Category Archives: Farm

Carlos and the Squash Plant, by Jan Romero Stevens

Carlos likes to help his parents farm their garden but he doesn’t like washing up afterwards.  His mother has warned him that he better wash up or he might grow a squash plant out of his ear.  Find out what becomes of Carlos and if he listens to his mother’s warning.

Materials

  •             Small bar soaps, cut a larger one into quarters
  •             A variety of nail brushes
  •             A squash that is in season or squash seeds
  •             Several hats, preferably straw

Vocabulary

  •             Ay caramba (Oh my goodness!)

Before Reading the Book

Sometimes our parents tell us to do things that we do not want to do. Ask the children for examples.  If none are given ask them if their parents tell them it is time to go to bed, time to brush their teeth,time to turn off the TV.  Explain that parents tell their children what to do to help keep them safe and healthy. 

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; shows growing independence in hygiene, nutrition, and personal care when eating, dressing, hand washing, brushing teeth, and toileting.

Show the children the cover of the book and ask them if they think they can tell what the story is about.  Look at the boys face, how do you think he feels?  Now turn the book over and show the back page. Look at the boys face, how do you think he feels now?  Ask the children why he might be feeling this way.  Turn the book back over and begin.  

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.

Reading the Book

As you read, ask the children questions; Carlos did not listen to his mother? What do you think will happen?  Why do you think Carlos is wearing the hat?  Do you think his Mother knows there is a plant growing from his ear?  How do you think Carlos will get the squash plant to disappear? 

Approaches to Learning/Logic & Reasoning; develops increasing ability to find more than one solution to a question, task, or problem.  AND Social & Emotional Development/Self-Control; develops growing understanding of how their actions affect others and begins to accept the consequences of their actions.

                       
After Reading the Book

Talk to the children about the importance of bathing (cause you will be all stinky, the germs will get on you).  Ask the children if they think a squash could really grow out of your ear?  What does a seed need to grow? 

Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge of and respect for their bodies and the environment.  And Science/Scientific Knowledge; expands knowledge  of and abilities to observe, describe, and discuss the natural world, materials, living things, and natural processes.

Give all the children a paper towel.  Tell them that you are going to play a game like Simon Says but it is called Slippery Soap. Call out “Slippery Soap says to wash your elbow!”.  The children then take the paper towel and pretend to wash their elbow.  Continue,as you would play Simon Says.   Include such body parts as knuckles, ankle, thigh, abdomen, gums, eye brow, etc.

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

Discovery

If it is the right time of year, get some squash seeds or bean seeds to plant in cups. 

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

Bring in a squash that is in season.  Let the children use all their senses to describe the squash. 

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

Make the Calabacitas recipe in the back of the book. 

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

Music and Movement

 Teach the children the poem/song  Dig a Little Hole

Dig a little hole                                                              Pretend to dig a hole

And you put the seed in.                                              Pretend to drop a seed into the hole

Cover it with dirt                                                          Pretend to cover the hole

And let the sun shine in                                               Arms overhead to make sun

Add a little water                                                         Wiggle fingers like rain

And keep it fed

Pretty soon a little plant will show its head          Make a hole with one hand touching finger                                                                                                to thumb.  As the other hand pushes                                                                                                            through the hole.

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

Blocks

Carlos planted a garden where he grew his squash plants.  Challenge the children to build a fence to go around a pretend garden.  Can they make a pattern in their fence using the blocks?  

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

Art

Make a ‘vine’ several feet long using green construction paper.  Draw simple leaf shapes on several shades of green paper that the children can cut out and tape to your vine.  Make several star shapes for the squash flowers and squash shape, these the children cut out and tape to the vine also. 

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.

Sand and Water

 Water play today.  Add small bars of  soap and nail brushes.  

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; shows growing independence in hygiene, nutrition, and personal care when eating, dressing, hand washing, brushing teeth, and toileting.

Library and Writing

Carlos’s mother used a recipe to make calabacitas, a favorite food for Carlos. Ask the children if one of their parents cook a favorite food for them?  Ask the child to tell you how his parent cooks this food and write down what he/she says.  Put all the “recipes” together for a classroom cookbook.

Literacy/Early Writing; develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes.  AND Social & Emotional Development/Self-Concept; begins to develop  and express awareness of self in terms of specific abilities, characteristics, and preferences.

Dramatic Play

 Put out several straw hats that the children can use to act out the story.  If you do not have straw hats, use baseball caps. Explain to the children that when working out in the hot sun, it is important to protect your head and skin from sunburn.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress and 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

 The squash plant growing in Carlos’ ear kept getting longer and longer.  Work with the children today using a ruler.  Show them how the numbers tell how many inches long something is.  Help the children to measure toys in the room. Reinforce the concept of an inch by using the 1-inch cubes to double-check the measurements of the ruler. 

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

Outdoor Play

Let the children use shovels to make long straight rows in the dirt to pretend to be planting a garden.  Or if you are able, begin a real garden in the play yard.  

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; enhances abilities to recognize, duplicate, and extend simple patterns using a variety of materials.  AND Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; progresses in physical growth, strength, stamina, and flexibility.

Transitions

Have the children show you how they can wash their hands.  Have them pretend and go through the motions of proper hand washing.  

Physical Health & Development/Health Status & Practices; shows growing independence in hygiene, nutrition, and personal care when eating, dressing, hand washing, brushing teeth, and toileting.

