On Monday When It Rained, by Cherryl Kachenmeister

Each day the narrator talks about an event that brought about an emotion. This book offers simple explanations for a variety of emotions.

Materials

One or two mirrors
One paint stir stick per child (these can be found at any place that sells paint).
Copy of the Emotion game

Vocabulary

Before Reading the Story

Play Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down with the children. Give a scenario and ask the children if they think this is a thumbs up (kind thing to do) or thumbs down (not kind thing to do). Examples; Ann wants to ride the bike so she goes in front of Michael and tries to pull him off the bike. Ann is playing in the block center and Michael asks her if he can help build a tower. When Michael asks Ann, she says yes. When Ann says she wants a turn on the swing, Michael tells her “you can be next when I am finished”,he then calls her when he gets off the swing. Ann bumps into Michael when they are playing and says she is sorry. Note; young children do not always know right from wrong so you may have to talk about some of your questions and teach them positive social responses.

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

Reading the Story

Stop on each page where the boy talks about his experience and ask the children if they can guess how he feels. When you turn to the page where he names a feeling, ask the children to copy the same facial expression. After reading the last page, ask the children what they think the boy was wondering about? If they give answers such as “What will I play with today?” or “Who will be my friend?”, ask them how it makes them feel.

Language Development/Speaking & Communicating; develops increasing abilities to understand and use language to communicate information, experiences, ideas, feelings, opinions, needs, questions; and for other varied purposes.

After Reading the Story

Open up the book to a page where the boy names an emotion. Ask the children if they have ever felt this way. Allow them time to tell their story about the emotion. (When my Mommy turns off my night light I get scared. When Johnny told me I couldn’t play with him I felt sad).

Social & Emotional Development/Self-Concept; begins to develop and express awareness of self in terms of specific abilities, characteristics, and preferences.

Discovery

Put mirrors out along with the book and encourage the children to practice making the facial expression in the mirror, As they play, help them to name the emotion. “Oh, that face looks really angry”. “When you do that you look like you are feeling silly and having fun”.

Approaches to Learning/grows in abilities to persist in and complete a variety of tasks, activities, projects, and experiences. AND Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing abilities to classify, compare, and contrast objects, events, and experiences.

Music and Movement

Sing or chant any days of the week song you might know. Point to your class calendar as you sing.

Literacy/Print Awareness & Appreciation; develops growing understanding of different functions of forms of print such as signs, letters, newspapers, lists, messages, and menus.

Sing If You’re Happy and You Know It changing up the verses to sing and act out different emotions. Ask for the children’s input upon how to act out the emotion (angry-kick foot, stomp fist, jump up and down).

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

Blocks

If room allows, do not put the children’s block structures away but leave them up for tomorrow. Allow the children to continue to build upon yesterday’s block structures for several days. As they continue to build use the words; yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Science/Scientific Knowledge; develops growing awareness of ideas and language related to attributes of time and temperature.

Art

Give each child a paint stir stick and explain that today you are going to paint one side and tomorrow when it is dry you will paint the other. Show the children how to paint stripes onto their paint stir stick but allow to paint anyway that the child chooses. After the second side has dried, drill a hole in one end and hang as a cluster from the ceiling using string or yarn.

Creative Arts/Art; develops growing abilities to plan, work independently, and demonstrate care and persistence in a variety of art projects.

Sand and Water

Water is often very calming to children. Put warm water into the table today and allow the children to choose what equipment they will add.

Science/Scientific Knowledge; develops growing awareness of ideas and language related to attributes of time and temperature.

Library and Writing

Encourage the children to draw a picture about something that they did at school today or at home. After they are finished, ask them to tell you about it as you write their words onto a piece of paper. After their story ask them how it made them feel and write; I felt ______ as the last line of your dictation. Attach their story to their picture.

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

Dramatic Play

Watch the dramatic center closely today and help the children to identify the emotions that each is feeling. Is someone being left out of the play? Is someone bossing everyone around? Help the children to see how their actions affect the emotions of others. And then help the children find positive ways to be included and to share the role playing with others.

Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation; shows increasing abilities to use compromise and discussion in working, playing, and resolving conflicts with peers.

Math and Manipulatives

Make a copy of the Emotion game. Give each child a small manipulative to use as a marker. Take turns rolling a dice and moving your man forward. If you land on a face card, you must make the face, name the emotion, or tell something that makes you feel that way.

Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation; develops increasing abilities to give and take in interactions; to take turns in games or using materials; and to interact without being overly submissive or directive. AND Approaches to Learning/Reasoning & Problem Solving; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.

Outdoor Play

With chalk, draw 7 squares onto the cement that are large enough for the children to jump into. Show them how to sing your days of the week song as they jump from square to square. Challenge them to jump forward, backward, like a frog, and hop on the squares as they say/sing the days of the week.

