The Days before Christmas

I admit I go through emotions of bah humbug to excitement and exhaustion these days between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  If it wasn't for the kids at school, I would go crazy.  Now they do........
So here are some easy to do ideas to keep the spirit and provide needed fine motor practice.

Santa Stars
Have the children trace the star pattern on red construction paper, they need to practice this tracing on the outside of a pattern skill.(or have it preprinted).  You need only 3 colors of crayons, black, white, red/pink.  Color the gloves and boots black.  Make a double line and two squares for the buckle.  Practice making loopy coloring marks to help with the beard.  Use white for Santa's beard and white for the fur trim.  Black circles for his eyes and red nose and smile.

 Give the students ONE cotton ball and show them how to tear it into six small pieces.  Use regular glue to make a skinny line for the furry cuffs and a small dot for Santa's pom on his hat. 

Gingerbread Men/Boys
Read variations of THE GINGERBREAD MAN.  Make patterns for the children to trace.  We like to use a 12x18 but 9x12 is good also.  Allow the children to use paint to add frosting details.  When dry, they can cut it out.  They LOVE big projects.

Memory Games
Make smaller gingerbread men (or use Elison Die cuts) and use pictures for rhyming matches.  Or write words for sight words, pictures for beginning sound match or ending sound matching.
When we play memory, the player who turns over the two cards, MUST sit back with their hands in their lap and count to 3 before turning back over or removing the match.  I think it is important that the child also says the picture or word outloud for the others to hear.  There is no need to rush.  When the player's turn is over, they need to tell the next person by name that it's their turn.

More tomorrow to keep you going these last days.
Easy hand gift ideas and more student made crafts.  
 

Thanks for the giving

I love the new Walgreen's commercial with the phrase "Thanks for giving."  It took me awhile to get the flow of it. 

The power of change!

Things have been stressful....coming off a full moon and end of the grading period.....
So for this Thanksgiving I am trying to be more thankful for my students and all that I learn from them.  In addition, I want to try to help them realize more of how they can be thankful, grateful for what they have and can be.

 I read:
         
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 These are short stories that put the concept of thankfulness in the kids' perspective.  From the stories, I introduced the pie craft for them to illustrate what they are thankful for.

The "I am thankful for pie" craft  project is easy to do.  I made a circle and flood-filled it and drew a pie shape to cut out.  The children cut out the circle and pie piece.  On a paper plate that was premarked in six sections, the children trace the edge of the circle line and inside the triangle shape they draw a picture and on the outer bumpy edge they 'sound-out' the word.  We attached the pie with a paper fastener so the wheel can turn to show one piece of the pie.  I am impressed by their ideas and effort.


The First Thanksgiving fingerplay

When the Pilgrims came (one arm out for 'land' and other palm flat with thumb up for the Mayflower ship)  


to this new land (ship turns into person walking up on the land)    


They met the Indians (hands flat with
                      thumbs up for people meeting
And shook their hands (shake hands)
 They made a feast (gesture hands out to    

             show food on the table)
  With turkey (link thumbs together finger 
                     spread for turkey feathers)
   And corn (imitate eating corn-on-the-cob)

And that's the way (gesture hands out again)
Thanksgiving was born! (put palms
                    together as in a 'prayer' motion) 

 I hope you have time to try these.  
 

Ten Day

So we do things the 'ten way'.  
You can do this any time of the year for a variety of ways of ten fun.  Somethings are too difficult on just the tenth day of kindergarten.

Fingerplay
The kids love this because we ham it up when we say "would you like to see?"
I HAVE TEN LITTLE FINGERS

I have    (point fingers/hands toward chest)
ten little fingers   (spread all fingers wide)
And they all belong belong to me.  ( point fingers to self)
I can make them do things
Would you like to see?

I can shut them up tight.   (close up fingers tightly)
Or open them wide      (spread fingers wide)
 I can put them together   (fingers together and palms together under chin)
Or make them all hide.   (put hands behind back)...like where are they?

