Adventures in Preschool

2 years and where we are today ---

2009-03-23T20:40:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for continuing to visit this blog. I'm no longer in the preschool business, but hope you will check my new children's business out! Please visit me at: www.littledivatutus.com!

- Melissa

Welcome Back Preschoolers!!

2008-08-26T07:52:00.001-07:00

Today is our first day back and I'm so excited to have you here!

Check back for daily updates!

Curious Gerorge!

2008-05-19T08:11:00.001-07:00

I have yet to meet a kid who doesn't like Curious George.

After watching the Curious George movie during quiet time, I decided each kid should make their own George to take home with them!

I started out with a Curious George coloring template and empty t.p. rolls.

Once the pages were colored, the body was attached to the t.p. roll and the children attached the rest of George accordingly.

Once complete, we had George's dancing, talking and getting into mischief.

Knock! Knock!

2008-05-13T08:31:00.000-07:00

Knock Knock jokes are a fun way to pass time between

learning time and lunch.

I taught the preschoolers how to tell knock knock jokes by telling them what to say and when. As time has gone on, they're coming up with their own versions.

Some of our favorite knock knock jokes:

Knock Knock Who's there? Lettuce. Lettuce who? Lettuce in, it's cold out here.

Knock Knock! Who's there? Moo. Moo, who? Well, make up your mind, are you a cow or an owl?

Knock Knock! Who's there? Ya. Ya who? What are you getting so excited about?

Knock Knock! Who's there? Boo. Boo who? Don't cry. It's only me.

Knock Knock! Who's there? Banana. Banana who? Knock Knock! Who's there? Banana. Banana who? Knock Knock! Who's there? Orange. Orange who? Orange you glad I didn't say banana?

Ladybug Love

2008-05-12T11:12:00.000-07:00

"L" is for Ladybug...

To begin this project I cut black & red circles out of

construction paper.

I cut the red circle in half for the ladybug wings and attached them to the black circle with a small brad (purchased in a lot from Oriental Trading Co.).

Each child was then given a glue stick, black dots and 2 black antennas

to complete their ladybug.

The antennas were curled with a pencil.

Once complete, the children enjoyed flying their ladybugs

throughout the play area!

Miss Melissa, You Deserve This!

2008-05-12T06:25:00.000-07:00

Last week one of my preschoolers asked if she could draw me a map.

Of course I said yes and gave her a blank piece of paper.

A few minutes later, she gave me the following:

She said, "Miss Melissa, this map is for you. So you never get lost.

I even wrote an "M" on it for you...so you know it's your map to your house."
I said, "Thank you! I needed a map!"

With the biggest smile on her face she said, "I think you deserve this!"

She then told me "You better keep this on the "fridgerator" so you don't lose it."

LoL...I love my job!

Mother's Day Q & A

2008-05-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

The last thing we added to our Mother's Day flower pots were a fun

Mom Q & A.

To complete this, ask your preschooler the following:

Top 10 Reasons I Love My Mom:

10) I love my mom because she reads me:

9) I love my mom because she helps me:

8) I love my mom when she makes me laugh by:

7) I love my mom because she taught me to:

6) I love to hear my mom sing:

5) I love my mom because she finds time to:

4) I know my mom cares because she:

3) I know my mom is smart because she:

2) I love my mom because she works so hard at:

1) My mom is:

Some of the funnier answers I received were:

* I love my mom when she makes me laugh by falling down on her head.

and making me clean my room.

* I love my mom because she finds time to eat.

* I know my mom is smart because she watches TV.

*My mom is the best mom ever!

Planting a flower for Mom!

2008-05-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

The project the kids were most excited about this week was the planting a flower for mom project!

I started off by filling buckets with the necessary supplies.

Each bucket contained:

* A set of stickers

* Flower instructions

* A photo of themselves

* A piece of muffin paper

* A flowering seed

* A clothespin

I set up a workstation for the kids to use to create their flowering pot.

Each child decorated the outside of their pot (sand bucket purchased for $1/ea) with the stickers provided.

Once the pots were decorated we headed over to the potting soil where each child filled their pot.

Once the pots were filled, we moved on to adding a flower of our own.

Each child glued their photograph onto a piece of muffin paper and attached it to a clothespin.

I then hot glued each clothespin to the corresponding flower for each child.

Each child was given a teeny tiny seed to put in their pot.

We discussed how this little seed would grow into the beautiful flower I had printed on the "How to grow" information sheet.

Once complete, I added a little water and allowed the flowerpots to sit in the sun.

This is one gift I'm sure all the mother's will love!

Mother's Day Photo Magnet

2008-05-08T09:52:00.001-07:00

Here's a super easy Mother's Day Craft anyone can complete!

After printing and having the children color the I love mom template, I cut each one out and glue the "I" to the heart.

Each child glued the "mom" and their photo on the frame.

I used a craft glue and heavy magnet on the back of the heart frame.

