Space!

The theme for the second week of August was "Space". The children are having so much fun in our "summer camp" this year!

This week we read: I Want to be an Astronaut by Byron Barton
                                       My Picture Book of Planets by Nancy E. Kryulik
                                       Our Stars by Anne F. Rockwell
                                       Roaring Rockets by Tony Mitton
                                       The Birth of the Moon by Coby Hol
                                       Circus in the Sky by Nancy Guettier
                                       On the Moon by Anna Milbourne

The older children that join my class for Summer Camp do not nap during rest time. They have time in the gym in a small group while my class does. To keep them working on their skills, I make them  packet to bridge their grades.

The games that we played this week at morning meeting were so fun!
We played "1,2,3" which we have played before and is definitely a fan favorite! We stand in a circle and each child says 1,2 or 3 consecutive numbers starting with 1 up to 9. So for example: "1,2,3" "4" "5,6" "7,8,9" and the next child who would have to say 10 sits down and is out of the round. Then it starts back at one. My class really loves this one, and usually if we play it in the morning, I will hear them in centers or at their lunch tables playing their own facilitated versions of the game.

We played "Alphabet Catch" with a beanbag. We toss the beanbag around the circle and the kids have to say the next letter in the alphabet. If they drop it, we have to start back at the letter "A". This game helps us work on our communication, because the children have to let the person know that they are going to toss it to them!

We played "I have, who has?" which I originally saw being played in a Montessori class. It's so cool to see the children take over the game and help their friends follow along. Over the past year, I made a few different ones to add to my colors, shapes and Alphabet. I love having the different options now because it keeps the game feeling new and fresh!

We played "Number Ball" with a beanbag. We toss the beanbag around the circle and the kids have to say the next number. We stand in a circle and toss the beanbag across to friends and try to beat our record!

"Pop!" is a really fun game, and definitely a favorite. We stand in a circle and each child says one number as we go around. But each round there is a pop number. Instead of saying that number, you POP! the person that would be next, out. We work very hard on having good sportsmanship, and the kids have fun even if they're out because they know they get to play again in the next round!

The special activities this week were a blast.  Since we are the oldest in the school, our class took over the little school garden. We spent time weeding it. It seems that our store bought plants are surviving, which is great! We've started to get some blossoms, so that is definitely promising!

Exercise is very important, so I thought it would be fun to have some kind of special exercise activity. This week, we did Yoga! Cosmic Kids Yoga on Youtube has great videos that the children love.

Every Wednesday my class has sprinkler day. This is always a fan favorite. The children wear their bathing suits and water shoes, run around in a sprinkler outside, and play in a water sensory table. It really helps beat the summer heat!

I LOVE having a movie day in the summer. It gives the kids a chance to relax, wind down and just enjoy themselves. Plus we have snacks and make it feel like the movie theater... who doesn't like going to the movie theater? This week we watched Wall-E. 

Bubble day is quickly turning into a favorite. This week we just had a good time running around and blowing bubbles.

Our question of the week was "Where in space do you want to visit?"

For our theme "Space",  we did some neat space related activities. We talked about constellations, and how the stars show up the picture in the sky. The children picked a number to draw on a piece of black construction paper, and then poked holes along the number to make their own constellation.

We sang "Climb Aboard the Spaceship" to the tune of Itsy Bitsy Spider.

"Climb aboard the spaceship, we're going to the moon.

Hurry and get ready, we're going to blast off soon.

Put on your helmets and buckle up real tight.

Here comes the countdown, let's count with all our might.

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... blast off!"

(C) 2001 - 2011 Jean Warren www.preschoolexpress.com

While we were talking about the sun, we also discussed how things look during the day vs how they look at night. I challenged the children to draw a picture, half during the day and the other half at night.

I made a little board game with construction paper and star stickers. Using dice we moved up the stars to the end of the game in small groups.

I added some cool space pages to our science binder, and space related buildings in our structure binder.

The children wrote in their journals about where in space they would like to go visit.

