What A Wonderful World, by George David Weiss and Bob Thiele

Louis Armstrong sang this song/book and made it popular everywhere. This is a great book to learn to sing to your children. It has a lovely message for young and old alike.

Materials

Map of the world or a globe
Tongs, tweezers, chopsticks
An assortment of natural objects-rocks, shells, seed pods, twigs, etc.
One or two pair of binoculars
One ‘I See’ chart for each child

Vocabulary

Map (a picture from the air of the world or a part of the world)
Globe ( a model of the earth)

Before Reading the Story

Show the children the map or globe of the world. Ask them if the know what it is. Show them where you are on the map. If you have children whose parents have come from other countries show them where their family homeland is. Talk about the water and mountains on the map. Show the children where it is always a frozen tundra, a big river, where the rain forest is and the dessert.

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

Reading the Story

Sing the story or bring in the music and use it while you turn the pages. The tune is lovely and children seem to enjoy this to music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3yCcXgbKrE

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

After Reading the Story

Talk about how we must help to take care of the earth. Ask the children if they can think of ways that they can help keep the world beautiful. If they can not, give them some suggestions (throw trash in the garbage and not on the ground, walk around insects instead of squishing them, smile to people you meet on the street, try not to break tree branches and flowers). Think about your school, is there anything that you see that is destructive to the earth?

Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and respect for their bodies and the environment.

Discovery;

Encourage the children to use binoculars to look out the window. Do you see any birds or plants? Look up into the sky, what do you see? (If you do not have binoculars, tape two toilet tubes together as this helps focus the view to a smaller peripheral and works as pretend binoculars. Give each child an I See sheet and they can circle what they see.

Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; develops growing abilities to collect, describe, and record information through a variety of means, including discussion, drawings, maps, and charts.

Music and Movement

Sing I’ve Got Something in My Pocket https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkO7UKUBXUY

I’ve got something in my pocket,

That belongs across my face

I keep it very close at hand

In an easy to get place.

I’m sure you wouldn’t guess it

If you guessed a long, long while

So I’ll take it out and put it on

It’s a great big friendly smile

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

Dance to music from different cultures and use soothing music from other cultures at rest time.

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

Blocks

Encourage the children to make shapes using the blocks. Can you make a big triangle from all these little blocks? Can you make a big square using these rectangle blocks?

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; progresses in ability to put together and take apart shapes.

Art

Ahead of time, cut out long strips of colored paper about 1/2 inch wide. Give the children scissors and ask them to cut the strips into little pieces. You can then use the small pieces to make a collage or to fill in a rainbow shape. Today, just let them practice cutting the strips.

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

Library and Writing

Bring a bean bag or small koosh ball to the center. Toss or roll it to a child and ask them to think of three words that start with their first letter sound of their name. (/R/ roar, Roger, roly poly /T/ toes, train, tomato). If your children are good at letter sounds, expand to different letters then the letter of their first name.

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

Sand and Water

Fill the table with sand or water. Add small objects that the children can try to pick up with tongs, tweezers, and chopsticks (if you put a rubber band on the end of the chopsticks they are easier for children to use)

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.

Dramatic Play

Put out any multicultural clothing you may have. Or put out large scarves which are great for making saris, head wraps. skirts, and capes.

Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; progresses in understanding similarities and respecting differences among people such as genders, race, special needs, culture, language, and family structures.

Math and Manipulatives

Bring in an assortment of natural objects for the children to sort (rocks, shells, seed pods, twigs). Put out a piece of dark colored paper and show them how to use this for a frame and ask them to use the objects to make a beautiful design with the natural objects.

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, and extend simple patterns using a variety of materials. AND Mathematics/Geometry & SPatial Sense; shows increasing abilities to match, sort, put in a series, and regroup objects according to one or two attributes such as color, shape, or size.

Outdoor Play

Draw a hopscotch on the cement. Tell the children that children all over the world play hopscotch type games. Fill the squares in with numbers, letters, or shapes depending on what the children need to focus on. Have the children throw a beanbag or small stone onto a square, name the letter/shape/number and then jump or hop to that square and collect their stone and jump back to home.

Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways, AND Physical Health & Development/Gross Motor Skills; shows increasing levels of proficiency, control, and balance in walking, climbing, running, jumping, hopping, skipping, galloping, and marching.