When I worked outside the home, I always enjoyed decorating my desk and filing cabinets with crafts my kids made. I felt a magnet frame would be the perfect office accessory for our moms.

When complete each mom had a photo of their child working on this project in the perfect handcrafted frame.

Mother's Day: Flowering Photo

2008-05-08T06:47:00.000-07:00

The perfect Mother's Day craft for any age.

After printing a simple flower template and having the children color it, the older children were given a pair of scissors to cut their frame out.

A photo of themselves was placed in the middle of the flower.

Each child was then given a green pipe cleaner to use for the stem of the flower.

We glue a single petal around the stem of the flower before allowing them dry.

Once finished, I had the most beautiful boquet of flowers!

It's time to play ball!!

2008-04-30T12:17:00.001-07:00

I love teaching through play. I believe it's the most effective way to teach toddlers and preschoolers!

For today's game, I grabbed my bag of 100 colored balls, emptied 6 containers in different sizes and taped a piece of colored construction paper on the front of each one.

To begin, I called out the name of one child and instructed him/her as to how many balls and in what color I wanted him/her to collect.

"Max, please collect 5 orange balls."

Next, the children were told to drop the balls in the correct bucket.

As they dropped their balls they were asked,

"How many balls are you putting into the bucket?"

"What color are they?"

After children had the hang of that part of the game, I started asking them to collect different balls in different numbers.

For instance, "Max, please collect 3 orange balls along with 2 pink balls."

Once he collected the appropriate balls, I asked him,

"How many balls do you have all together?"

The children would then have to divide their colored balls and place them in the appropriate spot.

When the games were over, each child was given a bucket to collect and was responsible for putting them away.

It's a fun way to teach colors, addition and sorting skills!

Do you love me????

2008-04-29T11:37:00.001-07:00

Lunch time will always bring out the best conversation between preschoolers.

Typically it's the "My mom said this..." or "My dad did that..." kids comparing stories and bringing plenty of imagination into the details.

Today one of my preschool girls decided it would be fun to follow one of the boys around the dining room before lunch. Every place he moved, she moved next to him.

Just when he had had enough he said, "Melissa...XXX won't stop following me!"

I said, "That's because she likes you!"

He sat down at what we call the little table, she sat across from him and he stated in a firm voice, "DO YOU LOVE ME???"

The little girl nodded her head yes.

The more than frustrated boy shook his hands out in front of him and stated, "Then STOP following me!!!"

Number book!

2008-04-25T08:02:00.000-07:00

A spin off from the book of colors is our book of numbers!

I was given this idea from a friend of mine who got it from her daughter's preschool teacher.

It's an incredibly easy way to help children learn how to recognize and write their numbers.

Each page has a new number (1-10) along with an easy to remember poem about how to write the number.

For example the number 2 poem is,

"Around and back on the railroad track! Two! Two! Two! Two!"

Each child is given a number worksheet to work on while we learn how to write each number.

To continue this game into free play, I asked the children to bring me 4 of any particular toy.

Book of Colors!

2008-04-24T21:42:00.001-07:00

I'm always looking for inventive ways to teach, so today I decided to make color books for the kids!

The kids love books so I knew this would be a hit!

Today's color was red.

To begin I pulled out an old Valentine's Day catalog with plenty of red items and cut a piece of red contruction paper in half.

I gave each child a pair of scissors and asked them to cut out all the red items.

Note: Before giving the children scissors, I restated the rules that goes along with being "big" enough to use them.

The kids loved being able to cut out the pictures they were going to use in their very own book!

Once the kids cut out all the images they could fit on a sheet, we began to glue.

Once we were finished, I bound their book.

Once the books were complete, we continued our red "game" during clean up time. I asked the kids to find all the red toys and assigned a special spot for them. Not only did the play area get cleaned up in record time, the kids loved finding and showing me all the red toys they had found!

Each of them were eager to get started on tomorrow's color!

"B" is for Bee

2008-04-22T18:05:00.000-07:00

The letter of the day is "B".

I chose this project because we've noticed more bees buzzing around during our outdoor time.

We began with a bee and sunflower coloring page.

While coloring I asked questions such as,

"Bubble bee starts with?"

"B sounds like?"

"Where do bees get their food?"

"What color is your bee?"

"What do we do when we see a bee?"

"What does a bee sound like?"

Once colored we added the bees to the environment that was made earlier in the day.
We add the wings, nose and a flower.

Once complete, the kids took their bees out for a buzz around the room.

Great Snack Idea!

2008-04-22T12:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a wonderful snack I found at All Recipes that kids won't refuse!

Ingredients:

8 oz. sour cream1 (8 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 (5oz) package instant vanilla pudding mix
2 cups milk1 (16 oz) package vanilla wafer cookies
4 banana, peeled and sliced

In large bowl combine sour cream, whipped topping, pudding mix and milk.