In the summer I have elementary children that join my class. While my pre-k students write in their journals, the older children work on a reading response page based on the book that we read at morning meeting.

For our sixth week of the  study "Buildings" we talked about towers and other tall buildings. They built towers as tall as they could, and measured them to see how tall it was.

We talked about the sun, and how shadows appear when the sun's light is blocked. The children built towers with blocks, and then traced the shadows that they created.

We explored building using plastic cups and popsicle sticks.

The children illustrated the tongue twister "Busy Builders bravely balance banging boards on the building's beams."

 Leave a comment below and let me know that you stopped by!

The Beach!

The theme for the first week of August was "The Beach". The children are having so much fun in our "summer camp" this year!

This week we read: On a Pirate Ship by Anna Milbourne
                                        Pig Kahuna Pirates by Jennifer Sattler
                                        On the Seashore by Anna Milbourne
                                        A Day at the Beach by Mircea Vasiliu
                                        What Lives in a Shell? by Kathleen Weidner Zoefeld
                                        Penguin on Vacation by Salina Yoon

The older children that join my class for Summer Camp do not nap during rest time. They have time in the gym in a small group while my class does. To keep them working on their skills, I make them  packet to bridge their grades.

The games that we played this week at morning meeting were so fun!
 We played "Number Ball" with a beanbag. We toss the beanbag around the circle and the kids have to say the next number. We stand in a circle and toss the beanbag across to friends and try to beat our record!

"Pop!" is a really fun game, and definitely a favorite. We stand in a circle and each child says one number as we go around. But each round there is a pop number. Instead of saying that number, you POP! the person that would be next, out. We work very hard on having good sportsmanship, and the kids have fun even if they're out because they know they get to play again in the next round!

"Pass the Vader" is a fun game. It's just like Hot Potato, except we do it with a small stuffed Darth Vader that children gave me this past Valentine's Day. Love it!

 We played "Find the Clothespin". I found this game on KindergartenSmorgasboard, and I thought it just sounded so fun! While the children are not peeking, I hide a clothespin one myself, on a child or somewhere close around us. When they look for it, they can't yell out where it is, they put their finger on their nose! They have so much fun searching.

We played "Crocodile Snap". I found the idea for this game last year and adapted it to be my own. I turned a box into a crocodile with bulletin and construction paper, then filled it with little cards that have a letter, number or shape on them. The children have to reach into the crocodile's mouth (while he's sleeping of course), pull out a card and name what's there. Also hidden in the belly of the crocodile though are SNAP cards (the crocodile wakes up and SNAPS his mouth shut!). Once we pull three SNAP cards, the game is over!

The special activities this week were a blast. Exercise is very important, so I thought it would be fun to have some kind of special exercise activity. This week, we brought out the parachute and had a lot of fun bouncing balloons and balls on it like popcorn!

Since we are the oldest in the school, our class took over the little school garden. We spent time weeding it. It seems that our store bought plants are surviving, which is great! We've started to get some blossoms, so that is definitely promising!

Every Wednesday my class has sprinkler day. This is always a fan favorite. The children wear their bathing suits and water shoes, run around in a sprinkler outside, and play in a water sensory table. It really helps beat the summer heat!

Bubble day is quickly turning into a favorite. This week we made popped bubble art! I hung a big piece of white paper on the fence, and added a little bit of water color to some cups of bubble solution. The children had fun blowing bubbles at the paper! I think it turned out pretty neat!

I LOVE having a movie day in the summer. It gives the kids a chance to relax, wind down and just enjoy themselves. Plus we have snacks and make it feel like the movie theater... who doesn't like going to the movie theater? This week we watched Surfs Up.

Our question of the week was "What do you like to do when you're at the beach?"

For our theme "The Beach",  we talked all about the different things we can see and do at the beach. The kids loved the sensory table from last week, so i kept it and added some gold pirate dubloons!

We sang "Pretty Shells" to the tune of Jingle Bells.

