52 Week Preschool

Week 22: Where We Live! Florida

2011-06-16T12:06:00.000-07:00

{Source}

Our last lesson on Butterflies is actually still going on.

We just received our caterpillars and they are sitting

in our dining room in their jar eating

until they get big enough to do something...er,

get out of that jar.

(We are so excited to watch this whole process but boy,

does it take a long time!)

Updated Pictures to follow.

Our library is teaching about the Continents this summer.

I was thinking that it would be great

to do some sort of geography with the girls.

I also thought how important it is to teach

them about where they live....

hence, our lovely state of Florida.

We will also be memorizing our town,

and trying to memorize our address.

Sidenote: Lily has been reciting her phone number for a while now...

It is about 4 digits less than a real phone number.

Perhaps that is the next topic....our phone number!

As I am thinking about this topic of Florida,

I am realizing that there are so many things to talk about!

We will focus on where it is located on a map of the US,

what types of animals are 'indigenous' here,

and special facts about our state.

I also found that there are a ton of fictional children's books

that are based upon Florida which is what you will find in the list below.

I love to read books that are based on our topic

and not just informational books too.

Books:

The secret river by Rawlings, Marjorie Kinnan, 1896-1953.

Felina's new home : a Florida panther story by Wlodarski, Loran.

The last egret : the adventures of Charlie Pierce by Oyer, Harvey E.

Duck, duck, moose by Horowitz, Dave, 1970-

Florida manatee by Spilsbury, Louise.

Roy makes a car by Lyons, Mary E.

Florida A to Z by Ryan, Susan Jane.

How to draw Florida's sights and symbols by Quasha, Jennifer.

S is for sunshine : a Florida alphabet by Crane, Carol, 1933-

Django by Cech, John.

Crafts and Activities:

Here is a site I found that has information about Florida

1) We have been going for a while to the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary which is has almost every native Florida animal you can think of. We will definitely be visiting this week to learn about native Floridian animals.

2) Artists Helping Children has a ton of Alligator/Crocodile Crafts

3) We'll be going to the Daggerwing Nature Center to learn about Florida!

Songs:

FYI- The Swanee River is the Official State Song of Florida!

The Swanee River
(Old Folks at Home)
Written by Stephen C. Foster
Way down upon de Swanee Ribber,
Far, far away,
Dere's wha my heart is turning ebber,
Dere's wha de old folks stay.
All up and down de whole creation
Sadly I roam,
Still longing for de old plantation,
And for de old folks at home.
Chorus
All de world am sad and dreary,
Eb-rywhere I roam;
Oh, darkeys, how my heart grows weary,
Far from de old folks at home!
2nd verse
All round de little farm I wandered
When I was young,
Den many happy days I squandered,
Many de songs I sung.
When I was playing wid my brudder
Happy was I;
Oh, take me to my kind old mudder!
Dere let me live and die.
3rd Verse
One little hut among de bushes,
One dat I love
Still sadly to my memory rushes,
No matter where I rove.
When will I see de bees a-humming
All round de comb?
When will I hear de banjo strumming,
Down in my good old home?

Snacks:

Thought we could try a few recipes out of here for dinner!

The flavors of the Florida Keys by Gassenheimer, Linda.

Here is a site that has Florida Seminole Tribe recipes

Week 21: Butterflies

2011-05-29T12:57:00.000-07:00

This week marks the beginning of a more 'laid back' schedule for us.

This gives me more time to spend

with my children having fun and learning!

We are all very intrigued by butterflies,

and with the first signs of summer upon us,

what better than to learn about butterflies!

I have ordered our caterpillars from www.insectlore.com

where we will receive 5 caterpillars + food!

Hopefully they will come soon...

the girls are getting anxious

(and by girls, I mean me).

The first part of the week will be about Caterpillars,

then we will talk about the life cycle of a butterfly.

We will be using the Eric Carle book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar

to learn about the life cycle, but also about the days of the week.

Books:

A butterfly grows by Swinburne, Stephen R.

Adios, Oscar! : a butterfly fable by Elwell, Peter

Fancy Nancy : bonjour, butterfly by O'Connor, Jane.

Velma Gratch & the way cool butterfly by Madison, Alan.

My, oh my-- a butterfly! by Rabe, Tish.

Butterfly eyes and other secrets of the meadow by Sidman, Joyce.Wings of light : the migration of the yellow butterfly by Swinburne, Stephen R.

Butterfly count by Collard, Sneed B.

Are you a butterfly? by Allen, Judy.

The butterfly jar by Moss, Jeffrey.

The butterfly alphabet by Sandved, Kjell Bloch, 1922

Crafts and Activites:

1) We will be taking care of our caterpillars by making sure they have enough food and are ready for their next phase of life!

2) Caterpillar Craft- Handprint Caterpillar ( I am such a sucker for handprint crafts)

3) Butterfly Craft- Footprint Butterfly (Why not?) This was done on Canvas from Come Together Kids!

4)Butterfly Life Cycle Craft- Plate Craft ( I love the simplicity of this )

Songs: (Source)

Flutter, Flutter, Butterfly

(Original Author unknown)

Tune of: "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"

Flutter, flutter, butterfly.

Floating in the summer sky.

Floating by for all to see.

Floating by so merrily.

Flutter, flutter, butterfly,

Floating in the summer sky.

Pretty Butterfly

(Original Author Unknown)

tune of: "Up on the Housetop"

First comes a butterfly

Who lays an egg.

Out comes a caterpillar

With many legs.

Oh, see the caterpillar

Spin and spin.

A little chrysalis to sleep in.

Oh, oh, oh, look and see,

Oh, oh, oh, look and see.

Out of the chrysalis, my, oh, my,

Out comes a pretty butterfly!

Roly-Poly Caterpillar

(Original Author Unknown)

Roly-poly caterpillar (wiggle right pointer finger)

Into a corner crept. (place right pointer finger in left cupped hand)

Spun around himself a blanket (spin around)

Then for a long time slept. (place head on folded hands)

Roly-poly caterpillar (wiggle right pointer finger)

Wakening by and by. ("stretch" right pointer finger)

Found himself with beautiful wings

Changed to a butterfly. (flutter arms like wings)

Snacks: (Source)

These look super fun!

...Salty chocolate anyone? Yes Please:)

We'll also do some butterflies with

Apples and Raisins for a little more healthy snack!