Transitions

As the children go to the next activity, draw a shape on their back with your finger and have them try to guess what shape you drew.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; begins to recognize, describe, compare, and name common shapes and their attributes.

Resources

Where Does The Butterfly Go When It Rains? by May Garelick

What a wonderful question this title is. Follow along as the author tells where other animals go when it rains, but where does the butterfly go when it rains?

Materials

Butterfly match game/patterns
Butterfly wings (sold at Dollar Store)
8 one to two in paint brushes and buckets

Vocabulary

Hide ( to move out of sight or to be blocked from view)

Before Reading the Story

Talk about where and what people do when it is raining outside. Make sure to touch on the safety of going inside when there is thunder. Talk about how after the rain there are puddles, does anyone like to play in the puddles? Ask the children if they know what an umbrella is, have they ever used one? Ask the children if they know where animals might go when it rains (my cat runs under Mommy’s car, the cow goes to the barn) Introduce the story and ask it as a question, Where do the butterflies go when it rains?

Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes. AND 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

After you ask the question, “Where does the butterfly go in the rain’? Give the children a few seconds to respond before you turn the page. If no one responds, shrug your shoulders and continue reading. If someone does respond say “I don’t know, let’s keep reading”.

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

After Reading the Story

Cut out a small butterfly shape from a manila file. Cut out a triangle, circle, square, and rectangle from colored paper that is big enough for the butterfly to be able to hide under without being seen. Have a child hide their eyes. Place the butterfly under one of the shapes. The child then opens their eyes and guesses which shape the butterfly is under. Make sure to have the child name the shape that he thinks the butterfly is under. Then let that child hide the butterfly while another child guesses.

Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; begins to recognize, describe, compare, and name common shapes, their parts, and attributes.

Discovery

If you have butterflies already at your center, put out orange slices and water to attract them to a window close to your science center. Check out this web site for more info about making butterfly feeder. https://insteading.com/blog/how-to-attract-butterflies/

Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes.

Music and Movement

Teach the children the counting rhyme, La Mariposa

Uno, dos tres, cuatro, cinco One, two, three, four, five

Cogi una mariposa de un brinco. I caught a butterfly.

Seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez Six, seven, eight, nine, ten

La solte brincando otra vez Then I let him go again.

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

Play the piano piece, Butterfly in the Rain and let your children dance and move to the music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVXmtckavDQ

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

Blocks

Put out a few paper butterflies, or draw several small ones on a manila folder and cut out. As the children build structures they can hide the butterflies within or on the structure. Then ask you or another child to come and find them. Older children might like to cut out their own butterfly to hide.

Art

Give each child a clean manila folder. Have them dab small amounts of paint onto one side. Fold the other side over and press with their hands. Open back up and let it dry. When it is dry, refold it and then draw a butterfly pattern on one side. Older children can cut these out but the teacher will have to cut for younger children. Cut both sides together. If your center allows, hang the butterflies from the ceiling with the painted side facing the floor.

Give each child a white coffee filter and tell them to color it with water soluble markers. When they have finished coloring the entire coffee filter have them use a squirt bottle to spray their coffee filter 3 times. This will cause the marker to run and the colors to melt into each other. Use a clothespin for the body and put half the coffee filter through to make wings.

Creative Arts/Art; gains ability in using different art media and materials in a variety of ways for creative expression and representation.

Sand and Water

Put sand in the table today and hide magnet letters in it. The children can scoop and sift in search of the letters. Make an alphabet chart and as the children find the letters, they can match them to the chart.

Literacy/Alphabet Knowledge; identifies at least 10 letters of the alphabet, especially those in their name.

Library and Writing

On the bottom of each piece of drawing paper write; If I were a butterfly I would hide from the rain _______. Read this sentence to the children and then ask them to illustrate it. You can collect all the pictures and make a book, Where Would We Butterflies Hide From the Rain?

Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem. AND Literacy/Early Writing; begins to represent stories and experiences through pictures, dictation, and in play.

Dramatic Play

Many Dollar Store sell butterfly or fairy wings in theri toy department. If your center has a budget, ask them to purchase enough so that everyone in the dramatic center can have a pair of wings to wear.

Math and Manipulatives

Make a butterfly pattern matching game. Make two copies of each butterfly pattern, cut, color and cover with contact paper. The children then match the butterfly’s that are the same.

