FEasT on Books as a Family by Dr. Danny Brassel

As the holidays beckon, many parents will find plenty of extra time with their children at home. Why not make it quality time and cuddle up behind a bunch of great books? My children and I try to “FEasT” on three a day.

            Alright – I’m no fan of teaching acronyms either. Still, I am a huge proponent of simple mnemonic devices constructed to make my life easier. The “FEasT” acronym stands for the types of books I’d like you to read every day during the holidays with your children: a “F”avorite book, an “Eas”y book and a “T”ough book.

            Favorite book. Remember what your favorite book was as a child? Maybe you marveled at the mischief of Curious George or yearned for your grandfather’s reassuring read alouds of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Perhaps you loved it when your mother sat you are on her lap in the family rocking chair and rocked away as you both enjoyed Robert Munsch’s Love You, Forever. All of us had favorite books as children, and I like to encourage parents to especially read these books to their children. You may not know this, but you read these books a little bit differently, and your children will pick up on that.

Additionally, when your children show preference to a particular book, you want to read those books constantly. If your children insist on you reading a chapter from a Harry Potter book, by all means – read that chapter. Have children who delight in the silliness of Captain Underpants? Read away! Almost all parents I have ever met can share a story of a book that annoys them to no end because their children insisted on them reading that book aloud 875 times. Sound familiar? You need to understand that your child is memorizing that book. This is a great confidence booster that will attract your children to read more. That is why easy books are so vital…

            Easy book. This is a book that you read again and again with your children. I have three children: Kate (a third grader), Sean (a first grader) and Samantha (a preschooler…and a handful!). While Kate and Sean may act cool in front of their baby sister, it never ceases to amaze me how transfixed they will become as Samantha enjoys Sesame Street on television or brings me her favorite Humpty Dumpty-shaped treasury of nursery rhymes for me to read to her. Easy books build confident readers. Even though Kate is a pretty good reader in her own right – reading plenty of chapter books about Judy Moody and Magic Treehouse sleuths Jack and Annie – she still delights in any of our endless collection of titles featuring The Berenstain Bears and Arthur. And Sean marvels almost as much as me at the true genius of Dr. Seuss, who manages to always include meaningful messages embedded in rhyming confidence-builders designed to interest anyone in reading by making all audiences view themselves as bonafide readers.

            Tough book. When I work with teachers, I usually point out that this is the greatest failure I most frequently see in schools. I bet just about every first grader in America saw the movie Pirates of the Caribbean, and I bet you all of those first graders understand the movie. I also bet that most of those first graders would not be able to read the script. Our listening comprehension significantly outpaces our reading comprehension at a young age. Thus, parent read alouds are vital.

            While I love that schools across the country celebrate Dr. Seuss Day every March, I am incessantly annoyed to see so many adult volunteers go to classrooms to read aloud Dr. Seuss books. Have you ever noticed that in the upper right-hand corner of many Dr. Seuss books there is a Cat in the Hat with the slogan “I Can Read It All By Myself” arched around it? That statement is meant as a reaffirming message for children, not adults. Kids can read Dr. Seuss books! They cannot read more complicated, “wordier” texts. So why not pick out more challenging texts with topics that will intrigue your child? My father was a history major in college, and he passed down his passion for history to me by reading me stories about explorers, our Founding Fathers, astronauts and an array of other figures. Parents have a responsibility to pass along this wisdom.

            So, the children have vacation from school. Mom and Dad have extra time off from work. The malls are packed, the freeways are parking lots and nothing decent seems to be on any of your 357 television channels. Why not spend this holiday season by visiting your local library, bookstore or even your personal home collection of books? Wouldn't it be great if more folks would choose to pig out on something that will boost their children’s intellect rather than their waistlines? “FEasT” on three books a day with your children during the holidays, and you can inspire your family to become a household of readers.

  

Danny Brassell, Ph.D., is “America’s Leading Reading Ambassador,” helping parents and educators inspire kids to love reading and achieve more. He is the author of eleven books, including his top-selling Secrets for Successful Readers. A father of three and professor in the Teacher Education Department at California State University-Dominguez Hills, he is the founder of The Lazy Readers’ Book Club, www.lazyreaders.com, Google’s #1-ranked site for cool, “short book recommendations” for all ages. Watch video tips and learn more from Danny at www.dannybrassell.com, and check out his TEDx-Village Gate talk The Reading Makeover next month.

