Fall Festival

We ended October with a performance of Hey diddle diddle the cat and the fiddle.

The fiddler

The cow and Moon we even had a dish and spoon.  All the children took turns performing for other teacher, children and parents.

We also had carnival games going.

Pumpkin Ring Toss

Pumpkin Bean Bag Toss

Feeding the spider

We even had a tractor pull Ok I mean a wagon pull.

Go Away Big Green Monster

Going On A Monster Hunt


Walking in the wild woods,

Creeping low (crouch down)
Tiptoe, tiptoe (tiptoe in place)
Tiptoe slow
Walking in the wild woods,
Creeping low (crouch down)
I almost stepped
On a monster’s toe (look startled)
I will throw my net (pretend to throw net)
And carry my monster
Out of the woods. (pretend to hoist bag over shoulder)


After reading the book go away Big Green Monster, we went on a monster hunt around the school yard. As we went around out side we sang the song Going On a Monster Hunt.

We made paper plate monsters

We made paper bag monsters

We drew monsters

We made monsters out of shapes

Five Little Monsters

Five little monsters
Hiding in my closet
One crept out
And crawled into bed.


Four little monsters
Hiding in my closet
One tiptoed out
And crawled into bed.


One slithered out.
One stomped out.
One galloped out.


All the little monsters are snug in my bed.

 

Portable Writing Centers

When children have the opportunity to write in many areas of your classroom they build knowledge that print has meaning.  This go anywhere writing center could end up in your construction area where you will see children drawing what they just built or they might make a blue print of their creation so that they can create it again.  Children will want to bring it outside where they might write the world’s best recipe for mud pie.  Always remember to include writing in the child’s play and the go anywhere writing center is an easy and effective way to do just that.

Create a writing center that can go anywhere.  This go anywhere writing center was made out of a tool bag that we found at Home Depot.  Around the outside pockets we placed different writing tools (felt tip markers in large and small, colored pencils, ball point pens, milk pens and chubby pencils).  In side we placed clip boards, writing pads, variety of paper, post it note pads, lap boards with dry eraser markers and file note cards. 

Portable Office Writing Center

Place items in an old briefcase. What we have in our briefcase: Phone, Telephone Book, Key Boards, Planning Book, Desk Calendar, Pen/Pencils/Markers all in a plastic box, Phone Message Pad, Envelopes, Junk Mail, Stamp Pad/Stamps, Stapler, Tape Dispenser, and lots of writing pads.

Open for Business

We have had the farmers market open in the dramatic play house all month.  The children have been learning about how to weigh food, how much things cost and how to make change with their money.

Setting up the cash register and getting ready for business.

Shopping items on their grocery list

Waiting in line to make purchase

Making change

Prop Box Play: 50 Themes to Inspire Dramatic Play (Gryphon House Book)

More Pumpkins

We cut the tops off to explore them.

We painted our own pumpkin patch.

We created our own pumpkin of what we show inside the pumpkin.

We played with pumpkins in the block area.

We counted with pumpkin seeds.

We used pumpkins in our water tables.

We drew on our pumpkins.

We read books about pumpkins.

 

Puppets in Preschool

Puppets In The Classroom

A Great Teaching Tool

Puppets can be used anyway, anywhere, and anytime, to spark young children’s imagination.

Puppets are a great way to capture children’s interest. Using puppets is a wonderful teaching technique that can lead children to learning. Puppets can be used to teach concepts, to expand language, listening skills, manners and to encourage creative thinking. They can be used for transition time, drawing children to circle, telling stories, and singing songs.



● Choose a puppet or make a puppet.


● Have a job for that puppet. Does it introduce basic skills include letter sounds, counting, simple spelling and creative reading. Or does it specialize in introducing manners.


● Give the puppets names based on the job they teach. Polite Pete, Allie Alliteration, Willy Weather, or Valerie Vocabulary


● Create voices for the puppets. Large puppets or male puppets could have a deep voice, while small puppets or girl puppets could have a soft voice. You could us higher pitch voices for small animal or child’s voices.


● Design an area or a way that you us your puppets. You can use a puppet theater or cut a hole in a bag or box have your puppet pock its head out of the bag. Place items to be introduced in the bag or box.


Provide repetition with the puppets. Children lean best through repetition. This is why I have one puppet for each job. The children know what to expect when they see that puppet.


● Have fun when teaching with the puppets. Let the children have fun with the puppets. Have an area in your classroom where children always have puppets to use. Let the children design their own puppets using boxes, paper tubes or paper bags.


● Remember that puppets are a great teaching tool.


● Let the kids use the puppets or design their own. Create paper bag puppets for each child so the class can put on their own puppet shows.

Letter Game Pumpkin Bean Bag

I made pumpkin bean bag out of felt.  I hot glued the face, stem, and vine to the top piece of the pumpkin.  I then sewed a back piece to the pumpkin leaving a hole at the bottom to fill with rice.  Once filled with rice I sewed it shut.

I made enough bean bags for a group of 6 children to play a bean bag letter toss game with. 

I wrote letters on paper plates that we had been working on over the last few weeks.  I then placed the plates on the floor with the basket of pumpkin bean bags. 

Each child stood behind the line and tossed their bean bag, trying to land the bean bag onto the plate. As a child landed their bean bag onto a plate they identified the letter and then gave the letter sound. If they needed help they asked a friend to help them.



We also used this for a transitional game. After circle is done I always play a game to transition them to wash their hands for snack. This way all children get to participate in games, they learn to take turns and to share with this kind of activity. If I use a game at this time of the day it really helps with the flow.

Rhyming Basket

Objects are placed in a basket (one object for each child present), and the basket is passed around the circle.  As each child gets the basket, say a word (What rhymes with fun) and they pull out the object that rhymes (fun) sun.   In basket is a sun, fish, bat, car and cow.  You can use any objects that might go with your theme study unit.

Spider Math

The children at school have been talking a lot about spiders and all the creepy things that they have been seeing at the store. So since they have such an interest in these things I thought I would come up with some fun math games, maybe spiders would keep them engaged in the activity.


Spider Web Number Count

I made large spider webs and copied them onto a sheet of card stock. I also made a set of number cards for the children to turn over and identify the number. Once the child identifies the number they count out that amount of spiders and place them on the web mat. Children keep playing until all the number cards are gone.



Ice Tray Spider Game

Give each child an ice tray and a dice of choice. Children take turns rolling the dice and identifying the number on the dice. Child then counts out the appropriate amount of spiders and place one spider in each ice tray hole. Game is over when all children have filled the ice tray.



Graphing Spiders and bones

Each child gets an ice tray, cup of spiders and bones along with a set of number dice.

Children place the contents of the cup into the ice tray.  Placing spiders and bones into different rows of the ice tray.  Once the children have all the contents of their cup sorted into the ice tray they figure out which one has more and less.  Next they use the number dice to identify the number of items in each row.