Stir well.

In the bottom of a trifle bowl or other glass serving dish, put a layer of cookies, then a layer of pudding mixture, then a layer of bananas, repeat layers until bowl is full.

Refrigerate until serving.

Alphabet Matching with a Twist!

2008-04-21T12:35:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun and easy way to help children learn and recognize the letters of the alphabet!

To complete this project you'll need a bag of wooden clothespins, a permanent marker and flashcards.

To begin I wrote a capital and lower case letter on each clothespin.

I placed the clothespins in a bowl,

and scattered the alphabet letters on the floor.

After each child pulled a clothespin from the bowl, they were asked to identify the letter and match it to the corresponding alphabet flashcard.

For the letters they didn't recognize, I gave hints such as,

"A is for Apple".

When the kids matched the flashcards to the pin, they attached the card and brought it to me.

Once they knew they had the correct match, they attached the card to the window curtains.

With a little help from me, the children mastered attaching the flashcards to the clothespin and then attaching it to the curtains.

At the end of the game the children had a good laugh at my "new" curtains.

They were all more than willing to help remove the letters so they could play again and again!

Let's Bowl!

2008-04-18T17:27:00.000-07:00

Ever wonder what you can do with those empty creamer bottles?
I did too!

I do have a fun winter project for them, but now that I have 15 bottles and winter's another 7 months away....what can I do with them now?

I put my thinking cap on and came up with...bowling!

I pulled out my permanent markers and began numbering my pins 1-10.

Not only will this be a fun new game, but will also help the kids recognize their numbers.

My plan is to number the next 10 bottles I save with 11-20 for the children who already know 1-10.

Once they were numbered I added a few squiggly lines for decoration:
I decided to add some rice to the bottles for weight:

To minimize the mess of pouring rice into the bottle, I cut a hole in the bottom of a paper cup, set it on top of the creamer bottle, and poured a small amount of rice inside:

Once complete, we were ready to bowl!

Since the weather is so beautiful today, we set the game up outdoors, but easily could have played indoors as well with a lighter ball.

**Let the bowling begin!**

Each child was so happy and excited, often clapping their hands and jumping up and down when they knocked pins down!

Once they knocked 'em all down, the kids worked together to put them back up and bowled again!

Our Rockin' Birds!

2008-04-18T12:18:00.000-07:00

Sticking with the bird and spring theme of the week we decided to make
rockin' birds today.

I first used the hot glue gun to attach a craft stick to each t.p. roll.

Once I had the stick secured, I folded a piece of saran wrap in 1/2,

placed the t.p. roll over it and dropped in a few dried beans.

A combination of glue and scotch tape was used to secure the saran wrap to each side of the t.p. roll.

The sample bird was placed in the middle of the table and each child was given a bird template to color and decorate.

We began to assemble the bird when all the pieces of the templates were cut and ready for each child.

The children's favorite part of assembling the bird was the dimensional beak.

Once our rockin' birds were dry the children enjoyed running throughout the play area whistling or at least attempting to and rockin' their bird.

Hummingbird Art

2008-04-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

Our hummingbird project was an easy one for all the children.

Once again starting with a recycled t.p. roll and our spring theme I thought it would be fun to teach the children a little about hummingbirds.

I gave the children the colors indicated on the sample hummingbird and directed them to try to match their bird as close to the example as possible.

During rest time, I cut and laid out the pieces of the hummingbirds, as they would be attached with glue.

During this time we discussed some of the fascinating facts about hummingbirds.

For example:

-> They have the fastest wing beats of any bird.

-> Hummingbirds may visit 1,000 flowers a day.

-> For protein, hummingbirds eat spiders and strain gnats from mid-air.

-> Hummingbirds feed through a long, tube-like tongue that darts into the flower's corolla for nectar.

-> Their tongues are shaped like a "W".

-> A hummingbird can rotate each of its wings in a circle, allowing them to be the only bird which can fly forwards, backwards, up, down, sideways or sit in sheer space.

-> To hover, hummingbirds move their wings forward and backward in a repeated figure eight, much like the arms of a swimmer treading water.

-> Hummingbirds can move instantaneously in any direction, start from its perch at full speed, and doesn't necessarily slow up to land.

-> Hummingbirds can even fly short distances upside down.

Once we finished our hummingbirds the children demonstrated how hummingbirds fly.

My Must Have Recyclables!

2008-04-16T12:49:00.000-07:00

With time I've learned how to recycle some of the most ordinary household products into great arts and craft projects. Some you've already seen here.

I thought I'd go ahead and make a list of things you too can save and reuse.

First, I reused a shipping box as my recycle container. When it's full, I know it's time to do more projects using the products inside.

-> Save your empty toilet paper rolls! There are a bunch of projects you can make using old toilet paper rolls!

-> I save egg cartons for math games.

-> I also save all of my creamer bottles. In January we used them to create the most adorable snowmen.