Additional Fun Things I will try to do with them:

1) When learning about the chrysallis, the girls will wrap each other in TP and imagine themselves in a cocoon turning into a beautiful butterfly.

2) Here's a link for a butterfly bookmark...always want to encourage reading!

3) You gotta love the butterfly wings they can put on to flutter around the house in!

Thanks!

Week 20: Honesty

2011-02-18T16:56:00.001-08:00

This week we are going to do a topic that

the girls did not necessarily choose...

but rather one that has come about due to necessity,

so it kind of chose them.

I really want to see if we can get the topic of the Big L (lying)

to be better understood,

and more so focus on telling the truth, or honesty.

I did some research online, and apparently,

many pediatricians and doctors agree that lying

is a part of cognitive development and it is actually a

recorded 'milestone' to show that your child is learning

to make decisions on their own,

realize that they are separate from you,

and also that they have an imagination

which can make the real word a lot better!

I am really interested seeing how this lesson impacts

Lily and her understanding of telling the truth.

Alright,

To be totally honest ( ha ha),

we all came up with a plan to have a

"Gum Night"

if we can all go three days without lying.

We start the day with a sticker, and if we lie, we lose our sticker...

Needless to say, Mommy and Daddy were the first to lose their stickers.

Who needs this lesson more?

hmmm...

(FYI- my lie was exaggerating ( a weakness of mine)

that the girls have seen a million cats....not true.

My husband's lie was that he wanted to eat the rest of the trail mix

and told the girls there was no more...

his guilt set in, and a sticker was lost.)

The only one at the end of the three days

to get to have gum was our 2.5 year old Claire...

great job Claire!

Books

Fancy Nancy : my family history by O'Connor, Jane.

Big whopper by Giff, Patricia Reilly.

Tell the truth, B.B. Wolf by Sierra, Judy.

Princess K.I.M. and the lie that grew by Cocca-Leffler, Maryann,

Honesty by Pryor, Kimberley Jane.

Honestly, Mallory! by Friedman, Laurie B

Honestly! by Doudna, Kelly

Ruthie and the (not so) teeny tinylie by Rankin, Laura.

Miko. "It was me, Mom!" by Weninger, Brigitte.

Alex did it! by Weigelt, Udo

Edwurd Fudwupper fibbed big by Breathed, Berke

Edith & Mr. Bear by Wright, Dare

Crafts & Activities

We will make a truth wheel using a printable PDF- Click on the website, and then scroll down and click on the PDF entitled Telling The Truth vs Lies.

I couldn't find many crafts, so I decided that we would do a story board... I will ask Lily to come up with a story where a child has the opportunity to tell the truth, or lie...we will have two different endings. Lily can draw her own pictures of the story, and hopefully the ending for telling the truth will be a positive one for her. I'm excited to see what she comes up with!

Songs

Snacks:

We will read the book The Empty Pot by Demi- which is a Chinese fable about rewarding a child for telling the truth.... the main part of the story is about Seeds, so I thought we would make some kind of snack dealing with seeds...possibly a trail mix that has seeds in it, or even a lemon poppy seed muffin..mmmm.

On a personal note, I ordered these If/Then charts to help me with consistent discipline. They also include verses that go with the particular behavior. To go along with that, you can order the Blessings chart which rewards your children for being a blessing to others...best of both worlds!

Thanks!

Week 19: Bridges

2011-02-05T14:17:00.000-08:00

When you randomly ask your child what he/she would like to learn about,

make sure you are prepared to hear

the most random thing you can think of....

enter Bridges.

Why on earth my daughter, while eating bagels at the bagel place,

tells me she wants to learn about bridges is beyond me.

I even looked around (we were outside)

to see if there pictures or logos with bridges.

Nope.

Out of thin air; bridges.

So here it is, a lesson about Bridges.

Books

Golden Gate Bridge by Riggs, Kate.

Brooklyn Bridge by Tieck, Sarah, 1976-

The bridge is up! by Bell, Babs, 1944-

Who's that tripping over my bridge? by Salley, Coleen.

Hey kid, want to buy a bridge? by Scieszka, Jon. (Assuming this is a chapter book, but we'll see if its appropriate for reading aloud when we get it.)

Cross a bridge by Hunter, Ryan Ann.

The monkey bridge by Martin, Rafe

The family under the bridge by Carlson, Natalie Savage.

Twenty-one elephants by Bildner, Phil.

Crafts

Bright Hub has a great lesson plan for The Billy Goats Gruff...story. You can read it online here. I'll read the story, and then we'll talk about bridges, and why we have them.

Then we'll construct our own popsicle stick bridge. Everything I have found is for a little bit older aged children, so I think we'll just wing it. We'll probably make a bridge more like the ones in the Billy Goats Gruff picture, rather than a real 3d bridge...but we'll see. If I get daring, we might try to build THIS bridge.

If only we could accomplish this.... {Photo Source}

Here's a great Bridges Clip Art Site...

Songs:

London Bridge is Falling Down ( Have to do this one!)

London Bridge is falling down,

Falling down, Falling down.

London Bridge is falling down,

My fair lady.

Take a key and lock her up,

Lock her up, Lock her up.

Take a key and lock her up,

My fair lady.

How will we build it up,

Build it up, Build it up?

How will we build it up,

My fair lady?

Build it up with silver and gold,

Silver and gold, Silver and gold.

Build it up with silver and gold,

My fair lady.

Gold and silver I have none,

I have none, I have none.

Gold and silver I have none,

My fair lady.

Build it up with needles and pins,

Needles and pins, Needles and pins.

Build it up with needles and pins,

My fair lady.

Pins and needles bend and break,

Bend and break, Bend and break.

Pins and needles bend and break,

My fair lady.

Build it up with wood and clay,

Wood and clay, Wood and clay.

Build it up with wood and clay,

My fair lady.

Wood and clay will wash away,

Wash away, Wash away.

Wood and clay will wash away,

My fair lady.

Build it up with stone so strong,

Stone so strong, Stone so strong.

Build it up with stone so strong,

My fair lady.

Stone so strong will last so long,

Last so long, Last so long.

Stone so strong will last so long,

My fair lady.

Snacks:

We'll probably make bridges out of pretzel dough, and I will bake them...

Thanks!

Week 18: What time is it? Telling Time & Clocks

2011-01-23T18:00:00.000-08:00

I knew it was time to teach Lily how to read a clock...even a digital one when I asked her to tell

me what time the clock read on the oven:

Lily: "Mom, its one-one-four-eight."