"Pretty Shells, pretty shells, laying all around.

What a lovely sight to see, shells upon the ground.

Pick one up, it's good luck! Listen to the roar,

Of the never ending waves that beat upon the shore."

(C) 2001 - 2011 Jean Warren www.preschoolexpress.com

I love using non standard units of measure, so to go with this theme I thought we could measure with dubloons! The children picked two things each in the classroom, drew a picture of it and measured with the coins.

The children wrote in their journals about things that they see at the beach.

In the summer I have elementary children that join my class. While my pre-k students write in their journals, the older children work on a reading response page based on the book that we read at morning meeting.

We talked about what the beach looks like and things that we can see (sand, water, sky, clouds, boats, sand castles, waves etc.) Then the children drew their own picture of the beach using crayons. When they were finished, the squeezed out some glue and added some sparkly sand!

We went fishing for Alphabet Fish! when the children caught a fish, I asked them what letter it was, the sound that it makes, and for a challenge, a word that starts with the letter.

From the book Alphabet, Colors, Numbers and Shapes the kids worked on their color word knowledge to correctly color in the fish.

We tossed around a beach ball for a really fun time too.

For our fifth week of the  study "Buildings" we focused on the materials that can be used to build. The children brainstormed a list of different materials to use to build first. Then they walked around the inside and outside of our building to see the materials that our building is made of. We also talked about the ways that we can make a building sturdy, or not so sturdy.

With glue and popsicle sticks, the children put together houses.

I asked the children if they could build a house out of anything, what would it be? Then they drew a picture of it.

 Leave a comment below and let me know that you stopped by!

Under the Sea!

The theme for the last week of July was "Under the Sea". The children are having so much fun in our "summer camp" this year!

 
This week we read: The Pout Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen
                                        The Pout Pout Fish in the Big Big Dark by Deborah Diesen
                                        How Deep is the Sea? by Anna Milbourne
                                        Who's in the Ocean? by Dorthea DePrisco
                                        The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister

The older children that join my class for Summer Camp do not nap during rest time. They have time in the gym in a small group while my class does. To keep them working on their skills, I make them  packet to bridge their grades.

The games that we played this week at morning meeting were so fun!
 We played "Number Ball" with a beanbag. We toss the beanbag around the circle and the kids have to say the next number. We stand in a circle and toss the beanbag across to friends and try to beat our record!

"Pop!" is a really fun game, and definitely a favorite. We stand in a circle and each child says one number as we go around. But each round there is a pop number. Instead of saying that number, you POP! the person that would be next, out. We work very hard on having good sportsmanship, and the kids have fun even if they're out because they know they get to play again in the next round!

"Pass the Vader" is a fun game. It's just like Hot Potato, except we do it with a small stuffed Darth Vader that children gave me this past Valentine's Day. Love it!

We played "Find the Clothespin". I found this game on KindergartenSmorgasboard, and I thought it just sounded so fun! While the children are not peeking, I hide a clothespin one myself, on a child or somewhere close around us. When they look for it, they can't yell out where it is, they put their finger on their nose! They have so much fun searching.

We played "Crocodile Snap". I found the idea for this game last year and adapted it to be my own. I turned a box into a crocodile with bulletin and construction paper, then filled it with little cards that have a letter, number or shape on them. The children have to reach into the crocodile's mouth (while he's sleeping of course), pull out a card and name what's there. Also hidden in the belly of the crocodile though are SNAP cards (the crocodile wakes up and SNAPS his mouth shut!). Once we pull three SNAP cards, the game is over!

The special activities this week were a blast. Since we are the oldest in the school, our class take over the little school garden. We spent time weeding it. It seems that our store bought plants are surviving, which is great!

Bubble day is quickly turning into a favorite. This week we tried to make Unpoppable bubbles! I found a recipe online using 1 part water, 1 part corn syrup, and 2 parts Joy dish soap. We tried. It seemed as if it was harder to blow bubbles with this solution. And let me tell you.... it was sticky! Hello dirt all over hands and attracting bugs. I think in the future we will stick with corn syrup-less solutions.

