Gyankriti Parent Corner

When children come from outdoor free-play, they are usually energetic and excited. They need to be helped to move from such a highly active state to a quieter activity. So, some transition activities are needed to cool them down and get them into the listening and responding mode.
Circle time is an activity during which the educator and the children sit around in a circle and share a conversation, discuss a topic brought up by children or learn a concept. This enables the educator to involve every child actively. The communication is among the members in the circle and not just from educator to children. It also gives every child an opportunity of being an individual while being a part of the larger group.

• Moulding and rolling plasticine clay into balls - using the palms of the hands facing each other and with fingers curled slightly towards the palm.
• Rolling plasticine clay into tiny balls using only the finger tips.
• Using pegs or toothpicks to make designs in plasticine clay.
• Cutting plasticine clay with a plastic knife or with a pizza wheel.
• Tearing newspaper into strips and then crumpling them into balls. Use it for any art creation.
• Crumpling up a sheet of newspaper in one hand.
• Using a plant sprayer to spray plants, (indoors, outdoors)
• Picking up objects using tweezers or tongs such as those used while roasting roti. This can be adapted by picking up bead, small cubes.
• Shaking dice by cupping the hands together, forming an empty air space between the palms.
• Using small-sized screwdrivers like those found in a ‘mechanix’ set.
• Lacing and sewing activities such as stringing beads.
• Using eye droppers to "pick up" coloured water for colour mixing or to make artistic designs on paper.
• Rolling small balls out of tissue paper and then gluing the balls onto a chart paper to form pictures or designs.
• Turning over cards, coins, checkers, or buttons, without bringing them to the edge of the table.
• Making pictures using stickers or self-sticking paper reinforcements.
• Playing games with finger puppets -the thumb, index, and middle fingers.
• During circle time have each child's finger puppets tell about what happened over the weekend, or use them in songs and finger plays.

Gyankumbh is annual day celebrated at Gyankriti. Children peform many pre-prepared cultural activities on the day. Parents are also invited to witness the event.

Practical Life Skills
Pre Schools should emphasize on hands on experiences to enable a child to learn and adapt to the environment. Exercises of practical life provide a range of activities which allow the children to develop:

• Control and co-ordination of movement
• Awareness of their environment
• Orderly thought patterns
• Independent work habits
• Responsibility
• Characteristics which can be attained by spontaneous, purposeful work.