Sunflower Poem and Dance Story for Young Children

                                           HELLO, FALL!    

    

My September post is a lively movement activity that celebrates autumn. The sunflower is one of my favorite flowers, and it provides the inspiration for this poem/riddle and a movement exploration.

 

            THE SUNFLOWER

        A Dance Activity for Young Children

To begin the activity, read the poem* below out loud, and ask the children to try to guess the answer. 

(*I wrote this poem as an entry in the Fall Writing Frenzy) 

             WHAT AM I?

I started as a little seed, 

Dark grey and very small.

And now that I am all grown up,

I’m over six feet tall!

The petals on my flower face,

Surround me like a crown.

I come in many hues and shades, 

Of yellow, red, and brown.

I start the day by looking east,

To greet the morning sun.

I follow it and face the west,

When summer’s day is done.

Some birds just love to eat my seeds, 

And people like them too.

I think you know my name by now, 

For each line is a clue!

SUNFLOWER DANCE STORY

Prepare: Children start this activity curled up on the floor and then respond with movement as you call out each line. Give them plenty of time between each prompt so that they can fulfill their movement ideas.

Optional: Quiet instrumental music in the background.

Begin the activity:

I’m a tiny, tiny seed.

A child planted me on a warm spring day.

I’m tucked down deep in the dark, rich soil.

Now it’s time to begin to grow.

I gently push against the sides of the seed shell.

I begin to sprout and reach through the soil.

Now I can see the blue summer sky.

I feel the warm sun and the cool rain.

I’m growing taller every day.

I’m starting to become a flower.

My petals surround my face like little flames.

I open my bright golden face to the sun.

I follow the sun as it moves through the sky each day.

All summer, bees and butterflies come to drink my nectar.

My heavy sunflower head begins to droop and nod.

Fall is here and my leaves are fading.

Birds like to eat my seeds.

The morning frost causes me to droop even more.

Winter is coming and I slowly fall to the ground.

The cold wind blows. 

My seeds scatter.

Snowflakes fall and cover the seeds.

I wait until springtime to sprout again.

Expand the Activity:

Use this same format for dancing about other types of plants, and other nature themes, such as the metamorphosis of a tadpole to a frog, and a caterpillar to a butterfly. 

Keep on Dancing, 

Connie

MOVING IS LEARNING!

                                    

                        

Singing and Dancing Back To School!

Everybody clap your hands!

It feels good to be back to school:  familiar routines, new little friends AND the joy of introducing them to my musical world!  I’m Miss Carole of Macaroni Soup –Active Music for Active Learners!

The start of a new school year is exciting for some children, scary for others.  It takes all our best teaching techniques, patience and empathy to get everyone moving forward positively.  Moving – that’s the operative word for this month’s blog!

Stamp your feet!

Music & Movement can be the perfect distraction for children to forget their worries and join in.  Or not – some may watch at first.  It’s been my experience that if I wait, give them an encouraging nod and smile, wait some more – they DO get the confidence to get up and move.

I start with a Welcome/Hello song.  Then do a zipper song with sitting movements (“Sticky Bubble Gum” is always a big hit!)  Then – LET’S GET DANCING!

Jump up high!

Here’s one of my favorites: “Everybody Clap Your Hands!”  I learned it from the legendry Ella Jenkins.  She doesn’t claim to have written it – “It’s just an old, old song,” she told me.  But it’s transformative – no child can resist it!  There’s nothing really to teach – just follow the instructions built into the song.

 

NOTE:  Be sure you do the song, too!  Model participatory behavior.  Hear the song clip HERE.  It's track #4.

LYRICS:     Everybody clap your hands

                 Everybody clap your hand

                 Everybody, come on and clap your hands!

Turn real slow!

V.2   Stamp your feet!

V.3   Jump up high!

V.4   Turn real slow.

V.5   Wiggle around!

V.6   Clap and stamp! (2 things at the        same time!)

V.7   Clap, stamp & turn (3 things!)

V.8   Sing – with your tongue sticking out (4 things!):

        "Everybody sing along!"

Sing...with your tongue sticking out like this!

Put your tongue back in!

Yup – it gets really silly at the end with tongues wagging as you sing, clap, stamp and turn around!  That’s the fun of it – and school should be FUN!

NOTE:  Take a second to have everyone put their tongues back in – tap your fingers to your lips.  It’ll make everyone smile!

Need a Welcome/Hello song?  More starter movement songs?  

Check out my blogs:

December 2016:  Welcome/Bienvenidos!

August 2013:  Sing Your Way Through the First Week of School

August 2014:  Start School Singing: Week 2!

August 2016:  Back to School Singing!

March 2016:  Thumbs up for “Singing in the Rain!”

OR go to the archive on my website’s
Song Of The Month page for:

August 2011:  “Hello Everybody, How Do You Do?”

January 2011:  “We Like to Say Hello!”

August 2007:   "Sticky Bubble Gum"

November 2006:  “The Wiggle Song!”

And finally – I am sorry to have been absent from PreK and K Sharing for so many months.  The surgical repair of my hip’s labrum meant changing priorities in order to meet classroom, concert and professional development commitments.  But I’m back – almost 100%!  Please contact me if you’d like me to come to your school, library, church or conference.  I’m in Chicago, but I travel all over the world to bring developmentally appropriate music & movement to those who work with young children!

Yours for a Song!

