Max Found Two Sticks, by Brian Pinkney

Materials

Objects made from plastic, wood, and metal of various sizes and shapes. These will be used to hit with a stick and listen to the different sounds that the materials make. Think tin cans, shoe box, wood block, cubbie, empty paper towel tube, jewelry box, etc..
A timer that makes a ticking sound
Working stethoscope
2 paint sticks per person or 2 pencils (paint sticks are free wherever you buy house paint)
More paint sticks for art
Bring in a basket of natural materials such as sticks of various barks, acorns, corn husks, stones both smooth and rough, leaves with strong ridges.
Pre-writing page per child

Vocabulary

Stripes (a long narrow band or strip, typically of the same width throughout its length, differing in color or texture from the surface on either side of it).

Before Reading the Story

Explain to the children that today you are going to read a story that uses your sense of hearing. Do the children know what the five senses are? Do they know that you use your ears for hearing? Talk about some sounds that you like (my cat purring, when my brother laughs, music) and some sounds you do not like (when my Mom yells at me, when the timer says turn off the tv, I get scared when I hear the siren). Explain that in the story today a boy named Max makes sounds with two sticks. Let’s find out what kinds of sounds he can make.

Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; grows in eagerness to learn about and discuss a growing range of topics, ideas, and tasks.

Reading the Story

When you get to the pages where Max plays his sticks and makes various patterns (pat…pat, tat. pat…pat, tat. pat…pat,tat. or Putter-putter…pat tat, putter-putter pat tat). Stop and have the children try to repeat these also. Expect it to take at least three tries. Say them slowly so they make patterns with sound.

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

After Reading the Story

Remind the children that in the story Max did not want to talk that day. It was just a listening day. Ask the children to sit very quietly and just listen. After a moment ask them to name some of the sounds they heard. Explain that when it is very quiet, you can hear many more sounds with your ears. Did any of the sounds the children hear make a pattern? Help them repeat it. (Yes Francois, the clock said tik,tik,tik,tik,tik.

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

Have the children cover their eyes while you hide the timer. Make sure to turn it on so that it is ticking. The children uncover their eyes and listen carefully and then point to the center/area where they are hearing the ticking coming from.

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.

Discovery

Give the children rhythm sticks or pencils. Have them hit them on a variety of objects to make different sounds. Talk about the various sounds. Which item makes the loudest sound, which sound do you like best, which item makes the softest sound?

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

Show the children how to tap out patterns by counting 1-2-3 or 1-2-1-2, etc.

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Music and Movement

Give the children sticks, pencils, or even blocks and tap to the Hap Palmer song, Put Your Sticks in the Air.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8lK7cvJWME. Or try, Tap Your Sticks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLfEW3SwpdI

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Pull out your musical instruments today and let the children tap along to songs of their choice. When you finish one song, have the children pass their instrument to the right. This allows children to experiment with several different instruments during a music setting.

Creative Arts/Music; experiments with a variety of musical instruments.

Make Music Cubes. On one write the name of six familiar songs. On the other write six actions (IE jump and turn, stomp your foot, clap your hands). Let the children take turns rolling the dice and then as a class do the actions to the song that was rolled.

Literacy/Early Writing; develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes. AND Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation; develops increasing abilities to give and take in interactions; to take turns in games and using materials; and to interact without being overly submissive or directive.

Blocks

Any type of pattern play that you have.

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Art

Give each child a paint stick. Add paint into small containers or egg cartons. Have the children use watercolor brushes (they are smaller and so will be able to produce more details). Tell them that today we are going to make stripes. Show them how to make stripes across the paint stick. One day one, paint one side and on the next day paint the other. When dry, hang these from the ceiling. (My children especially liked when we hung them over the lunch table).

Creative Arts/Art; begins to understand and share opinions about artistic products and experiences. AND Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and ,multiple-step directions.

Library and Writing

Give each child a pre-writing page and markers to follow the lines.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; progresses in abilities to use writing, drawing, and art tools, including pencils, markers, chalk, paint brushes, and various types of technology.

Sand and Water

Add damp sand to the center today. Bring in a basket of natural materials such as sticks of various barks, acorns, corn husks, stones both smooth and rough, leaves with strong ridges. Let the children mash these into play dough to see the patterns that they make.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to participate in simple experiments to observe and discuss common properties, differences and comparisons among objects and materials.

Dramatic Play

Add your doctor kit to the center today. If you have a working stethoscope, add it to the center. Show the children how to use it and quietly listen to each others heartbeat.

Math and Manipulatives

Any kind of pattern type play. (My class really enjoyed parquetry shapes and patterns. Check out this web page for ideas). See Resources for more ideas. https://www.prekinders.com/pattern-blocks/

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Outdoor Play

Bring some of your sticks outside for the children to bang on the fence, the ground, the tricycle, wagon, etc.. Making music sounds and patterns.