Every Wednesday my class has sprinkler day. This is always a fan favorite. The children wear their bathing suits and water shoes, run around in a sprinkler outside, and play in a water sensory table. It really helps beat the summer heat!

I LOVE having a movie day in the summer. It gives the kids a chance to relax, wind down and just enjoy themselves. Plus we have snacks and make it feel like the movie theater... who doesn't like going to the movie theater? This week we watched Finding Nemo.

Exercise is very important, so I thought it would be fun to have some kind of special exercise activity. This week, we moved our bodies like sea creatures! I found some ideas for animals to call out here.

Our question of the week was "If you lived in the sea, what would you be?"

For our theme "Under the Sea",  we explored the under sea world. In the sensory table I added blue pasta and rice that I dyed at home using a little vinegar and food dye, shells from the beach, blue glass marbles and undersea animals. I found the figurines at Michaels, 14 pieces for $9.99. Not bad. My biggest problem was that they had so many to choose from! I settled on just the Ocean tube, but they had prehistoric ocean animals, sea life, baby ocean animals... so many great toys!

In the Science center I added pages of some undersea creatures and plants.

In the blocks center I found pictures of under water ruins and buildings for the structure book.

We sang "I'm a Little Heart Fish" to the tune of Teapot.

"I'm a Little Heart Fish in the sea,

I have a heart tail that helps guide me.

When I'm feeling friendly I start to blow...

Tiny heart bubbles, up they go!"

(C) 2001 - 2011 Jean Warren www.preschoolexpress.com

The children wrote in their journals about their favorite thing in the ocean.

 In the summer I have elementary children that join my class. While my pre-k students write in their journals, the older children work on a reading response page based on the book that we read at morning meeting.

The children sorted colorful goldfish! Depending on the level of the group, the children sorted 20, 15, or 10 goldfish. We talked about tally marks, most and least, and worked on the one-to-one concept. Then they got to eat their goldfish! I think that was their favorite part!

We made a class book about Under the Sea. As a large group we brainstormed a list of the different creatures that live in the ocean. After they picked the animal that they wanted their page to be about we looked up a cool fact for them to write. Then they drew a picture.

For our fourth week of the  study "Buildings" we focused on the rooms at home and at school. First the class worked together to make a list of all the different rooms that we have at school, and the rooms that they have in their houses.

They each picked their favorite room at school, wrote which room it was a drew a picture of it. I turned this into a book that we put in the library center.

The children worked and played in partners to build with different size and shape blocks.

Next they picked their favorite room at their house and drew a picture of it. After they drew the picture, they wrote on the back, and we turned it into a book for the library center.

We talked about the features of a room, and looked around at our classrooms windows, doors, sinks, doorways etc. The children picked on to draw a picture of. They sat in front of the feature so that they were able to observe it while drawing.

 Leave a comment below and let me know that you stopped by!

Zoo!

The theme for the third week of July was "The Zoo". The children are having so much fun in our "summer camp" this year!

This week we read: The Perfect Tail by Mie Araki
                                        Splat the Cat and the Cool School Trip by Rob Scotton
                                        A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead
                                        Put Me in the Zoo by Robert Lopshire
                                        Curious George Feeds the Animals by Margret & HA Rey

The older children that join my class for Summer Camp do not nap during rest time. They have time in the gym in a small group while my class does. To keep them working on their skills, I make them  packet to bridge their grades.

The games that we played this week at morning meeting were so fun!
We played "Find the Clothespin". I found this game on KindergartenSmorgasboard, and I thought it just sounded so fun! While the children are not peeking, I hide a clothespin one myself, on a child or somewhere close around us. When they look for it, they can't yell out where it is, they put their finger on their nose! They have so much fun searching.

