Isaacs September Update

Excitement is in the air, as the lions have started their 1st semester of preschool. The kids love the new school and are adjusting well to the routine of a preschool classroom. At first, things were a bit chaotic, but as with most things here, the kids have done a wonderful job of adapting to something new. The students are already showing improvements in certain areas. After one week, most of the students could answer the question, what is your name? They have also learned the Bible verse Matthew 19:14 Jesus said “Let the little children come to me.”

Teacher comment: Isaac is a wonderful student. He brings so much joy to our classroom as he is always excited to be there and happy to participate in whatever we are doing that day. He is so engaging and loves to learn new things. He pays attention to everything that is said at school and is often one of the first to learn his Bible verse for the week. Isaac follows directions very well and is eager to do what is asked of him. At school, Isaac enjoys playing with puzzles, blocks, play-doh, and coloring. He enjoys figuring out new things, so you will often seeing him sitting at a table by himself working on a new puzzle or seeing how many blocks he can stack. Isaac loves to help, and when it is clean-up time he is one of my biggest helpers.

The lions really enjoyed the performance that Clowns Without Borders gave to us on August 13. In their first experience with clowns, they were fascinated and often overjoyed. They especially enjoyed getting to talk to the clowns after the performance. Isaac loved the clowns. He was often laughing before anyone else even got the joke.
The lions have started having PE once a week on Fridays. They love the opportunity to get some of their extra energy out, and they have plenty of extra energy. One of their favorite activities during PE is to do the duck walk. They especially like it whenever an adult demonstrates it for them, quacks included. Isaac did very well at PE. He loves to jump and move around. It seems like whenever he moves; he always does so to a beat. I’m pretty sure that Isaac is always moving to music, even when he is not singing or listening to it.
Isaac is definitely the performer of the group. He loves to dance and sing, can often be found serenading other children or nannies. His singing has actually become quite popular here, and he is often asked to sing for or with the nannies. Isaac also has a great sense of humor. He loves to laugh and joke about silly things. His language recognition skills are very good, and you can often see him having conversations in Creole or in English depending on who he is talking to at that moment.

Isaac seems to really know what he likes and doesn’t like, and he is good at vocalizing his thoughts. However, sometimes Isaac can get very frustrated when he doesn’t get what he wants. The other day, it was not his group’s turn to go to school and Isaac became very frustrated. Often, the frustration can lead to tears for Isaac and it can take a while for him to want to do something new. This is just an example of how passionate Isaac is about the things he likes, he puts his whole heart into those things.
The Lions love the fact that they get to take the most walks. Although we discourage it, the lions love to march past the other rooms on the way to their walk and let them know that they are going on a walk. At times, they will even sing “Zandolits pa mache, Zandolits pa mache,” which means alligator don’t get to walk. They will sing this as they do a little dance past the other kids. It drives the other kids crazy, which is why we discourage it. However, it is extremely cute. When they are on their walk, the kids love to yell “moto” when they see one is approaching. They also like to say hello to the people in the village and animals in the field.

We just recently started something new with some of the oldest boys in the lion room. The boys get the chance to go out to the shop and help build things. We call it Man Time. Basically, we are trying to give these boys some other experiences that will help them continue to develop and mature. During this time, we use simple materials and tools to build something the kids can play with or use. The first week, we built wooden cars. Isaac had a tough time getting enough force behind the hammer to pound in the nails, but he loved trying. He painted his car blue. Isaac was very particular about the paint job on his car and took the longest amount of time to finish. He loved being able to push his car down a ramp once he finished making it.

Play Therapy Update
This may be your first time hearing about child centered play therapy, if so I do encourage all the parents to do a little research to get a better grasp. Child Centered play therapy is scheduled each week for a child to play in the playroom for 35 to 40 minutes. During this time the child plays with what they want the way they want too. Play therapy is set up to facilitate expression of emotion, decision-making skills, increased confidence, self-esteem, and healthy relationships. Many of the children have been through traumatic situations that have in some way effected their development. Play therapy can help improve development for these children. I am including a brief summary of your child’s progress so far in therapy.
Isaac gets very excited to play in the play room. He is very expressive of his emotions. Isaac has a nurturing theme in his play. He takes care of babies and makes food for himself and this therapist. His relationship building skills are strong. Isaac is developing a high self-esteem. Limits must be set with Isaac but he has responded positively to the limits set. Isaac is very creative in his play and uses his imagination. Isaac presents as well adjusted right now. He may need to see a speech pathologist in the future because he has a tendency to stutter. His goals are: 1) identifying emotions 2) increase self esteem 3) build healthy relationships

As of September 1, 2009:
Weigh: 26 lbs
Height: 39 inches