Me: "You mean its 11:48?"

Lily: "I don't know."

It's that easy folks...

find an area that needs work,

and focus on it...

so here we go....

this should be interesting...

BTW: Click here if you want to see the updated photos and commentary

about making jam from last week.

Clocks

Books:

The clock struck one : a time-telling tale by Harris, Trudy.

Bunny day : telling time from breakfast to bedtime by Walton, Rick.

Telling time : how to tell time on digital and analog clocks! by Older, Jules.

My grandmother's clock by McCaughrean, Geraldine.

Tick tock tales : stories to read around the clock by Mahy, Margaret.

Time to tell time by Scott, Janine.

The Berenstain Bears catch the bus : a tell the time story by Berenstain, Stan, 1923-2005.

Key Learning Points & Concepts:

1. Lily can count from 1-100 very easily, but I'm not so sure she can recognize those numbers. So the first thing I am going to do is make a counting chart and point to numbers to see if she knows them by sight.

2. The next thing she needs to learn is to count by 5's and 10's..at least up to 60.

3. Learn about the parts of an analog clock... The short hand, the long hand...the numbers etc.

4. Talk about minutes, hours and seconds.

5. Teach her how to read a digital clock- ie- 1:30 is one-thirty...not one- three-zero :)

(I think this is about all we can handle for now without having her get either really confused or really bored...or me really crazy)

Crafts and Activities:

~ Pull out a number chart and count to 100...then color in the number that I call out. (This number chart can be found here.)

~ Count by 5's and 10's...I realized I can use the chart above again, color in numbers to be counted, and learn them that way....or, we could all dance to this awesome video!

~ We'll make our own clock...to go with the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock..

You can find the clock craft over at DLTK (great resource site!)

Here's a link to the words for Hickory Dickory Dock.

~ We'll play digital clock bingo. I found a clock bingo game at the dollar store, but you can print out some from the internet here.

~ Found this great interactive site called Time Monsters. Great way to practice computer skills and learn how to tell time! (Note: This might be a little over her head, so we'll have to try it and see.)

Songs:

This site has great songs and videos...I think we'll just have fun with them!

Snacks:

Photo Source

I think I'm going to make chocolate chip pancakes.... and have really big pancakes with 12 chocolate chips for the different numbers. Then, Lily can pour the syrup in lines to make the short hand and the long hand... we'll see how this goes. Kind of a long shot..but I really like chocolate chip pancakes, so it seems like a win/win for me!

Linking up to

HomeSchool Village...Our Accomplishments!

Week 17: Jam and Jelly & Cooking!

2011-01-12T09:37:00.000-08:00

(Photo Source)

Last week while we were learning about the moon(updated photos),

my 'nighttime' blackberry jam was a huge hit!

Lily was interested in making her own jam with raspberries.

I thought it would be a perfect lesson

for the girls (and me too) to spend the week

in the kitchen and experiment with making jam!

Books

Jam & jelly by Holly & Nellie by Whelan, Gloria.

Making plum jam by Stewig, John W.

Bread and jam for Frances by Hoban, Russell.

The giant jam sandwich by Lord, John Vernon.

Resource Books

Jam it, pickle it, cure it : and other cooking projects by Solomon, Karen.

Preserves : the complete book of jams, jellies, pickles, relishes and chutneys, with over 150 stunning recipes by Atkinson, Catherine

In a pickle : chutneys, preserves, salsas, sweet treats by Brewis, Jill

Jam and Jelly Resource Sites:

Jelly Folklore

Key Learning Points

1. All Jams and Jellies come from real fruit that is cooked.

2. Adding heat to fruit makes them change their shape and the way they feel and taste.

Crafts and Activities:

First, we will be going to pick our own strawberries...you can visit PickYourOwn.org to find out the closest u-pick places to you.

Update: The girls and I had a wonderful time picking strawberries. The farm we went to had hydroponic organic strawberries...

We picked about 6 pounds of strawberries.

I loved that the girls each got their own basket, and scissors.

It was a great opportunity for them to practice their coordination skills.

I also took this opportunity to include a little science lesson too.

A lot of the strawberry plants had flowers on them

where you could see the middle portion becoming a ripe strawberry. Love it!

We'll be doing a little computer work and learning how to print out our jam labels. Here is a site that provides free labels- Tip Nut

Since I am a visual person, here is a tutorial for making jam from the Blog- Make Cupcakes

I love this tutorial which actually has kids making the squishy jam...so fun!

Songs:

Peanut Butter and Jelly Song

Chorus:
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!

First you take the peanuts
And you dig them.
Dig them.
(Children repeat.)

Then you take the shells
And you crack them.
Crack them.

Next, you take the peanuts
And you mash them.
Mash them.

Then you take the bread
And you spread it.
Spread it.

Chorus:
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!
Peanut butter — And Jelly!

Next, you take the grapes
And you pick them.
Pick them.
Next, you take the grapes
And you pick them.
Pick them.

Then you take the grapes
And you squish them.
Squish them.

Then you take the bread
And you spread it.
Spread it.

Now, you take the sandwich
And you eat it
Eat it.

Dig them
Crack them
Mash them
Spread it.
Mmmmmm Mmmmmm looks good.

Pick them
Squish them
Spread it
And eat it
Tastes good.

Peanut butter — And Jelly!

Snacks:

(Photo Source)

OF course we will be 'testing' our jams and jellies all week long! MMMmmmm can't wait!

Update: Here is a photo journal of our experience making jam....

Step 1- Occupy your 2 year old washing dirty dishes... and getting wet

Step 2- Exercise your hand cutting many, many, many strawberries

Step 3: Sterilize your jar... we used a 1 quart jar and boiled for 10 minutes

Step 4: Add this funny looking ingredient...oh, I mean vanilla bean..and sugar

Step 5: Get to work squishing....so fun!

Step 6: Take some time to enjoy having red hands!

Step 7: Give the 2 year old a break from dish duty, and let her squish a few...

Step 8: Have a heart attack that there is

strawberry drippings and pieces all over your kitchen...

then remember that preschoolers can HELP clean up!

Step 9: Enjoy the fruits (or jam) of your labor...delicious!

