Jungle Theme

CIRCLE TIME

Fun Jungle Facts -

• Jungles are overgrown with wild tangles of vegetation and dense forest.
• The thin canopy (or "roof) and plenty of rain creates dense areas of plants and vegetation that can be difficult to navigate.
• Jungles are home to a wide range of plants and animals.
• Jungles are usually in warm places with high rainfall.

Jungle Animal Facts -

1. Question: What is the smallest jungle animal?
   Answer: Ant.
   
2. Question: Where are jungles located? Answer: In the tropics  
   

   

   from enchantedlearning.com



3. Question: What is the fastest animal? Answer: The cheetah is the fastest animal on land. The cheetahs top speed can go up to 73mph.
   
4. Question: Can black bear climb trees? Answer: Yes. Black bears have great tree-climbing abilities because they have short, non-retractable claws.
   
5. Question: What are the two countries on earth that have alligators? Answer: the United States and China.
   
6. Interesting facts about elephant Elephants spend 16 hours a day eating plant food. The large tusks of African elephants can be over 10 ft (3 m) in length and weigh over 200 lb (90 kg).

Interesting facts about jungle animals

• Elephants spend 16 hours a day eating plant food.
• The large tusks of African elephants can be over 10 ft (3 m) in length and weigh over 200 lb (90 kg).
• Some antelope horns can grow to almost 5 ft (1.5 m) long.
• Apes and humans are so closely related that they share a large amount of same DNA.
• Coyotes are actually more scared of a human.
• giraffes’ fur darkens when they grow older. A giraffe tongue can be 18 inches long
• Tigers are the biggest cat. They can eat 60 pounds of meat in one day.
• Raccoons are actually close to the bear family. They like to live in urban areas.
• Wolves usually live in packs. They also fight in packs.
• Giant pandas are good tree-climbers and swimmers. They have lived on earth for about 3 million years.
• Armadillos eat fire ants as food. Armadillos are good diggers and swimmers.
• Hummingbird is one of the smallest bird and fastest flying birds.
• Not any two zebras have exactly the same stripes.

READING

 

This is a great rhyming book with references to some awesome jungle creatures!




A sweet story about a girl who goes on a magical adventure to the Amazon jungle and meets some new people and animals!



Rainforest Word Cards

Awesome cards from prekinders.com! Print these and post in the room near the circle time area so you can talk about them each day!

http://www.prekinders.com/rainforest-word-cards/

MATH

Giraffe Math Mats

Print the Math Mats from prekinders.com and use play dough to "feed the giraffe". This is a great counting activity and good for fine motor skills as well!

http://www.prekinders.com/feed-the-giraffe-mats/

SCIENCE

Animal Trax

http://www.montessoriforeveryone.com/assets/PDF/Animal_Tracks.pdf

Have fun with these animal trax cards! Print and cut them out. See if the kids can match the prints to the animal! Talk about why each animal has the kind of feet they have. How do their feet help them?

ART

Rainforest Kool-Aid Art


Fill a spray bottle with water. Sprinkle different colors of Kool-Aid onto a white piece of paper. Allow the kids to spray the paper with the water and see what crazy art they can make!



CRAFT

Paper Plate Lion Masks

Materials Needed:
Large Craft Sticks
White Paper Plates
Yellow & Orange Construction Paper
Brown Construction Paper
Scissors
Glue

**Depending on the age of the children, you can pre-cut out the center of the plate and the strips of mane and the ears for them.

Begin by showing the kids how to cut the center of the plate out so their faces will show through. Then they should cut varying lengths of rectangle pieces of the orange and yellow paper for the mane. Cut ears out of the brown paper.

Glue the mane all around the edge of the plate and allow to dry. Glue the ears to the top portion of the lion's head. Glue the craft stick to the BACK of the bottom of the face to use as a handle.

Put the mask over your face and roar as loud as you can!!

(I will post images of ours soon, this is an example!)



FINE MOTOR

Play Dough Bugs and Snakes!

This is an easy one. Give the kids some playdough and let them get to it! You can make them a few examples yourself. It's a great way to play with the play dough too!!

MUSIC & GROSS MOTOR

(Make sure the kids are up and doing all the things the song talks about, it is very silly!)

