What’s Happening at Pea Ridge Baptist Preschool?
Love and friendship were in the air on Friday, February 12, 2010 as the students and staff of Pea Ridge Baptist Preschool celebrated Valentine’s Day. The children exchanged Valentine cards in their classrooms then gathered downstairs in the Fellowship Hall for snacks and games. The Preschool Staff was especially resourceful and gave cupid’s touch to creating several stations that the children could explore freely. The stations not only provided fun-filled activities for the children, but also addressed many developmental learning objectives.
This year’s Valentine activities included:
- Bean bag toss into heart-shaped cut outs
- Velcro ball toss
- Bowling
- Fishing for heart-shaped fish
- Parachute play with large inflatable heart
- Valentine ABC’s matching game
- Rice box search and find with conversation hearts
- Numbers walk
- Finger painting with heart shaped cookie cutters and shapes
The chart below illustrates just a few of the developmental objectives attained through the day’s creative play.
| Social/Emotional Development | Cognitive Development | Physical Development | Language Development |
| Demonstrates appropriate trust in adults | Shows persistence in approaching tasks | Demonstrates Gross Motor skills such as: | Expresses self using words and expanded sentences |
| Respects and cares for classroom environment and materials | Applies knowledge or experience to a new context | Shows balance while moving | Demonstrates knowledge of the alphabet |
| Shares and respects the rights of others | Arranges objects in a series | Demonstrates throwing, kicking, and catching skills | Understands and follows oral directions |
| Uses thinking skills to resolve conflicts | Uses numbers and counting | Demonstrates Fine Motor skills such as: | Actively participates in conversations |
| Shows ability to adjust to new situations | Explores cause and effect | Controls small muscles in hands | Demonstrates understanding of print concepts |
| Eye-hand coordination |
Following the activities, the children enjoyed a sweet, yet nutritious snack, and watched a short video that taught the lesson of God’s Love.
Jesus replied: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ – Matthew 22:37-39
