Astronomy and Baking. - How To Start a Preschool
Transcription
Astronomy and Baking. - How To Start a Preschool
Paren ion iat pprec tA FOREWORD Ask any preschool teacher what the best thing is about her job, and she’ll tell you: Seeing children’s eyes light up when they finally grasp a concept! And with that in mind, we began our journey to create a curriculum that encourages children’s success in a learning environment. And we succeeded! To date, our curriculum has been used and reviewed by thousands of mothers, child care providers, and preschool teachers across the world who love our fun, activity-based approach to teaching. After using our curriculum, educators have reported the following positive changes in their students: • Increased participation and interest in the activities • Increased letter, sound, number, shape and color retention • Decreased signs of aggression or hyper-activity In addition, educators told us they loved having all the lesson plans, supply lists, and printables right there at their fingertips so they didn’t have to spend hours upon hours scouring the internet for ideas! Our curriculum saved them loads of preparation time and helped them get back to what they really enjoyed doing: TEACHING! The most important concept you can gain from reading this foreword is that our curriculum is only as good as you allow it to be. If you let this manual sit on your desk tomorrow and never open it again, you’ll have no way of knowing how it could improve your teaching or enhance your students’ learning. But, if you commit yourself to using our curriculum for your program, you’ll no doubt find the same success that the other thousands of educators have found above. So whether you’re a brand new teacher and need to follow the lesson plans word for word, or whether you’re going to use our curriculum as a guide and add your own thoughts, tips and adaptations to the lesson plans, we welcome you to the Preschool Fundamentals family and know that you’ll enjoy our curriculum as much as we’ve enjoyed creating it! All the best, Joy Anderson Joy Anderson Owner, Preschool Fundamentals © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com INTRODUCTION So what exactly is FUNDAMENTALS Preschool Curriculum? FUNDAMENTALS Preschool Curriculum is a developmentally appropriate, activitybased curriculum for children ages 3-5 that focuses on the FUNDAMENTAL skills children not only need to learn but are also excited to learn! Our curriculum features 3 core components: LIFE SCIENCE SKILLS: Each weekly life science theme, LIFE SCIENCE SKILLS LIFE SKILLS PRE-K SKILLS such as Vehicles, Astronomy, Baking, or Ocean, offers fun activities to expand children’s knowledge of the world so they can feel confident with their place in it. LIFE SKILLS: Each day the children engage in a lesson with puppets or games, helping them practice vital life skills like Hygiene, Health, Sharing, Time and Safety. PRE-K SKILLS: Each activity aims to teach children the critical Pre-K skills needed to succeed in school later on, such as learning to write, understanding simple math, and also knowing their letters, sounds, numbers, shapes and colors among other things. Our curriculum is comprised of 36 themes, organized into 26 A-Z themes and 10 holiday themes. Each theme has 3 days of lesson plans, perfect for a 2- or 3-day/week preschool program (For instance, you can use the lesson plans for Day 1 and 2 for your T_TH class, and you can use Days 1-3 for your M_W_F class.) Inside each theme, you’ll find the following materials: • Activity Outline • Enrichment Ideas • Days 1-3 Lesson Plans • A-Z Letter Pals • A-Z Letter Cards • Each theme’s activities that require printables And now, let’s go through each of the materials to learn more about them and how they will enrich your program. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com INTRODUCTION ENRICHMENT IDEAS ACTIVITY OUTLINE ronom st y The first page of each weekly theme is the Activity Outline. We have illustrated how you can use the outline for your weekly planning with the graphic on the right. After reading through the lesson plans, write in what activities you’ll be doing each day for easy reference while teaching. The NOTES section offers space to write down field trip plans or other fun activities for the week’s lesson. A ACTIVITY OUTLINE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 Circle Time Show & Tell Weekend Review Compliments School Time Writing “A” Andrew Alligator “A” Box Sounds Discovery Time Centers Centers Centers Activity Time Moon Rock Toss Astronomy Books AstronomyVideo Music Time Orbiting ‘Round Star Light/Bright Arts & Crafts Snack Time Reading Time Play Time 8 Planets Moon Mobile Magic Star Skies Spray Bottle N/A N/A N/A Moon Changes Stars! Stars! No Place Like Centers Centers Centers The next pages are the Weekly Ennotes Field Trip on Tuesday to the planetarium. Cost: $3/child. Parents free. richment Ideas sheets. On these, you’ll find Call the day before we come. multiple snack ideas as well as a Talk Time Fun Center Idea: Let the kids make Ants on a Log (Celery with peanut section that gives you discussion questions butter or cheese whiz, and raisins on top.) Take pictures! to help expand your students’ learning about the theme. You may even want to include the questions on the weekly newsletter so parents can continue the discussion at home. You will also find a Did You Know section that lists a few fun facts, as well as a field trip idea. The exploration video can be used if your students have a computer with Internet access in the classroom. Lastly, you’ll find various fine motor and gross motor activities that correspond with the theme. These are perfect for enriching your center time activities! You can also use the space to write down your own activities as you come across them as well. DAYS 1-3 LESSON PLANS Our lesson plans are structured to accommodate a 2-3 hr. daily preschool class. However, they can easily be adapted to fit child care settings with the activities