Dear Parent,  Good hand washing techniques are important to your child’s health.  Ask your child to show you the easy steps to better health.  1) Turn on the water and wet hands.  2) Apply soap to your hands.  3) Scrub hands in circular motions creating soap lather on the palms, the tops, around the wrists, and between the fingers.  4) Rinse the soap from your hands.  5) Dry your hands with a paper towel or towel.  6) Use a corner of the towel to turn off the water so as not to touch your clean hands on the water knob.

Dora’s Eggs, by Julie Sykes

Dora is a brand new mother hen.  She has laid her eggs and wants to show them off.  All the other farm animals are busy raising their own babies.  The eggs are nice but…  they’re not as nice as the other babies.  Then suddenly the eggs begin to hatch.

Materials

  •             Box of paperclips
  •             Sequence cards Chicken to chick.
  •             One hard boiled egg per child and the ingredients for egg salad.
  •             Baby chick for egg with brad
  •             Finger puppets to go with Bugs and chicks
  •             Flat shirt boxes, 2 or 3, both tops and bottoms.

Vocabulary

  •             Admire (to come and ooh and ahh )
  •             Frolicking (running and jumping while playing)
  •             Miserable (feeling very unhappy)

Before Reading the Story

Show the children the front of the book.  Ask them if they can tell you what is going on. (What is the chicken doing?  What are those things she is sitting on?  Why is she sitting on the eggs?  Why did she put that straw under her eggs?  Look at her face, how do you think she is feeling?)  Introduce the book, Dora’s Eggs.  Who do you think Dora is?  Turn to the title page, who’s house is this?  How can you tell (see the eggs inside?).  Let’s find out what Dora is up to.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; top act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.  AND 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 reading the animal mother’s responses, make sure to sound happy and prideful.  And when you read the part about “My eggs are nice but…”  read it so it has some regret in your voice.  When you get to the part where the eggs crack, stop and ask the children what they think will happen.  Count how many babies hatched from the eggs.

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates progress in abilities to retell and dictate stories from books and experiences; top act out stories in dramatic play; and to predict what will happen next in a story.   AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to associate number concepts, vocabulary, quantities, and written numerals in meaningful ways.

After Reading the Story

Hand out the cards for the egg hatching sequence. ( One card per child and not in sequential order)  Have the children with the cards stand in the front of the group. The other children must then figure out the sequence of events leading from chicken to chicks.

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

Discovery

Make egg salad with the children using the rebus recipe cards.  Before you start making the egg salad ask the children to describe the eggs outside (“shiny brown and smooth to touch”)

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

Music and Movement

Bring in a box big enough for a child to climb inside of. When the child is inside, repeat the poem Baby Chick, by Aileen Fisher.  As you recite the poem the child can pop out of the box.

Baby Chick

 Peck, peck, peck on the warm brown egg.

Out comes a neck. Out comes a leg.

How does a chick who’s not been about,

Discover the trick on how to get out?

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

Teach your children the finger play Chicks and Bugs.  On one hand hold up fingers to be the chicks, on the other tape the insects to your fingers and hold up on cue.

Chicks and Bugs (Thank you Wake County library)

 Five little chickens by the old barn door;                     Hold up beetle finger

 One chased a beetle and then there were four.            Put down a chicken finger, put down                                                                                                                  beetle  finger  

  Four little chickens under a tree;                                  Hold up ant finger

  One chased an ant and then there were three.             Put down a chicken finger and ant finger

  Three little chickens looked for something new,          Hold up grasshopper

  One saw a grasshopper and then there were two.       Put down a chicken finger and                                                                                                                            grasshopper

  Two little chickens said “Oh what fun!”                        Put up ladybug

  One saw a ladybug and then there was one.                Put down a chicken finger and ladybug

 One little chicken began to run;                                      Put up bee

 Because he saw a bee, then there were none!             Put down all fingers.

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

 Play follow the leader.  One person being the mother hen and everyone else following behind like little baby chicks one by one.

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

Blocks

Show the children the picture of the hen house. Show them  how it is off the ground on a platform.  Challenge the children to build a hen house.

Approaches to Learning/Engagement & Persistence; demonstrates increasing ability to set goals and develop follow through on plans.

Art

Cut out large egg shapes that will fit inside the shirt box.  Put out bowls of paint in several colors.  Have the children dip a round object (small ball, marble, large bead, or pebble) into the paint.  Put it into the shirt box and roll the object back and forth to make a design on the egg. This is best done as a partner project.

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

Sand and Water

 Add plastic eggs to the sand or water table.

Library and Writing

 Give each child an egg shape to cut out.  After they have cut it out, have them cut it in half. Let the children hole punch a hole into the edge of each half and attach a brad.  Glue a chick to the backside of the bottom half of the egg. Color or paint as desired. Write the baby chick poem onto the egg.  The children can then open and close the egg as you recite the poem.

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

Put plastic eggs and a basket into the center for the children to pretend to gather eggs.

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

Math and Manipulatives

Make 10 egg shapes out of construction paper.  Label the eggs 1-10.  On the edges of the egg you might want to put the correlating number of dots also.  Show the children how to slide a paperclip onto the egg.  Challenge them to put the correct number of paperclips onto each egg.

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

Outdoor Play

 In the story the baby chicks follow Dora.  Play a game of follow the leader with lots of jumping, hopping, skipping, and walking backwards.

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

Have the children name the different animals in the story.  The children might remember the names of the adult animals but might need help with the babies (who’s mother was the lamb?)

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.

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