We played "Crocodile Snap". I found the idea for this game last year and adapted it to be my own. I turned a box into a crocodile with bulletin and construction paper, then filled it with little cards that have a letter, number or shape on them. The children have to reach into the crocodile's mouth (while he's sleeping of course), pull out a card and name what's there. Also hidden in the belly of the crocodile though are SNAP cards (the crocodile wakes up and SNAPS his mouth shut!). Once we pull three SNAP cards, the game is over!

We played "1,2,3" which we have played before and is definitely a fan favorite! We stand in a circle and each child says 1,2 or 3 consecutive numbers starting with 1 up to 9. So for example: "1,2,3" "4" "5,6" "7,8,9" and the next child who would have to say 10 sits down and is out of the round. Then it starts back at one. My class really loves this one, and usually if we play it in the morning, I will hear them in centers or at their lunch tables playing their own facilitated versions of the game.

We played "Alphabet Catch" with a beanbag. We toss the beanbag around the circle and the kids have to say the next letter in the alphabet. If they drop it, we have to start back at the letter "A". This game helps us work on our communication, because the children have to let the person know that they are going to toss it to them!

We played "I have, who has?" which I originally saw being played in a Montessori class. It's so cool to see the children take over the game and help their friends follow along. Over the past year, I made a few different ones to add to my colors, shapes and Alphabet. I love having the different options now because it keeps the game feeling new and fresh!

The special activities this week were a blast. Bubble day is quickly turning into a favorite. This week we tried to make the biggest bubbles possible. It was so neat to see the Eureka moment when the children discovered that blowing gently created larger results. I created a bubble station with a plastic drink dispenser from Five Below and plastic cups that we rinse and reuse. For the bubble solution, I simply used Dawn dish soap from the Dollar Tree and water! 

Exercise is very important, so I thought it would be fun to have some kind of special exercise activity. This week, we did Yoga! Cosmic Kids Yoga on Youtube has great videos that the children love.

Every Wednesday my class has sprinkler day. This is always a fan favorite. The children wear their bathing suits and water shoes, run around in a sprinkler outside, and play in a water sensory table. It really helps beat the summer heat!

Since we are the oldest in the school, our class take over the little school garden. We spent time weeding it. Most of our sprouts did not make it.. so I purchased a few flowers and small vegetable plants to plant. Fingers crossed!

I LOVE having a movie day in the summer. It gives the kids a chance to relax, wind down and just enjoy themselves. Plus we have snacks and make it feel like the movie theater... who doesn't like going to the movie theater? This week we watched Monsters Inc.

Our question of the week was "What is your favorite animal at the zoo?"

For our theme "Zoo",  we talked about animals at the zoo! I made this zoo game with a large piece of construction paper. Add some small zoo animal figurines, a dice and some excited kids and we get a super fun time!

We sang "We're Going to the Zoo" to the tune of farmer in the dell.

(C) 2001 - 2011 Jean Warren www.preschoolexpress.com

On Pinterest I found this great zoo flap book that the children created!

I made pages of a few different habitats and three animals that live in each one. As small groups, the children worked together to correctly put the animals in their homes. The kids felt like the Kratt Brothers while they were doing this. Our class LOVES their show!

Using shapes cut out from different colors of construction paper, the children created their own zoo animal. I adapted this from this monster activity that I found on Pinterest. I love that it is a project that really is all about the process, and the kids were so happy with their finished products!

The children wrote in their journals about what they see at the zoo.

In the summer I have elementary children that join my class. While my pre-k students write in their journals, the older children work on a reading response page based on the book that we read at morning meeting.

For our third week of the  study "Buildings" we focused on the people that build buildings and how they do. The children made a class book filled with illustrations of Construction Sites.

My assistant teacher brought in a toolbox for the children to explore tools. They felt them, picked them up and asked questions about them.

The class had a discussion of who the different people were that built various parts of our classroom; plumber, electrician, general contractor.

I emptied out my sensory table and added unifix cubes and pieces of construction paper. The children worked in small groups to build different height buildings and create a Unifix city.

 Leave a comment below and let me know that you stopped by!