Learn the Alphabet - Book & Boogie style!

By Laura Eldredge


For those teachers and parents preparing for {GASP} back to school in a little over a month, we have a fun A-B-C "Book & Boogie" for you and your children! "Book & Boogie" brings together stories with a music and movement dance to reinforce the story theme and extend learning.  

A-B-C up the coconut tree

BOOK: “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom” by Bill Martin

The alphabet story we chose is one of our favorites, “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom“, with all those lower case letters racing to the top of a coconut tree. The story helps children begin to recognize upper and lower case letters, while enjoying the rhyming text.

Kids already know this story?! GREAT! They can help point out and name the letters ... and all yell "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" at the appropriate time.

Boogie to the Alphabet

SONG: “Alphabet Boogie“, Kidzup Educational Music

Don't stop at the story ... keep going and boogie! Tressa makes it easy by breaking down some choreographed movements that teachers and parents can use in the video clip below. But feel free to make up your own moves as well. What a fun way to learn the alphabet!

More online videos are available which provide story ideas, music choices and simple dance choreography can be found on our website, at www.bookandboogie.com.

 

Laura Eldredge is co-founder of the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Pumpkins, pumpkins EVERYWHERE in preschool!

By Laura Eldredge

PUMPKINS ABOUND here in New England in the Fall!  Pumpkins are in everything ... from muffins to pies, coffee to donuts ... we sure do love our pumpkins!  And it's so easy to bring this orange goodness into our homes and preschool classrooms for young children to explore. 

Whether you are using real pumpkins, or making pumpkin inspired crafts or games ... it's all about the PUMPKIN!

Exploring Real Pumpkins

Opening up a real pumpkin and letting young children touch, smell and see what is inside is such a great learning opportunity.  

Before opening up the pumpkin, engage the kids in cognitive thinking about the pumpkin (how much does it weigh, how tall/wide is it, does it sink or float, etc).  You can have some fun by having children make some predictions about the answers before figuring it out.  You can use the fun worksheet to help track the information about your pumpkin.

After scooping out the seeds and drying them, add them to a batch of pumpkin play dough!

Pumpkin Crafts and Games

Break out the orange paint (along with some of those pumpkin seeds you scooped out) to make paper plate pumpkins.

Use orange construction paper, tissue paper, felt or fabric to make pumpkin faces from recycled bottles.

Use some more seeds for a fun pumpkin seed counting game.

Use different colors of play dough to make goofy pumpkin play dough faces.

PreK + K sharing PUMPKIN roundup!

Need more "pumpkin" inpiration?  We've had several posts on the preK + K sharing blog already! Here's a round up!

• Pumpkin Sun Catchers
• Pumpkin Painting
• Pumpkin English Muffins (and other Fall-inspired ideas)

Plus, visit our Pumpkin Pinterest board for a whole host of 80+ preschool pumpkin ideas!

Laura Eldredge co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Reading aloud ... the best graduation present!

By Laura Eldredge

 

Ok, let me preface this post by saying ... I have just come off of a 3-day long celebratory weekend.  It was my oldest child's high school graduation AND 18th birthday all rolled into 3 exciting, emotional and proud days!  And maybe not so surprising (though it was to me), it was a time for A LOT of self reflection. 

 

I look at the young man before me as he enters adulthood and the next phase of his life and I think ...

 

"Did I prepare him enough?"

"Did I do too much/too little?"

"Would I have done this or that differently had I known better?"



Preschool Graduation - circa 2000

So I reflect back.  I think back to Kindergarten - his progress report stating, among other things, that he was "quietly distracted" (a.k.a. "a daydreamer") and not focusing.  Sitting down to practice letters or doing math sheets in those lower elementary years were tough.  But I knew he had the capacity to focus -- as his MANY Lego creations could attest.  So we tried different homework settings, attempted to limit distractions and sometimes brought out the dreaded timer. 

 

Do I know if those were the right things to do?  No, I don't know for sure.  But I do know that things started clicking for him by 3rd grade.  His internal drive to want to learn and succeed started to kick in, though he was still my little daydreamer.

