The Enormous Turnip, by Alexei Tolstoy

In this story a farmer plants a turnip and asks it to grow sweet and strong. The turnip does grow, and grow, and grow into an enormous turnip! It takes the farmer the help of his family and friends to get the turnip out of the ground.

Materials

Masks of farmer/wife/daughter/dog/cat/mouse
A turnip
Fingernail scrub brushes or rags

Vocabulary

Enormous (Really, really big)
Turnip ( a kind of vegetable that grows under the ground)
Cooperation (when you need help to do something that is too big to do by yourself)

Before Reading the Story

Before hand, put your real turnip into a bag so the children can not see it. Bring all your plastic foods to the rug and also 2 baskets. One labeled Vegetables and the other labeled Not a vegetable. Tell the children that your story today is about a vegetable. Hold up the bag (with the turnip) and ask the children if they can guess what vegetable you have in the bag. After they are through guessing, or if someone guesses it, pull the turnip out of the bag. Let the children each pick a plastic food and sort your plastic foods by vegetable-not vegetable. Do the children know which are grown underground?

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; shows increasing abilities in matching, sorting, putting in series, and grouping objects according to one or two attributes such as shape or size.

Reading the Story

Emphasized the word pulled making a face that looks like you are using all your strength. Encourage the children to pretend to pull on each page.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; demonstrates increasing ability to attend ti and and understands conversations, stories, songs, and poems.

After Reading the Story

After reading the story, talk to the children about ways that they might help out/cooperate around their home. Praise them for being good helpers. Ask them if they can think of a time that someone helped them to do something. (Remember yesterday when Roger helped me wash the paint brushes, when my dog ran away the man caught the leash). Remind the children that when people help them that they should always tell them thank you. Thank you lets people know that you appreciate that they helped you.

Social & Emotional Development/Social Relationships; progress in responding sympathetically to peers who are in need, upset, hurt, or angry; and in expressing empathy and caring for others.

Discovery

Bring the real turnip to the table and a large turnip that you have drawn on paper. Ask the children to describe the turnip and write their responses on the paper turnip. After they have described the outside of the turnip, cut it open and continue to have the children describe the turnip. What does it look like, smell like, feel like. Finally let the children taste a tiny piece of the raw turnip. Graph those who liked the turnip and those who did not.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to use senses and a variety of tools and simple measuring devices ti gather information. investigate materials, and observe processes and relationships.

Music and Movement

Sing Where Oh Where Are All The Children to the tune of Paw Paw Patch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTLX0dkRV4w As the children sing have them act out how to harvest the produce.

Where oh where are all the children,

Way down yonder in the turnip field.

Pulling turnips, put them in the basket

Pulling turnips, put them in the basket.

Pulling turnips put them in the basket,

Way down yonder in the turnip field.

(Let the children sing about other vegetables)

Creative Arts/Music; participates with increasing interest and enjoyment in a variety of music activities, including listening, singing, finger plays, games, and performances.

Blocks

Have the children sort the blocks according to size. Which block is the smallest in the center? Which block is the largest in the center?

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

Art

Cut out many circles, squares and triangles in small, medium, and large sizes. Put these out on the table for the children to collage as they choose.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; begins to be able to determine whether or not two shapes are the same size and the same shape.

Library and Writing

Turnip starts with the letter T. Have the children think of T words. Write them down. Farmer starts with the letter F. Have the children think of F words. Mouse starts with the letter M. Count the words under each letter, which has the most? Which has the least? Can the children think of any more letters so that they all have the same amount?

Literacy/Phonological Awareness; shows growing awareness of beginning and ending sounds of words. AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use language to compare numbers of objects with terms such as more, less, greater than, fewer, and equal to.

Sand and Water

Put the vegetables in the water today with fingernail scrub brushes. This is the way we wash the turnip, wash the turnip, and wash the turnip. This is the way we was the turnip to get it nice and clean.

Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in an increasing variety of tasks and activities.

Dramatic play

This is a fun story to act out. Make the masks and attach to a sentence strip for the children to wear. Encourage them to act out in the dramatic play center.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.

Math and Manipulatives

Have like items in various sizes for the children to sort by smallest, bigger, biggest. (bear counters, toy cars, scraps of paper)

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; begins to be able to determine whether or not two shapes are the same size and the same shape.

