Meaningful Use of our Calendar

Ever since reading the article Calendar Time for Young Children: Good Intentions Gone Awry I have not used traditional calendar activities in my classroom. Instead I have tried to use life events to help children get a sense of timelines and used calendars to record events meaningful to them. 

A few weeks ago I bought an amaryllis bulb from our local grocery store.  My children were fascinated with it and spent a great deal of time examining it. I did not show them the box it came in, but rather asked them to imagine what they thought an amaryllis was and what the bulb would grow into.

They drew their predictions.

We planted the bulb and placed it in a sunny location in our kitchen, where it could be regularly viewed.

Using a calendar for the months of November and December, we recorded what day we planted the bulb. I asked each child to predict when they thought the bulb would bloom and we also recorded this on the calendar.

The calendar sits next to the bulb...

...and each day that passes that the bulb has not yet bloomed is crossed off on the calendar.