 

But in all the time prior to and through elementary school, the one thing I KNOW I did right ... was reading aloud to him (and his siblings).  I can't even say why I knew this was the right thing to do at the time, since he was my first child. I wasn't a preschool teacher then, didn't look up research on it ... it just felt right, and was a calming way to end the day. 

 

So it is reassuring to find out that it WAS the right thing to do for my son.  Reading aloud is instrumental in helping a child achieve long-term learning success.  Reading aloud to young children doesn't "teach them how to read", but rather ... fosters a LOVE of reading to carry them through their life.  I can't think of a better gift to give! 

 

The Read-Aloud Handbook

 

And so it happens that this summer I'm participating with other bloggers in a book study on the importance of reading aloud to children.  I am thrilled with the book that Vanessa Levin at Pre-K Pages chose, which is “The Read-Aloud Handbook: Seventh Edition” by Jim Trelease.  This new edition just came out, and will provide parents, caregivers and teachers with insights on the value of reading aloud, tips on ways to read aloud, and (YAY!) a list of great read aloud books!  What a great gift to give to a new parent or teacher ... or even a seasoned one, as it reaffirms the importance of reading aloud.

 

I have only read the introduction so far ... and I am already excited!  In it, Mr. Trelease quotes a former college admissions director when talking about SAT prep to parents, saying ...

"The best SAT preparation course in the world is to read to your children in bed when they're little.  Eventually, if that's a wonderful experience for them, they'll start to read themselves." ("How to Make a Better Student", Time, October 1998)

You can click on the button above to learn more about the book study.  You can follow along, with or without the book, as the bloggers participating will summarize chapters and provide their own insight and experience.  

 

From Unfocused to College-bound

 

So, how did my "quietly distracted" son fair through his high school years? 

 

[WARNING: Shameless bragging ahead]

 

He is an Eagle Scout, has been on the honor roll all 4 years, member of the National Honor Society, leader on the Robotics team, played the clarinet in honors band, graduated in the top 10% of his class and was recognized as a Distinguished Scholar in the graduation ceremony.  How's that for a daydreamer who can't focus?!

 

With younger sister on Graduation Day

 

 

I take credit for NONE of this ... except for, perhaps ... loving him, supporting him and reading to him!

 

I think back to trying to read the first "Harry Potter" book to him when he was around 6 years old.  I'm sure I'll have many who disagree with me, but I found that to be a difficult book to read aloud to him.  With all the long and difficult to pronounce names ... we both wound up losing interest.  So we put it aside for the time being and read other things.  Working through "Magic Tree House" and "Geronimo Stilton" to name a few.

 

Being so busy in high school unfortunately does not leave enough time for enjoyment reading.  My son has quite the collection of books he would "like to have time to read" over the past 4 years.  He finished up with classes last week and guess what he spent a good part of the week doing?   Reading "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" ... of THIS, I couldn't be more proud!

 

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Here come the trains ... let's book & boogie!

By Laura Eldredge

This month I have another story and music and movement activity to share with you ... and this one is about TRAINS!  Incorporating a music and movement activity with a story can enhance early literacy development in young children.  We have a series of "Book & Boogie" videos, where we bring together story themes with a music and movement dance - and break down some choreographed movements that teachers and parents can use in classrooms or with playgroups. 

Story about Trains

BOOK:  "A Train goes Clickety Clack" by Jonathan London

This easy-to-read, rhyming storybook describes the sounds of and different types of trains.It talks about trains that carry passengers and trains that carry cattle or steel.  The fun and interactive part of the story comes from the sounds that trains make as they “chugga-chugga” or “clickety-clack” down the track.

As you read, be expressive in reading the sounds that trains make, and encourage the children to repeat the sounds themselves.

 

Music and Movement about Trains

SONG:  "Chugga Chugga Choo Choo" - Choo Choo Soul, Choo Choo Soul

This song is lively and upbeat, taking children on a train ride.  In the video, Tressa shows you some simple movements to simulate the movements and sounds of a train.