Turkeys with Geometric Shaped Feathers

Gobble, Gobble our turkeys have geometric shape feathers!

Students painted paper prior to starting the lesson.

Week One:  Creating shapes  

We read the book in art class

 When a Line Bends... A Shape Begins. 

written by Rhonda Gowler Green

This book is so fun and gives many examples of various shapes for inspiration for students to create projects.

After the students created their shapes they traced the shape on the back side of 3 different colored strips of painted paper.

Next, students laid out the shapes and glued them onto the background paper to represent the turkey's feathers.

 Lastly, students created the body and details of the turkey- eyes, beak, claws etc.

We also read this poem about Thanksgiving

All in a word

Aileen Fisher

T-for time to be together,turkey, talk and tangy weather,

H-for harvest stored away, home and hearth and holiday

A-for autumns' frosty art and abundance in the heart

N-for Neighbors, and November nice thing new things to remember.

K-for kitchen, kettles' croon, kith and kin expected soon

S-for sizzles, sights and sounds, and something special that abounds

   

  That spells Thanks -

for joy in living and a jolly good Thanksgiving

Materials
Tempera Paint
Construction Paper
Markers
Glue
Scissors
Pencils

Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Laura

Laura is an elementary art teacher and the author of the blog Painted Paper. She has presented her thematic units nationally at the National Art Education Association and Ohio Art Education Association Conferences. You can follow her updates on fun and creative projects for kids here.

Team Motivator

Hello All, My name is Shannon Harris. I have been involved in childcare for the last 23 years and now own my own center, ABC Academy LLC in Montgomery --www.abcmontgomery.com, ---Texas with approximately 230 children currently enrolled. I met Debbie Clement in Las Vegas and was immediately captivated by her and knew this was energy I wanted in my life. Debbie recently came to our area to conduct a full day “Lyrics to Literacy” training and we had some down time to visit. Debbie shared some of her ideas with me. I told her I loved her blog and would hope to see more management and infant blog post (I feel there is just not enough out there on those two topics). She invited me to write for her blog once a month, so, here I am!

So, this is it - my first EVER Blog POST… I have built my business by looking for “out of the box” ideas in every aspect of our center and team. We have recently started a new TEAM MOTIVATOR at our center. The idea behind it is that praise gets positive results. I believe that when the praise comes from peers and management it just makes for a happier center. So, how do we accomplish this? Well, I went and bought each classroom a cheap container, with a lid to avoid spills and little hands getting in the container; bought some small marshmallows…cheap, $1 a BIG bag at the dollar store … considered M&M’s but wow they are expensive (candy corn/seasonal candies and peanuts are good ideas too)!  Then made little baggies with the teacher’s names, a sticky to tally where they hand out the treats, and filled each baggie with 50 treats each. Then handed them out with this little note…

 

We are excited to announce our first Team Motivator – be the first to have your container filled from OTHER staff members outside your classroom for them seeing something wonderful being done in your classroom, on the playground, transitioning, helping others, etc.  – Administration will add to your containers too!  Winner gets an hour on the clock to go do whatever they like while Administration runs your classroom!!

Each staff member will be given a “baggie” of 50 items to use to fill other classroom containers.  You put 1 item in a classroom container each time you see them doing something wonderful!  Write down the class that you complimented with your item!    Classroom containers will be picked up at RANDOM!  There is no “cut-off” date or “due” date.  Items in containers will be counted and the winning teachers in that classroom will each get a “Get Out Of Your Classroom – 1 Hour Pass” from Administration! 

I decided to have them quickly tally which class they gave it to so that we could ensure they were not playing favorites and always giving to their “favorite” teacher. We really wanted it to be about building up each other and to get them to compliment some classes they may not otherwise take the time to do.

For an extra little twist, we gave Management Candy Corns to pass out and teachers Marshmallows so they could see the difference in their containers.

I am excited about writing this blog post monthly and hope you all find some value in seeing some administrative and infant content.