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

Outdoor Play

Give the children the large paint brushes and buckets filled with water. Show them ow to paint the building, the sidewalk, and the tree. If you have a lot of cement, challenge the children to write thier names with the water before it evaporates.

Literacy/Early Writing; experiments with growing variety of writing tools and materials, such as markers, crayons, and computer. AND Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in an increasing variety of tasks, activities, projects, and experiences.

Transitions

On pieces of paper write 2 and 3 step directions. Put the pieces of paper into a bowl. The children take turns pulling one out and then must follow the instructions. (Put your hands on your head and hop forward 3 hops, Tell your neighbor hello, clap your hands and then turn around. Jump 2 times and touch your toes. Jump 2 times, clap your hands 2 times, and turn around. Nod your head yes then shake your head no. Jump and turn 4 times. Etc.).

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

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, by Michael Rosen

Children of all ages like to go on a bear hunt. Follow this families adventure as they swish, splash, squelch, stumble, and hooo there way in search of a bear. Be brave!

Materials

Binoculars
Pictures of real bears
Alphabet bingo cards -add letters to the frames provided
Teddy Graham cookies
Bears about 4-5 inches tall
Several teddy bears
Bucket of dirt

Vocabulary

Adventure ( a trip or an experience)
Brave (to not be scared, even if it’s something kind of scary)
Gloomy (dark and cold looking)

Before Reading the Story

Ask the children if they know what it means to be brave. Let them share any acts of bravery they might have done (when it was thundering I had to be brave cause my sister was crying, I rode my bike without training wheels, I swim in the lake, Ms. K picked up the worm!)

Language Development/Speaking & Communicating;uses an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary. AND Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & problem Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.

Reading the Story

Show the children the cover of the book. Read the cover and ask if anyone has ever been on a bear hunt before? Where would you look for a bear? What will happen when you find a bear? As you read the story, show the children how to make the sound actions with their hands.

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.

After Reading the Story

Ask the children if they would like to go on a bear hunt. Move about your classroom following the theme of the book. Let the children help tell what you might encounter along the way and how you will have to move (a big tree, we have to climb it, a giant mountain we have to climb it, a tall bridge we have to go across it)

Discovery

Add a pictures of bears, a Teddy Bear, and binoculars to the center. If the children do not know how to use binoculars, show them by looking out the window. If you can, put a teddy bear outside for the children to focus on with the binoculars.

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

Music and Movement

Make enough bear cards for all the children to have one. On each card write an action (jump over the block, jump around the table, crawl under the table, and walk backwards across the rug); Hide the cards about the room . Tell the children that they are going to go on a bear hunt. Everyone must find one bear card and then meet at a designated spot. When everyone is gathered, read the directions on each bear and have the children do the action. Make sure that you write your directions to include one preposition. Let everyone do the actions if they like.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and multiple-step directions. AND Mathematics/Geometry & Spatial Sense; builds increasing understanding of directionality, order, and prepositions of objects, and words such as up, down, over, under, top, bottom, inside, outside, in front, and behind.

Teach your children Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear. Have the children do the actions as you repeat the poem.

Teddy bear teddy bear turn around

Teddy bear teddy bear touch the ground

Teddy bear teddy bear tie your shoe

Teddy bear teddy bear that will do

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

Blocks

Build a cave for a bear. Add several small teddy bears to the center.

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

Art

Draw a picture of your family going on a bear hunt. Don’t forget to add the bear!

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

Play alphabet bingo with the children. Use Teddy Graham cookies for markers. Have each child play until they fill their card, then they can eat the bears.

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

Sand and Water

Make mud to put in the table. Does it really go squelch? How does it feel?

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.

Dramatic Play

Put a scarf or sheer curtain over the table and pretend that it’s a bear cave.

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

Math and Manipulatives

If you have teddy bear counters, put them out for the children to sort and count.

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

Outdoor Play

Play Are You Sleeping Mr. Bear? Choose one child to be the bear. The bear gets in the middle of the circle and pretends to sleep. Everyone else holds hands and makes a big circle around Mr. Bear. Quietly the children in the circle ask, “Are you sleeping Mr. Bear?” and take a step closer. Mr. Bear continues to sleep. The children ask again getting closer. Continue until Mr. Bear lets out a huge ROAR and tries to grab a child while all run away shrieking. Let the children take turns being Mr. Bear.

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; participates actively in games, outdoor play, and other forms of exercise to enhance physical fitness.