playfelt...I would consider that art!! It's not just art if it's sent home. We do things all day that the parents don't see but it doesn't mean we didn't do it. I do art from a young age because it teaches sooooo many different things and the kids I have and had had enjoy it. If they cried when I did it then I would stop as it obviously isn't something they enjoy yet.
Mimi....I agree with you! I also send pictures to the parents of the kids playing and doing things throughout the day so the parents can actually see for themselves what we do all day. It is better than just telling them in my opinion. This is something that all the parents love especially new parents as they tend to be a little leary of leaving their loved one in someone else's care for often the first time.
sassy...I totally understand that some days it just isn't worth all the extra cleaning and prep work that goes into doing certain things. I just try to remind myself that I am here for ten hours every day anyways so we may as well do something that passes the time :) However, I don't have a strict daily schedule of what we do because I try to run our day around the children and their behaviour. If it's a crazy day then the paint stays away and we do something a little less messy!! lol Most of the time though, the art activity calms them down