Please follow me on Pinterest: Shannon Harris

 

Until next time,

Shannon

LET'S TALK (and SING) "TURKEY!"

Gobble! Gobble! Gobble!

       Miss Carole’s thinking TURKEY!!! 

    With just a week to go, it's not too late for fowl songs and movement opportunities!  

• What could we eat for the dinner?  
• What does a turkey say?  
• Where’s the turkey hiding?  
• What are the turkey parts?  

   Let’s have fun with one of my favorite holidays.

    First, let’s identify the turkey parts:  tail feathers, wing, head, beak and wattle (that’s the flap of skin that hangs from above the beak downward.)  Use a picture.  And what does a turkey say?  Sure, gobble gobble is the most popular – but listen to how real turkeys sound. 

    To practice making that sound, relax all your lower facial muscles, shake your head vigorously and make a guttural sound, letting your lips just flap.  Keep practicing – it’s pretty funny!  Kids love it!

    Now let’s get our little turkeys on their feet!

                                                                      ONE FAT TURKEY SAYS…  (spoken)

the Turkey Huddle!

One fat turkey says gobble gobble gobble!

Two fat turkeys say gobble gobble gobble!

Three fat turkeys say gobble gobble gobble

And they gobble gobble all the way home!

WHAT TO DO: Start with all children standing around the perimeter of the room. For each of the first 3 lines, hold up the appropriate number of fingers, then flap your turkey wings while taking small steps toward the center of the room. Once everyone is crowded in the center, STOP, say the 4^th line.  Then everyone turns outward and waddles back to the edges of the room!  
Do it AGAIN!  Preschoolers and Toddlers love this simple activity! We're counting, we cooperating, and we're having fun!   Couple it with the next song:

The Turkey Hop – find this on my HUM: Highly Usable Music cd

Do the turkey hop!  Hop, Hop, Hop!             

Do the turkey run!  Run, run, run!

Do the turkey gobble: gobble, gobble, gobble

It is lots of fun:  gobble, gobble, gobble!

Now flap your wings!  Flap, flap, flap!

Like the turkeys do!  Flap, flap, flap!

Then hide from the farmer, before he catches you!

WHAT TO DO:  Hop, then run in place.  To  gobble, put your pointer finger on your chin, letting your forearm hang down to make a wattle (see top picture). Sway your upper body back and forth.  Flap your wings (bent at the elbow as in the picture).  Then cover your eyes and scootch down to hide from the farmer. 
     Remember, kids think if they can’t see you, you can’t see them!  Repeat!

     I have to admit, this is one of my favorite songs!  We've even done the Turkey Hop as a pre-dinner, work-up-an-appetite-dance at our family feast!

THANKSGIVING’S COMING

Tune: “Going on a Picnic” by Lynn Freeman Olson

The original is on my “HUM: Highly Usable Music” cd, but you may have heard the Raffi version?  The lyrics here are mine:

Thanksgiving’s coming, gonna have a feast!

Family ‘round the table, what shall we eat?

Will we have some turkey?

KIDS REPLY:  Yes, we’ll have some turkey!

Thanksgiving’s coming, yum yum yum!

 

WHAT TO DO:  First, teach the children their singing parts:  the reply and the last line.

This is a zipper song – just zip in a new food and sing it again.  Cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pie – whatever the children suggest.  
See the reaction pictured when I got silly and after their reply I sang, “mashed potatoes with chocolate sauce…!”  Just keeping them on their toes.  Pumpkin pie with mustard got similar response!

And finally, a flannelboard song – yes, I LOVE flannelboards.  See my June 2012 blog for the skinny on making a flannelboard.  For the house pattern, go to the Song of the Month page on my website for “Little Mouse,Little Mouse” – and make a turkey to hide!

TURKEY, TURKEY COME OUT AND PLAY!

tune:  Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Turkey, Turkey come out and play

What color house are you in today?

WHAT TO DO:  Make the houses and turkey from felt.  A pattern can be found here.  Place 4 or more houses on a flannelboard.  Ask children to close their eyes.  While everyone sings the song, turn the flannelboard to face you, hide the turkey and turn it back to face the children.  Encourage good classroom manners by asking children to raise their hand to be called on to guess which house is hiding the turkey.  I like to play until every child has had a chance to guess.