Simple Jam Recipe: I love Jamie Oliver and how simplistic his recipes are...source Food Network

Strawberry Jam

Recipe (c) Jamie Oliver 2002

Prep Time:: 5 min
Inactive Prep Time:: 45 min
Cook Time:: 4 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: about 2 jars

Ingredients

Seeds of 1 vanilla pod
10 1/2 ounces (300 grams) sugar
2.2 pounds (1 kilogram) strawberries, washed

Directions

Run your knife
down the vanilla pod scrape out the seeds and add with the pod to the strawberries and the
sugar. Mush it up a bit with a whisk leaving some large chunks. Put on a medium heat to
bring to a gentle simmer and leave to cook for about 4 minutes. Using a ladle remove the
scum from the top and leave to cool. Place in sterilized jars and store in the
refrigerator.

Thanks!

Week 16: The Moon (Phases and Such)

2011-01-04T07:08:00.000-08:00

The other night, my girls were baffled as to where the moon went.

When we looked online,

we saw that there will be no visible moon for another 5 days....

this inspired me to teach them

about the phases of the moon and other aspects about the moon.

I am excited to see how simplified I can make this lesson

and still maintain some level of education

about the phases and properties of the moon.

Side-Note: From a Christian perspective, I love the idea of the moon because it can only get its 'light' from the 'Sun' just as we can only get our light from the Son... I guess this is why the idea of the moon intrigues me so much.. (Side-Note Complete:)

Books

Moon dreams by Martin, Ruth

Little Rabbit couldn't sleep by Shoshan, Beth.

Las fases de la luna = Phases of the moon by Olson, Gillia M.

Why does the moon change shape? by Stewart, MelissaThe way back home by Jeffers, Oliver

Catching the moon by Goldberg, Myla

The moon by Stevenson, Robert Louis

Little Honey Bear and the smiley moon by Lobel, Gillian

Learning Points:

1. When we cannot see the moon, it is called the New Moon...its when the moon is 'missing'

2. The phases of the moon are: Crescent, Half, Gibbous, Full and back down again to Gibbous, half and Crescent.

Crafts:

We will be doing marble painting with all of the phases of the moon...then hanging them on our wall next to the window where we can see the moon. Then we can compare the moon and our phases and see where we are.

(I hung up their phases artwork and l labeled them)

Songs:

Going to the Moon- Who doesn't love pretending you are in a spaceship!
(Do movements like you are sitting down) Get in the spaceship we're going to the moon, going to the moon, going to the moon.
Get in the spaceship we're going to the moon. Let's countdown right now. 5-4-3-2-1 BLAST OFF! (When the group says "Blast off" jump out of the chair with arms outstretched)

(Stretch your arms out like you're flying) Get in the spaceship we're flying to the moon, flying to the moon, flying to the moon.
Get in the spaceship we're flying to the moon. Let's countdown right now. 5-4-3-2-1...BLAST OFF!

(Walk around with very tall, exaggerated steps) Get out of the spaceship we're walking on the moon, walking on the moon, walking on the moon.
Get out of the spaceship we're walking on the moon. Let's countdown right now. 5-4-3-2-1...BLAST OFF!

(Do movements like you are very sleepy and ready to get back home) Get in the spaceship we're going back home, going back home, going back home. Get in the spaceship we're going back home. Let's countdown right now. 5-4-3-2-1...BLAST OFF!

Snacks:

English Muffin Moon Craters..... I'm going to make homemade English Muffins, then we will explore the 'terrain' of them... show the kids what the moons surface looks like... Then we'll practice coordination with a butter knife, and use 'nighttime jelly' (blackberry) and try to create the different phases...we'll see! I'll try to take pictures...should be interesting!

Making our homemade English Muffins...( I accidentally read the directions wrong, so ours came out more like dough discs, but it was still fun!)

Even the little one got involved in measuring and putting in the ingredients!

This was Lily practicing her knife skills and our 'nighttime' jam to create a quarter moon...

Thanks!

Week 15: Solar and Wind Energy

2010-08-02T15:31:00.001-07:00

I know.... I know... you are thinking,
Solar and Wind Power to teach Preschoolers?
Well, it wasn't necessarily my choice...
I asked Lily what she wanted to learn about and she said,
"Well, first I want to learn about Tigers and then Solar Panels..."
I was so intrigued and frankly freaked out by this that I thought I should try it right away
(before her ecological passion is gone)
and see how it goes.
I decided to add Wind Energy on there because
I thought it would be fun to do some experiments with it.

Books

Solar power

Benduhn, Tea

Solar power
Rooney, Anne

Wind power
Benduhn, Tea

Science Project/ Experiment-

Here's the link to make your own simple solar oven...we're going to 'cook' hotdogs in it!

We're also going to use this as an excuse to buy a kite:
When your children get done flying a kite, instead of rewinding the string to bring it down. Wrap the string around another stick or your hand. When you get it down then you can stretch out the string and show your children how high up the kite was.

Solar Craft-
I'm going to use THIS craft for inspiration, and let the sun help us make a sun with construction paper!

Here's another one from one of my favorite blogs- The Long Thread....guest posting on another fav kids craft blog- Skip to My Lou! Painted Sun Prints

Solar Songs:

Mister Sun
Oh Mister Sun, Sun,

Mister Golden Sun,
Please shine down on me

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Hiding behind a tree...

These little children
Are asking you
To please come out
So we can play with you

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Please shine down on me!

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Please shine down on me

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Hiding behind a tree...

These little children
Are asking you
To please come out
So we can play with you

Oh Mister Sun, Sun,
Mister Golden Sun,
Please shine down on...
Please shine down on...
Please shine down on me!

W-I-N-D-Y

(Sung to BINGO)

There was a day when we were blown
And windy was the weather-O,
W-I-N-D-Y, W-I-N-D-Y, W-I-N-D-Y,
And windy was the weather. Continue

Sun Shaped Snacks:

I'll be doing this but with a pointy star.... hence a sun!

Photo credit:

Thanks!

Week 14: Lions

2010-06-17T18:14:00.001-07:00

So, Lions it is....says Lily. She said she has REALLY been wanting to learn about Lions....and who is to stop someone who REALLY wants to learn about anything. So, here is our lesson on Lions...ROAR!!!

Books:

Lions's Lunch by Fiona Tierney

Do lions live on lily pads? by Walsh, Melanie.

I'm going to New York to visit the lionsby Roitman, Tanya.

The lion & the mouse by Pinkney, Jerry.- One of my FAVORITE books

We're going on a lion hunt by Cuyler, Margery.

