Jack and The Beanstalk,Juan and Frijoles Magicos

This story of Jack and the magic beanstalk is a variation of the classic but still tells the story of Jack’s adventure up the beanstalk. It is told in both English and Spanish making it a good addition to any classroom.

Materials

Bean seeds and dirt
Rebus directions on planting beans
Journal of bean seeds growth-The bean is this tall, this tall
Pictures of top views-6 total

Vocabulary

Widow (a Mom whose husband has died)
Fortune( someone’s money and treasures)
Castle ( a home that is humungous)
Ferocious ( to be really, really angry)

Before Reading the Story

Tell the children that our story today is about a boy who climbs a magic beanstalk. It is magic because it grows all the way up into the sky. Ask the children if they would be brave and climb up past the clouds? Pretend to start climbing, look down what do you see? Have the children pretend climb up the beanstalk and then back down. When they are sitting draw pictures of things from a top view and see if they can guess what they are.

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

Reading the Story

Use you voice to reflect the different emotions portrayed in the storey as you read.

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

After Reading the Story

Have the children help retell the story in sequential order. What happened first, second, third? List all the emotions that were described in the story and ask the children if they can remember who felt the emotion and why?(Jack was happy to get the beans, Mom was mad that Jack took beans instead of money, Jack was surprised to see the beanstalk, the giant’s wife was scared the giant would find Jack, etc)

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates 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. AND 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.

Discovery

Have the children plant bean seeds and keep a journal of how they grow.

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 Literacy/Early Writing; develops understanding that writing is a way of communicating for a variety of purposes.

Music and Movement

Teach the children a planting poem like, Dig a Little Hole by F Koch

You, dig a little hole

And you put the seed in.

And you cover it with dirt

And let the sun shine in.

Add a little water

And keep it fed,

Pretty soon a little plant

Will show it’s head (ask the children what kinds of plants they are)

Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; participates in a variety of dramatic play activities that become more extended and complex. AND Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; chooses to participate in an increasing variety of tasks and activities.

Blocks

The giant lived in a castle; try to make a very large castle with the blocks. How tall can you build?

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.

Art

Put a simple item on the floor and have the children draw it from a top view perspective (looking down on it).

Creative Arts/Art; begins to understand and share opinions about artistic products and experiences.

Sand and Water;

Put damp sand or dirt into the table with several spoons for the children to plant bean seeds.

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

Library and Writing

Draw a leaf shape on pieces of paper about 6 inches long. Let the children cut them out, decorate, and write their names on the leaves. Make a beanstalk on the wall and let the children tape their leaves on the stalk from floor to ceiling.

Literacy/Early Writing; progresses from using scribbles, shapes, or pictures to represent ideas, to using letter like symbols, to copying and writing familiar words such as their own name. 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.

Dramatic Play

The children can act out the story. Add a small handful of beans to the center.

Math and Manipulatives

Bring in beans and a clean egg carton or muffin tin. Put a number in the bottom of each cup 1-12. Give the children plastic spoons and tweezers to move the beans from a small bowl to the cups. Help them to name the number and then see if they can count the correct amount of beans for each cup.

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

Outdoor Play

Play Mother May I? Have all the children line up on one side of the yard. The children take turns asking if they can take ____ giant steps. The teacher either says “yes” or “no”, if the teacher says no then she says how many giant steps the child may take. The child then counts out the steps aloud as they cross the yard. (Mother may I take 4 giant steps? No but you may take 3.) For children that are familiar with numbers, hold up cards showing the number in written form.

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

Transitions

Play which is bigger/taller/longer/shorter/narrower/wider? Give a child a choice of two items and ask them which is… (Which is shorter-a house or a car? Which is longer-a worm or a paperclip? Which is taller-a leaf, a bush, or a tree? Etc.).

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

Resources

The Tiny Seed, by Eric Carle

This story follows the adventure of a tiny seed as it travels with the wind and finally finds a place to settle and grow, and grow, and grow!

Materials

Tissue paper

Seed cycle and flower parts

5 little seeds flannel pieces

Flower shape from blocks to make a flower

Dried bean seeds and zip lock baggie

Vocabulary

Autumn (fall time)

Burst open (to split or break open)

Bud ( a flower that is ready to open)

Before Reading the Story

Tell the children that when you were coming to school today you noticed a beautiful flower or tree. Say you were wondering how it grew? Let the children give their responses if they have any. Now tell the children that you found a book that explains how seeds grow. Introduce the book.