Mathematics/Pattern & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, ande extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Transitions

Dismiss the children by what is on their clothing. If you are wearing stripes, shapes, letters, numbers, pockets, zipper, buttons, etc..

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; understands an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary.

Resources

Take pictures of several block structures and see if the children can copy them using the blocks.

The Line Up Book, by Marisabina Russo

Sam is busy lining things up. This story can be used to teach line order as well as categories of objects.

Materials

Pictures of items found in different rooms of house.
3 Skeins of yarn
Roll of masking tape
Clothes pins that clip shut and yarn for clothes line
Several rulers

Vocabulary

Line

Before Reading the Story

Open up the cover of the book so that the children can see the line of objects that Sam has made. Ask them to name what is in the front of the line (the duck), what is at the end of the line? Continue asking what is beside the turtle, behind the boot, in front of the cement truck?

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways.

Reading the Story

On the page where Sam begins lining up books, ask the children what they think Sam is doing? On the page where Sam is in the living room and needs one more thing, ask the children if they can guess what he might use to finish his line?

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

After Reading the Story

Ask the children if they can remember the first thing Sam used to make his line? What did he used second? Third? Fourth? Fifth? Last?

Discovery

Put out the timeline pictures of the little girl. Can the children put them in correct order? Let them talk about things they thought they could do when they were the age of the girl in the picture.

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; shows increasing abilities to sort, put in a series, and regroup objects according to one or two attributes such as shape or size. AND Science/Scientific Knowledge; develops growing awareness of ideas and language related to attributes of time and temperature.

Music and Movement

Make lines on the floor using masking tape. The children can begin at one end of a line and walk backwards, jump, tip toe, etc. to the other end.

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

On pieces of paper write numbers one through however many children are in your class. Put the numbers in a line. Ask a child to go stand on number 1, ask the the next child to go stand on number 2, through all the numbers. Mix up the order you call the children so that they get practice standing on all the numbers over time.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways. AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; develops increasing ability to count to 10 and beyond.

Teach the children the Peanut Butter & Jelly Song. Make up actions to go along with the words. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L39J7jCoVKY

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

Blocks

Put out the wood alphabet blocks today and a poster showing each of the letters. The children then match the block to the appropriate square on the poster. How many letters can they name?

Literacy/Alphabet Knowledge; shows progress in associating the names of letters with their shapes and sounds.

Art

Use the line card and cut into individual strips for the children to use for cutting practice. http://www.attentionworksheets.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/IMAGES-Scissor-Skills-Worksheets-COLLECTION-1.pdf

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; grows in hand-eye coordination in building with blocks, putting together puzzles, reproducing shapes and patterns, stringing beads, and using scissors.

Put out several rulers and colored pencils. SHow the children how to hold the ruler on the paper to make a straight line. Encourage them to fill the paper with many straight lines.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; progresses in abilities to use writing, drawing, and art tools, including pencils, markers, chalk, paint brushes, and various types of technology.

Library and Writing

Use the line card and let the children follow along with markers or pencils.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; progresses in abilities to use writing, drawing, and art tools, including pencils, markers, chalk, paint brushes, and various types of technology.

Sand and Water

Damp sand and things that the children can use to draw and make lines in the sand (unsharpened pencil, plastic fork, pizza cutter, play dough cutters, etc. As they play, ask them if they can make a straight line, a curved line, a zig-zag line, and a loopy line. Can they write the letters of their name in the damp sand?

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; understands an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary. AND Literacy/Early Writing; experiments with a growing variety of writing tools and materials, such as pencils, crayons, and computers. AND Literacy/Early Writing; progresses from using scribbles, shapes, or pictures to represent ideas, to using letter-like symbols, to copying or writing familiar words such as their own name.

Dramatic Play

Add a clothes line to the center today using yarn and clothes pins that clip. If it is winter add mittens for the children to clip[ on the line. Otherwise have the children clip on doll clothes.

Physical Health & Development/Fine Motor Skills; develops strength, dexterity, and control needed to use tools such as scissors, paper punch, stapler, and hammer.

Math and Manipulatives

Have the children name and sort pictures from different rooms in the house.

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

Outdoor Play

Make an obstacle course for the children to follow. Use the skein of yarn to go under, over, and around objects on the playground. Explain to the children that they are to follow the yarn to know where to go next.

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

Transitions

As you line up to go to outside or to the bathroom tell the children that ___ is first and then ___ can be second. Have all the children count the children as they line up.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; develops increasing ability to count to 10 and beyond. AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways.

Resources

Use the pictures of the girl to put in chronological order.