More online videos are available which provide story ideas, music choices and simple dance choreography can be found on our website, at www.bookandboogie.com.
 

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Ducks in the pond, a book & boogie!

By Laura Eldredge

In a post from October, I talked about how linking a story with a music and movement activity can enhance early literacy development in young children.  I introduced our "Book & Boogie" videos, where we bring together story themes with a music and movement dance - and break down some choreographed movements that teachers and parents can use in classrooms or with playgroups.  This month, in time for Spring, here's a book-song-movement combination about ducks in the pond.

Story about Ducks

BOOK: "This Way Ruby” by Jonathan Emmett

The story we chose for this theme is one of my favorites! "This Way Ruby" is an engaging story of a little duck named Ruby who likes to take things slowly, while her brothers and sisters like to run off in search of adventure.



 
This story lends itself to pause at times, pointing out all the things Ruby sees on the pond adventure she has with her siblings. Get the children involved in the story by having them call out “This way, Ruby!”

Music and Movement about Ducks

SONG:  "The Little White Duck", Miss Lisa, Over in the Meadow

This song describes a duck sitting on a pond, and the other pond creatures she encounters (a frog, bug, snake).  In the video, Tressa shows you some simple movements you can do with your group of children to reenact the song.

More online videos are available which provide story ideas, music choices and simple dance choreography can be found on our website, at www.bookandboogie.com.

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Explore the colors of the rainbow with discovery bottles

By Laura Eldredge

With St. Patrick's Day and Spring right around the corner, many classrooms will focus on fun activities having to do with RAINBOWS!  Let's take an old favorite in the preschool classroom - Discovery Bottles - and do a little color learning and rainbow fun.

Instead of pre-making the discovery bottles for our class to use, a few weeks, we had the children to make discovery bottles for their classroom.   Engaging children in the process of making colorful collage discovery bottles is a good activity for learning colors and a great opportunity to practice sorting.

First, I collected enough clean (and emptied) water bottles for each child. Then I gathered a variety of small collage items - small enough to fit into the opening of a water bottle.

 

When we were ready to sort, I set out pieces of colored construction paper (representing the colors of the collage materials) onto tables.

 

Each child had a small container filled with a selection of the collage items and they went around the room and matched each item to a colored paper. Using the colored construction paper was helpful for our young preschoolers to see if their color matches as they sorted.

After all items have been sorted, each child chose a color and filled a bottle with only items of that color. We talked about the different shades of the colors (i.e.. some items are light blue, some are a darker blue ... but ALL the items are blue).
 
Once filled, we put the caps on and placed them in our science area for future exploration. You can choose to hot glue the caps so the bottles can't be opened again - but you can also choose not to (since there is nothing liquid or messy in them), and allow children to try to empty and refill bottles.

RAINBOW BOTTLES WITH LIQUID

Another option is to make rainbow bottles is to use liquid (this will require more teacher/parent assistance).  First, fill the bottles almost all the way with water. Then add a few drops of food coloring into each bottle so that you have 1 bottle for each color in a rainbow.  As an option, you can also have a little less water and instead add some cooking oil before adding the food coloring (for a different look).

 

 Hot glue the lids onto the bottles, so they won't spill as the children play.   Put the bottles out for children to explore along with some books about colors.

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Painting with snow ... and other snowy fun!

By Laura Eldredge

If you are lucky enough to live somewhere with winter weather – you can bring the outdoor in for a little snow day fun! Painting with (and ON) snow is a fun way to let children explore concepts of color mixing and the scientific properties of snow.

First, we scooped up a small bucket of clean snow and brought it inside (if you scoop your snow before you are ready to use it, then you'll need to keep it in the freezer until you are ready). We put snow into small bowls for children to use while watercolor painting.

Instead of using cups of water -- children wet their paint brushes with the snow. We discussed what snow is made from (water) - and how as the snow gets warmer inside it will start to melt (properties of matter). Using the snow instead of water keeps the brushes from getting TOO wet, and makes the watercolor pictures more vibrant, as well.