spread throughout the day. Feel free to adapt the curriculum to meet your program’s needs. Also, use the NOTES/SUPPLIES area to write down the supplies you need and any notes about things that went well or should be improved on for the next class. You’ll find that the lesson plans follow a familiar format each day to help the children learn structure and consistency in a classroom setting, as well as learn FUNDAMENTAL skills, as seen here: © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com INTRODUCTION • CIRCLE TIME: Helps children respect others, take turns, listen and tell stories. Pledge of Allegiance and weather chart help children learn repetition and prediction. • SCHOOL TIME: Helps children write letters, learn letter sounds, recognize the letters on signs, and understand that letters are used to communicate. • DISCOVERY TIME: Helps children sort manipulatives, count groupings, feel through sensory activities, and develop fine motor skills. • ACTIVITY TIME: Helps children learn movement, rhythm, instruments, beats, and finger plays. Arts & Crafts help children cut, glue, write their name, learn shapes and colors, follow directions, work with art materials, and clean up. • SNACK TIME: Helps children learn how to use good manners, talk nicely to friends, help the teacher, and clean up. • READING TIME: Helps children “read” to each other, develop a love for favorite books, take care of books, and spend time independently. Life Skills help children learn how to eat healthy, safely cross the street, share toys, not talk to strangers, and more. • PLAY TIME: Helps children share toys, respect other people’s property, treat others kindly, exercise, pretend, obey rules, and develop gross motor skills. A-Z LETTER PALS & LETTER CARDS You’ll also find 26 alphabet letter pals with the corresponding letter card that will help your students learn each letter, its sound, and the proper way to write it with silly songs, letter chants, and fun animal characters! RECOMMENDED OUTLINE On the next pages, you’ll find a Recommended Outline where we’ve assembled all the 36 themes into 9 convenient units for you to use over a 9 month period. While you’re certainly free to teach the curriculum in alphabetical order, we prefer to teach it out of order so students gain individual letter recognition, not just letter recognition within the alphabet sequence. We’ve also included a blank outline if you’d like to adjust the sequence of the themes to work better with your program. * The (R) inside the letter column stands for Review during holiday themes. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com INTRODUCTION These songs are used often in our curriculum, but the tune is difficult to explain. To hear the tunes for these songs, go to: http://www.preschoolfundamentals.com/videos DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Then we start again. (Repeat the days of the week, then finish the song by saying:) Now our song is done. MONTHS OF THE YEAR SONG January, February, March and April, May, June, July and August, September, October, November, December, These are the months of the year. WELCOME TO PRESCHOOL SONG Here we are at preschool, At preschool, At preschool. Here we are at preschool, To learn and have FUN! There’s (Child’s name) and (Child’s name) (Repeat above line until you say every child’s name in the circle, then:) And even, Miss (Your name)! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Paren ion iat pprec tA recommended OUTLINE !& * + +,-$*#.%& / 2 2' " " !&% 6 6 5 5 5#! + *( !&' / $8$ 3 3 9 98 : : ; ' - -8 1 '( #' +00 + ,"& / / 2' 2 " ", 5 ' 57' %15 +5 #$5 & 6 6 5* 5 ( / $ $ ( 3 3 ( + 9* /7 !! : : " ' &%" -& -& # <= 5(5$5+ ! , " 5 1 % (5#1+$ + 2 $ (' (& %" ( ,- #/5!+ February March " % 4'& April %'& % 1 ( 34 May % ! $!% / % 5 () # # %;" ( $ + ! ! $55 " -5" %& 15 December November % +#( # :1#5 # !+#$5 ! 5!#$5 ! 5#! !#$ 2# e or Shap Col Letter Pal 52+5" + 5# + -$+55 + /#(++ January Life Skills Life Science Theme !+(5 + October September er Lett >?? !&! "$ 1 1' $,/ © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Paren ion iat pprec tA your OUTLINE Life Science Theme Life Skills Letter Pal May April March February January December November October September er Lett © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com e or Shap Col Paren ion iat pprec tA PLANNING CALENDAR To help you plan your next year of curriculum themes, we’ve included this convenient planning calendar for you to use. If you follow a School District schedule, be sure to cross out all the days you should be out of school and plan your curriculum accordingly. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Building Children's Skills: The FUN Way! Preschool Curriculum ASTRONOMY © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com This page left intentionally blank for double-sided printing convenience. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com DAY 1 DAY 2 A DAY 3 notes © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com y ACTIVITY OUTLINE ronom st A y ronom st ENRICHMENT Ideas SNACKS TALK TIME • • Apples • Ants on a log (celery with moon? • peanut butter or cheese whiz, and raisons on top) How is the moon different from the earth? • • Applesauce • Astronaut pudding (pudding in a Ziploc bag with a corner • How is the moon different from the earth? • there is no gravity) When you wish upon a star, what do you wish? cut off so you can eat when • How do astronauts get to the Apricots Do aliens fly in space shuttles or space ships? DID YOU KNOW • If you put Saturn in water, it would float. • Every year the moon moves a little further away from the earth. • Once sunlight has left the sun, it takes about 8 minutes for the energy in the sunlight we see to reach earth. VIDEO CLIP Click on the Astronomy link at: http://www.preschoolfundamentals.com/videos FIELD TRIP Visit a planetarium and gaze at the stars and constellations. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ENRICHMENT Ideas ronom st FINE MOTOR SKILL ACTIVITIES • Provide various toy space shuttles for children to compare sizes and colors. • Put various glow-in-the-dark stars, planets, comets, etc. in a box for children to sort. • Spray paint a shoe box and its lid black. Cut a small hole (about the size of a dime) in the lid. Set it by the glow-in-the-dark shapes and have the children put a few shapes in at a time, cover with the lid, and see the shapes glow. • Put Karo syrup, glitter, blue water, and star confetti in a baby food or small jar. Glue lid on. Let the children shake and observe the night sky. • Put out a Lite Bright for the children to make their own constellations. GROSS MOTOR SKILL ACTIVITIES • Make a few telescopes for the children by covering the end of a paper towel roll with black paper, putting a rubber band around it, and then poking some holes with a needle in the shape of a constellation. • Play “Astronaut, Astronaut, Alien” instead of Duck, Duck, Goose. • Create an astronaut dress up area. Include helmets made out of milk jugs or 5-gallon ice cream buckets and foil, moon boots made out of sponges and rubber bands to strap on feet, and air packs made out of backpacks and 2-liter bottles stuck together with straps attached. • Make a space shuttle for dramatic play with refrigerator boxes spray painted white on the outside or draped with white sheets. Cut stars out of the top for light. Put an old keyboard inside for the controls. • Teach the children how to play with frisbies as flying saucers. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 1 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES CIRCLE TIME Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children discuss their Sharing items. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the current day or month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Using the Letter Card, discuss the letter Aa with the children, including: What does it remind you of? (A mountain with snow on top/an arrow, etc.) Then say the letter chant as you write the uppercase letter on the board in this manner: Start at the top, top, top, Slant down to the left, Slant down to the right, Go straight across to connect In the middle, And then stop, stop stop! Aa Let them each come up and write the letter on the board. Offer guidance if needed, and remember to give lots of praise! DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. Be sure to rotate children through different centers if they want to. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com ACTIVITY TIME A NOTES/SUPPLIES Exploration: Have a Moon Rock Toss. Explain to the children that because the moon doesn’t have much gravity, rocks are not heavy on the moon like they are on earth. Give each child two “moon rocks” and divide them up into two teams. Put one team on one side of the room behind a strip of masking tape. Put the other team on the other side of the room behind another strip of masking tape. Tell the children that if they cross the line, their connection to the spaceship will be lost and they will float out into space. Count down from 10 to 1. At blastoff, have the children throw the “moon rocks” at each other. If any rocks land within reach tell them that they can pick them up and throw them again. Prepwork - Crumple up sheets of white paper to make two “moon rocks” per child. On the floor, tape two strips of masking tape, about 8 feet apart. Rhythms and Movement: Explain to the children what orbiting means. Sing “We’ll Be Orbiting Round The Moon” to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It.” In each verse, sing the first line to the children while showing them the actions to that verse. Have the children echo, while copying your actions, and then sing the last three lines together. We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll y DAY 1 Lesson Plan ronom st be orbiting round the moon, yes we will, be orbiting round the moon, yes we will, be orbiting round the moon, be orbiting round the moon, be orbiting round the moon, yes we will. (Make your left hand a moon by closing your left hand into a fist, and use your pointer finger on your right hand as a spaceship to orbit around the moon.) We’ll be landing on the moon, yes we will, We’ll be landing on the moon, yes we will, We’ll be landing on the moon, © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 1 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES We’ll be landing on the moon, We’ll be landing on the moon, yes we will. (Land pointer finger on fist) We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll be walking on the moon, yes we will, be walking on the moon, yes we will, be walking on the moon, be walking on the moon, be walking on the moon, yes we will. (Walk fingers of right hand on fist) We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll be blasting off again, be blasting off again, be blasting off again, be blasting off again, be blasting off again, (Blast pointer finger We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll We’ll be landing back on Earth, yes we will, be landing back on Earth, yes we will, be landing back on Earth, be landing back on Earth, be landing back on Earth, yes we will. (Land pointer finger on top of your head for Earth) yes we will, yes we will, yes we will. off of fist) Arts & Crafts: Make a Phases of the Moon Mobile. Begin by asking the children if they’ve ever noticed that the moon looks different at various times of the month. To the extent you prefer, explain why the moon appears to shine, and why it waxes and wanes. Give each child a Phases of the Moon printable and a sponge. Show them how to dip their sponge in paint, dab the excess off, and lightly sponge their moons. Let them decorate all four of their moons. After the paint dries, beginning with the moon they began with, have them cut their moons out. Let them punch a hole at the top of each moon. Help them string a piece of yarn through the hole, and tie. Tie the other end of the string to a popsicle stick, ordering the moons from crescent to half to gibbous to full. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Print – Print one “Phases of the Moon” printable for each child. A y DAY 1 Lesson Plan ronom st NOTES/SUPPLIES Prepwork – Cut kitchen sponges in half so you have a small sponge for each child. Make a mobile for each child by cutting yarn into 1-2 foot lengths, four per child. Use some yarn to lash two popsicle sticks together so they form a cross. Tie a piece of yarn (12-18”) onto each end of the popsicle sticks. Gather - Paper plates, sponges, yarn, popsicle sticks, light blue paint, scissors, hole punch SNACK TIME Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children relax and unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. READING TIME Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about why the moon seems to grow and shrink. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: The Moon Seems to Change by Franklyn M. Branley. Be sure to ask thoughtprovoking questions about the story as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Tell the children they are going to learn why it’s important to get dressed. Then hold a puppet show based loosely on the following story: Tommy gets dinosaur pajamas for Christmas. He loves them and says that he is never going to take them off. He likes to pretend he is a dinosaur and © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 1 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES is very strong. Tommy wears his new pajamas for three whole days and three whole nights. One morning, Tommy’s mom asks him to take his dinosaur pajamas off and put some clothes on because they are going to go to the library. Tommy is very sad and mad that his mom wants him to take his favorite pajamas off. He did notice that they were getting stinky and dirty but he still wants to wear them. Tommy’s mom says he has to take them off right now. Even though he doesn’t want to, he takes his pajamas off, takes a bath, and tries to put on some clean clothes afterward. He keeps trying to stick his head through the arm holes and his arms keep going where his head is supposed to. Tommy has forgotten how to get dressed because he hasn’t done it for so long! He has to ask his mom for help. When he finally gets his clean clothes on he notices how nice they smell. At the end of the day, Tommy notices his mom has washed and folded his pajamas. He put them on and decides that it is a good idea to let them have a rest each day. Get creative with it and be sure to make the kids laugh! End the puppet show by asking the children what they learned. PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Be available for assistance and guidance. Farewell: Remember to give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com CIRCLE TIME A y DAY 2 Lesson Plan ronom st NOTES/SUPPLIES Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children talk about their weekend. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the day/month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Introduce Andrew the Alligator by saying, “I have a friend who has come a long, long way to say hello to us today! Would you like to meet him?” Then give prompts for the children to guess what animal it is, such as: “He starts with the letter A. He is a slimy creature. He rhymes with tater.” Once they’ve guessed it, show them the picture of Andrew the Alligator and ask them to sing his song along with you: Andrew the Alligator, Andrew the Alligator, Forgot to brush his teeth, So the Dentist said “See Ya Later!” DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. ACTIVITY TIME Exploration: Bring out a collection of books on the theme and share them with the class. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 2 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES I Want to Be an Astronaut by Byron Barton Roaring Rockets by Tony Mitton Stars! Stars! Stars! by Bob Barner Space Boy by Leo Landry Curious George and the Rocket by H.A. Rey Green Wilma, Frog in Space by Tedd Arnold Big Silver Space Shuttle by Ken Wilson-Max Rhythms and Movement: Talk about why stars look so shiny. Sing the song “Star Light, Star Bright” while passing around the shiny star. Then, when you’re finished, give each of them a chance to hold the shiny star and say what they would wish for. Star light, star bright First star I see tonight I wish I may, I wish I might, Get the wish I wish tonight. Prepwork - Cut a star out of cardstock and tinfoil. Glue the tinfoil onto the cardstock, then decorate with glitter. Arts & Crafts: Make Magic Star Skies. Show the children how to draw a simple star. Give them white crayons and have them draw some stars on white paper. If this is too challenging, have them make small solid circles with white crayons, and draw a few stars for them. Let the children paint over the white paper with black tempera paint wash and watch the stars magically appear in the night sky. Prepwork - Mix black tempera paint with water to make a wash (about 3⁄4 tempera paint to 1⁄4 water). Gather - white crayons, white paper, paintbrushes SNACK TIME Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com READING TIME A y DAY 2 Lesson Plan ronom st NOTES/SUPPLIES Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about a child looking at stars through a telescope. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: Stars! Stars! Stars! by Bob Barner. Be sure to ask thought-provoking questions as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Tell the children that they are going to have a Getting Dressed Relay. Divide the students into two groups. Have them form two lines. When you say go, have the first two children run and put an oversized dress-up outfit on top of their clothes while singing. Then they must take the clothes off, and run and touch the next child’s hand. Repeat until everyone has had a turn. Getting dressed is fun to do Fun to do Fun to do Getting dressed is fun to do So early in the morning Gather - Two dress-up outfits with the same number of pieces per outfit (i.e. 2 hats, 2 pants, 2 shirts, etc.) PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Be available for assistance and guidance. Farewell: Remember to give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 3 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES CIRCLE TIME Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children give each other compliments. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the day/month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Tell the children it’s time for the Box of Sounds! Let each child have a turn pulling something out of the box as the class chants its sound and name! Remember that the letter A says /a/ as in apple or ape. Items to put in the Box of Sounds: apple, alligator, astronaut, ant, anteater DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. ACTIVITY TIME Exploration: Gather the children together to play the video from the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet. Tell them they are going to watch a video about American astronauts and spaceships. Rhythms and Movement: Sing “There Are Eight Planets” to the tune of “Mary Had A Little Lamb.” Use your fingers to hold up the numbers which correlate with © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com each verse. While singing, walk around in a circle around a ball (preferably yellow) that represents the sun. A y DAY 3 Lesson Plan ronom st NOTES/SUPPLIES There are eight planets Eight planets, eight planets There are eight planets That orbit the sun First comes Mercury Mercury, Mercury First comes Mercury That orbits the sun Repeat for each of the following: Second comes Venus… Third comes Earth… Fourth comes Mars… Fifth comes Jupiter… Sixth comes Saturn… Seventh comes Uranus… Eighth comes Neptune… Pluto now is a dwarf planet, Dwarf planet, dwarf planet, Pluto now is a dwarf planet That orbits the sun There are eight planets Eight planets, eight planets There are eight planets That orbit the sun Gather - Large yellow ball Arts & Crafts: Make Spray Bottle Solar Systems. Let the children spray black construction paper with the paint/water mixture in the spray bottle. Let them paint watercolor circles to make planets and the sun. Have them glue their planets and sun onto the black paper. Prepwork - Dilute white paint with water and put it in © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com A y ronom st DAY 3 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES a few small spray bottles. Cut or punch out 10 various sized circles per child for the planets and sun. Gather - Black construction paper, white paint, spray bottles, colored circles, watercolors and brushes, glue SNACK TIME Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. READING TIME Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about the Cat in the Hat. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: There’s No Place Like Space by Tish Rabe. Be sure to ask thought-provoking questions about the story as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Let the children perform a skit about why it’s important to know how to get dressed. Give prompts if needed, but otherwise, sit back and enjoy the show! PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Farewell: Give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Phases of the Moon Directions: Color the different moon phases and cut out each moon. Then, punch a hole through each moon and string them onto the mobile. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Storytelling Directions: Read the sentence below to the child and have them think of their answer. Let them draw out their story, and afterwards help them write in their answer. They can finish by coloring the theme's picture. Astronomy If I lived on a different pla net, I would ca ll it: ____________. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Aa Start at the top, top, top, Slant down to the left, Slant down to the right, Go straight across to connect In the middle, And then stop, stop, stop! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Andrew the a lligator Andrew Andrew Forgot to So the Dentist the Alligator, the Alligator, b rush his teeth, said "See Ya Later!" © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Writing Letter A Aa Directions: First, trace the letter with your finger to learn how to write it. Next, trace the uppercase & lowercase letters. Last, trace the word. AAAA a a a a ALLIGATOR © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Writing Letter A Directions: First, trace the letter with your finger to learn how to write it. Next, color the uppercase & lowercase letters. Last, draw an animal in the box. Aa I see an alligator. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Andrew the a lligator Andrew Andrew Forgot to So the Dentist Name: the Alligator, the Alligator, b rush his teeth, said "See Ya Later!" © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Building Children's Skills: The FUN Way! Preschool Curriculum baking © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com This page left intentionally blank for double-sided printing convenience. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g ACTIVITY OUTLINE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 notes © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g ENRICHMENT Ideas SNACKS TALK TIME • Bananas • • Blueberries • Bears (Teddy Grahams, Where does flour come from? • Gummy Bears) What is your favorite kind of bread? • Bob the Builder Snacks • • Butter on Bread pie, what would you put in • Brownies it? • Biscuits • If you were going to make a How many kinds of sugars can you name? • Should we eat raw eggs? DID YOU KNOW • The Egyptians baked the first known cakes, which were honey cakes with fruit and nuts. • Eclairs got their name from the French word for lightning, because their long, thin shape is supposed to resemble lightning. VIDEO CLIP Click on the Baking link at: http://www.preschoolfundamentals.com/videos FIELD TRIP Tour a bakery or your local supermarket. