Apple/Farm Week 4

Tuesday's Schedule -

Book - Snappy Animal Sounds
This book talks about and makes the different animal sounds on a farm.  After reading the book we talked about what each animals helps with on the farm.

Math - Farm Animal Race
I printed a picture of three different farm animals on a piece of paper and then three barns on another piece of paper.  Then I connected the animal to the barn with game board squares.  I gave each kid a small animal to match the animal on the paper.  They rolled two dice, added the dots together, and moved their animal on the game board towards the barn.  Who ever got to the barn first won.

Phonics - Apple Matching
I printed 26 apples wrote the upper and lower case of each letter.  Then cut the apples in half.  They took turns matching the upper case to the lower case.

Art - Tractor Painting
I got some tractors out.  We talked about why they might use tractors on a farm.  Then painted with the tractors.

Movement - Build a Farm
We got the legos out and each built a barn for farm animals.  Then I got my plastic farm animals out and let them play with the animals and barn.  The boys kept wanting to build new barns, bigger and better than the last.

Thursday's Schedule -

Pear Picking Field Trip
I found a cute little farm in Vashon Island that has u-pick pears.  I was hoping to find apple picking but it is still too early in the season.  We took the ferry over and had fun picking and trying asian pears.  Very fun field trip.  We also walked around the farm and looked at all the plants and food they had growing.

Apple/Farm Week 3

Tuesdays Schedule

Book - I Wish I Had Duck Feet
I don't have many farm books so decided to read this one.  The kids loved this book and loved he idea of having different animal parts.  After we talked about the different parts farm animals have.

Math - Graphing Animals
I taped pictures of different farm animals onto a big dice.  Each kid rolled the dice and marked it on their graph I made.  The first person to get one animal to 5 won.

Phonics - Farm Animal Rhyming
We used the same dice I made for graphing and the kids took turns rolling it.  They needed to think of a word that rhymed with the animal they landed on.  Rhyming needs work but they are getting it.

Art -Paste a Pig
I cut out the different parts of a pig and had the kids glue them together.

Movement - Feed Chicken and Pigs
My good friend has chickens and a couple pigs.  She is quite awesome and let us come over and feed them.  And we had a blast doing so.

Thursdays Schedule

Book - I Wish I Had Duck Feet
They really wanted to read this again.  After we talked about what farm animal we would want to be and why.

Math - Farmers Market
I put out a few different things that grow in a garden and could be sold at a farmer market.  And made money (1, 5, 10, and 20 dollar bills).  I got out a toy register we have and pretended to be the clerk.  I let them choose one food item and told them how much it cost.  They did not have that amount so had to give me more and we figured out how much I needed to give back.  This is the first they have heard about subtraction so it was mostly me showing them how it works.  Then they each took a turn being the clerk.  But they asked for money that they had so no change had to be given back.  Next time I will just use 1 dollar bills.  They had to punch in the number on the register before opening and collecting the money.  They really enjoyed this activity.

Phonics - Pick the Carrots
I wrote CVC words on carrots and put them in the sand box.  Each took a turn pulling a carrot out and working on reading the word.  They are getting better at reading.

Art - Paint with Farm Animals
I got little plastic farm animals and let the kids dip them in paint and them make foot prints on paper.

Movement - Roll an Animal
I used the dice I had made for tuesday with all the animals on it.  They rolled the dice and had to act out the animal it landed on.

Apple/Farms Week 2

Tuesday -

Book - Pirates Go To School
We discussed how we should act at preschool and what behaviors are not okay during school.

Math - Apple Picking (numbers)
I cut out apples and taped them to our bushes outside.  The apples and numbers 1-20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, and 90.  I would say a number and the kids had to find that apple.  It became too competitive so I had to give each kid a different number for them to find.  That way everyone had a chance.

Phonics - Letter Apple Matching
I cutout apples and put a lowercase letter on each apple (a-z).  I laid them out and gave each kid a letter magnet (uppercase letters).  They had to place the uppercase letter on the lowercase apple so it matched.