Monkey See, Monkey Do

The monkey stomp, stomps, stomps his feet
The monkey stomp, stomps, stomps his feet
Monkey see, monkey do
The monkey does the same as you!
The monkey claps, claps, claps his hands
The monkey claps, claps, claps his hands
Monkey see, monkey do
The monkey does the same as you!
The monkey covers, covers, covers his eyes
The monkey covers, covers, covers his eyes
Monkey see, monkey do
The monkey does the same as you!
The monkey jumps, jumps, jumps up and down
The monkey jumps, jumps, jumps up and down
Monkey see, monkey do
The monkey does the same as you!

Note: Add additional verses (sits down, stands up, turns around, etc)

(from everythingpreschool.com)

COLORING

I have linked to firstschool.com because they have a whole list of great FREE coloring sheets to choose from!

http://www.first-school.ws/theme/animals/coloring-pages/rainforest.htm

Have a Thank-FULL Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is a great time of year. Friends and family come together from across the country (and even the world) to share the holiday. We get a chance to think about all the things we are thankful for in our lives. And we get to eat some great food! Enjoy the fun Thanksgiving lessons!

CIRCLE TIME:

 Thanksgiving is a special holiday when we can all take time to be thankful for the people we love and what we have. The first Thanksgiving was when the Pilgrims first came to this country. In 1621, these people and some Native American Indians became friends and were thankful for their harvest. They decided to have a party and enjoy the great food they harvested. They served deer, corn, cranberries and other roasted meat. They also had pumpkins! The people played games, sang songs and danced. Now we Americans continue to celebrate and remember what we are thankful for. We eat Turkey, ham, cranberries, yams, and many other yummy treats. What kinds of things does your family do on Thanksgiving?

ACTIVITY * Cut out a large selection of magazine pictures depicting the kinds of things the kids could be thankful for. Place the pictures in the center of the table and give the kids a piece of paper and a glue stick. Allow the kids to pick a few of the things they are thankful for and glue their items to their paper. Once they have their Thankful Pictures done, discuss what they chose as a class.

ACTIVITY* Listen to a turkey gobbling!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uifiqanNoM

 

 

SCIENCE

Fall Feast Taste Testing & Charting

This should be fun! I chose things that could be easily purchased to make it easy. Print the chart HERE.

You Will Need:

Cranberry Sauce

Canned Yams

Gravy

Stuffing

Pumpkin Pie

Plastic forks & spoons

You could do this all at once or you could do 1 taste test per day. Allow the kids to taste test the foods. Make sure to check for allergies first! They should decide whether they liked the food or not. If they do, circle the smiley face on the chart. If they don't, circle the frowny face. Once the chart is complete, chart the whole classes' results to review as a class. Discuss the differences and similarities.

BIBLE

Thanksgiving Lesson

From Ministrytochildren.com

"Jesus and the Ten Lepers"   http://ministry-to-children.com/preschool-thanksgiving-lesson/

Memory Verse: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.”  Psalm 107:1 (NIV)

MATH

Turkey Feather Math Mats

Print out the math mats HERE.  The idea is to have the kids make turkey feathers for the turkeys out of playdough. Each turkey has a number on his tummy and that is the number of feathers the kids should put on him. 

It is best to laminate these mats or you can put them inside sheet protectors.

Thanksgiving Symbol Patterning

Print out the worksheets HERE.  There are a few rows of Thanksgiving symbols in differing patterns. At the end of each row of symbols there is a choice of 2 symbols that could be next. The kids should circle the symbol that they think should be next.

Math is really the science of patterns. Identifying patterns is a great first step in understanding math!

MOTOR SKILLS

Fine - Coloring

Coloring is a perfect fine motor skill activity. It promotes control and grip. Click on the link below and choose a Thanksgiving themed picture to color.

http://www.free-coloring-pages.com/thanksgiving.html

Gross - Turkey Run Game

You Will Need:
Individual pictures of Thanksgiving feast items
Posterboard
Large space

Choose the items for the Thanksgiving feast. Print pictures of each individual item. Place 1 of each item on the poster board at the "finish line". This will be where the kids end the run and make sure they have collected all the components by matching their pictures to the ones on the poster board. Place 1 of each item on the wall in various places around the room. You will need a stack of the same picture placed below where the picture is hung for the kids to collect as they run around the room. The idea is for the kids to complete the Thanksgiving feast by locating and collecting all of the feast components and then be the first to the finish line where the full feast is waiting. (By the way, they should be gobbling and wobbling the whole time they are looking for the pictures!) They will then check that they have all components. The first one back with all the feast wins!



