sweet and slimy

Remember how I'm taking a class? Of course you do, right? One of my assignments is to read 5 picture books a week, and to think of some activities to go with them. This book was so precious, I decided to share a little of my homework tonight!

Marylou is secretly in love with Herbie. Don't you love their names? She is too shy to approach him, so she leaves love poems written in slime around the garden instead. Herbie is intrigued, and he starts writing her poems back. In the end, they finally meet and fall in love. And, awww, they live happily ever after, too!

Activity #1

Marylou and Herbie's love poems rhyme, and, in my classroom, we just so happen to be totally into rhyming. We've been singing this goofy song a lot lately:

**Invite the child to think of 2 words that rhyme OR you can give them one word and they can come up with another word that rhymes (the words don't have to be real words).

a slug gives a hug
a slug gives a hug
hi ho the derry-o
a slug gives a hug

Activity #2

What's as slimy and as gooey as a slug? GAK! I found this homemade gak recipe at Polliwog's Cakewalk, which is quite a cool blog, btw. Anyway, I think I'm going to make it with the children next week, so I did a gak test run at home today.

Elmer's glue & liquid starch
use in equal parts (for example, 1 cup of each)

Mix the glue with a little food coloring first.

As soon as you add the liquid starch,
the mixture becomes really thick, gooey,
and incredible!

Also, this is my 100th post! WOW! Look for a little give-away sometime this week! :)

the quantity splitting box

I just have to show you this ingenious little

addition lesson I've been loving lately!
Prepare to be amazed...

First, the child counts how
many marbles are in the dish.
The quantity of marbles is up to you.

Next, he or she pours the marbles
onto the top of the box.
See that tab on the right side?

PULL!
The marbles drop to the next level,
and roll into the hole.

How many are on the green side?
How many are on the red side?
The red side plus the green side equals
the quantity of marbles that were in the dish!
The child can continue to pour the marbles
into the box to find out all the possible
addition combinations of that quantity.
Cool, huh?!

Almost as cool as these hubcaps
we found at the junkyard.
Maybe it's just me,
but I think they look lovely
hanging on a wall!
Find your own at the junkyard
for $2.50 each. :)

OH! Sidetracked! Sorry!
You can buy your own
Quantity Splitting Box here.
It's nearly $40, though. Yikes!
I have a feeling that some of you creative
mamas out there can create your own
clever variation of this game.
Please share if you do!

busy hands

skip counting
"5, 10, 15, 20, 25"

using visual
discrimination...

...to construct
the binomial cube

the number dice game
1-5

magnetic vs.
non-magnetic

exploring the environment
for more magnetic things

transferring water
with a baster

peeking into a box of
lovey-dovey fragile objects

tracing
a flower puzzle

tissue paper
collage

a group of children
counting butterflies

each child is given a
sandpaper numeral
and asked to bring back
the corresponding quantity
of butterflies

artsy fartsy: part 2

2 sculpture lessons:

"the leaning tower of peanuts"

Just wet the ends of biodegradable packing peanuts with a damp sponge. When moistened, they stick together, and you can build all kinds of unique structures.

Too tempting for school?

You would think, but the children have such strong self-control at school! They have been busily building 3-D formations with marshmallows and toothpicks , and I haven't seen a single marshmallow get eaten on the school premesis - although I wouldn't hold it against anyone for having just a little taste! :)

artsy fartsy: part I

First of all, I'm not sure if "fartsy" is an appropriate term in blogland. It would definitely not go over well in preschool - "Potty words belong in the bathroom," as we like to say around here. Oh well, you can't blame a girl for rhyming!

Anyway, we have a few totally splendid art lessons out in the classroom right now, and I can't wait to share them with you!

Wouldn't you love to have something hanging in your house like this?
It's almost more fun to make than it is to look at,
can you believe it?

What you'll need:
paper
liquid water color
eyedroppers
straws cut into 3in lengths

FYI: The straws are kept in that spice shaker that you see on the tray. The child shakes one out of the large opening side without touching all of the other straws - always trying to prevent germ contamination around here!

The child uses the eyedropper to apply tiny pools of liquid water color to the paper.

He then uses his straw to blow the watercolor across the paper, and in the process creates a beautiful mix of colors.

Please note:
I also wanted to tell you that this lesson goes beyond strengthening fine motor control. I wish I could be more specific, but I'll give it my best try. We've had people certified in H.A.N.D.L.E. work with children in our classroom in the past, and they've suggested activities that involve blowing things around with the mouth.
I copied this description of "blow soccer" from the H.A.N.D.L.E. website:

Because it works on so many different areas, this activity helps to develop numerous functions, among them articulation, facial affect (expressions), reading, copying skills, listening, mental focus, balance, language acquisition, bowel and bladder control, and endurance.
Read more here.