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

Point out the seed that meets its demise on each page as well as the path of the tiny seed.

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

After Reading the Story

Tell the children that you are going to pretend to be seeds and do the movement activity, How a Seed Grows.

Help the children to act out How a Seed Grows, this is an adaptation of a story written by Helen Jordon. Pretend that you are a tiny seed. It is the fall time and you are on a beautiful flower. Now the wind begins to blow and you pop off and are carried away with the wind. You whirl and twirl and then land with a plop on the ground. The rains come and you are pushed ever so slightly into the ground. Now it is winter and all around you it is cold and the ground is frozen. You don’t notice because you are all curled up sound asleep. Soon the cold winter starts to melt away to spring time. The sun begins to shine and the winds begin to blow gently. The ground begins to get softer and you can move a tiny bit. You begin to wake from your sleep and you slowly, slowly begin to stretch down a tiny root deep into the ground. Every day you grow longer and stronger. Soon you are strong enough to push your stem right out of the ground. You grow up straight and proud. In time you grow a leaf, and then another and another. You are no longer a seed but you are a small plant! When it rains you are happy because you need rain to make you grow. When the sun shines you are happy because you need sunshine to make you grow. Every day you grow a little bit bigger and a little bit stronger until you finally open up into a beautiful flower. The bees and butterflies come to visit you and land right on your face with their tickly legs and feet. Some of your pollen gets stuck on their furry legs and wings. In a couple of weeks you will begin to get weaker. Your petals will get droopy and soon fall to the ground. You begin to wilt and slowly, slowly begin to sink back down to the earth. One day the wind blows and your seeds blow off into the wind. You continue to sink back down to the earth and you are a spent plant. You will not grow again till next spring.

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; shows progress in understanding and following simple and multiple-step directions. AND Creative Arts/Dramatic Play; participates in a variety if dramatic play activities that become more extended and complex.

Discovery

Put a bean seed in a ziplock baggie with a moistened paper towel. Observe it over several days. As the stem begins to grow the children can measure it with a ruler. You can also have the children draw each day to document the seeds growth.

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

Put out books and pictures that show how seeds grow. If you have the funds, grow seeds!

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; shows growing interest in reading-related activities, such as asking to have a favorite book read; choosing to look at books; drawing pictures based on stories; asking to take books home; going to the library; and engaging in pretend reading with peers.

Music and Movement

Act out the poem A Little Plant, author unknown. Have the children sit on the floor and bend over their legs with their head towards the floor.

In the heart of a seed,

Buried down so deep, A little plant

Lay fast asleep.

“Awake” said the sun,

“Come up from the earth”

“Awake” said the rain,

“We’re giving you birth”

The little plant heard

And with a happy sigh,

Pointed its petals

Up to the sky.

Do this flannel with the children. They can use their fingers to count along.

5 little seeds planted in a row

Water them well and watch them grow!

1 little plant, so small and green

2 little plants can now be seen!

3 little plants with leaves so small

4 little plants are getting tall

5 little plants have buds of red

I planted a beautiful flowerbed!

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

Blocks

On a large piece of paper trace around block shapes to make a simple flower like design. Put it on the floor and let the children cover it with the correct block shapes.

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

Art

Make tissue paper flowers. On a piece of white construction paper draw a circle (this will be the flowers center) cut out many petal shapes from the tissue paper and also leaf shapes. Mix glue with a little water and put it into a bowl with a paint brush. The children can use the paint brush to spread the glue onto the paper. Let the children add petals and leaves to their flower. Show the children that if they over lap the tissue paper it will make another color.

Creative Arts/Art; progress in abilities to create drawings, paintings, models, and other creations that are more detailed, creative, or realistic. AND Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; begins to participate in simple investigations to test observations, discuss and draw conclusions, and form generalizations.

Library and Writing

Let the children play with the 5 Little Flowers flannel.

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.

Sand and Water

Put dirt or sand in the table with small shovels or spoons so the children can dig holes. They can pretend to be planting a garden. (We did this putting dirt into the table. On Friday afternoon I covered the table and when we came back on Monday morning, the bean seeds we had been playing with in the table had sprouted! A fun and unexpected surprise).

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

Dramatic Play

As the children play, encourage them to sort the plastic foods by those that have seeds and those that do not. Bring in real fruits and vegetables if you can so that the children can cut them apart and look at real seeds.

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

Math and Manipulatives

Make copies of the seed cycle and also the flower parts. Color and cover with contact paper. Let the children use these like puzzle.