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g ENRICHMENT Ideas FINE MOTOR SKILL ACTIVITIES • Line a muffin/cupcake pan with liners and write numbers 1-10 on the bottom of the liners. Let the children count the right number of beans into each tin. • Put measuring cups and spoons in a container full of wheat so the children can see how many tablespoons are in 1⁄4 cup, how many 1/3 cups are in a cup, etc. • Glue a picture of a pizza or pie onto cardboard and cut it into slices so the children can count the slices, take it apart, and put it back together again. GROSS MOTOR SKILL ACTIVITIES • Create a dramatic play bakery area with muffin, cake, and bread pans, pie plates, cookie sheets, bowls, measuring cups, rolling pins, aprons, etc. • Make chef hats with strips of poster board and tissue paper. • Make a large batch of play dough and divide it into four parts. Leave one part white, mix cocoa powder into one part, mix ginger and cinnamon into one part, and vanilla into one part. Then watch the children’s senses come alive as they play with all the scented dough! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 1 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES CIRCLE TIME Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children discuss their Sharing items. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the current day or month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Using the Letter Card, discuss the letter Bb with the children, including: What does it remind you of? (A number three with a line on one side, etc.) Then say the letter chant as you write the uppercase letter on the board in this manner: Start at the top, top, top, Go straight down, Start at the top, Loop to the right to connect In the middle--then do it again, And then stop, stop, stop! Bb Let them each come up and write the letter on the board. Offer guidance if needed, and remember to give lots of praise! DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. Be sure to rotate children through different centers if they want to. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 1 Lesson Plan ACTIVITY TIME NOTES/SUPPLIES Exploration: Play Hot Potato. Gather the children in a circle and show them a potato. Tell them that when a potato comes out of the oven, it is usually hot. So you’re going to be passing around the potato, and when it gets to you, you have to pass it on quick before it pretends to burns you. Play some music and pass the potato around, making sure that when the music stops the person holding the potato doesn’t pass it, but instead tells the class something that their mom bakes in the oven. Gather - potato, music Rhythms and Movement: Sing “This Is The Way We Make The Bread” to the tune of “So Early In The Morning.” In front of the children, lay out the items you gathered. Sing one verse, and then stop and see if the children can identify which prop the verse talks about. After you have gone through all the verses and props, sing the song straight through with the children. This is the way we make the bread Make the bread, make the bread This is the way we make the bread So we can make bread for you This is the way the bread dough rises Bread dough rises, bread dough rises This is the way the bread dough rises So we can make bread for you This is the way we mix the bread Mix the bread, mix the bread This is the way we mix the bread So we can make bread for you This is the Knead the This is the So we can way we knead the dough dough, knead the dough way we knead the dough make bread for you © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 1 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES This is the way we shape the dough Shape the dough, shape the dough This is the way we shape the dough So we can make bread for you This is the way we bake the dough Bake the dough, bake the dough This is the way we bake the dough So we can make bread for you This is the way we eat the bread Eat the bread, eat the bread This is the way we eat the bread Don’t worry! There’s some left for you. Prepwork - Put a tablespoon of yeast in a bowl. Just before you sing this song, mix a few cups of very warm water (110 degrees when you begin the song would be preferable, so get it hotter than that to begin with as it will cool some before you use it) with 1/3 cup of sugar. Gather - bread recipe, bowl and mixing spoon (in addition to the bowl for the yeast), cutting board, bread pan, oven mitts, plate Arts & Crafts: Make Sponge Painted Aprons. Give each child an apron, and let them dip sponges into paint to sponge onto their apron. Prepwork - Purchase a solid colored apron for each child. Cut kitchen sponges into shapes. Put different colors of paint (acrylic craft paint works well) on paper plates with a sponge in each one. Gather - aprons, sponges, scissors, paint, paper plates SNACK TIME Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 1 Lesson Plan READING TIME NOTES/SUPPLIES Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about a chicken who has to make bread all by herself because no one will help her. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: The Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone. Be sure to ask thought-provoking questions about the story as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Tell the children they are going to learn why it’s important to brush our teeth. Then hold a puppet show based loosely on the following story: Hayley does not like to brush her teeth. Before bed, Hayley’s mom says “I hope you brushed you teeth good so they don’t all fall out!” As she falls asleep, Hayley dreams that all of her teeth are so dirty that they start falling out; she can’t even chew anything so she can only eat soup for the rest of her life. When Hayley wakes up she runs to the mirror and looks at her teeth. None of them fell out, but she now brushes her teeth. Get creative with it and be sure to make the kids laugh! End by asking the children what they learned. PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Farewell: Give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 2 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES CIRCLE TIME Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children talk about their weekend. