WE STRIVE TO SEE THE WORLD FROM A KIDS-EYE-VIEW
Bellwoods Playschool uses a child-centred, socially conscious pedagogy to engage young children in social and artistic thought and action. Using what the city has to offer, we empower our students with the knowledge to be socially and environmentally responsible citizens while they develop into explorers of their urban landscape.

WE THINK OF THE CITY AS OUR CLASSROOM
A valuable aspect of the Bellwoods Playschool program is to empower children as navigators of their city. We journey on regular excursions, by foot and by public transportation, to art galleries, museums and cultural events, as well as markets, parks and city landmarks.

WE KNOW ITS TAKES A VILLAGE

Our Playschool runs on a model that links a range of artists together to engage and inspire children. We like to bring in different perspectives and actively pursue a diverse teaching staff. As such, professional educators and artists trade chalkboards for personal anecdotes and textbooks for real life experiences. Together, they create an atmosphere that is at once intellectually stimulating and deeply personalized.


Our Community

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Our trip to Earth Echoes.

We are becoming experts at getting around in the city by public transportation. Last week was the first time we ventured on the subway (now we've taken every mode of public transportation!) We spent quite a bit of time watching the trains zoom by and listening to the music of the subway chimes. 


The sounds of the subway...
 Our trip to 'Earth Echoes' on Bloor Street West. The store is full of different creatures (from bearded dragons to chameleons - both big and small, turtles and many different types of snakes). We met the owner of the shop, Jeff, who was really friendly and knowledgeable. He asked us if we would prefer to learn about lizards or snakes on this visit....we chose snakes! We were lucky enough to hold a baby python and two different corn snakes! We learned about their habitats and many different cool facts. We're excited to visit again and learn about a different creature family!!

 We watched the sucker fish cleaning the algae from the tank. The coolest vacuum around!
 Our friend Jeff showing us the different snakes in the shop.





Tuesday, November 06, 2012

Guest Musician: Ronley Teper

Ronley Teper is a local singer-songwriter, storyteller and performance artist who has been active in the Toronto music scene for over a decade. Ronley has spent many years traveling and conducting vocal improvisational music workshops with children, and we were lucky to have her stop by and play some vocal, rhythm and improvisational games with us! 




http://www.ronleyteper.com/

Monday, November 05, 2012

Fall Field Trips

Our trip to Fort York





Riverdale Farm


 Learning about the animals and plants that inhabit the Riverdale Farm Ponds.




A tribute to the animals we saw at Riverdale Farm
 A perfect way to spend a rainy day: The Josef Sudek photography exhibit at the AGO
 Watching a short film made by Josef Sudek.
 Exploring light, shade, colour and architecture in these beautiful photographs.

 Sketching the model ships!