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

Pull out your classroom calendar and talk to the children about upcoming events. Count how many days until the event. Show the children today on the calendar and then point to tomorrow and tell them what day it will be. Show the children yesterday on the calendar and tell them what day that was. Ask them if they can recall anything they did or ate yesterday.

Science/Scientific Knowledge; develops growing awareness of ideas and language related to attributes of time and temperature.

Dear Parent- Today we talked about the days of the week. This is a difficult subject for young children because many do not fully understand the concept of time. You can help your child by sharing your family calendar. Help your child count the days to upcoming events, talk about what you did yesterday(remember yesterday when grandma called?), and what might be happening tomorrow (tomorrow I am making spaghetti for supper).

Resources

When Sophie Gets Angry- Really, Really Angry, Molly Bang

Sometimes we all get really, really angry. This book shows how one person defuses with all those angry feelings in a positive way.

Materials

Blank head with ‘I get angry when ____’
Vinegar
Baking soda

Vocabulary

Smithereens (lots of little pieces)
Angry (when you feel really mad inside)
Explode (to get really, really angry)
Volcano (a mountain that spits out the earth’s innards)

Introducing the Story

Ask the children how you can tell if someone is angry? Ask them to show you what angry looks like. Help the children to notice anger does not only show in the face but the whole body. Tell them that you are going to act out some emotions and see if the children can guess from your body language and facial expression. Let the children try mimicking you.

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

Reading the Story

Tell the children that the story today is about a girl named Sophie. Hold up the cover of the book. How do you think Sophie is feeling? What are some things that make you feel this way? Introduce the book.

Social & Emotional Development/Self-Concept; begins to develop and express awareness of self in terms of specific abilities, characteristics, and preferences. AND Language Development/Speaking & Communicating; develops increasing abilities to understand and use language to communicate information, experiences, ideas, feelings, opinions, needs, questions; and for varies other purposes.

After Reading the Story

Talk with the children about what to do when they become angry with a friend at school? (We count to 3. Say give it back, we can tell the teacher, I say you are not my friend anymore). It’s ok to feel angry but it’s not ok to hurt people. What is your classroom protocol? (i.e.; Stop, count to 10. Say what is wrong. Tell what you want). Talk with the children about how you would like to see them handle problems. Have the children help act out how your classroom would ideally handle problems.

Social & Emotional Development/Self-Control; shows progress in expressing feelings, needs, and opinions in difficult situations and conflicts without harming themselves, others, or property.

Music and Movement

Sing; If You Are Happy and You Know It. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13wd8KvOt58 Make up verses that sing about different emotions. Encourage the children to make the facial expressions accordingly. (If you’re angry and you know it stomp your fist, If you’re sad and you know it wipe your tears).

Play Bruno Mars Happy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOWDb2TBYDg song and dance!

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

Give the children cues on how to move. If they can think of no movements, demonstrate for them to follow. Suggest that they move like; they are really, really angry, move like you are scared of something, move like you are so excited because you just got a present you always wanted, move like you are sleepy and can hardly stay awake.

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

Discovery

Make a volcano. As you are making your volcano, ask the children if they can remember what happened to Sophie when she exploded. Ask them if they can guess, hypothesis, what will happen when you mix the volcano ingredients in the soda bottle. Take the children out on the playground and have them help you big a giant sand mountain. Put a soda bottle into the center of the volcano with the top exposed. Fill the soda bottle up ¾ with warm water. Add 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Fill the rest of the bottle with vinegar. Step back and count down for the eruption!

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

Blocks

Today would be a good day to allow the children to build with blocks and then knock them down. If you have foam or cardboard blocks, encourage the children to build as tall as they like and then knock down only their structure. If you have only wooden blocks, you will need to set up very specific ground rules such as you can build no higher than your waist and must take turns knocking the structure down when your friends are cleared from being hit by falling blocks.

Social & Emotional Development/Self-Control; demonstrates increasing capacity to follow rules and routines and use materials purposefully, safely, and respectfully. AND Health & Physical Development/Fine Motor Skills; grows in eye-hand coordination in building with blocks, putting together puzzles, reproducing patterns and shapes, stringing beads, and using scissors.

Art

Make trees. Cut out tree trunks and let the children glue them to a sheet of paper. Put out strips of colored paper ½ inch wide by the length of the construction paper. The children can take scissors and snip the strips and then glue the snips to the tree for leaves.

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

Sand and Water

Water play can be very soothing for children. Put out water today and let the children scoop and pour.

Social & Emotional Development/Cooperation; increases abilities to sustain interactions with peers by helping, sharing, and discussion.

Library and Writing

Give each child a paper with a blank head on it. Ask the child to draw what angry looks like. Let the child share ideas of what makes him/her angry and write it underneath their angry face.

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

Dramatic Play

Encourage the children to play house and work together so no one gets their feelings hurt and everyone feels welcomed.

Social & Emotional Development/Social Relationships; Shows progress in developing friendships with peers.