Lions by Lockwood, Sophie.

Daniel in the lions' den : a Bible story by Marzollo, Jean.

CRAFTS

Paper Plate Lion

Paper Bag & Newspaper Lion

Danielle's Place has a ton of amazing lion crafts too!

Songs (Source)

You can hear lions roaring at the zoo, ROAR! ROAR!

You can hear lions roaring, you can hear lions roaring,

You can hear lions roaring at the zoo! ROAR! ROAR!

You can hear snakes hissing at the zoo, SSSS! SSSS!

You can hear snakes hissing at the zoo, SSS! SSS!

You can hear snakes hissing, you can hear snakes hissing,

You can hear snakes hissing at the zoo, SSS! SSS!

Others: The kids start thinking up their own!

Snacks

Carrot Stick Mane! I love it!

Thanks!

Week 13: Dinosaurs

2010-04-23T12:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally think me and (mostly Lily)
are ready to begin our weekly topic lessons...
I knew it was time when Lily said,
" Mommy, what are we going to learn this week...."
and I was like,
" That's a really great question... I have no idea!"

I asked Lily what she would like to learn about,
and I pretty much knew the answer before she even said it....

DINOSAURS!

Before bed at night and at naptime,
my husband or I tell Lily stories
either from when we were little,
or completely ridiculous made up stories...

Sometimes I like to combine them.... for example:
eh' hem
Once when I was a little girl, I found a big egg in my closet...
I brought it to my daddy and asked him if I could keep it.
He let me keep the egg in my closet under a lamp.
About a month later, it hatched and it was a dinosaur!!

A Pterodactyl to be exact!
( In all honesty, I don't even think the Pterodactyls are actually dinosaurs, but hey, its a fictional story right?)
And Pterodactyls can fly!
When the pterodactyl grew up, it would take me for rides over our neighborhoods. I could see over the tops of trees, and even flew over the ocean once!

Blah blah blah, the story goes on...and every day I would switch what kind of dinosaur it was that hatched in my closet... ie- stegosaurus which helped me climb up things because he was like my personal ladder, or the brontosaurus who was like a walking slide because I could slide from the top of his head to the bottom of his tail....(she loves that one!)

Anyway, there is my long winded(written) explanation of why I knew Lily would want to learn about DINOSAURS (You can imagine me roaring everytime you read that :)

Ok, now onto what we will actually do to learn about dinosaurs...this is kind of refreshing getting back into it...I feel recharged!

Side Note: My goal is to teach Lily about Dinosaurs from a Christian perspective ie- "Creation" Here are some resources for you if you are interested in teaching the same!

Christian Answers.Net- Great resource for lessons about dinosaurs

Clarifying Christianity- Great resource for you, the teacher to catch up on Christianity and Dinosaurs

Answers in Genesis- A Woman's Testimony about her journey to God through Dinosaurs! Pretty Cool!

DINOSAURS! ROAR!!

Books:

No T Rex in the Library! by Buzzeo, Toni

Dinosaurs Love Underpants! by Freedman, Claire

Have you seen my dinosaur? by Surgal, Jon

Buying, training & caring for your dinosaur by Rennert, Laura.

The super hungry Dinosaur by Waddell, Martin.

Boo's surprise by Byars, Betsy Cromer.

Skippyjon Jones and the big bones by Schachner, Judith Byron.

T. Rex and the Mother's Day hug by Grambling, Lois G. ( Had to do this one....since Mother's Day is coming up!)

Resources from the Library:

Crafts for kids who are learning about dinosaurs by Ross, Kathy

Sesame Street. Dinosaurs! [videorecording (DVD)] Full screen ed.

Crafts: Click links to see sources

Dinosaur Feet- How to Found over at Danielle's Place- Just because they are fun, and I can incorporate make believe!!

Paper Mache' Dinosaur Hat from Enchanted Learning

Shape- A -Saurus- when you combine 8 shapes, you can make a dinosaur!

Songs (Source)

FIVE ENORMOUS DINOSAURS
Five enormous Dinosaurs letting out a roar
One went away and then there were four...
Four enormous Dinosaurs munching on a tree
One went away and then there were three...
Three enormous Dinosaurs didn't know what to do
One went away and then there were two...
Two enormous Dinosaurs having lots of fun
One went away and then there was one...
One enormous Dinosaur afraid to be a hero
He went away and then there was zero...

DINOSAURS OF LONG AGO (Action Song)
The Dinosaurs lived long ago,
And walked like this, and that. (Walk heavy like Dino's)
Some were large (Stretch arms apart.)
And some were small. (Squat down.)
Some liked water (Swimming motion)
And some liked land (Stomp feet.)
Some had wings that flapped and flapped. (Flap arms)
Some had long necks that stretched and stretched (Put hand above head)
The meanest, rudest one of all was ferocious Tyrannosaurus Rex
These were the Dinosaurs of long ago.
Goodness gracious! Where did they go?

Snacks

Dino Dig Cupcakes- Found at Homemaking Fun- Have the children go on a dinosaur hunt inside the cupcake!! Awesome idea!

A Needed Break....& A Much Needed Book

2010-04-06T12:09:00.000-07:00

Many of you know from my other blog, or from me talking to you that I recently was in the hospital with viral meningitis...you can read (if anyone at all cares) about my exciting March on my other blog here.

If you are visiting here often, you will find that I haven't posted in a long time. I have been trying to recover, and in doing so, basically let go of everything except taking care of my family. I did however during that time, purchase a book for Lily that we have been enjoying very much.

One of my biggest fears when it comes to homeschooling is..."Will I Be Able to Teach My Child to Read?" Then I was talking to some other homeschooling friends, and they mentioned this book:

Its called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons by Siegfried Engelmann. I would highly recommend this book for a Preschooler if.... and the key word here is if....

1. They have an attention span large enough where they can sit for at least 15 minutes and concentrate on one thing.

2. They already have a strong desire to read.

3. They don't get easily bored by repetition.

4. You have the patience to do this EVERY day.

The lessons are definitely repetitive, and pictures don't start until I think around lesson 18. All in all, I truly think the method of this book works for the right child.

Ok, if this is you and your child, read on!

I also purchased the BOB books seen here. These books have been TREMENDOUS in helping Lily to read. They give her confidence, and they fit in almost perfectly with the sounds she is learning in the Lesson book. Lily and I are on Lesson 14 of the other book, and she is already reading the first 3 BOB books on her own.

