Arthur’s Eyes, by Marc Brown

Arthur was having some problems seeing until his parents took him to the optometrist. After that, Arthur was having a problem with his friends teasing him about his new glasses. How does Arthur solve his problem about having to wear glasses? If you have a child, or children in your classroom that must wear glasses, this book may help them feel better about themselves.

Materials

Eyeglass shape to use for making glasses

Vocabulary

Blind (to not be able to see with your eyes)
Optometrist (a doctor who takes care of your eyes)
Concentrate (to think about something really hard)

Before Reading the Story

Play a 5 senses game with the children. I’m thinking of something I use to smell the good foods we will eat at lunch. I’m thinking of something I use to hear my favorite song on the radio. I’m thinking of something I use to see who is coming in the door. When you do the riddle about eyes, stop and tell the children that sometimes people’s eyes do not see at all. This is called being blind. Ask the children to cover their eyes with their hands. How many fingers am I holding up? You can’t tell because you cannot see my fingers, this is like being blind. Sometimes people’s eyes are just not strong enough and so they cannot see very well. When this happens they wear glasses. Does anyone know anyone who wears glasses? Tell the children that today’s story is about an aardvark that had to get glasses to help him see better.

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

Reading the Story

Stop on the page where Arthur is at the optometrists’ office. Spend a moment talking about what an eye examine is like (the optometrist might shine a light in your eyes, or a puff of air). Stop again on the page where Arthur and his friends are waiting for the school bus. How do you think Arthur feels when his friends make fun of his new glasses? What would you do if your friend had to wear new glasses?

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 for others.

After Reading the Story

Lead any discussion the children might have about glasses. Then tell the children that sometimes people wear glasses for other reasons also (sunglasses, eye protection/mowing lawn, working with tools, goggles are like glasses to see underwater)

Language Development/Listening & Understanding; understands an increasingly complex and varied vocabulary. AND Approaches to Learning/Initiative & Curiosity; grows in eagerness to learn about and discuss a growing range of topics, ideas, and tasks.

Discovery

Put out magnifying glasses and interesting objects. Explain that some glasses make things look bigger so they are easier to see. You can also put out color paddles.

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.

Music and Movement

Chant, My Eyes Are Little Windows

My eyes are little windows and through them I can see.

The birds and trees and flowers that are beautiful to me.

(The children can help name things that they feel are beautiful that you can then sing about. Make sure to write their ideas on a piece of paper and hang it up on the wall).

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

Blocks

Practice making letters with the blocks E,A,H,L,M,T etc.

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

Art

Put out a vase of flowers or a bowl of fruit. Give the children drawing materials and ask them to see if they can draw what they see.

Creative Arts/ Art; progresses in abilities to create drawings, paintings. models, and other art creations that are more detailed, creative, or realistic. AND Science/Scientific Skills & Methods; develops growing abilities to collect, describe, and record information through a variety of means, including discussion, drawings, maps, and charts.

Decorate a pair of eyeglasses with stickers and markers.

Sand and Water

Hide alphabet magnet letters in the sand. As the children find them they can match them to a letter chart.

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

Library and Writing

Have the children make their own eye charts. Start by making an E, and then turn it to face different directions. After they have finished their eye charts they can practice pointing the direction of the E with their fingers while they cover one eye.

Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; develops growing awareness of jobs and what is required to perform them.

Dramatic Play

Make an optometrists office. Bring in some old eyeglass or sunglass frames, make an eye chart, and add a small pen flashlight.

Social & Emotional Development/Knowledge of Families & Communities; develops growing awareness of jobs and what is required to perform them.

Math and Manipulatives

Make a graph of several different colored glasses. Ask the children to decide what color they would want and to mark the graph. Count which color is the most popular, which color has the fewest votes, which has the most girls, boys, etc.

Mathematics/Patterns & Measurement; begins to make comparisons between several objects based on a single attribute. AND Mathematics/Number & Operations; begins to use language to compare numbers of objects with terms such as more, less, greater than, fewer, equal to.

Outdoor Play

Teach the children to play Four Square. Mark out a large box shape with chalk on the sidewalk, the bigger the better but at least 10×10. Divide this box into quarters. Each person stands in his or her own space/quarter of box. Take a ball and bounce it to a child. It must bounce in their space. The child tries to catch the ball and then bounce it into another’s space. This is a game of bounce and catch. You can also divide your large square in half if there is not a space big enough for four players.

Physical Health & Development/Large Motor Skills; demonstrates increasing abilities to coordinate movements in throwing, catching, kicking, bouncing balls, and using the slide and swing.

Transition

I spy with my little eye, something in the room that is shaped like a circle, square, is the color blue, begins with the letter sound R, etc. Language Development/Listening & Understanding; demonstrates increasing ability to attend to and understand conversations, stories, songs, and poems.

Dear Parent,

Today we read a story about an aardvark that needed to get glasses in order to see properly. Play a seeing game with your child. Say, “I spy with my eyes something that is. …(Describe something within your vision and see if your child can guess what it is you’re describing). I spy with my eyes something that is tall and has four legs. We have a cushion on it to sit on. It is made of wood and is beside the table. Can you guess?

Resources

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