-> Coffee cans can be used for the paint flower (or similar) project I blogged about a few weeks back. You can also decorate the outside of a coffee can to create a piggy bank or other keepsake.

-> Yogurt and fruit cup containers! These are perfect for painting projects!

If you're not using them for paint, use them for math games. Remember the jelly bean counting game I blogged about?

-> I save my lunch meat containers for the kids to use in their shopping cart.

Broken crayons can be saved, melted and made into more crayons. I'll blog about this soon!

-> Old bags of peanuts are a perfect way to attract squirrels to your property.

-> Old bags of dried beans and rice are perfect for noise maker crafts.

With just a little looking and cleaning out of your cabinets you'll find many uses for the items you thought you didn't need anymore!

My Band!

2008-04-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

Introducing the one...the only:

Melissa's Preschool Band!

Today we created our own band out of things lying around the house!

Our supply list:

Paper plates

Recycled yogurt cups

Watercolor paints

Tissue paper

Beans

Paper cups

Stapler

Hot glue gun

I started out by giving each child 2 paper plates.

These will become our tambourines!
Each child painted his/her plates to their own liking.

Once the plates were drying, each child was given 2 paper cups.

These will become our maracas!

Tip: I recommend using regular paper cups without the wax coating.

Because our cups had a light wax coating, the paint ran.

We decided this would only enhance our final outcome!

Once the cups were dry, I added a few mixed beans and hot glued the cups together. Once the first seal was dry, I added a bead of glue along the edge to secure the beans inside the cups.

I then glued strips of tissue paper I had cut up on each end of the cup to give them some flare.

Before we could finish our tambourines, we had to drop a few beans on one side of the plate, and to assure none of the noise would escape, we stapled the edges of the plates together.

And wa-la our finished instruments!

The children ran around in circles, laughing, dancing and shaking their tambourines and maracas!!

Though it's quite loud, the laughter and happiness in the children made it the perfect art project!

Bring May Flowers!

2008-04-03T10:32:00.000-07:00

The second part of our April Showers, bring May flowers project were the flowers.

First, the children were given flowers to color.

Next I cut out each child's flower and prepared it to be glued under the sun we previously colored.

We began assembling our flower from the "ground up".

We glued each piece accordingly and discussed what would come next.

I asked what, "Why do we want our flower under the sun?"

They answered, "To help the flower grow!"

April Showers....

2008-04-02T07:13:00.000-07:00

With spring finally making an appearance after what feels like the longest winter yet, I was anxious to teach the children the April phrase,

"April showers, bring May flowers!"

For this project, I printed out a spring bunny template, gave each child a row of water paints and let them loose on their April showers bunny.

As they painted the first of 3 sheets, we spoke of the objects on the paper.

Such as, "What is an umbrella used for?"

Using my original template, each child chose a color for the bunnies nose and inner ears.

Following the bunny head, were the raindrops.

We talked about what color you see when you look at the ocean and colored the raindrops blue.

Next, I cut out a cloud image for each child, covered it with glue and tore up a few cotton balls.

While doing this, I asked, "Why would we use cotton for clouds?"

One child, said, "Because they're white."

I said, "Yes, and also because when you look up in the sky do the clouds look soft like cotton?"

They answered, "Yes."

After each piece of the puzzle was completed, we allowed them to dry over lunch and rest time.

During rest time, I cut each out.

After rest time, children assembled their April showers bunny project!

Today...comes the May flowers!

Painted Coffee Can Spring Flowers!

2008-03-28T17:42:00.001-07:00

Today's fun spring themed art project was designing a flower using recycled coffee cans, a few marbles and some paint.

I first gathered my recycled coffee cans, tempura paints and a handful of marbles.

I then cut the flower template down to size, and allowed each child to choose 3 paint colors they'd like to use.

I dropped a dime-sized amount of paint on different spots of the flower.

I then told the children, "Tell your flower bye bye...when you see it next, it'll be full of color!"

We loosely folded the paper to fit in the can, tossed in 3 marbles, placed the lid over top...

...and shook our little hearts out!

After about a minute or two of pure, earth shaking rattling, we carefully pulled our flowers out of the can and laid them flat over newspaper.

We allowed them to dry over lunch and rest period.

Upon waking everyone was excited to finish his/her project!

Next, I instructed the children to take their "blue" paper and lay it in front of them so it looks like a standing "rectangle".

I then asked them to place their flower at the top of the page.

I asked questions such as,

"What does the flower need to grow?"

The children told me, "The sun!"

I asked, "What's attached to the flower, but is also stuck in the ground?"

I gave hints until they answered the "stem".

We then talked about grass and what color it was and that the sun helps the grass grow as well.

Once all the pieces were cut and glued into place, the children added their sunshine.

The Best Xylophone Ever!!!

