Activities

On fingerpaint paper, use large marshmallows, light corn syrup and food coloring to create a pastel painting. Invite the children to try the marshmallows. Talk to the children about the smell and taste.   This can be done in small group.

For a child who has difficulty manipulating a toothbrush, place a piece of soft foam on the handle. Use hand-over-hand modeling to provide additional support. Be sure to also provide opportunities for the child to practice this independently.

Make homemade moon sand that is safe for young children. Mix 9 cups flour with 11/4 cups vegetable oil. Place the moon sand in a container and give the children sand toys for scooping and molding.

You will need a small bowl of sand for each child and spray bottles of water. Have the children explore and observe the dry sand in the bowl. Use the water bottle to spray the sand and have the children continue to explore.

Discuss ways to earn money and how their family members earn money through their jobs. Then discuss what they would like to do to earn money when they grow up. This could be done in large group.

Read Moo Baa La La La board book by Sandra Boynton to the children and encourage them to name the animals, as well as say the animal sounds. Respond to their efforts with a sentence. “Yes, the cow goes moooo.

Read Moo-Baa-Laa-Laa-Laa by Sandra Boynton to the infant. Exaggerate the animal sounds and encourage him/her to make the sounds with you.

Read “Old MacDonald” with the children. Encourage them to point to the animals and make the corresponding sounds. Talk about which animals are their favorites.

Have the children use newspaper or aluminum foil rolled into balls that resemble rocks. Use a large mixing bowl and describe it as a moon crater. Have the children toss their "moon rock" into the crater.

After reading Moonbear's Shadow by Frank Asch, choose vocabulary words from the story such as shadow, huffing and puffing, annoyed, bury and noon. Relate these words to experiences children have had.

Create homemade Moon sand to be used in the sensory center by mixing nine cups of extra fine play sand, three cups of cornstarch and 2¼ to 2½ cups of water.

As an extension later in the year, create a second All About Me book. Ask the children to draw another self-portrait and share how much they have grown. Take dictation as they describe themselves.

At snack time, teach the children to nod "yes" or "no" in response to wanting more food. Ask them, "Would you like more cheese?" Wait for a response and model by shaking your own head and responding, "Naomi says 'no more cheese'.

Play with small blocks or stacking cups with an older infant. As the infant adds more blocks or cups to the stack say, "One more.

Tape a piece of butcher paper to the table. Provide the children with one crayon or one marker each.

During large group, ask the children “Does our planet Earth contain more land or more water?” Toss an inflatable globe to a child in the group. Encourage the child to catch it with both hands and then spread his fingers.

After reading If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff, have the children think of more things for the moose to do. Chart the children's ideas. This can be done in small group.

During large group, create two groups of children, and compare them. Say, “Look at your shoes. If you have laces, stand on this side. If you don't have laces, stand on that side.

While doing a morning activity call a number of children up front and sort them. You can sort by boy/girl, short pants, long pants, blue eyes, brown eyes and more. Ask which group has more or less. Have a child explain how he/she got the answer.

After reading Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton, introduce the book Back to School, Splat and encourage the children to make predictions of what they think will happen in this book. This could be done in large group.