So, for now, I am still taking a break on creating weekly lesson plans, although looking back at this blog, I am definitely itching to get back into it...and I am sure Lily is too.

Thanks!

Week 12: Money

2010-02-23T17:34:00.000-08:00

Last weeks (or 2 weeks ago) topic on Birds went pretty well...

we did a ton of craft projects, but no bird counting.

Every time we found a good time to go outside and count birds,

there were none in sight- go figure.

By the time the weather cleared up,

the week was over and the Backyard Birdcount was over.

I plan to take Lily outside this week to identify some birds using pictures.

Lately, I have been asking Lily what topic she would like to learn about next, and she said "Money"

ok...here goes

Books:

Isabel's Car Wash by Bair, Sheila.

Making Cents by Robinson, Elizabeth Keeler

Sorting money by Marks, Jennifer

Money, money, Honey Bunny! by Sadler, Marilyn.

The pickle patch bathtub by Kennedy, Fran

Willimena and the cookie money by Wesley, Valerie Wilson.

My rows and piles of coins by Mollel, Tololwa M.

Crafts

Paper Mache Piggy Bank- We were just talking about paper mache' today, and Lily wants to do it, so why not make a piggy bank!

We already have out Giving, Saving & Spending Jars from the chores week, so I thought I could have her decorate them...we'll probably do Mod Podge with Tissue Paper.

Songs:

One A Penny- From Marcia's Lesson Links- GREAT SITE!

The Money Rap- Yup, I'm gonna rap :)

Well, I know a song

It's really kind of funny

It's all about coins

And learning to count money.

Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters

Now a penny means one (hold out 1 finger)

And a nickel means five (hold out 5 fingers)

Dimes are worth ten (hold out 10 fingers)

And quarters twenty five (flash... 10 twice & then 5)

Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters

Five pennies in a nickel

(hold out 1 hand- fingers stretched)

Two nickels in a dime

(hold out 2 fingers)

Five nickels in a quarter

(hold out 1 hand - fingers stretched)

You'll know it every time!

(using both hands do a downward motion)

Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters

Yeah!!!

Three Little Nickels
A Fingerplay

Three little nickels in a pocketbook new,
(hold up three fingers)
One bought a peppermint, and then there were two,
(bend down one finger)
Two little nickels before the day was done,
One bought an ice cream cone, and then there was one
(bend down another finger)
One little nickel I heard it plainly say,
"I'm going into the piggy bank for a rainy day!"

Snacks

I think we'll make some cookies and we'll use icing and label them 1 cent, 5 cents and 10 cents, and act like its money...I'll probably have about $1.50's worth :) Couldn't really find much else online...any ideas?

Beautiful Blogger Award

2010-02-15T17:57:00.000-08:00

I am so honored to get the Beautiful Blogger Award from Home Grown Families! Thank you so much! This is my first award for this blog, and I wanted to pass it on to some other Beautiful Bloggers. Here's how it works:

The rules for this award are as followed:

Thank the person who kindly passed this to you, and link your award back to them.
Pass it on to 15 (I only have time for 5) blogs that deserve a Beautiful Blogger Award. Let them know they earned this award.
List 7 things about yourself.

Ok, 7 Things about Me.....

I used to be in a band called Jimmy Roots... I sang and played keys. We traveled across the country in an RV and recorded an album.... fun times.
I love the idea of homeschooling my children, but am really scared about how it will all pan out..I don't want my children to count on their fingers like I still do... (did I just tell you that?)
I LOVE LOVE to craft, but am about the least crafty person you will ever meet...hence the best job for me.... Lesson Plans Craft Editor over at Craft Gossip....
I am reading the Twilight Series....its taking me a REALLY long time.
I get really sick during pregnancies, but want to be pregnant again...yup, I'm crazy:)
I'm not a numbers person and I don't care if people know how old I am....30 FYI
I dance in my living room with my family many times a week...

The much deserving Blogs are...( in no particular order)

A Day in the Life of a Robinson

Blessings Overflowing

Dusty Thorn Farm

One Mom, Five Boys

Views From My Window

Thanks!

Week 11: Birds

2010-02-11T10:00:00.000-08:00

Last week's Chores went really well. Lily is really into completing her chores and having me look at them which is nice to hear. Her favorite chore is making her bed which she is becoming better at every day.

Tomorrow, Friday, February 12 starts the beginning of the Great Backyard Birdcount! I am sooo excited about this opportunity to talk to Lily about birds, explore classification and identification using birds! I actually am not a huge fan of birds being around me....but looking at birds through binoculars is RIGHT up my alley :)

You can visit their site here. This is actually going to be a family activity for us, and I encourage you to try it out too! I also did a post about this over at Savvy Moms Save...scheduled for tomorrow!

BIRDS

Books:

Henry the impatient heron by Love, Donna,

Sylvie by Sattler, Jennifer Gordon.

Riki's birdhouse by Wellington, Monica.

A place for birds by Stewart, Melissa.

Even an ostrich needs a nest : where birds begin by Kelly, Irene.

Twitter and tweet : bringing home a bird by Tourville, Amanda Doering

Crafts and Activities

Paper Plate Bird Craft- Picture from Site

Milk Jug Bird House

Songs

5 Little Birds

Five little birds in a nest in a tree

(hold up right hand)

Are just hungry as can be

"Peep", said baby bird number one
(wiggle one finger)
Mother bird promised she would come
"Peep, Peep", said baby bird number two,
If she doesn't come what will we do?
"Peep, Peep, Peep", said baby bird number three,
I hope she can find this tree.
"Peep, Peep, Peep, Peep", said baby bird number four,
She never was so late before.
"Peep, Peep, Peep, Peep, Peep", said baby bird number five,
When will our mother bird arrive?
Well, here she comes to feed her family
(use left hand as mommy bird)
They're all as happy as can be!

Five Little Ducks
5 little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
But only 4 little ducks came back.
4 little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
But only 3 little ducks came back.
3 little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
But only 2 little ducks came back.
2 little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
But only 1 little duck came back.
1 little duck went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
But no little ducks came wondering back.
No little ducks went out one day
Over the hills and far away,
Mommy (daddy) duck called quack quack quack,
And 5 little ducks came wandering back.
Two Little Black Birds
A simple action rhyme
Two little black birds
Sitting on the wall,
(hold up one finger of each hand)
One named Peter,
The other named Paul.
Fly away Peter!
(put a hand behind your back)
Fly away, Paul!
(put the other hand behind you back)
Come back, Peter!
(bring the first hand from behind your back)
Come back, Paul!
(bring the second hand from behind your back)

Snacks:

I love this idea, but its a little sugary...perhaps we'll do it! Both by Make Me a Saint

Pigeon Poop!-

Kidseed! Love this idea too!