LETTER/READING

Letter U 

The next letter for us to study is the letter U. U for Up, Umbrella, Umpire, and Under.

Print the worksheet HERE: http://www.kidzone.ws/prek_wrksht/learning-letters/u2.htm  Talk about the letter and the sound it makes in the words on the sheet. Practice writing the U.

Reading Short U

Review the ug lesson on Starfall.com  http://www.starfall.com/n/level-a/learn-to-read/load.htm?f

Review the short U sound on Readingbear.org  http://www.readingbear.org/Presentation.aspx?PresentationID=6

*BONUS!

Read this Thanksgiving Rebus story with your class!

http://www.bry-backmanor.org/holidayfun/story.html

ART/CRAFT

Art - Thanksgiving Wreaths

Materials Needed:

Paper plates

Glue

Fall leaves, sticks, pine needles, etc (collect on a nature walk!)

Glitter, sequins, craft poms, etc

Cut the middles out of the paper plates to make a circle. Have the kids glue whatever items to the wreath that they think looks pretty. The result will be a room full of beautiful Thanksgiving wreaths!

Craft - Turkey Hand Print & Poem

Materials Needed:

Paper

Brown, orange, yellow tempura paints

Paint rollers or brushes

The Poem below...

Pre-print the below poem on the paper. You will want to make sure there is room for the kid's hand print so it does not cover up the poem. Paint each child's hand brown for the palm, then every other finger paint orange and yellow. Have the child firmly press their painted hand onto the paper. Make sure you guide their hand to the spot you planned! Once dry, Draw an eye, a beak, a waddle, and a pilgrim hat on the thumb or head! Draw little feet coming out the bottom. These turkeys are a super cute gift for their parents!

POEM - This isn't just a turkey, as you can plainly see.

I made it with my hand, which is a part of me.

It comes with lots of love, especially to say...

I hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving Day!

BOOKS

http://www.amazon.com/Thanksgiving-Giving-Thanks-Reading-Railroad/dp/0448422867

Sure, Thanksgiving is about pilgrims and history--and turkey, of course!--but most importantly, it's a holiday all about everything that we are thankful for. Cheerful, colorful illustrations accompany the simple text in this celebration of family, friends, and the holiday that brings them all together.

http://www.amazon.com/Twas-Night-Before-Thanksgiving-Bookshelf/dp/0439669375

The incomparable Dav Pilkey adapts Clement Moore's classic Christmas poem to tell his wacky Thanksgiving tale. The day before Thanksgiving, eight boys and girls take a field trip to a turkey farm. They have fun playing with eight exuberant turkeys but are shocked to learn that Farmer Mack Nuggett plans to kill all the turkeys for Thanksgiving dinners. So the children decide to smuggle all the turkeys home, and all their Thanksgiving dinners become vegetarian this year. The turkeys' lives are saved!

MUSIC

5 Little Turkeys

(from DLTK's site)

5 little turkeys standing at the door,

1 waddled off and then there were 4

4 little turkeys standing near a tree,

1 waddled off and then there were 3

3 little turkeys with nothing to do, 

1 waddled off and then there were 2

2 little turkeys in the morning sun,

1 waddled off and then there was 1

1 little turkey better run away,

For soon it will be Thanksgiving Day!

COOKING

Sugar Cone Cornucopias

A cornucopia is a cone-shaped basket that is usually shown stuffed full of bountiful harvest foods. They are a symbol of Thanksgiving and the harvest. 

Ingredients:

Sugar cones

Mini pretzels

Circle shaped cereal

Dried fruits

Seeds or peanuts

Baby Goldfish crackers

Each item in our cornucopia represents something important. The Sugar Cone represents the cornucopia. The pretzels symbolize arms folded in thanks and praying. The circle cereal symbolizes the circle of unity. The dried fruits represent the fruits available at the first Thanksgiving. The seeds represent planting the new crops. The Goldfish symbolize the fish that the first Thanksgiving participants ate. 

 

 

 

Place each item in a large bowl and mix. Scoop a portion out and fill each sugar cone. You can place them into a plastic bag and attach a note that explains what each item represents.

 

I have made some you can print HERE!