2008-03-27T07:29:00.000-07:00

Why? Because it's quiet. ;)

Our letter this week is Xx and coming up with projects that begin with X can be a bit difficult....but, I found one! And to my surprise, the kids really had fun coloring and assembling their very own Xylophone.

As usual, I assembled mine earlier and placed it in the middle of the table so all could view. I chose to print the template with the colored outline to help the children use the correct colors.

Once the children had all their pieces colored & cut, we loosely placed them in the same order as the example xylophone I had made.

During this time, we discussed largest to smallest and reviewed which colors go where.

Then it was time to glue! Each project that includes gluing is the children's favorite part!

During the assembly, we discussed what a xylophone was, and the letter it started with.

I continued to ask the children, "Xylophone starts with ____, but sounds like it starts with ____."

Lastly, we added the mallets. We discussed what the mallets were used for and what they weren't used for.

Such as, "A mallet is used to tap the bars on the xylophone, not used to tap our brothers or sisters." :D

When finished, I was convinced we had made the best musical instrument ever!

Pussy Willows!

2008-03-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

A sure sign of spring is the blossom of pussy willows.

Today's art project and story was all about pussy willows.

I first looked up an easy to follow story I could read to the children along with some facts about the tree.

After answering questions about the story, I asked questions such as,

"What woke the pussy willow up?"

To begin our art project we gathered a variety of twigs from the front yard. After washing and allowing them to dry, I hot glued them to blue construction paper.

Once that was complete, I cut the ends off Q-tips and handed the children glue sticks.

We studied the original pussy willow image I printed and discussed where are blossoms would go.

This project is fun for all ages!

Our finished pussy willow "trees".

The Hokey Pokey!!

2008-03-25T11:44:00.000-07:00

We're having a dancing fun-time at Miss Melissa's today!

We started out with our typical Alphabet Funk videos and were having so much fun dancing and singing, we added many of the songs we've already learned, including the Hokey Pokey into the mix!

Not only is this a fun dance to learn, but goes with our direction game from yesterday.

As the song instructed to "Put your left hand in..." I set the example of which was left, right, etc...

After hearing it a few times the children were getting the hang of which foot and hand was left and which was right.

A Fun Direction Game!

2008-03-24T12:34:00.000-07:00

The learning game this week is all about directions.

I got this idea from one of my curriculum books. They suggested hand making bean bags for the children. However, since I'm no where near being a seamstress, I improvised with a stapler, construction paper and some napkins.

First, I chose 3 colorful pages, folded them over and stapled the sides closed.

I then unfolded napkins and began to crumple them up. I stuffed them inside my colorful envelope and stapled it shut.

Before beginning

we reviewed each of the colors being presented.
From oldest to youngest I allowed children to choose their favorite color game bag.

We began the game by mimicking what I did. I would say, "Put the bag above your head" and show them what to do.

As the game went on, I stopped participating and just gave direction. The other children were excellent examples for those children unsure of the instruction.

My Little Bunnies

2008-03-21T12:26:00.000-07:00

Due to the holiday weekend, some of my parents are picking up early today. To make sure everyone got to participate in arts and crafts, we kept it simple and did it earlier in the day.

Today, we made bunny ears. I searched bunny ear templates and found the perfect one for us. Next, I gave the children a choice in colors for their headbands.

Each child colored their ears, while I fitted their headbands.

Once I cut the ears out, I stapled them to the front of the bands and away my bunnies hopped.

During play time we discussed bunnies, the letter "B", we acted like bunnies and sang "5 little bunnies jumping on the bed".

Hey Chickie!

2008-03-20T08:45:00.000-07:00

Get your children clucking up a storm with this adorable spring craft!

This project was incredibly easy to create and fun to teach!

I started with recycled tp rolls. After each child colored the body of the chick, I applied it to the roll and cut it down to size.

Next the children were asked where they thought the body parts of the chicks would go. If they were unsure, we used ourselves as examples and placed the pieces in the appropriate spots.

As we glued, I asked questions such as

"What does chick start with?"

"What color is your chicks body?"

"What color are his/her feet?"

And of course, "What sound does a chick make?"

The children spent the remainder of the afternoon, walking around the house clucking with their baby chicks.

This craft can be found at http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mchick.html.

Easter Bunny Doorhangers!

2008-03-19T11:39:00.001-07:00

Whether you believe in the Easter Bunny or not, this is an adorable craft that children will love to color and put together!

As usual, I printed one copy of the project in color and assembled it to show the children how the end project would look.

This craft is printed on 4 separate pages. Once all the pages were colored, I placed them in one pile and cut them all out at once. This saves a bunch of time for restless little ones.

After I had all the pieces cut, I loosely placed them in the order that they'd be glued together.

With little assistance from me, the children glued the pieces of their bunnies together.

Once complete, the children picked a doorknob as their own and proudly displayed their creations until parents arrived.

This Easter project can be found here:
http://www.dltk-holidays.com/easter/mrabbitdoorknob.html

A finished masterpiece!

