CB was playing at the sensory table with the “Tinker Toys”, He showed me proudly that he had built a “windmill”. I asked him “how does it work.

He told me clearly that the wind goes in the ends of the green sticks, then into the yellow filter then down the purple thing. …. Filter!! Wait, what!  He knows what a filter is ?

Clearly I was a little astonished. The mechanical thinking that it would have taken clearly shows that he has seen a filter and possible is hanging around dad or someone who is working on parts.

Around ten minutes later CB came back over to me (I have now left the sensory table and was helping in the room) and asked if I could get the sticks out of his of his filter… I said “ are they stuck?”  CB said “No they are rusted”.

 Minutes later I see what I think is him washing his hands at the sink when I notice he walked away with the water still running. I was just about to announce that he should come over and turn off the water when I see he has wet the ends of each stick and is proceeding to put the sticks back in the filter.

“This makes it easier, Teacher Pam” , he tell me.

Huh, Is he ‘greasing” them?

This is all things that I assume he has seen somewhere on his travels.

He is not only working through what he has experienced and figuring it all out but he is using so many other skill:

• Problem solving ( if the pieces were rusty then water might make them loosen up )
• Physics (How the wind went in one way and through the filter and out the end)
• Fine motor skills (Using his hands to hold and manipulate the objects)
• Language skills (talking to me about what and why he is doing things)
• Pre Math skills (which piece fits where)

Now do You think that I  insisted the water get turned off or sit and watch the wonder of learning…

Lets just say I’m glad I am not paying the water bill.