Fish Eyes-a book you can count on By Lois Ehlert

Fish Eyes is literally a book for counting plus one. The pages are full of bright colorful fish that jump, smile, and flip. The book also introduces words like fantailed through cheerful illustrations.

Materials

Pictures of Eye of an Animal cards

Fish Eye pattern

Yarn, magnets, and paperclips to make fishing poles

Parachute

Vocabulary

scales

Before Reading the Story

Tape several pictures of fish onto the wall where all the children can see. Ask the children if they know what these animals are called? Where are they found? Explain to the children that fish come in many different shapes and sizes. Look at the pictures and talk about the scales, the fantails, the stripes, etc.. Ask the children if they ever eat fish, do they like it? Let them share any information they may have about fish. (I have a fish tank at my house and it has little blue fish in it. I went fishing with my Papa. You have to squish the worm onto the hook.).

Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; grows in eagerness to learn about and discuss a growing range of topics, ideas, and tasks. AND Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes.

Reading the Story

As you read the story, stop on the different pages to point out new vocabulary words. Striped fish just like Anar’s shirt. Spotted like my arm that is spotted with freckles. Fantail, point to the tail and then the tail of the fish on the wall. Do you see any others with a fantail? Flashy-look at Brandon’s shirt, it is very bright and flashy. For words flipping and darting, use your hand to show what these actions look like.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and increasingly complex and varied vocabulary.

After Reading the Story

Ask a child to stand up in front of the group. Ask the rest of the children,”How many children are standing”? Ask them , “how many will there be if you add one more”? Do and then recount. Continue asking one more and then counting to see if correct. Do till 10 and then have all the children sit back down. Now ask two children to come up front, how many will there be if we add two more, took one away, etc..

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

Discovery

Print out the animal eyes and the animal pictures. The children then match the correct eye to the correct animal.

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

Music and Movement

Sing Bubble Pop! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60RRRq4dJ58

Mathematics/Number & Operations; develops increasing ability to count to 10 in sequence and beyond.

Play the song Baby Beluga and encourage the children to dance and sing along with. http://www.song-bar.com/song-blog/playlists-songs-about-fish-and-other-life-aquatic

Creative Arts/Movement; expresses through movement and dancing what is felt and heard in various musical tempos and styles.

Teach the children the song and actions to Roll Over the Ocean https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evKl-jfA1vo

Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; begins to express and understand concepts and language of geography in contexts of the classroom, home, and community.

Blocks

Tell the children that you have made a fish game for them to play in blocks today but first they must build a fish pond. Make fishing poles with rulers, pencils, or sticks and pieces of yarn with a magnet attached. Place the fish shapes in the pond with a paperclip attached near their mouth. The children try to pick up the fish using the magnet on the fishing pole. You can colr the fish depending upon what concepts you might be working on (color, letters of the alphabet, numbers, children’s names, etc..

Art

Place the Drawing a Fish directions on the table and encourage the children to practice drawing fish. Once they have drawn a fish, encourage them to embellish it.

Creative Arts/Art; progresses in abilities to create drawing, paintings, models, and other art creations that are more detailed , creative, or realistic.

Library and Writing

Hang the pictures of the fish in the center for the children to look at and discuss. Ask them to find common properties and differences among the pictures.

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

Sand and Water

I have used a day that we read about fish to clean our classroom aquarium. We put the goldfish in the water table and talk about how to care for the fish for the day. I have allowed the children to”pet” the fish by gently putting their clean hands into the water and touching the fish. My classroom children have all really enjoyed this activity along with helping carry water to and from the sink for the aquarium.

Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; develops growing awareness of jobs and what is required to perform them. AND Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in an increasing variety of tasks and activities.

Dramatic Play

As the children play in dramatics today, ask them if it is ok to let another child come into the center. Use your center signs to remind the children how many are allowed at one time and is there room for one more?

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

Math & Manipulatives

Use the fish pattern and make a sheet of red, blue, green, and yellow. Cut the fish out and use for pattern play.

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, and extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.

Encourage the children to use the fish to measure the length of the table, their friend, from here to there.

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; shows progress in using standard and non-standard measures for length and area of objects.

Outdoor Play

Bring out the parachute. Have the children hold on to the parachute handles. Loudly call, “I wish, I wish, I wish I was a ______/(color on the parachute) fish! All the children touching that color run under the parachute and back out. The rest of the children make waves by moving the parachute from knees to shoulders.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in following simple and multiple-step directions AND Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation; develops increasing abilities to give and take in interactions; to take turns in games and using materials; and to interact without being overly submissive ort directive.

Transitions

Say the following to each child as they move to the next activity. “I wish, I wish, I wish I was a _______?name an animal. The child names an animal and then does the animal walk, movement to the next activity.

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