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Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Happy New Year, Friendly Frogs!

Shape: Circle
Color: White
Number: 12
Letter: W



Book: Stone Soup by Marcia Brown
Book: Chicken Soup With Rice by Maurice Sendak




Chicken Soup With Rice is one of my favorites because it's written in sweet poetic verses. A silly boy loves Chicken Soup With Rice so much that he eats it every month of the year, and there is a verse about each month. The children love the silly poems, and I like that the lyrics written in each verse incorporate something associated with the month. "In August it will be so hot/I will be a cooking pot/cooking Chicken Soup, why not/cooking once/cooking twice/cooking chicken soup with rice" The children love the repetition, and the funny pictures. Then, we could talk about how it is hot in august, or how October is Halloween month (the boy serves chicken soup with rice to witches ghouls and ghosts, that month). It is simple, beautifully written, and silly.

Books: A Year of Birds and A Year of Beasts by Ashley Wolff
These books are about a little girl that notices the wildlife outside her window throughout the months of the year. In the winter months, there is snow and cardinals out her window, flowers and robins in the spring months, etc. I also like how the illustrations show her pregnant mother getting bigger each month. It makes the concept of calendar time a little more comprehendable for preschoolers. The other book shows baby grow into a toddler in the illustrations. Perfect for ages 3-6.
Sensory: Tasting Chicken "Stone Soup" with rice! (aka Campbells. We keep it classy around here.)


The children enjoyed a sensory experience while I read Stone Soup to them at the table.


Halfway through the story, I realized that none of them understood what a "stone" is. I explained that stones are rocks, and Jacob said, "You can't eat Rock Soup! That's gross!" then he panicked momentarily. He looked skeptically at his bowl for a minute, then accused, "Hmmm, there rocks in THIS soup, isn't there, Mrs. Meg!"

Not unless Campbells put them there, Jacob!


Share: Bring something that begins with letter W

Language: W Words!

Dramatic Play: Ring in the New Year with a countdown to “midnight”.


Art: W collage with stamps and foam stickers





Music: Sing Through the Year, 12 Months in a Year

Math: Numbering the month pages with corresponding month numbers 1-12

Handwriting: Letter W on the magnet board




***See videos at end of post***



Game: Calendar Cake Walk
Place 12 month pages to a calendar on the floor and play music (Sing Through the Year) while the children walk around in a circle. When the music stops, call out the name of one of the months. The child that is on the month wins a cake!
Just look at the concentrated looks on their faces. Serious stuff! Little Debbi snack cakes are on the line, here! We played until everyone had won a cake.


Gross Motor: I got out the play tunnels and tent that I scored for <$3 on clearance when I was in Ca, this summer. The kids had a lot of fun with them.










1 comment:

Mamarazzi said...

i love you.

i want to come play with you and those adorable frogs.

the end.