    Feeling over-stuffed?  If you have room for one more, do The Turkey Pokey!  
Just substitute turkey parts for the usual hand, foot, etc in The Hokey Pokey.  Wing (elbow), tail feathers (bottom), drumstick (leg), beak (mouth) and the whole turkey!  Do the Turkey Pokey and you turn yourself about, and the turkeys all say gob gob gobble!

                        HAPPY THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!

    I am thankful for your continued interest in this blog, my work, and making children’s lives more music-filled!

Yours for a Gobble!           

“Miss Carole” Stephens
Macaroni Soup!

Montessori-Inspired Thanksgiving Math Activities

By Deb Chitwood from Living Montessori Now

Thanksgiving has always been one of my family's favorite holidays. Today, I'm sharing ideas for Montessori-inspired math activities to go along with some wonderful free Thanksgiving printables I found online. 

The hands-on activities are for preschoolers through first graders. I have too many activities here to share presentation ideas without having a post that's way too long. So check out my previous posts at PreK + K Sharing for presentation ideas.

The printables I'm using are from Homeschool Creations, A Teaching Mommy, and 3 Dinosaurs. 

You'll find many more links to both printables and activities of all kinds at the end of the post.

Top the Pie Activity

This activity uses the Thanksgiving Printables ~ Kindergarten from Homeschool Creations. There are pictures of whipped cream that you can use. There's also the suggestion to use cotton balls for the whipped cream. Since I like to use 3-dimensional objects whenever possible, I used cotton balls for the whipped cream. The tray is an inexpensive wooden tray from the hobby store.

Thanksgiving Count and Clip Cards 

This activity uses the Thanksgiving Printables ~ Kindergarten from Homeschool Creations. This tray was very simple to prepare. I used a medium-size tray from Montessori Services, which is very handy and more difficult to find locally than larger trays. I just printed out the cards, laminated them, and cut them out. If your activity will have heavy use, be sure to cut out your cards before laminating and leave a laminate edge. I found these cute autumn leaf clothespins on sale at Michaels hobby store.

To follow Montessori principles perfectly, it would be best for the clothespins to be all one color so that only the number of objects changes (Montessori principle of isolation of quality). But the clothespins were just too cute in the three colors, so I used them as is. If you have a child who would be confused by that, you can always use plain clothespins or even leaf clothespins all in one color. I use a ¼” round color coding label in the color of the tray on the back of each card to correlate with the correct position of the clothespin. This serves as a control of error (instant self-correction devise).

Thanksgiving Story Timeline Activity 

This activity is a mixture of math and history. It uses the Thanksgiving Timeline printable from A Teaching Mommy. I recommend adding a book of the Thanksgiving story on the tray or nearby on the shelf. You could use any numbers you have available. In addition to using the timeline cards, I added foam numbers from the hobby store to make an activity placing the timeline pictures in order with the numbers below the pictures. You could talk about what happens 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so on. 

Thanksgiving Say and Clap Activity 

This activity is both a math and language activity and uses the Thanksgiving Printables ~ Kindergarten from Homeschool Creations. I would typically introduce an activity like this at circle time so that the children can begin to understand the concept of clapping and counting the syllables in words.

Thanksgiving Greater Than, Less Than Activity 

 

The Thanksgiving greater than, less than activity uses one of the MANY printables from 3 Dinosaur's Thanksgiving Pack. This greater than and less than activity actually involved food, so I couldn't resist the idea of using the greater than alligator and less than alligator from my Greater Than Less Than Alligator Math at PreK + K Sharing. You'll find directions for making the alligator manipulatives in my earlier PreK + K Sharing post.

Thanksgiving Fraction Activity

This fraction activity uses the Thanksgiving Printables ~ Kindergarten from Homeschool Creations. I just printed out, laminated, and cut out the materials and added them to a medium tray from Montessori Services.

Pilgrim Hat Hundred Chart Art

I love hundred chart art as an extension for the Montessori hundred board. This is another activity from 3 Dinosaur's Thanksgiving Pack. I added a sugar tong for a practical life activity as well along with brown and black glass gems.

