Science center
Science is not limited to planned activities but rather allows children to further explore their discoveries and interests. Here children can take the time they need to fully explore a new concept. Science and discovery activities offer children many benefits: pre-reading skills, the ability to distinguish different sounds and visual patterns, hand-eye coordination, motor skills, understanding of cause-and-effect, and positive self-concept. Children develop these skills as they work directly with materials. They fit parts together, compare objects, and observe changes. They develop concepts and learn words they can use as they begin to read.
Standard items for the science area include handheld magnifying glasses, prisms, bug jars, plastic insects, binoculars, kaleidoscopes, telescope, scales, rulers, magnets, flashlight, and bubble solution and wands. From time to time, add natural materials such as rocks, plants, dried flowers, birds’ nests, feathers, gourds, seashells, fossils, pine cones, nuts, and seeds. Set up an ant farm, a root-view farm, and similar farms.
Designate a table for the science center and stock it with materials and activities each day. Or create a portable center by using a low cart (no more than 24 inches high) that has an ample work surface as well as storage shelves with doors. The cart provides easy access to equipment and allows you to set up materials on a moment’s notice as the children make discoveries.

Reading area
Provide a soft, quiet area for reading. Choose books that support current themes, children’s interests, and topics about nature (weather, insects, animals, and plants). On our play yard, the book children read most is the photo album. We frequently take pictures of interesting projects, popular activities, and special events to keep the album current. When having film developed, we order double prints so we will have a copy for the activity file. The children never seem to tire of looking at pictures of the fun they had on the play yard. They also enjoy using story tapes with the books to follow along.

Sand box
Add plastic flowers, and watch the children create a garden. Add dinosaurs, and watch them create a prehistoric landscape. Be prepared to help them make a volcano for the dinosaurs! Add old boards to use as a ramp for rolling wheels (spools) and cars. Dig a 1-foot-deep trench in the sand and lay the board across it as a bridge. Add a few plastic alligators to make an alligator pit that is sure to create lots of excitement.

Keep an activity file
To make an activity file, you will need a file box and index cards. The 5-inch by 8-inch size works well. Photograph each activity as children are engaged in it. Write a description of each activity on the front of the card, and tape pictures on the back.
An activity file provides a record of the many exciting activities you have created for the play yard. The record is not only satisfying but also serves as a resource file of ideas. A file is especially helpful if you must be absent for a day, or if you take another job. Your substitute will have some ideas of the children’s favorite activities.

Gardening
A garden is an ideal way to create ongoing science projects in the outdoor classroom. Nothing is so fascinating as planting a seed and watching it grow into a flower or edible vegetable. A garden allows children to use all of their senses.
Grow some fruits and vegetables. Choose a fruit tree well-suited to your region and plant it. Children will enjoy smelling the. blooms and watching the flowers turn into plums or peaches. For vegetables, consider fast-growing plants such as onions and radishes. Later, children can compare the tastes and smells of their home-grown vegetables.
Flowers are a wonderful experience for children. They run up to us in the play yard and say, “Close your eyes, I have a surprise for you!” They take our hands and lead us around making sure we don’t bump into anything. When we reach the destination, they say, “Open your eyes now. Surprise!” The excitement and delight shines in them. It is a rewarding moment and fills us with joy.
Where plants grow, insects usually take up residence. We have a lot of garden snails that eat everything we plant. We couldn’t seem to get rid of them and became discouraged until we noticed how they fascinated the children. So we began to use them in various activities. Here are two:
Snail trails
Dip snails in food coloring and let them crawl on paper so they leave a colored trail behind.
Snail circus
Tie a piece of yarn between two blocks to form a tight rope. Wet the yarn with water, and let a snail walk the tight rope.

Making a snail habitat is also fun for the children, but be sure to release the snails at the end of the day or keep them in a cool place. Even garden pests can entertain children, teachers, and parents.

Safety in a busy play environment
Every play yard needs rules and limits that staff agree upon and enforce. Consistency in rules prevents confusion for both children and adults. Create clearly defined boundaries to help children remember to stay within specific areas for specific purposes. For example, we mark our bike area with cones to keep the children from riding their bikes into the basketball area. This has helped to eliminate many accidents. You will need to determine the safety rules that best fit the needs of your yard and children.
Regularly check materials and equipment for broken parts or pieces that may injure a child. Also remember to check large equipment—climbing structure, swings, tables, and benches. Promptly repair or remove broken toys and equipment.
Keep a first-aid kit on the play yard for easy access. Being able to treat minor scrapes and injuries on the play yard means optimum yard supervision at all times. Otherwise, a staff member must go indoors to treat a scraped knee. We keep a small box stocked with small bandages, small bottles of disinfectant soap and water, gauze pads, and rubber gloves. Place the first-aid kit in a teachers’ station. This is a small cabinet or shelf where staff keep their water cups, sunglasses, accident/injury reports, materials and other odds-and-ends needed for the day’s activities.
To prevent the spread of germs, disinfect equipment on a regular basis. Use a chlorine bleach solution on the water fountain, play telephone, and table surfaces. Keep pathways free of dropped toys and other obstructions that may cause a child to slip and fall. Sweep cement and pavement areas daily to prevent them from accumulating sand and becoming slippery.