Reptiles!

Reptiles are a great subject for children of this age! This is a great time to learn to appreciate these ancient animals!

CIRCLE TIME

Reptiles are animals that lay eggs, have scales, and must use sunshine and water to help maintain their temperature. Some examples are turtles, lizards, snakes and crocodiles. You will often see these animals laying in the sun. They do this to make their bodies warm. When they get too hot, they will go under a rock or into some water to cool down.

Let's play a game! Print out these FLASHCARDS to get started:  Animal Classification Game

Make a box or a folder for the categories. Make a category for Reptiles, Fish, and Mammals. We have already discussed what a reptile is. A fish is an animal which lives its whole life in the water. They breathe through gills. Mammals are animals which have live babies and feed them milk produced from their bodies. They are also warm blooded, like people. This means they can keep themselves warm or cool and the outside temperature does not determine if they are cold or hot.

Cut out the flashcards and mix them up. Show the kids each animal and talk about which pile it should go into. Talk about why each animal has been classified the way it has.

READING

Name Recognition
In order to continue in learning how to recognize their own names, we will do this fun art activity. Prior to class, use wax crayons to write the children's names on a sheet of paper. Provide the kiddos with water color paints and allow them to paint over the picture however they wish! Their names in wax will resist the water color and show through no matter how much they paint. They will be amazed how their name cannot be covered up by their painting! Once dry, talk about their names and how they are spelled. Post these in the room!

SCIENCE

Cold Blooded

For this we are going to use thermometers to show how temperatures can differ from place to place and how reptiles use the different places to warm and cool their bodies!

If you need to purchase some thermometers for your class, this is a great deal and you can buy as many or as few as you need:  http://www.k12schoolsupplies.net/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=LER0380&click=2128&utm_source=Bing&utm_medium=Free&utm_campaign=Bing_Learning_Resources&gdftrk=gdfV2544_a_7c642_a_7c6518_a_7cLER0380

Humans (people) and other mammals are able to regulate their body temperature. That means that people stay at a constant 98.6 degrees all the time. It doesn't matter if it is really hot or really cold outside, we can keep out temperature the same. The air may feel cold or warm to us, but our body temperature will stay the same.

Reptiles are very different! They are "cold blooded". That means that their bodies will be the same temperature as the air around them. So if they are laying in some snow, they will be just as cold as the snow is. It is hard for these animals to be comfortable because they are always trying to find a place to lay where they can be just warm enough, but not too warm, and just cool enough, but not too cool.

In order to see just how different the temperature can be from place to place, we are going to test some areas with our thermometers. Lay the thermometers on the table and check the temperature. The room temperature will likely be in the 72º to 75º range. This is likely too cold for most reptiles! Take your thermometers outside and check the temperature in the shade. Then check in the sun. There is likely a difference of several degrees (especially here in Houston).  You can then place the thermometer in the freezer and find out how cold it is in there. The temperature changes from place to place and this is why all reptiles must actively find a place to hang out where they will be comfortable!

MATH

Alligator Teeth Math Mats

Print the mats. You can laminate them or place them in a sheet protector. Provide the kids with playdough and have them give the alligator the number of teeth listed on the page. This is a "counting in 2's" lesson!

Alligator Math Mats

Snake Pattern Matching

Print out the worksheet pages. The first pages have the patterns and the second pages have the pieces to use to complete the patterns. Patterning is a great skill to master. It can help children understand how things work together and how to solve problems.

Snake Patterning Worksheet



ART/CRAFT

Craft - Chameleon Paper Craft

From DLTK's website! A chameleon is a type of lizard. They are really amazing because the will change color to match whatever they are sitting on. Their eyes are also really neat because of how they move. Check out this short video chameleon and it's funny walk, and his eyes moving in their super cool way.

http://www.arkive.org/parsons-chameleon/calumma-parsonii/video-06a.html

Now that you know what a chameleon is, you can do a cool craft!