More Montessori-Inspired Thanksgiving Activities and Free Printables

You'll find lots of Montessori-inspired Thanksgiving activities and ideas in these posts at Living Montessori Now: Montessori-Inspired Gratitude Activities, How to Help Your Child Feel Comfortable Greeting Relatives, Table Setting, How to Teach Your Child Table Manners for Holiday Gatherings, Homeschool Thanksgiving, Activity of the Week – Montessori Thanksgiving Noun Sorting Work, Montessori-Inspired Corn Unit, Montessori-Inspired Thanksgiving Activities, and Kids in the Kitchen on Thanksgiving

I have a Kids' Thanksgiving Activities Pinterest Board with Thanksgiving activities of all kinds and for many ages. 

I have a list of Free Thanksgiving Printables at Living Montessori Now.

Have a happy holiday season! :)

Deb Chitwood is a certified Montessori teacher with a master’s degree in Early Childhood Studies from Sheffield Hallam University in Sheffield, England. Deb taught in Montessori schools in Iowa and Arizona before becoming owner/director/teacher of her own Montessori school in South Dakota. Later, she homeschooled her two children through high school. Deb is now a Montessori writer who lives in Colorado Springs with her husband of 37 years and their cat of 11 years. She blogs at Living Montessori Now. 

Linked to Tuesday Tots, The Mommy Club Resources and Solutions at Milk and Cuddles and Crystal & Co. , Enchanted Thursdays Blog Hop, The Weekly Kid’s Co-op, Living Life Intentionally Linky Party, Preschool Corner, Learn & Link,  Saturday Show & Tell, Show-and-Share Saturday, The Sunday Showcase, Link & Learn, and Afterschool Express.

When A Young Child Interrupts

There is something magical about the moment you get on the telephone, a visitor arrives, or you sit down for a moment to watch something on television — your children mysteriously emerge from the woodwork and want your attention.  It seems as if you can’t get just five minutes by yourself; the kids are knocking at your bedroom door, asking you questions, or complaining about a sibling.

The problem is attention; they need more of it and they don’t like it when something or someone is competing for what belongs to them.  In some respects, children have this sense that there is only so much of “you” to go around so they have to get all they can of your time and attention before someone else does.  But as in all other parenting situations that require a plan, there are things you can do that are considered preventive steps for avoiding this problem, and things you can do that are fire fighting steps for when it flares up.   

To begin teaching your child that she can’t walk up to you and immediately gain your attention during a telephone call, here is a preventive technique that I used as a parent and teach in my parenting class using role-play.  Wait for a time when you know your child is in a good mood and open to learning.  Getting to her eye level, lay down a firm and respectful boundary by explaining to her you will not interrupt your telephone call to speak to her when she wants your attention.  

Help her understand that speaking on the telephone is important and you must give all your attention to the caller.  Using a passionate tone of voice, tell her that you need her help each time the phone rings by going off to play with something special while you’re busy on the phone, and until you hang up.  Then, when the call has ended, you can give her attention again.  Ask her to help you come up with an activity or a special toy she will play with when the phone rings or when she hears you speaking to someone on the phone.  

If you want to invest the time, money, and energy into this solution, you could even take her shopping and allow her to pick out a special toy that will only be played with when you are on a telephone call.  Whatever you decide to do, your child needs to clearly understand what her role is when you get on the telephone.  Your child isn't the only one with special behavior instructions for the call.  You must be prepared to maintain your new boundary with three specific behaviors: Do not make eye contact with her, do not respond to her by speaking, and demonstrate affection in some fashion that will help her feel loved.  

Notice that I do not intend that you ignore her, but to simply direct all your attention to the caller while connecting with her through your touch.  This can include putting your arm around her, allowing her on your lap, stroking her hair, rubbing her back, or some simple contact such as placing your hand on her shoulder or arm.  This sequence of actions sends the message to your child that your boundary is firm but you still love her anyway.  The result will be that she feels loved and will eventually wander away, bored by waiting for her turn with your attention.

