Activities

During a routine such as changing a diaper, play “When I...” Say, “When I smile, I am happy; when I wrinkle my brow, I am worried; and when I shake my head, that means “No.

Read The Sun Is My Favorite Star by Frank Asch. Place a cutout sun on the wall, and encourage the children to describe or draw something they like to do when the sun is shining.

Read Mrs. McNosh Hangs Up Her Wash by Sarah Weeks. Talk about what happens when the wind blows. Create "wind" with a small fan, and have the children hold up socks to watch them move.

Read When the Wind Stops by Charlotte Zolotow. After reading the book and discussing the properties of air and wind, have children create “blow art” in small group. Provide plastic straws, paint and large pieces of paper.

Read the book When You Grow Up by Lennie Goodings. Chart the children's answers to the question, “Where do you think you will live when you grow up?” This could be done in large group.

Read the book When You Grow Up by Lennie Goodings. Chart the children's answers to the question, “Where do you think you will live when you grow up?” This could be done in large group.

Review the classroom rules using very simple when/then statements such as: “When we pick up all of our toys, then we can go outside. When we wash our hands, then we can have snack.” Use gestures and give prompts.

Talking and interacting with the infant on a regular basis develops attachment between the infant and the teacher. Do this fingerplay with the infant lying on a blanket:
Here is the beehive (Make a fist.

Name the areas of the room as you walk around with the infants. Encourage them to look or move toward different areas of the room in search of a favorite toy.

Place an item such as small doll or ball in front of the children and say, “See the doll/ball. Now watch.” Place it underneath a blanket or cup and ask, “Where did it go?” Encourage the children to look for the object.

Ask the children to bring real and found objects to school to share with the class; for example, something they collected or used during the summer break like sea shells, rocks, beach sand or swim goggles.

Ensure the classroom environment has materials in organized and labeled spots. Use photos of the items in the room, and label the shelves with those pictures, using contact paper. This will help identify where items belong in the classroom.

Read demographic multicultural books to help the children understand how they fit into a much larger world.

Use this fingerplay to show where animals live:
This is a nest for the bird

(Cup hands, palms up.)
This is a hive for a bee

(Put fists together, palm to palm.

Have a basket of items from around the room. Let one child choose an item and hold it up and sing, “Where does the block go, block go, block go? Where does the block go in our room?” The children answer, “On the block shelf.

Collect environmental print from restaurants the children love, such as McDonald's, Wendy's, Papa John's and Red Lobster. Place each logo on a page, bind the pages together and encourage the children to "read" the book.

Use a map of your county and place a star where the center or school is located. Help the children locate approximately where they live and place a dot there. Discuss how some children live close to school and others live farther away.

While reading Mirra Ginsburg's The Chick and the Duckling, provide an opportunity for the children to examine the pictures and discuss the setting of each page.

Sing this song with the children using each of their names. Sing to the tune of "Where is Thumbkin?":
Where is James? Where is James?

There he is, there he is.

James is jumping, James is jumping.

Read the book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Have the children chart what they think would have happened if Max had not created mischief and what Max would have been able to do instead.