Our second day in Gradinita Ganeden began with early morning exercises and welcoming smiles from the children and staff. After the children ate Breakfast, we had the opportunity to spend quality time in each classroom. We identified areas of strength and places where we can be most supportive during our visit. We were able to observe meeting time and center activities in all of the classrooms. The children engaged with us as we sat along-side them during their math & language instruction time.
After taking notes on what we observed, we shared our thoughts with Dalia and gave her constructive feedback. 
We continued our discussion with the teachers which focused on the environment and classroom materials. As a group, we watched “Environments to Support Playful Inquiry” & “The Wonder of Intelligent Materials” created by the Opal School in Portland, Oregon. We showed photos of our school before & after we made changes to our environment, which led to a discussion about the positive impact change can make for children in an early childhood center. We also showed pictures from our ECC Blog & our classroom Shutterfly sites.
We concluded with a private discussion with Dalia and shared with her the news that we would be taking her shopping at IKEA to purchase classroom materials to begin transforming her classroom spaces. This trip was made possible by the generosity of SOS International. After our successful shopping trip, Dalia felt very supported and grateful that we are investing in her school’s successful future.
Tomorrow we look forward to welcoming our collaborating educators from Sofia, Bulgaria & Budapest, Hungary!