Math and Manipulaties

Any puzzles that you have that show emotion. As the children put the puzzles together talk about the people’s expressions. Can you tell how they feel? What makes you feel that way? If you do not have puzzles, you can still let the children do puzzles today and you observe their body language as they put the puzzles together. Comment on their emotions. (Ryan, you look frustrated, would you like some help? Alison, you finished that puzzle all by yourself, you must feel proud. Roger, you have done that puzzle three times now, you must be feeling confident).

Approaches to Learning/Engagement & Persistence; grows in abilities to persist in and complete a variety of task, activities, projects, and experiences.

Outdoor Play

Run, run, run, run, and run. Then sit down and relax and enjoy the nature your playground provides. While they are sitting and cooling down, make an awareness of how their breathing and heartbeat have changed. Remind them that it is important to work their heart muscle everyday.

Physical Health & Development/Gross Motor Skills; shows increasing levels of proficiency, control, and balance in walking, climbing, running, jumping, hopping, skipping, marching, and galloping. AND Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and respect for their bodies and the environment.

Transitions

In the story, Sophie lets out a “red, red, roar!”. Let each child let out a red, red roar as they go to the next activity.

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

Dear Parents, today we read a story about a little girl who gets very angry. We then talked about ways to defuse anger. Ask your child if they can think of ways that they can defuse anger at home. Encourage them to think of multiple solutions. Then ask them which one they would like to try next time they get really, really angry.

Resources

The Monster at the End of this Book, by Jon Stone

What did that say? There’s a monster at the end of the book? Poor Grover is SO scared! What will he do to keep from reaching the end of the book? Will it work? And what will become of Grover when he meets the monster?

Materials

Front and back cards
Many Lengths of yarn about 12 inches long
Monster Head, one per child

Vocabulary

Embarrassed-self conscious, uncomfortable with self

Before Reading the Story

Go over all the parts of the book today. Do the children know which is the front of the book and the back of the book? The spline? Do they know were the cover page is? Introduce the story by author, illustrator and title.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; progresses in learning how to handle and care for books; knowing to view one page at a time in sequence from front to back; and understanding that a book has a title, author, and illustrator.

Reading the Story

Open to the title page and use your finger to underline the title, The Monster at the End of this Book. Make sure to read Grover’s response to this page before turning the page. On the page where Grover builds a brick wall, stop and ask the children do they think that we will be able to turn the page?

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

After Reading the Story

Ask the children if they were afraid? Ask the children who was afraid (Gover)? Why? (there’s a monster at the end of the book) Why was Grover embarrassed? (He is a monster, the monster at the end of the book).

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

Discovery

Put out a hammer and nail type activity today. These can be home-made using a block of Styrofoam, golf tees, and half arch blocks or small hammers.

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

Music and Movement

Use the front and back match cards to play a musical chairs type game. Put a chair for each child into two lines that are back to back. Give each child one half of a front and back set. Tape the other side onto the back of a chair. The children walk/march/jump around the chairs until the music stops and then they must find the other half of their set and sit on the chair. Collect the halves the children are holding and repass them out. Continue to play until the children grow tired.

Blocks

Remind the children that Grover built a heavy, thick, solid, strong brick wall. Encourage the children to build a wall with the blocks today?

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

Art

Put out markers today. Give each child a Monster head and let the children create their own monsters.

Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; approaches tasks and activities with increased flexibility, imagination, and inventiveness.

Sand and Water

Add some blue food coloring to the water in the table today. Put out scooping toys along with funnels and pieces of plastic hosing that fit the funnel end. As the children pour and scoop, they can see how the water moves from high to low and container to container.

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

Library and Writing

M is for Monster. Ask the children to practice writing M’s on paper.

Literacy/Early Writing; experiments with a growing variety of writing tools and materials, such as pencils, crayons, and computers.

Put out many alphabet magnets and shapes. Challenge the children to go through the letters and pull out all the M’s. How many did they find? This works best if you have several sources of alphabet letters that you can dump onto the table or int a bin for sorting.

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

Dramatic Play

Put your puppets in the center today and encourage the children to make up a story. The Monster at the end of this Book often gives children a good jumping off place to start.

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

Math and Manipulatives

Remind the children that in the story Grover tied pages together. Show the children how to take the lengths of yarn and tie them to the legs of your classroom chairs or side of the easel. Show the children how to tie a knot. For older children they can practice tying bows such as on lace shoes.

Outdoor Play

The teacher can pretend to be a monster and chase the children about the playground. When she catches a child she can say that she is a lovable monster and give the child a hug or kiss and then chase after someone else.

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

Again use the front and back cards. Give children either a front or back card. They must find the child who has the matching card, give them to you, and then go off to the next activity. As they hand the cards to you, ask them, “Is this a picture of the front or back of the ____”?

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. AND Approaches to Learning/Engagement & Persistence; grows in abilities to persist in and complete a variety of tasks, activities, projects, and experiences.