Increased Capabilities

 
We are the oldest children at school and the children are realizing they are capable of new things daily. The outdoor classroom offers opportunities to see the development of gross motor skills like climbing, hanging, running, jumping. Some friends have been playing baseball and demonstrating hand eye coordination while throwing the ball and hitting it with a bat. They determine rules of the game, cooperate with peers, and understand cause and effect. Some of our skills have exceeded the limits of the play ground, this is called a home run. 

The children are proud to hit the foam balls over the fence, but also frustrated because eventually, there is nothing left to play with. Some balls go to the alley, others in the yard next-door, but we cannot always retrieve the balls each day. Children climbed the rockfall to see where the balls were going. They began to pitch basketballs and soccer balls, which don’t fly as far but can hurt more when they hit you. Austin decided they should go closer to the fence so the ball would hit the wall before it went over. Jack decided it was better to play soccer instead. Grace decided we needed to come up with a plan, which is on tomorrow’s agenda. We are curious to see what solutions the children come up with and what they agree upon.

Kian: Woah! Over the Fence! Over the fence! 
Jack: It’s a Goner!
Grace: Hey guys! We’re gonna have a little meeting of balls going over the fence.