How Does Your Garden Grow?

Click to View Larger

'Planting Seeds' Chart  for Small Group

Ms. Shirley is running our large groups this week on Monday and Tuesday. Every year in the spring she brings different flowers to large group so the students can see, touch and smell them. She'll talk with about how each are different and some concepts including colors, difference between buds and blooming, flowers that grow in the ground and blossoms from a tree. Since her flowers are at the perfect time for picking and bringing in, we will have the same large group two days in a row instead of spreading it over a few weeks period. We're excited to see what Ms. Shirley has prepared.

'Picking Up Worms' Small Group

Preschool Summer Reading Program

“Reading to your child may be the single, most powerful contribution that you,

 as a parent, can make toward their success in school.”

-William Russell

Summer is on it’s way! I am putting together activities that you can do with your child throughout the summer to encourage skills to prepare them for the fall.  These skills include book knowledge concepts, phonological awareness, alphabetic knowledge, concepts in relation to math and science, vocabulary, language and continuing to increase attending skills. However, don’t worry. They will be naturally embedded into the book and the activities and fun! Most importantly, they will provide an opportunity for you to be with your child as they continue to learn and grow.

Throughout the summer I will post activities and a corresponding book

that you can find at the library or may already own. Many of these books you can also find on youtube. For some of you that may have trouble getting your child to sit still through an entire story, create a routine, for example, at night to settle down before bed, or even while they’re in the bathtub. That’s the way I get through a one at our house. 

Enjoy your summer!

Here’s a kick off one even though we still have a month of school left:

Eric Carle's Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See and Activities

Brown Bear, Brown Bear -SRP

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

Written by Bill Martin Jr., Illustrated by Eric Carle,

Henry Holt & Company 1983

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?

I see a Red Bird looking at Me.

Red Bird, Red Bird, What do you see?

I see a Yellow Duck looking at Me.

Yellow Duck, Yellow Duck, do you see?

I see a Blue Horse looking at Me.

Blue Horse, Blue Horse, What do you see?

I see a Green Frog looking at Me.

Green Frog, Green Frog, What do you see?

I see a Purple Cat looking at Me.

Purple Cat, Purple Cat, What do you see?

I see a White Dog looking at Me.

White Dog, White Dog, What do you see?

I see a Black Sheep looking at Me.

Black Sheep, Black Sheep, What do you see?

I see a Goldfish looking at Me.

Goldfish, Goldfish, What do you see?

I see a Teacher looking at Me.

Teacher, Teacher, What do you see?

I see Children looking at Me.

Children, Children, What do you see?

We see a Brown Bear, a Red Bird, a Yellow Duck, a Blue Horse, a Green Frog, a Purple Cat, a White Dog, a Black Sheep, a Gold Fish and a Teacher looking at us, that’s what we see.

Developmental Focus: Colors and Animal Names, “Wh” questions, Predicting, Concepts of Print

Activities: 

Read the story, predict what is coming next. Once they get the pattern of text down on each page, have them "read" it or fill in the blanks.

Listen to the song (http://youtu.be/ek7j3huAApc) and sign color and/or animal names.

Write or tell your own story: For example, we have done: Snowman, snowman, what do you wear? I wear a black hat on my head, Snowman, snowman, what do you wear? I wear a purple scarf around my neck etc… You can do different animals, foods, characters etc.

Make popsicle (or tongue depressor) puppets with the animals on them to hold up when they each one is read in the story.

Here are more activity ideas: Click Here, however, remember that simplicity is better, especially when your child is younger and you also want to choose activities that allow your child to self-direct and discover as they go along.

Caterpillars, Butterflies and Karaoke

Click to View Larger

Hungry Caterpillar Large Group:

        We read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. We then review it again as student's talk about the sequences using pictures. Each student gets food and we count how many of each. As it's time to 'eat', students get to climb through the caterpillar. At the end, students 'wrap' themselves up in their cocoons with their arms and then break out as butterflies.

Song Board Karaoke:

       We have a variety of 30+ songs we have sung throughout the year and some new ones. Often we sing them as 'easy to join-in' songs when students are finishing up from snack and making their way over to large group before we start the lesson. Some favorites of the student's include 'Scat the Cat', 'Old MacDonald', 'If you're Happy and You Know it", "Do as I'm Doing" and "Leo the Lion". These songs teach concepts such as colors, emotions, verbs, counting and other vocabulary. Many of them we let students choose actions as well. For example,  for 'If Your Happy and You Know It" we can say "How else can we feel?" or "What's another emotion?" and "How can we show it?" Student's have come up with ideas like, "If you're angry and you know it, pound your fists".

Steps to Sharing and Playing with a Friend

1)    Look at the Person’s Face

2)   Say the Person’s Name

3)   Wait until the Look at You

4)   Ask, “Can I Play with you” or “Can I have that?”

(If they say “No”, it’s okay, find something else to do.)

Side Walk Chalk and the Very Hungry Caterpillar

Click to View Larger

Milk Star Shooters

This week we have been doing a fun experiment with milk, food coloring and dish detergent. When the grease-cutting soap hits the milk, it causes it to shoot out, even more visible to the eye when food coloring is added. We did it as our activity C small group this week, letting each student pick their colors and put in drops of detergent. Here is a video of one of the student's doing it:

Train Tracks and Rub-A-Dub-Dub

Photo Collage

Click to View Larger

Rub-A-Dub-Dub

Rub-a-dub-dub

Three Men in a Tub

And who do you think they be?

The Butcher, The Baker, The Candlestick Maker,

All Traveling Out to Sea.

Choo Choo the Big Train

Choo-Choo the big train is coming down the tracks,

Stop, look and listen, 

Stop, look and listen,

Choo-Choo the big train is coming down the tracks,

Stop, look and listen, 

Stop, look and listen.

We will also be having a special party during snack on Wednesday and Thursday to celebrate spring time.