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the current day or month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Introduce Becky the Bird by saying, “I have a friend who has come a long, long way to say hello to us today! Would you like to meet her?” Then give prompts for the children to guess what animal it is, such as: “She starts with the letter B. She has feathers and lives in a nest. She rhymes with word. She says tweet, tweet.” Once they’ve guessed it, show them the picture of Becky the Bird and ask them to sing her song along with you: Becky the bird, bird, bird, Lived in a house, house, house. She thought she heard, heard, heard, A little mouse, mouse, mouse! DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. Be sure to rotate children through different centers if they want to. 34 © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 2 Lesson Plan ACTIVITY TIME NOTES/SUPPLIES Exploration: Bring out a collection of books on the theme and share them with the class. If you don’t have enough, you can have the children pair up with a partner to explore the books. Be sure to extend their learning by offering prompts or answering questions they have. Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban Bread Is For Eating by David Gershator The Tortilla Factory by Gary Paulsen The Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone The Gingerbread Man by Catherine Mccafferty Birthday Cake for Little Bear by Mx Velthuiis Veggies on Our Pizza by Chantelle B. Goodman Pizza Kittens by Charlotte Voake Rhythms and Movement: Learn “Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes” by The Wiggles. Play the song and listen to it together. Divide the children into two groups. Have everyone sing the chorus together, and then on the verses have one group say “What do you do?” and “What’s next?” and the other group answer, demonstrating with imaginary baking tools as they go. (CHORUS) Crunchy munchy, honey cakes, They’re great to eat and they’re fun to make. In your hand or on a plate, Crunchy munchy honey cakes. What do you do? Apron on and wash your hands, Get a bowl and baking pan. What’s next? Rolling pin and mixing spoon, We’ll be mixing very soon. (CHORUS) 35 © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 2 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES What do you do? Take the flour and honey too, Put them together and make a goo. What’s next? Add some milk and muesli flakes, Now we’re almost ready to bake. (CHORUS) What do you do? Roll some balls on a baking tray, Then in the oven right away. What’s next? Stand back and watch them bake, Now let’s eat those yummy cakes. (CHORUS) Arts & Crafts: Make Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes. Have all the children put on their new aprons and wash their hands. Let the children see how you measure each ingredient according to the recipe, and then let them take turns pouring muesli flakes, sugar, coconut and flour into a bowl. Let children take turns stirring while you heat the butter, honey, and milk. Pour it over the dry ingredients and mix. Show the children how to roll the dough into balls about the size of walnuts and place on a greased baking tray. Let them finish rolling all the dough into balls. Bake for 15-20 minutes. When you put them in and take them out of the oven emphasize that this part of the job is only for adults to do. Cool and enjoy. Print – Print enough “Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes” printables on cardstock for each child to have one copy to take home. Gather – “Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes” recipe, mixing bowl, large spoon, pan or microwaveable bowl © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 2 Lesson Plan SNACK TIME NOTES/SUPPLIES Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children relax and unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. READING TIME Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about a little pig who bakes a cake for his friend Little Bear. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: Birthday Cake for Little Bear by Max Velthuiis. Be sure to ask thought-provoking questions about the story as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Give each child a tea stained boiled egg and a toothbrush. Show them how to brush the egg. The brown stains will disappear as the children brush. As they are brushing play “Brush Your Teeth” by Raffi and let the children sing along to the chorus. Prepwork - Download “Brush Your Teeth” by Raffi. The same day of the activity, boil eggs in water with a tea bag. The tea will stain the eggs brown. Cool the eggs. PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Be available for assistance and guidance. Farewell: Remember to give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 3 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES CIRCLE TIME Welcome: Welcome all the children into a circle. Sharing: Let the children give each other compliments. Pledge of Allegiance: Recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Calendar & Weather: Discuss the weather and the calendar. Practice the Days of the Week and Months of the Year songs and clap when you get to the current day or month. SCHOOL TIME Letter of the Week: Tell the children it’s time for the Box of Sounds! Let each child have a turn pulling something out of the box as the class chants its sound and name! Items to put in the Box of Sounds: ball, baby, bakery, banjo, baseball, basket, barn, beans, bee, bear, bike, bone DISCOVERY TIME Fine Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested center ideas listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to observe, interact, help and guide the children as they discover more about the theme. Be sure to rotate children through different centers if they want to. ACTIVITY TIME Exploration: Gather the children together to play the video from the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet. Tell them they are going to watch some children baking a cake together. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 3 Lesson Plan Rhythms and Movement: Sing “Pizza Song” to the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” Show the children pictures of various pizza toppings. Sing the song once, and the let one of the children say what they like to put on their pizza. Sing the song again, and let another child list their favorite topping. Repeat until all the children have had a turn to say their favorite pizza topping. NOTES/SUPPLIES Pizza, pizza, it’s a treat Pizza, pizza is fun to eat! Ooey-gooey cheese so yummy Crunchy crust goes in my tummy Pizza, pizza it’s a treat Pizza, pizza is fun to eat! Print – Print one “Pizza Song” printable on cardstock and cut out the pieces. Gather – real food to show children examples of various pizza toppings. Arts & Crafts: Make Paper Plate Pizzas. Give each child a printable and let them color, cut out, and glue toppings onto their pizza. Once completed, have the child cut out their whole pizza (or if they’re older, they can cut out the individual slices) and glue them onto their paper plate pizza. Print – Print one “Paper Pizza” printable for each child. Prepwork – Make a paper plate pizza for each child by using a marker and ruler to draw 3 intersecting lines on each plate to divide them into 6 pieces, just like a pizza would have 6 slices. Gather - paper plates, glue, scissors, markers, ruler © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com kin Ba g DAY 3 Lesson Plan NOTES/SUPPLIES SNACK TIME Remind everyone to use good manners. Let the children relax and unwind from their activities as they talk to each other. READING TIME Quiet Reading: Encourage children to read to each other and quietly praise those who are reading nicely. Story Time: Tell the children you’re going to read them a story about four children who want vegetables on their pizza so they can grow up big and strong. Encourage them to read the story along with you if they would like. Then read the book: Veggies on Our Pizza by Chantelle Goodman. Be sure to ask thought-provoking questions about the story as you go along to stimulate the children’s minds. Life Skills: Let the children perform a skit about why it’s important to brush their teeth. Give prompts if needed, but otherwise, sit back and enjoy the show! PLAY TIME Gross Motor Skills: Use some of our suggested play time activities listed on the Weekly Enrichment Ideas sheet, or make up some of your own. Use this time to expand the children’s learning about the theme. Be available for assistance and guidance. Farewell: Remember to give each child a sticker on their chart. Don’t forget to give lots of hugs as you say goodbye, and tell them you can’t wait to see them next time! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Pizza Song Directions: Print one copy on cardstock paper and cut out the images. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Paper Plate Pizza Directions: Print one copy for each child. Let the children color their pizza and toppings, then let them cut out the pizza (or the individual slices if the children are older) and glue their pizza onto a paper plate. When they are finished, they can cut out and glue their toppings onto their pizza. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes 3 cups muesli flakes ½ cup sugar 1 cup self-rising flour 1 cup coconut 1 cup butter 2 tsp honey 3 T milk From The Wiggles! Combine muesli flakes, sugar, coconut and sifted flour in a bowl and mix well. Heat butter, honey, and milk. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well. Roll into balls the size of walnuts and place on a greased baking tray. Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Crunchy Munchy Honey Cakes 3 cups muesli flakes ½ cup sugar 1 cup self-rising flour 1 cup coconut 1 cup butter 2 tsp honey 3 T milk From The Wiggles! Combine muesli flakes, sugar, coconut and sifted flour in a bowl and mix well. Heat butter, honey, and milk. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well. Roll into balls the size of walnuts and place on a greased baking tray. Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Storytelling Directions: Read the sentence below to the child and have them think of their answer. Let them draw out their story, and afterwards help them write in their answer. They can finish by coloring the theme's picture. Baking My favorite food is: ____________________________________. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us online at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Bb Start at the top, top, top, Go straight d own, Start at the top, Loop to the right to connect In the middle, then do it again, And then stop, stop, stop! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Becky t he bird Becky the bird, b ird, b ird, Lived in a house, house, house. She thought she heard, heard, heard, A little mouse, mous e, mouse! © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Writing Letter B Bb Directions: First, trace the letter with your finger to learn how to write it. Next, trace the uppercase & lowercase letters. Last, trace the word. BB B B b b b b BIRD © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Name: Writing Letter B Directions: First, trace the letter with your finger to learn how to write it. Next, color the uppercase & lowercase letters. Last, draw an animal in the box. Bb I see a bird. © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com Becky t he bird Becky the bird, b ird, b ird, Lived in a house, house, house. She thought she heard, heard, heard, A little mouse, mous e, mouse! Name: © 2009-2010 Preschool Fundamentals - All rights reserved. Visit us at www.preschoolfundamentals.com