Activities

Provide different items that have wheels and axles for the children to dip in paint and roll over paper in the art center.

During otdoor time, set up bones that have been cleaned and bleached, shovels and plastic tools in a sand box and talk about a paleontologist and the work he/she does.

Provide small cups of glue and paintbrushes in the science center. Have the children paint a thin layer of glue on one hand. Once the glue is dry, peel it off and have them observe this imprint of his/her palm.

Read Pancakes, Pancakes by Eric Carle. Encourage the children to create their own pancakes by following a recipe. Talk about how to cook pancakes and what they taste like.This could be done in small group.

Create paper airplanes, experimenting with folds, tears and paperclip weights that can affect flight. During outdoor time, try flying the planes off of tall equipment or near an outdoor fan.

You will need some medium-sized paper bags, newspapers and duct tape. Ask the children to help you tear the paper into strips. Stuff the bags about 3/4 full with the newspaper strips. Mold the bags so they are a roundish shape.

Use a variety of shapes and sizes of paper clips. You will also need small bowls and pipe cleaners. Ask the children to come up with diff erent ways to use the paper clips, such as hooking them together, or making a long chain.

Provide a basket with a variety of types of paper for the children to crunch up into balls when they feel frustrated or mad. Place the basket in a safe place in the classroom, away from other activities.

Ahead of time, the teacher will fold a piece of paper into thirds. Draw an outline of a doll on the paper. As the children are able, encourage them to cut out the paper doll without cutting the edges, so the paper doll will stay linked together.

Ahead of time, the teacher will fold a piece of paper into thirds. Draw an outline of a doll on the paper. As the children are able, encourage them to cut out the paper doll without cutting the edges, so the paper doll will stay linked together.

Cutting folded paper gives children even more practice in visualizing shapes and spatial relationships. Fold paper in half and draw a half- heart shape on the fold. Show children how to cut on the line you have drawn and open it up to reveal a heart.

Place a small paper plate in the center of a larger one and attach them together with a brad so that the top plate can turn. Write letters in random order around the outside of the plate.

Give the children construction paper and magazine pages cut into one-inch strips. Have them cut these into various shapes and sizes, then glue them onto black construction paper to create a mosaic art. Ask the children to describe what they've made.

Provide paper pictures of animals and encourage children to choose the pet they want to take care of. Talk about the basic needs of animals.

Begin large group with a fun activity to practice subitizing. Place dot stickers on paper plates and show them briefly to the children for them to identify.

Begin large group with a fun activity to practice subitizing. Place dot stickers on paper plates, and show them briefly to the children for them to identify.

Provide paper plates with a different facial expression drawn on each, such as happy, sad, excited or angry. Read The Way I Feel by Janan Cain. Show the children each plate and ask what feeling the plate shows.

Provide the children with food magazines, scissors, paper plates and glue sticks. Guide them in cutting out pictures that would make up a healthy, balanced meal. This can be done in small group.

As a foundation for solving addition and subtraction problems, introduce the children to part-part-whole activities. These are designed to help the children understand that any whole number greater than one can be represented in parts.

You will need paper plates, markers, and mirrors for this small group activity. Have the children look in mirrors and draw a variety of facial expressions on paper plates based on what they see.