flashlights, and things that glowed. \u00a0\u200bWe included translucent blocks and shapes, water beads, glow-in-the-dark letters and critters, and more. \u00a0Sensory Bin play: \u00a0<\/strong>We had fun with sand, popcorn kernels, beans, rice, water beads, and pipe cleaners.\u00a0 We shared with parents the importance of play and using our senses to investigate the world around us. \u00a0Play Dough Picassos: \u00a0<\/strong>Children rotated through four different\u00a0playdough stations: \u00a0Mr\u00a0Play\u00a0Dough Head,\u00a0Play\u00a0Dough Mats,\u00a0Play\u00a0Dough Bakery, and\u00a0Play\u00a0Dough Mud.\u00a0 There was lots of creative\u00a0play\u00a0and discovery happening. \u00a0Marvelous Music: \u00a0<\/strong>We made beautiful music with carpet drumming and water xylophones. \u00a0We crafted egg shakers, balloon drums, and kazoos. \u00a0We ended with a marching band around the library! \u00a0
\nCrazy Painting: \u00a0<\/strong>Children participated in marble\u00a0painting, mesh dabber\u00a0painting,\u00a0painting\u00a0with cardboard tubes, bubble wrap\u00a0painting, popsicle\u00a0painting, blow art, color mixing bag, stamps and ink and\u00a0painting\u00a0with different objects. \u00a0Building with DUPLOs:\u00a0<\/strong>Children\u00a0explored with LEGO Duplos by\u00a0painting, stamping in play dough, counting, measuring, creating patterns, sorting, making tanagrams and building.<\/p>\n

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