#it's vital to have unstructured time and space for your brain to think each day

[healerqueen]

Here's a transcript of the above writing advice from C. S. Lewis.

"Letter of 14 December 1959," Collected Letters, Volume III, pp. 1108-1109. 

To a schoolgirl in America, who had written (at her teacher's suggestion) to request advice on writing.

14 December 1959

It is very hard to give any general advice about writing. Here's my attempt.

Turn off the Radio.

Read all the good books you can, and avoid nearly all magazines.

Always write (and read) with the ear, not the eye. You shd. hear every sentence you write as if it was being read aloud or spoken. If it does not sound nice, try again.

Write about what really interests you, whether it is real things or imaginary things, and nothing else. (Notice this means that if you are interested only in writing you will never be a writer, because you will have nothing to write about . . .)

Take great pains to be clear. Remember that though you start by knowing what you mean, the reader doesn't, and a single ill-chosen word may lead him to a total misunderstanding. In a story it is terribly easy just to forget that you have not told the reader something that he needs to know -- the whole picture is so clear in your own mind that you forget that it isn't the same in his.

When you give up a bit of work don't (unless it is hopelessly bad) throw it away. Put it in a drawer. It may come in useful later. Much of my best work, or what I think my best, is the re-writing of things begun and abandoned years earlier.

Don't use a typewriter. The noise will destroy your sense of rhythm, which still needs years of training.

Be sure you know the meaning (or meanings) of every word you use.

Please don't avoid all magazines. Especially the ones I write for. 😉

[theresamull]

The centers of Preschool

Hey Y'all, my name is Theresa Mulligan, and I am a first-year preschool teacher. I would like to share some tips to make classroom center time more successful. This blog is part of an assignment for my MMC 1101 class at the College of Central Florida. This is my senior year, and I will be graduating in May 2022.

Courtesy Photo: 1stprespscc.org/classrooms/older-preschool/attachment/older-preschool-classroom-1/   The classroom in this photo is an example for how to incorporate centers into a room smaller in size. Shelving to define the center area is eliminated and materials for each center are stored on the tables. 

Learning and play go hand-in-hand in Early Childhood education. Play is often associated with recess during school hours. But the best way to incorporate structured and unstructured play in preschool is center time.

Centers are activities located in specific areas around the classroom. The time schedule for these activities is often called centers. Children work in small groups during center time, and they can also work independently.

Center time can be very hectic when there isn't a substantial structure or organization. Trust me, I learned firsthand. I was hired as a preschool teacher mid-school year and was given 24 hours to set up a  functional classroom for a class to start the next day.

Center time was loud and wild. My students were running around the class like wild animals. Threw many trials and errors, I finally found a system that worked.

Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, motor skills, and physical, cognitive, and social/emotional strength. It is vital for healthy brain development. Through play, children at a very early age engage and interact with the world around them.

Centers allow young children to learn through hands-on play in the most meaningful way. This is why centers are an essential part of a high-quality preschool classroom.

There are two types of play that centers are based on, structure and unstructured play. Unstructured, free play is the best type of play for young children. This is a play that just happens, depending on what makes your child's interest at the time. Free play isn't planned and lets your child use his imagination and move at his own pace. Whereas structured play is very different. It's more organized and happens at a fixed time or in a set space. It's often led by a grown-up.

Courtesy Photo: https://fun-a-day.com/preschool-block-center/  This storage shelf has an outline of the blocks for an easy clean up method. The children also learn to match the shapes when putting the blocks away.

I think you need to decide for yourself the best way to include center time in your classroom. You'll need to consider your students' needs, your expectations, your administrator's expectations, staffing in your classroom, and how many students you have in your classroom. As the teacher, you will determine which centers are available for your students.

You're also responsible for what materials are within each of these centers. I suggest using material that can be used for multiple themes because it does get costly. Having materials that correlate to each center easily accessible within that area will also help control the chaos.

Although we encourage unstructured play, having materials labeled and placed in specific areas helps the children decide what to play with and, most importantly, is easy to clean up. Being organized is key! Having materials that correlate to each center easily accessible within that area will also help control the chaos.

Center time is significant, so lessening the time the children need to collect materials to engage in play will make the outcome of centers more beneficial.

Courtesy Photo: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/46373071148233354/ This photo show how this teacher laid out her centers. As seen, the materials in each center is easily accessible for the children.