Resources / Activity
Have the children select the picture of their home out of a group of home photographs. Encourage them to describe their home with at least one descriptor: "It's big," or "It has a black roof.
Encourage the children in the science center to invent machines using found objects such as boxes, cardboard tubes, spools, bottle caps and pipe cleaners. Provide glue, construction paper, markers and tape.
Provide refrigerated bread dough and give each child an equal portion. Have the children roll their dough and form it into any shape they want. Once finished, bake. When cool, have the children eat their unique creations.
Create props to use while reading My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman during large group. Use a poster or tri-fold with a large hole cut in it for the mouth. Choose 10 children to help retell the story.
Provide the children with paper that has been divided into fourths. Encourage them to draw the events of their morning in each of the sections of the paper. Have them dictate the details.
Assign certain special jobs for outdoor time such as carrying out materials or parking the tricycles. Have the children explain why their outdoor job is important.
Play a variety of instrumental music selections from many cultures and encourage the children to respond to the various beats and tempos as they create their own movements and interpretations.
In the art center, provide each child with a medium-sized paper bag, newspaper, markers and crayons. Each child will write his/her name on a bag and decorate it.
Give each child a paint stirrer, a small headshot photo of themselves, cloth, ribbon and pom-poms. Have the children glue their photos to the top of the sticks and dress their paper dolls. Encourage them to play dolls with one another.
Provide an opportunity for the children to draw pictures about a common experience, such as a field trip to the farm. Encourage them to describe their work. The teacher can write their descriptions on the drawings.
Have the children find pictures of their favorite foods using magazine cut-outs or photos. Have them create a collage on a paper plate.
Display primary colors of tempera paint in bowls and have the children choose two colors. Put a spoonful of the two colors into plastic bags and have them mix the colors together. Talk about and compare the different colors created.
Before this activity, have children bring in three rocks to show during small group and collect small milk cartons, one for each child. Read Let's Go Rock Collecting by Roma Gans. Have children share where they found their rocks.
Have the children draw a map of the school/center on butcher paper as a group. The map should include things such as classroom locations, the doors, the playground, the cafeteria and other places you visit. This can be done in small group.
Give the children a large assortment of art materials, including collage items, paint, tape and three-dimensional items. Encourage the children to create sculptures.
During center time, have several hula-hoops available. As the children begin to work with different materials, use the hula-hoops to assist them in visualizing their work spaces. Encourage the other children to respect those spaces.
Have the children take turns holding a book and turning the pages one at a time.
Provide a variety of farm items such as a toy barn, animals, tractors, fence and people. Play with the children, encouraging them to take turns playing with the toys.
Read I Just Want to Do It My Way!: My Story About Staying on Task and Asking for Help by Julia Cook. Have a discussion about how sometimes we don't feel like doing certain things but we still have to get them done.