Spring Fever? Make EZ Birdfeeders!

2008-03-13T10:42:00.001-07:00

It's been nearly 70 degrees here all week, which is causing all of us to come down with Spring Fever.

This week we decided to make EZ Bird feeders. I call them EZ; because you can make this with the stuff you have lying around the house.

Supplies we used were recycled tp rolls (you could use acorns as well), some spare string, a glob of peanut butter, a disposable knife and some leftover birdseed.

First, I punched two holes in the top of each tp roll. I tied a piece of string to the top. I put a glob of peanut butter on each plate with a disposable knife and away they went, eating and painting the roll with peanut butter.

Next, I filled a spot on each plate with birdseed. The children rolled their peanut butter roll in the seed, being watchful not to miss a spot.

The excess peanut butter and seed can be stuffed into the bottom of the roll and placed in the seed. You may have to help children with this part.

You'll see why I chose to use disposable knives by the looks of this photo! :) I also kept wet toweletts close by!

Once we finished the feeders, we allowed them to dry for 2 hours. When they were finished we took a walk outside and hung them on the trees in front of our front window. The children sat for a good 30 minutes waiting for the birds or squirrels to come by for their snack.

Skills Evaluation Day

2008-03-06T12:01:00.000-08:00

It's not the easiest task to perform, but once a month I attempt to sit with each child and complete a skills evaluation chart. This way parents can track their child's progress while they're enrolled in my care.

To complete the evaluation, I pull out my flashcards and quiz the child. If they get one wrong, I simply state the correct answer and move on. Depending on the child and their skill level, the evaluation can take anywhere from 10-15 minutes.

If they're beyond the point of the basic set of questions, I add my own and mark "yes" or "no".

For example, I'm currently working with a child on the more advanced shapes, such as sphere, cylinder, etc...because those aren't listed on the evaluation sheet, I simply add them.

If you're interested in evaluating your child or considering adding this to your program, I'm sure you will can find a free print out on any given preschool website. Mine was included in a curriculum package I purchased.

Yummy! Jellybean Counting Game

2008-03-05T12:19:00.000-08:00

While at the supermarket last night I noticed bags of jellybeans on sale. I thought of the fun counting and color games I could play with the kids using jellybeans.

I decided to start on a beginner level with the kids to get them used to the game and to make sure the children still learning to count and recognize numbers would be involved without feeling frustrated.

First I filled clean, recycled yogurt cups with the appropriate number of jellybeans. I sorted them by color and wrote a number along with the coordinating color on an index card.

Children were given a clean, recycled fruit cup to collect their jellybeans.

I started the game by calling out the number and color of their first jellybean. One at a time, the children counted out the number and color of the jellybean I had called out.

We continued this through the number 5, giving each child a total of 15 colored jellybeans.

After each child collected their jellybeans, they were asked to lay them on a napkin and count each one out. When they changed a color, I’d ask them, “What color is that jellybean?” If they didn’t know the answer, the other children were happy to help!

For more advanced preschoolers, you can combine the appropriate number of jellybeans into one dish and ask them to collect different amounts in different colors until the dish is empty.

If you don’t want to use jellybeans, this game can also be played with Lego’s.

Alphabet Funk

2008-03-05T08:42:00.000-08:00

I learned with my son that the more fun the song, the more likely kids are to retain it and learn it.

The following are two of my favorite alphabet song You Tube videos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKfCyoNCUkM

If you're a fan of the Disney Channel then you've probably seen this. I've saved it in my favorites on You Tube for the kids. We have a hand clapping, foot stomping good time when we sing this version!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nX4WfD13nCw

Alphabet Books

2008-03-05T07:59:00.000-08:00

Trying to teach a preschooler who has no interest in learning his or her ABC's can be a bit frustrating, however finding fun and inventive ways to do it can make the time seem more like play time instead of quiet classroom time.

I've used the alphabet books from First-School since I started my preschool program in September. Not only do they have plenty of free worksheets you can print, but these great alphabet books.

First, I print off each page of the book. On Tuesdays I present the book to the children during our preschool time. Each child is instructed as to how to write the letter, and given instructions to color each picture listed. We review each word as they begin to color.

As the children color their pictures, I begin to cut out the pages of the book. As a class, we put the pictures in front of ourselves and call out the first picture.

For example, I say, "Umpire. Umpire begins with?"

The class states, "U. Umpire starts with U."

Once the books are complete, I staple the edge and present each child with their book.

The parents have raved about how much their children love showing off their weekly books.

To print free letter books, visit: http://www.first-school.ws/theme/alphabetp6.htm.

Paper Plate Alphabet Match

2008-03-04T22:33:00.000-08:00

I was on the lookout for a game my little ones could play to help recognize the letters of the alphabet when I came upon this idea.

I grabbed a handful of heavy-duty paper plates, divided them into 8 sections and wrote each letter twice. I printed off a page full of arrows and attached 2 to each plate with a small brad.