Hints for learning center use
In the beginning, staff need to set guidelines and make decisions about the use of the learning center materials and consistently enforce them. The children may have a difficult time remembering some of the rules at first, but with gentle reminders and consistent use of the rules, the children will soon be responsible users and eager helpers during clean-up.

Rule 1
Materials stay in the center area they are put in by the adult. This sounds like a difficult rule to enforce but it is necessary if you want to keep materials from being scattered all over the play yard. It makes clean-up much easier and less time-consuming.

Rule 2
Children are responsible for their own creations. They are supported and helped if needed, but they stay with the task to completion. By expecting children to help clean up after themselves, you are teaching them cause and effect as well as how to value and care for the toys they enjoy. It will help them feel good about themselves and their capabilities.

Rule 3
Have lots of fun! (Need I say more about this rule?)

By using these rules, everyone, including the staff, will have a happy and busy day.

Guidance and discipline
On our play yard, we rarely need to discipline children. Conflict is low because they have so many choices to occupy their interests, and children have learned to work together to resolve disputes.
Children are more likely to have difficulties sharing and cooperating when they are tired. Having a quiet reading area gives them the opportunity to rest without feeling like they are missing out on the fun. When a teacher sits down in the reading area and begins to read a book, children instantly cluster around to listen to the story and then beg for more.
When necessary, we redirect a child to a new activity. We offer many play choices. We sometimes deny a child the privilege of playing in a certain area. We combine this lost privilege with an opportunity for the child to watch appropriate behavior in that area. Our goal is to teach proper use of materials and to discourage destructive or inappropriate behaviors.

Trial and error
Developing an effective yard program takes time. Learn from your mistakes. Don’t give up. Ask other teachers for ideas. If something doesn’t work, analyze the situation and find a solution. For example, if you set up an activity and the children seem to have little interest, try the same activity in a different location or on a different day or even in combination with a different set of activities. You might be surprised to discover that the children really do like playing with puzzles but only under the tree and not by the fence. Or they like dancing with scarves but they like it better in the afternoon than in the morning.

A valuable resource
The play yard is a valuable resource too often overlooked and underused. The most active time of day is when the children are outside playing. It is also the time they are most eager to learn about and explore the environment.
Setting up learning centers outdoors helps connect children to the influences of nature. Only by experiencing nature can they begin to truly understand the world in which they live.

References
Baker, Katherine Read. Let’s Play Outdoors. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1966.
Berk, Laura E. and Adam Winsler. Scaffolding Children’s Learning. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1995.
Dunn, Susan and Rob Larson. Design Technology Children’s Engineering. Bristol, Pa.: Falmer Press, Taylor & Francis Inc., n.d.
Ellison, Gail. Play Structures. Pasadena, Calif.: Pacific Oaks College and Children’s School, 1974.
Green, Moira D. 474 Science Activities for Young Children. Albany, N.Y.: Delmar Publishers, 1996.
Hill, D.M.. Mud, Sand, and Water. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1977.
Holt, Bess-Gene. Science with Young Children (rev.). Washington, D.C .: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1989.
Koster, Joan Bouza. Growing Artists: Teaching Art to Young Children. Albany, N.Y.: Delmar Publishers, 1997.
Kritchevsky, S., E. Prescott, and L. Walling. Planning Environments for Young Children: Physical Space (2nd ed.). Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1977.
Neuman, Donald B. Experiences in Science for Young Children. Albany, N.Y.: Delmar Publishers, 1978.
Rivkin, Mary S. The Great Outdoors: Restoring Children’s Right to Play Outside. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1995.
Trawick-Smith, Jeffery. Interactions in the Classrooms: Facilitating Play in the Early Years. New York: Macmillan College Publishing Co., 1994.
Winslow, Marjorie. Mud Pies and Other Recipes. New York: Walker Publishing Co., 1996.

About the author
Mary L. Studer received her California Early Childhood Teaching Certificate from Glendale Community College. In addition to classroom teaching, she has been yard coordinator at Glendale Adventist Medical Center Children’s Center for three years.