A classroom favorite that can be used to help reinforce colors as well as the importance of eyes.

Materials

• Large blocks of frozen ice (freeze Tupperware’s ahead of time)
•  Box of rock salt
• Food coloring
• Eyedroppers

Vocabulary

• Glasses (those things people wear on their face to help them                    see better)
• Ophthalmologist (a doctor who takes care of your eyes)

Before Reading the Story

Ask the children what we use our eyes for (to see things, to know what color it is, to read a book).  Share with the children some ways to keep your eyes safe (don’t rub them when something like sand gets inside, never look right at the sun, give your eyes plenty of rest at night).

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; builds awareness and ability to follow basic health and safety rules such as fire safety, traffic and pedestrian safety, and responding appropriately to potentially harmful objects, substances, and activities.

Reading the Story

This is such a nice predictable book that the children can easily join in the reading.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; shows growing involvement in listening to and discussing  a variety of ficvtion and non-fiction and poetry.

After Reading the Story

Cut out a shape for each child.  Use a variety of colors.  Give each child a color shape and tell them that they are going to go on a hunt to find something in the room that is the same color as their color shape. When everyone is back at the circle have them tell the color and the name of the object.

Approaches to Learning/Engagement & Persistence; grows in ability to persist in and complete a variety of tasks, activities, projects, and experiences.  AND Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; sows growth in matching, sorting, putting in a series, and regrouping objects according to one or two attributes such as color, shape, or size.

Discovery

 Ask the children if you can blindfold them. While blindfolded, have the children try a variety of activities such as putting several small objects into a container, picking up a pencil and drawing a picture, building with legos, buttoning a sweater, using a spoon to put cereal into their mouths, etc.  While they are trying these activities, talk to them about the importance of our eyes.  Remind them that our eyes allow us to see what we are doing and what things are.  People who cannot see with their eyes are blind.  Blind people need to learn about the world through their other senses.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to participate in simple investigations to test observations, discuss and draw conclusions, and form generalizations.

Music and Movement

Chant the following poem, My Eyes Can See/Mis ojos pueden ver

            My eyes can see.                                     Mis ojos pueden ver

            My mouth can talk                                 Mi boca puede hablar

            My ears can hear                                    Mis oidos pueden o’ir

            My feet can walk.                                   Mis pies pueden andar

            My nose can sniff                                   Mi nariz puede olfatear

            My teeth can chew                                Mis dientes pueden masticar

            My lids can flutter                                  Mis parpados pueden pestanear

            My arms hug you                                    Mis brazos te pueden abrazar.

Have the children point to each body part as you read the poem slowly.  After repeating the poem, allow the children a moment to talk about their preferences of smell and taste if they choose.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; demonstrates increasing ability to attend to and understand conversations, stories, songs, and poems.  AND Social & Emotional Development/Self-Concept; begins to develop and express awareness of self in terms of specific abilities, characteristics, and preferences,

Blocks

Use colored blocks to play today.  Encourage the children to name the colors as they build.  Can they sort the colors, build with only one color, make a color patterns?

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; shows increasing abilities to match, sort, put in a series, and regroup objects according to one or two attributes such as shape or size.

Art

Make cards that show a circle of red + circle of blue = ?    Make the cards to use the primary colors and also black and white.  Hang the cards  up beside the easel and let the children solve the color mysteries.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to participate in simple investigations to test observations, discuss and draw conclusions. and form generalizations.

Library and Writing

Ask the children to think of an animal that they would like to draw.  Ask them what their favorite color is.  Give them a crayon in their favorite color and have them draw the animal.  Afterwards label their picture “________,_______ what do you see?  I see a (color)___(animal)___looking at me”.  These can be put together into your own class book.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; shows growing interest in reading-related activities, such as asking to have a favorite book read,; choosing to look at books; drawing pictures based on stories; asking to take books home; going to the library; and engaging in pretend-reading with other children.

If you have a camera you could let each child take a picture of something in the classroom.  On the top write, “______, ______what do you see”?  On the bottom write, “I see _______(a puzzle, the little doll, my lego car), that’s what I see”.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; shows growing interest in reading-related activities, such as asking to have a favorite book read,; choosing to look at books; drawing pictures based on stories; asking to take books home; going to the library; and engaging in pretend-reading with other children.

Sand and Water

 Put the large block of ice in the water table. Pour a little bit of rock salt over the top.  Put food coloring into small cups or bowls.  Show the children how to suck up the colored water into the eye dropper and then squeeze it out on top of the ice.  The colors will mix as the children experiment with the droppers.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to use senses and a variety of tools and simple measuring devices to gather information, investigate materials, and observe processes and relationships.  AND Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; develops growing strength, dexterity, and control needed to use tools such as scissors, paper punch, stapler, and hammer.

Dramatic Play

Add sunglasses and glasses frames without the lenses.  Make a simple eye chart using a capital E facing up, down, left, and right.  The children can pretend to be an opthamologist and someone who needs glasses.

Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; participates in a variety of dramatic play activities that become more extended and complex.  AND Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; develops growing awareness of jobs and what is required to perform them.

Math and Manipulatives

 Sorting objects by color.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; shows growth in matching, sorting, putting in a series, and regrouping objects according to one or two attributes such as color, shape, or size.

Outdoor Play

Play I Spy by describing children and what they are doing. (I spy with my little eye someone digging in the sand with red pants and gym shoes on).  The child names the friend.

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.

Transitions

Play I Spy with the children by describing objects in the room.  (I spy with my little eyes something that is made of plastic and it’s blue, and we sit on it at the table).

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.