Week 10: Chores

2010-02-01T11:36:00.000-08:00

I must admit, I have completely been thrown out of wack by my all of a sudden highly energized and needy 1.5 year old, as well as feeling the pressure to try to find quality time with both of my girls. It seems to be few and far between.

I think we all have been frustrated at how the last few weeks have been going, there have been a few gleaming moments, but for the most part, my life seems completely chaotic...

(Yes, that is a bike ramp in the middle of our living room...such is my life)

What can I do about this?

Enter me.

I have decided to partake in creating Rhythms in my children's lives. This includes scheduling (just a little) more than I have been, as well as creating some 'responsibilities' for Lily.

Over the next week, I will be posting my weekly schedule as well as Lily's Responsibility and Earnings Chart.

Our baking week was great! I just updated it with some pics too. It actually turned into 2 weeks, and for that I am sorry, but that's just the way my life has been going! I will be posting pictures as soon as I can find some time to do so. The Rhyming Week craft has also been updated with pics.

This week, I will be implementing some chores into Lily's routine. I wanted to separate Lily's chart into activities that are 'expected' because she is a part of this family, and then there will be extra activities she can do to earn money.

I will also be implementing the 3 bottle money management system for her. The bottles will be labeled "Giving", "Spending", and "Saving". I feel that this life tool is so important, and this is one way to start early.

Here is what I've got planned:

CHORES

Books:

Once upon a Saturday by Lammle, Leslie.

The Berenstain Bears and the Trouble with Chores by Jan Berenstain

Chores Chores Chores! by Salina Yoon

The Berenstain Bears and the Messy Room by Stan Berenstain and Jan Berenstain

Chores to Do by Kawanna, L. Hagood

Activities and Crafts:

I found a great site for free printables. I am choosing the Dora chart found here. We will be talking about what chores will be on the expected activity list and what chores will be on the earning list. Here is a list of age appropriate chores.

The next step is to discuss money, and how much she will be paid when she completes an 'earning' activity. My girlfriend just started this exact system with her daughter, and she pays $.05 a chore. She keeps all of the change and at the end of the week, they divide it up evenly into the three different jars- Spending, Saving and Giving. I don't think Lily is at the age level where she will understand monetary value and amounts, but I do think she can grasp giving, saving and spending... there are actual 'piggy' banks that are meant for this type of saving, but we are just going to use baby jars, and Lily can decorate them.

If you think your child is ready for a money lesson, here is a great one!

First School has a great lesson on Bumble Bees- There is a short story on there about the Buzzy Bee and her chores. There is also a Valentine's Day Bee Mine craft that we will do.

Songs:

I have had a hard time finding songs about Chores, but one of the first things I thought of was the "This is the Way" song...I can then ad lib whatever chore we decide upon.

If I Were a Farmer ( Sung to Did You Ever See A Lassie)

We'll pretend we are on a farm..doing farm chores

Oh, if I were a farmer, a farmer, a farmer

Oh, if I were a farmer, what would I do?

I would milk the cows each morning

Each morning, each morning

I would milk the cows each morning, that's what I'd do.

Continue using:

I would feed the baby chickens

I would gather eggs for breakfast

Snacks:

I figured since this is the first week we will be implementing chores, that I would offer a little more incentive.... Ice Cream. If she successfully completes her 'expected' chores for the week, she can have Ice Cream...this might actually entice her more than earning money!

Week 10: Baking!

2010-01-20T10:58:00.001-08:00

I think since Lily has started talking, (maybe even before),
she has wanted to help me in the kitchen...
since I am a very 'impatient' person,
I have always said no,
and kindly directed her towards her play kitchen....
During this time, I would always say,

"When you are 3, you can help me."

Lily is 3.

So, I am going to do a lesson on baking!
We are going to bake bread.
Last week we baked bread,
but I only let her pour the flour in and do a little kneading.
This time, she will bake the entire loaf herself!

I am also going to talk about the importance of eating healthy. I will give her different options of things she could eat and see if she can guess the healthy one.

Baking

Books- Fiction

If You Give a Moose A Muffin by Laure Numeroff

This Little Bunny Can Bake by Janet Stein

Who made this cake? by Nakagawa, Chihiro

The story of Cherry the pig by Yamada, Utako

Five little monkeys bake a birthday cake by Christelow, Eileen.

Eight animals bake a cake byElya, Susan Middleton

Blue Bowl Down by C Millen- About Breadmaking

Froggy Bakes a Cake by Jonathan London

Cook-a-doodle-doo! by Stevens, Janet.

Books: Baking and Cooking with Kids

Baking with Kids by Linda Collister- Side Note: This is one of my favorite Cookbooks

Kids' baking : 60 delicious recipes for children to make by Lewis, Sara.

Bake it up! : desserts, breads, entire meals & more by
Dunnington, Rose

Baking Kids Love by Sur La Table and Cindy Mushet

Crafts and Activities:

Obviously we will be baking bread...here is the recipe I will be using. I have made this bread before and it is by far the easiest to work and be edible..

Amish White Bread-
Here is how it all went down for us....

Inquiring little eyes want to know... how does yeast become active?

Now for the "Mommy, I can do it....pictorial"

And she did!

She even kneaded the dough! Possibly her favorite part!

Let it Rise!

The Finished ProductNot too bad for her first time!

Family Fun has some recipes for you to make with your children too.

I REALLY want to get this book, they don't have it at my library, but I think I might purchase it from Amazon. It also contains poems and stories about baking bread with children.

Baking Bread with Children by Warren Lee Cohen

Here are some baking coloring pages from DLTK.

I would also like to do a baking sequence recipe game. This would be where I would cut out pictures of someone baking a cake, ie- mixing, baking, eating...etc. I would like her to put them in sequence order.

I also want to show Lily how to properly measure using liquid measuring cups and dry measuring cups. We will probably practice with water and flour.

Songs:

Buns in the Bakery Shop

"Six brown buns in the bakery shop,

six brown buns with the sugar on the top.