Materials Needed:

Paper plates (paper, not foam or plastic)
Markers, crayons or paint
Scissors
Glue sticks

Color or paint the bottom side of the paper plate. Choose any color, chameleons can change their color so be creative! Print the template below for each kid. Color the template pieces and cut out. If your kiddos are too young to cut them, help them out! Make an example for them to follow and allow them to glue their pieces to the plate.

http://www.dltk-kids.com/t.asp?b=m&t=http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/image/bplatechameleon.gif

Art - Squishy Snake Painting

Materials Needed:
Rubber snakes from a dollar store
Paint
Paper

Pour some paint into bowls big enough for the snakes to fit into. Provide each child with a squishy snake and some paper. Allow them to place the snake into the paint and create a masterpiece! When children are able to use something unusual for an activity like this, it makes it much more interesting!



GROSS MOTOR

Act Like A Reptile

This is a super fun game! Totally unorganized and crazy and that is what makes it so great! Get the kids in a line or circle. Shout out the name of a reptile and the kids should act like it! SLITHERY SNAKE! CHAMELEON! ALLIGATOR! So much fun and so silly.


FINE MOTOR

Cutting Practice

You will need some child's scissors for this. Cutting a circle is pretty tough, so if they can't get it, don't worry. This is more about the practice than perfection! You may want to cut one out yourself to show them what is supposed to be the end result!

http://www.firstpalette.com/tool_box/printables/spiralsnake.html

Download and print the template from firstpallet.com.

BOOKS



http://www.amazon.com/Whos-Hiding-Inside-Reptiles-Pull/dp/1581173075/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377110482&sr=1-2&keywords=who%27s+hiding+inside

This is a very cute book with interactive pull out pieces. Great for our lesson this week!



http://www.amazon.com/Mixed-Up-Chameleon-Eric-Carle/dp/0064431622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377110663&sr=1-1&keywords=the+mixed+up+chameleon

Great book which talks about characteristics of many animals and also has a lesson about loving who you are!


http://www.amazon.com/Look-Turtles-Lets-Read-Find-Out-Science/dp/0064451569/ref=cm_lmf_tit_5

A very informative book about turtles. Has great illustrations!



MUSIC

Reptiles They Have Many Scales

Reptiles they have many scales
Some reptiles have long, long tails
They lay eggs and like the sun
Some have legs, some have none
Reptiles they have many scales
Some reptiles have long, long tails




COOKING

Snake Sticks

Ingredients:
Bread stick Dough (the kind in a can that you can mold)
Parmesan Cheese, shredded
Butter, melted

Each child should make their own. Make sure they are making their creation on a piece of foil so you can move it! The idea is for the kids to make a snake out of their dough. They can keep it straight, make it curvy, curl it up, or whatever! When they have it the way they want it, use a pastry brush to spread melted butter on the top. Then allow the kids to sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top. Bake them as instructed on the package. Once cooled, you can all enjoy eating your snakes!



On The Farm

A farm is a very educational place! There are plenty of interesting animals to learn about, plants that grow, cool jobs, and dirt! All kids (well, most kids) love dirt! We are going to explore the happenings on a basic farm in this fun week full of lessons!

Farm Animal Flashcards!

CIRCLE TIME

Print out the flashcards above. Talk about a farm. A farm is a place where people called Farmers work their land raising different animals, such as cows and chickens, for food and also grow their own fruits and vegetables. They get up very early in the morning to begin working and they work very hard. All of their animals have to be fed and their living areas cleaned. Then the farmers have to milk the cows, collect the eggs from the chickens, and shear the wool from the sheep. Their plants must also be attended to. They have to water them amd pick the ripe fruits and vegetables when they become available. Often the farmers make their own furniture, tools, and clothing also! They are very busy.

What kinds of sounds do these animals make? Show them the flashcards and have them make the animal sounds!




LETTER:   Y  y for Yard

Y is for YES, YUM, YIPPEE, and YARD. Farms have Yards, Houses have Yards, even Schools have Yards.

Print the color sheet http://learning-years.com/coloring-pages/letters-numbers/ABC-123_coloring-030.htm

Talk about the sound that Y makes. Trace the letter with your finger, then with a crayon. Color the yard!






READING

Learning about LONG VOWELS can be tricky! This week we will continue to learn what happens when we add the "e" to the end of "short a" words. Review:

On Starfall.com: LONG vowel sounds! This week do the Long A lesson and story 
http://www.starfall.com/n/level-a/learn-to-read/load.htm?f

On readingbear.org: also work on the long A sound, which is usually made by adding an E to the end of a word
http://www.readingbear.org/Presentation.aspx?PresentationID=68&Part=1


Activity

Index Card Book:  Add to your book this week by creating words that sound one way with a short vowel and no "e" on the then that will change to long vowels when we add the "e". Use words like "cap", "wad", "mad", "bath", "man", and "tap". Read the words without the silent e, then find out how the word changes when we add the silent e.