I gave children a plate and told them to match up the letters. For those with preschoolers who already know and recognize their letters, this game seems to be a bit mundane. However, for those who don’t recognize the letters on the plate it’s a great way for them to play and learn.

Foam Alphabet Letters

2008-03-04T16:57:00.000-08:00

We have fun using our foam letters to play a matching game.

First I lay out the letters and numbers. This is the search pile for the children.

I keep the other half of the puzzle next to me.

Next, I call out a child's name and the letter or number they need to find to fit in the puzzle piece.

When the child brings back the correct piece, he/she completes his puzzle piece and their turn is over.

When a child brings back the incorrect piece, I ask them to see if it fits. The child returns to the letter pile to find the correct piece.

This is a game the kids ask to play several times a week.

When we're not "officially" playing the game, I find the children playing the game with their own rules. :)

Who's gonna get bery sick?

2008-03-04T16:06:00.000-08:00

As I open the front door to let my black lab out this afternoon an independent 3 year old stands up, hands on his hips and shouts,

"Alissa, you better get in here and shut that door...it's freezing cold out there and I've got wet hair, you're gonna get bery sick!!"

One of the girls jumped into the conversation and states, "Mowissa has her jacket on and your hair isn't wet. She'll only get a wittle bit sick."

Sticker Friday!

2008-02-29T14:47:00.000-08:00

Every Friday is sticker Friday at Miss Melissa's. The children know on Thursday and are sure to remind me before they leave that tomorrow is sticker Friday and not to forget. :)

Sticker Friday's start out with a review of the games and the song we sang during the week.

For each right answer the children are rewarded with a sticker that they place on their award.

Once we've played one round of each game and have sung our song or recited our poem a few times, we head to the kitchen table. There, I pull out all of my flashcards (most of which I were able to find on the net, print and laminate).

In this photo you'll see the different flashcards I use. I teach with the pictured alphabet cards first, the capital cards second and once a child has mastered those, we move on to lower case letters. During sticker Friday, I separate the cards and present each child with the appropriate card for their own level.

If a child doesn't know the answer, the other children are ready to jump in and help.

After we've completed those tasks, each child is given a sheet of paper with their name on it. They are taught to trace over the letters. I can proudly say that after 3 1/2 months of doing this once a day, four times a week, one of the children I care for can now spell and write her name without the tracer!

Name tracers can be found here: http://www.handwritingworksheets.com/print-k/make-pk-all.htm. Simply type in the child's name and print!

Our Ball Toss Counting Game

2008-02-28T12:17:00.000-08:00

Our counting game today was Ball Toss.

I grabbed a big plastic bowl and 12 plastic, practice golf balls. If you don't have plastic balls you could always make balls out of aluminum foil.

Each child was given 3 balls to start.

I then laid a piece of green construction paper on the floor and instructed the children to line up behind it.

When it was their turn a child stepped on the green paper and tossed the balls, one at a time into the bowl.

After they tossed all 3 balls, they collected the balls and reported how many baskets they had made.

As the game went on, I moved the green paper back a few inches, making the toss a bit more difficult.

With each move of the paper, the children were given another ball to toss until they had all 12.

The children not only had fun tossing the balls, but counting them out afterwards. Each one proudly announced their toss accomplishments!

My Noggin Gets All Thumbs Up Here!

2008-02-28T08:50:00.000-08:00

Charter Cable gave it's customers a 9 month subscription to MyNoggin.com.

I was eager to give this program a try since we watch Dora, Diego and The Backyardigans every day.

Getting started was easy and I was elated to learn I could add as many children as I want to the program!

The children are rewarded with marbles at the end of each game. This is not only a great incentive for the children to finish a game, but lets them know when their turn is over.

After each game, the parent or provider has the option to see the child's progress.

Above, one of the children plays a Diego snowboard game. In this game, the child uses the mouse to navigate Diego on the snowboard. Elisia, Diego's cousin calls out numbers and it's the job of the child to direct Diego to the ramp displaying the number just called.

This little guy scored 2nd place and won 15 marbles at the end of the game!

I highly recommend this program to other daycare/preschool providers as well as parents!

If you're not a Charter customer, you can visit http://www.mynoggin.com/ for a free 7-day trial.

Miss Mowissa has a lot of wrinkles!!

2008-02-27T16:48:00.000-08:00

Kids will certainly say the funniest things.

This is a story one of my mom's recently shared with me.

Her daughter and she were talking as her mother worked in the small tea room they own. Her daughter brought up all the wrinkles I have by starting the conversation with,

"Mom, Miss Mowissa has a lot of wrinkles!!"

"M, I've seen Miss Melissa and I've never seen a wrinkle."

"Yes mom, she has a lot of wrinkles and she keeps them in her cupboard."