“Miss Carole” Stephens

Macaroni Soup – Active Music forActive Learners!
 carole@macaronisoup.com

Summer: Freebies, Opportunities + Fresh AIR!

JUNE! SUMMER! VACATION! TRAVEL! REFLECTION! PLANNING!

Have you started your official summer? Have you crossed the finish line? Are you on the final count down? How do you go about reflection for the year just concluding? When do you start your planning for the year ahead? 

By all means where ever you are on the continuum I am here to congratulate all of your hard work, effort, enthusiasm and the progress your students made under your direction. Teaching young children is filled with hilarity and stress.... walking the tight rope between the two is what makes for a healthy and lengthy career. 

I had the great good fortune to make four author-illustrator school visits last week, in four different school districts. It is always so great to get into classrooms and see the fun that has been unfolding. 

In the photo above we are comparing my original art (quilt-of-fabric) to the printed version in my first picture book, "You're Wonderful." 

It is always fascinating to give the students the opportunity to ask questions of me as an author. Certainly one of the most intriguing questions of the week......... 

"Do you have an electric stove?"

That is definitely the first time that anyone has ever asked me that one!  

I was thrilled to see our Wobble Seats in 'action' in the classroom. The feedback is amazing. Everyone understands how much they contribute to learning, just by seeing them. For some children they are THE answer. The reality is that it comes down to budget. 

***We take purchase orders and offer quantity discounts.

One of my favorite things about being connected to our #TeacherFriends on the internet, is seeing such amazing projects. I am especially appreciative of works that are created in collaboration. Take a look at this amazing work created by Suzanne Turner's Kinder kids in Virginia! 

Click on the picture for a jump over to the blog with a further explanation of mural work. 

This work deserves display in an art gallery! 

Just earlier today we arrived to our annual sweet-summer spot and we have now appreciated our first sunset of the season. I can officially exhale. 

My GREAT, good news is that I have received word from Zaner-Bloser that they are going to fly me out to Vegas for "I Teach K" where I will present a 'Lunch and Learn' on Monday..... IN THE BALLROOM! 

And here's the pretty amazing part.... all of the participants to respond ahead of time will be given a box lunch for attending! So there is a free lunch after all! If you're planning to be in Vegas, I hope that you can add us into your agenda. Watch your inbox for the specifics. You will be receiving an email with details. 

I will then fly from Vegas to Dallas for Frog Street Press annual SPLASH conference. 

I combed the interwebs over at Teachers Pay Teachers for some summer-time freebies to support and encourage you. 

Once Upon a Time, SPRING FREEBIES + Frog Street SPLASH!

Once upon a time, a seed was planted. It grew. It flourished. It bloomed! 

Welcome to April! Welcome to SPRING! Debbie Clement, editor-in-chief reporting.

Twenty-one years ago, I was an administrator at a private preschool for young children with special needs in Columbus, Ohio. I was in charge of designing a day of professional development for our staff. One of my peers suggested that I bring Jim Gill to inspire our team. I had never heard him speak. I called him. He came. He was amazing. 

Jim had us singing and dancing. We laughed. We cried. I was indeed inspired. Jim changed my life. For!ev!er!

I wanted to be like Jim when I grew up. I wanted to sing and dance and inspire. So without a whole lot of consideration, very soon after his day with us, I wrote my letter of resignation. I finished out the last couple of months on my contract and I walked away from all that was familiar. I walked away from health insurance, snow days and a retirement account for the unknowns of contribution, adventure and creativity. 

One day of professional development and my life changed forever. Twenty-one years ago. Fast forward a couple of decades. 

One of the very first presenters to welcome me to the 'circuit' (after Jim) is a fellow Hoosier, Mary Jo Huff. Over the years we have become not just cheerleaders of one another's work but also of one another's family. 

NOW! Take another look at the Frog Street list of presenters for the "Make-It, Take-It" portion of their upcoming pre-conference day! This is literally my professional dream team, a dream come true for me. Truly some of my very favorite people in the field.... gathered together in the same Super Hero galaxy. 

Just imagine. How might your professional life be changed by attendance at an invigorating conference this summer? Where might YOU be in twenty years? I invite you to take a closer look at the conference playbook. Dream BIG. Plant some seeds. JOIN US! 

Take a photo of each of your students. Plant some seeds! 

As I make my author-illustrator school visits across the country, I get to see variations on the same concept. Here's a perfectly exciting spring science experiment. 

See how much more FUN can be had watching the grass seeds sprout as 'hair.' 

Here's another subtlety for this project, that allows the students to be able to see ALL of the roots as they grow and fill the plastic cup..... yet have the fun photo faces! 

Then there's always this classic chestnut. I remember my own Lima bean in paper towel experiment as a child. Some concepts never go out of style. 

I have an entire ROUND-UP of Spring Arts and Crafts over at my blog. 

EARTH DAY! This earlier article may be my very best, favorite hands on Artist Residency day of fun in preschool that I have ever designed. One pool noodle. Lots of tissue paper. Many hands. 

Some FREEBIES! Click the image + go download.
Proper etiquette has you leave a sweet comment.  





























We have had a week filled with hugs and movement. 
My grand niece and nephew (and their parents) spent some quality time with us. 

This is what an 18 month old and a 29 month old look like on our Wobble Seats. 

In answer to your question: 
"No. They never fell off." 
Not even the 18 month old, whose toes didn't actually reach the floor.

We distribute the Wobble Seats at WobbleSeat.com and can accept your purchase orders and we also offer quantity discounts.