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

Outdoor Play

Go for a nature walk and look for seeds (grass, trees). Remember that acorns are seeds as are parts of the pinecone.

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

Transitions

The children can pretend to be blown all whirly and twirly by the wind to their next activity.

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

Resources

I’m a Seed, by Jean Marzollo

Follow the growth cycle of all seeds with this simple text that explains how seeds grow into plants.

Materials

Pieces of fruits and/or vegetables that have seeds you can look at.
Food cards
Bag of beans, the largest ones you can find
Small ziplock per child.
Sequence cards for planting
Flower stencil

Vocabulary

Before Reading the Story

Hold a bean seed in your hand and ask the children if they know what this is (a seed). If they do not, tell them it is a seed. Do you know what I can do with this seed? (You can plant it). Guess what it will grow into when it is finished growing. Only a bean seed can grow a bean. Could this bean seed grow a watermelon? (No!) Why not? Hold up the cover of the book. Look at the girls hands, what is in them? (Seeds) Do they look the same? (No). I wonder what kind of seeds they are, let’s find out.

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

Reading the Story

Use two different voices so the children can tell if the marigold or the pumpkin is speaking.

After Reading the Story

Go back through the book on a picture walk. Can the children tell you about the different pages and how the different seeds grow?

Literacy/Book Knowledge & Appreciation; demonstrates 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.

Discovery

Bring in a variety of produce that has a seed/seeds inside. With the children hypothesis what the seed/s will look like and if there is more then one. Cut the produce open to let the children see if they were correct. You could try a fresh green bean, an apple, a banana, an avocado, a green pepper, and a zucchini.

Science/Scientific Methods & Skills; begins to describe and discuss predictions, explanations, and generalizations based on past experiences.

Have the children fold a paper towel and then wet it. Have them put it into a ziplock bag with one of the large bean seeds. Check back tomorrow to see what has happened to the seed. Best done towards the end of the week so that when the children come back on Monday there should be some sprouting seeds. When the seeds start to sprout, you can make a journal or have the children use a ruler to measure how big it has gotten. This experiement will take place over a week or so.

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

Music and movement

Teach the children the poem, Dig a Little Hole. Have the children act it out as they recite.

You dig a little hole and you put the seed in.

Then you cover it with dirt and let the sun shine in.

Add a little water and keep it fed,

Pretty soon a little plant will show it’s head.

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

Teach the children the song, The Farmer Plants His Seeds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRhGOdqWIIo

The Farmer plants the seeds,

The farmer plants the seeds.

Heigh-ho the dairy-o The farmer plants the seeds.

The sun comes out to shine…

The rain begins to fall…

The seeds begin to grow…

The produce is here…

The farmer picks his crops…

And now it’s time to eat…

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

Blocks

Tape produce pictures to blocks and have the children pretend that they are making a garden. Can they name the different kinds of produce?

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

Art

Put out flower stencils that the children can trace around on manilla files or thin cardboard. Show the children how to take small tissue paper squares and make balls out of them. Glue the balls inside the flower design. The children can then use crayons to make stems and leaves. Encourage the children to make a pattern with the 12 petal shapes.

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

Library and Writing

Cut out pictures from garden magazines. Let the children glue them onto a group collage. Title it, All Kinds of Things grow From Seeds. Make sure that the pictures include flowers, trees, fruits and vegetables. When finished, hang it up in your classroom to talk about all the things that come from seeds while waiting for lunch.

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

Sand and water

Put dirt in the table and large bean seeds. The children can pretend to plant these in rows with a spoon. (We did this one week and when we came back on Monday, several of the seeds had taken root and begun to grow). Encourage the children to sing The Farmer Plants His Seeds as the dig in the dirt.

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

Dramatic play

As the children play in the kitchen, ask them if they can show you some of the play foods you have that would have seeds inside.

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

Math and Manipulatives

Education.com has a nice set of plant life cycle cards for the children to put together in order. If you have other sequencing cards, put those out as well. https://www.education.com/worksheet/article/plant-life-cycle-cards/?cid=50.300

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

Outdoor Play

Plant seeds. Bring in the materials you need to plant seeds either into cups or into the ground. Children enjoy planting. What and where you plant will depend upon the time of the year and the region in which you live.

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

Transitions

Have the children identify produce pictures before they may leave to the next place. (Kerry, do you know what this fruit is called? Where does a fruit grow? Do you know how it grows, on a tree, a vine, underground?)

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.