I can make them jump high. (wiggle fingers and hands up...make voice high pitched when saying the word high) 
 I can make them go low.  (wiggle fingers and hands down..make voice low pitched when saying the word low)
I can fold them so quietly.   (fold hands together)
And hold them just so.   (sit down while putting hands in lap, criss-cross legs)
 (can make voice at a whisper soft level for last line)

1,2,3,4,5 
1,2,3,4,5 once I caught a fish alive.
6,7,8,9,10 then I let him go again.
Why did you let him go?
Because he bit my finger so.
Which finger did he bite?
This little finger on the right.

Finger Counting
Practice showing quantity of fingers 1,2,3...10.  This develops finger dexterity and control.

Then ask students to put hands behind their backs and say..
Show me....3 fingers and students show quickly.  

 
Plink counting  
You need a glass jar and some pennies.
Children should close their eyes and listen while you drop pennies into the jar.  Tell the children to open their eyes and ask a few how many pennies they think were put in the jar.
It is interesting that this is difficult for some children at first.  After a few students give their answer, say 'let's check it.'  With their eyes open now, take out the pennies and drop them in again while they count out loud.  
I do this ocassionally throughout the year, increasing the amount between 1-20. 

Counting stations
Set out items to count into groups of ten such as:
links to make a chain of 10
unifix cubes to make a stick of 10
1" wooden cubes to stack
lego blocks to stack
1" tiles
pennies to stack
cups to stack
beads on a string
And rotate the children to try counting  various manipulatives.  Clean up (take stacks apart) before moving to next counting station.

Art Centers
Using bingo dobbers, to make a picture or design using  only 10 dots.   Or make 10 dots and draw a picture around using the dots. 

Playdoh
Make 10 smooth balls.  Make 10 snakes or worms.  Make 10 small pancakes.

Toothpicks
Give students 10 toothpicks and challenge them to make something.    (2-d, 3-d)

Patterning
Make an AB, AAB, ABB pattern using bottle caps, colored cubes, shapes, etc.  Or challenge them to build a pattern and label it.  They must prove it is a pattern.  And they can only use up to the amount of 10 to show it. 

Songs of Ten
"Ten little Indians"  counting forward and backwards.
"Count Up Count down" song by Hap Palmer.

Game of counting in group.
Stand children in a circle or a long line and begin to count.  The child who says 10 has to sit down.  Continue until only one child is standing.

Stories
Ten Little Ladybugs 

Ten Black Dots 



Ten, Nine, Eight

Feast for 10



Dominoes
Challenge children to find a domino with 10 dots on it and record how many on each side that total 10.  
(4 and 6 make 10)

Dice
Using 1 die, roll and count dots.  Record how many dots from each roll.  Record number of dots with a different color until they reach 10.  Cannot go over 10 or they need to start over.  

Tug of Cubes
Students each count a stack of ten Unifix cubes.    
First player holds out their 10 stack and partner breaks stack and puts it behind their back.  First player has to figure out how many they took.  Count the number of cubes they have left.  (10 take away 3 left means that 7 were taken).  Partner shows the taken away stack and returns it.  Player two gets their turn.   Later in the year students can record their number sentence as 10-3 = 7.

Show and Tell 
Good old-fashion, show and tell.  Give the children a zip bag with instructions to put 10 things in it and bring it to school.  Are the items in the bag all the same?  What variety of collections of 10 did the children bring in?   Sort collections by color, edible or not, hard or soft, etc.

 The more they practice,

the better they get!

 

Five for Friday, August 19, 2016

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 First 3 days with students.  
I have forgotten, even after 36 years, how things take at least four times as long to do at the beginning of the year.  
I am remembering quick phrases that rhyme to get their attention.

• 1,2,3,  Look at me.
• 1,2,3, Your eyes look at me.
• 1,2,3, All eyes look and see.
• Waiting in a line, and you're doing fine.
• Hands on top, (students respond) Everybody stop! (hands on head)

 .

  
We made our name hats.  I showed names printed on paper and asked "Whose name is this?" to check on instant name recognition.
Then they glued paper names onto a sentence strip and decorated it.  We measured the sentence strip around their heads for a name hat.  I keep these in a gift bag for substitute guest teachers to use.