Outdoor Play

In the story the characters pulled and pulled. Ask the children if they can find things to pull. (a wagon, a jump rope, a piece of equipment across the yard)

Language Development/Speaking & Communicating; uses an increasingly complex and varied spoken language. AND Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops an increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.

Transitions

Ask the children to name a vegetable, name a fruit, name something that you eat that is orange, name something that you eat that is hard, etc.

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops an increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.

Resources

The Doorbell Rang, by Pat Hutchins

Materials

Cookie page cut out
A small box of cookies, enough for 1-2 per child
small drinking cups and spoons for mixing
Large zip-lock of cornstarch, flour, salt, dirt, sand, etc.
Small pitcher of water

Vocabulary

Tea (a hot drink that people like with cookies)
Starving (really, really hungry)
Enormous (really, really big-huge)
Fair (to do according to the being nice rules)

Before Reading the Story

Ask the children if they have ever helped their parent to bake. What did they help to bake? Do they remember the steps that they took? Give the children a moment to talk about any experience they may have had and then tell them that you are all going to make pretend cookies. Have the children act out the following; Get your bowl and place it in your lap. Pour in 2 cups of flour. Break in 4 eggs. Stir your batter. Add a little milk and stir some more. Tell the children if they want chocolate chip cookies, now would be the time to pour them in. Stir your pretend batter one more time and then scoop from the bowl how many children you have today (ie 17). Pretend to put the cookies in the oven, remind the children to be safe as the oven is hot. While your pretend cookies are baking, sing C is For Cookie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ye8mB6VsUHw. Can the children think of other words that start with C? Sing about several other items also. Now tell the children that the cookies are done, can you smell them? They smell delicious. Have the children pretend to take them out of the oven and eat one. What kind of cookie did each child make? Ask them to share one with their neighbor. Remind them to thank each other for sharing their yummy pretend cookies with each other.

Creative Arts/Dramatic Play;participates in a variety of dramatic play activities that become more extended and complex.

Reading the Story

Each time you say “No one makes cookies like Grandma” have the children make a doorbell sound (ding-dong). When you get to the page where each child has only one cookie on their plate and the doorbell rings, ask the children why everyone was looking at the door but not answering it.

Language/Listening & Understanding; demonstrates increasing ability to attend to and understand conversations, stories, songs, and poems. And Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem-Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.

After Reading the Story

Talk to the children about sharing. Bring in a box of real cookies and divide them equally among the children. Break some in half if you have to make sure everyone gets the same amount. Talk about being fair and even. Give some examples of when children have done something fair. (Roger was being really fair at breakfast when he only filled his juice cup to the line so that there would be some for the next person. Kerry was fair when she let Tammie in line because Tammie’s name was called first.

Social & Emotional Development/Social Relationships; shows progress in developing friendships with peers. AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use one-to-one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects.

Discovery

Cover the science table with newspaper. Put out the small cups and spoons. Show the children how to scoop a small amount of flour, etc. into their cup and add abit of water. Stir it around. What happens to the flour? Try adding a bit of water to a variety of substances. Do they become sticky, runny, thick? Let the children play with mixing different substances for different results. Pretend that you are mixing cookie doughs.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; develops increased ability to observe and discuss common properties, differences, and comparisons among objects and materials.

Music and Movement;

Play Count and Shout with the children. Call out an action command and a number. The children then must do the action while counting. (Hop on both feet three times! 1-2-3. Flap your arms like a bird 5 times! Jump like a frog 3 times! Clap your hands 4 times! Lift your knees 6 times!)

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use one-to-one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects.

Use 5 of your Chocolate Cookie cut-outs to do the following poem. Have the children act out.

Five Chocolate Chip Cookies

Five chocolate chip cookies, which I adore,

In came my mother, and then there were four.

Four chocolate chip cookies, that’s plenty for me,

Oh! Here comes my father, now there’s just three.

Three chocolate chip cookies, they’ll have to do,

Oh no! Here comes my brother, now there’s just two!

Two chocolate chip cookies, I better grab and run!

Too late! Sister is here and now there’s just one.

One little chocolate chip cookie, well its better than none.