Art - Rolling Apples
I had a card board box that I could cut the top off of so we could use it to roll apples around in.  I placed a piece of paper, a few drops of paint on the side of the paper, and an apple in the box.  The kids then rolled the apple back/forth and up/down.  The apple spread the paint all over the paper to make a fun design.  Fun and easy!

Movement - Balance an Apple
We went outside to try and balance an apple on our heads and see who could balance it the longest.  We also tried walking to one side of the yard to the other with the apple on our heads.  This was actually quite hard for them but they still enjoyed it.  Well McKay decided to eating the apple instead:)

Thursday -  We had our friends join us today!

Book - Duck in the Truck
We talked about different farm animals and what a farm is for.

Math - Put the Mud on the Pig
I printed a picture of a pig for each kid.  Then I cut out mud spots to put on the pig.  I have two big dice and changed the numbers 4-6 to 1-3 using post it notes.  They rolled both dice and had to add the two numbers together.  The number that they got was how many spots of mud they could put on the pig.  The point of the game was to cover the whole pig with mud.  A fun game!

Phonics - Farm Animals Beginning and Ending Sound
I printed 7 different animals that might be on the farm.  I held each picture up and talked about the letter the animal begins with.  Then they had to match magnet letters to the picture after we talked about it.  After that we held each animal up again and talked about the ending letter.  The ending letter was much harder for them, but with promptings they got it.

Art - Farm Animal Puppets
Kathryn and her kids joined us today, so she put together an adorable craft.  She cut out body parts for four different farm animals.  We had the kids glue the head and body and eyes on.  Then glue their animal to a stick.  And they colored a farm house Kathryn had cut out.  They loved this!

Movement - Puppet Show
After we made the puppets and farms we placed a blanket over a couple chairs and sang/talked Old McDonald as the kids held up the animals.  They really enjoyed this!  And it was super cute to watch.

Apple/Farm Week 1

Ya a new school year!  Another year to learn with Clifton, Evan, and McKay.
We are changing a few things this year and excited for a wonderful year.  Everyday we are going to start with circle time - calendar, weather, days of the week, months, short lesson, and songs.   Then we will work on writing their full names and a different letter and number each day.

Tuesday -

Book - Max and Mille got to School
After reading the book we talked about our plans for the year and what is expected.  It will be another great year.

Math - Apples in my Basket
In each basket there was a number.  The kids had to place apple cutouts in each basket to match the number.

Phonics - Find and Rhyme
I hid cut out apples with words on them.  They had to find the apples and bring them back.  We worked together to try and read the words (cvc) and then find which ones rhyme.  They love finding the apples and did well at rhyming and reading.

Art -Apple Painting
I cut apples in half and they stamped the apples in paint and then on paper.

Motor - Apple Bobbing
By far their favorite activity of the day.  I put four apples in shallow water and told them to try and pick them up with their mouth.  This was the silliest thing to them.  They giggled and giggled.  It was quite hard for them to do but they could careless they were having a blast trying.

Thursday -

Book - Max and Mille
We went over preschool plans and what is expected this year again.

Math - Find and Add Apples
I hid cutout apples with numbers on them.  The kids ran to find them and brought them to me.  We added two apples together.  Teaching them to use their fingers to help count.  This was the first for them, working on adding.

Phonics - Apple Picking (Words)
I taped cutout apples with words on them to our tree outside.  Each kid got a basket and went to pick all the apples of the tree.  Then we came back and worked together to read the words (cvc).

Art - Cut and Paste Apples
The kids picked a color that they wanted to make their apples and cut pieces out of it.  Then glued the pieces to paper with a outline of an apple.  Great scissor practice.

Motor - Apple Walk
Just like cake walk but with cut outs of apples and on the apples had different shapes.  I called out a shape once they had stopped and who ever was on that apple got a little treat.  They love this game!