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First fingerplay that I use:
I wiggle my fingers.
I wiggle my toes.
I wiggle my shoulders.
I wiggle my nose.
Now all the wiggles are out of me. (We shake our hands to shake out.)
So, I can sit still
As still as can be.  

.
 The end of the day, we learn the fingerplay:
One Little House
One little house (hold up hand in a fist)
Shut up tight.
Open the door (open fingers)
 And there inside (using opposite hand point to palm of open fingers) 
Are....1,2,3,4,5 (point to each finger while counting)
Five little children tall and straight (point to each finger from base knuckle going up)
Ready to go to kindergarten (wiggle fingers of 'children')
Don't be late!  (put hands behind back)

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In closing, after my first week of school with students, I need a break for my aching feet.
Trying equal parts of salt and baking soda in warm water.
Ooops, where is my glass of wine!

IT'S AROUND THE CORNER

Here it comes....
Yes, August and returning to school is just around the corner.  Here are some ideas to get started for today.

Fine motor practice
 Developing the correct pincer grasp is important for a lifetime of stable pencil grasp.  I cringe when I see a sales person with the thumbwrap over the index finger grasp.

Yes, they adapt but the strain they will experience.  Practice developing specific finger strength by doing: 

Finger plays

"Where is thumbkin?" helps with individual finger control.

"I Have Ten Little Fingers"
I have 10 little fingers    (hold both hands spread and wiggling fingers)
And they all belong to me.  (touch fingers to chest like saying "Mine")
I can make them do things
Would you like to see?
I can make them jump high   (wiggle them above your head, make your voice higher pitch)
I can make them go low   (wiggle them below knees, make voice lower pitch)
I can fold them so quietly  (fold hands together)
And hold them just so.   (sit crisscross with hands in lap)

Counting with fingers one at a time.  It is a big deal to me.  The children have many variations.
1 show with the dominant pointer finger.  (never just thumb)  
*and thumb holds other fingers down.

 
2 is bunny ears using index with tall finger *and thumb holds other fingers down.  NOT index and thumb.

3 is index, tall with ring finger *and thumb holds pinkie  down.

4 is all fingers up while thumb is still crossing palm

5 all fingers

6 all dominant fingers and pointer on non-dominant hand
7 all dominant fingers and bunny ears on non-dominant hand
8 all dominant fingers and index, tall and ring finger on non-dominant
9 all dominant fingers and fingers on non-dominant with thumb crossing palm
10  all fingers on both hands.
Make up a quick game, Put both hands behind your back or in your lap.   Teacher says: "Show me....2....4....8" This sounds easy but is more difficult at the beginning of the year.  Practice quantity 0-5 so they can do it quickly without needing to count fingers.  Advance to include 0-10 randomly.
Roll a number cube or die for number selection and connecting numeral and quantity.

Tongs and ice cube trays

Demonstrate how to hold the tongs with the first two fingers on top of tongs and thumb under tongs.  The students must use the tongs to pickup the porcupine balls from the tub and put them in and out of the ice cube trays.  They are NOT to touch the porcupine balls with their hands.  They may select specific colors or make a pattern.  The kids love this!

Pegboards and pegs

This used to be a staple activity in kindergarten classrooms.  Bring it out again.  There are so many variations of boards and pegs.  I have straight wooden pegs.  Make sure they are picking up and holding the pegs with their fingertips (index and tall fingertips and thumb) not their thumb against the side of their index finger.  The children can match the pegs along a drawn shape or makeup their own design.  At first, they just love to fill the board with pegs in every hole.

Toothpicks and Pickup Sticks 

Use thumb and pointer to pinch when picking up.  Allow time (days) to free exploring. 

Then teach them how to play pickup sticks.  Hold all sticks (or begin with 10 sticks) over play area and let them drop all at once.  Take turns picking up one at a time, WITHOUT moving the other sticks.  If another stick is moved, the next person gets a turn.  

FUN FRIDAY ACTIVITY

Scratch pictures with a toothpick

You can buy these premade  through Oriental Trading Company (my favorite) or make your own.  Here's how to make your own.  I take out the extra colors in boxes of 16 pack crayons such as red-orange, yellow-orange etc and use these as 'fancy colors.'  Use these extra colors to fill up a card. The children will want to stand and make their strokes from their shoulder.  Let them fill up the card using their whole body movement.