SCIENCE

Butter Making!

How is butter made? Or a better question is, how was butter made by farmers a long time ago? They made it in a butter churn. A butter churn was a big jug with a huge pole that agitated or mixed up the milk. You would pour the fresh cow's milk into the jug, close the lid with the pole sticking out, and push and pull the pole up and down really quickly. This motion causes the fat in the milk to stick together. After a while, all the fat will be stuck together and that is what we call butter!

Materials Needed:

Baby Food Jars with Lids
Whipping Cream (full fat)

Pour whipping cream into the jars so that they are about half full. Place the lids on the jars TIGHTLY! Have everyone shake the jars as hard and fast as they can. More than likely they will tire out before the process is done. It might be a good idea to only provide 1 jar for every 2 or 3 children so they can take turns. After roughly 15 minutes, you will have butter! (see the Music section for the "making butter boogie") For better flavor, add a little table salt to it.

**Save the butter for the cooking activity later!

ACTIVITY

Act Like Farm Animals

This is fun and easy! Gather the children and tell them to act like a cow! Allow them to do this for a minute or 2 and then act like pigs! Continue on with this activity as long as they are interested.



COMMUNITY

Farmers

Farmers are very hard workers! They are up really early and go to bed late. There are many different kinds of farmers. Some produce crops, or fruits and vegetables. Some raise animals such as cows, sheep or pigs. Most of the fruit, vegetables and meats that we eat are grown and raised by farmers. Their crops can also be used to make our clothing, paper, and many other things. Farmers are very important people!




MATH

Math Mats

Print these math mats from Prekinders.com! They are really cute. Provide some white and yellow playdough and have the kiddos make baby chicks to put in the farm yard. The number of chicks they should make is listed on each mat. For a tougher challenge, mix the mats up so they aren't in numeric order.

http://www.prekinders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/farm-counting-mats.pdf






Farm Animal Patterning

Print this pack from havefunteaching.com. This is a terrific patterning lesson using very cute farm images.

http://havefunteaching.com/worksheets/themes/farm-worksheets/farm-sequencing-activity.pdf







ACTIVITY

Mommy animal and Baby animal Matching

Mommy & Baby Matching Cards

You can print the above cards and use for a few different games!

You could play a basic Memory game where you mix them up and turn them face down on the table. Have each child take a turn turning over the cards 2 at a time to try to match a mommy to a baby. Once they have found a match, remove those cards.

You can print out enough copies for each child and cut them out. Mix them up and have the kids make matches on the table. You could even have them glue them to a piece of construction paper in pairs.

You could even just hold up a picture of a mommy animal and have the kids find the matching baby.

ART/CRAFT

ART-Yarn Collage

Materials Needed:
Construction Paper

Lots of strips of yarn in multiple colors
Glue (white school glue works best)

This is an art project so there is no real goal! You can explain that we are using yarn because it is like the fiber farmers weave from Sheep's wool. (That is how we are tying it in to the farm theme) Allow the kids to pull whichever and however many pieces of yarn that they want and glue them to the paper. They could make a pattern, but more likely it will look like a big pile of mulit-colored spaghetti when they are done. Free art expression is a great thing for their little minds and is also great for their fine motor skills.





CRAFT - Hand Print Sheep

Crafts are generally more goal oriented. They are trying to reproduce something, but in their own way.

Materials Needed:
Black Paper

White Paper

White Chalk

White Cotton Balls
Glue

Begin by using white chalk to trace each kid's hand onto the black paper. Make sure their fingers are spread out wide! Cut them out.

Give the kids their handprint, a piece of white paper, a pile of cotton balls and glue. Ask them to glue their hand print to the paper. Show them that their thumb will be the head of the sheep and their fingers are the legs. You can even draw a little face on the thumb to help them see it! For even more fun, use googly eyes.

Next have the kids glue cotton to the body of their sheep. When they are done and dried, hang them up around the room.

BOOKS

On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/House-That-Built-Barefoot-Paperback/dp/1846860512/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369326597&sr=1-3&keywords=the+house+that+jack+built

This is a fun, repetetive rhyming book that is a delight to read!