The next step is to engage her in role-play so she can see what your new boundary will look like.  Explain to her that when you get on the telephone and she begins to speak to you, you will not look at or speak to her.  Giving her this information in advance will prepare her for seeing it in action.  Once you have prepared her with her special “telephone” activity, tell her that the two of you are going to play "make believe" with a telephone call.  You may even engage a neighbor or friend to call you back so you can have a real call for practice.  When the phone rings, get your child excited about her new role and begin the role-play.  She will most likely be enthused over her new activity but may also approach you to get your attention or to test you.  Maintain your three behaviors until the call has ended.


When my children were small and this process was new for them, they each tried to get me to break my concentration on the call in their own way.  In the beginning, some of their behaviors were a genuine challenge.  My middle daughter learned that I wasn't going to respond so she would pick up the extension telephone and join in on the conversation.  My oldest daughter would find a way to engage the other two in mischief to see if it would get me off the phone.  And my youngest, my son, would drive his small die-cast cars all over my body to distract me as I was talking.  

Implementing these new behaviors require your patience and plenty of practice.  I suggest doing one of these role-plays once every day until you get more comfortable with it.  Be sure to give your child huge accolades when she goes to the activity and leaves you alone.  From this activity and your strength in following through every time the phone rings, your child will learn to be more patient and she will also learn to recognize and respect the boundaries of others.  She will also begin to learn how to implement her own personal boundaries.

What I’ve described here is preventive discipline and requires putting your energy and creativity into setting up a learning model in advance.  It is also done using preparation, fun, play and practice.  The only fire fighting discipline that is required is to implement the action plan every time the phone rings.  You can then take this model and implement it in other situations such as when visitors arrive, when you are speaking to the other parent, reading, or even watching television.

Know someone raising older children who can use help?  Tell them about my new audio download from one of my latest lectures to parents of tweens and teens by CLICKING HERE.

Bill Corbett is the author of the award-winning parenting book series, LOVE, LIMITS, & LESSONS: A PARENT'S GUIDE TO RAISING COOPERATIVE KIDS (in English and in Spanish) and the executive producer and host of the public access television show CREATING COOPERATIVE KIDS (http://www.CooperativeKids.com). As a member of the American Psychological Association and the North American Society for Adlerian Psychology, Bill provides parent coaching and keynote presentations to parent and professional audiences across the country. He sits on the board of the Network Against Domestic Abuse, the Resource Advisory Committee for Attachment Parenting International, and the management team of the Springfield Parent Academy. Bill's practical experience comes as a father of 3 grown children, a grandfather of two, and a stepdad to three.  You can learn more about his work at http://www.BillCorbett.com and http://www.StopTheTantrums.com.

Let's Talk Turkey!

Let’s talk turkey! It doesn't matter what grade you teach, there are many lessons that involve this funny bird. To start my lesson, I draw a turkey on a piece of art paper.  

Then, I let my kindergartners color it. This activity is good for students’ fine motor skills, and they take ownership of the project if they help create it.

What else can be done with this big bird? Use different colored sticky notes and label them with: colors, body parts, facts about turkeys, etc. The possibilities are endless! Large Thanksgiving pictures can be turned into interactive writing charts. For example, a Native American Indian, a teepee, and a pilgrim can be used to write about cultures, lifestyles, settings, and symbolism throughout your Thanksgiving unit.

Another holiday learning activity students enjoy the week before Thanksgiving break is to read aloud Monster Sandwich by Joy Cowley. Create a chart of items students want to place on their Monster Sandwich. Then, have students sign up to bring goodies for a “Thanksgiving Feast” to build a Monster Sandwich. 

Make sure students have jobs, such as cutting tomatoes, handing out plates, seating guests… Finally, feast as a group! I never thought I would share a six foot sandwich layered with cucumbers and a side of Cheetos, but my students loved this activity. 

The project is a great way to make a connection with the text while learning about pilgrims and Native American Indians. 

These Thanksgiving holiday learning activities will have your students using higher level thinking skills. Remember to give your students opportunities to expand on what they have learned and to apply concepts to real life for lasting connections. Students will be THANKFUL for your contributions to interactive learning!

Happy Thanksgiving! 

(original article posted here: http://kreativeinkinder.blogspot.com/2011/11/turkey-is-funny-bird.html)