We visited two preschools today. The facilities were amazing. To have that amount of space for activities would be amazing. Both centers had cafeterias where the children would go to eat. This meant there was more room for materials in the classrooms. The classrooms I've worked in had large tables to accommodate eating in the classroom. These classrooms we visited had lots of small tables where the children could work independently or in small groups.
The outdoor facilities were so much bigger than the playgrounds of the centers I've worked at. Plus their outdoor areas were built to encourage so many different activities. The outdoor areas of the centers I've worked at tended to be a commercially produced playground only. These preschools had a commercially produced playground in addition to areas that included blocks, tires, ladders, and a variety of other materials that gave the children many more options than was available at the centers where I've worked.
I know there are centers in Lincoln that provide continuance of care, but most of the centers I am familiar with have the children move to a new class with new teachers each year. I can see the positives and negatives to staying with a teacher versus being placed with a new teacher each year.
I noticed the children were eating with spoons and I asked when the children were taught to use chop sticks. I was told they are being taught at this age how to use them and at lunch they were given an option of spoon or chop sticks. At 2nd grade the children are no longer given an option but are expected to always use chop sticks.
Tonight we went to the "Times Square" of China in downtown Shanghai. So many people crowded into an area and I got nervous about being separated from my group. Others in my group felt the same way and we linked arms or held onto each other's shoulder to ensure that we stayed together. We walked down to the river and saw the tallest building in the world. I am floored by how tall all the apartment buildings are and people don't live in single family homes. Everything is populated. They do try to make their buildings look interesting. The apartment buildings are not all just rectangles. They have unique designs and I noticed that their balconies are made in such a way that they can remove a row of windows to have an open balcony or they can replace the windows to be a usable room year-round.
Tonight I chose to eat Pizza Hut for supper. I needed some normal American food after all this Chinese food. My Hawaiian pizza tasted just like the one I ate at Pizza Hut on Monday when I took the girls out for supper. I'll be ready to be more adventurous and eat more Chinese foods tomorrow.
My shower was very relaxing tonight. I miss my daughters but I am having a wonderful time here. This morning before breakfast I Skyped with them. They were confused as to why I was just getting up when they were getting ready to eat supper and they wanted to know who was coming out of the bathroom behind me. I explained that Carrie and I were roommates. Then they wanted to know why we were sharing a bathroom and a lot of other questions that brought a kid perspective to where Carrie and I are living right now.
Now to get some sleep. Today was long and tiring. I've felt more tired today than any other day we've been here. I was told the 3rd day is the worst for adjusting to the new time zone and that I'll be feeling more normal tomorrow.
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