On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Barnyard-Banter-Denise-Fleming/dp/0805087788/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369326682&sr=1-1&keywords=barnyard+banter

A really fun and interactive book  in which everyone can have fun making farm animal sounds!



MUSIC


Making Butter Boogie!

You can sing this while making the butter in the Science lesson!

Shake it UP, shake it DOWN
Shake it, shake it all around
Shake it HIGH, shake it LOW
Shake it, shake it to and fro
Shake it over, shake it under
And pretty soon, you will have BUTTER


Old MacDonald Had A Farm

A classic! Find it HERE. The link has the lyrics, the music to download and even a video! Have fun

COOKING

Farm Foods!

The idea here is to have a few items that people on farms can grow and make themselves!

Ingredients:

Bread (homemade is best, but not always feasible)

Butter (the stuff you made in the Science lesson)

Strawberries, apples or other fruit from a farm

Eggs

Milk

You might want to schedule this for breakfast time! Talk about how all of these things come from the farm. The farmers make their own bread using flour, salt, etc. You know how to make butter! Strawberries, apples, and other fruits are grown on farms. Eggs come from chickens. Milk comes from cows.

In order to get them involved, allow them to butter the toast and use plastic butter knives to cut strawberries. Serve the kids some scrambled eggs and a glass of milk also! A full farm-made meal.

(You could also serve bacon or sausage and talk about how it comes from pigs if you feel comfortable opening that can of worms!

Teeth and Dental Health

Our teeth are very important! In order for dental health to become a life-long habit, it is important to start early. Preschool aged children are also close to begin losing their baby teeth. This week we will spend some time learning about our teeth and how to take care of them. Knowing how to properly care for our teeth and what to kinds of things are bad for our teeth is a great help.

CIRCLE TIME

Healthy Teeth Activity

Draw a large smile on butcher paper. It needs to be an "open mouth" smile for this activity. Use regular white index cards for the teeth. Cut out pictures from magazines or the internet of healthy and sugary foods. Tape them to the back of the index cards. Tape the index cards to the smile to look like a mouth full of teeth. Place 2 boxes, 1 with a smiley face and 1 with a frowny face, on the floor or table in front of you. Hang the Smile up in the circle time area.
Ask the children to smile really big and look at each others teeth. Our teeth are bone-like objects in our mouths that help us chew up our food. In order to keep our teeth healthy and strong, we must take care of them. Eating sugary foods, like cookies and candy, can cause damage to our teeth. Sugar sticks to the teeth and can cause them to become weak. When that happens, they can break. We can keep that from happening by brushing and flossing our teeth everyday. Brushing our teeth is a lot like washing our hands! It helps to keep us healthy.
Ask a child to remove a tooth from the smile. On the back is a picture of food. Is the food good for your teeth or bad for your teeth? Have the child place the tooth in the correct box. Talk about what makes the food good or bad. Then continue with the rest of the children and the remaining teeth.

CLEAN TEETH ACTIVITY

Chew Test

Collect a few different foods they can taste. Provide some apple chunks, carrot sticks, and oreo cookies or chocolate graham crackers. Make sure there are mirrors available. Have the kids eat a cookie and then look at how dirty their teeth are. Eeeewww!! Then have them drink a little water and eat a carrot or apple. Now look at their teeth. Much cleaner, right?

This is a great example of how non-sugary foods can be much better choices to help keep their teeth healthy!



LETTER:  A a for Apple

A is for Apple! Apples are a healthy snack for your teeth and your body. Talk about the sounds that A makes. Print the color sheet below. Have the kids trace the letter with their finger and then a color. Color the picture.
http://first-school.ws/t/alpha1/a.htm

READING

This week we will work on ot and og and the short O sound.

On starfall.com:  og and ot
On readingbear.org: short "o" sounds

The fun activity for this week will involve plastic drink cups. It is best to make the first letters all one color, say red, and the ot and og part of the word in another color, say blue.

You will make an ot cup and an og cup. Then make cups for beginning letters of D, F, G, H, J, L, N, and P. Discuss the different sounds that the letters on each cup makes. Begin with the ot cup. Have everyone say "ot". Place the D cup in front of the ot cup. Ask a child to say the D sound. Now read ot. Put them together! You can continue this through the rest of the sounds.