AH, yes, coloring is an excellent finger strengthening activity in itself.  

Now paint over the entire card with black paint.  

When it is dry, use a toothpick or nail cuticle stick to scratch off paint to reveal colors.  You DO NOT need to SCRATCH all the black paint off,  write a name or make a shape or squiggles.   

So have a little fun and wiggle those fingers.  Pretend you are playing the piano or trumpet.  Pretend your fingers have magic sprinkles and sprinkle some magic!  

Please leave a comment so I know what you like or don't like.  If we can take away at least one new idea or try something old in a new way, we are making a difference together.

Week 1 SONGS AND FINGERPLAYS

So you're ready to plan what you will do.  I always over plan, even after all these years.  There's that HIGH EXPECTATIONS again.  So I'll call this WEEK ONE to allow for flexibility.  Oh, that's another necessary element in teaching. 
SONGS  
Songs are essential to use when needing an attention grabber or JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT.  Sometimes the children just begin singing while they are working.  Don't we adults get a tune in our head that we hum, whistle or sing to ourselves?
Get your favorite list of songs to begin and end each day.
Change up your song list to make it fresh and fun.

I love to sing Raffi's version of "The More We Get Together".  You can use your class names to include in ..."there's Sarah, and Zhyon and..."  After a few times of singing this, I have the children cover their name tags to challenge myself to remember their names!

Dr. Jean's "Hello, How Are You?"  This is good for an opening the day song.  It's going to be a happy day!

FINGERPLAYS
Fingerplays are fantastic to use when you need a brain and body break while going through all those procedures the first week.  

When teaching fingerplays be methodical.
SAY THE WHOLE RHYME TO CLASS, 
SAY A LINE AT A TIME and class repeats. Here you can adjust repeating slower or in shorter or longer chunks as needed.  This stretches their memory.
SAY RHYME WITH THE CLASS
Enjoy their smiles!  Do it again.

I WIGGLE
I wiggle my fingers     (stretch out hand and really wiggle those fingers)
I wiggle my toes.          (point to feet, while wiggling toes...can't see them under shoes)
I wiggle my shoulders   (wiggle shoulders)
I wiggle my nose.          (use #1 finger to wiggle nose, later I ask them to wiggle without 
                                          touching...can you do it?)
Now...all the wiggles are out of me  (shake hands and arms, then clasp hands overhead
                                                            and cross legs...BE CAREFUL and safe!)

So I can sit still          (when you say the word SIT, all should try to sit down carefully.                                  Challenge them to try this without uncrossing legs....CONTROL--
                                   practice at home) 

As still as can be."        (hands folded in lap)


ONE LITTLE HOUSE
I teach this at the end of the first day.

One little house    (hold up hand into a fist for a house)
Shut up tight  
Open the door
And there inside    (open hand and point to palm with opposite pointer)
Are   1,2,3,4,5        (count fingers holding up pointer as one, two bunny ears....)
Five little children 
Tall and straight     (opposite pointer finger strokes counting fingers up for straight)
Ready to go to kindergarten   (hold up both hands and wiggle all fingers--excitedly
Don't be late!        (put hands behind back) 

 CHANTS 
Teacher says  "The more you practice (right)"
Students respond "the better you get!"

Teacher says   "Are you ready?"
Students respond  "YES, I'm ready!"  There was a 60's song by Barbara Mason that comes to mind that begins with this line.  (dates me doesn't it)

FREEZE 
Use lights out, chimes, a bells, hand clapping rhythm
Teacher says "Hands on top"
Students respond "Everybody STOP" (puts both hands on their heads and turn to speaker)

Also LOOK AT THE SPEAKER
Lesson #1:  Move around the group so they have to turn their head first slightly, then their whole body to face me.  When I am talking here...where do you look?  The children think it's a game when I move from one side of the group to another. 
S- sit up straight
L-look at the speaker (direction of voice)
A-always listening 
N-never talking
T-track the presenter (voice)

So ..."Are you ready?" ..............