"What? No sweetie, Miss Melissa doesn't have any wrinkles and she certainly doesn't keep them in her cupboard."

Angered by her mother's disbelief, the little girl states, "Mom, she does have a lot of wrinkles...she has pink, blue and mix colored. We put them on our cupcakes."

Chuckling at her own misunderstanding, the mother says, "Does Miss Melissa have a lot of sprinkles in her cupboard?"

"That's what I've been telling you mom!!"

We all couldn't help but get a good chuckle out of that one.

Number Leap

2008-02-27T16:27:00.000-08:00

Today I decided to try a new number game with the children.

I call it Number Leap and the rules are simple.

I call out a number and the children leap over it.

To start, I numbered 10 pieces of colored construction paper and laid them out in order.

I then walked through all the numbers, pointing out each color and corresponding number.

As the children lined up, I called out, "Max, jump over number 7." If Max didn't know what the number 7 looked like, I gave hints, such as,

"Number 7 is on white paper."

For the children who knew their numbers I had them start with the number 10 and count backwards.

Be prepared for children to miss the jump and slip. For us this ended up being the "fun" part of the game.

When nap time was over, the children were ready to play again and again!

What a fun way for them to burn some energy and learn at the same time!

Alphabet Lotto

2008-02-26T18:18:00.000-08:00

I recently ordered the "Alphabet Lotto" game for my preschoolers in hopes it would help those still learning letter recognition.

I gathered the children and told them about the fun game we were about to play.

They were excited to see the sturdy, colorful bingo-like cards and raring to get started.

I explained that I would be calling out a letter and it was there job to tell me if they had the letter and where it was on their card.

The first round went great, but I decided I wanted to add a task to those who already knew their alphabet.

The next round involved naming one thing that began with the letter I just called. It took a few tries, but soon kids were catching on and calling out, "B is for Boy" or "M is for Melissa".

If you don't want to buy the game itself, it would be easy to make with some card stock, laminate covering and size appropriate, homemade, alphabet flashcards!

What a fun way to learn the alphabet!

A quick outdoor game

2008-02-26T15:47:00.000-08:00

It was 58 degrees here this afternoon. Not quite warm enough for a full afternoon outdoors with the kids, but warm enough to get out for some fresh air and a quick game of Red light, Green light!

I made my "light" using a bowl, green construction paper, and red construction paper, laminate paper and a tongue depressor.

I was the leader to start, and then each child who got to the end first became the leader.

We were able to play 6 rounds before the children were ready to take the game indoors.

The parents were happy that not only did they learn an old fashion, fun game, but that the children were able to finally enjoy some fresh air!

Do your kids know "Apples & Bananas"?

2008-02-26T13:16:00.001-08:00

This song was the most fun we've had singing in a long time! It's so catchy that even my teenagers were singing it!

Apples and Bananas:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmW3aBqZtKQ

Lyrics:

I like to eat, eat, eat apples and bananas

I like to eat, eat, eat apples and bananas

I like to ate, ate, ate ay-ples and ba-nay-nays - Ba-nay-nays?

I like to ate, ate, ate ay-ples and ba-nay-nays

I like to eat, eat, eat ee-ples and bee-nee-nees - Bee-nee-nees?

I like to eat, eat, eat ee-ples and bee-nee-nees

I like to ite, ite, ite i-ples and by-ny-nys - By-ny-nys?

I like to ite, ite, ite i-ples and by-ny-nys

I like to ote, ote, ote oh-ples and bo-no-nos - Bo-no-nos?

I like to ote, ote, ote oh-ples and bo-no-nos

I like to oot, oot, oot oo-ples and boo-noo-noos - Boo-noo-noos?

I like to oot, oot, oot oo-ples and boo-noo-noos

And the cow says?

Moo-moo.....

And the snake says?

Ssss....Ssss...

Number Fishing

2008-02-26T12:45:00.000-08:00

Number fishing is my new favorite game to play with the kids! It's easy to set up and makes learning colors, numbers and counting a blast with the little ones!

First, cut out the fish template. I don't recommend cutting each corner, rather cut around the fish for more durability.

This is the perfect size fish to start out with!

I traced the fish onto several different colored pieces of construction paper.

Second, In black marker, label each fish with a number.

I started out with 1-20, but if your child is past that, then by all means start with the numbers they need to learn next.

On the fish numbered 1-10, I added small stickers to the back of the fish for the little ones who haven't mastered numbered recognition. By counting the stickers on the back, they learn to recognize the corresponding number.

Third, add a basic paper clip to the mouth. This is how the children will catch their fish.

Fourth, find a dowel or old blind handle, tie yarn to one end and attach 2 magnets. I used hot glue to assure my magnets stay together and keep the yarn in place.

Fifth, find a nice size bowl or bucket, drop your fish in and let the fun begin!

As children catch the fish, ask them,

"What color is your fish?"

"What number is on your fish?"

"Can you count the stickers on the back of the fish?"