Inevitably, as the children cleaned and wet their brushes on the snow, the snow started to turn colorful. So we explored some color mixing in the process. In the end, many children enjoyed painting the snow more than their pictures! So we brought out some bowls and scooped some snow for children to paint on individually.

Other SNOWY activities and art projects

If you search on “snow” in our website (using our Idea Search Tool) … you’ll find a lot of additional fun snowy activities (many requiring materials OTHER THAN snow!).

Such as "Tactile table pretend snow" -- using salt, sugar and glitter!
 

Or "Snow Paint" -- using water, salt, flour, paintbrush and imagination!
 

And "Snow Dough" -- salt, flour, vegetable oil, water and clear glitter!

 
PreK + K sharing SNOWY DAY roundup!

Want more snow-filled, fun and educational ideas?   Here are a couple of other wintery posts from our preK + K sharing blog:

• More snowy activities in preschool 
• Montessori-Inspired Winter Math Activities
• Winter Activities
• Wintertime Fun!

And more ideas can be found on PINTEREST!

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

A little singing, dancing AND learning!

By Laura Eldredge

 A few weeks ago, I had the great opportunity to attend and present at the NAEYC annual conference in Atlanta, GA.  My partner Tressa and I presented a workshop called "Through new eyes: Enhancing preschool literacy experiences" on Thursday morning. 

In our workshop, we combined lecture, discussion, lots of classroom photos and movement activities that provided ideas for incorporating literacy experiences into all classroom early learning centers.  A large part of our presentation talks about how literacy links to movement, and how music and movement activities can enhance language and literacy learning - which we demonstrated by having everyone up and doing a little “Book & Boogie” activity!  (You can learn more about “Book & Boogie" by following the link).


We  had a really FUN group doing some "Book & Boogie" during our presentation!


A little singing, dancing and learning with BOB!

After being presenters ... we had a couple of days to be participants and attend some great workshops.  A frequent presenter at the conference was a childhood favorite of ours ... Mr. Bob McGrath from Sesame Street!  How fun it was to sing songs that I remember from the show (all the words come back to you!). As an early childhood professional, it's interesting to look at all those songs with different eyes ... and how those songs tie into early learning concepts for children.  



Bob McGrath presents at NAEYC in Atlanta.

Very calming and entertaining, Bob McGrath gave a great presentation in Atlanta, despite arriving very late the night before due to the winter storm that hit NY that week. And much to our great delight ... he talked about how all those fun songs from Sesame Street can be used with your preschoolers to extend learning topics that you may already be working on with your children at home or at school.

A "Book & Boogie" in the making

One of our favorite songs that Bob performed was "Everyone Asked About You", which is basically a song version of this book. I love the rhythms in the music and the story that is told through the book and song.

In the story, Nora experiences that feeling of being lonely, which children can relate to. So it opens up an opportunity for discussion with your children ("Why do you think Nora didn't want to come out at first?" "How was she feeling?" "Have you ever felt that way?"). When all the very colorful and vibrant characters come at the end of the story, it's a great celebration!  

The song component really helps to make this a story that the children will remember.  And if we add some movement to it as well ...then it will become an visual, auditory AND kinesthetic language and literacy experience.  I think I feel a new "book & boogie" coming!

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.

Linking literacy with music and movement

By Laura Eldredge

Research shows those of us in early childhood that movement is a young child’s preferred mode of learning – and that children learn best through active involvement.

The same holds true for children's literacy learning. Linking movement activities to story time and other literacy learning gets children more actively involved in the experience.  

When you involve children to physically perform action words (such as jump, march, roll) or descriptive words (like strong, gentle, huge, soft) – the understanding of those words is immediate. The children have heard the word, felt the word and seen the meaning of the word.  And, "the more senses used in the learning process, the higher the percentage of retention" (Fauth, 1990).

"Book & Boogie"

"Book & Boogie" is a children's story time program that we use at local area preschools ... in which we bring together story themes with a music and movement component to go with the stories, which gets children moving and actively learning.