I’ll take tiny little nibbles, that will be more fun!

Yum, yum

Play, Who Stole the Cookies from the Cookie Jar?

Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?

(Name a child) stole the cookies from the cookie jar.

Who me? Yes you. Couldn’t be.

Then who stole the cookies form the cookie jar?

(Name another child) stole the cookies from the cookie jar.

Who me? Yes you. Couldn’t be.

Then who……..

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; demonstrates increasing ability to attend to and understand conversations, stories, songs, and poems.

Blocks

As the children build with blocks today, ask them to add one more, three more, zero more blocks to their building. Watch to see if they know how many objects make up a number.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; develops increases abilities to combine, separate and name “how many” concrete objects.

Art

Tell the children that you are going to pretend to make sugar cookies. Cut out 6 inch circles from poster board or heavy construction paper. Give the children light brown paint with salt mixed in and have them paint their cookie shapes. Ask the children what they think the salt is doing to the paint? As the paint dries, the salt will sparkle.

Science/Scientific Knowledge; shows increased awareness and beginning understanding of changes in materials and cause-effect relationships.

Library and Writing

Make your own The Doorbell Rang book. Ask each child to draw a picture of someone, or something, inside the door frame paper. Attach a door to the front of each child’s page and the words Ding-Dong. Put all the pages together into a classroom book. As you read it, say DIng-Dong and then open the door and tell who, what is there. (Ding-Dong, Alicia was at the door. Come on in! Ding-Dong, an elephant was a the door. Come on in!).

Literacy/Early Writing;begins to represent stories and experiences through pictures, dictations, and in play.

Sand and Water

Fill your table up with warm water and soap today. Explain that after one bakes, one must wash the dishes. Add some play dishes, bowls, and spoons.

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.

Dramatic Play

Ask the children if they can remember what the mom was doing in the story (mopping the floor)? If you have access to a child’s sized mop, let the children try their hand at this chore. Also small brooms for sweeping.

Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in an increasing variety of tasks and activities.

Math and Manipulatives

Encourage the children to use materials and divide them equally among themselves. Card games are good for this as you must go around the circle, one for you, one for you, one for you, and one for me. One for you, one for you, one for you, and one for me.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use one-to-one correspondence in counting objects and matching groups of objects.

Outdoor Play

Add a little water to the dirt and let the children make mud cookies. Let them use old cookie sheets or trays to put them on. They can use natural materials to decorate their cookies.

Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; shows growing creativity and imagination in using materials and in assuming different roles in dramatic play situations.

Transitions

Talk to the children about what it means to have more, less, or equal amounts. Ask the children to each grab a handful of a manipulative (unifix, chains, bears). Have them count the number of manipulatives they were able to pick up with one hand. Ask the first child if they or the person beside them has more. Whoever has more may move to the next activity. Next ask a child who has less, themselves or the person beside them. Whoever has less may go to the next activity. If both children have an equal amount, they may both go. Continue until everyone has moved to the next activity.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use language to compare numbers of objects with terms such as more, less, greater than, fewer, equal to.

Resources

Silly Sally, by Audrey Wood

Children seem to like this silly story about a girl named Sally who went to town walking backwards upside down.

Materials

A carnation flower or Queen Anne’s Lace. If no flower, a celery stalk
Food coloring
Pictures of Silly Sally characters

Vocabulary

Backwards (to not face the front but the back)
Upside down (where the upper part is where the lower part should be)
Silly (to be goofy or foolish)

Before Reading the Story

Bring to the rug a variety of classroom objects with sets of two that begin with the same letter sound (car and crayon, pencil and purple piece of paper, block and bear counter). Put out the set plus one other item (car, crayon, pencil). Name the objects and ask the children which one has a different beginning sound. Do this several times until the children get the hang of the game. Then ask the children if they can think of two words that begin with the same letter sound. Write the children’s responses on a piece of paper.

Literacy/Phonological Awareness; shows growing awareness of beginning and ending sounds in words.

Reading the Story

On a second reading, have the children act out the actions. They can walk backwards with their heads hung low instead of on their hands.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and multiple-step directions.