Along came ____ (name a child) with a penny to pay

she took one bun and he/she ran away."

(Next time around you'd sing it with five brown buns and name the next child.

Keep going until you are at none)

Pat-A Cake

Pat a cake, pat a cake

bakers man

bake me a cake as fast as you can

pat it and roll it and mark it with an L

and put it in the oven for Lily and me!

Snacks:

Of course we will eat our fresh oven baked bread!

Week 9: Recycling

2010-01-11T18:04:00.000-08:00

Last week we explored the world of rhyming...

I have come to find that I am very rusty at rhyming.

We played the guess the animal game,

and I don't think 'blafigator' is a word

(or if it even technically rhymes)...

but hey, she guessed Alligator, so she understands rhyming right?

Curious George is one of Lily's favorite shows that I let her watch.

Last week, there was an episode on recycling.

I thought it would be great to teach her about recycling,

which would then lead into her first chore...

putting the recycling items out in the garage and sorting.

Hmmm, maybe chores will be next week!

RECYCLING

Books:

Stuff: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle by Steven Kroll

Recycle Everyday by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace

Recycle! : a handbook for kids by Gibbons, Gail

Curious George plants a tree by Perez, Monica.

50 simple things kids can do to recycle by Montez, Michele

Crafts and Activities: SOURCE

RECYCLE CHORE
I am definitely going to have Lily help me with the recycling this week, and start to teach her how to do it on her own. We already have three different baskets in our garbage cabinet in the kitchen, so it should be pretty easy to teach her....'should' being the key word there :)

RECYCLED MATERIAL COLLAGE
I have a bunch of magazines that I want to recycle. Before I do that, I will have Lily go through them and find items that can be recycled. She will then glue them in their appropriate bin on her paper.

RECYCLE PLANT
I would love to take Lily to the Recycle Plant to see how things work once the truck picks them up, but I will have to look into it.

SONGS: SOURCE

RECYCLING FOR OUR EARTH

Hear the cans go crunch, crunch, crunch,
Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch,
Hear the cans go crunch, crunch, crunch,
Recycle for our earth.

Hear the bottle go ding, ding, ding
Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding,
Hear the bottle go ding, ding, ding
Recycle for our earth.

Hear the paper go crinkle, crinkle, crinkle
crinkle, crinkle, crinkle, crinkle, crinkle, crinkle
Hear the paper go crinkle, crinkle, crinkle
Recycle for our earth

Recycling Song - Sung to "Row Row Row Your Boat"

Save, save, save the cans, throw them in the bin,
We can help to save the earth if we all pitch in.

Save, save, save the paper....
Save, save, save the bottles....
Save, save, save the plastics....

SNACKS: SOURCE

Donut Holes- The hole cut from donuts used to go to waste until someone thought of selling them. Ask them if they now of anything that goes to waste that could be used. To drive home the point give them donut holes for snack.

Week 8: Rhyming

2010-01-04T18:30:00.000-08:00

Last week's Calendar lesson went well. Lily was so excited about having her own January calendar in her room, that she decided to cross of most of the days in the month, even though they haven't happened yet....she told me it was ok though.

She is still having trouble knowing what is a month, what is a day and what is a year. If I ask her what month it is, she tells me it is Monday... Hopefully the recurring calendar talk will help this.

This week, I wanted to do a little work on some sort of language arts, so I decided on Rhyming. My plan is to find a few books from the library to focus on, and then do crafts and activities around those books. I actually found a few good pre-planned lesson plans online for some books, so I will definitely use those.

RHYMING

Books:

Sheep In a Jeep by Nancy Shaw - Lesson Plan Link

10 Apples Up On Top by Theo LeSieg ( Dr. Seuss) - Lesson Plan Link

Do You Know What I Am? Chad Geran- Source

Funny Rhyming Books: Compiled from This List (these are the ones I could get from the library)

Tub Toys by Terry Miller Shannon

The Seven Silly Eaters by Marla Frazee

Scranimals by Prelutsky, Jack.

An octopus followed me Home by Yaccarino, Dan.

Mrs. McNosh hangs up her wash by Weeks, Sarah.

Mrs. Biddlebox by Smith, Linda

Sixteen cows by Wheeler, Lisa

Crafts and Activities:

Animal Guessing Game...You give them hints and clues about an animal you are thinking of and then tell them a word that rhymes with the animal. See if they can guess it! Example:
“I’m thinking of an animal who sleeps through the long winter. This animal is very large, and sometimes it likes to eat honey. Its name rhymes with the word ‘hair.’

(Excerpt and Idea from Bright Hub)

Reading Plan- I want to start reading books that deal with the topic of the week in a different way then her naptime and bedtime books. Here is how it will go:

1) Have Lily look at the Cover and tell me what she thinks the book will be about, have her tell me words and letters she can recognize

2) Go through each page and look at the pictures together. Have her tell the story in her own words

3) Go back and read the book from the beginning.

4) Find out what she liked best about the book and what she learned about.

Craft:

Find a sheep outline, and curl black strips of construction paper. Have Lily glue the "wool" to the sheep. We will sing the nursery rhyme while we work.

Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full.

One for my master,
One for my dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.

File Folder Rhyming Game- Found here at Enchanted Learning

I also like the idea of rhyming BINGO....but we'll see how much time we have.

Here's another Nursery Rhyme Book Idea if you are daring!

Songs: Here's a Great List of Nursery Rhyme Lyrics

It's Raining, It's Pouring
It's raining, it's pouring;
The old man is snoring.
He went to bed and he Bumped his head
And he couldn't get up in the morning.

It's snowing, it's blowing
The old man is growing
He ate so much one day for lunch
Every part of him was showing.

It warm out and sunny
The old man loves honey
He tried to seize
A batch from the bee's
And they didn't find it funny.

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear

Teddy bear, teddy bear - turn around,

Teddy bear, teddy bear - touch the ground

Teddy bear, teddy bear - shake your hips,

Teddy bear, teddy bear - blow a kiss

Teddy bear, teddy bear - jump up high,
Teddy bear, teddy bear - see me smile
Teddy bear, teddy bear - give a hug,
Teddy bear, teddy bear - lots of love

Oh la, la, la, la, la love my teddy bear

Snacks:

Hard Boiled Humpty Dumpty Eggs- I'll get out food coloring and Let Lily paint his face on the eggs shell...she can then drop the egg on her plate and take it apart!