By actively involving children in a story theme with music and movement, it enhances their early literacy development, expands their vocabulary, and helps children to improve gross motor skills and coordination.  When we use music and movement ... the sequencing of movements “accesses many learning modes: visual, auditory, tactile, kinesthetic, rhythmic, vocal, mnemonic (long- and short-term), and creative.” Block (2001, p. 44)

To see how "Book & Boogie" works ... take a peek at the video below:

More online videos are available which provide story ideas, music choices and simple dance choreography that teachers and parents can use with their classroom or playgroup. 

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.


Research credits:
Pica, R., “Linking Literacy and Movement”, www.movingandlearning.com

Block, B.A. (2001). Literacy through movement: An organizational approach. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 72(1), 39-48.

Fauth, B. (1990). Linking the visual arts with drama, movement, and dance for the young child. In W.J. Stinson, (ed.), Moving and learning for the young child(pp. 159-187). Reston VA: American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance.

What we can learn from APPLES!

By Laura Eldredge

My previous post this month talked about learning experiences with farms and apple orchards ... whether you can actually take a field trip, or bring the experience into the classroom.

Let's talk about how the learning can continue as we focus on a teacher's favorite fruit ... APPLES!

APPLE Literacy

Oh, as far as books go ... there are LOTS of great ones to choose from! Here is one selection you can use to teach children about the apple life cycle. The book "How do Apples Grow?" by Betsy Maestro discusses and colorfully illustrates how an apple grows from a bud, to a flower and into a delicious apple.

A couple of other favorites?  How about:

The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall
Up, Up, Up! It's Apple-picking Time by Jody Fickes Shapiro
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman
Johnny Appleseed by Steven Kellogg

APPLE Math

Graphing, estimating, counting, patterning ... young children can use apples to have fun practicing these math concepts.

One fun ideas is to read the book "Ten Apples Up On Top" by Dr.  Seuss.  Then, take a headshot picture of each child and have print them.  Each child can glue the picture of themselves onto a piece of paper, or use the free printable sheet below.

Give each child a collection of multi-colored apple cutouts or stickers. Help children identify a pattern with the colored apples and have them repeat the pattern as they glue the apples on top of their picture.   Finish the project by having the child count how many apples are on top of their head, and writing under each picture “Sarah has 8 apples on top!”

More math favorites?  How about ...



Apple taste test GRAPH

APPLE Science

There are so many ways to explore the concepts of science with apples ... using senses of sight, sound, smell and taste (yum!).  One of my favorite activities (that the children look forward to every year) is learning how apple cider is made from apples. Children can observe and experiment with how apples turn from one form to another (a solid to a liquid). 

We talk about things that we can make to eat from apples (applesauce, pies, etc) -- and how apple juice and apple cider are made differently (apple juice is made from apples that are skinned, cooked and filtered - apple cider is made from whole raw apples that are compressed). 

I cut up different types of apples into slices and put them into the juicer (skin, seeds and all).  The children gather around and watch as the apples are compressed and juice comes out on one side and the skin and apple pulp comes out on the other.  Each child gets to sample - and we talk about how it smells and tastes.

More science favorites? How about ...

Apple observation:  Observe changes to apples when they are cut and exposed to the air.

Make discovery bottles out of seeds:  Cut open different seeded fruits - scoop out and compare the different types of seeds.  All them to dry and put into discovery bottles for further observation experimentation (which are largest, which are loudest, what colors are the seeds, etc).

 

APPLE Round-Up

There are SO many ways to explore apples!  For more apple-inspired ideas, do an "APPLE" search on SEEDS idea search:

Or check out our "APPLE" Pinterest board for ideas from around the web!

Late breaking interruption from the editor. I just had a little roundUP of Apple goodies, including some Apple bulletin boards that would be another series of inspiration on this theme. Click here to go over to RainbowsWithinReach.

RoundUP of Apple Ideas

Laura Eldredge is a teacher and curriculum coordinator at a NAEYC accredited early childhood program in Connecticut. She also co-founded the website The SEEDS Network, as a way to provide early childhood professionals with ideas and resources that support them in their quest to provide quality care and education to our youngest learners. She blogs at www.theseedsblog.com.