After Reading the Story

Ask the children to answer questions about the story. Silly Sally went to town, walking which way upside down? Silly Sally danced a jig with this very silly___? Silly Sally played leap frog with this very silly ___? Silly Sally sang a tune, with this very silly ___? Silly Sally fell asleep with this very silly ___? Along came Ned Buttercup walking ____?

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; to act out stories in dramatic play; and predict what will happen next in a story. AND Literacy/Phonological Awareness; progresses in recognizing matching sounds and rhymes in familiar words, songs, stories, and poems.

Discovery

There are lots of flowers in the story. Put a carnation or Queen Anne’s lace into a vase of water. Add a few drops of food coloring and predict what the children think will happen. Observe it for a day or two and see if their predictions come true. You can talk about how all living things need water. People drink water through their mouths. Plants are also alive and need water. They drink theirs through their roots and stems.

Science/Scientific SKills & Methods; begins to participate in simple investigations to test observations, discuss and draw conclusions, and form generalizations. AND Science/Scientific Knowledge; shows increased awareness and beginning understanding of changes in materials and cause-effect relationships.

Music and Movement

Teach the children a tongue twister; Silly Sally snake slithered slowly down the slippery slope on a sunny summer’s day.

Literacy/Phonological Awareness;associates sounds with written words, such as awareness that different words begin with the same sound.

Sing Down By the Bay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CSxGHve60E

Literacy/Phonological Awareness; progresses in recognizing matching sounds and rhymes in familiar words, games, songs, stories, and poems.

Do the following finger-hand play. Follow the movements accordingly.

Up and Down, round and round

I put my fingers on the ground

Over, under, in between

Now my fingers can’t be seen!

Hands in front, hands behind

Now my hands you can not find!

Here’s my left hand, here’s my right

My hands and fingers are back in sight.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; builds an increasing understanding of directionality, order, and positions of objects, and words such as up, down, over, under, top, bottom, inside, outside, in front, behind.

Blocks

In the story there is a bridge that goes into town. Encourage the children to make a bridge and line up the people or animals across it. Can they make a long bridge? A tall bridge? A bridge using only one size block? How many people fit onto their bridge? Can they make oine that will fit more?

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; begins to make comparisons between several objects based on a single attribute.

Art

Tape pieces of drawing paper to the underside of the art table. Put the markers or crayons in a basket under the table. The children can lie on their backs under the table and draw upside down.

Creative Arts/Art; gains ability in using art media and materials in a variety of ways for creative expression and representation. AND Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in a increasing variety of tasks and activities.

Sand and Water

Put magnet letters into the sand today. Give the children spoons or tongs to search for the letters. As they pull a letter out, can they name it? Can they name another letter that rhymes with it?

Literacy/Alphabet Knowledge; identifies at least 10 letters of the alphabet, especially those in their own name. AND Literacy/Phonological Awareness; progresses in recognizing matching sounds and rhymes in familiar words, games, songs, and poems.

Library and Writing

Bring out letters to trace or stamp. Ask the children to find the first letter of their name and trace it/stamp it. Ask them if they can think of a word that begins with that letter sound. Write their name and the word beside one another. As they trace more letters, ask them to think of two words that begin with that letter sound.

Dramatic Play

Add some silly hats and bow ties to the center. Encourage the children to dress up silly. Put the coat on backwards and two different shoes, add a bow tie and a silly hat.

Math and Manipulatives

Make a game using the Silly Sally pictures. Give each child a picture. Start by saying, “Everybody upside down”. The children turn their card so the figure is upside down to them. Continue playing by calling upside down or right side up. The children must move their picture accordingly. Try to trick them by calling upside down twice in a row, etc..

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and multiple-step directions.

Outdoor Play

Help the children to feel what it is like to walk on their hands, upside down. Have them bend over, the teacher holds their ankles up in the air and they can try to walk on their hands several feet.

Physical Health & Development/Gross Motor Skills; shows increasing levels of proficiency, control, and balance in walking, climbing. running, jumping, hopping, skipping, marching, and galloping.

Transitions

Send children off to the next activity with instructions to do a silly movement to get there. As they go say, “Silly Serry went to town, walking on her knees. Silly Soger went to town, jumping like a frog,” etc

Literacy/Phonological Awareness; progresses in recognizing matching sounds and rhymes in familiar words, games, songs, and poems.