SCIENCE

How Can Foods Stain Our Teeth?

Materials Needed:

4 eggs

4 clear cups

Cola

OJ

Vinegar

Water

 Present the eggs to the kids and compare them to your teeth. They are similar in texture and the same color. Explain that the foods and drinks we ingest can stain our teeth and we are going to demonstrate with the eggs. Place 1 egg in a cup and cover it with water. This is our control. This egg will not change colors. Place another egg in a cup and cover it with cola. What color do you think this egg will turn?  Place the 3rd egg in a cup and cover with vinegar. We already did this experiment at Easter, so see if they remember what happened to the egg.  Place the final egg in a cup and cover it with the orange juice. Do they think this egg will turn colors?
Leave the eggs alone for the day. You can check back a few times to see what is going on. After 24 hours, you should begin to see some color changes. Talk about the changes and what might have made the changes happen.
Brushing your teeth regularly can keep this staining from happening!





MATH

Tooth Counting

For this activity we will use playdough and playdough mats.
Math Mats - Teeth


Print out the above mats and laminate for best results. Give the kiddos white playdough (you can make your own by going here.)  Ask them to make the number of teeth listed on the nose of the face and place them in the mouth. These can be very funny! This is a great way to practice counting while also doing a Teeth activity!


You can also do this same activity on another day using mini-marshmallows or slivered almonds.



COMMUNITY

Dentists

Dentists are the doctors who take care of our teeth. We visit the dentists every year for a checkup (or to make sure our mouth is healthy) just like we visit the doctor for the same reason. The dentist will look into your mouth and make sure that all of your teeth are healthy. If they find any teeth that aren't healthy, they will need to fix them. Getting a filling doesn't hurt, but it is best to try to not need any. The best way to do that is to eat healthy foods and brush and floss your teeth everyday.

BOOKS

on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Berenstain-Bears-Visit-Dentist-Prebound/dp/0812429729/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367003001&sr=1-1&keywords=berenstein+bears+visit+the+dentist

"Sister Bear watches Dr. Bearson fill Brother Bear's small cavity. Then it's her turn in the chair to have a dangling baby tooth removed. An entertaining story for preschoolers of a cheerful and informative visit to a dentist. "


  on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Brush-Your-Teeth-Please-Pop-Up/dp/B00BR9YU6S/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1367003068&sr=1-1&keywords=brush+your+teeth+please

"What child can resist imitating a chimp brushing its teeth back and forth? Or a shark that flosses every day? Youngsters will have lots of fun learning about proper dental hygiene in this delightful pop-up book. "




ART

Toothbrush & Floss Painting

Materials Needed:
Construction Paper OR Butcher Paper
Toothbrushes
Floss
Paints

Provide paints, paper, a toothbrush and a strip of floss to each child and let them go crazy! Being allowed to paint with unusual objects makes it more interesting.




CRAFT

Toothbrush Craft

Materials Needed:
Construction Paper
Tissue Paper
Glue

Cut a toothbrush shape out of the paper. Provide squares of tissue paper and glue and allow the kids to fill in the bristly part of the brush with the tissue paper.

MUSIC

Got My Toothpaste (tune of Row Row Row Your Boat)

Got my toothpaste, got my brush,
I won't hurry, I won't rush.
Making sure my teeth are clean,
Front and back and in between.
When I brush for quite a while,
I will have a happy smile!

COOKING

Smile Pizza!

Ingredients:

Bagels (thin work best!)

Pizza Sauce

Cheese Sticks

Cut each half of the bagels in half to make a half moon (smile). We used the thin bagels so they would be less bread-y! Allow the kids to spread pizza sauce on their smile. Cut the cheese sticks into small tooth-like bits. I cut the stick in half lengthwise and then into small chunks. Allow the kids to add teeth to their smiles! Bake in a 400º oven for about 5-7 minutes.

MOTHER'S DAY CRAFT

Craft Stick Frames

Materials Needed:
Craft Sticks (like popsicle sticks)
Paint
Stickers
Ribbons
Googly Eyes
Sparkles
Heart stickers
Etc.
Craft Glue

Picture of the Kids

Glue the sticks in a square shape with the center open for the picture to show through. Allow the kids to decorate the frame using whatever materials you have. When done and dry, place the picture in the frame and let the kids take them home for Mommy's Day gift!